Upcoming Zombies Sneaking Up Behind You: Part 1

These zombies aren't quite here yet, but will try to eat your brains very soon. Keep an eye out!

1) The New Hunger by Isaac Marion

Isaac Marion's novella prequel to Warm Bodies is coming out October 4. I absolutely loved the first novel and I can't wait to see what's in store for the second. The novella tells three separate stories that collide in the end. The reviews seem to be pretty favorable, so my hopes are high. If you really can't wait that long for it, it is on sale at the UK Amazon for about $10. It looks like there may also be a sequel in the works as well.

2) Ash vs. Evil Dead

Bruce Campbell is back as Ash and the evil he helped unleash is after him once again. This show looks like super cheesy fun and continues the story of the classic movie series (of which I have not finished yet). If you want over the top blood, awkward situations, funny oneliners, and other hilarity, this is the show for you. Bruce Campbell is always a blast to watch plus he and Sam Raimi teaming up again makes me super excited about the series. It all starts on Halloween at 9pm on Starz and will run for 10 episodes. Check out the trailer!



3) The Backstreet Boys and N' Sync's Untitled Zombie Movie

Backstreet Boys and N' Sync have put aside their differences to make a zombie movie. Not just any zombie movie, but a zombie Western futuristic movie. My inner middle schooler is shouting for joy because these bands were my childhood. I hope the movie is like Firefly with zombies, but I think that's aiming a bit too high. The reality will probably disappoint, but it might be fun anyways. The movie is being produced by the same company that makes the Sharknado movies, so I better lower my standards. I hope the production value is at least a bit better, but we'll see. It will apparently be music-based and they are looking to include New Kids on the Block members, so will it be a musical too? I can hope! No word yet on when it will come out.

Current Zombies Coming to Get You: Fear the Walking Dead

Fear the Walking Dead is the prequel/spin-off series to The Walking Dead. It's currently on TV every Sunday on AMC. It recounts the start of the zombie apocalypse in Los Angeles while following a blended dysfunctional family. They have issues before the trouble even starts: the older son Frank is a drug addict who witnesses a zombie attack while high. Of course no one believes him and the cycle of rehab, detox, and back to addiction starts over again. You can tell the family is getting tired of it and have little sympathy for him and his antics. Of course he is proven rights and we witness the start of riots and chaos that will precede the zombie apocalypse. While the first episode wasn't perfect and some of the dialog and situations were a little clunky compared to the Walking Dead, I can totally see this happening. I live near LA and there is no doubt in my mind that these events would happen. People would totally riot and protest over seemingly unarmed people being shot and then everything would descend into chaos. Lots of parts are realistic, suspenseful, and downright scary.

I've heard a lot of complaints about the first two episodes. The show can't just throw us into a zombie horde. We have to care about the characters first and establish their characters so we can see their development or care about their deaths. There have only been a few zombies, but it's just the start of the downfall of society. I'm sure there will be more soon. I'm personally enjoying the show immensely and I'm loving seeing their characters and plots unfold. Check out the trailer and tune in if you're interested. Fans of the Walking Dead will like it if they allow the show to grow and evolve on its own. Just keep in mind that it's a different show and will start a bit slower due to actually starting at the beginning. Check out the trailer!

Hungry for Your Love: An Anthology of Zombie Romance

Yes, you read that right: zombie romance. This is the second anthology on the subject I've read and the first was mostly disappointing, featuring human romance in a zombie setting rather than actual zombie romance. Here are my brief thoughts on stories I have strong feelings about. Spoilers may follow.

* First, the cover is perfect: a buff zombified romance hero with flowing hair holding a possibly zombified woman. It's gruesome and hilarious.

* Too many of these stories are cliche romances with any combination of humans and zombies falling in love, but a few did something different. A couple of the worst ones had the cheesiest dialog and cartoonish situations.

* Romance Ain't Dead by Jeremy Wagner

A man's wife dies and is quickly brought back as a zombie. Unfortunately that means that she can't actual walk or talk or do anything at all except sit there. The man thinks he's so awesome taking care of her and raping her (hopefully) unaware, undead body. This story was gross. The wife didn't ask to be zombified  and who knows what her experience is like. It's like a zombie version of A Rose for Emily. Just ick.

* Everyone I Love is Dead by Elizabeth Caldwell

A woman is in love with a human and a zombie. What to do? Her solution is a threesome, which is fine, but then she decides to turn the human into a zombie. Why? It's weird and doesn't have an explanation.

* First Love Never Dies by Jan Kolowski

This one has some pretty dark subject matter. A rich man has turned zombie after pimping out both zombies and children for the enjoyment of himself and other degenerates. A cop must save his childhood love from her deranged, possibly zombified father. I liked that the romance wasn't the focus of the story and it's one of the few with a tragic ending. Kind of depressing but good.

