[HansPeter92]

Hey all, I'm a british TWD fan and I'm just really confused about a few things.


I've always been a big fan of Zombie films, the concept of most, always draw me in. Films like 28 days later, 28 weeks later, dawn of the dead etc. But one thing they all have in common is that they never show a solution to it, nor how outbreak happens. I guess this is why I'm so addicted to TWD. Its like a longer film that carries on and I'm hoping for a solution and somewhere along the line that they show how virus broke out. (all films and including TWD are people waking up either from a hospital or waking up normally to find the world over-run. seriously? if I was rick I'd be asking a million questions to the first human I see, something which he DIDN'T do to Morgan)


Anyway my question, that I'm hoping to get some replies to is, what do you guy think/guess the outbreak happened? Do you think they'll show the outbreak in future seasons...and show it step-by-step e.g. through each state then other countries in the world ( if it reached that far ). Do you guys think there is a solution to it all? I mean, I know its stupid to say "solution" because most humans are now zombies so they can't be human again, but another type of solution such as a safe zone or a civilised place that life goes on as normal as can be?

[Trillian]

HansPeter92, on 10 April 2012 - 11:38 PM, said:

Hey all, I'm a british TWD fan and I'm just really confused about a few things.

I've always been a big fan of Zombie films, the concept of most, always draw me in. Films like 28 days later, 28 weeks later, dawn of the dead etc. But one thing they all have in common is that they never show a solution to it, nor how outbreak happens. I guess this is why I'm so addicted to TWD. Its like a longer film that carries on and I'm hoping for a solution and somewhere along the line that they show how virus broke out. (all films and including TWD are people waking up either from a hospital or waking up normally to find the world over-run. seriously? if I was rick I'd be asking a million questions to the first human I see, something which he DIDN'T do to Morgan)

Anyway my question, that I'm hoping to get some replies to is, what do you guy think/guess the outbreak happened? Do you think they'll show the outbreak in future seasons...and show it step-by-step e.g. through each state then other countries in the world ( if it reached that far ). Do you guys think there is a solution to it all? I mean, I know its stupid to say "solution" because most humans are now zombies so they can't be human again, but another type of solution such as a safe zone or a civilised place that life goes on as normal as can be?

This is not at all intended to be an insult, but there's actually another thread I've been following that may have some answers for you.  Well, not answers, but what some of the other fans are thinking:

Still very curious over how it all started

That might be a good place to start reading.

Oh, and welcome.  I'm a newbie, too.

Edited by Trillian, 10 April 2012 - 11:49 PM.

[Lee]

Trillian beat me to it about the other thread haha

Just a little observation about 28 days/weeks later, there was an explaination for the 'rage' virus (with the lab tests on the monkeys to cure anger issues) until some activists broke in. However your point still stands, as it's being discussed in the other thread that Trillian linked.

But anyways, hi and welcome, I'm also new here.

[HansPeter92]

haha thanks guys, appreciate the help with the link!

[Goat]

For me, a little of the magic dies when they unravel the mystery.  I much prefer Romeroverse style, where sometimes they explore it but never really find an answer.

[Major Tom]

Glen Mazzara and Robert Kirkman pretty much run the show. They have both said that they are not interested in the cause of the apocalypse and they have no plans to find a sokution,

I have seen various Z flicks that reveal an assortment of causes. In the 1968 Romero classic Night o the Living Dead, it was a radioactive satellite returning from Venus. Others blame the Military, mad scientists etc.

At the end of NotLD, it appeared that they had contained the situation and killed all the Z's. We know from the sequels, they didn't. I don't recall any movie that offers a solution. There is always at least one zombie lurking around to continue spreading the plague.

The novel, World War Z, had a very clear cause, the Solanum virus (which they explain in detail), which was only transferred by bites and other fluid exchange. There was also a solution of sorts. They basically killed all the land walking zombies in a long hard war. A few million zombies still walked around on the ocean floor and occasionally, someone would kill a stray land walker.

The solution was that they learned to live with the problem in the same way we live with wild beasts, poisonous snakes and other dangers by adapting and learning the skills to control/limit the the zombie population.

