Publisher: Crazy Duck Press (CDP)
Date of Publication: August 2011
ISBN: 9780982812198
Number of pages: 266
Book Description:
“…Death was a dream of sleep where the eternally dying dream the sleep of death. The undeniable evidence in the stillness of her being, the stark paleness of her complexion, and the lack of blood pooling from her cuts after climbing through the window whispered dark truths in her ears. Rigor Mortis. There was nothing familiar to Jamie about her skin. Time and time again, she found herself asking what had happened, only to arrive at the hard won conclusion that she, Jamie Lund, wasn’t alive anymore. Somehow in the foolhardy night, she’d been a dumb girl. She’d gotten herself killed…”
From the mind of Stavros, the critically acclaimed author of Blood Junky, comes a new twisted tale of horror and adventure. An average girl, living in the city is murdered. Nothing new, right? It happens every day. Just another statistic. That is…until she woke up dead.
Trapped within her own decaying shell, the dead girl struggles to piece together the awful events of her untimely death and hunt down the man responsible. Armed only with a kiss from an ancient Egyptian God, a pockmarked memory, her ex-boyfriend, and a murder of crows Jamie Lund comes face to face with something more terrifying and real than mere death…she suffers the agony of being undead!
With twelve black & white illustrations and a full colored cover from tattoo artist, Charles Hearn, this sardonic tale comes alive like no other zombie story, popping from the page with stunning, unnatural brilliance. Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie Tale of Revenge will keep the reader on the edge of their seat suspended in this unique supernatural thriller.
Sounds super cool, right? Let’s get to know a little more about the author, Stavros.
Interview:
When did you first begin writing, and what inspired you to write your first book?
I wrote my first poem when I was in seventh grade. And it’s been downhill ever since. As writing became more and more of a thing in my life – song lyrics, short stories, short scripts, etc – I dreamed that dream of “The Novel” that seems lure young men to the siren shores of pencil pushing. Even tried to write my first one before I was twenty, though I failed miserably at it. I still have it in a filing cabinet with a pencil sketch cover.
What books and authors have most influenced your life?
Kurt Vonnegut – Slaughterhouse 5, Oscar Wilde – The Portrait of Dorian Gray, Federico Garcia Lorca – Everything! , Pablo Neruda – Everything! , Sylvia Plath – Her poetry, Frank Herbert – The Dune Series, especially God Emperor of Dune, Isaac Asimov – The Foundation Series, Patrick Suskind – Perfume, Frank Zappa – Real Frank Zappa Book, The poetry of Rumi and Hafiz; and just straight books – The Destroyer Series, The Human Zoo & The Tao of Physics all had major influences
Tell us a little about Jamie Lund. What is she like before she wakes up dead? What sets her on her revengeful quest?
I tend to think of Jamie as a normal, modern gal. She liked Lady Gaga, shoes, shopping for expensive things – was a cheerleader; worked in an office building, climbed the social ladder, and had a circle of friends who would hold her hair when she drank too much. I even imagined that she had a faux rhinestone cell phone protector, though I never mentioned it. What sets her on the path of revenge is coming to the drastic realization that she’s dead, yet alive. She only vaguely remembers being murdered. So, in grieving for the loss of her own life she tends to hit the anger button a couple extra times.
Faced with a world infested with flesh-eating biters, what would be your go-to method of defense and why?
Katana. No reloading. And leather Biker boots, pants, and jacket (and sometimes the helmet) because it’s too tough to chew through!
In this ever-changing world, it behooves us to be prepared for disaster to happen at any moment. The Zombie Survival Crew members have a “go-bag” filled with items essential for their survival should disaster strike and they must flee to survive. What are the most essential items for your go-bag and why?
Besides grabbing the afford-mentioned Katana and a long rifle for clearing paths at a distance, in a backpack is: 1 pair of clothing, extra socks, water bottle filled with water, Swiss army knife, hunting knife, 9mm and 12 clips, assorted MREs, a med kit with antibiotics, duct tape, bottle of Motrin, rope, flint, chlorine tablets for water purification, and a small plastic tarp. Everything else can be foraged.
How did you come up with the premise for Dead Girl? And what do you feel makes your book stand out in the zombie lit world?
It originally came to me as a comic book. And Jamie was going to be more of a sword-totting vengeful decayer taking on the mob. But that all changed once I started writing it. What makes Dead Girl different from traditional zombie fair is that she is the only zombie in the story and is basically, for the most part, cognitive. Dead Girl is more of a murder mystery that is solved by the victim before she decays. I love zombie tales, and have a traditional type of story that I am working on called, The Cure. So I felt free to take DG in a completely different direction. Also, at the time that I was writing it and publishing, zombies weren’t as big as they are now, and the idea of making it “Romantic” had not even ventured into the apocalypse. Basically, I just wanted to play in uncharted territory
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in writing for a horror audience?
Oh God, Yes. Horror fans have seen it all, read it all, or are thinking about it in a way that I never will. When I actually think about the amount of horror that is out there I get weak in the knees. Just contemplating that I’m going to throw my meager attempts into the fray is foolhardy. Which is part of the reason why I’m so damn anal in my research and development. That coupled with my drive to push the envelope to create something unique for the reader to experience gives me the illusion that I can hang with the big boys and girls.
What made you decide to team up with a tattoo artist to do the illustrations?
