On a recent foray into the Atlanta area, Commander Todd took time out from battle to deliver a PSA chock full of zombie killing tips. Pay close attention troops, Tony has come face-to-face with the shambling hordes and he knows exactly what it takes to survive.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an uncontrollable craving for candy I need to address….
The first time your Commander-in-Chief encountered Sam Trammell in person, I really wasn’t sure how much a man known for battling with vampires, witches and werewolves would know about battling the shambling hordes. I found myself immediately and deeply impressed not only by Sam’s kind nature but his razor-sharp strategy instincts.
During subsequent meetings, Sam turned the tables on my attempts to assess his command credentials and instead, I found myself searching for answers to some pretty tough questions about disaster preparedness, response plans and the kind of survival tactics we in ZSC Command advocate.
Sam’s experience with supernatural forces and the vampires of the True Blood universe is already being put to use within ZSC Command to enhance our collective preparations for the onset of the zombieapocalpyse or any other global cataclysmic event.
Zombie Survival Crew – please raise your weapons and welcome our newest commander SAM TRAMMELL!!!!
The event was bound to be crawling with UGA agents and others out to gather information on Zombie Survival Crew command, but when the call came through there was no doubt your Commander-in-Chief would attend.
The gauntlet of bright lights made it hard to keep track of the action, but I managed to catch some shots of Laurie Holden, Steve Yeun, Jeffrey DeMunn and other cast members before settling in for the much anticipated opening episode.
Now you’re not going to get any spoilers from me, so don’t even try…unless you happen to have a million bucks lying around and then maybe we can talk.
But I will say it was not what I was expecting – which is a good thing – and I almost tossed my complimentary popcorn onto the poor souls in front of me a couple of times – which is a great thing. And every time I thought “oh, there’s the ‘gotcha’ moment, thanks, let’s move on,” another one was around the corner, and it just got better and better. That’s not to say there aren’t some extremely telling character development moments that will shake viewers and touch their greatest fears, because…oof, The Walking Dead isn’t pulling any punches.
The opening episode will keep fans guessing and off-balance, confused and screaming (literally) for more. I could have sat there all night watching the entire season.
If you want to hear more than I’m willing to divulge, take a look at some of the production and cast interviews on the red carpet here.
Instead, I stumbled off, still nauseous from the viewing, to the after event where IronE snapped this picture with Steve Yeun that is just too cute for words. Him, not me. What a sweet, articulate, engaging young man he is….kind of reminds of Glen, actually.
ZSC Command not only survived the night, but came away from it having discussed future missions and creating updated strategies. Green brigade Commander IronE Singleton prepped a special mission for the Green Brigade and has the undying gratitude of ZSC Command in its entirety for his commitment to helping us all prepare for the onset of a zombiepocalypse.
After a semi-hostile takeover bid, and nearly being run down, you would think your Zombie Survival Crew Commander-in-Chief would know better than to ask Yellow Brigade First Lieutenant Sean Patrick Flanery for battle technique sessions.
Well, he is an expert in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu so it should hardly be any surprise that this PSA from Sean almost knocked me down.
As you know, we had one of you formulate a rescue plan to extricate Anthony and Juliette from the containment facility where they were being held. Anthony led the charge to rescue our Fearless Leader and fell prey to the unnamed government agency. It wasn’t what we planned, but when Anthony tried to rally the troops in this video, he was captured. The rescue attempt wasn’t an easy job by any means, but we (the crew) did manage to get our captain and co-captain to a certain point using @Wulfie_‘s plan. Unfortunately, some casualties took place during the attempt . . .
We’d sent in crews equipped with small cameras so the other co-captains, first lieutenants and I could keep track of the situation. I retrieved this satellite transmission Zulu 1032 during my shift in the Command Center in the midst of my ZSC tweet-a-thon.
As far as we know, they’re not out yet, and I haven’t found anymore feeds so I’m a little concerned. I’ll keep searching and whatever I find, you’ll be notified. Let’s just hope they’re safe.
As an aside, arm yourselves, just in case. *grabs compound bow and looks at Sean and Donut, the zombie assassin dog* Man, I should have trained Moon for that. *looks at Moon, who just pants with playful puppy look* That’s great.
The Albuquerque Comic Con was the first time some of the Zombie Survival Crew Command team got together in one place at the same time . . . .
We thought it would be a good opportunity to hone our collective battle plans. Instead, it was complete chaos. And that was just Friday night!
It all started when Juliette cha-cha-cha’d by accident in front of Lou Ferrigno. You know, the original Hulk? And this was AFTER she had her infamous fangirl moment in the hotel lobby that I tweeted about. Lisa and I barely managed to stay standing when that little number went down. That was our first indication that Juliette’s street cred might be more bluster than substance.
Keep an eye on the crossbow, peeps. I’m not saying mutiny. I just want to know where it’s pointed . . . and I hope not at my backside.
By the time Lisa, Juliette and I managed to meet up with Sean, Rocco and Norman (having left Anthony at the hotel to get his beauty sleep), we got mooned by a short bus full of college-aged boys during the taxi ride, and Lisa spilled almost an entire drink on Juliette after Juliette spilled part of my drink on herself.
