Z Nation VS Walking Dead (actors, channel, Cary, difference)
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I wish they'd do a zombie series or movie that has just a little originality and puts a little thought into it. Every one is always the same. A virus causes the dead to walk around kill people, its just idiotic. Boring and idiotic.
How about a greater exploration of the dead coming back to life? If that would happen it wouldn't be some impossible virus or organism, we're talking the supernatural, wrath of God, Gates of Hell opening, Final Days Apocalypse.
I guess that religious take is taboo in the creatively dead and uptight entertainment industry but it would open up a whole slew of new plot ideas.
Evil spirits or evil souls straight from hell take over the bodies of newly deceased people and run amok. They'd rape and pillage and murder until the body just can't function much anymore due to damage and deterioration. Imagine a talking zombie of your Aunt Ethel coming after you That's way more scary than having a zombie stagger out of a road side rest stop and try to eat you. Or if it is inhabited by another spirit, maybe its speaking ancient Chinese or German or Latin.
Then you'd have other far worse nasties running around. Demons, fallen angels, werewolves, vampires, ghosts. And if you had them you'd have angelic beings doing direct battle with them. Maybe they'd help some chosen of mankind, maybe they'd look down on humanity as a lost cause or as pawns in their final battle.
Through it all you'd have the assortment of survivors trying to come to grips with the world being turned upside down. Some would try to rise above it , others would only want to live at any cost.
You might like a video game called "The Last of Us" which I think someone is making into a movie. It's similar to zombie apocalypse movies. The premise is that a fungus slowly transforms humans into disfigured and violent creatures who are blind so they navigate using echo location like bats. The fungus takes over the the minds of victims and finally kills them by making them go into dark areas so that the fungus spores can erupt and grow out of their heads and bodies and infect others. It's really interesting in a disgusting way. The infected aren't dead and in the early stages of the infection, the fungus forces people to attack and hurt others when they really don't want to.
It's based on a real fungus in South America called ophiocardyceps unilateralis that attacks ants and causes them to act in self destructive ways; finally making them die underneath leaves so the fungus can grow out of their bodies
You might like a video game called "The Last of Us" which I think someone is making into a movie. It's similar to zombie apocalypse movies. The premise is that a fungus slowly transforms humans into disfigured and violent creatures who are blind so they navigate using echo location like bats. The fungus takes over the the minds of victims and finally kills them by making them go into dark areas so that the fungus spores can erupt and grow out of their heads and bodies and infect others. It's really interesting in a disgusting way. The infected aren't dead and in the early stages of the infection, the fungus forces people to attack and hurt others when they really don't want to.
It's based on a real fungus in South America called ophiocardyceps unilateralis that attacks ants and causes them to act in self destructive ways; finally making them die underneath leaves so the fungus can grow out of their bodies
Let's hope that fungus doesn't jump to humans! Then fiction will become reality (again).
The floating zombies that played dead and then attacked on queue? That was rather unbelievable. If they can do that they should be more organized in their other activities as well.
LOVE Walking Dead! HATE Z Nation! I didn't like the writing. The acting was no good for me. I didn't find the characters likeable nor did they relate to each other. I couldn't feel for any of the characters for what they were going through. I didn't think the zombies were realistic to me. The floating in the water then all of them get up at the same time? Synchronized zombie attack implies they still have the ability to plan ahead and act accordingly. That's kind of against zombie rules, isn't it? I mean, I enjoyed the movie Warm Bodies. The thinking and feeling zombie idea was cute and I enjoyed the movie for it's humor and entertainment value. I don't expect to see that in a more serious setting like I'd expect in Z Nation.
I think I'll just wait for Walking Dead to come back. MUCH better show!
I thought the zombies in the water wasn't a planned ambush at all. They were probably lying their dormant, and when they heard the humans/people splashing around, they all got up together to investigate the noise.
I wish they'd do a zombie series or movie that has just a little originality and puts a little thought into it. Every one is always the same. A virus causes the dead to walk around kill people, its just idiotic. Boring and idiotic.
Because the appeal is about how the survivors deal with the problem of a world full of zombies.
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How about a greater exploration of the dead coming back to life? If that would happen it wouldn't be some impossible virus or organism, we're talking the supernatural, wrath of God, Gates of Hell opening, Final Days Apocalypse.
I guess that religious take is taboo in the creatively dead and uptight entertainment industry but it would open up a whole slew of new plot ideas.
Not really, it just wouldn't be a zombie movie. Check out the movie Legion starring Paul Bettany and Lucas Black. There are others like it, but that one jumps to mind. The video game DOOM has a backstory like you are talking about, the denizens of Hell come through a man made transporter gone amok, but they punked out and changed all that when they made the movie staring the Rock.
