I think it's funny how previous fiction inspires how you interpret new fiction. I come from the background of being a huge Angel/Buffy fan so I see things through that lens (and yes I said Angel first for a reason, I prefer it over Buffy.)

On that show in order to justify killing countless vampires, it was explained that when a person gets turned they lose their soul, i.e. the ability to feel empathy or guilt. They also get a bit of demon added to them, which imbues them with supernatural power, animal instinct, and bloodlust that makes humans look like food. However, they maintain their basic human mind, just with the loss of a soul. What they were determines what they become, but its always evil because the soul is gone.

I kind of view the zombies in We're Alive the same way, especially the "smart ones" that retain more of their humanity. They may be quite aware of what they're doing and remember their past life, but I don't think they have their "souls" anymore. Randy is evil now, I don't think there's going back for him and I don't think at this point the idea that a zombie can be "redeemed" is viable because it would open up a moral can of worms at this point in the series. Unless Randy is undercover and really Angel, (Buffy's Angel) a vampire with a soul... not likely.

Keeping with the Buffy theme, does Hope remind any other Buffy fans of Dawn?

Finally, I won't touch the big endgame theory but I think that maybe I have something to offer for why Ink spared Skittles. We know Ink has a history of mental illness. So does Skittles, obviously. These things tend to be genetic. Could they be related? Brothers?