[Babs Bladdyblah]

In response to Rick questioning Morgan..

Rick's motto - Don't talk...Think.

That may explain his lack of questions. He's more of a listener and a thinker. "Not a bad rule of thumb for life"

[Kat]

Goat, on 11 April 2012 - 03:25 AM, said:

For me, a little of the magic dies when they unravel the mystery.  I much prefer Romeroverse style, where sometimes they explore it but never really find an answer.

Agreed.  The few times the powers that be have ventured into trying to explain something of a scientific nature I just cringed.  They aren't biochemists or epidemiologists.  Sometimes you gotta just let the mystery be.  

[OMEN]

I have always been fascinated with how it started but I now need or want a solution.  

Not just for TWD but for all zombie flicks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sweetsister]

The way TWD is going it could be the end of humanity, if you think about it weve had a long run, not that I'm wishing "the end" any time soon but for the sake of te show it or it could be the end. Yes we have survived many obstacles over the years, disease, war, natural disasters’, manmadedisasters, but sooner or later won’t the human species end? Dinosaurs were herean awfully long time and eventually they die off (or evolved into birds). If somehow humanity survived and the “plague” finally endedI don’t even know how the survivors would build up society again. Is there atime in history that we could equate with the time that the survivors findthemselves in? They have plenty of knowledge but no “power” sources other thanmanual to help them create a new civilization, I don’t even know if there areany animals left?

Edited by Sweetsister, 12 July 2012 - 11:50 PM.

[Natalia:D]

Ok new to the show, just wanted to no wat happened to that one guy's brother?. Is he dead? Or wat?

[Trillian]

Natalia:D, on 14 July 2012 - 02:23 AM, said:

Ok new to the show, just wanted to no wat happened to that one guy's brother?. Is he dead? Or wat?

Are you referring to Merle?  We don't know yet.

[BMW]

I hope they will reveal how it all started. My guess is, that a regular vaccination (for example against flu went terribly wrong.

Or how about a political absolutely incorrect version: the aids-virus mutated and changed to a zombie virus.

I don't prefer the old and boring version, that the a military experiment went wrong or that the government initiated something, which caused the zombie apocalypse. I thing something like that is too obvious and has no aha moment.

[Trillian]

BMW, on 15 July 2012 - 12:27 AM, said:

I hope they will reveal how it all started. My guess is, that a regular vaccination (for example against flu went terribly wrong.

Or how about a political absolutely incorrect version: the aids-virus mutated and changed to a zombie virus.

I don't prefer the old and boring version, that the a military experiment went wrong or that the government initiated something, which caused the zombie apocalypse. I thing something like that is too obvious and has no aha moment.

I don't think that we are ever going to get an answer to this.  The show is not about the Zombie Apocalypse itself, but people trying to survive in the Zombie Apocalypse.

I used to want to know, but as we get farther and farther from the outbreak, I care less and less.

[babywalker]

Whether they tell how it began, it doesn't really matter why to me.  How could that knowledge possibly help them?  What happened is in the past is done.  Re-animation is now the fate of everyone, unless someone intervenes.    They have to stabilize things for right now.  Living in the past does not help you move forward.  What good is it to plan the future if you don't live to make it there?  

To answer Sweetsister, population wise we are probably down to the numbers of humans alive when our species was first leaving Africa, almost at extinction level; we almost went the way of the Dodo.  It doesn't bode well for humans or any flesh bearing creature.  Major mass extinction.

Technology, maybe the fall of Rome.  Some of the Roman aquaducts were in use for centuries.  Within a couple of decades, they stopped working because the people no longer knew how to repair them and keep them running.  

I can't think or a time when the two coincide at the same time in history.

Humans are pretty screwed overall.

[BMW]

babywalker, on 15 July 2012 - 04:36 AM, said:

Whether they tell how it began, it doesn't really matter why to me.  How could that knowledge possibly help them?

They are infected and I think our survivors need a real perspective for the future. Of course now they survive from day to day. But after they find a safe place, where they can live more or less normally, they have to make plans for the future. How can a community survive and get rid of the zombie-problem, when all of their "citizens" are zombies on standby?