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Evil spirits or evil souls straight from hell take over the bodies of newly deceased people and run amok. They'd rape and pillage and murder until the body just can't function much anymore due to damage and deterioration. Imagine a talking zombie of your Aunt Ethel coming after you That's way more scary than having a zombie stagger out of a road side rest stop and try to eat you. Or if it is inhabited by another spirit, maybe its speaking ancient Chinese or German or Latin.
Then you'd have other far worse nasties running around. Demons, fallen angels, werewolves, vampires, ghosts. And if you had them you'd have angelic beings doing direct battle with them. Maybe they'd help some chosen of mankind, maybe they'd look down on humanity as a lost cause or as pawns in their final battle.
Through it all you'd have the assortment of survivors trying to come to grips with the world being turned upside down. Some would try to rise above it , others would only want to live at any cost.
Again, there are several movies about ghouls, vampires, demons, etc. Those just aren't zombie movies. Just watch movies about ghouls, demons, and vampires if you think zombies are boring.
Other then Legion, I thought Stake Land was good and should be right up your alley.
I gave Z nation another shot last night and it isn't really getting any better. I mean the hippy Doctor caught in an airshaft with a Zombie ends up smoking a joint with it ??
I think next week the show is seriously JUMPING THE SHARK. The preview has the group running from a tornado and of course the twister has picked up zombies and is dropping them all over the place.
One of the characters actually says "it could be worse, it could be sharks"
Is this a comedy show? It is rather silly at times liek last night when the group comes apon another that stole their truck and it turns out the bad guys are actually getting robbed by 2 parents and their little kids. The little kids had guns.
Z Nation is getting crazy.
I just might tune in next week to see the zombies get sucked in the tornado.
I gave Z nation another shot last night and it isn't really getting any better. I mean the hippy Doctor caught in an airshaft with a Zombie ends up smoking a joint with it ??
I think next week the show is seriously JUMPING THE SHARK. The preview has the group running from a tornado and of course the twister has picked up zombies and is dropping them all over the place.
One of the characters actually says "it could be worse, it could be sharks"
Is this a comedy show? It is rather silly at times liek last night when the group comes apon another that stole their truck and it turns out the bad guys are actually getting robbed by 2 parents and their little kids. The little kids had guns.
Z Nation is getting crazy.
I just might tune in next week to see the zombies get sucked in the tornado.
Well, according to some posters on the TWD thread, those qualities should make it a great show. Since zombies aren't real and can't exist, by definition the show itself can/should be silly/weird/incongruous and otherwise have no logical continuity just because. Sounds like it's working out just fine.
I have seen the first four episodes and this is my impression. The producers know that not only can they not compete with TWD on their budget, but even simply copying the formula would be too much 'straight zombie drama' for the marketplace, so they did something a little different.
To illustrate the difference, consider the following statements:
The Walking Dead was based on a graphic novel.
Z Nation seem like it would be based on a comic book.
I think what Z Nation is trying to do is create an intentional B-movie zombie action show that satirizes the pop culture that has built up around the zombie genre, but without getting into outright farce. That is, the overriding story arc so far is somewhat serious, but the individual scenarios and some of the lines and performances are not to be taken too seriously. A formula that is certainly not for everyone.
On the other hand, TWD is, while not entirely without the rare bit of black humor, stays entirely consistent with its dramatic representation of survivors of an apocalypse.
In a direct one-to-one comparison with TWD, Z Nation simply cannot compete. Taken on its own merits, I think I will continue to watch it. It looks like it could be good drinking game material.
Finally from a technical perspective, there are obvious budget limitations. I prefer not to fault a show or movie based on budget. The acting talent is a notch below more serious dramas as well, but the actors do seem keen to create their characters, (the Doc and the fellow at the remote arctic station are standouts) and given time, this too may improve. Frankly this is true of any TV show, the first season often looks like a bunch of unsure kids at their first boy-girl party, The Walking Dead not excepted despite their more advanced talent.
As many cop shows, medical shows, lawyer shows, quirky family shows there are I think we could stand another show about zombie drama without them doing something so drastically different to the zombie formula to make it cheesy and silly.
There are so many scenarios and character interactions and locales that could be explored that TWD hasn't or wont ever get try that a different show with different writers with a different setting could
When the zombies on Z-N run, they step along like they are in the Z-olympics.
But when they walk, they have the same twisted-foot Zombie limp as the Walking Dead.
The key to survival in Z-N is to find what the performance enhancing substance is and see if it works on live humans.
I hope the Nose Guy gets eaten by his dog.
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Then fiction will become reality (again).
