Hello and Happy Thursday!
We are veering from our usual Thursday Bouquet to venture down a Rabbit Hole.
A quick note on Spoilers : I will work very hard to avoid spoilers in this piece. However, there are some excellent articles out there I want to share and they are spoilerific. If you haven’t watched/read the mentioned works, don’t click the links!
Alright, let’s take a tumble down the rabbit hole…..
I watched the first six episodes of the new HBO series “The Last of Us” this week. The seventh drops Sunday. While I wait, I thought I’d take the opportunity to dork out about my all time favorite genre: Post Apocalyptic Fiction
Regardless of the form it takes (books/movies/tv) or the culprit (plague/war/natural disasters) I am always down to immerse myself in a post apocalyptic world.
Catastrophic content captured my imagination at a young age.
Maybe it all started with school sanctioned dystopia, when my fifth grade teacher handed out copies of “The Giver” by Louise Lowry. When we read George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” in middle school or Ray Bradbury’s “Fareinheight 451” and Auldous Huxley’s “Brave New World” in High School.
It wasn’t much of a leap from required dystopian reading to post apocalyptic fiction. From there, I was merely a hair’s breadth away from the holy grail of apocalyptic art: Zombies.
Apocolyptica : Zombie Style
I have been a die hard fan of zombie movies since college, when I joined a group of friends for a late night showing of “Resident Evil”. I don’t think I even knew what movie we were going to see. I was there for the backpacks full of beer and the promise of a good time.
By the time the movie started, I was two beers in and fully unprepared for what I was about to experience. Sitting there in the dark, surrounded by my rowdy friends, I was introduced to a thematic adventure I would revisit over and over and over : Endure and Survive the zombie apocalypse.
Creepy, gory and terrifying, I had never seen anything like “Resident Evil”.
I was hooked.
Adding to the thrill was the fact that we did not have a ride home. When the movie was over, we stumbled from the theater, half drunk and scared stupid, into the dark and danger of a midnight city. A veritable heroes journey through empty streets.
Lucky for us, the only lurking presence popped from the shadows seeking cigarettes, not flesh. We happily forked over the smokes and a Coors Light for good measure.
I made it back to the dorms unscathed that night. Unbitten by anything other than a burgeoning fascination with zombies.
Since that harrowing night, I’ve had the pleasure of watching a lot more zombie movies. Some better than others.
I even revisited “Resident Evil” when my son was old enough to watch it with me. It was fun to share the experience with an uninitiated viewer. Although, it hit different 20 years later, without the haze of cheap beer or the element of surprise.
Watching “The Last of Us” brought back the excitement I felt after that original introduction to the zombie genre.
Like “Resident Evil”, “The Last of Us” was adapted from a video game.
I wasn’t familiar with the highly regarded playstation games before watching the show. From everything I’ve read, the adaptation stays fairly close to the original storyline: three characters, Ellie , Tess and Joel, reluctantly embark on a suicide mission that catapults them through a world full of danger and unforeseen obstacles.
Turning the iconic video game into prestige television seems to have been a smooth and compatible transition. Everything that makes the game compelling, works well in the show too.
I really liked “The Last of Us”. It takes all the best parts of the zombie genre and executes them perfectly. The world building is everything you want from a post apocalyptic wasteland. It’s bleak friends. But that’s how we want our Zombie content! Even the comedic “Zombieland” movies with Woody Harrelson and Emma Stone were dark. Peeps are getting eaten alive out here. Save the sunshine and roses for another time.
More than a Trope
There are certain elements that just belong in a zombie movie.
People must get eaten alive.
We must watch it happen in horrific detail.
A Journey must be taken
Characters must trek across eerily quiet countrysides and into decimated cities, deserted by all but the most nefarious predators.
Our darlings must die….or at least a darling or two.
No one is safe in a zombie movie. Think “Game of Thrones”, which coincidentally shares two excellent actors with “The Last of Us”
Zombies must jump out of the most unexpected places.
If we’re being honest, they usually jump out of the most expected places, exactly when you expect them to….most of the time.
“The Last of Us” excels at all of this, expertly building suspense. Often, the anticipation I felt while watching bordered on panic. It goes beyond jump scares though. There is a human element infused into all the chaos and bloodshed.
There are many moments when “The Last of Us” feels like other post apocalyptic sub-genres. It bridges the end of the world gap. It just as easily could have been about a plague ravaged civilization. The abandoned city scenes reminded me of “The Stand” and encounters with isolated groups of people recalled “Station Eleven”.
Maybe it’s because I’ve read so much excellent post apocalyptic fiction, but I found myself thinking “Man, this would be an awesome book!”. It made me crave the reading experience of getting lost in a believably tragic world.
An experience I savored when I read ‘Station Eleven” and the first half of “The Stand”.
“The Stand” is a masterful plunge into the realities of a modern world ravaged by plague. Stephen King’s descriptions of the events, before and after “Captian Tripps” had its' way with humanity, are devastatingly relatable.
That’s what I love about post apocalyptic fiction. It’s realistic even though it’s not real. I can imagine myself in the situation. I can think about what I would do and how I would survive. It’s fun in a really fucked up kind of way.
Unfortunately, Mr. King lost me in the second half of “The Stand” when he added supernatural elements to the story. I don’t mind witchcraft in general (hello Harry Potter!) but I don’t want it in my apocalyptica. Don’t plague survivors have enough to deal with without mind reading psychopaths running amok?
The Walking What?!
Before we move on to some recommendations, I’ll address the elephant in the room.