I had met Charles at my first horror convention in Gettysburg, PA when I released Blood Junky, back in 2010. He had always wanted to do comic books and his panels were amazing. We stayed in touch after the event and as DG took shape I contacted him. He was interested and we made it happen.
Tell us a little bit about your music. What types of music do your write? What instruments do you play? What drives your musical passion?
I play drums – kit and afro-cuban styled percussion, guitar, bass, and been known to sing. Mostly, I’ve been working on electronica, due to a heavy road life, though I’ve been writing some new songs on the acoustic. Honestly, music has had to take a backseat to publishing and getting Kaos Kustom Fangs off the ground. But I still tinker and play to relax. I even have a few hardcore acoustic pieces that I want to record with bass and drums to scream or whisper political poetry over. I think the juxtaposition will be hilarious.
What are you working on now? Can you tell us your latest news?
I’m working with Sweet Revolt to get the adaptation of my novel Love in Vein funded as a feature film, as well as, penning book three of the One Blood Series. In addition to that, Charles and I are working out the details to bring DG to life as a fully fledged comic book and motion comic.
Is there anything you would like to say to your readers?
Yes. Buy the book. You won’t be disappointed. And if you are…it makes for great target practice! After all, gotta keep your aim sharp and there’s a zombie on the cover.
About the Author:
Notorious Poet. Fool. Born in Washington DC. Stavros was a writer and editor for The Independent Underground Magazine. Raised in Southern Maryland, he fled the Chesapeake Bay to the wilds of the New Mexican desert. He is a single father of two, whose poetic works have been published in several online and print publications, including Central Avenue, The Sword That Cuts Through Stone, Poets Against The War, Conceptions Southwest, The Mynd, Imagine: Creative Arts Journal, and Bartleby, where he won a specialty award for his poem, Blackbird.
In 1999, he won an Official Selection into the Writer’s on the Edge Festival for his play, The Redline. In 2001, he created the Poetry Television Project for public cable access in Albuquerque, NM. All eight volumes of Ptv’s ground-breaking show were broadcast to over 100,000 viewers on a network of regional PAC channels throughout the Southwest and Baltimore. He helped to launch Unpublished Magazine, sponsored the monthly poetry series, The Word Café, in the Duke city, and produced a political compilation, Poetic Democracy. In 2007, he released the award-winning documentary film, Committing Poetry in Times of War.
In 2010, he launched the production management company, Organic Ghetto, and released its first imprint, Crazy Duck Press, with his first novel, Blood Junky. Blood Junky received exceptional praise and review, even being called “one of the best vampire novels ever written,” by Living Dead Media. The following year he helped to launch BioGamer Girl, undertook a bigger East coast tour where he began selling his original photographic art, and released two new novels through Crazy Duck Press. Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie Tale of Revenge features a stunning full-color cover and twelve black and white illustrations from tattoo artist, Charles Hearn. Blood Junky’s sequel, Love in Vein, cemented the One Blood series with its continuation of the story, garnering such review as to claim that the book and the series is “comparable with, and at times surpasses, the ‘Vampire Chronicles’ by Anne Rice.”
In 2012, Stavros joined forces with the Vampire Professor, Bertena Varney, M.A.M.Ed, to co-create the nonfiction annual anthology, Vampire News, and officially became a Fangsmith with the creation of Organic Ghetto’s second imprint, Kaos Kustom Fangs. He rounded out the year by writing and editing screenplays for the One Blood Transmedia Project, recording Dead Girl as an audio book, and undertaking his biggest national marketing campaign, The Book & Fang Tour.
In 2013, he and the Vampire Professor released the second volume of Vampire News: The (not so) End Times Edition and is currently working on writing and growing his imprints. Stavros is also a musician who has scored commercials, film shorts, documentaries, and television programs.
Rating: PG-13 (intense frightening zombie sequences, violence and disturbing images) Starring: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, and Daniella Kertesz
First thing’s first, this reviewer is fully aware that World War Z is based on the novel by Max Brooks. However, seeing as they don’t give me any books—just stacks of movies to shuffle through—I haven’t read it. This review will focus solely on the merits of what was on the screen during the film. Nothing else. Now that the business portion is out of the way . . . have I mentioned how much of a pain it is to not only sneak into a theater without freaking out the humans, but also get a pair of 3D glasses to stay on when one of your ears fell off fifteen years ago in New Mexico? Let’s just say there was liberal application of duct tape in the moments before the lights dimmed and the film began.
World War Z starts off with disturbing news reports of a rabies-like virus sweeping over the globe. America is seemingly unharmed by this virus. Our hero, Gerry is happy to be at home with his family and not with his old bosses at the United Nations dealing with the mess. Then everything flips on its head. Gerry and family are caught in the middle of a sudden outbreak of the zombie virus. In seconds, Philadelphia is overrun with the undead. The family escape and Gerry is called in to help the UN figure out how to deal with the zombies. He’s sent to every corner of the earth searching for answers in unlikely places. In the end, it seems the world’s only hope stems from utter devastation.
The opening is slow, designed to lull you into a false sense of security while simultaneously feeding viewers information through numerous television news clips—the tried, true, and vastly overused method of plot progression available to the zombie film genre. This is of course after viewers suffer horrendous vertigo and nausea from the title sequence, which is designed to make maximum use of the 3D format. Essentially, you can get stuck in line for popcorn during the first seven minutes and not miss anything vital to the film’s plot. A zombie movie is a zombie movie, is a zombie movie. Anyone hoping World War Z would prove to be ground breaking and different in this aspect is fooling themselves.
