Z is for Zombie

It's finally arrived, the final day in the Blogging A Through Z challenge. And it's been a blast. But between my someone frantic daily life and attempting to fit in all these extra posts, I can't say I'm sorry to see it come to an end. But I've loved reading everyone's (or as many people as I could get to) blogs and can't wait to see what my new blogging friends have going on next. And for everyone who made it all the way through . . . 

CONGRATS ON SURVIVING THIS YEAR'S BLOGGING A THROUGH Z CHALLENGE!!!

An now back to today's regularly scheduled program. I'm sure plenty of other A through Z bloggers are planning on doing Zombies for the letter "z". After all, they are one of the most popular movements in entertainment currently, and one of the few topics that start with a "z". Truth be told, I used zombies to close out my A through Z theme in last year's challenge as well. 

Considering that, I decided I'd try to do something to make today's post a little more interesting. This time, rather than talking about the mindless zombies that plague my nightmares, I thought I'd talk about a few of the species that break the mold. 

Z is for (Friendly) Zombies 

Billy Butcherson (Hocus Pocus) – Billy Butcherson, the once lover of Winifred Sanders, died in 1693 after Winifred caught him "sporting" with her sister Sarah. Poisoned, mouth sewn shut with a dull needle, and then reanimated in order to do the witches' bidding, Billy appears to be your typically terrifying zombie. However, he ultimately proves to himself an ally of the Max, Dani and Allison, protecting them from the Sanderson sisters that caused him so much misery.    

Mike and Terry (The Walking Dead) – Mike and Terry are best friends who travel together with Mike's girlfriend Michonne. When attacked by a horde of walkers, they both get bitten and eventually becomes zombies themselves. However, rather than dispatch them immediately  Michonne chooses to keep them alive as as kind of companion/protection. I mean, sure she has to hack off their arms and jaws in order to keep them from infecting her. And, okay, she keeps them on chained leashes like common household pets. But that being said, they make a happy trio and manage to provide Michonne a certain degree of protection and companionship.

"R" (Warm Bodies) – R is perhaps the most fascinating member of this list. Like all zombies, he was once a normal boy who died somewhere in the murky past he has no memory of. But with each passing day and each moment he spends with Julie, a human girl he rescued from becoming a human happy meal, he becomes less and less like the mindless dead, and more and more . . . human. He dreams, he loves, he fights for humanity. R is the start of a new race of beings that lies somewhere between human and zombie. 

Zombie Horde (ParaNorman) – What at first seems like a horde of angry, flesh-eating monsters in fact is nothing more than a group of misunderstood Puritans. They made some mistakes. You know, accusing a little eleven-year-old girl of witchcraft and sentencing her to death. As I said, mistakes. But they regretted their mistakes in their afterlives, coming back as zombies in order to atone, attempting to help Norman right their wrong and put Agatha back to sleep and break her curse over Blithe Hollow for good. 

Mike, Vanessa, Tim and Cindy (Wasting Away) – A zombie film from the perspective of the zombies, Wasting Away is the story of four young adults who eat a mysterious military substance that turns them into the walking dead . . . only they don't realize it. They cannot understand why people go running from them in horror. They band together with Nick Steele, a soldier who is similarly effected, as they learn how to live (and love) in their new world. 

And there you have it, my Top 5 favorite (Friendly) Zombies. What are some of your favorites? __________________________________________________________________________________
This post is part of the Blogging A through Z Challenge 2013. My theme (in case you didn't already guess) is character types and tropes. Stay tuned for the rest of the alphabet, and if you’d like to check in on the other participants, simply click here.