I would try to find a safe island (as far as we know the zombies can't swim). Best place could be an island in the Lake Michigan (fresh water all around). The problem is: this safe harbour isn't safe at all after someone dies in a normal way and turns to a zombie. Then the whole game would repeat from the top. Therefore they need a cure and to find a cure you have to know the primal cause.

Edited by BMW, 15 July 2012 - 09:57 AM.

[Trillian]

BMW, on 15 July 2012 - 09:56 AM, said:

I would try to find a safe island (as far as we know the zombies can't swim). Best place could be an island in the Lake Michigan (fresh water all around). The problem is: this safe harbour isn't safe at all after someone dies in a normal way and turns to a zombie. Then the whole game would repeat from the top. Therefore they need a cure and to find a cure you have to know the primal cause.

In World War Z, zombies can walk on the bottom of the ocean.  We haven't addressed that question in TWD, so we don't know what these zombies can do, but don't assume you can swim and zombies can't come after you.

You are correct that they have to find the cause to find the cure, but I am not sure that the story is headed that way.  I think it may just be about how to live until you die and how to deal with the fact that anyone dying of natural causes will turn.

[BMW]

Trillian, on 15 July 2012 - 01:47 PM, said:

In World War Z, zombies can walk on the bottom of the ocean.  We haven't addressed that question in TWD, so we don't know what these zombies can do, but don't assume you can swim and zombies can't come after you.

I think these zombies in TWD are so stupid, walking on the bottom of the ocean is too much for them I guess and hope.

Quote

You are correct that they have to find the cause to find the cure, but I am not sure that the story is headed that way.  I think it may just be about how to live until you die and how to deal with the fact that anyone dying of natural causes will turn.

I'm a big fan of dystopia and unhappy endings, but this is even too much for me. This can't be the gist of the matter. The surviving from day to day plot was fun til now, but I don't want see how a group is kicked in the a** day by day being reduced man by man, then they meet another group, merge and the whole thing repeats again and again...at least they should try finding out some new informations. Jenner told the viewers something about France and that they survived longer. And the love story between Maggie und Glenn goes also into direction, which is not that dark, where people should have the feeling that Glenn will get bite and Maggie will kill herself or sth like that.

[Trillian]

BMW, on 15 July 2012 - 05:00 PM, said:

I think these zombies in TWD are so stupid, walking on the bottom of the ocean is too much for them I guess and hope.

The zombies in World War Z aren't smarter than the zombies in TWD.  They actually seem similar to me.  In World War Z, they are stupid and relentless.  They never stop and they also don't happen to drown, so they can walk around in the ocean - I assume it would be the same with other bodies of water.  I imagine that a fast-flowing river would sweep them away, but it wouldn't kill them.  This hasn't been addressed in TWD yet.

Quote

I'm a big fan of dystopia and unhappy endings, but this is even too much for me. This can't be the gist of the matter. The surviving from day to day plot was fun til now, but I don't want see how a group is kicked in the a** day by day being reduced man by man, then they meet another group, merge and the whole thing repeats again and again...at least they should try finding out some new informations. Jenner told the viewers something about France and that they survived longer. And the love story between Maggie und Glenn goes also into direction, which is not that dark, where people should have the feeling that Glenn will get bite and Maggie will kill herself or sth like that.

If the only happy ending you can envision is one where they find a cure, you may be disappointed.  IMHO, I don’t think the plan (meaning, the writer's plan) is to re-establish the old status quo, but rather to find a new status quo.  Human beings will adapt to these new conditions and learn to live with them with the understanding that everyone who dies will need the brain damaged in some way to prevent reanimation.

About France, Jenner said that the French scientists stayed and worked longer on the virus at their "CDC", but that means that they ran out of fuel sooner and their facility was incinerated sooner.  They may have gotten their research out first, but is there anyone left to continue the research?

Edited by Trillian, 15 July 2012 - 06:16 PM.