That’s not to say once the action kicks in, the film isn’t interesting. The mechanics of the zombies alone cause a lot of heart-stopping, breath-holding moments, and even a handful of really well thought out scares. The zombies are fast. Obscenely fast. They have no physical limitations, easily leaping over two cars to take down their prey. Any reservations the person held alive are gone after death, allowing the undead to climb over each other, sacrifice each other in the name of sinking their teeth into something alive, or even bash their skull repeatedly into a car’s windshield in order to get to the gooey yummy treat inside. The makeup ranges from normal looking people covered in blood, to the hero zombies who were desiccated, rotting as they wait for fresh food sources. Two of the hero zombies in the final act of the film were by far some of the best zombies character-wise I’ve seen in any genre film. They were wild, uninhibited in their ferocity and sheer weirdness of undead traits.
Brad Pitt, despite reservations about an A-list actor stepping into a genre film, delivers a wonderful performance with the script he’s given. He brings to screen the only compassion seen from any character, really. Some of the supporting cast shine—most of the good ones don’t get nearly enough screen time. Other members of the cast failed to give a performance capable of making viewers want to see them survive. Isn’t that the point of being one of the main characters? We want to see you live, not listen to you whine, garble lines, and have little to no facial expressions. When a zombie has more facial expressions than the wife of the main character, a main character who’s in mortal danger, there’s something wrong.
What can be learned from World War Z? Duct tape is your best friend. Armor can be made from fashion magazines. The police are indeed people and cannot be relied on after the undead invade your city. And most importantly, if you’re not careful, a can of Mountain Dew could very well lead to your demise.
I’m going to give World War Z four severed hands, out of five. The epic scale of the film was hard to ignore—something genre fans haven’t seen since Romero’s Land of the Dead. Bypass the 3D experience, though. The foot chase scenes in 3D format induce headaches. Chewing on aching brains isn’t good eats. Think of the zombies waiting outside for a snack when you head to the theater.
We put out the call for local information on resupply stations and rendezvous points, and the Zombie Survival Crew continues to respond. Information is coming in and we’re sifting through and compiling everything for communication to the loyalists. We started with information on South Central Resupply site Midland, TX thanks to Purple Brigade member, Kris O’Dell, continued with Wilmington, DE compliments of ZSC Yellow Brigade member Brian McCabe, and Blue Brigade member Jenni Womick brought us Trinity, and we now move forward with Sergeant at Arms, Sarah Quattrocci. Deep in the mountains of Vermont, she has located the perfect meeting place for the Blue Zone.
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Assuming that higher-population areas are high-risk, finding a location off the grid but not completely inaccessible is key. Just outside of Burlington, VT and easily accessible from both Northern and Southern areas West of the mountains via Route 116, this location is a safe distance from the more heavily populated areas. Located on Route 116 just north of Hinesburg village on the east side of the road.
Access from New York state can be made by crossing the Crown Point Bridge and following Route 17 to connect with Route 116 at the Junction in New Haven, VT.
This building is not only spacious and designed for the long haul, but also combines security with at least some of the comforts of home. The building is powered primarily by a photovoltaic system (solar power), a 10-kilowatt wind turbine and uses another renewable resource such as wood pellets made from lumber milling waste for heating.
The core of the building features a large, open-concept common area constructed of concrete, wood, natural stone and other natural materials. It includes a 3-story stone fireplace to help keep the entire area heated during the colder months. There are dozens of skylights and operable windows to take advantage of natural light, provide natural ventilation and fresh air and allow full views of the outside.
Situated within walking distance is a grocery store, hardware store, gas station, doctor’s office, police station and – perhaps most importantly – a large secure warehouse that is ideal for storage of supplies.
To read more on all resupply stations, please go to our (for members only) Key Links under the Escape Routes/Resupply Stations section!
A while back we covered the basics of building a campfire to keep yourself warm if you should find yourself forced to find sanctuary in the woods during the Zombiepocalypse. A campfire is good for more than just warmth. You’ll need it to purify water, cook food, and help clean your laundry and dishes. Heck, it’ll even make for a handy weapon if your camp is ever invaded. Basically, fire is your new buddy the second you find yourself able to set up camp. But make sure the zombies are all dead before you start building your campfire.
Building a fire for the purpose of cooking takes a few extra steps from what we covered in our Fire Safety basics.
Make sure all wood and kindling is dry. Wet wood burns poorly, doesn’t create ideal coals for cooking, and emits unhealthy amounts of smoke.
Build a U-shaped rock border around the fire pit area. The rocks will help hold up the grill, if you have one. The open end of the pit will allow you to spread out the coals to control cooking temperatures.
Fill the entire fire pit with a layer of crumpled paper (or any other starter). Lay kindling over the starter in rows, and another layer of kindling on top of that in rows going the other direction. Do not build a tee pee type fire. You’re creating a bed of coals to cook on. Tee pee fires don’t burn uniformly and won’t create the proper coals.
Light the starter.
As the kindling catches and begins to burn, add 2-3 medium sized pieces of food of uniform shape.
Allow the fire to burn down to coals—approximately 1 hour.
Rearrange the coals with a shovel, creating a ramp with the thickest layer of coals in the back, the thinnest in the front of the pit. You’ve just created a High-Medium-Low setting for your fire pit. High in the back, Low in the front.