* Last Times at Ridgemont High by Kilt Kirkpatrick

A loser teen is teased and the zombie apocalypse happens, making him irresistible to women. The story is seriously written like a teenage-boy-wish-fulfillment-porno. Sex is totally the first thing on every woman's mind in a life threatening situation. The ending is mindnumbingly stupid. Hope you guys enjoy your orgy until you are either eaten by zombies, starve to death, or die of thirst. This is particularly disappointing since the title's namesake is actually a good film that was based in harsh reality.

* First Date by Dana Fredsti

This story is pretty decent and cute, but a few things right off the bat bothered me. In a conversation with her lackluster date, he says Hostel is his favorite horror movie and she's quick to dismiss torture porn as not horror. Pump your breaks. Just because you don't like something doesn't mean it's not a part of its genre. Ugh. This is one of my pet peeves. Other than that, the story is enjoyable and definitely Dana Fredsti's signature style.

* Captive Hearts by Brian Keene

This is by far the best story in the entire anthology and one of the shortest. It's chock full of depravity, sweet sweet revenge, zombie love, and some harsh realities. This is the only one that melds romance and horror so both are truly effective. The love displayed here is absolute and slightly depraved. An abused woman gets satisfying revenge and helps her disabled lover in the process. Brian Keene knows how to construct a story and he really shines here. It's both sweet and incredibly disturbing. It's also a satisfying bit of narrative. Too many of these are either too short and abrupt or I wish I could see more of the world they created. This one is just right: the perfect short story.

Overall, the anthology was readable and enjoyable. It didn't take me too long to read and if I didn't enjoy a story, there was another one right after it.

My rating: 3.5/5 fishmuffins

Current Zombies Coming to Get You: Contracted Phase II

Contracted Phase: II opens today! It seems to be a very limited release. Near me, it's only playing at one theater, which is a little weird since LA usually has at least a few playing obscure films. Check your local listings for availability.

I'm excited to see where the story goes, but my excitement has been dampened a bit. Apparently, the sequel is not the product of the writer/director of the first film, Eric England, and lots of people (some of whom left the film altogether) had a hand at altering the intended plot and direction. You can read all about it at his blog, Southern Fried Stories. I appreciate that he is so honest about his experience and about his feelings of basically having his film taken away from him and altered. The article also shows how the first film was at first considered a catastrophic failure until picked up by a film festival in Switzerland where it garnered wonderful reviews. I'm worried about the sequel because the first was rich with deeper meanings and social commentary. Since the direction has completely changed, I'm just expecting a generic zombie film, but we'll just have to see. Hopefully you'll be reading my thoughts about it later in the month.

If you haven't seen the firs one and want to catch up, the first Contracted is up on Netflix. Also, check out the teaser trailer for the sequel!

The Girl with All the Gifts

* spoilers *

Melanie loves going to class and interacting with her teachers, especially Miss Justineau. When she's not in class, she sits alone in her cell with no one to talk to and nothing to do until Sgt. Parks comes to collect her. When this happens, he trains a gun on her and straps her thoroughly into a wheelchair and takes her to class, to bathe, or to eat. Her classmates disappear periodically and don't return. One day, the base is attacked and Melanie finally gets to leave her very small world. She escapes with a small band of people including Miss Justineau, Sgt. Parks, Dr. Caldwell, and Private Kieran Gallagher. Together, they work to seek shelter, collect food, and avoid hungries in the wasteland that is England. Unfortunately, Melanie is discovering much about herself in her new environment, including keeping her own hunger in check...

The Girl with All the Gifts is a zombie novel. It's kind of weird this fact isn't advertised on the book jacket at all, but it was a pleasant surprise. The zombie apocalypse happened 30 years ago and only the smallest semblance of human society exists now. The zombies are called hungries for obvious reasons and the condition is caused by a fungus, a variation of Ophiocordyceps unilateralis. I love authors that take frightening, real things in the animal kingdom and apply it to humans like the tape worms in Mira Grant's Parisitology series or the parasitic crustaceans in the 2012 film The Bay. The real world version of this affects ants and makes them drastically alter their behavior. They abandon their nests, find a place where the fungus can flourish, and stay there until they die to further the fungus life cycle. In humans, this looks like attacking other humans to spread the fungus, which is only spread through saliva and blood. The first generation of hungries is completely animalistic. They are attracted by human scent, follow it to their prey, and mindlessly attack. When humans aren't present, they don't even move. It simply isn't necessary for the fungus that has spread throughout their bodies and destroyed their brains. Like the ants, the infected will also eventually lay down and die to allow the fungus to grow from their bodies. The second generation of hungries retains some of their mental faculties when out of the scope of humans and can eventually be taught to act like normal humans.

