Chapter 33-1 Red Winter

[Kc]

Ok, so I released this early. Talk away!

[littleone8]

It is a good one. Just finished it! Good to hear some familiar voices again!

[DeeKay86]

Saw that you released early on Twitter!!! Going to listen now!! Thank you!!!

[cupcakezombie]

Johnny 5 is alive!

[LiamKerrington]

Early bird catches the worm.

Burt's legacy in beta-testing, and just the right cliffhanger: "This is not good. There is a problem. Something's wrong."

All the best!
Liam

P.S.: Didn't I tell you about a good spot for a cliffhanger in 32-3 posting #60 ... ?
http://www.zombiepodcast.com/forum/showthread.php?3562-Chapter-32-3-Captive-Hearts&p=46467&viewfull=1#post46467

Looking from the above I think it would be time to make the cliffhanger solid and change the perspective all along - i.e. switching towards Fort Irwin. I may be wrong, but would Fort Irwin be interested in rescuing the Colony; or would they be more interested in analyzing the Inglewood-situation? Also they have all hands to do with Tanya. There may be the chance to re-introduce Riley as well. My prediction therefore: #33 will be about Fort Irwin.

[DeeKay86]

Solid episode! Great to hear familiar voices!!! Still can't help wondering wtf happened with Lizzy etc!

[cupcakezombie]

With all the layers of sound to the recording from CODI and the amount of times it played during the episode, I think we are going to get some little gem once Tanya listens a few times.
It is great to hear from some more of the gang.
Poor Tanya and Riley sound like they are going 'all work and no play...' in their own ways.

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there,

well ... does this mean we might see the infection coming to Boulder and thus creating a new hotspot?

o_O

All the best!
Liam

[UndeadSweeper]

So the switch happen, but I don't mind change storyline. A couple things I thought about:

Micheal, have seem to read the Zombie Survival Guide, "Check the back, they like hitching rides."

The General, hasn't, send a zombie injury person to a dense population area. Hmm.. Has he read the title to this eps? "Maybe they should also check inside?" This mistake may cause him his rank/position, Mike promoted, Mike to visited LA or Boulder.

We see how the SATPhone channels are opened up.

Can anyone figure out where they the aircraft is going crash land?

Johnny 5 need to join up with Victor so they can form up the "Los Locos" :) Then they kick some balls INTO OUTER SPACE!

[Witch_Doctor]

Wow! I often play "We're Alive" as background sound when I sleep at night. When I fall asleep listening to the first season I sometimes have nightmares. Often I dream that I'm in L.A. and imagine that I notice something not in the podcast or dream entirely new episodes all together. When I woke up and downloaded this at 9:00 a.m. EST I thought I dreamed another episode into existence. Had to come online to verify.

Awesome!!!!

Thank you.

[Witch_Doctor]

One of my first thoughts was that Col. Kimmet screwed up big time. He was about to have Tanya executed when she wasn't even turning but sends a hot helicopter, containing his neice, to the only safezone.

It doesn't sound like they made it, though. If they had reached Boulder then Pvt. Carl Thomas would have said so. If they had reached Boulder and the sh.t hit the fan AND Carl didn't contact Ft. Irwin then I would have expected that they wouldn't have been able to contact Carl. BUT, they did talk to Carl. So, it seems likely that the Chinhook is down somewhere.

There seems to be other ways to communicate with the Chinhook. After losing radio contact, Cpl Puck can be heard talking directly to someone on the helicopter. He tells them to stay on course. There seems to be someone responding to him in the background but the voice is unitelligable.

Zombies don't seem to like the cold.

Dang it! I thought Tanya was about to tell Michael about what she's been thinking about after reading the journals.

[LiamKerrington]

One of my first thoughts was that Col. Kimmet screwed up big time. He was about to have Tanya executed when she wasn't even turning but sends a hot helicopter, containing his neice, to the only safezone.

It doesn't sound like they made it, though. If they had reached Boulder then Pvt. Carl Thomas would have said so. If they had reached Boulder and the sh.t hit the fan AND Carl didn't contact Ft. Irwin then I would have expected that they wouldn't have been able to contact Carl. BUT, they did talk to Carl. So, it seems likely that the Chinhook is down somewhere.

There seems to be other ways to communicate with the Chinhook. After losing radio contact, Cpl Puck can be heard talking directly to someone on the helicopter. He tells them to stay on course. There seems to be someone responding to him in the background but the voice is unitelligable.

Zombies don't seem to like the cold.

Dang it! I thought Tanya was about to tell Michael about what she's been thinking about after reading the journals.

Col = Durai. People at the top = epic fail
Yeah, doesn't sound like it. But actually I expect the Boulder-dudes having roaming patrols. What if the chopper crashlands and suhc a patrol finds a bunch of wounded not recognizing the zombified/ zombie-infected and brings wounded back into Boulder?
Not sure about Zombies not liking the cold. Saul and CJ were attacked while waiting or intruding The Colony. Same time of the year ... I'd say the number of Zombies decreases because they have started to eat each other or simply die due to the lack of food. (arguable)
*bogus* Tanya is already a super-smart turned zombie and therefore don't even thinks about informing Michael or others ... *bogus ends*

;)

All the best!
Liam

[Pikepaw]

I love the inclusion of CODY. The use of robots against zombies...my buddy literally gave me the "how to build a robot army to fight zombies" book the other week. I am a little disappointed that there is freaking war going on in the Colony and we are not hearing the continuation of it. I will trust KC though.

Red winter...haha just got it.

Riley is not psychologically well, Tanya is teetering (5 months in a bubble room, I would barely last three days). Still 5 months, no way in hell is she going to turn. I understand Kimmet's logic, but come on. That, or Tanya is a smart zombie that completely dwarfs our pimped out friend with the tattoos. He could trick us by hiding in the shadows, while Tanya can hide in plain view. That is my crackpot theory, I don't think Tanya is a zombie...but it is interesting. Also speaking of the well dressed man from my nightmares, I kind of miss him. Haven't heard from him since he scared me down to my future children in Chapter 27. What is he doing? Has he changed up his fashion selection? Gone for a trenchcoat in the winter cold? Maybe added a charcoal black suit to his pin stripes? Acquired a pimp cane? Got some jewellery? These are questions I need answered!!

