When did you realise you loved the zombie genre?

jme2010

For me it was playing Resident Evil at a young age. Just being terrified and amazed at how scary something can be by the idea of a never ending hoard, slowy inching ever closer, with the sole intent to eat your flesh.

How about you?

I predict alot of George A.Romero fans.

Teyla Emmagan

When the remake of 'Dawn of the Dead' came out (2004?). Went along and thought 'right THIS is fantastic' and then started watching everything I could get my hands on. Romero can be terribly patchy though - that 'Survival of the Dead' thing from a year or two was appalling IMO.

Generally I perfer fast zombies though they are not seen by some as being as 'authentic' etc.

ScumLord

I'm not sure because I tend to hate most zombie films. Well I obviously get something out of them because I keep watching them hoping to see something good but the vast, vast majority are brutal, lazy horrors that use zombies to avoid telling any kind of story.

Outside of Max Brooks the whole genre is awful.

OutsiderAkuma

Outside of max Brooks!!?dont get me wrong, the man is a geniuses!! But the first 3 res evils, how dead island is shaping up to be, Ah dude, the early romero's! The 28 series. Te walking dead novels, the tons of genuine decent short stories. The occasional film that turns out to be amazingly directed and written well, giving a decent story or twist on the whole zed thing. Te zombie podcast 'we're alive' (prob prefer that to max Brooks work personally, maybe because they have words spoken and action, intense scenes but still leaves it to your imagination)
They're is alot of good zombie stuff out there, although it's like 5% good stuff compared to the garbage, there us still alot of amazing stuff.

My first time was my older brother making me watch day of the dead... He left for work then, I was going to school, it was a winter morning, I was 12ish.... I was afraid to go upstairs in thesark, hell even with the light on I was terrified.... I walked to school, well, jogged, every sound causing my heart to flutter as my mind replayed the image of zed heads ripping open a torso and feasting on a small intestine....


Aaaahhh memories:o:rolleyes:

Kess73

I think it was Return Of The Living Dead on VHS in the mid 80's that led to me seeing Day Of The Dead on VHS the same year.

That in turn brought Night of... and Dawn Of.. to my attention and I was hooked from that point.

ScumLord

OutsiderAkuma wrote: »

But the first 3 res evils,

Awful.

how dead island is shaping up to be,

I giving that some grace because it's a game but there are the usual lets introduce scary monsters to our zombie story.

Ah dude, the early romero's! The 28 series.

These are in the handful of good films.

The walking dead novels,

Started reading them but have gone off comics in a big way.

I need convincing human story's I hate fantasy for fantasy's sake. Realism is just gone out of fiction these days, it takes a real intelligence and knowledge of the subject to make a realistic story.

I know people keep saying "but we're talking about zombie here, why all the realistic shtick?" Zombie are within the realms of the possible (as long as they don't fly or any of the other super strength nonsense) and the story is how do people deal with that.
Most story tellers have resorted to the classic characters become hardened soldiers (completely out of the blue) and all they do is wander around looking for food and more guns because guns and food automatically generate around the place for them to find, of course they're the only good guys left everyone else has turned into a evil comic book character and is out to get them.

OutsiderAkuma

You found the walking dead novels to not feel real? I found it real as he'll. It's written so well and isn't about zombies, more survival. It doesn't get reaper than that I think.It shows the human side, or at times, lack off. It shows the struggle and I think it's done amazingly

First 3 res evil's were amazing, you'll find most gamers like them, they began the zombie mainstream in my eyes. sure the script and voice acting was terrible, but it added to it.

It's just different peoples take on a not real thing, they hold as much truth to them as the normal zombie, especially as with dead island and resevil, they get explained as hybrid viruses and special cases. I mean if it's a disease or virus, they do mutate and certain conditions give different effects, like the real deal.

I guess it's all opinion though, so it's your call, we just differ, could be worse, could've saw return of the living dead as your first zombie experience lol hate them more so much. Campy, crappy films....

ScumLord

OutsiderAkuma wrote: »

You found the walking dead novels to not feel real? I found it real as he'll. It's written so well and isn't about zombies, more survival. It doesn't get reaper than that I think.It shows the human side, or at times, lack off. It shows the struggle and I think it's done amazingly

I never got past the first one of them, I just don't like comics much any more, I used to love them and learned to draw from 2000AD but like with a lot of things I get obsessed and then once I know enough or had enough I leave it never to return. Comics as a medium don't do it for me any more, maybe I've just lost the ability to fill in the blanks.

