Review of Marvel Zombies 5 #3-4
Posted By John Sears on July 28, 2010
We’re catching up on our backlog of review materials here at the ZRC, so pardon a few combination reviews to catch up, if you please, Z-Rights fans.
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An Open Letter to 2k Games Regarding Anti-Zombie Messaging Hidden in Bioshock 2
Posted By John Sears on July 28, 2010
To whom it may concern:
Greetings from The Zombie Rights Campaign, the world’s premiere advocacy organization for the rights of the Differently Animated (popularly known as Zombies). Here at the ZRC we strive day in and day out to represent the noble and misunderstood Zombie, working hard to advance the cause of true Undead Equality across our often hostile and Living Supremacist country, and from there of course to the world at large. It’s not an easy task, though we relish the challenge of dispelling the hateful myths and fearful stereotypes surrounding our Respiration-Optional brothers and sisters.
So naturally there are times when even we must take a break, find some time to relax, a bit of escapist entertainment unrelated to our social work…. something to relax the mind and renew our stores of energy so that we might get back out there and redouble our efforts on behalf of our Uniquely Enlivened constituency. A couple of months ago in such a downtime, we purchased a copy of Bioshock 2 (the Xbox 360 version, though I don’t think that matters in this context), and promptly got distracted from the single player mode by the multiplayer campaign, followed by a busy summer convention season and running a small charity auction.
All the usual foibles of positive, pro-Zombie outreach.
Finally last week after completing some additional Zombie-friendly charitable work, ZRC Headquarters staff had time to unwind and play through the story mode. Overall it was an extremely positive experience and a very well made game, and served quite capably to relieve us of the heavy burden we choose to carry on behalf of Zombies everywhere.
That is, until we sat through the credits, and saw…. the comment.
Yes, you’re probably aware of the comment of which I speak. In your special thanks section of the end credits to an otherwise marvelous game, an anonymous employee drops a terrifying bombshell of an accusation: that 53,596 Zombies were killed; killed in the making of *your game*.
Naturally we are shocked and appalled. Assuming this allegation is true, it would be the worst and most heinous anti-Zombie pogrom since the Romero-inspired violence of the 70s-80s. If it is untrue, and we dearly hope this to be the case, it is merely an appallingly bad joke and a grave insult to all Zombies everywhere. Zombies aren’t just people too, with feelings to hurt and pride to injure; Zombies are consumers, good sir or madam, and they vote with their wallets. This offense, a terrible slight at the least and an act of genocide at worst, will surely result in action taken by the Pro-Zombie Lobby against your company. Boycotts, letter-writing campaigns, even, time and travel budget permitting, picket lines!
Hopefully none of that will be necessary, and this unfortunate incident can be put behind us all very shortly.
We eagerly await your response, and hope we can work through this most serious matter in a calm and civilized fashion.
John J Sears
President of The Zombie Rights Campaign
http://www.zombierightscampaign.org/
Har Har
Posted By John Sears on July 28, 2010
So the people at Split Lip Comics have a store alongside their horror comics website. That’s not so surprising.
However, their new product is ripe with negative stereotypes about Zombies:
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the brains! Henry Higgins is in for more than he bargained for with this less than fair lady. T-shirt comes in Cherry Red and Black.
See, it’s funny because Zombies love brains to the exclusion of everything else, and it’s also funny to imagine Zombies in polite English society munching said brains.
Har-de-har. Alternately we could *not* sell shirts engaging in lifeist stereotyping against a minority population. Just an idea, Split Lip. Just an idea.
If you’d prefer to purchase a shirt with a positive depiction of the Differently Animated, you could always visit our store instead.
Zombies Vs. Twilight: Zombies Win This Round!
Posted By John Sears on July 27, 2010
Ok, ok, it’s just DC’s “Blackest Night” pseudo-Zombies beating the Twilight comics adaptation, but you can’t blame a guy for being excited.
The New York Times newspaper has listed the manga bestsellers in the United States for the week ending on July 17. Young C. Kim’s graphic novel adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight vampire novel dropped from #1 to #4 in its 18th week on the separate Hardcover Graphic Books list. Three Blackest Night graphic novels from DC Comics took the top three spots instead. This was only the second time since its release in March that it was not the #1 book; it dropped to #2 for one week in April.
Take that, you sparkly immortal perverts.
Zombie Movie ‘Banned’ From Australian Film Festival by Australian Classification Board
Posted By John Sears on July 25, 2010
This is a controversial story and the details are sketchy, but so far it seems like the Australian government has quite the bias against Zombies:
Bruce La Bruce’s gay Zombie porn film L.A. Zombie was set to feature as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival’s (MIFF) Night Shift program. That is until the Australian Classification board got the opportunity to view it and deemed it unsuitable for Exemption status, or ‘banned’ as it has been called by MIFF.
More details followed from the Australian press:
Festival director Richard Moore told the paper ‘’Bruce LaBruce’s blend of sex and violence can be confronting, but I would argue that within the context of the festival, it is nonsensical and patronising to not allow people to decide what they want to see.”Crikey.com reported on the issue, saying that it believed it was a case of homophobia on the part of the classification Board who choose to censor gay porn horror films, but let the straight porn horror (such as Suicide Girls Must Die) to continue screening.
