The positives for episode four are that it seems like the zombie conflict is finally coming to a head. Everyone is admitting slowly but surely, that there’s a really bad situation going on. We’re finally moving into the reactive phase.
Still, every week this show does frustrate me as both a viewer and reviewer. In this one, the acting during every kill shot and death shot felt outright atrocious. It’s very, exaggerated, I’m dying in slow motion, kind of bad. The absurdity of the plot and choreography of the events does feel kind of clumsy and haphazard as well. Like there wasn’t a lot of time to figure out how to showcase these action sequences or where to block characters, especially in the McDermott compound battling scenes. Though I think the part that I really disliked was the outbreak becoming overrun by zombie moments. As due to the framing, a lot of scenes made me question… why didn’t they just run around? As there’s a lot of open spacing to dodge or flee away.
I think at this point, I’m just happy that we’re one step closer to seeing how we get to the end. I also, really like everything regarding Jai, Cam, and the Bowman family’s scenes. Because they feel somewhat motivated to go somewhere and are at the least, very funny. I absolutely don’t care at all for anything regarding the Fracking organization or why this is happening in the first place. Which is probably not a good sign if they keep going in this direction, especially, because these are the very same storylines that hold the closest similarity to the actual Day Of The Dead movie.
So overall, it’s an irritating episode, though still filled with the occasional laughs, for a series that really depends on Characters and the funny moments in between.
Here’s our recap:
Day Of The Dead Episode 4: Forest Of The Damned
Phone out of service, Luke flees from a series of several zombie attacks in the forest, believing it to be the urban legend of the Enfields family whose bodies were at the bottom of the lake. After abandoning Luke, Trent believes he’s found the party, only to find the remains of a zombie massacre he mistakenly believes was a bear attack. When both boys flee, they find each other again in the woods, only to get surrounded by zombies. They hide but almost get caught. Trent then shows Luke the bodies at the party.
Elsewhere, Jai mourns the loss of Mrs. French. Cam realizes his phone is missing, likely destroyed in the explosion, and so borrows Jai’s. Cam sees all of Jai’s notifications and the Doctor remembers: his wedding is right now. Lauren drives him to the country club, but first, drops Cam off at the Police Station. Inside the station, the Mayor talks with police chief Gloria about the situation and still wants to keep the outbreak hidden for the sake of her own public opinion. When Cam arrives to tells them it’s zombies, Gloria doesn’t believe him, and so listens to the Mayor in not calling in the State for help.
Lauren drops Jai off at his wedding. Before he leaves, he gives her antibiotics to take but Lauren is hesitant to take them, given her past pills addiction. At the wedding, Jai tells Sean the town is overrun with zombies. Sean doesn’t believe him and locks Jai into a room, forcing him to get dressed for the wedding anyway. Finally, dressed, Jai eventually confesses to his wife that there are zombies, but she throws up in the bathroom thinking Jai just doesn’t want to be married. Despite his pleas, his new family ignores Jai and he asks his father-in-law, Herb, to reassure the guests all is alright. At the photo booth outside, zombies start eating some of the guests.
At the drill site, Logan is still trying to figure out what is happening, while Detective McDermott is kept repeatedly sedated. We also notice his jumper: with the name Bub on it, the same name of the intelligent zombie protagonist from the original Day of The Dead. Elsewhere, Sarah Blackwood, rifle in hand, finds that the mysterious fracking organization is rounding up the zombie form below. She follows and investigates, just as the detective also happens to break loose, with both exploring the compound from different locations. Eventually, the Detective takes out the soldier who was keeping him sedated, killing him with the same needle right into the chest.
Doctor Logan studies the cells of the zombie from the pit and sees its cellular reanimation. McDermott gets the jump on her, finally taking the chance to get some much-needed answers. At that same moment, Sarah goes about the compound rifle in hand but encounters an armed guard beside the emergency call button. After a scuffle, she ends up shooting him, which sends him falling back into the alarm. McDermott takes Doctor Logan hostage as Sarah arrives with the rifle aimed at a guard. After a standoff, a gun fires…
Back at the police station, Cam looks at his dad’s desk and finds a bottle of whiskey and a picture of him, himself, and their mom. The Police Captain is overwhelmed with calls and notices that none of the officers are at their posts. Everyone is missing and in a state of emergency. Admitting that she was wrong, Captain Pike calls the state troopers in. Mayor Bowman, now concerned, calls her son Luke to check that he’s safe. At that very moment, Luke and Trent get overwhelmed by zombies. Trent flees and leaves Luke stuck on a bridge surrounded by zombies at all ends.
