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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 18, 2013 3:46:17 GMT
It would have been easy for the MBs to get too cheesy or overdone in this episode, but I think they did a great job with it.
Ax vs. Gun: Is an axe more effective for killing zombies than a gun? The myth was confirmed, Adam's average kill count with the ax beat Jamie's with a gun (14-5) But, Jamie was limited to a single-action revolver & a pump-action shotgun, why not a semi-automatic? One limitation with the semi-auto is having to change the clip when it's expended, which could slow you down.
Dead Run (Part 1): Can you outrun a zombie hoard? Yes and no, it depends on the population density of the zombies. With a 90K pop density, Kari did outrun them. With a pop density of 130K, Tori made it out. But, with a pop density of 190K, Grant was tripped up & became zombie chow.
Dead Run (Part 2): Can you escape a zombie hoard by distracting them? Kari's use of Tori as a human sacrifice brought her success, as did Grant's employment of a robot. But, Tori's attempt to "blend in" with the zombies was foiled before he got to the goal line.
Zombie Force: Can a zombie hoard break through a barricade (door)? Depends on the strength of the door. No surprise here. It was fun to see Adam as the leader of the zombie hoard.
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Post by srmarti on Oct 18, 2013 4:59:28 GMT
I saw all of about five minutes of this show while channel surfing. Not sure I can argue myself into watching something with such a ridiculous premise.
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Post by the light works on Oct 18, 2013 14:11:31 GMT
I am pleased that my thoughts on which mythbuster I wanted as my "zombie buddy" were vindicated. My selection of Tori over Kari was clearly inspired, as demonstrated when Kari used Tori as zombie bait.
that said, I had a few issues with the ax vs gun test. I'm not sure if they could have done the test more accurately to real life without making it risky; but the fact is that Adam's nerf axe was much lighter than a real axe would be; and it was impossible to get it stuck in an attacker. Jamie was also severely handicapped in that in an actual zombie situation, a gunman would not be waiting for the front line of zombies to get within arm's reach before he started firing. he also clearly did not use the "take a leg to slow them down" technique their guest star recommended.
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Post by User Unavailable on Oct 18, 2013 15:22:51 GMT
I am pleased that my thoughts on which mythbuster I wanted as my "zombie buddy" were vindicated. My selection of Tori over Kari was clearly inspired, as demonstrated when Kari used Tori as zombie bait. that said, I had a few issues with the ax vs gun test. I'm not sure if they could have done the test more accurately to real life without making it risky; but the fact is that Adam's nerf axe was much lighter than a real axe would be; and it was impossible to get it stuck in an attacker. Jamie was also severely handicapped in that in an actual zombie situation, a gunman would not be waiting for the front line of zombies to get within arm's reach before he started firing. he also clearly did not use the "take a leg to slow them down" technique their guest star recommended. Yep, Adam was only able to get so many kills because he was just tapping each zombie on the head, drawing back slightly and tapping another zombie quickly and with little chance of a "miss". In "real life" he would have had to draw back, take a full swing, pull the axe head out of a now falling and dead weight zombie, then draw back and take another full swing at a moving target, with the possibility of a miss. All that factored in, I suspect he would not have faired very well at all. They could have tested a real axe against analog skulls with tissue and factored the results in, to come up with a more realistic number of kills with the axe. Their axe test results DEMAND a RETEST!  |
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Post by OziRiS on Oct 18, 2013 22:37:35 GMT
Although it was a somewhat funny episode it was also pretty rediculous. I mean, zombies? Really? What happened to the whole "we don't do oogie-boogie myths" thing? They're not willing to test whether or not ghosts exist or anything that has to do with religious beliefs (neither of which have been proven nor disproven with any certainty), but they're perfectly willing to test how to most effectively kill/incapacitate/evade 100% purely fictional creatures?
The only part of that show that had any (however little) scientific value was the door test, but they failed completely in pointing out any of the science behind it.
Let me put it this way: If I had paid to see this in a movie theatre, expecting classic MythBusters, I would have felt ripped off!
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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 19, 2013 1:15:37 GMT
I suppose, with the door test, they could have installed some type of meter to calculate the force needed to get through all the different doors.
I would assume that the reason they did this is because of all the current interests in zombies & the zombie apocalypse (The Walking Dead, World War Z). I think this was done as more of a pop culture episode than as a scientific episode. Enough demand on the fansite will create pressure for them to cave in to this sort of episode.
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Post by breesfan on Oct 19, 2013 2:30:54 GMT
I have to admit, I fast forward through most of the episode but this just wasn't interesting to me.
But the ax part might need to be retested because I would think that Adam would have trouble taking the ax out.
When is there a new episode?
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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 19, 2013 13:38:43 GMT
I have to agree with the ax being wrong. Adam could have created something closer to an actual ax, but it seems like they may have been under a tighter time constraint for this episode than usual - as in, the MBs were told that this episode would be an add-on for the season AND, oh yeah, it's going to be the season premiere.
Hopefully, this is the start of an actual season, as in we can expect a new show every week for the next 10 or 12 weeks.
