Zombies! discussion

I agree that the threat of the zombie horde is and would be overwhelming. I don't mind the fast moving zombies....the idea that the newer the zombie the faster they move is one that makes sense to me.

Patrick wrote: "Fast zombies shouldn't exist."

Well, ummmm, neither should zombies... :)

Once you accept that premise that a zombie can exist, you're in a whole different ball park of reality. Maybe "decay" doesn't even exist for them, or is a completely different process.

i dont like fast zombies.correction, i dont like zombies that are faster than my companion.also,a coroner i grew up with said that fast zombies would be impossible.and he doesnt even like zombies,for obvious reasons.i would like to see zombies that passout once in awhile,like friends.actually, more like a coma that they could snap out of at any inconvenient time.

Me and my friend Rhiannon Frater had a conversation about fast vs slow zombies, but it was most specifically about Texas. She said that slow zombies wouldn't pose much of a threat to Texans, because after the first initial deaths happened most would be shooting and putting them down. It's the fast movers that would get most of the people.

As to the 'rotting' thing, I would have to disagree. Most zombies are shown to have been effected by the elements, not specifically rotting (in George Romero and Zack Snyder's universes, anyway.) If they rotted they would be done for fairly quickly. It's whatever keeps them alive that propels their hunt.

And @Darrell--have you seen 28 Days Later/28 Weeks Later? They have 'infected,' which are basically just crazed, diseased humans who do actually need to feed in order to survive.

Fast movers are very dangerous. In Voyage of the Dead the fast movers run 15 miles per hour (close to 4 minute miles), if they were in good shape at the time of conversion. Zombies who were old, infirm, or damaged (before or after) move slower.

Those rules apply in the first few days and weeks of the apocalypse. They might change as the timeline evolves. By the way, the timeline in Voyage of the Dead starts on April 1, 2012.

How's that for a teaser?

I enjoy both slow and fast zombies, although I think I'll always favor the slow, more traditional depictions. There's something damn creepy about a rambling, mindless adversary who'll never falter or stop coming after you.

In the remake of the movie Day of the Dead, they even had the zombies crawling across the ceiling like spiders...

Like someone else mentioned, I have no problem with Fast zombies as long as they are freshly turned. Obviously to me the longer you were dead the slower you would become. I also feel that some zombies would be created with just a bite vs consumed and then left to drag their broken, gut spewing body around. Why? Because it makes sense the slower zombies would look to the fast ones to help feed them.

Talking about fast movers, this is just a reminder that everyone should be reading Voyage of the Dead right NOW, if you want to experience the apocalypse in real time. Z-Day is 4/1/12, I mean TODAY. Everything was going according to plan until I found out that I didn't win the Mega Lotto!

Slow...slow...slow...slow zombies are suspenseful. Fast zombies...well...if I want to see a fast zombie, I'll just go to where all the meth addicts are hanging out...

SAB...check out some slow, redneck zombie action at: http://mylifeinthezombieapocalypse.bl...

Slow zombies are like ugly women; anyone can take them out -- even the redneck sheriff in Night of the Living Dead. Don't get me wrong. I loved Night of the Living Dead and some of my best friends are rednecks.

I'm usually a fan of slow zombies, but I loved the fast ones from the remake of Dawn of the Dead.

The little girl in the opening sequence rules! I liked the remake...even the fast zombies...Zack Snyder handled them well and in spite of departing (in this respect) from the original, you could tell that some thought went into it. They were consistent throughout, which is sometimes a problem with the genre...authors and filmmakers change zombie behavior on a whim to try to cover up problems with the plot or story line...

slow zombies rule!

Funny I just discussed the differences between the Dawn of the Deads today on my blog lol.

I don't like super human fast. I only think the zombie should move as fast as the human could in life if it is fresh.

Maybe fast zombies should just keep moving faster and faster and faster until spontaneous human combustion kicks in...hmmm...that might make survival in the zombie apocalypse interesting...imagine...a tidal wave of fast-moving, flaming zombies crashing down on a small town...do you shoot them in the head or put them out?

"There's nothing like the smell of frying zombie in the morning...it smells like...like..."