Place your grill using the rocks to hold it off the coals.
Cooking Tips:
Foil is Awesome –
Hearty vegetables like corn, potatoes, carrots, turnips; can be washed, wrapped in foil, and set directly onto the coals to cook. Flip them occasionally with tongs to get uniform cooking.
All-in-one meals are a breeze with foil. Cut vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Keep meats a little larger to ensure they have the same cooking time. Wrap everything securely in foil with spices, olive oil, and a little water, wine or lemon juice. Set the foil package on the coals and let it cook. No clean up after. Eat it straight from the foil after it’s cooled.
Non-poisonous leaves can be used instead of foil. Make sure you research plants in your area before being forced to live outdoors because of zombie attack, this way you are well aware of indigenous plants your family can eat and use for survival.
Anything can be a Cooking Pan –
A lot of foods will be canned toward the end. Canned foods are shelf stable, durable, and last a long time. However, they’re not good eats cold. Pop the lid on the can, remove the label, and set the can at the open end of the fire pit. Drag a few coals around to surround the bottom for even heating. Stir every couple minutes. When the food is heated, pull the can using tongs or a pot holder. Super easy. If you wash the can, it can be reused to purify drinking water for your morning coffee.
Even a paper cup can be used to boil water. This takes a little practice, but since paper has a higher ignition temperature than water’s boiling point, in theory you can use a plain Dixie cup to purify water. Set the full cup near the open end of the coals, but not touching. It’ll take a little while, but if your coals are hot, the water will boil.
Hard squashes, such as butternut squash, pumpkin, spaghetti squash, etc. don’t need a pan to cook them. They don’t even need foil. Set the squash on the low end of the coals and roll it occasionally for uniform cooking. Once the flesh is tender (when stabbed with a knife, there’s no resistance), pull it from the heat. Pumpkin in particular is great roasted over a fire. Break it into chunks and cover with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Eat everything down to the pumpkin skin—the skin will be charred from the fire, but the inside is delicious.
Cruddy Cookware is Okay –
Cooking on fire is hard on pots and pans. When packing cooking gear, Do Not use nonstick pans. Open fire burns too hot and will scorch the nonstick coating, releasing potentially harmful chemicals. Go for cast iron or cheap pans without nonstick coating. A good Dutch oven with the lid will let you not only make delicious stews, but bake cakes and other goodies as well right over your campfire.
Kissimmee, FL—Most people would say Disney right off the bat! But, is this where you want to be during the zombie invasion? I don’t think so! I don’t even want to think of the Magic Kingdom under those circumstances!
I chose Trinity School for Blue Brigade-Phase 1 Resupply station. The school is located on West Vine Street in Kissimmee, FL. West Vine is also known as US Highway 192, and Irlo Bronson Highway depending where on the road you are located. This is the main road in Kissimmee. It actually runs through a good portion of the middle of the state to the Atlantic Ocean. So, the school is easily accessible.
The school, is actually on a little campus that consists of several buildings, all of which are already fenced in. The school building is an older, two-story building that resembles an old motel. There are stairwells at both ends of the building, and an elevator (if power was on) in the middle. There are public restrooms in the middle on both stories. There are limited windows, and they are high up. Each classroom has an outside door, and a door inside that links it with the room next to it. There are also restrooms between the classrooms, and sinks in each room.
The other main building is the Family Life Center. This is a gym, with a large kitchen, restrooms with showers, and two other rooms that could serve many uses. There are very few windows, and the majority are very high up.
The other buildings on the campus are a church. There are restrooms, and other rooms and some offices here. Again, few windows. There is a another long building across from the school that has offices, a lounge and storage. There is also a fellowship hall that has a second large kitchen and an area for meeting. There are 2 small storage sheds, and in the very back of the campus there is an old house that now serves as day care-with a 3rd kitchen in it.
Since the entire campus is already fenced in, it would be not to difficult to fortify it and make it stronger. The aerial picture shows the entire area, but it’s old so there are no fences. The fences were added about 3 years ago.
For supplies, the school is in a perfect location. Directly across the street is a WalMart, and some other random stores (including a comic book store-study material for zombie killing). Next to that plaza (kiddie corner across the street to the right) is a Target and a Home Depot. Next to the school on the right there is a Play It Again Sports, and next to it on the left is a gas station. And, for the adventurous ones, a K-Mart and Big Lots about 2 blocks away.
Also, less than 1 mile away is the Kissimmee Gateway Airport. This is a “small” plane airport (no commercial planes). If any of the planes were flyable, this could be a HUGE asset.
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To read more on all resupply stations, please go to our (for members only) Key Links under the Escape Routes/Resupply Stations section.
In Mary’s world, there are simple truths.
The Sisterhood always knows best.
The Guardians will protect and serve.
The Unconsecrated will never relent.
And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village. The fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.
But slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power. And, when the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness.
Now she must choose between her village and her future, between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death?
The Forest of Hands and Teeth Carrie Ryan Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Hardcover: (March, 2009), ISBN-13: 978-0385736817
Paperback: (February, 2010) ISBN-13: 978-0385736824
Debut novel The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan is a compelling action-packed story filled with the horrors of a world succumbed to zombies and is the first of a series.