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Post by the light works on Oct 19, 2013 14:02:44 GMT
I have to agree with the ax being wrong. Adam could have created something closer to an actual ax, but it seems like they may have been under a tighter time constraint for this episode than usual - as in, the MBs were told that this episode would be an add-on for the season AND, oh yeah, it's going to be the season premiere. Hopefully, this is the start of an actual season, as in we can expect a new show every week for the next 10 or 12 weeks. we can dream. |
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Post by srmarti on Oct 19, 2013 17:27:47 GMT
I suppose, with the door test, they could have installed some type of meter to calculate the force needed to get through all the different doors. I would assume that the reason they did this is because of all the current interests in zombies & the zombie apocalypse (The Walking Dead, World War Z). I think this was done as more of a pop culture episode than as a scientific episode. Enough demand on the fansite will create pressure for them to cave in to this sort of episode. If this is any indication of what the new season is going to be about, I think I'll likely be finding something else to watch. Remember when the commercials for the show sang that they were busting myths with "Science" and Obama complimented them for encouraging interest in Science? So if they're going to start catering more to the clueless masses, say goodbye to any sort of science at all. What's next? Best way to kill vampires? Werewolves? Catch leprechauns? |
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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 19, 2013 17:44:39 GMT
It seems as though any episode that is labeled as a 'Special'* is more a pop culture tie in than a scientific venture. I hope that go back to actual science this season. Though, I'm about the segments where Adam analyzes the science using 3D graphics...
*Deadliest Catch Special, Breaking Bad Special, Zombie Special, etc.
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Post by the light works on Oct 19, 2013 19:21:35 GMT
It seems as though any episode that is labeled as a 'Special'* is more a pop culture tie in than a scientific venture. I hope that go back to actual science this season. Though, I'm about the segments where Adam analyzes the science using 3D graphics... *Deadliest Catch Special, Breaking Bad Special, Zombie Special, etc. pretty much so. |
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Post by Cybermortis on Oct 19, 2013 20:46:26 GMT
No episode is listed anywhere for next week (23rd or 24th October).
My best guess is that the new season will coincide with the November sweeps, which start on October 31st. So figure that the new season will start either around the 31st October, or the 6th of November.
And blame Discovery for this, as they are responsible for advertising and scheduling the show. How are they to know these things REALLY tick off the viewers? Its not like they've had complaints about this lack of communication for the last eight or nine years is it....?
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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 19, 2013 20:49:39 GMT
Which is why the MBs tend to have only an 8 week fall/winter season at best, concluding with an Holiday Special.
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Post by ironhold on Oct 20, 2013 1:41:59 GMT
Ax vs. Shotgun:
1. If I had a shotgun, I wouldn't wait until they were within a few feet of me to start shooting. I'd be sniping from the longest range I can reasonably hit something at. Remember - even if you don't blow a zombie's brains out, you can still hobble them and slow them down. Perhaps a retest in which the zombies are all in proper paintball gear instead of just a mask.
2. I agree about the issues with he ax potentially getting stuck in someone or something and thus slowing Adam down.
Door Breach:
There was a perfectly good second-story window from which Jaime could have been firing on the zombies. This gives me the idea for a re-test: those zombies that Jaime "snipes" cannot participate in the door breach. If they're sniped en route, they drop out of the formation. If they're sniped while at the door, they can't actively press and just represent dead weight to be pushed around.
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Post by The Urban Mythbuster on Oct 20, 2013 1:47:35 GMT
It sounds like your suggesting combining a shotgun retest with a new door breach test. I like the sound of that.
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Post by the light works on Oct 20, 2013 13:34:16 GMT
you could have a lot of fun with scenarios. probably enough for a full season of silliness. But I think it's time to move on. other than a retest which was not so biased in favor of the axe, I think they've done enough variations on the theme.
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Post by srmarti on Oct 20, 2013 17:45:54 GMT
It's a bunch of people in make-up acting like movie Zombies. How does that really scientifically demonstrate much of anything? Can't wait for the Vampire and Ghost specials.  Maybe it's time to come up with a more accurate name for the show. |
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Post by Antigone68104 on Oct 21, 2013 14:28:36 GMT
I finally got the chance to watch this episode (it aired on a game night).
While I agree Jamie would have done better if he'd started firing sooner, I'm wondering if the circle size was based on where he could reliably get the head shot. Let's face it, zombies aren't gonna bleed out from hits anywhere else. He might also have been worried about injuring the volunteers, which would be why he didn't slow them down with leg shots.
It did look like Adam was playing tag with that ax, rather than bashing, but once again a full-on swing could have injured volunteers. The ax head may have been foam, but the handle was solid and extended into the foam.
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Post by the light works on Oct 21, 2013 14:46:57 GMT
I finally got the chance to watch this episode (it aired on a game night). While I agree Jamie would have done better if he'd started firing sooner, I'm wondering if the circle size was based on where he could reliably get the head shot. Let's face it, zombies aren't gonna bleed out from hits anywhere else. He might also have been worried about injuring the volunteers, which would be why he didn't slow them down with leg shots. It did look like Adam was playing tag with that ax, rather than bashing, but once again a full-on swing could have injured volunteers. The ax head may have been foam, but the handle was solid and extended into the foam. right, and I can say for a fact that foam weapons are a LOT quicker than full weight weapons. |
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