My favourite part of this episode is the interaction between Puck and Michael. Pretty sure Puck is the only one Michael can talk to on his level. Man to man, soldier to soldier, though Puck still can't relate the way Riley and Tanya can with the shared tower experience. Also our most important information yet. Michael Cross cannot hope to beat video games on his own. I am sure Nurse Britt could help him with that difficulty though. And Puck can't do origami, second most vital piece of information in this episode. Of course I can't either, so I will judge. I am just sure paper folding is going to be a life or death thing later on...

[awkwardalex]

Oh wow, I knew it! We want the colony but we got Irwin.

But I think we all know what could help Tanya... video games, a flat screen and no games? For shame.

[Witch_Doctor]

I think Michael et al will eventually find the Chinook. In Chapter 30-1 he says that he pieced the story together from various accounts. He got part of the story of the condition of the copter crew from Cpl. Puck. Puck and Kimmet could reveal more info later if they were communicating with the crew for a considerable length of time before Michael arrived, but I think he meant that he got info from varying sources directly.

I'd hate to see Boulder over-run but Michael does say that the events changed everything.

He also mentions to Tanya that people are skeptical about the condition of L.A.. Does anyone suspect that there is a growing chorus of Zombie Apocalypse Deniers?

[Litmaster]

P.S.: Didn't I tell you about a good spot for a cliffhanger in 32-3 posting #60 ... ?
http://www.zombiepodcast.com/forum/showthread.php?3562-Chapter-32-3-Captive-Hearts&p=46467&viewfull=1#post46467

Careful man... patting yourself that hard on the back and you're going to sprain something...




It doesn't sound like they made it, though. If they had reached Boulder then Pvt. Carl Thomas would have said so. If they had reached Boulder and the sh.t hit the fan AND Carl didn't contact Ft. Irwin then I would have expected that they wouldn't have been able to contact Carl. BUT, they did talk to Carl. So, it seems likely that the Chinhook is down somewhere.

Stay tuned for WA Las Vegas!

[LiamKerrington]

Hi.


Careful man... patting yourself that hard on the back and you're going to sprain something...


Yeah, too late. ;)
Considering all the mad things I write this was like the blind hen finding a corn ... I was too excited ...

All the best!
Liam

[Litmaster]

Ok Random Thoughts...

Kimmet's Niece
There's got to be a reason, plot-wise, why this character is the niece of the head honcho and not just any old captain who got paralyzed. At first I was thinking that if they went down in LA, this would finally give Michael the excuse to head up a rescue team (since he could argue he has firsthand knowledge of the area, etc). This still may happen, but it all depends on where this Chinook went down.

Boulder
I don't think Boulder is overrun, mainly for the reasons Witch Doctor mentioned, above. Also, you gotta think that a place of that size would have put in place some solid anti-outbreak measures given the circumstances (something like the quarantine zones that Michael & Co. ended up in when they first arrived at Irwin.

Random Thought of the Day
I think the safest place to be in a zombie outbreak would be a medieval castle, wouldn't it? You've got thick walls, murder holes, a moat, a keep... Anyway--

They Ain't Zombies
Something has got to come from Tanya's experimentation, and one conclusion seems to be that this diZeaZe is not spread via blood contact, as everyone has been assuming. Perhaps it has more to do with DNA coding, or something. This is the first testing on actual Z-flesh, isn't it? Who else has really been studying these things?

But think about it: if these were actually reanimated corpses walking around, then their bodies would really be decaying after all this time, right? But there is no mention of that. I'm thinking some form of mutated human is more likely, but not dead flesh...

Come to think of it, Kc has been pretty light on the 'zombie' description lately. You'd imagine that after months of stumbling around and chomping people that most of these 'zombies' would be in shredded clothes or totally naked by now...


The Fate of the Chinook
And finally, the reason the Chinook went down: Ink found a way to cross-breed zombies & birds to make a flock funky-ass flying Zombiedactyls!

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there,

well, probably Boulder is not overrun yet. And actually I don't see it coming that way that it will be overrun from the outside. But I wouldn't be too surprised if an infected soldier gets into there, passes the final stage of mutation after having passed the first doors and starts dealing with his new 'paradise' from then on. Maybe there is a quarantine-procedure or -zone of some kind; but you'll never know what may go wrong. Just imagine an unprepared dude totally bored to death from standard-procedures and all of a sudden the expected unexpected happens ... Would he really act according to the rules? It's the human factor of doing things too wrong to make worse situations even more worse!
Also keep in mind how fast the Z-pocalypse destroyed the population of L.A. - it was less then a day! Ok, police, military services and whoever else were not prepared; but considering of few million people (in 2009 L.A. had something about 3.7 Million inhabitants plus all the people from the outside doing businesses in town!) simply ceasing to exist ... It's not very far fetched to consider something similar happening in Boulder as well, if someone epically fails on his duty ... But I wouldn't want to play devil's advocate here ... According to Michael we only guess for now: "Something's wrong!"

I agree with you: Zombies in WA don't seem to be the living dead thing, but something more along the line of 'mutated humans' or 'demonized humans' ... Tanya probably will tell us ...

Castle: Same as with prison. For some time you'll do pretty fine - until your most important ressources run out, i.e. water, food, maybe power of whatever kind ...

Zombiedactyls would be cool deluxe Royal TS with sugar on top ...

All the best!
Liam

[UndeadSweeper]

Ok Random Thoughts...

Kimmet's Niece
There's got to be a reason, plot-wise, why this character is the niece of the head honcho and not just any old captain who got paralyzed. At first I was thinking that if they went down in LA, this would finally give Michael the excuse to head up a rescue team (since he could argue he has firsthand knowledge of the area, etc). This still may happen, but it all depends on where this Chinook went down.