Mary’s life within the village surrounded by the Forest of Hands and Teeth is too secluded for her after growing up listening to her mother’s stories of the ocean and what the world was like before the Return. She dreams of leaving the village one day to see the ocean for herself, and after a breach threatens her home, it looks like she’ll get her wish as she and her closest friends take a journey that leads them into an unknown world.
While Mary is torn between the boy she loves and the boy who loves her, she never loses faith in her mother’s stories and strives forward in their journey to see that what her mother said was true.
This book is captivating, compelling, and a fast-paced zombie thriller that will have you turning page after page and sitting on the edge of your seat until finished. Never have I been so pulled into a book, wrought with emotion, and nearly screaming out loud as things went bump in the night in the story and in reality. It pulls you in, holds you within its pages as you make your way through with Mary’s narration and intense internal dialog that has you feeling every emotion, every fear, and hearing every sound—especially those ongoing moans of the Unconsecrated.
The Forest of Hands and Teeth is a top-notch YA book that carries a lot of praise with it, which can be found on Carrie Ryan’s website: http://www.carrieryan.com.
Kudos to Carrie Ryan for writing such a brilliant piece of work and for coming up with a title that literally jumped off the shelf at me. It was the reason I bought the book!
As part of our collective efforts to prepare for the z-poc, ZSC command has undertaken a mission to bring you a series of recipes to keep the body strong and the spirit lifted during dark times. Now, don’t go thinking you’ll be cooking these up in the early days of the infection. You’ll be too busy slaying walkers on the move for this kind of fare. But once the initial dust settles and you’re in the fight for the long haul, you’re going to want something other than the beef jerky, energy bars and chocolate you’ve got stashed in your Go Bag.
Being on the run from the shambling horde doesn’t leave a lot of time for cooking every day, so a good way to get that protein you’ll need is to make some jerky out of whatever large game is in your area when you can’t loot any from surrounding stores any longer. Heck, you could probably even use this for javelina (native to the Southwest and quite the nasty beast in temperament).
Most people don’t realize that Arizona and the Southwest have deer and elk, along with the mountain lions and javelina, so this very basic recipe really goes a long way. I haven’t tried this using javelina, and that’s a different type of meat, but hey, it’s worth a shot. Either way, the meat from a javelina is good to eat. Have a pig roast, if anything.
We’ll just go with the deer/elk/buffalo recipe. I’m also assuming you know how to skin these animals. If you don’t, that should be on your “Top 10 Things I Need to Know for the Zombiepocalypse” list.
First, you’ll want to trim off all visible fat from the meat because it becomes rancid. Cut the flank steak lengthwise with the grain into long thin strips no more than ¼ inch thick. Rub it aggressively with salt cover for 10 to 12 hours so it’ll absorb the salt and release some of its natural juices. At this time, you can add additional spices, fruits, liquids, etc. This is why I require spices in the Yellow Brigade Go Bag (you’ll have to be logged in to view that link).
Next, you’ll need to build a scaffold to support the meat over a slow fire beneath it; the heat and the smoke completes the process in half a day, and with an occasional sunning, the meat will keep for months.
Not too hard, right? Just get yourself somewhere safe for a couple of days so you can do this and you’ll have that protein you need for a good long while, depending on the size of the animal, of course.
Happy hunting!
I’d like to thank my ex-husband, the bow hunter from Wyoming, for helping me with this.
Review of “The Walking Dead” 316 – “Welcome to the Tombs”
Weeks and weeks of well-written, tension-building episodes brought us to this week’s explosive conclusion. The problem? The only explosion came from a round of unnecessary shooting and grenade launching. Emotionally the episode was a bit of a letdown. There were far too many plot lines left dangling, with no tension to carry them over into the new season. The only thing we were left to look forward to was a potential emotional downslide for Carl, of all characters. Let’s see what went down in the season three finale of “The Walking Dead.”
***Caution, there are spoilers below. If you have not watched the season finale, turn back now!***
Three weeks ago it was reported by Andrew Lincoln in an interview with Rolling Stone that the show would be killing off twenty-seven characters in the season finale. What he couldn’t say was one of the deaths would be beloved underdog and sole geek in the Zombiepocalypse, Milton. We can’t say his death came as a huge surprise. Milton did his best to do the right things in the latter half of season three, putting him at direct odds with his old friend, the sociopath Governor of Woodbury. Unfortunately, Milton’s efforts were a handful of branches trying to stop the flood of Phillip’s determination to be the biggest, scariest leader in a ten-mile radius. It takes a lot of bravery to stand up to a man like Phillip. Milton knew one miscalculation would cost him his life. In the end, he realized the only way to make an impact was to draw Phillip’s wrath and sacrifice himself in order to save the masses. By torching the walkers intended for use against the group in the prison, Milton saved a lot of lives. His death was not in vain, though his loss will be felt if/when we ever see the Governor again, this time without his glasses-wearing conscious at his side.
The person Milton wanted to save most of all wasn’t himself, or even Phillip. Somewhere along the way, Milton saw potential in Andrea to be the savior Woodbury needed in order to escape the Governor’s insanity. But their plans were constantly plagued by ill-timing and Phillip’s ability to be three steps ahead of everyone. In the end, no matter what Milton did, Andrea still paid the ultimate price. There’s a sad irony in those two being the eventual cause of each other’s deaths just when they thought they’d found the one other person left alive who understood what drove their particular brand of hero complex.
