Zomboat!, TV series (2019) - Film review by Kadmon

Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

Article updated: 2021.06.14

The Zomboat! (2019) is a horror comedy TV series. The TV series was reviewed by Kadmon.

Product: Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

Original title: Zomboat!

Series: -

Setting: alternate Earth

Product type: Film, Genre: horror comedy, Features: horror, comedy, post-apocalyptic, zombie (creature), Style: ?

Release: 2019.10.08-11.12

Watched: very recent (2021.06), first time

Rating: Weak (2- out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Weak (2- out of 3 points)

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This is my review of Zomboat!, a horror comedy TV series from 2019. It's about a couple of people trying to escape from a small town zombie apocalypse on a river boat. The Zomboat! film has some good moments, fans of zombie stories might like it.

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Review (spoiler-free) - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

I randomly ran into Zomboat! when I was looking for something to watch. I didn't know anything about it, and I didn't watch the trailer.

Zomboat! is about a couple of people trying to escape from a small town zombie apocalypse on a river boat.

The story is not very interesting, and not especially deep, but it has some humorous moments. The characters make many pop culture references, this might be funny for some, tedious for others. The story is consistent through the episodes. There are some changes in the characters through the series. The humour is not forced. The series is watchable, but it's weak in every aspect. The horror is not frightening, the a comedy is not very humorous, and the action is tame, the story is slow, and it doesn't really get anywhere.

Compared to other films of the zombie genre, this series felt realistic. It was interesting to see a zombie story without the usual exaggerations seen in most zombie films. It's not easy to kill zombies, and it takes a lot of effort to dent their skulls.

The cinematography is watchable, but the handheld camera made me nauseaus sometimes. The zombies look fine, the action scenes are okay. The violence is mostly played as funny instead of traumatic, but there's plenty of blood and gore.

The characters are okay, although they are a little extreme. They start a little unlikable, but by the end of the series, I got used to them. We don't get to know them very much, but we get enough information about them for the story to work. The actors are good, the chemistry is good between them.

Music is okay, it's ambient, fitting the film.

Zomboat! is a watchable horror comedy series, I think fans of the genre might enjoy it in the right circumstances.

My experience

I was okay with Zomboat! (2019), as I didn't expect a cinematic masterpiece, although it could have been better. There were no stupid or illogical elements in it, so that was a plus.

Rating: Weak (2- out of 3 points). Zomboat! is a watchable, if you don't have anything better.

Enjoyment: Weak (2- out of 3 points). Zomboat! is not bad, but nothing special.

Rewatchability: I'm not sure. I assume that if you loved it for the first time, you might like to watch it for multiple times.

Chance of watching it again: I don't think so. Unless it gets recut with a tighter pace, I won't sit through the series again, and even then, I really need to be in the right mindset.

Chance of watching a sequel: Probably. The story got me hooked.

Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

Will you enjoy this?

If you like horror comedies (Cockneys vs Zombies, Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland), you might like Zomboat!.

If you like zombie stories, you might like Zomboat!.

If you prefer horror action films (28 Days Later, World War Z), you will be bored by the series. There are not many scary or action scenes in it.

If you watch the first episode of Zomboat!, and you are still interested, you might enjoy the whole series, as you will get basically the same content in every episode.

Watching for plot points

If you are interested in zombie stories, I think it's worth watching the Zomboat! movie for the plot points, if you don't mind a really slow burning story. Or you could just read the "The zombies" section of this article.

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Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

Review with spoilers - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

I enjoyed some parts of the Zomboat! series.

Episode 1-4 was mostly the same, the characters trying to do things, sometimes succeeding, sometimes don't. In the end they usually ended up at the same point, and the story didn't progress.

Episode 5 was a little slower than the rest of the series.

Episode 6 was a little more interesting, it also had more action, and an interesting reveal at the end.

Cover

The covers of the series are fine.

The trailer

The trailer is okay, it doesn't give up too much of the story, but it still gives enough to make people interested.

Promise of the first scene

There's going to be two girls, who try to survive a zombie apocalypse. The might be comedic elements in the story.

Execution: We got exactly that, so the promise is fine by me.