Boulder
I don't think Boulder is overrun, mainly for the reasons Witch Doctor mentioned, above. Also, you gotta think that a place of that size would have put in place some solid anti-outbreak measures given the circumstances (something like the quarantine zones that Michael & Co. ended up in when they first arrived at Irwin.

Random Thought of the Day
I think the safest place to be in a zombie outbreak would be a medieval castle, wouldn't it? You've got thick walls, murder holes, a moat, a keep... Anyway--

They Ain't Zombies
Something has got to come from Tanya's experimentation, and one conclusion seems to be that this diZeaZe is not spread via blood contact, as everyone has been assuming. Perhaps it has more to do with DNA coding, or something. This is the first testing on actual Z-flesh, isn't it? Who else has really been studying these things?

But think about it: if these were actually reanimated corpses walking around, then their bodies would really be decaying after all this time, right? But there is no mention of that. I'm thinking some form of mutated human is more likely, but not dead flesh...

Come to think of it, Kc has been pretty light on the 'zombie' description lately. You'd imagine that after months of stumbling around and chomping people that most of these 'zombies' would be in shredded clothes or totally naked by now...


The Fate of the Chinook
And finally, the reason the Chinook went down: Ink found a way to cross-breed zombies & birds to make a flock funky-ass flying Zombiedactyls...

Nope, it was Saul's flying squid that took it down.

[HardKor]

Kudos to all those who predicted the shift to Irwin. I gotta say I thought the story would stay with The Colony but its great to hear from Michael, Tanya, and Riley again.

I'm not sure what to say about this episode. We got helicopters crashing (maybe) and the Colonel's niece missing. Possible infected hitchhiker's on the helicopter. It's gonna be interesting to see where this all goes.

What I wanna know is what does title "Red Winter" mean. Either things are about to get real bad real fast...or the zombies are secretly communists! Either way I'm intrigued.

On a final note. The line of the episode: "Does this look like a duck to you?" I don't know why, but the way that came out of nowhere absolutely cracked me up.

[Kc]

Just to clean up the bad interpretation of Acronym...
K.O.D.I. Killing ordinance deployment initiative.

[nikvoodoo]

Disappointed we didn't reach some conclusion with the Colony. Very happy to hear Michael et al again. Especially since I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've heard Michael and Puck interact since I met the real life inspiration for Puck.

Riley will get her chance in combat. And she should have been through basic already so she should have the very basics of military combat at least. She may suck at it, but she learned it. She is now better equipped to take out Scratch.

Red Winter...hmmmm.....Boulder is about to get straight fucked up........

[Robzombie]

In this episode its Dec 3rd...so the events at the colony that we know of are yet to happen. The story from Michaels and Fort Irwins perspective is catching up to a head which I'm sure will be at the finale of this season.
Maybe Riley does get her chance to do something other than cook...I'm still saying that its her going to meet up at the colony and while not necesarily a combat mission, its Kimmet giving her an opportunity to prove herself, especially since she knows Saul etc...
The helicopter with the captain has obviously gone down. We see that Kimmet loses some ability in "doing the right thing" for the sake of it being his daughter. Now that its gone down there will be a rescue team going out for them...who will go, what will they find?
I think a difference between zombie and human will be found in the bone, or bone marrow.

[awkwardalex]

In this episode its Dec 3rd...so the events at the colony that we know of are yet to happen. The story from Michaels and Fort Irwins perspective is catching up to a head which I'm sure will be at the finale of this season.
Maybe Riley does get her chance to do something other than cook...I'm still saying that its her going to meet up at the colony and while not necesarily a combat mission, its Kimmet giving her an opportunity to prove herself, especially since she knows Saul etc...
The helicopter with the captain has obviously gone down. We see that Kimmet loses some ability in "doing the right thing" for the sake of it being his daughter. Now that its gone down there will be a rescue team going out for them...who will go, what will they find?
I think a difference between zombie and human will be found in the bone, or bone marrow.

Good point to make, that we did actually go back in time a bit.

As i pointed out (somewhere) the way things are being written ("But let me go back to Nov...that's when shit really started going crazy"-Saul [Worst paraphrase ever]) something makes Saul start writing in his journal again, he has not made any indication that he is caught up with present day (" Which brings me to now"..."and now i'm here").

It's my thought that saul is reporting this all because he is being told to write down everything he knows. Which leads me to believe that he is alive and not captured, maybe with michael.

[Robzombie]

It's my thought that saul is reporting this all because he is being told to write down everything he knows. Which leads me to believe that he is alive and not captured, maybe with michael.

but this is precisely why i think he's dead, or dies that is. His actions, or story come from his journal, and from Victors recollection (we have solo Victor scenes but I'm sure none of Saul if not obviously from his journal).

[LiamKerrington]

Wild guess #1:
The female soldier on the chopper (Kimmet) is wounded by a big little one - not a bite, 'only' it's claws with the 'endless number of fingers'.
In chapter #30 we learn about Roman having turned into a little one after having been attacked by little one #9 (or #6)- and that went pretty fast according to Glenn. But we don't know exactly, how Roman was wounded.
Questions would be: Is Kimmet actually infected? What, if the 'endless number of fingers' of the little ones serve the same purpose as the bites of regulars?

Wild guess #2:
Michael foretells 'it': The Chinook is a giant beast of a chopper; what if during the combat a smart one or even pinstripes was able to attach itself to the chinook and maybe even get into the heli during the flight? It was dark; and very likely there were many great opportunities to do something like this - covered by darkness, the noise of combat and the chopper ...

prediction for #33-2
The emergency cruise from boulder is ordered to fly into the direction of the Chinook in case it has to make an emergency landing.
Also and more importantly: Michael (and Puck and Riley and some others) might be allowed to start a rescue mission starting in Fort Irwin in order to 'intercept' the Chinook ...

Thoughts?

[wh33t]

Red winter...haha just got it.

