Salem’s Lot 2024 First Images Revealed

By Owen Quinn author

After a long delay Gary Dauberman’s adaption of the Stephen King vampire classic is hitting the small screen in October. Production has been fraught and was due to hit cinemas a couple of years ago until it was pulled. With a run time of two hours rumour has it character development is lacking. Let’s face it, Salem’s Lot is a story that needs a mini series or a split movie like It.

Now everyone knows I loved the book and original Tobe Hooper mini series. It terrified me then and just seeing the new images from the 2024 version has unnerved and excited me. I am so glad they kept the vampire kid Glick scratching at the window but at 55 years young, I swear I am under my quilt and plugging my ears having seen the new photos.

This new version stars Alfre Woodard, Lewis Pullman, Mackenzie Leigh, Spencer Treat Clark, Bill Camp and John Benjamin Hickey to name but a few. It hits HBO Max in October. Enjoy the photos and fingers crossed we get terrified once more.

All photos copyright HBO

Classic Villains: Alien’s Secret Synthetic Ash

By Owen Quinn author

Photos copyright 20th Century Fox

I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.

They say the most dangerous enemy is the one you aren’t even aware exists but is literally close enough to you to snap your neck under the notion they are simply following oders. Ash from the first Alien movie certainly qualifies as such.

At first glance, the by the book science officer of the Nostromo who seems to have an unemotional relationship with the rest of the crew but was in fact a synthetic under orders for the Company. And he has no problem murdering the crew to ensure those orders are carried out as per order 937 which was for the science officer’s eyes only.

Before his secret is revealed, the Nostromo encounter the alien ship where Kane (War Doctor John Hurt) is attacked by a facehugger in the alien egg field. Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) refuses to let him back on board as per protocol. With an alien contamination, she has to put the remaining crew and the ship first. However Ash overrules her and lets the infected crew member back on board. Ripley is furious putting them in direct conflict. She does not trust Ash at all.

But as we know an alien bursts from Kane’s chest and cinema history was made reaching to this very day. Ash’s behaviour strikes Ripley as odd and when she learns of order 937, Ash’s secret is revealed. Ripley uses the main computer, Mother, and finds the Company gave and Ash specific orders; to ensure the alien is brought back to Earth at all costs even if it means the crew dies in the process. Ash sneaks up on her and the true horror is revealed.

Ridley Scott’s direction is magnificent as Ash locks them both in the computer chamber. He stands impassive cloaked in gloom as Ripley tells him to let her out. Without a moment’s hesitation he begins throwing her around the room, smashing her off the walls until she lies semiconscious. His strength alone should have alerted the audience but when Ripley lands a punch, she causes him to bleed.

But this blood is white as milk as it trickles from the side of his temple.

In a way, it echoes Ripley’s earlier horror when the face hugger bled acid. Ash was, as far as she or the crew knew, human. Helpless, Ash stands over Ripley’s prone body. Screwing up his face, he rolls a magazine up tightly into a tube. The ferocity he does this with speaks volumes. If he were human he would be psychopathic but at this point he is something else altogether. Could it be he is also alien? The audience is unsure but they are about to find out in a spectacularly horrifying way.

Holding the tube over Ripley’s mouth to suffocate her. Some claim that it is a sexual act given it is a pornogrsphic magazine used given he could easily snap her neck instead. But it is a graphic attack and almost devoid of emotion bar murderous intent. Luckily the remaining crew burst in and overpower him. However he throws them back trying to plunge his hand into Harper’s (Yaphet Kotto) chest. In the tussle he breaks free and smashes Ash over the head with a fire extinguisher. Instead of smashing in a skull with blood and brains, the head breaks off revealing the robot spewing sickly white fluid. It is gross and add in the almost demonic unearthly squeals with the mad flailing is more alien than the alien itself.

Astounded they have been with a robot all this time, Ripley secures the head so they can reactivate it and get some answers. Ash with white spew gurgling disgustingly from his mouth reveals the company wants the creature and it cannot be killed. It is the perfect organism and he admires it for its purity. To him, it is unclouded by conscience, remorse or delusions of reality. He can’t discuss their chances of survival but they have his sympathies. He is being deliberately sarcastic here and in a way he sees something of himself in the alien. Ash has no conscience or morality. He would willingly kill everyone on board to achieve his purpose just as the alien would use every man, woman and child to populate their species. They are as ruthlessly single minded as he is.