[BMW]

Trillian, on 15 July 2012 - 05:53 PM, said:

The zombies in World War Z aren't smarter than the zombies in TWD.  They actually seem similar to me.  In World War Z, they are stupid and relentless.  They never stop and they also don't happen to drown, so they can walk around in the ocean - I assume it would be the same with other bodies of water.  I imagine that a fast-flowing river would sweep them away, but it wouldn't kill them.  This hasn't been addressed in TWD yet.

If the zombies in TWD start to walk around under water that's it, I won't watch again. Cause it is unrealistic, physical laws shouldn't be "turned off". Without weight belts nobody is able to go under water that deep. Maybe the TWD zombies start eating iron and steel, but why should they?

Quote

If the only happy ending you can envision is one where they find a cure, you may be disappointed.

I don't need a happy ending, they can go to hell, that's not the problem. But I want them at least to talk about that, or at least search for an answer. They can get dissapointed or even suicidal, but for me it is much too early for that. Hershels idea of zombies being sick and get cured was annoying, but somehow a realistic element in the show. I always think when watching a zombie movie: "hey would be pretty funny when they find a cure and zombies turn back into humans again, what a pitty for those zombie guys who were shot in the head"

Quote

About France, Jenner said that the French scientists stayed and worked longer on the virus at their "CDC", but that means that they ran out of fuel sooner and their facility was incinerated sooner.  They may have gotten their research out first, but is there anyone left to continue the research?

These are important questions. What if the guys here in europe have stabilized the situation somehow and those stupid hillbillies around Atlanta are walking around in dead country? At least I want those guys to talk about it (if there is somewhere a country or an island where the situation is not that bad). I don't have to see our survivors flying to france to the eifel-tower and having sightseeing, but at least they should talk about the big picture a little bit more. I mean I would when being trapped in such a nightmare, why shouldn't they? There are so many beautiful islands in the pacific, some of them unhibitant. I would try to find a pilot or at least a ship, fuel and then trying to escape. (as far as we know, northern america is all f***** up). T-Dog for example had some good ideas, but nobody listens to him.

I don't want "Walt Disney", but at least a little bit more realistic behaviour our survivors should show.

Edited by BMW, 15 July 2012 - 06:14 PM.

[Trillian]

BMW, on 15 July 2012 - 06:14 PM, said:

I don't need a happy ending, they can go to hell, that's not the problem. But I want them at least to talk about that, or at least search for an answer. They can get dissapointed or even suicidal, but for me it is much too early for that. Hershels idea of zombies being sick and get cured was annoying, but somehow a realistic element in the show. I always think when watching a zombie movie: "hey would be pretty funny when they find a cure and zombies turn back into humans again, what a pitty for those zombie guys who were shot in the head"

These are important questions. What if the guys here in europe have stabilized the situation somehow and those stupid hillbillies around Atlanta are walking around in dead country? At least I want those guys to talk about it (if there is somewhere a country or an island where the situation is not that bad). I don't have to see our survivors flying to france to the eifel-tower and having sightseeing, but at least they should talk about the big picture a little bit more. I mean I would when being trapped in such a nightmare, why shouldn't they? There are so many beautiful islands in the pacific, some of them unhibitant. I would try to find a pilot or at least a ship, fuel and then trying to escape. (as far as we know, northern america is all f***** up). T-Dog for example had some good ideas, but nobody listens to him.

I don't want "Walt Disney", but at least a little bit more realistic behaviour our survivors should show.

The characters that we are watching are not people with the background to find a cure.  Are you suggesting a storyline within the show that would follow some surviving scientists?

If they find a cure, won't the zombies simply be dead?

Isn't part of the problem that there is no more communication?  In Georgia, they have no idea what's going on in the rest of the world.  Last they heard (from Jenner), the whole world had succumbed to the zombie infection/infestation.  And it's hard to think about the big picture when it's all you can do to survive day-to-day.  Nonetheless, so far, they have tried to go places where they thought there would be some people around who were dealing with the big picture (the CDC, Fort Benning).  I think expecting our little band of survivors to think about the big picture right now is unreasonable.

If Europe is stabilized, it's their responsibility to check up on the rest of the world, not the other way around.

As to T-Dogs idea about going East, he didn't propose the idea to the whole group and he was with people who wanted to reunite the group before picking a new destination or making a new plan.