Please explain :D

[Osiris]

Chopper crashed because the engine overheated.

http://i.imgur.com/oW4vW.gif

[wh33t]

I tried to stay away from the forums, I managed to do so for the entire last chapter but my life is better when I'm actively thinking and discussing We're Alive, so I'm back.

I'm very happy at the thought that we'll get to see the last few weeks/months played back from Michaels perspective. We're Alive for me is very much centered around Michael and all of the personal/emotional challenges that he surpasses. I'm also really digging Puck. That "fucking origami" line made me laugh out loud. My family gave me weird looks.

Keep up the great work KC.

[Cabbage Patch]

Just to clean up the bad interpretation of Acronym...
K.O.D.I. Killing ordinance deployment initiative.

Not bad as acronyms go. But why not B.U.R.T. for Badass Undead Robotic Terminator?

[Litmaster]

Wild guess #2:
Michael foretells 'it': The Chinook is a giant beast of a chopper; what if during the combat a smart one or even pinstripes was able to attach itself to the chinook and maybe even get into the heli during the flight? It was dark; and very likely there were many great opportunities to do something like this - covered by darkness, the noise of combat and the chopper ...

Meh... maybe, but we've been down that road already. You really think that Kc would use the same plot device twice?

Then again, the chopper is out of contact and presumably went down. The guy did mention that Captain Long is "stabilized and restrained in the back of the Chinook...and they've locked up the other guy too... just in case." So if they bird went down because of a Zed attack, it wasn't from these two, most likely.

And I doubt it was Pinstripes. Our inked-up Zope has been too busy making Zombiedactyls to do any of that grunt work on his own...








the Zope [a.k.a. "Zombie Pope"], copyright 2012 by Litmaster Int'l. All rights reserved.

[Cabbage Patch]

There were some tantalizing clues to the overall situation in this story. Some observations:

• Big Macs (or was that Baked Mac?) at the mess hall? That speaks to a pretty robust supply situation. Either there's a supply of fresh beef available along with wheat, vegetables, etc. (via Boulder?), or there are frozen stores that are still viable. Both seem like good signs this far into the zombie apocalypse. My first thought when I heard the title "Red Winter" was that it could mean the survivors might face starvation, but this makes me think they might be better off than that.

• Michael got promoted one grade, from Sergeant E-5 to Staff Sergeant E-6. Puck did not, he's still a Corporal. I had half-expected that Michael would have gotten a field commission, since he's filling an officer's position.

• Michael declared that Yermo was almost cleaned out of zombies, and that the bodies he checked were locals. That raises many questions, such as what (or who) have they been eating all these months? It seems like starvation should be thinning the ranks of the zombie horde something fierce by now. And what happened to all those zombies who seemed to disappear out of downtown LA within hours of the Outbreak? I'd always assumed that they spread outward, spreading the infection. But then shouldn't we be seeing out-of-towners amongst the zombies being killed in places like Yermo?

• Colonel Kimmet's decision to divert the Chinook to Boulder is a pretty serious violation of normal medevac procedures. The rule is to get a casualty to the nearest adequate care facility, and to get them there within an hour of being wounded. Better to bring the casualty to a forward medical facility (Fort Irwin) in order to stablize them, then send them forward to more advanced facilities (Boulder). In theory they could have brought the injured Captain to Fort Irwin, stablized her, gotten her onto a fixed wing plane and still have gotten her to Boulder in less time than it would take for a Chinook to make the flight directly to Boulder.

• The fate of the missing Chinook is an interesting loose end. Let's hope it doesn't end up going down near a prison in Georgia!

• There were several references to the increasingly cold weather, but no solid indication on how that effects the zombies.

It gets cold at night in December around Fort Irwin, average night-time temperatures hover around freezing, daytime in the low 60s. And the wind chill can make it feel extremely cold at any time of day. On a cold day in the winter, with a good wind blowing, you can't wear enough clothing to feel warm outdoors.

LA is usually considerably warmer, mid-40s to low-50s at night, 60s-70s in the day. Locals bundle up, but I've seen people from colder climates handle the coldest winter days in LA wearing T-Shirts and Shorts.

[Robzombie]

?.. but I've seen people from colder climates handle the coldest winter days in LA wearing T-Shirts and Shorts.

those would be Canadians like me...buncha cry baby yankees cant handle a little chill....just kidding, settle down
Im normally in shorts from -10 to above degrees celsius, yes celsius get with the times, lol.
Our Canadian zombies got no problem with the cold

[cupcakezombie]

I guess the main and most important question we haven't discussed is:
What game was Michael playing?
:D

[nikvoodoo]

I guess the main and most important question we haven't discussed is:
What game was Michael playing?
:D

Kc posted it on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AxleTheGame

[Penguine]

Kc posted it on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AxleTheGame



Oh hell, does this mean that when the SHTF that Facebook is still going to be working? Figures.....

[Lilydragon]

those would be Canadians like me...buncha cry baby yankees cant handle a little chill....just kidding, settle down
Im normally in shorts from -10 to above degrees celsius, yes celsius get with the times, lol.
Our Canadian zombies got no problem with the cold

Here in NM it can get below 0 at night and as high as 20's- 30's during the winter. My husband and I took a trip to San Diego one February before we had our daughter and we were wearing shorts the whole time we were there.

[Osiris]

those would be Canadians like me...buncha cry baby yankees cant handle a little chill....just kidding, settle down
Im normally in shorts from -10 to above degrees celsius, yes celsius get with the times, lol.
Our Canadian zombies got no problem with the cold

In Soviet Canuckistan we wear shorts and t-shirts while we shovel the snow away from our igloos.

[Robzombie]

In Soviet Canuckistan we wear shorts and t-shirts while we shovel the snow away from our igloos.

And on those lazy days, a quick whistle to our dog sled huskies and were dug out in no time at all.

[Osiris]

And on those lazy days, a quick whistle to our dog sled huskies and were dug out in no time at all.

Dog teams FTW!!!