Is it any wonder Ripley was so scared and suspicious of Bishop in the sequel given she almost died at a synthetic’s hands? Ian Holm is perfect as Ash and gives a performance as dark and double edged making his reveal as a synthetic revolting to watch. At the time I always thought Ash was using the magazine and was going to vomit directly into the tube so Ripley ould choke to death and drown in his fluids. But I was wrong as he was just suffocating her. But look at it again and watch his body language. Like Ash himself the scene deserves another look.

TW Reviews Alien: Romulus: Spoilers

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

I’vr seen a lot of hype telling everyone that this is the best Alien movie since the James Cameron Aliens. I’ve also seen claims that you need to see this movie before someone spoils the shocking ending. Let me tell you that it is not the best Alien movie and it is certainly not a shock ending. The only shock is that you paid money to see it. They’re just ploys to get you to part with your cash before everyone tells you it is rubbish. Wait for Netflix.

Now, starting off I felt a lot of hope. From the opening scenes it is very much set in the Alien universe as the Weyland corporation continues to expand. I felt like Ripley or some familiar face was going to walk round a corner any moment despite it being set 20 years after the original movie. We see the wreck of the Nostromo being scoured by Weyland. Weyland as we know are bad people and here we see them working generation after generation to death on the mining colony of Jackson’s Star. When a miner such as lead character Rain Carradine and adoptive brother Andy who seems to be autistic, have worked long enough to qualify for transfer and freedom to the colony Yvaga 3. the company changes the rules trapping them in another contract. The people here die form lung diseases and all in the name of Weyland.

Andy we discover is in fact a damaged synthetic programmed by Rain’s father to keep her safe after he died. He has a tendency to do terrible dad jokes but Rain is protective of him. Initial rumblings about this was that it was going to be a teenagers in space versus xenomorphs but thankfully that is not the case.

We do have a selection of young people who are all trapped into working there but Tyler, his pregnant sister Kay, cousin Bjorn, and Bjorn’s girlfriend Navarro are all faceless and one dimensional. They might as well have bullseyes on their chests. Only Rain and Andy have a depth to them that is reminiscent of Sarah Connor and the Terminator in Genisys.

They have detected a ship in orbit that seems to have been abandoned. it contains stasis pods that will allow them all to escape and go to Yvaga. But they have to move fast as the ship is heading towards the rings of the planet and in 36 hours it will be destroyed.

So far so good but it all heads down hill from here. They discover it is not a ship but a research station where Weyland have been keeping something nasty that is ready to pop. Don’t get me wrong. There are moments which we haven’t seen before except maybe in the comic strips but as usual they have been seen in the trailer spoiling the surprise.

The scene where the facehuggers swim under water to hunt their prey is unnerving and those shots of them being launched out of the water are freaky. We have all been in the sea or a lake where we think something has brushed against our legs beneath the surface. So tapping into a collective fear works. Seeing the facehuggers work in unison to force open doors and spill en masse into a corridor is terrifying but we saw it in the trailer. We discover that you can walk through a room full of facehuggers without alerting them which is new. Navarro (Aileen Wu) is the first victim of the facehuggers and I knew that would happen. I also knew Kay’s pregnancy would be an important plot point down the line. Seeing Navarro’s chest explode via a portable X ray was unnerving. Rain and Andy floating in a sea of acid blood was well done. Poor Bjorn’s acid death is also something new and horrible. Overall the movie is beautifully shot and totally wants to respect what has come before. But respect does not mean shoehorning in references just to please fans. More on that later.

Without question it is the appearance of a synthetic ripped in half ala Bishop at the end of Aliens and in Alien 3. For a moment you hope it is another Bishop but it is much better than that. The young people hook the remains of the synthetic up so they can find out what is going on here and what they are up against. This synthetic calls himself Rook but he wears the face of murderous Ash from the original.

