Dead of Night

Homer Gibbon is finally being killed after committing a boggling number of heinous murders and other assorted crimes. His body is secretly being transported to a small town in Pennsylvania called Stebbins where his estranged aunt lives. Unfortunately for Stebbins and the world, a prison doctor with a vendetta decides to infect him with a highly contagious parasite that should have caused Gibbons to say aware but immobile as he rots away for years. With this new development, Gibbons escapes and creates a wake of destruction and living death. Nobody understands what's happening until it's much too late. Cops Desdemona Fox and J.T. Hammond plus reporter Billy Trout get thrown into this mess and try to save as many people as they can. Can they stop this horrible plague from spreading throughout the world?

Jonathan Maberry is one of my favorite authors and he somehow became more awesome with Dead of Night. All of the parts of the novel work together to create a terror-filled zombie outbreak. The three main parts are the small town characters, the zombies and Homer Gibbons, and the government. The main small town characters are Dez and Billy Trout. Dez is by far my favorite. She's tough, makes lots of mistakes, and doesn't take any crap from anyone. Out of all the characters, she was most suited to mentally and emotionally dealing with this experience due to her background in the military. Her volatile nature plus her tough exterior (that covers her squishy vulnurability) makes her relatable and complex. She has abandonment and commitment issues and makes huge mistakes, but she does what's right when it counts. Billy Trout is at first glance a sleazy reporter who will do anything and exploit anyone for a story. Over the course of the novel, he's revealed to not be so bad. He willingly goes into danger mostly to save Dez (who doesn't really need saving) and transmit the truth to the public. Both of these characters experience the true horror of killing the people they see every day because they've turned into flesh eating monsters. Dez in particular feels the crushing emotion of having to kill the people she is normally sworn to protect. Too many stories gloss over this and make it seem easy, but it's hard and traumatizing. Maberry captures this horror well even in police officers and war veterans.

The zombies are pretty conventional: eat people, killed by destroying the brain, unsentient, and don't react to pain, but two things make them special: the fact that people are completely aware and the real life basis for the transmission. Each zombie has a normal person screaming inside, immobile and forced to see themselves attack and eat loved ones and neighbors. Lee Hartnup, the very first victim, acts as the representative for the zombified. His inner monologue and suffering is the only one we see of the zombies and it's horrifying. I've only seen this type of zombie once before in Hugh Howe's I, Zombie, which was a series of vignettes. This concept is just as effective in larger plot lines. The method of transmission is different than I've seen. The cause is a distorted kind of toxoplasmosis, which causes the host to spread the parasites at any cost. This mostly includes spitting, biting, really getting any bodily fluid on another person so the larva can be transmitted. Homer Gibbons, patient zero, is different than all the other zombies. He's a bit slow and ungainly, but he has control over his faculties when not taken over by hunger. His insanity and murderous nature make him the worst person possible to give the ability to create and manipulate the zombie apocalypse.

Dead of Night is one of the best zombie books I've read. The characters are amazing, the story is frightening, and I was addicted right from page one. If I had my way, I would have read the whole thing in a sitting, but things like work got in the way. I am eager to get my hands on the sequel because the ending is pretty explosive. I can't wait to see what happens!

My rating: 5/5 fishmuffins

The Walking Dead: Season 4

Midway through Season 4 when it first aired, I decided not to watch the show anymore. I didn't care for where the show was going and they killed off Andrea. However, I keep seeing interesting things on my newsfeed about the show that make me want to give it a chance. So I bingewatched it over the summer. Read on for spoilers and thoughts on this season.

The Good

* Broken Humans

The people who simply can't adapt to the world and break are fascinating. Clara in the very first episode tries to feed Rick to her zombified husband. Even the Governor's group only wanted someplace safe and allowed themselves to be manipulated into needless violence. Lizzie simply thinks zombies are still people, but different. She feels bad for them and doesn't want them to die. She even makes friends with them, which is sweet and a nice thought on the surface. The reality is that this mentality is dangerous and insane. Her actions put their whole group in danger and eventually ends up murdering her best friend without even knowing the full ramifications of that act.

* Carol

Carol is my new favorite character. She used to be incredibly annoying, but she was the victim of abuse and really grew as a person. She does what's needed and what others shy away from: trying to prevent disease from spreading, adeptly killing zombies, and teaching the children how to survive. With her help, the children come to terms with the new world and are exposed to harsh realities. She also makes the hard decision to kill Lizzie when she proves to be a danger to any human.

* Hershel

I was annoyed with Hershel before, but he's proven to be amazing. He took care of the sick even though he could contract the disease and deals with the most dangerous situations with calm and caring. He's just so reasonable and makes the impossible seem possible. His death was all the more tragic because he really shined this season. I love the flashback in the last episode showing how Hershel influenced the group to settle, farm, and become a real community.

* The Death of the Governor

Yay! No more of his boring story.

* The separation of the main group

This created great opportunities to explore unlikely friendships and relationships like Daryl and Beth, Maggie and Sasha, and Carl and Michonne. We get to see the characters in different settings than just scavenging and in the prison plus they reveal more about their respective backgrounds.

* Bad-Ass End of Season Rick

Rick is back to his old self when he saves Carl. He's on top of his game when he notices the Terminus people wearing their friends' clothes. I respect him so much more when he's in his real leader position, making split second decisions and protecting his group. Also, his scene where he was recuperating and hiding from the psycho hillbillies throughout the house was an amazing scene. Crazy suspense everywhere. More of this Rick please.