[awkwardalex]

but this is precisely why i think he's dead, or dies that is. His actions, or story come from his journal, and from Victors recollection (we have solo Victor scenes but I'm sure none of Saul if not obviously from his journal).

My thought is that Saul wasn't writing until ____ happened. So it's possible that he is dying as he wrote it, but my gut feeling is that Saul didn't like the journals to begin with, so something is MAKING HIM write it down.

But I have been wrong before, so he could be dead.

[yarri]

My thought is that Saul wasn't writing until ____ happened. So it's possible that he is dying as he wrote it, but my gut feeling is that Saul didn't like the journals to begin with, so something is MAKING HIM write it down.

But I have been wrong before, so he could be dead.


He's not dead till the fat girl sings and I'M NOT SINGING damn it! No body no proof of death and so far he's still alive and kicking.. don't make me cut someone up!

[awkwardalex]

He's not dead till the fat girl sings and I'M NOT SINGING damn it! No body no proof of death and so far he's still alive and kicking.. don't make me cut someone up!

: )

[Condor]

Disappointed we didn't reach some conclusion with the Colony. Very happy to hear Michael et al again. Especially since I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've heard Michael and Puck interact since I met the real life inspiration for Puck.

Riley will get her chance in combat. And she should have been through basic already so she should have the very basics of military combat at least. She may suck at it, but she learned it. She is now better equipped to take out Scratch.

Red Winter...hmmmm.....Boulder is about to get straight fucked up........
I'm wondering if Riley's already been on a mission and something went wrong. Based on Puck's comments, he seems more concerned about her "watching his back", than just an ordinary rookie soldier.

Also, I believe Puck saw Michael collecting the samples. "what the hell are you doing?" "just checking for ID" - Really? He bought that? :rolleyes:

Note to self: find out what "Red Winter" reference is.


There were some tantalizing clues to the overall situation in this story. Some observations:

• Big Macs at the mess hall? That speaks to a pretty robust supply situation. Either there's a supply of fresh beef available along with wheat, vegetables, etc. (via Boulder?), or there are frozen stores that are still viable. Both seem like good signs this far into the zombie apocalypse. My first thought when I heard the title "Red Winter" was that it could mean the survivors might face starvation, but this makes me think they might be better off than that.Baked Mac & cheese, even better. Yum.

[Robzombie]

He's not dead till the fat girl sings and I'M NOT SINGING damn it! No body no proof of death and so far he's still alive and kicking.. don't make me cut someone up!

I know, I'm sorry. I don't want him dead either but do you remember all that talk quite some time ago where folks were talking about him dying...around chapter 20-ish (if i remember correctly)...I just think now is the time that it makes sense....

Prediction: Lizzie names the baby Saul, in memory of him.

[Hellbringer]

Alright, I still plan on re-listening tomorrow, but did I hear that the chinook was going from LA to Boulder straight? Like non-stop? I haven't been on the forums much because of the usual three (family, work, education), but this got me thinking.

I must re-listen tomorrow morning anyway. I was taking a test while doing the once-over.


By the way, I love the tone of this episode. It has an old-time radio drama feel. Kind of reminded me of when my dad played some old radio mystery dramas when I was a kid.

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there,

another 2c:


Meh... maybe, but we've been down that road already. You really think that Kc would use the same plot device twice?

Then again, the chopper is out of contact and presumably went down. The guy did mention that Captain Long is "stabilized and restrained in the back of the Chinook...and they've locked up the other guy too... just in case." So if they bird went down because of a Zed attack, it wasn't from these two, most likely.

And I doubt it was Pinstripes. Our inked-up Zope has been too busy making Zombiedactyls to do any of that grunt work on his own...

the Zope [a.k.a. "Zombie Pope"], copyright 2012 by Litmaster Int'l. All rights reserved.

Yeah, it would be down the same road a second time. And I partially agree: Because Long and the other guy are locked down in the Chinook, a zombie-attack on the Chinook-crew would require other zeds to intrude the Chinook, unless (!) the wounded soldier has turned into something pretty strong - like into another little one as what happened with Roman; sorry for stressing that: We don't know in what particular way Roman was wounded and infected in order to mutate into a little one; again the question: would the scratching with the fingers be sufficient to infect someone?
And remember the little one/Roman(?) dashing in the metal-door of the school in chaper #30. Now, I guess inner doors of a chopper won't be much stronger then that, because of weight and stuff ... So how unlikely would it be that the crew within the chinook would have to deal with such a nasty situation of at least one Zed from the inside?

Pinstripes is a really far-fetched wild guess only acknowledging his intellectual development or skills, but not accounting for his base - the hospital. But what about a smart one trying to grab the chinook and to get into it? Still far-fetched ...

About temperature and Zeds: OK, L.A. is 'warm' in winter - especially compared with the regions around Fort Irwin. I did not consider that. Still the very beginning of #33 shows us that Zeds still react to noise and sweat-bombs near Fort Irwin (Barstow/ Newberry Springs) in this cold time of the year. Their decreasing number and/ or activity I would not be connected with the temperature, unless they maybe hide in warm places like humans do. Also Skittles told us that they eat each other and thus decrease their numbers and/or activities.

All the best!
Liam

[nikvoodoo]

I'm wondering if Riley's already been on a mission and something went wrong. Based on Puck's comments, he seems more concerned about her "watching his back", than just an ordinary rookie soldier.

Also, I believe Puck saw Michael collecting the samples. "what the hell are you doing?" "just checking for ID" - Really? He bought that? :rolleyes:

Note to self: find out what "Red Winter" reference is.

Baked Mac & cheese, even better. Yum.

I think she has as well. I meant to imply another chance at combat. I agree she went out at least once and pissed off puck in the process.

[Tales from Valhalla]

My first thought with this episode was: "RILEY YAY! :D" then "don't put Riley in a corner! :mad:"


I think she has as well. I meant to imply another chance at combat. I agree she went out at least once and pissed off puck in the process.