First 3 res evil's were amazing, you'll find most gamers like them, they began the zombie mainstream in my eyes. sure the script and voice acting was terrible, but it added to it.

I was just never a fan, not really a fan of that style of game with the fixed camera. But overall just not a fan of monsters. I prefer the old school monsters like Frankenstein, that story had real emotion and tackled an issue and was again something that's not complete hocus pocus. I hate modern bump in the night thoughtless monsters. I just can't get into it.

I guess it's all opinion though, so it's your call, we just differ,

That's just it, it's just I don't like those things, I'm definitely in a weird bracket where I like the idea and know there's something to it I just don't like where most media goes with it.

Gandalph

Resident evil 2 started me off on my zombiecapades, kinda died down after that until i seen Dawn of the Dead 2004 and 28 days later, Iv always considered that sort of stuff as a worst case life scenario

ChaseThisLight

The first time I ever saw a zombie I think I was 5 and I sneaked out of bed to watch Thriller with my older cousins.

But as a teenager I saw Night of the Living Dead and I loved it...and then a good friend said I had to see what he claimed was an awesome zombie movie so I watched one of the Return of the... movies

(the one with the girl who made herself a pin cushion to avoid eating brains)

and it was so much crap it kinda ruined zombies for me for a bit.

Didn't get back into it until I played the first Resident Evil game for Playstation...and now I not only have a few games, I've got movies and an entire bookshelf dedicated to zombies (ranging from Max Brooks to The Zen of Zombie to How to Speak Zombie to fiction novels/short stories). I've not read any of the Walking Dead novels; not as into comics really, though I may check them out...I just read Marvel Zombies because my brother had it, and it was kinda cool.

I do have to say, that while Resident Evil was my first zombie game, it's the only one of the series I've ever played and I'm not a huge fan of the movies. I liked aspects of the 1st and 3rd one, hated the 4th and was just meh about the 2nd. Too much fantasy in them for me.

I absolutely love the genre, but like Scumlord (you said it perfect!) I don't like where most media go with it.

GavRedKing

I watched all the earlier "dawn of the" and the "night of the" feires of films and was hooked by them.

I really liked the survival aspect more then running around blasting Z's.

So for me the survival aspect is what I took away from these films and it got me hooked on Z's and all Z related material.

Loved the 1st Resident Evil as it was a first really in terms of its genre and had a believeable enough story of a corporation manfacturing a virus etc etc nearly all subsequent Resident Evils have far removed the genuine fear and more believable side of the first by adding monsters and crazy mutations.

BigDuffman

Was never a huge fan of the Romero films, thought they were too slow to be scary. It was RE that really stoked the fire. Then the Dawn of the Dead 2004 ramped it to the next level.

jme2010

ChaseThisLight wrote: »

I've got movies and an entire bookshelf dedicated to zombies (ranging from Max Brooks to The Zen of Zombie to How to Speak Zombie to fiction novels/short stories).

Thats what I want someday!

Next topic. Which is best? Slow shuffle or full speed coke head zombie?

I say slow shuffle for the authentic feel.

Gandalph

jme2010 wrote: »

Next topic. Which is best? Slow shuffle or full speed coke head zombie?

The sprinters would frighten the **** outta me, even though I know Id beat them for pace I doubt zombie genetics would allow the build up of lactic acid so they would never tire or slow down!....man i better take up free running just incase they do come about

DakotaYoda

I have very vivid memories of watching Night of the Living Dead at about age 8-9. My older brother was babysitting and had friends over. I was not supposed to be watching and hid behind a chair so I could see it.

Dawn of the Dead was next and that got me hooked. Surviving in a mall? SOLD! After seeing that I remember checking out our local mall and planning as I shopped with my family.

Yeah - most zombie movies are cheap knock offs but themselves zombies are, in my mind, simply the very best metaphor ever for people today.... I just can't think of anything better.

All they do is shamble through life. Mindless - consuming everything around them that they can.

degrassinoel

The Deadly Earnest Horror Picture Show.
That introduced me to the crappy b-movie zombies, which i kind of hooked myself into later with the 'Of the Dead' films. Dawn being the first one i could really sink my teeth into, so to speak

Micky Dolenz

When I was young I spent a lot of time travelling due to my parents work.

When I was three we were living in a small Chinese village called Huaxi. This is where I came face to face with my first ever Zombie. A boy of about 12 had been brought to the village by his parents with complaints of feeling unwell. Sadly doctors couldn't save him, he reanimated shortly afterwards and attacked morgue staff, biting two, before he was locked into the morgue.

