Surviving Each Other

While it might appear that the allure of Survivor rests in its personification of the Swiss Family Robinson, little focus is actually paid the actual survival aspect of the series.  Rather, the shows writers choose to edit together stories that deal more with human nature.  Obviously the contestants' enduring of the tribulations presented by their remote location is a key aspect of a given episode, the driving force each week is typically the interactions of the cast.

In the most recent episode of Survivor, a disgruntled teammate steals food from her tribe's cache and hides it in a secret location.  Naturally for a real survivor, such a provocation would be of of the utmost importance, however this incident took up only a small portion of the episode.  Instead the editors chose to focus on the competing alliances and individual conflicts between a core group of characters.    Like other reality series that film each season in a different location, the environment is secondary to the characters in dictating the story's progression.  The culture and ecosystem of Nicaragua play virtually no role in the story, with the exception of inspiring team names or the basis of a challenge, therefore the story never really changes. 

It is because of these repetitive storytelling practices that Survivor is able to captivate such a large and devoted fan-base.  While each new season of the series promises new drama in a new environment, only the casts' surroundings appear to change.  Unlike scripted television series where a new direction in the story arc can antagonize the audience, Survivor essentially repeats the same narratives each and every season, placing new characters in a new setting.  This repetition is comforting the audience however, as they're initial interest in the show will therefore not be challenged.  Furthermore by being exposed to the same types of situations over and over again, the audience gains experience that becomes fundamental in dictating their experience. 

The Walking Dead

This past Sunday AMC premiered the first episode of its new series, The Walking Dead, based on the comic book series of the same name.  As all zombie movies tend to be relatively similar is many ways, one might assume that this genre lacks the ability to transcend into television like the buddy-cop or courtroom-drama.  In fact, the first episode contained many themes and plot points as other zombie movies.  Whether these movies ripped off the comic book, or the comic book ripped off the movies, the similarities are worth noting.

When protagonist Rick Grimes wakes up in the hospital, feeble and bearded, it bore a striking resemblance to the first scene of Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later.  Both characters wake up in hospitals, and after calling for nurses' aid, discovers that the machines he is attached to are turned off and the hospital itself has been abandoned.  They then proceed to leave their room, only to come across a bloody stumbling zombie, they ask for help, zombie attacks, protagonist scared.  He is then left to discover that the society has broken down in the chaos of a flesh eating zombie outbreak that our government, and military were unable to stop, leading to the apocalyptic setting.

Now the protagonist will typically be rescued by a small group of well-armed survivors who teach them the rules of survival in the zombie universe.  1) Do not get bitten by a zombie.  2) Only trauma to the head can kill a zombie.   This sequence can be seen in almost every zombie movie;  28 Days Later, Resident Evil, Dawn of the Dead, etc. 

Despite the numerous cliches within the premiere of The Walking Dead, it was actually pretty good.  The show is set up so that its story-lines exist within this zombie overrun United States, however it balances its conformity to the formula and seemingly exhausted plot still remain entertaining through strong acting and excellent directing.