From what I understand, her behavior started to get in her way. Last time we saw Riley she was bitter and drunk, that never build a shiny soldier (specially one who never had a military background). So my guess is that she's a crappy soldier mostly because of her new and VENGEANCE NOW personality. And second, maybe she's not doing so well without a bow. It's a shame, really, because she's such a badass with what she knows and everyone else who never saw the Legolas Action Scenes seem to look down on her.

[Kc]

• Michael got promoted one grade, from Sergeant E-5 to Staff Sergeant E-6. Puck did not, he's still a Corporal. I had half-expected that Michael would have gotten a field commission, since he's filling an officer's position.


Who wants to be an officer?! ;)

[Cabbage Patch]

The start of the episode, when K.O.D.I. was doing its thing, is pretty amazing. The first time I heard it I was sure it was taking place in the turret of a Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the loud servo-motor sounds, the distant sound of tracks turning, the muffled radio sound. Once I knew what I'd been hearing I re-listened, and it was amazing how vividly the sound illustrated the story. The sounds of K.O.D.I. deploying, the sweat bottle breaking, the biters approaching and the explosion. Brilliant work.

I do have a couple of questions regarding K.O.D.I. How did it deploy the explosive that killed the biters? Was it the K.O.D.I. that was damaged, or was it Michael's HMMWV that was damaged because it was parked too close?

[Witch_Doctor]

Anyone notice how Michael seems nicer and calmer? I thought he was going to flip out on Puck when talking about using more K.O.D.I.s but he didn't. Every time I thought he was going to snap at someone he didn't. Was even patient with the new recruits.

The biggest change I notice was that Michael used the word ZOMBIE!!

I couldn't catch his exact words very well. Did he say, 'Even us zombies don't want to be there.' when talking about the cold front in Boulder?

[Hoff4D]

It would be quite the plot twist if the Colony was on the way to Boulder and thats where the helicopter crashed....it could leak an infection to the Colony, along with puzzling the mass into thinking zombies learned how to fly helicopters....

[Tales from Valhalla]

It must be a relief to not be the top dog in charge of everything. Sure Michael still has a lot in his hands and a bunch of responsibilities, but there's someone above him. Less pressure and more...

[Hoff4D]

Not sure how much to read into this, but right after Michael says "This is not good"...it sounds like the other end of the radio says "They're back?" before he says "Something's wrong"....at first listen that's what I heard, and just assumed Michael wasn't within earshot of the radio to hear the "They're back?" question

But upon further listening I guess it's Michael picking up the radio and the guy on the other end saying "You back" or "Come back?" to Michael.


Just clarifying for my own sanity

[Witch_Doctor]

I think you're right. In Season One he often expresses frustration at being responsible for everything.

[Witch_Doctor]

Johnny 5 need to join up with Victor so they can form up the "Los Locos" :) Then they kick some balls INTO OUTER SPACE!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rxlidAR3Fw

[Witch_Doctor]

There were some tantalizing clues to the overall situation in this story. Some observations:

• Big Macs (or was that Baked Mac?) at the mess hall?


Ha ha. A new entry into the Museum of Misheard Dialogue.

That's ok. I heard Michael ask Puck, "Hey, can you get me passes?" after Puck throws away his origami. I thought, 'Passes? Do they get to go into town in Barstow or Yermo? Are they cruising for Zombie chicks?'2134

[awkwardalex]

Anyone notice how Michael seems nicer and calmer? I thought he was going to flip out on Puck when talking about using more K.O.D.I.s but he didn't. Every time I thought he was going to snap at someone he didn't. Was even patient with the new recruits.

The biggest change I notice was that Michael used the word ZOMBIE!!

I couldn't catch his exact words very well. Did he say, 'Even us zombies don't want to be there.' when talking about the cold front in Boulder?


I believe it was,"Even *the* zombies don't want to be there."
It sounded like Michael hesitated on the z-word.

[Duffusmonkey]

When the show started I could almost imagine Gordon Freeman walking through the destroyed labs in Half- Life

[Leedo2502]

The start of the episode, when K.O.D.I. was doing its thing, is pretty amazing. The first time I heard it I was sure it was taking place in the turret of a Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the loud servo-motor sounds, the distant sound of tracks turning, the muffled radio sound. Once I knew what I'd been hearing I re-listened, and it was amazing how vividly the sound illustrated the story. The sounds of K.O.D.I. deploying, the sweat bottle breaking, the biters approaching and the explosion. Brilliant work.

I do have a couple of questions regarding K.O.D.I. How did it deploy the explosive that killed the biters? Was it the K.O.D.I. that was damaged, or was it Michael's HMMWV that was damaged because it was parked too close?

That was way to quiet to be inside a BFV... I'm guessing that the KODI is a Talon EOD robot. Those things are pretty BA since you can even put guns on them and with the SWORDS system you can put a lot of guns on them LOL.

[Leedo2502]

To go along with the whole Saul Talk that was going on earlier;

I haven't been on the forums since before last episode and I just listened to Ep. 43 of WND and didn't hear anyone mention this at all, am I the only on who heard Saul get shot at around the 15:55-16:00 min mark right before the switch to Vic's POV? I swear I heard a voice say "Guardian over there!" then Saul going "Damnit!" then the gunshot then the transistion to Vic and Lizzy. My thought is that the Maller Guaridans saw him and CJ and got the jump on him.
I know that he talks to Lizzy on the radio but I assumed he was just wounded

[nikvoodoo]

To go along with the whole Saul Talk that was going on earlier;

I haven't been on the forums since before last episode and I just listened to Ep. 43 of WND and didn't hear anyone mention this at all, am I the only on who heard Saul get shot at around the 15:55-16:00 min mark right before the switch to Vic's POV? I swear I heard a voice say "Guardian over there!" then Saul going "Damnit!" then the gunshot then the transistion to Vic and Lizzy. My thought is that the Maller Guaridans saw him and CJ and got the jump on him.
I know that he talks to Lizzy on the radio but I assumed he was just wounded

I hear what you're talking about but that gunshot sounded awfully close. Not from a distance like a guardian would be.

