Chapter 27- The Thirty-First Part 3

[cleeprevo]

He might not be fully undead. Skittles said the zombies didn't go after him when they were attacking tower #2. So maybe this means the undead are friendly with certain people. Plus, we can never under estimate the zombies, they could be capable of anything.

[Willy Beamen]

Interesting that we are assuming the zombie motives here, which is to say, other than Ink, the forum is operating under the assumption that the zombie mass are in an end-game, last man standing, elimination style vendetta with the goal of simply mindlessly eradicating and eating everything in sight. We know NOTHING about their motives, which is a huge hole in all of our logic. Can we derive motive from actions? If so then these are a puzzling bunch of undead beings with no real recurring characteristics other than a variety of diverse conflict orientated interactions with non-zombies. Let us revisit the outbreak and decide if this is calculated or not. Indeed, we haven't touched on the possibilities of other such "leaders" for other factions of zombie groups...ie. was there an "Ink" in Hawaii, or is Ink a world wide, one of a kind anomaly? Asking this questions leads us to realize that we are assuming that "leave her" was Ink, which a few of you have questioned.
We cannot reason with the seemingly unreasonable.
So why leaving CJ and skittles...selective eating? self preservation as a next step in evolution? sustainable farming practices? Or a piece in a puzzle that we cannot possibly conceive because kC is only letting us see one piece at a time through a microscope of brilliant story telling.
I know it is no fun to simply state that we can't know anything for sure, so lets say this...
LA is not a microcosm representing the zombie apocalyptic world...it is a unique occurrence. There is only one Ink.

[7oddisdead]

Hmm..im trying to wrap my brain around all this. I honestly could care less about the motives of the zombies...to me l, their motives are simple...survive...find food..do what that one cat in the suit says...bout it. The anomaly (and yes, I totally agree that he is an anomaly) is ink. He truly is in my opinion the only member of the undead faction we should concern ourselves with..the rest are simply faceless soldiers...the occasional general may make a cameo appearance every now and then (ie: randy)..but beyond that..they are simply plot devices..in my eyes. To understand the end game of the zombies is to understand inks behavior

And yea..by ink I mean that one dude we call like thirty different names...seriously. I'll give ya their may be a ringleader in the arena during the purgatory scene..but there's Only one suit wearing guy..im bout over the hundred names of confusion....end/ rant

[Willy Beamen]

I think to underestimate the zombie mass as a character without the same depth as the rest of the characters is to ignore an entire element of this story. We have the human perspective, and that drives the narrative, but the zombie perspective is beyond our privilege and eventually their motives will have to be explored. We are already theorizing their actions, but through our own humanistic values. Mindless killers? Sure, but why all this strange behavior? The arena would suggest they have the capacity for pleasure and excitement, following orders shows loyalty, following complex orders suggests understanding and on and on it can go.
If they are mindless killers, then the only possible outcome is death, and not just death for humans, but eventual death of zombies as such behavior can only lead to their own destruction. Is the tunnel vision of the zombies reflective of the survivors?
I know kC has mentioned before that this is a story of humans, not of zombies, so the discussion of zombie motives would appear moot, but I would argue the opposite by echoing Michaels whole logic of documenting and gathering intel on the zombie threat in an effort to "know thy enemy".
Why is this here and not in the theories? Well, because I believe we are entering a pivotal point of the story line...the formula has suddenly changed. No more colonial style warfare of construct and defend, it clearly doesn't work as every fortification has fallen (including the zombie arena) and pretty soon the survivors are going to figure out that this whole mess isn't going to just "go away" by hiding in the elusive safe place that everyone seems to be looking for. The zombies are here, and there will be a time when their motives can't be ignored.

[7oddisdead]

I think to underestimate the zombie mass as a character without the same depth as the rest of the characters is to ignore an entire element of this story. We have the human perspective, and that drives the narrative, but the zombie perspective is beyond our privilege and eventually their motives will have to be explored. We are already theorizing their actions, but through our own humanistic values. Mindless killers? Sure, but why all this strange behavior? The arena would suggest they have the capacity for pleasure and excitement, following orders shows loyalty, following complex orders suggests understanding and on and on it can go.
If they are mindless killers, then the only possible outcome is death, and not just death for humans, but eventual death of zombies as such behavior can only lead to their own destruction. Is the tunnel vision of the zombies reflective of the survivors?
I know kC has mentioned before that this is a story of humans, not of zombies, so the discussion of zombie motives would appear moot, but I would argue the opposite by echoing Michaels whole logic of documenting and gathering intel on the zombie threat in an effort to "know thy enemy".
Why is this here and not in the theories? Well, because I believe we are entering a pivotal point of the story line...the formula has suddenly changed. No more colonial style warfare of construct and defend, it clearly doesn't work as every fortification has fallen (including the zombie arena) and pretty soon the survivors are going to figure out that this whole mess isn't going to just "go away" by hiding in the elusive safe place that everyone seems to be looking for. The zombies are here, and there will be a time when their motives can't be ignored.

well now..if you wanna talk about the mass of zombies as a whole that's a different story..i might have been slightly sidetracked earlier and didn't catch that/just didnt register what your trying to convey. the problem i have is...most of this has little to do with this chapter. BUT!...in a way it does

so during the attack on the other tower, what did the undead horde, as a collective...do? busted in..when given the "attack" or "kill" or whatever call..and started wrecking shop. killing wildly(least thats the way i took the scene playing out), nothing unusual there. however, when we come to the group that went to the basement after CJ they appeared to show restraint on some level..how much did that have to do with ink being present? at this point we have no way of knowing..but the fact remains, they either heard or saw four of their party get taken out and hesitated before rounding the corner, that shows some level of cunning and a survival instict for sure

speaking of that scene...and with a nod to undeadsweeper and A_hero who first acknowledged this...how exactly did ink and crew A: know to look for CJ in the basement B: know she was in fact, a she..