Andrea’s constant efforts to do the good and right thing only ended up costing others their lives, including Merle. Her scheming nearly landed Michonne in a torture cell. When faced with a threat like Phillip and his army of true believers, doing the right thing is suicidal. Andrea knew that in the end, but still couldn’t make herself take a human life. Her conscious (not Milton-shaped) got the best of her time and time again. How much heartache would have been spared if she did as Carol told her and stabbed Phillip after one last goodnight kiss? Possibly the hardest part of Andrea’s death wasn’t that she’d been gnawed on by a man who could have been much more to her if not for Phillip’s involvement in their lives. No, the part that truly sucked was seeing her determination to not burden anyone else with dispatching her before she turned. It brought fans back to the end of season one when a distraught Andrea wanted to stay in the CDC when it blew up and Dale emotionally blackmailed her until she gave in and made a run for it. Only now, she wasn’t taking the easy way out. Andrea faced the reality of her situation and wanted to be in control until her last breath. If given more time, she could have been a capable leader for Woodbury. Andrea just wasn’t strong enough to overthrow the Governor.
Speaking of Captain Crazypants, what the heck was up with him unloading a clip into his own people? Some people take failure poorly, but jeeze. The Governor only allowed two of his men to live, and they looked about two seconds from running into the woods to get away from him. There was nothing human left in his eyes . . . eye . . . when he gunned down the people he’d taken on the failed mission to take over the prison. How would he feel if he knew the truth? Five people total inside the prison overwhelmed and dispersed his army. Where did Phillip go to lick his wounded pride? We have no clue. It is unlikely that we’ve seen the last of him, especially if Rick and his newly expanded crew decide to stay inside the prison.
Carl is on a slippery slope to psychoville via the Shane path of surviving the Zombiepocalypse. We’ve known for a while that some vital part of Carl was broken the day he was forced to put a bullet in his mother’s head to spare her from returning as a walker. However, after he seemed to bounce back from it, he’s flipped off his emotion switch again. What happened? Was he shocked by what happened in King County when they ran into a clearly insane Morgan? Did he feel coddled when Rick told him to wait in the woods during the lack-luster battle with the Governor and his forces? It is really hard to tell what triggered this lasted spiral for Carl. What we do know is the kid is really creepy after pulling the trigger. Instantly, he rationalized a story to tell his father so he wouldn’t get in trouble. The worst part was seeing how little shock and remorse was on his face when the kid he shot crumpled to the ground. Someone needs to step in and save Carl before he becomes the next Governor. Or is this a case of too-little-too-late? Only time will tell.
Do you think we’ve seen the last of the Governor? What is in store for Rick and his crew at the prison next season? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
Review of “The Walking Dead” 315 – “The Sorrowful Life”
This week’s episode was . . . wow, intense. So much so, we’re going to do things a tad differently this week. We’ll do a quick run-through of a couple things, but of course there is one major event we need to discuss. At length. Possibly with stick figure diagrams. Okay, kidding about the last part, but it is something we can’t gloss over at all.
***Warning, this review is full of spoilers. Do not read past this part if you haven’t watched episode 315 of “The Walking Dead” yet.***
Where to start? Things at the prison are far from okay. Rick’s marbles are still scattered across the floor. Daryl is torn between being Rick’s right hand man and living up to the expectations of his brother. Carol is dealing some hard-hitting truths about Mere’s place in their sanctuary-slash-death trap. Hershel is having a serious conflict of faith and doing what needs to be done in order to ensure the safety of his two daughters. Oh, and Glenn is getting all romantical with Maggie (which proves to be the only moment in the episode where fans can take a breath and feel a split second of normalcy during the hour of emotional torture).
On with the “holy hell” portion of the show–Merle.
Merle was a character who, by some weird mixture of piss, vinegar, and the incredible talent of the man portraying him–Michael Rooker–managed to win the hearts of Walking Dead fans from the get-go. The redneck from hell spit every racial slur he could think of (and say on basic cable). Kicked the tar out of a lot of the characters we were supposed to find sympathetic. Admitted to heavy drug use. Cut. Off. His. Own. Hand. And everyone wanted him back for more. When we did get him back for one episode during season two of the show, fans were in an uproar because Merle was just a figment of his brother Daryl’s imagination. What a figment he was. We got to see the real backbone of the relationship between the brothers, how Merle loved to antagonize Daryl when he’d already been kicked down about as low as a person can go in just one day.
Producers for The Walking Dead took full advantage of the massive amount of fan love and brought the real Merle back for season three. He quickly became the perfect antagonistic balance between the Governor and Rick, going to the extremes neither men could handle emotionally. This isn’t because Merle was devoid of emotion, oh no. Merle had simply learned to navigate around what he was feeling. In the past, he relied heavily on drugs to keep himself blanketed and numb from the nagging feelings tearing him apart. We caught a glimpse at the lengths he’d go to lean on the drugs like a crutch again in this episode when he rips apart nearly every single mattress in one of the abandoned cell blocks inside the prison. Merle’s secondary method to block out the emotions he can’t cope with is to chase the jobs in Woodbury none of the others could handle emotionally. After the Governor cleaned him up, got him sober, he relied on violence to get his high. The deaths he caused left a darkness in his eyes, a shadow hanging over everything he did. And when the adrenaline crash came after, he’d get antsy and start looking for ways to get his next fix. Merle racked up sixteen (well, closer to twenty now) human deaths in the roughly year-long span since Rick handcuffed him to the roof of the department store in Atlanta.