Ian Holm is back as the monster synthetic thanks to CGI and he is as villainous as his first appearance as the company directive takes priority over the lives of anyone that gets in the way. They switch Andy’s control chip with the synthetics ridding him of his former child personality and making him the tool of Rook for a time.

We learn we are watching a direct sequel to the original movie. The body of the xenomorph Ripley blew out the airlock was found and brought to this station for research. To this end Rook has decided to make humans the ultimate lifeform by using and upgrading the black goo from Prometheus. He is keen for the fluid to be kept safe which he entrusts Andy with and is very keen for any of them to inject themselves under the pretence that their wounds would heal and beat the aliens. Rain’s instincts are correct and stops Kay from taking it. This station is filled with aliens but due to Bjorn’s actions they are on an accelerated collision course with the rings.

In the original movie I cared for the characters and mourned each death but here I don’t and I cannot pinpoint why. Is it enough that they are trying to escape a tyrannical company working them to death reason to connect? No, Rain and Andy are the ones we empathise with for sure.

You can see the references but to rehash a reference twice is dumb. The photo of Ripley face to face with the alien from Alien 3 has been done in Alien Vs Predator requiem with the waitress. So why repeat it? Even the first Alien vs Predator is referenced as Rook hails his fluid as the cure the terminally ill Weyland always wanted. Another stupid decision was to have Andy utter the iconic Aliens line, “Get away from her you bitch!”

It is delivered in a fashion that is so flat that I’m sure Sigourney Weaver herself shook her head in disappointment safe in the knowledge she will always own those words. It was great to hear the pulse rifles again though in a weak echo of the Ripley and Hicks scene where he tries to teach her how to use it. And this is what I mean about being shoehorning stuff in. Who are you satisfying? Your film maker instincts or fans? Isn’t the task of a film maker to not only satisfy old fans but being in a new generation?

Again the station smashing into the rings is beautiful especially as Rook is evil right up to the end.

But just when we think it’s over you know rightly that it isn’t because pregnant Kay took the injection so you know we are going to now visit shades of The Fly dream sequence.

Now we get Rook’s idea of the perfect human as Kay gives birth to a human hybrid that is part the Prometheus engineers and part xenomorph. Cue Alien Resurrection meets Covenant as rain must battle the creature before she and the others die. Kay is killed and we get Rain having to eject the creature out onto the rings killing it. She and Andy are now free to get into the stasis pods and travel to Yvaga for a new life.

Aline Romulus is a greatest hits gone wrong after such a good start that sucks you into that universe as surely as seeing the Falcon does for Star Wars. There are some good ideas but they are not executed properly. The “return” of Ash as the bad guy is inspired because all you think of is Ripley and her crew. However that is to the new cast’s detriment as they don’t match up to those icons. You knew so much about the originals from a simple dinner table scene and their interactions than you do about these kids. The connection just is not there. All we know about Bjorn is that a synthetic closed a mine killing his mother to explain his hostility towards Andy which comes across as over done and flat. No one is going to empathise with him when he literally treats a person with special needs like that, synthetic or not. Deaths seem far too quick to happen with. little tension. It is almost as if they kill them off so Andy can get a stasis pod for the trip to Yvaga because he wasn’t going to allowed to go with them at first.

Alien Romulus feels like Picard season 2; taking elements that should blow fans off the screen yet diluting them in a noncohesive story that ultimately fails as a fan fest of the most brilliant parts of the franchise. All in all too many easter eggs to please the fans when they would have been better breaking barriers to deliver the definitive alien movie.

Forgotten Villains: Sybok the Laughing Vulcan

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

Photos copyright Paramount Pictures

I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.

In the recent Star Trek Strange New Worlds episode the Squall, pirates take over the Enterprise using Spock as a hostage. They want Spock’s betrothed, T’Pring, to hand over a patient from the rehab facility, the Ankeshtan K’Til Vulcan Criminal Rehabilitation Center. T’Pring is a healer bringing Vulcans who have strayed back to the ways of logic. The pirates want a particular patient, Xaverius. Their plan is foiled and all is well until Christine Chapel asks Spock who Xaverius is. The Vulcan in question is part of the V’tosh ka’tur: a group of Vulcans who reject logic. And he is also a son of Sarek who was born out of wedlock prior to Sarek marrying Spock’s mother Amanda Grayson. As we end the episode we learn that Xaverius is in fact Sybok, Spock’s half brother. His alias was given to protect the reputation of Sarek.