You ask for more realistic behavior from our survivors, but your notions of realistic behavior seem highly unrealistic to me.


And I am done with this topic.  I think you and I will just have to agree to disagree.  IMHO, you don't want to watch The Walking Dead.  You want to write and produce your own show.  Feel free.

[babywalker]

What if they meet someone who is walking around with a syringe in the pocket containing the cure?  What good does that do?  The technology and infrastructure does not exist to replicate even one additional dose let alone in quantity.

What does it cure?  The zombies are dead, you can't cure that.  Does it remove the infection from your system so that you do not reanimate upon death; does it also act as a vaccine to prevent re-infection?  Does it protect you from becoming dead from the Komodo Dragon bites that are inflicted?

Society as they/we know it can never be rebuilt from where they left off.  They will have to start again, perhaps a hunter/gather situation.  Maybe a mostly vegetarian society.  Game and livestock to domesticate will probably be in short supply.  

Why is there shock when they have conflict with other groups?  Historically, tribal warfare over resources is commonplace.

Now is the most important time.  What can we do now to survive?  Secure a place, gather resources, kill as many as you can.  Hopefully all of the scattered bands of humans will realize that a death ritual is needed.  That will help to eliminate any new walkers.  Perhaps instead of pinning the body to the ground with a stake to the heart, they can pin them with a stake through the head.  

I know this can go horribly wrong, but they will have to secure a few for observation, hopefully outside the enclosure.  What is their longevity? 6 months, 1 year, 5 years.  Does lack of food seem to affect them?  Useful information when it comes time to think about the future.  

Sorry for the essay.

Of course I want to know what happened and why.  Do I need to know what happened and why?  No. That knowledge would not make the show any more enjoyable for me, and it wouldn't make any difference for the Atlanta group.

[BMW]

Trillian, on 15 July 2012 - 11:48 PM, said:

And I am done with this topic.  I think you and I will just have to agree to disagree.  IMHO, you don't want to watch The Walking Dead.  You want to write and produce your own show.  Feel free.

Don't push me into a direction I never wanted to go. I just wrote "if the zombies start walking around on the ground of deep water, then I would't watch anymore". No need to start writing my own ZA-story.

And yeah, right now they are surviving from day to day, but in the quiet hours they had, they could at least talk about the big picture or the rest of the world (maybe trying to get to a radio station or something like that to communicate with the rest of the world).
What about the helicopter Rick saw? Nobody mentioned it again. Maybe this is a clue which leads to a place with something like civilization or at least controlled structures (maybe a military complex with remainders of the government trying to soldier on). I always think "what would I do" and it is hard to slip in into their situation, but some things they do are strange (espacially when they start fighting each other). Of course this is good for the suspense, but I think we humans have a thousands of years old survival-program in our brains, which helps us to survive - in a group.

[BMW]

babywalker, on 16 July 2012 - 05:21 AM, said:

I know this can go horribly wrong, but they will have to secure a few for observation, hopefully outside the enclosure.  What is their longevity? 6 months, 1 year, 5 years.  Does lack of food seem to affect them?  Useful information when it comes time to think about the future.  

This is good stuff. An important question I always asked myself: If the zombies need fresh meat (they eat obviously) they do it for a reason. Which means something has to happen, if they don't eat. How long does it take them to starve? Or do they just go into standby? And what about cold weather (I guess we will see soon).

(other stuff people wrote here to answer my thoughts I didn't wrote in the first place...let's forget about that stuff).

Edited by BMW, 16 July 2012 - 10:03 PM.

[gracie lou]

BMW, on 16 July 2012 - 10:02 PM, said:

This is good stuff. An important question I always asked myself: If the zombies need fresh meat (they eat obviously) they do it for a reason. Which means something has to happen, if they don't eat. How long does it take them to starve? Or do they just go into standby? And what about cold weather (I guess we will see soon).

(other stuff people wrote here to answer my thoughts I didn't wrote in the first place...let's forget about that stuff).

I don't think TWD zombies need flesh - they just have some kind of compulsion to eat it. They won't starve, but they will eventually rot away.