Which Zombies are the worst?

[Grimmnar]

Sitting here watching World War Z and thinking which Zombie world you think would be the worst to live in? Any source material

Grimm

[Storm Wolf]

Honestly, any of them, especially the post apocalyptic ones, it's not the zombies or whatever its the break down of the social order and the rise of the dog eat dog mentality I find truly disturbing  .

Just proves that even after several of (hundreds of) thousands  of years, we as a species have not evolved beyond the tribal/family unit stage.

Arthur C. Clarke's 2001 hit the nail right on the head 

[ithoriel]

I'm currently playing Fallout 76. I'm with Storm Wolf, it's not the zombies it's the breakdown of social norms.

"If the ferals and the ghouls don't get you the rads will!"

[Elbows]

While zombies are a bit of a silly concept, the only ones which would really threaten human society would be the fast ones (ala World War Z or 28 Days Later types).  Slow zombies would never successfully overrun anything.

Also, the destruction of society is way overblown in the "slow zombie" genre.  If, somehow, 90% of the population was wiped out...everyone remaining would have their own grocery store to live in for decades, eating canned goods, etc.  There would be so much excess material, that humans would be fine...and killing slow zombies (albeit an arduous task) would be feasible.

You'd have to elevate the threat level, so speed...ferociousness...airborne contagion, or very simple "splatter gets you infected", etc.  This "slow zombies bite you" thing would never work.

I agree though, in most of the events you would have a return to natural animal existence.  You'd have some distant groups who agree to live in a semi-normal communal habitat until a bigger/badder/stronger force shows up and takes all your stuff.

[HerbertTarkel]

Shaun of the Dead zombies for a slice of fried gold! Trainable, fun, and hilarious!

[Elbows]

"...Winchester?"

[HerbertTarkel]

"...Winchester?"

YEAH, BOIIIII!

[anevilgiraffe]

medical care would be problematic... theoretically, hospitals are going to be ground zero, so medical staff would be amongst the first generation of victims. Pharmacies would be raided, but things like antibiotics will be limited, you have use by dates, you have hoarders keeping them just in case.

never mind slow zombie bites, a splinter could kill you.

[carlos marighela]

The ones that staff the local big barn hardware chain as seasonal labour over the summer. Dead eyed, effectively brain dead, they shuffle lifelessly around the aisles, impervious to repeated queries as to where to find fixtures, tools or fittings, animated by some unearthly force.

[dwbullock]

I've always had an issue with the 'zombie bites you and you get infected' approach.  While I love me some zombie movies, at some point, wouldn't we all just wear some kind of padding and armor?  And why do the tanks never seem to work anymore?

Seriously, one guy in a truck with a flame thrower.  A wall.  Things like that.

Now, the 28 days later zombies .... well, we're all dead then.

[Cholmondely Percival IV]

Now, the 28 days later zombies .... well, we're all dead then.

While I hate to be ‘that guy’ - alright, I admit I enjoy it - I feel compelled to point out that there are no zombies in 28 Days Later. While they may look and act like the insatiable brain-eaters with which we are all familiar they are in fact a quite different beast, being infected with a rage virus. For some reason - unlike the virus itself - this concept doesn’t appear to have caught on.

[Cholmondely Percival IV]

medical care would be problematic... theoretically, hospitals are going to be ground zero, so medical staff would be amongst the first generation of victims. Pharmacies would be raided, but things like antibiotics will be limited, you have use by dates, you have hoarders keeping them just in case.

never mind slow zombie bites, a splinter could kill you.

You’re suggesting that the NHS would be at breaking point? What an odd idea.

[Psychopomp]

As noted above, in zombie movies the real threat isn't the zombies, it's the breakdown of society and the one or two selfish assholes in your survivor group that gets you all killed while trying to look out for themselves.

Zombies are just the lingering environmental threat that destroyed the old world and persist to prevent a rapid recovery.  A non-zombie plague that killed humans but provoked high aggression in animals would have the same effect.  Or even a weather shift that made staying outside for too long lethal.  Zombies aren't the real threat, they're the why behind "why we're stuck in this small group with limited space and supplies, vulnerable to a single act of betrayal exposing us to the lethal hazard outside".

It's why I never bothered with The Walking Dead, either comic or TV series.  Understanding the above, I knew that the long-form of the zombie story would quickly shift from survival horror to "soap opera with dead people shuffling around".

[Cholmondely Percival IV]

Interestingly, at least to my mind, Robert Kirkman, the creator of TWD, has said that he doesn’t regard it as horror. I don’t recall what, if anything, he said he did regard it as.

[Codsticker]

"...Winchester?"

Romantic night out and impenetrable fortress!