Please know that when i rate things, 5 is average, not 7.
"In The Flesh" is a new zombie post apocalypse TV show by the BBC. Most likely that this show was made to capitalise the explosion of zombie media brought on by AMC's "The Walking Dead". When I said that this is a post apocalypse TV show, this really is post. The show is set after the zombies have been dealt with and a semi cure has been found to give free will back to the zombies but not fully resurrecting them. These former zombies are now being reintroduced into society with a very negative attitude from the public.
I find the best way to look at a zombie TV show or movie is too take zombies out of it. This may sound stupid but if zombies could be replaced with something else like robots or your horny mum, and the show still works its a good sign. The reason The Walking Dead works so well is because it focuses on the relationships between humans and if there we're no zombies and most of humanity was wiped out buy a bomb or giant space octopus, the show would remain just as good. So basically what i'm saying is the mark of a good zombie film or TV show is if it doesn't need zombies. Does "In The Flesh" meet these standards?
Well I'm pleased to say it does. If the zombie's had been replaced by an infectious disease and the public didn't want the formerly infected to be reintroduced because they might get infected, it would work just as well. It deals with elements of prejudiced and what constitutes a human being. Should people accept those who once attacked them because of a drug. Is it right to kill something that's already dead. Something else I appreciated was the fact it hinted at things to let you stay one step ahead of the story. It will fill you with a great sense of pride when you figure something out before you're told. That's not to say you can guess whats happening next but it almost always gives you the opportunity. I would have preferred if they had left things open. The show is going "have you figured it out yet? have you?" And I loved that. You have your own idea of what might of happened but your not sure. Then like a complete ass hole it goes "fuck it we have to cater to idiots too." And just tells you. I'm going to give you an example of this but ****WARNING SPOILER ALERT**** now that we've gotten rid of some wussies. The Main protagonist, Kieren a former Zombie (not the spoiler) is a withdrawn and lonely character and there is a cloud of mystery held around his death. It drops subtle hints that if you're paying attention you'll pick up on. Then BAM it f***ing tells you, he killed himself. Thats the kind of thing you either never reveal or you wait until the season finale or something. I like open ended movies and TV shows. See Donnie Darko on how to do it, and Prometheus on how not to.
"In The Flesh" actually has some surprisingly good cinematography and symbolism. It also knows how to show emotion. There is one very memorable scene when they kill a mans former zombie wife in front of him and it very nearly almost made me a little sad. That's not to say it doesn't have its fair share of plot holes. Like after the scene where they kill the mans wife you used to be a zombie nothing happens. These former zombies are meant to be seen as people again by the law. So what the woman's husband just doesn't call the police. He had his wife killed very publicly in front of him and the character who did it just gets away with it? The other problem is that its established that the zombies don't infect other and that all previous zombies died before the outbreak and crawled out of their graves. If that's the case whats the cut off point? Why aren't there any skeletons walking about the place? or decayed zombies? I understand that its BBC 3 program and that they don't have the same make-up budget as most other shows but they really do leave the some pretty annoying plot holes.
Overall though I would recommend "In The Flesh" it hits lots of the check list i look for in a zombie show, but there is the burning question. Is it better than walking dead? No.
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