Just so you all know, most of the zombies in my books are fast (as in 4 minute miles), IF they were not old, infirm, or injured during/after conversion. So they are just as fast as they were before, Kristin. Not faster. But they don't tire. A healthy person can beat them in a sprint, but not long distance. At least that's how they act in the first few weeks of apocalypse. Later? Well, that hasn't been written yet... But I suspect they will slow as they burn up their fuel.

As for Scott's comment (and the Scott character in my books probably wishes you were right), the zombies in Voyage of the Dead and Flotilla of the Dead suffer from "super rabies" which instills severe hydrophobia. It's water, not fire, that forms the best defense.
No more spoilers.

Scott wrote: "Maybe fast zombies should just keep moving faster and faster and faster until spontaneous human combustion kicks in...hmmm...that might make survival in the zombie apocalypse interesting...imagine...."

This is genius!!! I would love that. I prefer fast zombies. Especially as it parallels how the speed of our society has increased. The metaphors just line themselves up :)

Scott wrote: "I'm usually a fan of slow zombies, but I loved the fast ones from the remake of Dawn of the Dead."

Fast is one thing, but sprinting at full speed for several miles is quite another.

Scott wrote: "The little girl in the opening sequence rules!"

But how did she get into the house?

Well...if we're comparing zombies here...

...another thought...and I'm not saying that this is or will be a part of my novel/series My Life in the Zombie Apocalypse: Bettie Page and the Chicken Ranch War (because that would be blatant self-promotion and a spoiler and it's really not covered in the first book because I didn't want to spend 100 pages explaining how the plague started, etc.), but I have "slow" zombies (I don't think the rednecks in my story could handle a fast/smart zombie...think "Tucker and Dale v. Zombies" here)...After time, however, they get faster and smarter because the zombie plague is caused by nanotechnology designed to "heal" damage to soldiers on the battlefield, but is discovered and weaponized by terrorists in Afghanistan/Pakistan to teach us (the good ole US of A) a lesson. Anyway, the weaponized version nearly destroys the brain and turns about 99% of the population zombie...but then, a curious thing starts to happen (not that the non-infected have a clue)...the nanos mutate slightly and (in addition to turning people into zombies) go back to doing their original jobs (healing physical damage) and the zombies start getting better, though the non-infected don't realize it for a long time...

Now, this begs a few questions...after years of cracking zombie skulls, how does the non-zombie population react to this revelation? Guilt? Self-loathing? Fear? Indifference? Wonder and amazement?

And...how does the reawakening zombie population feel about the non-infected once they get their wits about them?

And what if the zombie "plague" ultimately results in a new, almost invulnerable, and possibly immortal, species of human? Would they get rid of the non-zombie population? Enslave them?

And at some point does my story become a blatant rip-off of "I Am Legend"?

Darn it...there really ISN'T any such thing as an original idea...

;)

Scott wrote: "And at some point does my story become a blatant rip-off of "I Am Legend"?"

For me, the beauty of the original story is the twist at the end (view spoiler)[(the monster become the normal, and the normal becomes the monster) (hide spoiler)]. Except for The Last Man on Earth, the films based on the book drop that. I'm curious to see how the latest remake will handle it.

Similar to how the remake of Rollerball dropped the whole political angle -- which was the very reason for the story in the first place.

Randy wrote: "Scott wrote: "The little girl in the opening sequence rules!"

But how did she get into the house?"

Now, don't start bringing facts and logic into the conversation...haha... ;)

Randy wrote: "Scott wrote: "And at some point does my story become a blatant rip-off of "I Am Legend"?"

For me, the beauty of the original story is the twist at the end [spoilers removed]. Except for The Last M..."

Well...money people in Hollywood don't actually read, so how can you expect them to be aware of the subtleties of a book? I liked about 75% of the latest movie version of "I Am Legend." I just wish they had called it something else, and that VO and ending really, really sucked...shoulda been called "Will Smith Saves the World Part IV"

Rollerball...now THERE'S a remake that could have been timely and had a lot to say about our current so-called "society/civilization." But I'm pretty sure that movie was made by a group of drunk monkeys in suits...

Randy Wrote: "But how did she get into the house?"

