Planet Zombie 3: Zombie Wars

Like I said before, pretty much anyone can win against a one-on-one fight against a zombie. How about if it were like a war. Horde against horde. Which side will win?

Humans Vs. Zombies. Hands down zombies. The zombies can easily outnumber the human population. When a human dies, it becomes a zombie and so on. But of course if you base it on the different movies and games, it's pretty much a tie.

Elves Vs. Zombies. Are we talking about the Lord of the Rings elves or the War Craft Elves? I guess they're pretty much the same when it comes to marksmanship. Elves have come a long way in marksmanship skills. From making toys (for Santa) to shooting down foes with pinpoint accuracy from miles away. As long as the zombies don't come from an unlimited source, the elves might win.

Vampires Vs. Zombies. Though both of these creatures are of the undead, both have a way of being 'killed.' It is unfortunate that even if the vampire has the advantage of speed, strength, and intelligence, it has a lot more weaknesses than the average zombie. And there are a lot more ways to kill a vampire than there is a zombie. If the battle would last well into the morning then it would spell the end of the Nosferatu.

Werewolves Vs. Zombies. Like the vampire, the werewolf has the advantage of speed, strength, and intelligence. However, unlike the vampire, the werewolf is a living, breathing monster. Which means it is prone to getting zombified. Judges? Zombies win.

Wizards/Witches Vs. Zombies. Really now. These magic users don't even have the need to lay a finger on a filthy undead. They could just turn all zombies into harmless little rabbits. I think that would be, in a way, cheating.

Robots Vs. Zombies. I would have to go with robots here. Robots are on an entirely different undead level. Zombies can't even bite through a powered down robot much less a fully armed and fully functional robot. Zombies might not even feel the presence of a robot since a robot is not alive in the first place. Just think Terminators vs. Zombies and you get the idea.

Aliens Vs. Zombies. I guess the winner of this war is open for debate. It would depend on what kind of alien species are involved in battle. If the aliens are anything like humans then we pretty much know how the battle ends. However, if the aliens are anything like the, Zerg (from Star Craft), then it's goodbye zombies.

Super Heroes (or Super Villains) Vs. Zombies. The only documented event where this happened is the Marvel Zombies arc of Marvel. Here, almost all heroes and villains have become infected and have become zombies. Including those in other planets. Of course the zombie strain in this story is also the 'super' kind so you can't really argue the outcome. Plus, the heroes and villains that were infected kept their super powers and abilities in tact making them super zombies.

Plants Vs. Zombies. I don't know the plants win but for some reason they do. This war is well supported by just one game. Unless of course you're playing Endless, then the true essence of a zombie horde on a feeding frenzy has befallen you.

Nuff said.

TRON Legacy

I remember seeing TRON when I was just a little boy. Back then, its visual effects were amazing. I guess it was one of the best Science Fiction films of its time.

Earlier, I had the chance to see TRON Legacy. And just in time too, before all the MMFF films get on the big screen (Whew!). After almost three decades, the sequel to TRON has come. The movie stars Jeff Bridges, Garret Hedlund, and Olivia Wilde. Like the original TRON movie, Tron isn't the lead character. I wonder why the movie is titled after him. On with the details. Visuals. Both 2D and 3D versions look great but is better in 3D with all the special effects; shattering. Story. The story is quite linear and you can pretty much predict the outcome. But you can't argue with a Disney production for being such. It doesn't offer much to the occult following of the original movie either. Still, it's very entertaining. Overall tomato rating: Seven tomatoes.

Before the movie started, I had the chance to see previews of the up coming movies for 2011 and I'm pretty psyched to see them; Thor, Transformers 3, The Green Hornet, Red Riding Hood (pretty much like what they did to Snow White long ago), Real Steel, and the return of Captain Jack Sparrow.

Planet Zombie 2: Zombie Science

What is a zombie?

Basically. A zombie is a corpse that has it's basic motor skills in tact and has the basic instinct to feed. It is one of the so-called undead creatures. That would be the basic definition of a zombie in the horror/creature sense.

