Witness choices made to survive a zombie outbreak in an amoral primitive society with Alex Yarde
“Life is a continuous struggle..”-narrator Zombie B.C.
In Issue #1 of Zombie B.C. a lone hunter, far from his hungry clan in an unknown land is burdened with fresh game. Cold and weary, in the inky darkness, He’s startled by a lone figure parting the mists who unbeknownst to him, spells his doom.
This is the excellent opening of Zombie B.C. tautly written by Stephen Vold with kinetic art by Steven Williams. The artist Steve Williams bold layout conveys forward momentum keeping the reader engaged through constant brutal melee action and his wiry zombies though frightening, still retain some of their humanity. Make no mistake Zombie B.C. is a violent story, told in the third person by an unseen narrator chronicling the struggle for survival in a primitive by gone age. Stephen Vold is a master of the Zombie genre and conveys his own interesting take. Cave people being intelligent, intuitive and also hardy survivors give them an edge over most suburbanites seen in shows like AMC’s The Walking Dead but the learning curve is steep, and like every zombie story it starts by victims trying to understand why those they trust turn on them. The undead in Zombie B.C. aren’t quite “runners” like 28 Days later but are quicker than the typical shambling “walker” variety. The infection spreads through a bite wherein the victim in turn feeds on others. Our protagonist hunter after retuning with an older mentor to his camp, is suddenly ambushed by his now turned clan mates and manages to hold off his dead tribesmen for sometime by using fire. This twist says to me these dead retain rudimentary memories of what fire can do which is an exciting prospect. Much like the “evolving” zombies that problem solved and used tools in George Romero’s underrated Fiddlers Green. These zombies aren’t pushovers but neither is our scrappy Caveman hero who with ingenuity and more than a little luck, dispatches the menace in a brilliant, Paleolithic way.
Our cave survivor also realizes he must chronicle what has befallen his clan in pictographs to a serve as a warning for those that come after him, his battle he draws with great detail on a cave wall. The issue switches to the present day. An archeology dig in France discovers the pictographs and fossilized remains of the doomed tribe. Flu like symptoms develop for one of the hapless scientists mid flight to and unspecified destination. You can only guess what happens next as the story continues into modern times. What happens to our Caveman hero? What of the unfortunate archeologist who gets himself infected? Will the cave pictograms hold the key? This is a perfect first issue because it leaves you with more questions than answers and makes me long for issue #2. Zombie B.C. is a clever book where paleontology scholars and zombie geeks can both find joy and I highly recommend picking it up!
If you happen to be attending the Wizard Comic Con in Minneapolis May 2-4 stop by, pick up a signed issue or two and tell Stephen, Steven & company Alex Yarde from All Things Geek sent you! Buy it on Amazon here. Like Zombie B.C. and get more information on Facebook. Follow Writer Stephen Vold on Twitter @ZombieBC2013 .
all art -Zombie B.C.
Interesting review, Alex.
I’m a big fan of zombies but never have I come across a plot like Zombie B.C.
Do you think it has a potential to become a movie? Can you see this as one?