[7oddisdead]

Hmm.

Everyone has covered the majority of the talking points already from this one. I'll just touch on one small detail.

Knowing there's an issue with the Chinook and getting the information about people not buying the tales from la point to one thing(in my mind)....kimmets niece was/is turned by one of the little ones, therefore, a la Roman....is will likely go that direction...hence, proof of la's "weirdness"....best go find that chopper Mikey...

[IamPaul]

Great episode! I wonder if maybe the Mallers shot down the helicopter? Scratch could have noticed and assumed Michael and Pegs. That could be what triggers the Fort to go investigate and find the Colony right where we left off at the end of Chapter 32. Best bet though is the Soldier turned and took out everyone on board and crashed near Boulder, and with defense relaxed at Boulder due to winter and possibly a slowdown in zombie activity, the Zombie leftovers from the crash make their way to Boulder and that is where we get "Red Winter".

[Hellbringer]

Who wants to be an officer?! ;)



Ring knockers!


Thank you, thank you. I'm here 'til Thursday.

[Cabbage Patch]

Great episode! I wonder if maybe the Mallers shot down the helicopter? Scratch could have noticed and assumed Michael and Pegs.

I think it's unlikely the Mallers had any interaction with the Chinook. Its path to Boulder wouldn't have taken it anywhere near the Colony. Also, this drama with the Chinook took place days before the events from the last several Chapters. While this is happening Victor and Saul, along with Glenn and Pete, are hunkered down at the school, waiting for CJ to come get them. f the Mallers had dealt with a helicopter from Fort Irwin a week or more earlier it would have been big news and even the Colony residents would know something was up.

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there!


Hmm.
Knowing there's an issue with the Chinook and getting the information about people not buying the tales from la point to one thing(in my mind)....kimmets niece was/is turned by one of the little ones, therefore, a la Roman....is will likely go that direction...hence, proof of la's "weirdness"....best go find that chopper Mikey...

Who do you refer to with 'la'?

@IamPaul and CabbagePatch:
Yep, the chopper-situation takes place a lot earlier then the new war within The Colony. The chinook is the same that retrieves/ rescues the soldiers from L.A. in chapter #30. That happens more then a week before Victor infiltrates The Colony, because between these two events Saul and Victor find the dead soldier, meet Glenn and Pete(?), bargain with CJ about getting into The Colony in order to rescue Lizzy, need about a week to observe The Colony and find a best way in, and finally after Victor enters it another day for the final preparations to enter it.

All the best!
Liam

[Lilydragon]

Who do you refer to with 'la'

I think 7oddisdead meant L.A.

[7oddisdead]

I think 7oddisdead meant L.A.

thank ye.. seemed obvious to me.

[fridginators]

If I remember correctly, in WND #43 Nikvoodoo went on and on about how it's not going to suddenly change to Fort Irwin. It's just like what happened with Chapter 19 all over again!

Good ep, interesting ep, and yeah it did remind me more of old-time radio, simply because a lot of the episode was chatter between Michael and Puck. Interesting at the hints about Kimmet not being such a great leader, I think the comparisons to Durai are inevitable but warranted. Also surprised at how apparently bad of a soldier Riley is, when she's otherwise been tough as nails. We'll see how that develops.

Not exactly sure what to make of the Chinook, asides from that it's a really interesting plot point, so props KC. It could go in so many different ways, it's really impossible to actually predict from our current standpoint, but yes it seems likely that it did crash. I'm not sure if Boulder's going to get infected - remember they maintain a strong defence there. Unless you do it 28 weeks later style which is a direction I really hope it doesn't go in... zombies breaking from the inside or tearing a safehouse apart has already been done once in the tower and once in CJ's tower... do we really need it to happen again?

Then again, we've seen this whole zombie situation seem to diminish in importance - what with the relative safety and fortress-like nature of Ft Irwin and Boulder, it seems hard to really be concerned about Pinstripes, a zombie horde or the other issues which we still haven't had answered - Michael's arm and Randy, although those two, like Kalani being the rat, are probably a case of the most plausible case being the correct one. Regardless, Randy must continue to have some significance - otherwise why would he have popped up again? Maybe it's all just to do with Michael's psychology than anything else.

The point is that something needs to happen. What happens with the Chinook is really going to change this story, a lot. Keep in mind we still have 16 more chapters in this story; what on earth is going to happen? How is this end game going to be constructed? We're in the lull right now, and there's going to be a lot more complication before we get the scene set for the final act in mid-late season 4. My feeling is that the structure of Ft Irwin and Boulder must be threatened, because we are far too safe right now. The Mallers also need to be made relevant again - they are relevant on the personal but not on the grand level. They're relevant to Saul, not really to Michael. How can we reconcile revenge for Angel with putting down Pinstripes? Even more fundamentally: how do we resolve this tension between the human element of the story and what has increasingly become a military/thriller element? Unless one subordinates itself to the another, thus the theories of the Mallers being wiped out and Scratch being killed in Season 3, so we can concentrate on killing Pinstripes in Season 4. The thing is though, that KC has always said this is a story about people, so I just don't see that happening.

I have extreme confidence in KC in being able to reconcile these issues, otherwise he wouldn't have set it up like this (and keep in mind in the WND post-season 2 interview he said that they have the story all mapped out, and has repeated so several times). I am unsure of how it's going to happen, but damn am I going to enjoy watching it unfurl.

[Condor]

Darn you KC for the Johnny 5 reference. When I heard that, I thought "I haven't seen Short Circuit in a long time", then flipping through the channels I saw it was on. Now I can't get this out of my head: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yA9WhYnsD_4 Which makes me think of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-tUk805urg
Hope there's never a Rick Astley reference.

[nikvoodoo]

If I remember correctly, in WND #43 Nikvoodoo went on and on about how it's not going to suddenly change to Fort Irwin. It's just like what happened with Chapter 19 all over again!