Did being buddy-buddy with Death change Merle? You bet your Aunt Fanny it did.
However, it did not change him in the way it would most men. Merle was always painfully aware of what he was doing. He just couldn’t stop himself. In this episode he told Rick he didn’t know why he does the nasty, cruel things he does. Truth is, he lied. Merle suffers his personal issues without needing anyone to coddle him and tell him it is okay to hurt, to be afraid, to need someone to keep his feet on the ground when he wants to soar above it all in a meth haze. He doesn’t want to be a burden anymore. Even after the vocal distrust coming from everyone in the prison, Merle still took up arms to protect its occupants on more than one occasion. He wanted to pull his weight, or what little the others would allow him to do while keeping him under close scrutiny. Instead of getting pissed off, he played into it. It didn’t matter if they hated him, so long as he felt he was doing what needed to be done, when it needed to be done. Which is why when the time came, Merle took it upon himself to take Michonne and make the deal with the Governor.
Or did he?
One has to stop and think if Merle meant to go through with the plan to turn Michonne over, or if he’d determined in advance to go it alone and make the ultimate sacrifice. With as complicated as the man was, we’ll never know for sure. One thing can be said, though; both Woodbury and the prison are missing one vital helping hand in the fight to survive. The Walking Dead will never be the same. Not with the lingering impact from Michael Rooker’s stellar performance.
If Merle had survived, would he have eventually fit into the group at the prison? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Last week “The Walking Dead” took a deep look into what makes Rick tick and how his crew at the prison are preparing for the looming conflict with the Governor and his Woodbury army. So this week, we got a look at what is making the Governor tick and where Andrea’s loyalties will put her during the war. We spent the entire episode with Andrea. Yes, the angst of many fans were heard. However, it was necessary to take the time to truly see where Phillip’s head is at before he launches another attack on our favorite survivors.
***Warning, this review contains spoilers***
An unsung hero in the tension between Woodbury and Rick’s crew is Milton. He lurks in the background, whispers advice in Phillip’s ear, and helps Andrea when she has the driving urge to do something right (which inevitably goes wrong). Milton has been able to keep Phillip’s antisocial behavior under wraps for the most part. He offered himself up as a touchstone for the Governor to lean on in order to see how far from the façade of normalcy he’s put on in order to lead the town successfully. He tries to be Phillip’s Jiminy Cricket, but how can he be a conscious for a man who forfeited his soul to get revenge and power? Unfortunately, Milton isn’t a fighter. Over and over again, he’s run to Andrea for help, sensing her desire to be where Phillip is in the power structure. All so he doesn’t have to grow a pair. He doesn’t think like a warrior and is easily cowed by people in power. Or at least he was before this episode. At least we’re seeing Milton put his foot down and stand up, albeit indirectly, to the powerbase driving the war to yet another senseless battle. He’s working from inside Woodbury to even the playing field. It’d be better if he finished finding his courage and kill Phillip. There’s a history between the two of them. Does Milton recognize his friend in the monster the apocalypse unleashed?
Over the course of this season, we’ve seen the humanity bleed out of the Governor. Sometimes literally, thanks to Michonne. There is a sense of joy in the way he goes about prepping and stocking his little “fun” room, the torture chamber he’s set up in preparation for Michonne’s arrival. There is no doubt in his mind. He will win. Michonne will come back to Woodbury with him. Over the course of weeks, he will be free to torture her. One of the most telling objects in the room wasn’t the bone saws, scalpels, and needles. It was the spool of thread and hooked needle. Several possibilities came to mind, but the one that stuck out the most was, he doesn’t want his victim to have the opportunity to bleed out and die ahead of his schedule. He must have complete control of every aspect of his life. Death is a tool he means to bend to his will. Phillip’s arrogance stems from the complete lack of people questioning his actions. Since day one of Woodbury’s foundation, he’s been the one taking charge. The only people to stand up to him are outsiders, not part of his little herd. He can’t control the new people, so he must eliminate them. And if he just so happens to enjoy himself on an almost sensual level while chasing his prey, well, even sociopaths need a little fun.
Tension is brewing between Tyreese and Phillip. Tyreese is a trusting soul, despite what he’s seen of human nature while battling the undead. Unfortunately, it made him a prime victim for the Governor’s scheming. Thankfully, Tyreese didn’t drink the Flavor-Aid like Andrea did when she first arrived in Woodbury. His instincts may very well keep him and his sister alive. Can’t say as much for their two traveling companions. Allen and his son overcompensate for their lack of power in the apocalypse by being the manliest men Woodbury has ever seen. Allen in particular continuously butts heads with Tyreese, trying to prove he can be an alpha male in order to not appear weak in front of his son. But Tyreese won’t give him the satisfaction of “winning” their arguments. He has a good set of morals that have kept him and his sister relatively safe. If he continues down the path he’s on, questions people who seem . . . off, he may just prove to be the savior Andrea wishes she could be.
