Famous comics have long ripped horror movies for the stupid things that people do. In fact, being stupid got made fun of in Scream to great effect. Now, up until this point, the survivors on the Walking Dead have managed to keep "stupid" in check. That all changed once they assimilated the refugees from Woodbury, and it's driving me nuts.
What follows is my list of "stupid" that I end up screaming at the television in disbelief, hoping that somehow Carol, Rick, Darryl, Michonne, or Hershel will hear me. Just like (in a horror movie) you don't wander off by yourself into the darkness with no weapon, there are things that people shouldn't be doing in this world if they want to survive.
1) In the first episode of season 4, Carol is teaching kids how to use weapons during story time without telling their parents. This is wrong and stupid of Carol. She shouldn't be doing this without letting everyone at the prison know. Additionally, when a child tells you he's sick and going to puke, you go and find the person that has the most medical knowledge to see if it's something serious. You don't just let them go off and "sleep off the sickness" in the hopes that it gets better especially in tight quarters.
2) Staying in a prison and not using the doors to your cell to keep you safe at night is just dumb. Lock yourself in at night. Also, don't sleep with anyone else. If they die in the middle of the night from natural causes, they could start gnawing on your leg.
3) Going anywhere without a weapon. Tyrese's girlfriend went into the latrine area with only her flashlight at night. That's really stupid. Everyone should have at least a knife on them at all times. And if you hear a noise, you alert everyone and not just go off to investigate it by yourself.
4) When the pig died why didn't you have the veterinarian, Hershel, figure out why? He's a vet for Pete's sake. Use your resources. Not doing so is just stupid. And then killing the little pigs you were raising because you fear they might have some sickness that spread to humans without proof is also stupid.
5) Why on earth are they not actively culling the zombies? In season three we had a whole episode where Morgan showed how it was done. Barricades, trenches filled with spikes, barbed wire and boobie traps...all of these things should be set up outside the line of prison walls to help cull the zombies.
6) Zombies shouldn't be allowed to press on any portion of the fence. The survivors and everyone inside should work eight hour shifts at the gate killing the zombies that press up against the chain link fence.
7) They should be actively washing clothes, maintaining levels of hygiene, and going on runs into town to find anti-bacterial soaps, cleaners, and anything that will keep diseases in check. Water should all be treated with chlorine pills, etc.
8) Stop lighting fires with gasoline. It's a precious resource. Rick started to burn the pig pen down with gas when there was straw right there! Why didn't he grab the straw, use that to start a fire, and then burn the pig pen down? It's stupid!
It's very frustrating watching season 4. Don't get me wrong, two episodes in I'm still a huge fan. I'm just frustrated at how this season, "stupid" seems to be the most dangerous challenge in the world, and it will probably lead to their undoing. Ay carajo.
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| Don't go off by yourself in the dark. When you hear a noise, tell others. |
1) In the first episode of season 4, Carol is teaching kids how to use weapons during story time without telling their parents. This is wrong and stupid of Carol. She shouldn't be doing this without letting everyone at the prison know. Additionally, when a child tells you he's sick and going to puke, you go and find the person that has the most medical knowledge to see if it's something serious. You don't just let them go off and "sleep off the sickness" in the hopes that it gets better especially in tight quarters.
2) Staying in a prison and not using the doors to your cell to keep you safe at night is just dumb. Lock yourself in at night. Also, don't sleep with anyone else. If they die in the middle of the night from natural causes, they could start gnawing on your leg.
3) Going anywhere without a weapon. Tyrese's girlfriend went into the latrine area with only her flashlight at night. That's really stupid. Everyone should have at least a knife on them at all times. And if you hear a noise, you alert everyone and not just go off to investigate it by yourself.
4) When the pig died why didn't you have the veterinarian, Hershel, figure out why? He's a vet for Pete's sake. Use your resources. Not doing so is just stupid. And then killing the little pigs you were raising because you fear they might have some sickness that spread to humans without proof is also stupid.
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| Cull the zombies at the fences. Do it eight hours a day if you need to. |
6) Zombies shouldn't be allowed to press on any portion of the fence. The survivors and everyone inside should work eight hour shifts at the gate killing the zombies that press up against the chain link fence.
7) They should be actively washing clothes, maintaining levels of hygiene, and going on runs into town to find anti-bacterial soaps, cleaners, and anything that will keep diseases in check. Water should all be treated with chlorine pills, etc.
8) Stop lighting fires with gasoline. It's a precious resource. Rick started to burn the pig pen down with gas when there was straw right there! Why didn't he grab the straw, use that to start a fire, and then burn the pig pen down? It's stupid!
It's very frustrating watching season 4. Don't get me wrong, two episodes in I'm still a huge fan. I'm just frustrated at how this season, "stupid" seems to be the most dangerous challenge in the world, and it will probably lead to their undoing. Ay carajo.
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Today is Writers 4 Writers. Please visit Alex Cavanaugh and Isis Rushdan and send out a tweet to help them promote their novels!
