Now that Zombie Day is gone and past
Jun. 15th, 2007 01:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bluegargantuaI'd really like to take a minute to talk about zombies.
Specifically, I'd like to talk about Marvel Zombies.
The basic gist is that a mysterious meteorite hits earth and a virus starts turning superheroes into zombies. If a zombie bites you, you become infected. If they eat you, you're just dead. Zombies can't stand the taste of other zombies. When zombies are hungry, they rampage around and feed. Once they feed, they regain their former personality.
Right, so nothing too out-of-the-ordinary in zombie schtick.
The virus digs in and superheroes become super zombies and regular folk become meat. Mr. Fantastic, the smartest guy in the universe, the one guy who could probably find a cure even though biotech isn't his actual field of expertise, well he decides that zombies are a superior form of life so he infects the Fantastic Four and that pretty much spells the end of organized resistance.
And if you think Mr. Fantastic getting a hard-on for the zombie life is out of character, it's amazingly consistent compared to his dickery in Civil War (which happens in the "real" Marvel Universe).
Right. So, super zombies. For some reason I finding the stories a lot of fun. Currently, there's a Marvel Zombie/Army of Darkness crossover. In it, Nextwave makes a brief guest appearance (only to die off-screen and become zombies).
That's when it hits me: Machine Man is just a robot. He can't be infected by the virus. He can be destroyed by super zombies, but there's nothing to suggest that they'd bother. Surely there must be a suite of non-human Marvel characters that would survive the planet's zombification.
For the record: it appears as though Wolverine gets infected so "mutant healing" doesn't appear to affect the virus. If you're a biological creature you can be infected (reminding us all that the Thing is, in fact, biological and not a rock monster). So that rules out a lot of people, including cyborgs (oooh...zombie Deathlok). Silver Surfer and Galactus both get eaten so power cosmic isn't a guarantee.
So I figure the short list includes: Machine Man, The Vision and Ultron. I suppose the Sentinels count too, but they were never really personalities and they were certainly never very effective. I'm wracking my brains for any incorporeal/magical heroes, but I can't think of any off the top of my head.
[EDIT: Ghost Rider might possibly survive if he were in demon--nope, just checked. Somehow he's zombified. Huh...weird.)
I did think of one other bizzare wrinkle: Zombie Marvel Universe is, with the exception of the zombies, supposedly identical to the "real" Marvel Universe. Which means there's a Kang the Conquerer from the 30th Century out there. Now if *he* gets bitten...
"What happened here."
"Well, Kang the Conquerer showed up and then--"
"Wait. Does this involve time travel?"
"Well, yeah."
"Forget it. I don't wanna know."
-- Young Avengers issue 3
Fun stuff
Tom
Specifically, I'd like to talk about Marvel Zombies.
The basic gist is that a mysterious meteorite hits earth and a virus starts turning superheroes into zombies. If a zombie bites you, you become infected. If they eat you, you're just dead. Zombies can't stand the taste of other zombies. When zombies are hungry, they rampage around and feed. Once they feed, they regain their former personality.
Right, so nothing too out-of-the-ordinary in zombie schtick.
The virus digs in and superheroes become super zombies and regular folk become meat. Mr. Fantastic, the smartest guy in the universe, the one guy who could probably find a cure even though biotech isn't his actual field of expertise, well he decides that zombies are a superior form of life so he infects the Fantastic Four and that pretty much spells the end of organized resistance.
And if you think Mr. Fantastic getting a hard-on for the zombie life is out of character, it's amazingly consistent compared to his dickery in Civil War (which happens in the "real" Marvel Universe).
Right. So, super zombies. For some reason I finding the stories a lot of fun. Currently, there's a Marvel Zombie/Army of Darkness crossover. In it, Nextwave makes a brief guest appearance (only to die off-screen and become zombies).
That's when it hits me: Machine Man is just a robot. He can't be infected by the virus. He can be destroyed by super zombies, but there's nothing to suggest that they'd bother. Surely there must be a suite of non-human Marvel characters that would survive the planet's zombification.
For the record: it appears as though Wolverine gets infected so "mutant healing" doesn't appear to affect the virus. If you're a biological creature you can be infected (reminding us all that the Thing is, in fact, biological and not a rock monster). So that rules out a lot of people, including cyborgs (oooh...zombie Deathlok). Silver Surfer and Galactus both get eaten so power cosmic isn't a guarantee.
So I figure the short list includes: Machine Man, The Vision and Ultron. I suppose the Sentinels count too, but they were never really personalities and they were certainly never very effective. I'm wracking my brains for any incorporeal/magical heroes, but I can't think of any off the top of my head.
[EDIT: Ghost Rider might possibly survive if he were in demon--nope, just checked. Somehow he's zombified. Huh...weird.)
I did think of one other bizzare wrinkle: Zombie Marvel Universe is, with the exception of the zombies, supposedly identical to the "real" Marvel Universe. Which means there's a Kang the Conquerer from the 30th Century out there. Now if *he* gets bitten...
"What happened here."
"Well, Kang the Conquerer showed up and then--"
"Wait. Does this involve time travel?"
"Well, yeah."
"Forget it. I don't wanna know."
-- Young Avengers issue 3
Fun stuff
Tom
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no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:25 pm (UTC)Don't forget HERBIE!
Hmm, and the original Human Torch, who's still around someplace.
(The problem with Ultron and his kin is that they think the destruction of humanity is a good thing.)
I believe Victor of the Runaways is part-organic, so he's toast.
But still, the Machine Man/Vision story begs to be told . . .
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:31 pm (UTC)I'd still like to see a Deathlok story. It's not clear how he would feed (as I don't think he needs to eat like normal people do) and the on-board AI might have a thing or two to say about things.
It's possible that the AI could absorb Michael Collins's personality into itself and then you'd have a robot with some zombie bits attached to it. If zombie Collins can't override the "no-kill" directive (and the AI might well refuse to recognize zombie Collins as an authorized user), that's another fun twist.
Also, Ben Franklin blew up HERBIE.
later
Tom
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:58 pm (UTC)Now that's a crossover I want to see . . .
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:12 pm (UTC)Arg! Franklin Richards! He blew up HERBIE when he couldn't solve a rubik's cube.
later
Tom
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:22 pm (UTC)Anyway, Reed has rebuilt HERBIE at least twice since that incident.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:28 pm (UTC)I thought Deathlok was a zombie?
Odd that Wolverine was not immune since he was immune to being turned into a Brood.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:31 pm (UTC)Deathlok is a brain in a robot body.
Wolverine is clearly depicted on the cover and a few interior shots. Mutant healing is clearly no match for zombie transformation.
later
Tom
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:56 pm (UTC)Would Emma Frost still be edible in her diamond form?
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 05:59 pm (UTC)The Hulk or Power Man could probably eat her, but I doubt she'd be satisfying . . .
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:09 pm (UTC)Nor is he a rock lobster.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:15 pm (UTC)Also: Doombots.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:18 pm (UTC)In Marvel Zombies/Army of Darkness, it's revealed that Doom is completely fine and has a huge breeding stock of humanity stashed away under his castle. However, Ash may yet screw things up.
later
Tom
no subject
Date: 2007-06-15 06:22 pm (UTC)And then there's the Stark robots, which I can't believe I forgot.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-16 12:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-06-18 01:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-06-19 01:48 pm (UTC)I'm pretty sure I've seen Wonder Man as a zombie and Goliath was definitely a zombie -- Doom had to impale him with rockets and then blow him up. Oh, wait, 4th Goliath, not Goliath/Atlas...so...maybe...but they've been pretty liberal about converting people.
later
Tom