You’ve probably noticed a glaring ommission. Why haven’t I referred to “The Walking Dead” at all? Well, I’ve never watched it.
The audacity! How can I claim to be a zombie aficionado if I’ve never watched (possibly) the most iconic piece of zombie fiction ever created?
It’s a big hole in my zombie fandom. I’ll give you that.
There are extenuating circumstances….
For starters, homegirl had an outhouse at the time that show came out. An outhouse. Meaning I had to leave the safety of my home and venture into the darkness every time I needed to use the bathroom.
It’s one thing to watch a scary movie for a couple of hours, it’s a whole ‘nother animal to spend dozens of hours watching zombies tear people limb from limb. I just could not do that to myself. The outhouse was scary enough without encouragement.
Alright, now that we got that out of the way let’s move on to some recommendations! It is Thursday after all!
Recommendations
The Girl With All the Gifts - I was struck by some of the similarities this book shared with “The Last of Us”. I’d be very curious to know if one influenced the other.
The original “ The Last of Us” game was released in 2013 and “The Girl With All the Gifts” was published w in 2014. That’s pretty close! I wonder what was going on at that time with zombie theory and if both of these works were influenced by it.
The common thread (and most likely inspiration) for both stories is the infecting organism: Ophiocordyceps, also known as the “Zombie Ant” fungus. It’s a real thing. Look it up!
The second similarity is the unique use of children in the plot. Specifically, the role children play in the whole infectious puzzle.
I won’t say more, but I will recommend reading the “The Girl With All the Gifts”. There’s also a movie adaptation I haven’t seen yet. If you have, let me know what you thought!
I am Legend - Before the name became synonymous with Will Smith, “I am legend” was a 160 page novella.
“I am Legend” was originally published in 1954 as part of a short story collection by Richard Matheson. It was adapted into three movies total, including “The Last Man on Earth” in 1964, “The Omega Man” in 1971, and “I am Legend” in 2007. It is believed to have inspired “The Night of the Living Dead” as well.
To say this book was influential would be a real understatement. It is credited with “the modern development of zombie and vampire literature and in popularizing the concept of worldwide apocalypse due to disease”.
The fact that I haven’t read this yet is indefensible. My brother recommended it years ago and I keep saying I’m saving it for spooky season. Halloween comes and goes, year after year and I never remember to read it.
If you see me reading anything that isn’t this book next October, slap me.
The Fifth Season - The first book in N.K. Jemison’s “Broken Earth” series is actually classified as a fantasy novel. I picked it up out of a desire to diversify my reading material and was pleasantly surprised to discover it is also a post apocalyptic novel.
“The Fifth Season” is the first fantasy novel I ever read and it opened up a whole new world for me. The fantasy epic impressed me so much, I decided to try another fantasy novel, “Wizard’s First Rule” by Terry Goodkind. I liked that too, so I read “Dune” and kept going from there.
What’s so special about "The Fifth Season”? For starters, it is startling in it’s originality. I don’t come across stories that surprise me very often. There’s almost always some level of familiarity, whether plot devices or story elements.
N.K. Jemison introduces the reader to something brand new. We enter a world destroyed, rebuilt and destroyed again by magnified natural forces. We meet the people that live in this world and the circumstances that govern their lives.
It’s a masterclass in world building. The slang feels so natural, it’s hard to believe it doesn’t exist outside of the book. The societal structure creates a new way of life to explore.
I could go on and on. The book is phenomenal. Read it!!
A Quiet Place - Chances are slim you haven’t seen, or at least heard about this movie. It was a cultural sensation. The sequel was popular too.
John Krasinski directed and starred in “A Quiet Place”. That was enough for me. I am always game for a little quality time with Jim Halpert.
Sorry John…you’ll always be our Jim.
The premise of the movie is unique - “If they hear you, they hurt you”
The world has been taken over by vicious creatures that hunt their prey by sound. The only way to survive is by being quiet, so the movie is largely silent. That silence adds a delicious intensity to an already suspenseful horror movie experience. I had a great time watching this with my son.
It’s the perfect movie to watch with friends. It’s full of jump scares. I’d love to get the opportunity to see it in a theater full of people someday.
On the off chance you haven’t watched it, you really should. Maybe you can shelve it for a fall movie night when you’re really in the mood for something eerie.
Blindness - I recommend Jose Saramago’s 1995 novel with slight reservation. This book is heavy. I felt provoked and disturbed by it. I don’t regret the reading the book, because it was excellent. One must go in mentally prepared to experience the dark side of humanity, though.
Wow, really makes you want to read it huh?
I don’t mean to make it sound awful. This book is just….haunting.
Read it when you are in a good place, strong enough to take on the weight of the world. Read it when you’re prepared to be challenged. When your heart is open and you’re willing to be enlightened. Read it when you are ready.
Read it.
If all that doesn’t turn you into a Doomsday Prepper….
I don’t know what will.
I tried offer a few things that weren’t cultural juggernauts, with the exception of “A Quiet Place”. Things you may have missed but are worth your time. Hopefully you get a chance to check some of it out. If this subject matter isn’t your bag, that’s okay too. I’ll be back with more recommendations that won’t leave you with the urge to sleep with the light on.
Until then, stay safe out there. See you Sunday!
I am loving "The Last of US". Kelly introduced me to it a few weeks ago, and like you I have powered through it. I am already looking forward to Sunday. You know me, I love this shit.
My CBD Company just came out with their new Mushie Line, and they are wonderful. We have one with Cordyceps and I am really having a hard time with it, lol!!! There are soo many benefits I could be accepting into my life from it, but I just keep thinking about the nasty fungus Zombies.