Oh, Andrea . . . Sometimes I think we are too hard on her. Then she goes and does something so utterly ridiculous, it is impossible to see the good things she has done. Fans all over loathe Andrea. In part, this may stem from fans wanting to see one of the women step up and take control, without bungling it so badly a man is forced to step in and save her hide. Maggie’s appearance was a breath of fresh air after dealing with Andrea’s attempts to be “one of the boys” as far as work in camp goes. However, whereas Maggie does what is needed to survive, Andrea does what is needed to garner attention and praise. She is a puppy learning new tricks and expects a reward every time she doesn’t piddle on the carpet. Somewhere along the way, Andrea began to equate her happiness with that of the people she’s determined to be hers to save. This way of living left her vulnerable and pliable to the will of someone stronger than her. Phillip took full advantage of her hero complex. All it got her was a very uncomfortable seat. If she’d stuck to running under cover instead of through a huge, open field, maybe she’d be safe with the people in the prison. As it is, well, Andrea won’t be finding any rewards in her new “home.”
Pet peeve time! This is a bonus ranty bit for readers. I will start off by saying, I do not fault the actors at all for this. The final call came from the director and writers, all of whom should know better than to dig up outplayed horror movie tropes. A character can be creepy, downright nightmare-inducing while chasing a victim without: A) Dragging a weapon behind them, raking it across a fence, etc., and B) Whistling a cheery tune. Just . . . stop. The entire chase at the end of the episode lost its power because of these two jarring actions from the Governor. Such a shame, I was looking forward to seeing David Morrissey let loose with his incredible acting skills.
Does the group in the prison have any chance at all of surviving the war with Woodbury? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Dead Girl: A Romantic Zombie Tale of Revenge
Notorious Poet. Fool. Born in Washington DC. Stavros was a writer and editor for The Independent Underground Magazine. Raised in Southern Maryland, he fled the Chesapeake Bay to the wilds of the New Mexican desert. He is a single father of two, whose poetic works have been published in several online and print publications, including Central Avenue, The Sword That Cuts Through Stone, Poets Against The War, Conceptions Southwest, The Mynd, Imagine: Creative Arts Journal, and Bartleby, where he won a specialty award for his poem, Blackbird.
Reviewer: A. Zombie
First thing’s first, this reviewer is fully aware that World War Z is based on the novel by Max Brooks. However, seeing as they don’t give me any books—just stacks of movies to shuffle through—I haven’t read it. This review will focus solely on the merits of what was on the screen during the film. Nothing else. Now that the business portion is out of the way . . . have I mentioned how much of a pain it is to not only sneak into a theater without freaking out the humans, but also get a pair of 3D glasses to stay on when one of your ears fell off fifteen years ago in New Mexico? Let’s just say there was liberal application of duct tape in the moments before the lights dimmed and the film began.
The opening is slow, designed to lull you into a false sense of security while simultaneously feeding viewers information through numerous television news clips—the tried, true, and vastly overused method of plot progression available to the zombie film genre. This is of course after viewers suffer horrendous vertigo and nausea from the title sequence, which is designed to make maximum use of the 3D format. Essentially, you can get stuck in line for popcorn during the first seven minutes and not miss anything vital to the film’s plot. A zombie movie is a zombie movie, is a zombie movie. Anyone hoping World War Z would prove to be ground breaking and different in this aspect is fooling themselves.
That’s not to say once the action kicks in, the film isn’t interesting. The mechanics of the zombies alone cause a lot of heart-stopping, breath-holding moments, and even a handful of really well thought out scares. The zombies are fast. Obscenely fast. They have no physical limitations, easily leaping over two cars to take down their prey. Any reservations the person held alive are gone after death, allowing the undead to climb over each other, sacrifice each other in the name of sinking their teeth into something alive, or even bash their skull repeatedly into a car’s windshield in order to get to the gooey yummy treat inside. The makeup ranges from normal looking people covered in blood, to the hero zombies who were desiccated, rotting as they wait for fresh food sources. Two of the hero zombies in the final act of the film were by far some of the best zombies character-wise I’ve seen in any genre film. They were wild, uninhibited in their ferocity and sheer weirdness of undead traits.
Brad Pitt, despite reservations about an A-list actor stepping into a genre film, delivers a wonderful performance with the script he’s given. He brings to screen the only compassion seen from any character, really. Some of the supporting cast shine—most of the good ones don’t get nearly enough screen time. Other members of the cast failed to give a performance capable of making viewers want to see them survive. Isn’t that the point of being one of 
What can be learned from World War Z? Duct tape is your best friend. Armor can be made from fashion magazines. The police are indeed people and cannot be relied on after the undead invade your city. And most importantly, if you’re not careful, a can of Mountain Dew could very well lead to your demise.
The school, is actually on a little campus that consists of several buildings, all of which are already fenced in. The school building is an older, two-story building that resembles an old motel. There are stairwells at both ends of the building, and an elevator (if power was on) in the middle. There are public restrooms in the middle on both stories. There are limited windows, and they are high up. Each classroom has an outside door, and a door inside that links it with the room next to it. There are also restrooms between the classrooms, and sinks in each room. 
The other main building is the Family Life Center. This is a gym, with a large kitchen, restrooms with showers, and two other rooms that could serve many uses. There are very few windows, and the majority are very high up.
The other buildings on the campus are a church. There are restrooms, and other rooms and some offices here. Again, few windows. There is a another long building across from the school that has offices, a lounge and storage. There is also a fellowship hall that has a second large kitchen and an area for meeting. There are 2 small storage sheds, and in the very back of the campus there is an old house that now serves as day care-with a 3rd kitchen in it.
Since the entire campus is already fenced in, it would be not to difficult to fortify it and make it stronger. The aerial picture shows the entire area, but it’s old so there are no fences. The fences were added about 3 years ago.
In Mary’s world, there are simple truths. 