I'm pretty sure they mention it. I am under the impression she was bit stumbled over to Annas house whose door she knew is kept unlocked and then turned once inside. After that all she'd do is sniff out the fresh meat inside.

Kristin wrote: "I am under the impression she was bit stumbled over to Annas house whose door she knew is kept unlocked and then turned once inside. "

Makes sense.

I had a similar issue with the legless zombie up in the pipes down in the parking garage of the mall. How did it climb up there, without legs? But when I thought of it as someone who was bit climbing up into the pipes to escape zombies, then dying up there while they gnawed his legs off, it makes perfect sense for him to be up there.

Exactly Randy!

While it's true that the body starts to break down after death, rendering the idea of fast undead zombies unrealistic, the definition of "zombie" has been expanded in recent years. A zombie no longer has to be undead.

In 28 DAYS LATER, the zombies are living humans who have been infected with a hate virus. Similarly, in Joe McKinney's DEAD CITY, the zombies are still alive, even though their vitals have slowed way down due to an infection.

Some traditionalists deem these examples to be outside of the zombie genre, but... a genre is like a language. It's alive. It changes as new definitions are added. Just as "gay" use to mean "happy," "zombie" used to mean "undead." But that has started to change. Now "zombie" more commonly refers to an infected or reanimated human who wants to eat or kill other human beings.

Personally, I think both types of zombies are terrifying. Slow zombies tend to be better for effecting dread, whereas fast zombies are great for frenetically-paced action. Each has their place, and I love what writers have been doing for the genre!

Nice comment, DL. However, I think the term "undead" can be interchangeable with infected or reanimated zombies.

David, I agree! In the descriptive rather than prescriptive sense, the word "undead" in common usage has been morphed to describe the infected type of zombie, even the kind that hasn't been reanimated postmortem. Very true!

In my books I have left it up to the reader to decide if the "zombies" are reanimated or simply infected. There is a scientist who knows for sure, but isn't talking. In Voyage of the Dead I refer to then as "undead" and also "infected" with the "super rabies virus." It makes for a slightly more believable story (IMO).

I'm a fan of both slow and fast zombies, dead or infected, but use fast-infected ones because my books are more sci-fi-adventure than pure horror. My zombies also have some unique quirks caused by the specific infection. I think there is room for all types of zombies and wanted to add something a little different to the genre.

What about medium-slow/medium-fast zombies? Zombies can move at a trot, but not a full-out sprint... Split the difference...then either everyone can be happy...or not :)

Trotting zombies. LOL It kinda sounds equestrian. I prefer slow ones. The fast ones freak me out. I did use fast ones in I novella but writing about the slow ones is for me.

:) My zombies are clocked at 15 mph. That's four minute miles - Olympic marathon pace. And they don't seem to tire. A normal person can outrun them in a sprint, but is screwed after a block or two. Of course that speed is only attained by those who were healthy before being infected. The old, fat, lame or maimed zombies are much slower.

Zombies like that scare the crap out of me David!

I see lots of people walking around that may already be zombies...they typically have a cell phone attached to them and are seen walking aimlessly making sounds like some sort of foreign language...could it be that we are already in the Zombie Apocalypse?

Karol wrote: "I see lots of people walking around that may already be zombies...they typically have a cell phone attached to them and are seen walking aimlessly making sounds like some sort of foreign language....."

That cracked me up Karol. It's funny cause it's true!

I read Orpheus on kindle. and he actually had a pretty cool concept about the zombies...when they are first turned, of course they can be fast, they have all the same muscles that we do, as living, breathing human beings. but when they exert themselves, their muscles and tendons stress and break, which, since they are no longer living and they cannot heal these injuries, they become the slower zombies people are familiar with. they also don't breathe, so no moaning(air has to pass the vocal chords to make sound).

I really enjoyed the book...was an interesting take. and hope that if zombies happen in RL, the people would have seen enough/read enough about "zombies" that it will all be over in a few headshots...

I fell inclined to buy your book on kindle...especially since it came out on my birthday!
=)

Well Slow and Steady wins the race and the Tortoise beat the Hare. So I'm going to go with the slow zombies being more of a threat. :)