It was a shocker because the only time we learned about Sybok, he was in the least successful of the Trek movies, Star Trek 5 – The Final Frontier and directed by William Shatner. At some point he was released from the centre to travel the galaxy seeking to fully explore all the emotions Vulcans denied themselves.

Spock had been instructed by his father to stay away from Sybok and his potentially poisonous views. Maybe this is why Sarek was so hard on Spock given he did not want his second son to go the way of Sybok especially as he was half-human. As we saw in the Next Generation episode Sarek, emotions can be potent to Vulcans. We also saw how Vulcans were more emotional in Star Trek Enterprise through the character T’Pol.

When Star Trek 5 opens we meet a hooded figure on horseback galloping across the desert terrain of Nimbus 3, cloak flowing behind him. It is a powerful cinematic image indicating a powerful figure and similar to the likes of the Ring Wraiths in Lord of the Rings. A poverty stricken farmer digging holes in the desert to presumably find water is suspicious at first. Sybok uses his deep telepathic ability to persuade the man to release the pain that burns in him so he can be free. Such is the man’s gratitude he asks how he can repay Sybok. He replies simply he can join his quest to find the greater knowledge that all men seek. But to do that he needs a starship and knows just how to bring one to this backward world. He removes his hood and reveals his pointed ears then bursts into a hearty laugh.

This is a perfect introduction to the character revealing enough to whet our appetites yet leaving enough questions to keep watching. Because he is Vulcan, we know Spock is going to clash with him but if you avoid spoilers, the family reveal will be a shocker to you.

The producers wanted Sean Connery to play the role at first but it went to Laurence Lockinbill instead. He does a great job too. He is quite affable with people and means no harm. However, at some point he began to receive telepathic visions to come to a garden of paradise where God awaits him. All species have a version of it and over the years Sybok has assembled a Galactic Army of Light comprising several races. However there has to be an element of brainwashing involved to command such undying loyalty. However we will see later there is still a choice even after the pain is faced.

We can assume that Sybok has been keeping track of his family while he gathers his followers. It isn’t just coincidence that he targets the Enterprise with Spock aboard to come to Nimbus 3.

He persuades the three Federation ambassadors to his cause, human, Klingon and Romulan and when Kirk arrives with his rescue team, the Enterprise quickly falls to Sybok’s forces.

When I first began to write this I assumed Sybok was a cult leader using his power to brainwash people to his cause but I was wrong. He makes people simply face their own darkest fears and the release of this pain somehow imbues a loyalty to Sybok as he never forces anyone to follow him. No species seems immune and it only adds to his ranks. He is happy to see Spock again and is disappointed when he refuses to be turned to his cause. Kirk thinks Sybok is a madman but when they actually arrive at Sha Ka Ree (a play on Sean Connery’s name), Sybok is proved right after all.

Sybok is a many layered character; desperate to be accepted by his brother as easily as his followers have. What seems like madness to others is a truth that drives him so he is eager to show Kirk he is right. The thing about characters we think we know and to keep any franchise fresh is to introduce things we don’t know about them. As a long time audience we think we know our characters but the nice thing about this is it takes the rug right from under us. Although we would discover Spock had a sister, Michael, in Discovery, Sybok’s arrival also gives a Greek mythology feel to the movie. Two brothers on opposite sides of life. Sybok is not a bad person at all, he is simply been hooked by whatever has latched on to his telepathic abilities. All he wants is family and acceptance, something he will never find on Vulcan. He has it with his faithful followers but it is not enough.

Despite what they say about this movie it does explore human themes of dealing with pain and sorrow and not talking about it. This is very typical of today where we encourage people especially men to talk about their emotions. Sybok is quite open with his brother but it is the scene where he uses his telepathy on McCoy and Spock to show their deepest pain. We learn Doctor McCoy assisted suicide for his father for a terminal disease days before a cure was found. It has tormented him for years and it is one of DeForest Kelly’s best performances. Spock’s birth is his pain but as he tells Sybok he resolved that long ago. Spock further advises he is no longer the outcast boy he knew before he left.

