We approach a new and radical expansion of our ever loosening definition of “Zombie” today, but it’s just impossible to pass up making a Day of the Dead reference on the Day of the Dead. So, today, we induct La Calavera Catrina into the illustrious halls of the Zombie of the Week.

Catrina was created in the early 1900’s by famed illustrator José Guadalupe Posada. Originally intended as social satire of Mexican natives who were eager to adopt European styles and traditions in the pre-revolutionary era. The character, called the “Dapper Skeleton”, was essentially lost until the 1930’s when Posada’s work was reissued posthumously.

Artist Diego Rivera used the character in his 1948 work “Sueño de una tarde dominical en la Alameda Central” (Dream of a Sunday afternoon along Central Alameda), a mural and historic landmark in Mexico City. The character’s popularity exploded after this and she is now the de facto mascot for The Day of the Dead.

You can see more of Rivera’s amazing collection of  work, and explore similar artists, at Artsy’s Diego Rivera Page (thanks to Anthony for the reference).

At the last minute we put together a team of my son’s friends to champion Extra-Life 2014. The charity organizes a massive 24 hour gaming marathon to support hundreds of Children’s Hospitals. This year the effort raised over 5 Million dollars. Our team, the Vidiots (feel free to donate), raised about $150 of that (the best, coolest part of it, of course).

The team didn’t quite make the 24 hour mark, but was able to do most of it. They played a lot of games, had a lot of fun but hit a wall around the 18th hour after which, yup, they were as good as zombies. After a few hours sleep they did get better… you think that actual zombies could just need a nap?

We feel the need to make an admission here, but first: Awkward Zombie is an excellent web comic. Funny, insightful and full of video-game geek humor. The author seems like an awesome person that we’d truly enjoy sharing a meal with. Really, however you may get introduced to it; it’s well worth spending some time with this comic.

Now the admission: we’re only telling you about it because it has the word “Zombie” in the title. That’s literally the only reason. It’s sad, but true. We’ve been trying to come up with clever, interesting zombies and zombie-related things once a week for almost two years. It’s hard, people! Damn hard!

After waiting, what, seven or eight years for the fifth season premier of “The Walking Dead” how could we not celebrate with a ZOTW? We could not, not do it, I tell you! We could not, not!

There were some great walkers in this episode, but with an entire herd to choose from we are faced with an embarrassment of riches. In the end, I simply hedged my bets and decided that instead of individual honors, a team achievement would be more appropriate.

So, Fire Walkers! Really, what could be better – or worse, depending on which side you’re on – than single-minded, shambling, flesh-rending zombies? Setting them on fire, of course! It’s like releasing plague rats into a city under siege. Only the rats are on fire and instead of quietly infecting your enemies with plague, they loudly set all your enemies on fire.

Truly, to get the job well and done (and well done), you need to set your walkers on fire.

Phineas and Ferb are pretty damn great in the worst of cases, but how could we not celebrate an hour long P&F tribute to the George Romero classic, “Night of the Living Dead”? One that included cameos from George Romero himself as well and Simon Pegg and Nick Frost reprising their most famous roles, Shaun and Ed? How could we not? We couldn’t not, I tell you, we simply couldn’t not!

In the show Doofenshmirtz’s latest “-inator” turns the citizens of Danville into Doof-zombies. Because, why not? Getting touched by a Doof-zombie turns you into, you guessed it, a Doof-zombie until the entire town is overrun. No, it doesn’t make much sense, but Phineas and Ferb has never needed to make sense to be smart and hilarious.

We were truly surprised – stunned even – when we realized that we had yet to celebrate one of our hands-down favorite zombies of all time: Fido! We originally reviewed the movie as part of Boiled Eggs and Brain Eaters 2012 and it was our hands-down favorite.

The movie tells the story of a 1950’s style, post-post-apocalyptic society where zombie servants have become nothing more than expensive status symbols. Billy Connolly plays Fido, the best (but dead) friend of an awkward boy named Timmy. The movie is an amazingly fun satire of our commercialism as a society; with zombies. It’s amazing fun and not to be missed.

As much as some of us would like to see the zombie apocalypse (in theory), other people seem  downright worried about it, for some reason. KWK Promes was so worried, in fact, that they built a house specifically to keep it outside.

As detailed in an ALL THAT IS INTERESTING article, the house is an attractive, well-lit modern home. You may feel a bit odd about it’s only entrance being on the second floor across a drawbridge, but there are weirder things out there. I once had an apartment in Boston where the bathroom sink was in the bathtub.

However, push a button and the house goes into serious transformer lock-down mode. Multi-ton concrete slabs cover all the windows, a massive steel shutter descends across the entire patio area and the drawbridge, like drawbridges do, raises.

It looks like it will definitely keep out the errant undead, yes, but it also looks to be an excellent answer to those trying to peddle religion as well.

Another zombie was from Infect Scranton’s UnDead Fed Food Drive! Sahara used to be a high school sophomore. She enjoyed school and hanging out with her living, not at all dead, friends. She also used to be a Girl Scout. She worked on badges, went camping, sold cookies and did a lot of community service.

We’re almost, 100% pretty sure that Girl Scout cookies do not definitely turn you into a zombie. Almost positively not. Maybe. The Girl Scout motto is ‘be prepared’, I hope Sahara’s troop is prepared to defend themselves.

This week’s zombie was found at Infect Scranton’s UnDead Fed Food Drive. Celebrity guests asked zombie fans to donate two cans of food in exchange for autographed photos. Guests Brighton Sharbino and Michael Koske, from the AMC’s The Walking Dead, were on hand and helped to collect hundreds of donations for the Keystone Rescue Mission.

Apalonia, or Apple, came to the event to meet the stars of “The Walking Dead” and, with the help of one of the many makeup artists in attendance, became one of the walking dead herself. Before her untimely death, Apple was a 5 year old girl living happily with her family. She enjoyed princesses, playing outside and other fun kid activities.

Although currently reduced to strangled moaning, Apple loved to sing and even sang the National Anthem at several Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Rail Riders baseball games. Apple has just started Kindergarten; I hope her classmates are ready to defend themselves.

We wish Apalonia all the best in her new, um… “life”.

The world of Fire Emblem:Awakening has it’s problems. Among the worst, at least breaking the top three, is that an army of corpse soldiers from the future, called “Risen” are wandering around and making things generally unpleasant.  Reanimated through the power of a grumpy, but very powerful, Earth dragon named Grima, they cover their presumably rotting faces with metal skull masks that do little to hide their glowing red eyes and mottled, purple flesh.

They enjoy active sports, Jennifer Aniston movies and killing all humans in nasty, messy ways for the greater glory of their creator. Actually, that last one dominates most of their free time.