Zombies and Me. The Conclusion?

I realize that the last post on zombies just sort of ended. Oops. Well, it's about time I wrapped it all up. Plus, it is about time that we start to look toward the future.

Zombies movies/books are cool for the following reasons:

1. The collapse of civilization is morbidly fun to watch.
2. The destruction and reordering of social hierarchies provides interesting stories.
3. Zombies stories can serve as effective allegories that explore societal ills.
4. Zombie stories can serve as extreme "laboratories" of human behavior.
5. Zombies show us what's at the bottom of the Uncanny Valley.
6. Thinking about a massive horde of undead is an enjoyable mental exercise.
7. Zombies provide a useful template upon which extreme and creative situations can be imagined and portrayed.

What's in the future? There are a few sequels of current zombie movies that will soon be released (28 Weeks Later was recently released, Day of the Dead is coming soon). I'm sure zombies will be a fluctuating part of our cinema and pop culture for a long time.

If you thought I was asking about what the zombies OF the future might be, then I can answer that question. The Borg. For the uninitiated, the Borg are a fictional race of beings that exist in the pantheon of Star Trek aliens. Members of the Borg are not normal aliens as we usually think of them. They come from all different types of races, but they alter themselves through micro- and macroscopic biomechanical implants. They are part humanoid (flesh and bone) and part machine. Usually by force, they assimilate other races as they spread through the galaxy. The newly assimilated individuals cease to be unique and become one more node in the collective consciousness of the Borg. They are emotionless, amoral, and strive for one goal: continual assimilation of other species. In addition, the separate beings that make up the Borg are called "drones" and will usually not respond to a human presence unless the collective consciousness perceives it as a threat or decides to begin assimilation. They assimilate by simply injecting some nano devices into the subject's bloodstream. In combat, the Borg are extremely adaptive and able to sustain intense damage with little regard to the individual members who are destroyed.

In short, the Borg are like the zombies of old: uncaring, amoral, relentless, half-dead, and continually expanding with ease. They bring one new feature to the old template: they're wired! I was proud of myself when I made the zombie-Borg connection. Sadly, it was already on Wikipedia. Nevertheless, it's a compelling argument. Not only are zombies and Borg "philosophically" similar, but stories involving the Borg have been played out in zombie films for ages. How is one to treat a newly assimilated comrade or family member? Is he or she dead? Or, is there some memory left behind? How often do we see Star Fleet officers underestimating the Borg only to see how powerful they can be in unconventional ways? To be sure, fighting the Borg involves their powerful intelligence while zombies are stupid. A horde of zombies, however, has a certain intelligence. It uses its numbers and disregard for massive losses to overcome defenders. If we add a small amount of communication, not between individual units but as a hive mind, we would have a very Borg-like beast, indeed.

I think that's about all I have to say about zombies. I don't want this to become a zomblog. So get out there and enjoy those movies, and Hollywood: keep making them! You'll always have an audience.