Gunther's Zombies Behavior

The zombies of Oster Point are familiar to any fan, and are typical of the zombie genre. Gunther describes them as “Romero’s classic nightmare” (Gunther, 2015 p. 45). Gunther’s zombies definitely fit the Romero mold. His zombies, like Romero’s are slow and relatively weak alone, but become incredibly dangerous when they are found in large numbers (Konow, 2013). Gunther’s zombies also bear a distinct resemblance to the zombies described by Max Brooks. These zombies could very well be infected by a weaponized version of Brook’s virus Solanum (Brooks, 2003).

The Marines in Oster Point have observed the behavior of the zombies, and are able to use their predictable behavior against them. As the book opens, the Marines, observe a group of zombies trying to get into a house. Based on their eagerness to obtain access, Captain James assumes that there must be someone living inside. Using their distraction against them, James and his team dispatch the zombies and rescue the two survivors inside the home. Much of the Marines’ success in dealing with the zombie threat is based on their applying the same defensive and teamwork based principles used by any military unit in their day to day survival. They set security perimeters, operate in teams and follow the day to day routines that help establish a sense of normality in chaotic situations (Gunther, 2013).

Brooks states that military and law enforcement units would collapse during a zombie apocalypse as members deserted to be with their own Families and Friends. He does provide an exception to this rule when advising survivors on the best locations to seek out for survival. In that section of his guide to surviving zombie outbreaks, Brooks explains that military bases would likely be well fortified, and would have many of the service member’s families present creating a stable environment (Brooks,