The Bad

* The Governor

The Governor should have died at the end of last season, but the writers kept him alive just to interrupt the entire story in the middle of the season. Why have a series of episodes just focused on him? I personally don't care about him and his new found family. He's still an awful person and I don't care about his softer side. Sure he has feelings and junk, but he still kills people for essentially no reason and makes dumb decisions. I agree that it's nice to have a villain with dimension, but the story seems to say "look how nice he is" and then undoes all of that with the murder of Hershel and the attack on the prison.

* Bossy Mid-Season Rick

Rick is still making judgments for the group without regard to anyone else despite denying for the whole first half of the season that he is no longer the leader. He banishes Carol without consulting anyone else. Just annoying.

* Tyrese

Why is he even there? Tyrese just picks fights with people and gets super violent over practically nothing. He should have been kicked out long before Carol was. He's a pretty ineffectual character.


* Carl

Please don't treat your concussed and injured dad like crap. The adventures of inept Carl in episode 9 went on way too long.

* Why is season 5 not on Netflix? I won't be watching in the fall if I'm not all caught up plus the cliffhanger is killing me!

Overall, Season 4 is decent. I really did not enjoy the Governor stuff and I couldn't get past it the first time I watched it. Onwards to season 5!

iZombie

Olivia "Liv" Moore is a dedicated medical intern that always achieves the highest she can. One day, she decides to let loose a little and go on a boat party, but it turns out to be a zombie filled death trap. She is scratched by a zombie and becomes one herself. To keep her condition a secret, she quits school, breaks up with her fiance Major Lilywhite, and gets a job in a morgue for guilt-free brain access. When she eats brains, she discovers she intermittently gets the memories of the deceased and inherits some of their personality traits for a short time. She uses her newfound power to solve crimes along with her morgue coworker Ravi, who knows about her zombie state, and Detective Clive Babineaux, who she's fooled into thinking she's a psychic.

iZombie is the only zombie show on TV that isn't totally serious and post-apocalyptic. Despite the obvious darkness of the subject matter (murder, zombies, brain eating, etc.), the tone of the show is light and it brings a lot of humor. It's also the only show on TV with a zombie as a main character instead of as a mindless shambler. Zombies in this world are the product of some sort of drug. They need brains to live and becomes super pale with colorless hair when turned. With a steady diet of brains, they look pretty normal if you ignore their new coloring. With those brains comes memories of whoever the brain belonged to, usually triggered by a similar event in their life to a memory, and some aspects of their personality. Without brains or when afraid, they turn feral: super strong, red eyes, and very little cognition. Zombies also have a strong constitution. Flesh wounds don't even hurt, but more brains need to go towards healing. Destroying the brain is really the only way to kill them.

Liv Moore is our intrepid protagonist. She changes every episode because of her zombie ability, so sometimes Liv is a martial artist or an artist or an alcoholic or a paranoid schizophrenic. Rose McIver does a wonderful job of making these ever changing aspects just part of Liv. It's easy to make it a different character every episode, but it just brings out different parts of Liv's personality and allows her to work out her emotions and problems as well as solve murder mysteries. Throughout the series, she gets to know who she really is through other people. She is challenged, pushed to her limits, and experiences tragedy. However, she also finds where her boundaries lie and defines who she is and what she's willing to do in extreme circumstances. For example, Liv won't kill someone is cold blood, but she will kill someone in self defense. I didn't always agree with her and she made mistakes along the way, but she grew in the end. She also reassesses what's important in her life and reconnects with the estranged people in her life.

After the attack, Liv is a zombie in every way. Sure, she is physically a zombie, but she's withdrawn from every aspect of her life. Her friends and family don't see her anymore and lost their previous close relationship. She broke up with her fiance Major, much to his confusion, even though she still has feelings for him. She had a successful medical residency, but also threw it away to become a coroner's assistant for nonviolent brain access. When I explained the premise of the show out loud, I noticed that it can be read as an allegory for sexual assault or rape. Liv, a fresh faced successful woman, goes to a party. She's offered drugs and refuses, then the drug dealer slaps her ass, clearly not respecting her refusal and feeling like he's allowed to touch her body. Later, this same drug dealer forces the drug upon her anyway in the form of a scratch and she becomes a zombie. She doesn't really tell anyone about her condition or her attack and she would rather withdraw from her whole life rather than put her loved ones at risk. I've heard of and known many women who hid their sexual assaults from people because they wouldn't be believed or they didn't want to subject themselves to the disbelief, ridicule, and vilification that often comes from going public with a situation like this. Liv uses her zombie powers for good, eventually reconnects with her friends and family, and takes control of her life back. She refuses to let this attack define her even though it has changed her.

Rose McIver drives the show as the main character, but the supporting cast is amazing. My favorite supporting character is Ravi, portrayed by Rahul Kohli. He takes Liv's revelation and issues in stride plus works to create a cure. He accepts her absolutely and is her main support throughout the series. Major Lilywhite, Liv's ex-fiance. started off as too squeaky clean and annoying, but came into his own about halfway through the series. By the last episode, he was pretty badass and impressive. David Anders plays the series' main villain. Right from the get go, he has a weirdly charismatic presence while still succeeding being sinister and menacing. He is cheerfully evil and nonchalantly commits murder or any other number of horrific crimes. I love to hate him and he's a formidable villain. The whole cast performs well and there are really no weak links.

iZombie is a wonderful show that's fun, sometimes disturbing, and full of real emotion. It's based on a comic book, but shares very little with it. It pays homage to the comic book in the stylized animated opening theme song and in the freeze frame comic book scenes at the beginning of some scenes. The familiar police procedural mixed with zombies is what it starts with, but becomes so much more by the end of the season. I'm very pleased with it and I can't wait for it to return in October.

My rating: 9/10 fishmuffins

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!