Yeah yeah yeah. I was wrong. Blah blah blah. :p

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there,


zombies breaking from the inside or tearing a safehouse apart has already been done once in the tower and once in CJ's tower... do we really need it to happen again?

Well ... Actually your two references are kind of vague ... What we had so far: Almost anytime Zombies coming from the outside and dealing with the situation inside. And we had it only once so far that a Zed spawned within The Tower, the Tommy-incident.

Now, I predict that the captain in the chinook turns into a Roman (compare: Roman) and attacks the chinook from the inside. Would it be the same thing as with Tommy? Short: No.
Long:
- Tommy was wounded by a bomb and afterwards splattered with Zombie-goo, what resulted in his infection and let him turn; the captain was attacked (wounded?) and severly harmed by a little one; I guess (!) that this might be the same as with Roman, therefore the infection happens.
- Tommy was in the free and turned in the face of his friends and aunt; the captain is locked away.
- Tommy was shot by Burt and was not yet able to attack anyone; if the captain turns, he may break free within the chinook, because we know from the elementary school that the little ones are a lot more powerful then regulars and we don't have any idea if soldiers within a flying chinook would you deadly force on a freshly spawned little one.

True: I guess and predict a lot; and maybe, if not probably, I am totally wrong. And yet: just imagine I could be right about this one; would the attack from the inside really be the repetition of what we had earlier so far? Well - doesn't look to me that way ... At least I don't recollect any situation from the WA story so far being barely similar ...

I am pretty sure season four will have a major focus on Inglewood and Ground Zero as well as on pinstripes and especially the little ones. Fort Irwin prepares for it with Johnny 5; also we have the confirmation that the chinook-mission was about searching a "safe" place in L.A. for future activities, too - at least as I understand it so far ... Therefore pinstripes won't come to Boulder or Fort Irwin, not even to The Colony ... The heroes and survivors will deal with him in L.A.!

Some loose ends, and Kc has a plan to go on with the story; no clue though, if he is going to connect all loose ends again ... I am pretty excited about what is going to happen.

All the best!
Liam

[fridginators]

I meant more about an infected getting loose in Boulder. And I guess yeah it's not directly comparable, but I guess it's just a plot element I don't really care for.

And the comments about prediction weren't aimed at you, they were just a general statement about the fact that we really know nothing at the moment about the future of the Chinook. It will be interesting though.

[LiamKerrington]

Hi there,

@fridginators: no offense taken. I am a fan of lively discussions, though. ;)

Agreed: Imagining a huge security threshold in Boulder it would be kind of odd, if an outbreak takes place in Boulder and thus risking the lives of 150000 survivors ... And I would not want to see it coming. But up until now I don't see any way to reconnect with Pegs, Datu, Hope, and Kelly; also I am not sure, if they are of any story-value anymore anyway. In #33-1 Michael has a good point about them not keeping in touch with him ... Does this aim at the prospect that these four characters are out of WA (for now), or is it maybe the preparation for a kind of more "personal" conflict established for some interesting conflicts in the future?

If Kc manages to get a (small) infection to Boulder - something that could be prevented from spreading all over the place, Michael, Puck, and maybe Riley would have a good reason to get there and reconnect with former friends - especially since we know that the Boulder-soldiers are kind of inexperienced soldiers.

Trying to grab all the opportunities we have at the moment I have no clue about what to expect and what to behold as more or less valid ... I think, no, I hope #33-2 will offer us some direction ...

All the best!
Liam

[fridginators]

Yeah we know about as little as we did about the future as we did after Chapter 25 honestly - keep in mind how little this part of the story has been developed so far, save for the general summary of what's happening in the world.

I'm 99.99999999999999999999999999999% sure that Pegs, Datu, Hope and Kelly have not been written out of the story. Michael and Pegs is a conflict that needs to be resolved, Scratch needs to come close to killing Pegs, Hope has to have some plot significance (otherwise there is absolutely no point of her being alive, save for Datu's peace of mind) and Kelly REALLY needs to get laid.

[DeadPixel]

keep in mind how little this part of the story has been developed so far, save for the general summary of what's happening in the world.

Perhaps this is just the calm before another storm? Just like yourself, I'm very positive we haven't seen the last of Pegs, Datu and Kelly, but this is WA, and I'm sure there will be some heart swallowing moments as everyone is on their way to reunite..

I'm looking forward to it, but at the same time, dreading the possible outcomes :P

[LiamKerrington]

Yeah, well ...

although this ia hidden in the ambiguity of my last posting, I wouldn't want to bet on Pegs, Kelly, Hope and Datu not showing up again. On the one side there is the Pegs-Michael complication, then there is Hope with her relations to Datu AND Tanya, and not to forget Pegs as the ultimate motivation for Scratch nuking world and shit and whatnot ...

DeadPixel: Yes, calm before the storm ...

All the best!
Liam
And my guts tells me: The chinook on its lost course to boulder is the key to bring people closer to each other again ... ;)

[Clapacap24]

With all the layers of sound to the recording from CODI and the amount of times it played during the episode, I think we are going to get some little gem once Tanya listens a few times.
It is great to hear from some more of the gang.
Poor Tanya and Riley sound like they are going 'all work and no play...' in their own ways.

Yeah I like the new Chapter its pretty good to see Micheal leading troops again, Im liking this Corporal Puck hes sounding like hes replacing the lost burt and Angel, i hope anyways that
burt pops in the story again. Im thinking that Tanya is going to discover something good and usefull very soon. Ive been listening since the 3 episode and damn i wait every week for more and more.
I do have a problem understanding the timeline and character personalities, but i see Micheal is back in the loop and lead.

[Witch_Doctor]

K.O.D.I. like Drone

2140

Looks more like Treadwell from Star Wars

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Than Johnny 5
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[Bullethead]

Chinook pilot was bitten by a zombie bird.. or maybe a mosquito!

weZt nile virus muahahaha

[facebook.com/alexinks]

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