All of Us Are Dead: The Good, The Bad, and The WTF
If you heard screaming this past weekend, it was probably just everyone who decided to marathon the K-Drama All of Us Are Dead. The newest Netflix drama shows high school students fighting for their lives as a zombie virus spreads through their school. The students band together and figure out a way to save themselves.
There were some good, some bad, and some scenes where the entire K-Drama/zombie fandom screamed WTF! I know; I was the main one leading the scream. We’re going to get into some highlights about the series, so if you haven’t seen the show, be warned, there will be spoilers.
The Good
Zombie shows that are full of jump scares and gore can be a good thing, especially if you don’t have a weak stomach. That aside, one of the best moments in this show was the bromance between the male students. Before everything hit the fan, the boys ribbed each other and enjoyed each other’s company during lunch. Once everyone was together again and had stopped losing their minds (sort of), the bromance was back. Lee Cheongsan (Yoon Chanyoung) and Lee Suhyeok (Park Solomon) would go on runs together to secure things the group needed to move to the next, safer place. Yang Daesu (Lim Jaehyuk) used his size to hold zombies back while the rest of the group escaped dangerous areas, and Oh Jooyoung (Ahn Seungkyoon) made the ultimate sacrifice for his friends.
Another good thing about the drama was how the survivors received help when they needed it. Class President Choi Namra (Cho Yihyun) started questionably, but she defended those who needed it, and when she became a half-zombie, she stayed with the group to help them. Nam Onju’s (Park Jihu) father did everything in his power to save his daughter and her friends. Unlike some other parents who will be discussed later, he came prepared and sacrificed himself to help them escape.
The Bad
In the words of CL, the way this actor portrayed this character was “not bad meaning bad, but bad meaning good, you know”? Yoon Gwinam (Yoo Insoo) was a hell of an antagonist. Viewers disliked him within the first five minutes of the drama. One could say that this whole zombie apocalypse started because of him and his crew. The bullying, attempted murder, and the hundreds of other things Gwinam was part of made the majority of the student body cower in fear whenever he was around.
Once he became a super zombie, it became worse. He was hellbent on revenge and went after Cheongsan until the end. Cheongsan sacrificed himself to save the others and finally put an end to the horror of Gwinam.
On the other hand, there were characters and moments in All of Us Are Dead that were just bad. How the military decided to leave the survivors at the school because they were afraid someone might be asymptomatic was a horrible decision. If they were worried about someone turning while in the helicopter, zip tie and gag them until they returned to camp. They transported the soldier who got bit, so there shouldn’t have been a reason why they couldn’t save the students.
The fact that people were still dying in the last episode was terrible. By this point, the group should have had their stuff together. When Namra told them they needed to run because zombies were coming, they should have listened to her and ran! But no, they stayed where they were, acting indecisive, and as a result, they lost Jang Wujin (Son Sangyeon).
The WTF
If we broke down every WTF moment in this drama, we’d be here until summer. So instead, we’ll highlight two main points. First and foremost, Lee Nayeon (Lee Yoomi). Do a quick social media search on the character’s name or even “the girl in the pink sweater” and you’ll see scores of people wishing bodily harm on her. From the beginning of the zombie scenes, Nayeon showed she couldn’t cope. Rather than defend herself, she would scream and freeze. Nayeon demanded that everyone listen to her rather than anyone else. Then, when people began to stand against her, she decided to get even. The way she chose to get even was so ridiculously evil that my hands are shaking just thinking about it.
A zombie apocalypse is not the time to hash out societal hierarchies, especially when you’ve proven that you can’t defend yourself. It’s not every person for themselves. Instead, you should be figuring out how to survive to escape your school. Unfortunately, Nayeon couldn’t figure that out and eventually met her demise after being shunned from the group.
The second WTF moment is a combination of things that happened throughout the series. First, the writers made it clear that we are dealing with high schoolers trapped in a school, but what was so frustrating was that the characters could not get themselves together to fight zombies and escape without so many people dying. If it weren’t for Cheongsan and Suhyeok, no one would have been able to escape.
It wasn’t just the students trapped in the high school that had this problem. Cheongsan’s mother decided to go to the school to get to her son and ended up becoming a zombie before she ever laid eyes on him. A parent’s need to save their child is understandable, but when the dead are coming back to life, and you know you aren’t the fastest or have the right tools to get to them, perhaps wait for someone who is or who can help.
All of Us Are Dead is currently, at the time of writing this, rated No. 2 on Netflix, which proves that this is a good drama overall. Whether you loved it, hated it, or were indifferent, we’d love to hear what you thought about the series.