In a more scientific sense, it's probably a person (a live one) that lost all his brain functions except his basic motor skills, vis a vis, walking. I'm no psych-know-how person so I'm not really sure. But I'm certain that the term zombie is used on some people like those who watch too much TV.

The mythos and lore about the zombie is quite vast. In some cultures like here in the Philippines, the dead coming back to life is brought about by black magic and evil energies. In pop culture, the zombie effect can be brought about by a microorganism like a bacteria, parasite, or a virus and, like a disease, could infect others.

Let's run down some of the characteristics of a zombie.

Slow movement. This and its poor navigation skills makes it easy for its prey to escape it. However, in pop culture, there are some zombies that can run. e.g. Zombieland.

Basic instincts. The zombie is equipped with only the very basic functions; motor skills for movement. Though in some lore, they have all five senses. It is common for zombies to only have sight and hearing. They don't really need touch, taste, and smell. As seen in in many movies, severed limbs and other body parts don't seem to stop them from getting to their prey if the sense of touch (vis a vis feeling) is one of their senses or else they would be in constant pain.

Weakness. Since the brain is the control center of body, destroying the brain is the way to go when killing zombies. Hence, it is pretty easy to kill a zombie. One only needs to give the zombie a massive head trauma. Decapitation also works but the chomping still continues.

Not really a weakness. Unlike most of the dark creatures or undead, zombies don't mind having a little tan. The ultraviolet rays of the sun don't seem to bother them at all. They don't even need to rest, they could go on and on and on for all eternity, if they have to.

Relentless. Zombies are relentless. Cut off one of its limbs and it's still coming for you. A zombie with just its waist up can still crawl up to its victim (if it ever caught up to it). You'll probably be dead of starvation because of hiding and it's still coming for you.

Strength in numbers. With a properly placed hit on a head, a kid would probably win a one-on-one fight against a zombie. But even a troop well trained combatant armed to the teeth might not survive a zombie feeding frenzy.

Brings about the holocaust. Once zombies roam the streets, it's pretty much the end.

Planet Zombie 1: How I Came to Love Zombies

I remember when I was about ten years old. I saw the movie Night of the Living Dead and it turned me into a paranoid kid. I thought that everyone walking outside our house was a possible zombie. From that day onwards, I was terrified of zombies. Being swarmed by zombies was my worst fear until Resident Evil.

Resident Evil (the game, not the movie) changed my views of zombies. Since I had the power to shoot them down, they totally lost their terrifying appeal on me. My fear of zombies took a complete u-turn. I don't fear them anymore. Instead, I played almost every zombie-themed game, watched every movie or TV show, I think Marvel Zombies is one of the best Marvel Sagas I have ever read, and I've watched the on-line series Xombie (until they stopped making it). Heck, I even have a zombie tribe MTG (Magic the Gathering) deck.

Zombie-themed, survival horror games gave me the courage to fight off my fear of zombies. On top of the list is the Resident Evil series then followed by the rest. There's House of the Dead that I usually play in the arcades. There's also Oneechanbara, Left 4 Dead, Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Teenage Zombies Invasion of the Alien Brain Thingys, and let's not forget Plants Vs. Zombies.

The movies I've seen are; Night of the Living Dead (this was the first), Dawn of the Dead, Land of the Dead, Resident Evil (this time, the movies), 28 Days Later (almost a zombie movie), 28 Weeks Later, Zombieland, Zombies of Mass Destruction (very funny movie), I Am Legend (again, almost a zombie movie), Zombie Strippers, Onechanbara (this one's Japanese and it also happens to be a game) and quite a few more.

I've also watched the anime series High School of the Dead. Trust the Japanese to make a zombie story where the zombies just appeared. No particular origin. The students use their skills to survive the onslaught of zombies; gun-geek, kendo master, spear specialist. This series was full of zombie killing action.

Lately. A new TV series was brought to my attention by a friend of mine. It's a TV show with the title The Walking Dead. And yes, it's zombie-themed. So far I've seen six episodes and I can't wait for the seventh. It's just your ordinary, run-in-the-mill zombie survival story but with the characters with character. Not just the basic kill and survive that we usually see in movies. The zombie-fan should definitely watch it.

Zombies. They're not real (hopefully) and they're not all that bad once you get to know them.