This New Zombie Comic Might Be the Most Original in Years (And Outshines The Walking Dead in the Process)

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It’s clear how popular zombies have become in entertainment, with major comic publishers like DC, Marvel, Image, and IDW all releasing zombie-themed stories and comics. However, after twenty years, this trend seems to be losing steam. While stories like Robert Kirkman’s *The Walking Dead* once captivated audiences with their focus on survival and human relationships, recent releases feel repetitive and uninspired. It appears the zombie genre has reached its peak and is now declining in popularity.

What makes Tate Brombal and Jacob Phillips’ new series, *Everything Dead and Dying*, stand out is its originality. It doesn’t just move the zombie genre forward-it completely reimagines what a zombie apocalypse story can be, offering a fresh and captivating take on a familiar premise.

Everything Dead and Dying‘s Radical Premise: The Value of Protecting the Undead

Everyday Dead and Dying starts like many zombie stories, with a sense of dread building before things fall apart. Jack, Luke, and their daughter Daisy enjoy a peaceful life on their farm in the quiet town of Caverton, far removed from the world’s troubles. Things are going well until a strange and unstoppable “flu” sweeps through the town. Instead of killing people, it turns them into zombies. Everyone gets infected-except for Jack. For some reason, he remains human, even after being scratched, bitten, or exposed to the illness. But being immune doesn’t mean he’s safe; he still faces the danger of being eaten.

Up until now, the story has followed a familiar zombie apocalypse pattern, so readers likely anticipate Jack will struggle to survive the town’s zombie attacks – including those from Luke and Daisy – until he connects with other survivors. These survivors would probably join forces to fight the zombies, rebuild civilization, find a cure for the infection, and maybe even restore the zombies back to being human.

What truly makes *Everyday Dead and Dying* stand out is its unique approach to the zombie apocalypse. Instead of the typical human versus zombie conflict, the story explores a surprising possibility: coexistence. Jack manages to create a fragile peace – a “Pax Zombica” – by fulfilling the zombies’ primary need: to feed. Luckily, as a farmer, he’s able to provide an alternative to human flesh, and because the zombie population is manageable, he can keep both them and his family safe and content. Essentially, he treats the zombies like any other livestock, understanding how to keep them well-fed and distracted.

Who Are the Real Monsters in Everything Dead and Dying

In *Everything Dead and Dying*, a unique situation arises that, while unconventional for typical zombie stories, feels realistic for someone like Jack. Because he lives in a small, close-knit community where everyone knows him, his approach offers a way to manage the chaos when his world falls apart. Essentially, Jack’s methods give him some control in a time of complete collapse.

His family is different now, and can be a threat if he’s not cautious, but staying connected helps him figure out his mission: to care for the zombies under his protection. This story tackles a surprisingly underexplored idea in zombie fiction: that love and concern don’t necessarily end when someone becomes a zombie. Jack is still learning how to cope with this, and the fact that he lives in a small, secluded town has given him the time he needs to work through it. This is a significant step forward for the zombie genre and deserves more attention.

Why Everything Dead and Dying Matters

Zombie stories often focus on the threat of the undead, but works like Robert Kirkman’s *The Walking Dead* and Neil Druckmann and Faith Erin Hicks’ *The Last of Us: American Dreams* show that the biggest dangers in a zombie apocalypse actually come from other people. This theme is explored even more deeply in *Everything Dead or Dying*.

The story follows a man who has managed to find a fragile peace while living among zombies. He discovers, however, that the biggest danger isn’t the undead themselves – he’s actually found a way to live alongside them – but the arrival of other humans. These new survivors are filled with intense hatred for the zombies and threaten to destroy the quiet life he’s built. By focusing on humans as the true threat, *Everything Dead or Dying* offers a fresh take on the zombie genre. It’s a stark reminder that disasters don’t just bring out monsters; they can *create* them, and sometimes the most frightening thing isn’t the monsters themselves, but what people are capable of.

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2025-09-14 19:15