tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37410885.post8441667016104135308..comments2023-07-30T05:57:48.256-04:00Comments on Gospel of the Living Dead: Walking DeadKPaffenrothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02323273575993522455noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37410885.post-10299387457366213682011-10-17T10:24:29.461-04:002011-10-17T10:24:29.461-04:00Ha - I meant the mundane "power" of elec...Ha - I meant the mundane "power" of electricity!KPaffenrothhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02323273575993522455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37410885.post-17563212356962403192011-10-17T10:20:15.988-04:002011-10-17T10:20:15.988-04:00The church was an interesting scene for me as well...The church was an interesting scene for me as well. As the group approached the building I thought I saw a sign that identified it as a Southern Baptist church, and yet there was a large crucifix inside. Very Roman Catholic, not very Protestant.<br /><br />Why were there zombies in the church? I'd go back to Romero's Dawn of the Dead for the answer: they are doing in death the routines they had in life.<br /><br />But in my view the church is not portrayed as having any power in The Walking Dead. If anything, God is weak or absent altogether. While some of the cast fears the zombie apocalypse represents God's judgment, whether personal or corporate, God seems irrelevant and silent to others. Consider Rick Grimes and his petition for a sign from God that he's on the right path, and his desires for help in providing hope. At the conclusion of the episode his petition is rewarded with his son getting shot.<br /><br />In the Walking Dead it seems that we have Romero's nihilistic worldview played out as a backdrop.John W. Moreheadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01262542253787543738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37410885.post-86063583957943469052011-10-17T10:12:22.246-04:002011-10-17T10:12:22.246-04:00The church scene was interesting for me too. I cou...The church scene was interesting for me too. I could have sworn the group passed a sign on the way to the church that identified it as a Southern Baptist church, yet inside there was a large crucifix at the front, a very Roman Catholic type of item.<br /><br />Why were the zombies in the church? My guess flashed back to Romero's Dawn of the Dead where the explanation was that they did what they did in life. Perhaps these zombies were former church goers now going through the motions of the past.<br /><br />But I don't think the church was depicted as having power. It did provide a place for some of the cast seeking solace, a place for prayer, and guidance. But the divine presence seemed weak if not absent altogether. Rick Grimes prayed for a sign, only to find his son shot at the conclusion of the episode. And in a scene from another episode I've seen, one of the cast complains that "all this hopin' and prayin'" is getting the group nowhere. In the world of The Living Dead, we seem to have Romero's nihilistic worldview as a backdrop.John W. Moreheadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01262542253787543738noreply@blogger.com