I happened to be at the hospital at the time and vaguely remember the pandemonium that ensued. The doctors couldn't explain what happened and thought they mistakenly pronounced the boy dead, until the morgue workers succumbed to their injuries and came back, one tried to grab me but my father quickly took me from within it's reach.

The hospital was evacuated and the army called in, Huaxi village is a rich enough area and the army weren't long in sanitising the hospital, no account of what happened that day was ever recorded nor were any death certs issued in relation to the deaths. Some say they were taken alive and brought the a military research facility.

Since that day I have had more then an interest in Zed outbreaks across the world and trying to record them where I can.

Duiske

I became a lurker on this forum after watching Zombieland. I only watched it because I was bored and thought I was not into that "living dead" type film. How wrong I was. Can't get enough of them now. And some of the threads here are a blast to read.

ChaseThisLight

gavredking wrote: »

I really liked the survival aspect more then running around blasting Z's.

So for me the survival aspect is what I took away from these films and it got me hooked on Z's and all Z related material.

Yes, this is exactly it. It's why I like to watch any movie/show that deals with an apocalyptic nature, not just the zeds movies. Seeing how humanity handles such a thing intrigues me, and inspires me to think about what I would do in such situations.

Loved the 1st Resident Evil as it was a first really in terms of its genre and had a believeable enough story of a corporation manfacturing a virus etc etc nearly all subsequent Resident Evils have far removed the genuine fear and more believable side of the first by adding monsters and crazy mutations.

I couldn't agree with this more. It had potential due to the corporation's involvement in the creation and spread of the virus, etc because that is a very real possibility of how it could happen - but all the monsters/mutations took away from it; that and the let's-see-how-many-slow-motion-action-shots-Alice-can-do.

jme2010 wrote: »

Thats what I want someday!

I've always got an eye out for zombie related stuff, and sometimes you have to ask at shops - I get weird looks but it's how I own a book of zombie haiku, a pack of gum that says "zombies DANGER run" on it, and anti-zombie squad hand sanitizer.

Next topic. Which is best? Slow shuffle or full speed coke head zombie?

I say slow shuffle for the authentic feel.

Shuffle. The full speed coke head zeds are scary, sure, but the fact that they're dead makes it unrealistic really...they'd have to shuffle.

DakotaYoda wrote: »

Yeah - most zombie movies are cheap knock offs but themselves zombies are, in my mind, simply the very best metaphor ever for people today.... I just can't think of anything better.

All they do is shamble through life. Mindless - consuming everything around them that they can.

That is so true! And it's funny, because the Zen of Zombie book I have, while meant as a joke, teaches you how to think like a zombie so you can go through life as one. Now I wonder if they just studied some real people for the book!

BigDuffman

jme2010 wrote: »

Thats what I want someday!

Next topic. Which is best? Slow shuffle or full speed coke head zombie?

I say slow shuffle for the authentic feel.

Hmmm always a point of debate between Zed heads! Zombies vs Infected. 28 Days later style are the scariest. But I like the Walking Dead / Dawn of the dead 2004 style Zs. As they would be easy to shoot!

When I was much much to young (7/8) I sneaked on the black and white Night of the Living dead original and spent the next hour and a half being completely and unimaginably terrified. I can't describe just how badly it scared me, but for 3/4 weeks afterwards I had nightmares almost EVERY night about Zombies and they were hardcore bad dreams.

I was too scared to admit I'd watched it so didn't tell my folks either, but eventually I woke up screaming one night and when my mum came into the room I fessed up. Oddly enough that ended the bad dreams too.

Rock on a few years and I watched it again - loved it, and love Zombie literature / cinema with a passion ever since.

On the fast slow debate.... fast are vicious and powerful = quick death.

Slow Zombies gradually supress your ability to escape, and when they do get their hands on you - it's a slow agonising death.

For me - the dread of seeing it coming and it being a horribly slow experience makes slow Zombies whilst indivually less threatening - an overall more terrifying experience.

Carter P Fly

No idea, it was way to long ago. I still think Zombies and ninjas are the best genres ever. Some film's have ninja zombies which come close to making the screen implode with awesomeness.

jme2010

Carter P Fly wrote: »

No idea, it was way to long ago. I still think Zombies and ninjas are the best genres ever. Some film's have ninja zombies which come close to making the screen implode with awesomeness.

Almost as awsome as: