[Deadpelican]

Merle Dixon, on 31 December 2011 - 06:03 AM, said:

sounds EXTREMELY FUCKING FAR FETCHED to me.  

So does a guy keeping walkers locked up in his barn, but that's exactly what happened.  I find that lots of things sound far fetched- until they happen. That's the way life is.

The scenario I described was just one possibility out of hundreds.

And Herschell wouldn't have to tell me to leave.

I would have left whether he told me to or not.  

I would not stay in one place for a prolonged period of time.


The camp site in season one was safe until it wasn't. The same goes for the farm.  


There are walkers in the area, we've seen that, but so far they have been spread out. But they probably wouldn't stay that way.

Edited by Deadpelican, 31 December 2011 - 09:06 AM.

[Ananse]

I haven't read through this thread yet so sorry if this has been addressed already!
I might be totally alone in this, but I love Herschel. His actions seem valid for someone who is in the medical field. As a healer, wouldn't his main objective be to 'cure' something?  I think it would be really difficult for him to break this habit. Maybe it is difficult to rationalize with him because the series revolves around a group whose collective standpoint is as opposite of Herschels' as it could possibly get.

[Merle Dixon]

Ananse, on 02 January 2012 - 11:43 PM, said:

I haven't read through this thread yet so sorry if this has been addressed already!
I might be totally alone in this, but I love Herschel. His actions seem valid for someone who is in the medical field. As a healer, wouldn't his main objective be to 'cure' something?  I think it would be really difficult for him to break this habit. Maybe it is difficult to rationalize with him because the series revolves around a group whose collective standpoint is as opposite of Herschels' as it could possibly get.

still caring for zombies doesnt make me hate him, what makes me hate him is that he cares for the zombies more than he cares about the other humans and there is NO EXCEPTIONS im sorry

[StrollingDead]

Merle Dixon, on 03 January 2012 - 03:04 AM, said:

still caring for zombies doesnt make me hate him, what makes me hate him is that he cares for the zombies more than he cares about the other humans and there is NO EXCEPTIONS im sorry

You mean he cares more for the sick family members, friends, and neighbors that he's lived his life among than he does
for a bunch of dangerous gun-toting barely-in-control-of-themselves  refugees?

I don't particularly like Herschel, but you have to see his side. He's conservative in the full, not political, sense of the word. He lives his life among people he knows; people whose grandfather knew his grandfather. He doesn't like change, doesn't think much of the modern world or modern culture, and probably thought things were going to Hell in a handcart long before any Walkers showed up.

Again, you have to remember this world is slightly different from ours- there are no "zombies". Unlike "Shaun of the Dead" or "Zombieland", no-one says the Z-word or makes any cultural references to them.

As far as Herschel knows, he saw on TV that a new virus had broken out, and people in the city were panicking and going crazy- something thar probably wouldn't surprise him too much. Heck, people in my old hometown (Vancouver) riot over hockey games.

Remember, he's a medical man, specifically a vet. He knows about the spread of exotic diseases like Avian flu and the Ebola virus; he knows about rabies and other behavior-altering illnesses. As far as he can see, this is something like that, and, any talk about people coming back from the dead  would be dismissed as superstitous nonsense believed in by a bunch of  people who are panicky and scientifically-illiterate.

One thing we have to remember is our own experience of the time-frame. We've been living through this for a year; for the characters it's been weeks. As far as Herschel knows, the infected people have stabilised; nobody's getting better, but nobody's dying either. We know why  (bruwahahaha), but he doesn't. Some of them may start to fight it off, somebody may show up with an acquired immunity, it may occur in an animal (Hershcel would know about the develoment of the smallpox vaccine from cowpox), or the radio may crackle to life tomorrow saying the Army Medical Corps has started setting up vaccination centers

Meanwhile he's got this half-crazed heavily-armed group camped on his land who are convinced his sick family and friends are some kind of monsters from a horror movie. No wonder he wants them gone.

The tragedy is, of course, that they're absolutely right and he is totally wrong- but he doesn't know that.

[Merle Dixon]

thanks for the essay. but i still say survivors >>> zombies. cause theres no magical cure for zombies. unless u can bring someone back from the dead, and revive the brain, and kill the zombie disease without destroying the brain, also you have to somehow revive all the decomposing, dead cells. im sorry but medically there can NEVER be a cure for zombies. even i understand that.

survivors > zombies

Edited by Merle Dixon, 08 January 2012 - 01:45 PM.

[Babs Bladdyblah]

I think Scott Wilson is terrific as Hershel. Hershel is definitely a religious man who even tried to get Rick to see his POV and I think Rick feels indebted to him for saving Carl's life. That's probably why Rick helped lasso some walkers with him.  However, Hershel is uneducated about the ZA and what it's actually like out there. And I believe he was hoping that eventually there would be a cure for his family in the barn. But that is wishful thinking on his part. Eventually, Rick just needs to say look... it's like this... We're staying, like it or not. We'll help out and stay out of your way, but we ain't leaving. Period. I mean, what can Hershel do really? His people barely know how to shoot. And most of them are already friends with Rick's people. Hershel just needs a wake up call and he'll be just fine.

[StrollingDead]

Babs Bladdyblah, on 08 January 2012 - 11:59 PM, said:

IEventually, Rick just needs to say look... it's like this... We're staying, like it or not. We'll help out and stay out of your way, but we ain't leaving. Period. I mean, what can Hershel do really? His people barely know how to shoot. And most of them are already friends with Rick's people. Hershel just needs a wake up call and he'll be just fine.

Good point! Maggie is obviously close to Glenn, and sides with him in the final scene outside the barn, giving him the nod to go shoot the Walkers- relatives and all.

Andrea is friendly with Lori and Carol, and would probably appreciate other women around, not to mention defense against walkers. She may be held back by respect for Herschel, and the knowledge that she's a guest- and all bets are off if the truth about Otis comes out

Jimmy already came out and asked for gun training- notice his job in catching the Walkers was to act as bait.  As a 17-year-old boy from rural Georgia, he'd probably rather be shooting them. Beth is a bit of a cipher,she'd probably be torn between her father on one side and her sister and boyfriend on the othe
But I doubt that about Herschel- I think the shattering of his illusions, and the wresting away of his authority will lead to a rapid decline

Edited by StrollingDead, 09 January 2012 - 09:38 AM.

[Mr.Misery]

I'm hoping that he sticks around for a bit more like in the comic.

Spoiler

I'd like to see him back to boozing it up. It seemed like he started hitting the bottle up again from the new stress he is under. I'm judging on only the preview of the new episodes.

Maybe now that he has seen the error of his ways he will join the group for his family's safety. I really hope he isn't one of those people that stick to their guns no matter what. He does seem like an old man stuck in his ways.