One of my favorite television shows these days is definitely AMC’s The Walking Dead, and I haven’t generally been a fan of the whole “zombie” genre, although I really liked Shaun of the Dead, 28 Days Later… and I am Legend. With The Walking Dead, though, I’m not really sure the writers adhere to a certain set of rules regarding how zombies behave. So, I thought I’d write a set of guidelines on the subject. Enjoy!
Things zombies can do:
- Zombies can hear
- Zombies can smell
- Zombies can move… slowly
- Zombies can grab things using their hands (if they have hands)
- Zombies can bite (if Michonne hasn’t already removed their jaws)
- Zombies can growl
- Zombies can move their head and limbs normally
Things zombies cannot or do not do:
- Zombies don’t circulate blood
- Zombies don’t sleep
- Zombies don’t run
- Zombies don’t jump
- Zombies don’t swim
- Zombies don’t reason
- Zombies don’t get tired or rest
- Zombies don’t lay down or sit down
- Zombies can’t climb (stairs, slight inclines are okay)
- Zombies bodies don’t regenerate on a cellular level
- Zombies don’t communicate with each other
- Zombies don’t “play dead” or in any way misrepresent anything
Things I’m not sure if they can do or not:
- Can zombies see?
- Can zombies feel? (touch, not emotions)
- Do zombies salivate, chew and/or swallow?
All these observations lead me to these conclusions and questions:
- There has to be some sort of low-level brain function, otherwise they could not move, smell, hear or know when to grab or bite.
- If zombies can chew and swallow what they bite, then they must salivate and be able to digest their “food”. And if they’re able to digest food, then they would need to defecate and urinate. And since you don’t see stains on the fronts and backs or their clothes, I’d assume that they cannot salivate, chew, swallow or digest their food.
- If they cannot do the most basic function of eating, they must simply be biting their victims and tearing their flesh and muscles, and then letting them fall away.
- If they are able to swallow, but do not digest food, then their stomachs are becoming full. If that’s the case, would they still feed? What would happen if they did?
- I maintain that the walker that bit Hershel violated rules 14, 15 and 19, so this is a case where the writers screwed up.
- If their bodies don’t heal (rule 17), then eventually the flesh and muscles will decay, the ligaments holding the bones together will wear down and the body will fall apart. If that’s the case, their numbers will begin to dwindle after a few months (years?)
- Rule 8 is critical. If zombies don’t circulate blood, how do they infect their victims? Also, when the body falls apart and the skull is simply laying there on the ground, will the brain continue to function, or will it shrivel up and die?
- If everyone has the virus within them, does that mean that if Rick, say, simply died of non zombie-related causes, would he become a walker anyway? If that’s the case, why did it suddenly start happening now?
Other questions cross my mind when I’m watching The Walking Dead, like:
- Even though it’s rural Georgia (presumably North of Atlanta), why doesn’t anyone think to go find a Walmart or a Sears somewhere? They’d have guns, ammo, clothes, medicine, tires and other car-repair equipment, building supplies and some non-perishable food.
- If the group has been living in these conditions for months, wouldn’t the beards be longer? Wouldn’t the arm-pits and leg hair be longer? Wouldn’t they all be stinking? Presumably people’s teeth will be rotting out soon, because no one’s brushing their teeth.
- What about women’s menstrual cycles? I know women survived for thousands of years without tampons and pads, but how would Maggie and the others deal with the problem?
- If couples like Glenn and Maggie are having sex, are they considering what they’ll do if the woman becomes pregnant, or are they using condoms?
- If the zombie apocalypse comes, and public utility workers either flee or turn, will the plumbing still work? I assume the electricity will not, but I’m not so sure about the water.
- How did the group get inside the prison? Presumably the guards had the building locked down, wouldn’t you think?
- Why don’t you hear more people praying or talking about God? This is Georgia, after all. Some people would be praying, others would be questioning why God would allow this to happen.
- Where do people urinate and defecate? Especially inside the cell block? When the prisoners were in the kitchen they did their “business” in the refrigerator, but that may have been because there was no bathroom in the kitchen area. If the plumbing still works, then a bathroom would be preferable, but if it does, wouldn’t it have working sinks at least, allowing everyone to wash themselves?
- I assume that, given the makeup of the groups, that no obese people, blind people, deaf people, mentally or physically-handicapped people or people with medical conditions that require medications (Type I Diabetes, asthmatics, people needing dialysis, etc.) haven’t survived. Neither have most children and teenagers.
- Why doesn’t anyone listen to a radio? Surely there’s someone, somewhere, who’s trying to find out if there’s life elsewhere.
- If you snapped a zombie’s neck, it wouldn’t “die”, but would it be able to walk?
- Wouldn’t the second floor and above, or an island be the best places to be safe?
Yes, I know The Walking Dead is fictional and I’m supposed to suspend my disbelief, but stories should be cohesive and logical, to the best of their ability. That said, there aren’t a huge number of flaws in the show thus far.