Sybok is vindicated as the Enterprise breaks through an Great Barrier where they find God waiting for them. The joy in Luckinbill’s performance is tangible but when the truth about God is revealed you can literally hear his soul crack with grief. In a final farewell to his brother, Sybok uses his power against the alien giving the others time to escape. It is through this sacrifice that Kirk realises he too has a brother in Spock. When he goes to hug him on the Klingon bird of prey, Spock says, “Please Captain, not in front of the Klingons.” Although we also see that Sybok’s power has positive effects. Those he forces to face their pain come out better people as seen in the three ambassadors who find a renewed sense of purpose and well-being in strong diplomatic matters.

In many ways Sybok is a victim of Vulcan prejudice and codes that show they are not as inclusive a race as they appear to others. Ambassador Sarek long held the same contempt for Spock given his wish to join Starfleet often citing his human half as a disability. Sybok he literally disowned because he wanted to embrace the power of emotion and explore what space has to offer. He was not the first as in Star Trek Enterprise episode Fusion we met a ship of Vulcans who also embraced emotion and tried everything the galaxy has to offer including chicken. They were the V’tosh ka’tur, explorers of self, Vulcans without logic which they claim is incorrect as they balance logic with emotion just as Sybok has. Sybok would have fitted in well but sadly he was denied the love of a father and we have no idea what happened to his mother. Sarek and Vulcan society abandoned Sybok labelling him as some sort of abomination that pollutes what Vulcan stands for. What sort of effect would that have on a child knowing it is not wanted and ignored by all? We know how it affected Spock with his hybrid heritage and that was not pleasant.

Sybok would have been deeply hurt, rejected and alone. Is it any wonder that Sybok was open to manipulation of a powerful alien mind? God as it claimed to be was able to fulfill Sybok’s greatest pain by guiding him to paradise where he would be accepted and hailed by all as a great and wise leader who found paradise.

Captain Archer would have stepped up and pounded the Vulcans for their treatment of this child and in the end, Sybok managed to reconnect with his brother and by sacrificing himself committed the greatest act of love anyone can do to save his brother’s life. Perhaps Sybok’s actions put Spock on the path of stepping in to save the Klingon Empire in the Undiscovered Country. If a laughing Vulcan can find his way home then to Spock, this is the path to end hostilities with their enemies, the Klingons and the Romulans.

Forgotten Heroes: Kolchak The Night Stalker

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.

In 1972 and 1973, ABC aired two television movies, the Night Strangler and the Night Stalker. Starring Darren McGavin, the movies spawned a full season of adventures for Kolchak between 1974 and 1975. Kolchak ran for one season only but it quickly became a cult favorite. It is no secret that Chris Carter was inspired by the show when he created the X Files. Kolchak’s exploits kept viewers glued and sadly he was yet another victim of ratings culture. If the network weren’t happy, the show was gone. I often wonder how the people in charge ever got their jobs. They just seem shortsighted and reluctant to give shows with potential time to expand and breathe.

Kolchak was a news reporter with an eye for the unusual and bizarre. On the Night Stalker case his ideas that a vampire was responsible for several murders was met with derision from the police and other reporters. Even when Kolchak gave clear evidence that the killer was not just a serial killer he was ignored. Indeed he was exiled to another state just so his ideas would not go out. Like a pitbull, once he got into a story he went after it without regard for rules or his own safety.

The character’s origins began in a novel called The Kolchak Papers, written by Jeff Rice. The plot translated to the small screen while the Night Strangler was turned into a novel following the positive feedback on the movies. His first name was Karel which he changed to Carl but everybody called him by his surname. Over a total of twenty episodes Kolchak would face the supernatural and unexplained, seeing things others turned their heads away from.

