Yes, We Have No Brains!

I realize that I seem to end up talking about vampires quite frequently on this blog and I'm not really sure why... so let's give some equal time to the current horror flavour of the month: zombies.

Why are zombies so popular? Well, for one thing, they are probably the most "sex, drugs and rock n roll" of all the standard horror monsters. If you don't believe me, just take a close look at some of the legendary guitar gods and you'll see what I mean. Unlike vampires, zombies aren't sexy. They have hard living (and hard dying) written all over them. Their existence is completely from the gut, instinctual and "do as you please". Zombies just do not give a fuck about anything except for one thing: their addiction. Their whole motivation is getting their next fix. And they don't care what kind of abuse they have to suffer to get it. As for the "sex" part, well they're totally into "flesh"... only in their case, they just happen to feed on it.

On the flip side, every zombie story has its hero. The few, or the one, who wades through the mindless mob; the lone fighter in the sea of rotting humanity. Natural selection has given them the uncanny mix of brains, brawn and good luck and they manage to survive. Perhaps we identify with these characters, our feelings of alienation or individualism: "us against them", the age old conflict of man versus society. Or maybe we want to be them. Who doesn't want to be a survivor?

Beyond all that though, I think the real appeal is that at the heart of every zombie story lies a conspiracy theory. For every Raccoon City there has to be an Umbrella Corporation. Who doesn't love a juicy conspiracy theory? Every zombie outbreak can be blamed on the two most obvious perpetrators: big business or science. And who better to blame? It only confirms our suspicions that both are too rich, too powerful, and too secretive. While they play God our lives hang in the balance. Now, wouldn't a zombie outbreak be the ultimate "I told you so!"

Personally, my favourite zombie flick is "28 Days Later". For one thing, the idea of a "rage virus" strikes me as being plausible (in fact, some days I'm convinced I suffer from it myself!). Well, more plausible than waking the dead at any rate! Probably my favourite scene in the movie is when Jim, our survivor, first leaves the hospital and walks through the completely deserted London. The mood is strange and chilling, and probably one of the most effective I've ever seen in a horror film. According to my husband, the scene represents a utopia because there are no people. (He's a misanthropic sort!).

Over the past year or so I've been enjoying a variety of titles in "The Mammoth Book of..." series. These are thick anthologies on specific genres, the ones I get are different genres of comics but they make other titles as well. Admittedly, some of the stories collected therein aren't necessarily the "best" but they do cover a broad, international spectrum. The thing I enjoy most about the Mammoth Book series is that you get a nice sample of writers and artists that you might not have otherwise heard of and some of them are quite good.

In "The Mammoth Book of Zombie Comics" the gem for me was the multi-part "Dead Eyes Open" by Matthew Shepheard and Roy Boney Jr. Apparently the story came out of a failed internet project called DEADIES. This is a zombie story with a twist. Here, the zombies are rational, sentient, multi-faceted characters and the story is rather complex. Without giving away too much, the story creates a society where zombies have become a "race" and like any other minority group must the struggle for their rights and freedoms, rebel against the system and deal with prejudice. And Wil Wheaton is a character in it. Seriously. Check it out sometime.

In closing, a prediction: The next big thing will be werewolves. You've heard it here first.