I can’t say I was completely surprised that Rocco’s first reaction to Juliette was to start throwing punches.
I’m kidding . . . though he did elbow her in the back and aim a faux-blow at her jaw later in the night. Don’t ask.
We found him by the dance floor, introduced ourselves, talked to him for a bit only to discover Rocco’s kinda quiet, like me . . . or so it seemed. Look, I know y’all don’t believe I’m shy, but I am. You’ll find out when you meet me the first time. Juliette did.
Sean wandered around the bar and got mobbed by people, and blinked a lot from having his picture taken repeatedly. I don’t think he sat down all night.
When Norman walked in, Lisa and I stuttered (not really . . . who’s writing this post?) and Juliette put her war zone journalism skills into action before the crowds pounced. Good thing too. Because that was just about the time Anthony called to see if we were still alive. Barely, dude. Just barely. Read more…
Yes, we know it’s a commercial, but honestly, what would you do in this situation? Would you make it to your car, or would you become zombie food?
For example, I (Jinxie) have an Avalanche. It’s pretty. Anyway, the key fob allows me to open one door or all doors. Don’t really want all doors unlocked when I’m trying to escape zombies and if I’m alone. Maybe zombies know how to open doors? You never know. Watch Land of the Dead. *shudders* So my ‘lanche allows me to open the only door I need in the event I must escape the shambling hordes. I’m not too concerned with key confusion, like the girl in this video. I don’t have that many keys on my key chain.
So, what would you do, dear crew? Do you have a plan for this?
We have received the following from R.C., who has located the detention facility where Anthony and Juliette are being held.
Command needs help from the Zombie Survival Crew brigades to craft a successful escape plan.
Take your best shot, get creative, get nasty . . . and post your escape strategy in the comment section or email it to Command at zombiesurvivalcrew (at) gmail (dot) com. You have until January 7.
Command will pick the best plan to execute, and its creator will get official ZSC gear (being unveiled publicly mid-January) as a prize!!
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Field Report: R.C. Murphy
You want something with a high level of difficulty? Try finding a living soul in the middle of a desert. No, tumbleweeds don’t count. Though by the end of my second day in New Mexico I sure wished they did.
The signal from Juliette’s GPS came from somewhere between Santa Fe and Albuquerque. I traced it to one of two locations. A run-down shack sitting all on its lonesome in the desert, or the hydroelectric power plant two miles away. Neither looked like a secret government agency’s stronghold, but as with most things looks can be deceiving.
I targeted two men to gather info. The first had been in and out of the shack frequently. The second worked at the power plant. On both I planted a small button camera. They should have been more careful with their coats while having a cup of joe.
The first, I’ll call him Glasses, drove to the shack after his caffeine fix. Inside wasn’t much, a typical storage shed. He headed for a red cabinet on the back wall. The doors opened and two armed soldiers greeted him. They stepped aside to expose two sets of elevators doors. Another single door sat to the side of those, marked “stairs.”
Glasses swiped an ID card over a black box on the wall. The elevator doors opened and he began the very long ride down. When the doors opened again, they showed three sets of double doors. Through the small windows I saw more soldiers.
The right door bore a sign reading “Administration”. The left, “Power plant”. Center, “Laboratory”.
He took the center doors. More men in white lab coats milled around. Like camouflage sprinkles in whipped cream were a few armed soldiers, stationed just far enough apart to not look too threatening despite the semi-autos hanging from their shoulders.
Glasses walked past rooms filled with medical equipment. A large steel door slipped by, “Cold Storage” the sign said. He went on to the end of the hall. There the doors were shut. His thumb slid over a fingerprint scanner and the window on the door opened.
Jesus, it was Anthony.
The footage after that was useless. Something blocked the camera’s eye. In desperation I pulled up the footage from the second man’s button cam. I named him Suspenders.
Suspenders approached the large steel door of the power plant and tapped a card against a small black panel identical to the elevator locks inside the shack. The door eased open; he gave a wave to one of the cameras keeping watch over the entrance.
A stairwell door and a pair of elevator doors waited. Suspenders took the elevator, his ride down just as long as Glasses’. When the doors opened I half expected to see the dreary circular room from before, but no. He was let out right smack dab in the midst of a bustling power plant.
Large machinery took up most of the space. What wasn’t filled with machines was taken over by people. Amongst them, some shrewd looking security officers. Their eyes took in everything, I mean everything.
One approached Suspenders, saying something I couldn’t read on his lips. My target followed him down the row of machines, passing more security and a few wary workers. At the end of the hall sat a double set of doors and a black ID scanner like the elevator locks. The guard opened the doors with his ID. Beyond was the circular room.
They took the door reading “Administration”. As soon as Suspenders hit the hallway a shadowy hand covered the button cam. Dangit!
The only other information I managed to find were blueprints for the power plant. It’s made of solid steel and enough concrete to fill in half an ocean. The other wings of the facility? It’s as though they don’t exist.
We have to get Juliette and Anthony out of there. This is where I need your help.
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This is the only photo R.C. was able to get to us. They’re locked down tight, folks.
If you’re not up for this challenge, have no fear. A variety of other contests are around the corner!