i think that first part (A) is the one bit that drives me the most crazy...it would be one thing for ink to sneak in..get "the party started" so to say..and step back and watch the fireworks..in fact that kind of seems his m.o. (watching you from the rooftops) but the fact that he went down to the basement...specifically were CJ was holding up, and drew his minions away??... that speaks of something quite deliberate...calculated..i dunno, im just facinated by this aspect of the story (small detail: if you listen closely, when ink and crew leave the basement,youcan hear the same footsteps that we heard when kalani and riley ran into ink in the basement of the hospital..fun stuff right there)

but i wont disagree with most of the stuff you have said..hell, i like the majority of the ideas..but i do disagree as to this thread being the proper place for them..unless put into the context of this chapter

[Adventureless_Hero]

Regarding Pinstripes:
I view Pinstripes as a smart but sick individual. It leaves me with the impression that it enjoys taunting and playing with the emotions of it's prey, as well as getting pleasure out of the physical pain it causes humans. When Michael and the rest encountered it in their own tower, it stood up after having been shot (presumably upon hearing the humans were out of ammo) and it laughed. It mocked them and relished the looks of surprise coming from the humans that had assumed it to be an unintelligent animal.

Then we have the slaughter house in the arena. Is this the manifestation of just one of the multiple personalities of Pinstripes/Ink/Bill Roberts/The One With Markings? It's very just that he has so many nicknames as he was a paranoid schizophrenic suffering from multiple personalities. The arena slaughter house of zombie pleasure could be just one of the many facets of Pinstripes mind. He is an anomaly because of the nature of his brain; it was literally wired different than yours or mine before being infected, and now that he's got Z juice pumping through those veins, god only knows what his brain looks like. He holds these bloody arena games to entertain his horde, and perhaps that is their motivation for joining his ranks. He offers them protection in numbers, entertainment in death, and a guaranteed food supply.

In the moments when the zombies under his lead spare the life of Skittles, I believe we are witnessing Pinstripes dole out emotional torture. He probably loves that he is creating a loon. Hell, he may have had intentions of eventually turning Skittles and creating another special breed of zeds; those with a mental condition on top of zombism, making for a dangerously unpredictable zed with stellar survival skills. But I do believe that Pinstripes gave his horde the order to spare Duncan so that he can let this one human being suffer terrible mental anguish. The same applies for CJ. He probably decided that not only was it not prudent to lose a handful of zeds in attempting to capture or kill CJ in that hallway, but he must have known that leaving her be would have great negative impact on her leadership abilities.

I am also of the opinion that Pinstripes is not the only one Pimp ass zombie in the world. He may be the only one of his caliber in L.A. but I do believe there are other ranking contenders to his throne, not to mention the potential for zombies leaders of an even higher caliber living in other cities across the world. I feel by day 3 of the outbreak, what you had worldwide, was the establishment of zombie kingdoms in all the major cities. I don't view We're Alive as a summer blockbuster movie in which the hero of the world and the Apocalypse are both found in New York or L.A. Los Angeles is just the first major hurdle, the first Independance Day space ship that needs to be destroyed in order to show the rest of the world "how to take those sons-of-bitches down."

[mem]

The story never falters as you guide us through the world that is We're Alive. I sound like a broken record I know but I can't quit saying how the sound effects, background noises and music get better each episode. When it seems that you guys have finally set the bar high enough, you leap a little higher. The failed rescue/arena scene was perfection. I was on the edge of my seat in a panic hoping all would end well (even though i already knew it wouldn't). The sound effects worked so beautifully here. One didnt need to see it on a tv/movie screen to know what was happening.

[UndeadSweeper]

Hmm... I believe that undead horde has a level of restraint and survival instinct. Remember when they were are the boat and Micheal notice that the one coming for them look like they "weaker"
then ones on the mainland. As remember lunchtime at the Arena. Preservation is their pattern.

Side-note: Adventureless_Hero Since you are still in the 1st season of Walking Dead, can you tell me in what eps that some of them when to a Gold Gym and work out for a month to the song " I'm sexy and I know it"?

[Cabbage Patch]

Theory: Skittles does not give off a scent to the zombies the same way that most people do. This could explain why he wasn't attacked (they didn't immediately recognize him as a target) and why he could hide in a dumpster successfully even though that other guy was found in a closet, out of sight. [/COLOR]

I wonder if Skittles' survival isn't a factor of pheromones. I remember reading that dogs can sense humans who suffer from schizophrenia and some other mental disorders. This is probably accomplished through their sense of smell, which suggests the existence of "crazy" pheromones. We already know how sensitive zombies are to pheromones. Maybe "crazy" pheromones cause zombies to instinctively avoid the broadcasting humans, or even makes the humans invisible to them (like alcohol seems to do).

[Lvmetndr]

**RESIDENT EVIL THEORY (I'm using the movies)**

We know the hospital was doing some kinds of experiments so is it safe to say that maybe Ink either injected himself or was injected with a virus? I apologize but I don't know everyone's name from the RE games/movies. In the 2nd movie there was the T-Virus infected Matt who was able to follow orders via satellite and in the 3rd movie the Dr. injected himself with the Anti-Virus b/c he was attacked by his own brand of zombies whom he was able to control and teach to an extent.

Just an idea.


After some light reading I do believe that the zombies and Ink were able to tell the gender of CJ based on her body odor. There are a few factors that can contribute to someone's individual body order.