Melanie is one of the second generation of hungries. When the novel starts, she has no idea what she is. She only knows her teachers, her classmates, and the lessons she is taught. She has no memory of the time before when she roamed with the other hungries in the wild. Her compassion throughout the novel is truly unparalleled. She feels for hungries and humans alike, but she doesn't let her emotions control her choices. Her classes lead her to be fascinated with Greek myths (Pandora in particular) and her teacher Miss Justineau. Despite being very sheltered for the first few years of her life, she adapts perfectly to each situation. She fights her instincts to eat people when needed and cooperates completely when the humans need to restrain her to feel safe or when she needs to intervene with the wild hungries. Despite all of the chaos and violence, Melanie stays mostly quiet and contemplative, processing all the new information and figuring out her place in the world. She ends up making a very important decision for the future and comes to it through careful thought. The ending is bittersweet and weirdly hopeful. Although Melanie is only ten years old, she's clearly wise beyond her years and a compelling focus character.

The military base where our cast of characters starts is the only known instance of conventional society and of people actively studying the zombies and working towards a cure. Their work is fascinating, but dubious in ethics. They are doing what they can to discover a cure with no sophisticated technology and no outside support. Unfortunately, their work also entails vivisecting sentient zombie children. I don't like Dr. Caldwell, the spearhead of the science study, but I respect her. The whole of humanity depends on her research and she's presumably the only person working on this. She dehumanizes the sentient zombies, but it's necessary to keep emotionally detached and focus on her research. Her research comes before everything. I enjoy books that give the villains dimensions. Dr. Caldwell is arguably not a villain, but the closest thing to it besides the zombies. I can see where she's coming from and I admire her dedication despite her abhorrent actions. Other humans are known as junkers and are content to live day to day, finding other people's bases and looting them in order to live another day.

The Girl with All the Gifts is a superb zombie novel. Mike Carey managed to put a new spin on an oversaturated genre, but this is unsurprising looking at his past works, namely the Unwritten comic book series. It's the best zombie book I've read in a while and I can't recommend it enough.

My rating: 5/5 fishmuffins

Z

In 2032, the zombie apocalypse is a thing of the past. Zombies haven't been seen in years and life has gotten back to normal. Josh is fascinated with them and plays a virtual zombie killing game with his friend Firecracker every chance he gets. The game is based in reality and features a militia that torches zombies with flamethrowers. Josh is steadily rising in the ranks, but has to hide his gaming because his parents think it's in bad taste. He is approached by the best player in the game to play in real life with a team of teen torchers and cybernetic zombies. Josh is eager to play and doesn't notice that things just don't add up. He's just happy to earn some money and do what he enjoys without thought that the guy who runs the event is into some shady stuff and all isn't what it seems.

Z is one of a growing category of books where the zombie apocalypse has already happened and people have moved on. This zombie disease is a flu that attacks the higher brain functions and strengthens the base functions or "lizard brain." Zombies aren't the undead, but people who fail to process pain and are taken over by animalistic instincts. By the time Josh is born, a vaccine has been developed that everyone gets at birth. There are still a lot of dilapidated locations, but most of civilization is back to normal and thriving. This was only mentioned in passing, but biological animals seem to be endangered, but the extent is unclear.

Josh is a typical, middle class kid with typical problems and susceptible to peer pressure. He is obsessed with playing the virtual reality torcher game where he is viewed as a rising star. He hides his gaming activity because his mom made her feelings perfectly clear. His own aunt was one of the earliest people to turn into a zombie and his mom takes offense to her horrifying reality being made into a game. Like a typical teen, he doesn't think about others very much. Throughout the novel, he blindly stumbles into dangerous situations with only thoughts of fun. He joins the real life torcher tournament and doesn't believe the danger is real. In fact, he doesn't think to question anything at all. He takes a drug called Z that makes him act bit zombie-ish for a while and doesn't think anything of it when he attacks random strangers on the street or digs into raw meat with furvor. I found him pretty annoying for the most part until the very end.

I have a problem with the core concept of this book. Why use flamethrowers to subdue zombies? I get that it prevents the spread of the disease, but it should really be used when the zombie is already down for the count. Flamethrowers are not good melee weapons at all. Zombies do not go down automatically when set on fire. It could take a while for them to die, so it's pretty dangerous for everyone around and whatever building they happen to be in to use flamethrowers. I'm not sure why the game, the history, or the real life game torchers didn't just have regular guns to use in tandem with the flamethrowers. The dangers of fire in enclosed spaces and to other humans is mentioned a few times, but no one ever thinks of simple solutions to the problem.

Z is a bit of a disappointment. It's been on my shelf for a while and I had high hopes. The world is interesting and the narrative flows, but Josh is pretty awful and the main concept doesn't make much sense. The ending is a bit abrupt and ends in the middle of a scene, which annoys me. It's wide open for a sequel, but so far there is none. I would give the next book a chance because I enjoy Michael Thomas Ford's writing.

My rating: 3/5 fishmuffins

September Zombies!!!!

It's the most wonderful time of the year: September Zombies!!!! At Fishmuffins of Doom, you can look forward to brain eating, rotting, walking dead things every single day (hopefully!). This time, I will delve into zombie TV shows, songs, books, movies, and upcoming or current zombie projects. Lots of zombie awesomeness to be had. I hope you all are as excited as I am. :)