Some of the episodes here were recycled on The X-Files. Kolchak faced every monster from popular lore you can think of. We had vampires, zombies and werewolves to name but a few. Like Scully just missing seeing the alien or UFO, so Kolchak’s evidence was lost. Whether it be taken from him by the police or the forces he faced were just not photographic. He would always come away with nothing but the evidence of his own eyes. While some knew what he saw was real like the Hindu monster that took the shape of whoever the person loves before killing them, it was kept in the shadows. Each episode ended with a voiceover from Kolchak and it gave the impression that he quickly resigned himself to the fact these beings would stay in legend never to see the light of what we think as normal society.

Kolchak would also visit the realms of sci fi such as invisible aliens, a powerful force from the Earth itself and killer robots. He met lizard people and killer ape men spawned from man’s meddling in genetics. Even the ghosts of Native Americans turned up played by Richard Kiel. The headless horseman was updated as a deadly headless motorcyclist. He fought witches, doubles and even a vampire victim in a sequel to the Night Stalker. Helen of Troy turned up in a tale about immortality. This secret world had brought Kolchak in and he had to know more. His drive often made him the bane of cop’s existence ending in him being escorted out of a crime scene or being banned from press conferences.

Kolchak’s distinctive outfit made him an icon and one that to all audiences was instantly recognisable. With his hat and crumpled jacket and trousers he never went anywhere without his camera or tape recorder. Although he had a girlfriend in the Night Strangler, the authorities made sure she cut all ties with him and he never saw her again. The closest thing to family he had was his boss Tony Vincenzo (Simon Oakland). They were like an old married couple always fighting and bickering but holding a deep respect for each other. Tony knew Kolchak was right on the money but ignored it keeping his stories in reality for print. In many ways Tony was his protector given as he too was exiled along with Kolchak in the Night Strangler.

The series remained close to McGavin’s heart and he appeared in the fifth season of The X-Files as Arthur Dales. Personally I think his role should have been meatier and not the one he was given especially for being the inspiration for Mulder and Scully. Kolchak would appear in some comic book adaptions and McGavin spoke fondly of the show before his death in 2006.

Fifty years down the line Kolchak remains as popular as ever just as it should be.

Dublin Comic Con Adds Another Starship Trooper To The Gang

Denise Richards is set to reunite with her Starship Troopers costars this August at Dublin Comic Con. Denise played Carmen in the movie. She will attend DCC on the 24th and 25th August along with Michael Ironside, Dina Meyer and Casper Van Dien. GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY   

Doctor Who Voice Actress Passes Away

By Owen Quinn author

Photo copyright bbc

Doctor Who voice actor Ysanne Churchman has passed away at the age of 99. She voiced the alien Alpha Centauri in the third Doctor stories the Curse of Peladon and The Monster of Peladon. The character would later return in the twelfth Doctor story Empress of Mars.

Copyright bcc

With its bizarre appearance and high pitched voice Alpha Centauri became a fan favourite and featured as one of the Weetabix character cards. This was all down to Ysanne’s distinctive voice which cemented her place in our hearts. Big Finish would bring the character in their audio plays including the ninth Doctor. Ysanne is best known as Grace in The Archer’s and leaves behind a great legacy. Rest in peace because you will never be forgotten.

Dublin Comic Con Welcomes Acting Legend to Summer 2024

We are delighted to announce our next guest, Ray Winstone!!

This is Ray’s second ever convention appearance!! A very rare guest signer!

Ray Winstone is an English television, stage and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is perhaps best known for his “hard man” roles, usually delivered in his distinctive London accent.
With over 140 television and movie credits to his name, most recently appearing as Bobby Glass in The Gentlemen and Lord Bayford in Damsel. He’s also well known for his appearances in Scum, Sexy Beast, The Departed, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Marvel’s Black Widow, Beowulf, King Arthur, Quadrophinia and Robin Hood

Photo ops, auto delivery and collection at show presigned will all be live tonight.

Ray will only be in attendance Saturday of the show!