“Australia, you’re standing in it (it being a quagmire of hypocrisy and puritanical censorship laced with subtle homophobia),” said a Crikey.com writer.
Essentially, the way they ‘banned’ the film is this: a film can be shown with a formal rating, or with an exemption from the rating process. The rating process is complicated and time-consuming, thus if you deny the exemption close enough to a festival, you effectively ban it. It’s abuse of a legal loophole for censorship.
Censorship against ZOMBIES.
Everyone seems to be looking at this issue as an example of homophobia, but we at the ZRC suspect that, in fact, it is not hatred of gay people that drove this decision but distaste for Zombies, and in particular the taboos against even mentioning Zombie sexuality.
However, no matter how much Australia seeks to censor Zombies on film, the news and the facts will continue to get out. The ZRC officially calls upon the Australian Classification Board to reconsider this hateful decision and allow films depicting Zombies in non-traditional manner, ie not as victims of gun-toting rednecks and military commandoes, to be shown in their country immediately. Do it for justice, do it for artistic freedom.
Most of all, do it for the Zombies.
World War Z: It’s Official, and We’re On the Case
Posted By John Sears on July 25, 2010
So you’ve no doubt seen the big news from Comic-Con: the long-rumored World War Z movie is very real, it really does star Brad Pitt, and it is in development.
All the ZRC can say for the moment is that we’re appalled. In the annals of Anti-Zombie literature, hatemonger Max Brooks looms large, having done for hatred of Zombies in mainstream literature what Romero did in movies, Capcom did in videogames and Robert Kirkman did in comics. He peddles a seductive product, with tight narrative brought to life by copious amounts of detail and fascinating characters.
Of course, they’re all LIVING characters, because Max Brooks is a paragon of Living Supremacy.
The ZRC will continue to monitor news of this, ahem, film as it goes through development, and rest assured, when it debuts in two years we WILL be here, still working toward a brighter future for the Differently Animated, in spite of Mr. Pitt and Mr. Brooks.
Zombie Singles: Progress or Objectification?
Posted By John Sears on July 23, 2010
I’m not quite sure what to make of this website.
On the one hand, with its ‘Create Your Zombie’ feature it’s pretty clear that the majority of users of the website are Living people, playing at being Zombies, rather than Zombies themselves using a site for social networking. Combined with the gory-cutesy site layout (such as the matchmaker tool having you select whether your interest with the people you’re inquiring of is ‘Anything Goes’ ‘Casual Feeding’ or ‘A Long Term Massacre’), it feels like the service comes down more on the exploitative than empowering side.
Still; a pro-Zombie subculture among the Living is an interesting concept, even if for the moment it exists at the status of a fetish. Perhaps roleplaying as a Zombie can lead to further acceptance of Zombies. Perhaps not; after all, blackface didn’t lead, I should think, to greater equality for African-Americans.
Still, this is a trend worth keeping an eye on, and the ZRC shall do just that.
Zombie ‘Fitness’? More like Anti-Zombie Hatercise
Posted By John Sears on July 23, 2010
So Excel Gynmastics in the Chicago, IL area has decided to cash in on the ‘Zombie Apocalypse’ craze by constructing a ‘class’ to teach people who to survive an encounter with a zombie mob:
With that in mind they have created ZombieFit – a fitness program that involves functional fitness and the parkour ideology. Parkour is “The Art of Movement” – which basically means gracefully getting out of the way of danger – in this case zombies. The group founder Rich Gatz, knows most people don’t really fear a zombie takeover but he says “If you’re ready for the zombie apocalypse, you’re ready for anything”
Mr. Gatz should be especially ashamed of himself for peddling a ‘solution’ to what he realizes is an outmoded, paranoid fear
of the peaceful Zombie population engaged in some sort of brain-devouring uprising. What’s the matter, Mr. Katz? Your ‘Irish Avoidance’ class constructed around Tai Chi didn’t sell enough memberships?
Even worse is the idea that Gatz is going to be training Zombie haters into better physical condition, ostensibly so they can defend themselves, but ask yourself this: how often do Zombies attack the Living? What’s the more likely outcome here, that these Zom-bashers use their newfound skills to avoid an apocalypse that’s never going to arrive, or that they use their new, leaner forms to engage in preemptive Zombie attacks?
Disturbing AND disgusting.
Atomic Age Cinema TV 2: Atomic Boogaloo (A Critical Analysis of this Bold New Work)
Posted By John Sears on July 22, 2010
Today at The Zombie Rights Campaign we are privileged to review and discuss what may be the most important film to ever critically examine the plight of the Differently Animated in American Culture: Atomic Age Cinema TV 2: Atomic Boogaloo.
A great deal more below the cut.
The ZRC and Mail Order Zombie
Posted By John Sears on July 21, 2010
When we were at the Famous Monsters of Filmland Convention the ZRC was privileged to do two interviews, one live-streamed for Eerie Radio and another via digital recording magic for the good folks at Mail Order Zombie. Then after the convention I completely forgot to check back on when the Mail Order Zombie interview would go online. Oops.
Still, you can listen to the podcast containing a bit of our outreach efforts during that fine weekend in Indianapolis here. Once again we’d like to offer a special ZRC thanks to the Mail Order Zombie staff for helping to spread the word on Zombie Rights and Zombie Rights Advocacy.