yes, very often zombie flicks take place in an alternate universe non-privie of zombie lore

hopefully, in this universe, our knowledge is preparing us

 

I think that this content is much more likely preparing us to consider our fellow human beings as monsters when they're displaced, sick and hungry. Since actual zombies are a physical impossibility.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvOjHeyyhY0

 

Putting aside the impossibility of a zombie uprising, what kind of zombies are we talking about? Dawn of the Dead (1978) zombies or Dawn of the Dead (2004) zombies? Return of the Living Dead zombies or 28 Days Later zombies? Warm Bodies zombies or Resident Evil zombies?

You say "we already know what to do" but do we? What makes you think that an actual zombie outbreak would follow the rules of some particular fictional zombie outbreak? I know lots of people like to think they know how they'd react to a zombie outbreak but the reality is if such an event happened you'd be in the middle of it (not watching a show about it) and the mass confusion and misinformation that would abound would result in you having to figure out how to deal with the situation on a trial and error basis. If some crazed blood-coated looney came stumbling at you your first reaction would be to try to avoid him, to tell him to leave you alone, to yell at him, to push him away and you'd ratchet up the violence one step at a time. Your first thought isn't going to be "head-shot".

There are various prank TV shows and when they have someone surprised by a pretend zombie attack, despite zombies being prevalent in our culture, most people's reaction isn't to calmly pull out their gun and shoot them in the head.

Does watching zombie movies prepare you for a real zombie outbreak? Does watching Saving Private Ryan prepare you for storming the beach in Normandy? In a word, no. The reality of living the situation is so much worse than watching it on TV that any desensitization you got from watching it is so small as to make no difference.

 

The word 'Zombie' is used in the comic. Also, I'm pretty sure there were plenty of Zombie movies, video games and TV shows permeated throughout the pop-culture world of the TWD prior to the ZA, so they would have certainly had some sort of reference point.

If the ZA ever becomes a reality, we know three things for sure; Don't make a lot of noise, hit 'em in the head and avoid guys with eye patches.

 

Very good points. For all we know if there ever was a real zombie outbreak, you might have to kill them by cutting off their big toe or something else totally unexpected. And as for desensitization, you'd think that the stars of the show would be the worst of all if that were going to happen...I recently saw a video of one of those aforementioned pranks that was actually played on Norman Reedus & I didn't even see him *reach* for a weapon in the split second before he realized it was just a prank.

 

I can say this from experience, we live in world with Soldiers, cops and terrorists, we see it on the news, movies etc.. based on that we should have a super hero's on the streets, battlefields and where ever.. now heres the reality. when the bullets start flying and you have less than a second to make a decision and respond, not a single movie, news report, book or armchair Special forces bullcrap session after call of duty means a thing.

the Video game, movie rambo types usually get killed or seriously injured the minute the leap up and play john wayne. Move tactics are forgotten at the first crack of a round flying past. you suddenly discover, as you almost crap your pants and your shaking sweaty hands almost drop your weapon that reality is a real kick in the head.

it would be the exact same in a zombie apocalypse. watching people with no training and zero experience calmly shooting zombies in the head gives you exactly zero skills in shooting them yourself, and thats assuming you actually believe the first news reports of the dead walking. just facing a walking corpse much less a few hundred would scare the crap out of a person in reality.

if you can survive the first six months, you will probably end up a crack shot, and a master scavenger, but its getting there and learning the skills that will be hard.

so no...

 

ZA has nothing on whats going on in the news everyday

 

if that were true, I would have a trail of bodies a thousand miles long behind me since Ive been watching horror, action, and violent cop shows since five years old LOL. "why did you kill him" "well, I hate velveteen shirts and aqua velva, and he stepped on a flower."

"you just ran down that old woman and barely missed a second" "what, just my luck, picking up a split of two seniors in a crosswalk is worth a three hundred points"

truth is the pacifism trend in the US disproves it, if anything violent games and movies make them even more scared of violence.

a friend of mine who watches nothing but slasher flick horror movies, has trouble pulling the trigger while hunting and cant butcher a chicken or dress a deer with out puking his guts up every time.

 

Yeah, but watching something on TV or in a movie is different from how we might react if it were to actually happen.

 

For all we know, we know nothing. Theres movies where zombies dont die at all and can break a windsheild with its face! ( world war Z ) and got slow dumb zombies that you can tear limb by limb. Zombi ( correct term ) use to be real, practiced with. But there nothing like today movie zombies.

 

Ya a chemical imbalance in a psychos head has nothing to do with it.

 

I kind of agree actually. I think to a point we do become desensitized to the horror of it all, and while we might not be able to cope in such a situation, we may be better off from watching things like TWD. We have learnt certain things from watching that could potentially help us.

 

I'd say no. I watch a lot of war films and play a lot of war video games. But if you dropped me into a war zone right now, I think the only thing happening is me crapping my pants and dying. Video games and movies are not the same as experience nor are they anywhere close to being a suitable substitute.

 

Agreed. Playing video games and being a soldier in real life are two completely different skill sets. :Grin:

 

says you.

jk. lol.