Book Excerpt: Zombie Blues The Zombie Who Would Be King

By and copyright of Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

“I got outside and realised I only had my hospital gown on which promptly fell off because it wasn’t tied at the back. I was naked…almost. When they do an operation like this, you’re fitted with a catheter. So there I am, naked as the day I was born with a big frigging catheter hanging between my legs. I am scundered, I thought to myself. I tried to remove it but my zombie fingers wouldn’t work.”For far too long zombies have been seen as the monsters they are not so it’s time for a few changes! Welcome to Zombie Blues where you will discover what really goes on behind those dead eyes and shuffling walk. You will meet ten different zombies each with a story to tell. From Vegetarian Zombie to Kidney Trans[plant Zombie to The Zombie who would be King, you will reevaluate everything you thought you knew about the undead. You will finally get to hear their side of the story. What lies behind their tears and how did the apocalypse really begin? Enter if you dare because everything you knew about zombies is about to change.

About half a mile out, the streets were littered with bodies and wreckage to the point I had to abandon the car and go the rest of the way on foot. There was an overturned fire engine blocking the road. I could see an arm moving from beneath it but knew from the guttural sounds it was no longer human. I found a hatchet beside the flailing arm and scooped it up. A woman lurched from a side street. She was no older than Helena but her hair was streaked with silver. She reminded me of a badger despite her pretty aquiline face. She was slobbering like a komodo dragon so I swung at her head. It made a sickening crack as the blade cracked her skull. Her flesh split open and her blood splattered me. I blinked blood spatter from my left eye resisting the urge to throw up. She wasn’t the first person I had killed. I had been in the military and fought for my country but this was different. It was a mercy killing done in self defence but it felt like murder to me. Who was she? What was her name? Did she have a family? Were her children alone in this carnage crying and afraid? I stood chest heaving with the effort just staring down ar her. I could see her brain peeking from the wound on her head and my thoughts flew to all the other people like her. They were my people and I had let them down. But maybe it wasn’t too late to do something about it. I still had a chance to redeem myself. For some reason I heard my mother shouting at me for getting my royal clothes soiled. But I heard Helena equally as loud telling me to fight.

I stormed determinedly down the street.

Another zombie attacked me and another but I managed to fell them all. Without even thinking I smashed their skulls in. The sound of their skulls cracking made me cold but I ignored it knowing the consequences if I didn’t kill them. These were my subjects I was killing. It would stay with me forever but if I got out of it things would be different.

Keeping to the shadows and using the burning vehicles as cover I managed to get to the square.

It was the shambles everywhere else was. Shops and homes were burning or sealed tight, presumably there were some people hiding indoors hoping this would pass. Bodies lay in the flower arrangements blood stained and chewed. The stench of blood filled the air mixed with smoke and fire.

I could hear cries and gunshots in the distance so at least I knew there was still resistance. The city had not yet fallen to these creatures. I desperately looked around. I scanned the bodies, hoping my family were not among them. Surprisingly, I kept my poker face just as my father had instilled in me. But even I could not hold my emotions now. My stomach heaved as I saw people of all ages dead and half eaten. I threw up in revulsion.

They were no longer faceless citizens bathing in my glory. They were the glue that held this country together. They had fought to keep the good name of our nationality alive even in the bad times. They were fighting still.

I called out to Helena and Elise to no response. I could see great plumes of smoke rise above the rooftops like wraith witnesses to this disaster.

If they could speak I would ask them if they could see my family from their viewpoint. Were Helena and Elise seeing what I was seeing? Or were they trying to get back to the palace and we missed each other amid all this chaos? I didn’t want them to get back and find Frederique at the gates. It was bad enough I had watched my own son die. For a mother to see that….I quelled the thought.

I was about to head down one of the side streets leading to Gactica Street when I noticed a shoe. In that second my whole world funnelled into that sight. There could have a horde bearing down on me and I wouldn’t have noticed. My voice stuck in my throat and I managed a squeak.

“Helena?” I pulled the body of a middle aged woman from the pile so I could see who was underneath. My worst fears were confirmed. I had bought her those shoes on a trip to Paris. It was raining but she thought they were the most beautiful shoes in the world. They weren’t expensive. They were practical and suited my Helena. We had all the wealth in the world but it didn’t matter to her. Practical and elegant, she said when she put them on. Just like you I replied. That was my Helena; so generous with no airs or graces. Happiness was all she craved for her people and that’s why they loved her. She was one of the people just as I should have been. I should have strived to be half as good as her but my pompous side never let me admit it or even try. I fell to my knees as I lay eyes on her broken body.