The end of the Bishop’s chapter leaves us with the anecdote of a student who post 9/11, “claimed he had be emotionally prepared for the tragedy, not by his family, community, or government, but by the zombie movies of which he had long been a long-time appreciator” (Bishop 36). This sentiment can be easily tied to the inclusion of survivalist fantasy elements in many zombie films, which give viewers the strange sensation of believing themselves capable of surviving an apocalypse because they’ve seen someone else do it on television. The characters of Dead Set mirror this mentality in the last episode, when they toss ideas around about how to kill Patrick. They have detailed and logically sound ideas, but they got all of them from the media. None of them have been in such a situation before, but they feel they have expertise because they watch television. Important to note here is also that it is Kelly who is the most effective leader and zombie killer post outbreak. Unlike many of the other characters, she is portrayed as much more working class, and her likeability is posited against the uselessness of Patrick and the show contestants. Although many of them are also seemingly lower and middle class (though again, the British cultural context is missing from my comprehension) the fact that they applied to be on a reality show and are making money by indulging their own vanity and fulfilling the voyeuristic desires of the British public. The end of Dead Set depicts the remaining show’s contestants being literally what consumed by their fans, furthering the metaphor which ties zombies to the ravenous media public. Are the media creators (Patrick, Kelli) then the creators/originators of the zombie virus?
I’m also interested in the camera work of Dead Set, outside of just the usage of the Big Brother cams. For example, often when characters are sneaking around, the camera will turn the corner for us, showing the audience directly what the character would see. This technique serves to pull the viewer into the plot and amps up the suspense, rather than distancing. Additionally, the close up shots of dead corpses and zombies eating flesh is revolting, but keeps me interested in the narrative. Other times, the camera uses distancing techniques, such as during a kill, the camera gets fake blood splattered on it. The shot reminded me that what I was watching was being filmed, and immediately pulled me out of the action.