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ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. The survivors are making incredibly poor choices and it's frustrating to watch. Your complaints #2,4 and 5 are especially accurate (and irritating). I have added my own gripes in addition to yours:
ReplyDelete1) Why have they not fortified the walls at all? Use wood, bricks, mud, ANYTHING. All you need to do is fill in the space between the two chain fenced.
2) There should be a curfew. It's like they've learned nothing from the successes in Woodbury.
3)Why is there not a person on watch while everyone sleeps? There should be someone on watch in every cell block.
4)There should also be a couple groups of 2-3 roaming the grounds watching for anything unusual (aka feeding rats to walkers)
Those sort of things frustrate me. Especially the wandering off by oneself with no weapon.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been keeping up with the series for a while. (Didn't even remember it started last week.) Besides, last night the Colts stunned the Broncos and it was a damn good game! Now the only undefeated team is KC - and they only won two games last year.
These Walking Dead folks obviously need you there with them. But...then the series would end early. Cause you'd, like, keep too many people alive. LOL
ReplyDeleteSomeone posted a link on fb (I forgot who):
ReplyDeletehttp://boingboing.net/2013/10/14/zombiesvsanimals.html
that talks about how zombies would get their asses kicked by mother nature (zombies being walking carcasses and mother nature's obsession with recycling) Anyway, that got me thinking of all the carrion beetles and flesh eating maggots in the world and in one swoop, made zombies a hell of a lot less scary. Zombies? Paleese. Insects and other carrion feeders have got this unless...they become zombies too. Zombie insects? Is that possible? Crap, there goes my argument.
I hate zombies.
Poor little Violet not being treated by Hershel the vet is what irritated me as well.... Violet will be sadly missed :(
ReplyDeleteAnd I asked myself why haven't they dug moats around the prison, maybe even two rings? It's not like they don't have bulldozers in surrounding towns. Or just pulling down all the trees around the prison and leaving them down would make a lovely set of walls.
And don't they have shops filled with free clothes in all the surrounding towns? And yet they all wear same ol dirty ones....
Sounds like that show is going downhill. Locking yourself into a prison might not have been the greatest idea to start with.
ReplyDeleteBut that's one of the great tricks of TV to make the story seem better than it is: always having the characters make the stupid (and most stupid) choices even when it's not something they would do.
ReplyDeleteYeah, some of the characters are starting to act stupid now and it's very irritating. Still a fan though.
ReplyDeleteI had some of these thoughts, too. But let's face it, nothing in this season has topped "Lori choices" so far, in my opinion. This season's start also goes to show that numbers doesn't necessarily equal strength during a zombie Apocalypse. :)
ReplyDeletethey should really just go to Costco. They got plenty of food and supplies, and best thing is that the zombies can't get in without a membership card.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to be catching up with this show. Too many of my friends are watching it, and I'm being left out. Gotta do it when the kiddos aren't around, though.
ReplyDeleteHaven't been watching this season, but you just ID'd a lot of stupid. Saw someone else Tweet about this too, so it must really be an issue this season.
ReplyDeleteAmen, brother.
ReplyDeleteIt appears to me that the characters are all very traumatized and suffering from long-term trauma. Trauma can mean memory loss, in their cases, failing to remember common sense. This is the only valid excuse that I can dream up!
ReplyDeleteThe comic book is still excellent. Fewer dumb people in that version of the story.
ReplyDeleteI'm not into zombies but I wouldn't think dealing with them would really be that much of a challenge after the shock of seeing dead people walking around wore off.
ReplyDeleteI'm feeling the same frustration. My hubby and I spent an hour complaining after last night's episode. With all the people they have at the prison, there should be a lot more working the fences, keeping watch, and tending to the fields and cleaning. Even the kids can be put to work. Let me tell you too, I'd be sleeping with my cell door locked!
ReplyDeleteI hear you. This is a fight for survival, and it seems like a lot of the people in the prison are just hanging out. The night shot of the cell block with all the open doors definitely bugged me. They're just asking to be overrun with zombies or intruders. There have been a lot of great moments in the past few episodes, but I do hope the writers scale down the stupidity.
ReplyDeleteUgh. That is such a turn off. But I will admit I love going to movies where there are stupid people (in the film) 'cause the audience is hysterical!
ReplyDeleteI can't look at zombies, so can't watch the show. I know I'm missing out. I binge watched Arrow on Netflix over the weekend. I'm hoping Dracula will be good.
ReplyDeleteYes to all of these, especially #4. I kept saying "Gee, if only there were a vet who could look at the pig!"
ReplyDeleteBut still a fan...even if I have to watch parts of the episodes with my eyes closed.
I started to read and then reminded myself I haven't seen any of season 4 yet! Ack!
ReplyDeleteNot actually watching it this year, but my son is filling me in and he agrees with you!
ReplyDeleteI hate 'stupid'!