Plot summary / Synopsis

Ep 1: There's a zombie infection outbreak in Birmingham. Two sisters (Leah Brotherhead as the grumpy nerd Kat, and Cara Theobold as the shallow blond Jo) wake up to find the recent partner (Callum Kerr as Jude) of the blond girl turning into a zombie. They escape from their house, and decide to leave the city in a boat. Two friends (Hamza Jeetooa as the lazy Sunny, and Ryan McKen as the stupid Amar) hide on the same boat that the girls take to leave the city, as the unlucky owner (Rory Fleck Byrne as Rob) of the boat is left behind, who is the ex of the blond girl.

Ep 2: They meet with a female friend, who hides that she is bitten, but they have to kill her in the end. The blond girl and a guy go back to the girl's house to get her stuff. Then they try to find the ex of the blond girl, but give up, and they also lose the packs.

Ep 3: They stop to try to find some friends in a nearby hotel. Two of them are still alive, but they don't join the team on the boat.

Ep 4: They go into a supermarket to resupply. They meet with a woman who was working there, but she leaves them trapped in the store, due to a previous conflict with the blond girl.

Ep 5: They need to refuel their boat. The nerd girl starts a relationship with one of the guys.

Ep 6: They reach the limits of the city, and they are picked up by soldiers. They are taken to an evacuation center for examination. Zombies attack the building. They meet with the ex of the blond girl, and they escape together. They get back to their boat, but the ex turns into a zombie, after kissing the blond girl. It turns out that the blond girl took part in a medical experiment, and she is patient zero, the cause of the zombie epidemic.

The setting

Contemporary alternate Earth.

Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

The zombies

The theory of the government is that the epidemic started by a medical experiment, where they tried a new influenza vaccine. The blond girl took part of that experiment. A drunken man kissed her in a bar, and he was the infected. Later the girl infected her partner.

These are slow zombies. They attack the living humans. They eat random dead bodies, including their own.

They seem to be killed by regular mortal wounds, not necessary head injuries.

The message of the story

I'm not sure there's one. Based on the last episode, probably "don't trust the government"? Or "don't let strangers kiss you"? Something like that.

The structure of the story

The scenes of the Zomboat! film are mostly played in sequence, following the same storyline. There are some flashbacks, showing us previous events, at the start of the outbreak.

It has the usual arc of the dramatic structure - beginning, action, a kind of resolution, although the storyline is far from over.

Fan-service

There are plenty of references to zombie movies, and other movies, games and fiction.

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Things I liked

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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?

I haven't seen anything else by the creators (William Hartley, Adam Miller).

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Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

Analysis of the story - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

I mostly liked the story, I didn't find problems that would have prevented me from enjoying Zomboat!.

Problematic elements

The protagonist: There are four main characters, but it's clear who is the real protagonist - it's Kat, the gamer girl. It is her who comes up with the plans, and it's her who solves every problem. Even if someone else comes up with an idea, Kat will decide how to do it. If she is not part of the team that goes on a mission, she either has to join the team (Ep4 supply run), or the mission won't succeed (Ep2 quest for the phone). In an ensemble show, I'd prefer if the other characters would also get some action.

No sense of danger: The characters act like they are in dangerous situations, but this is not shown. They leave their homes, try to get away from the city, but there's only a couple of zombies shambling on the streets. If they would just stay in a house, they wouldn't have any kind of problems. The only time it really feels like there's some danger in staying is in Ep6, when the zombies assault the evacuation center.

Unanswered questions

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Possibilities of improvement

The whole story could be probably cut into a regular feature length movie. There are many scenes that are longer than necessary.

How it could have been better?

Use the cast to provide variety. Make every character useful.

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Zomboat!, TV series (2019)
image © Noho Film & Television

Uses for the film - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

Plot

• Medical research goes wrong, causing a zombie epidemic.

Scenes

• There were no really memorable scenes, but if you'd like to depict a small town zombie crisis, you can use scenes from this series.

Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas

The Zomboat! zombies for wargames

• They can be only taken out with a critical hit. Otherwise they will just get deactivated for the rest of the turn if they get damaged.
• They infect with body fluids. When fighting with them, at the end of the turn you have to roll a d6 for every zombie the model is fighting with. If any of the rolls come up as a 1, the model is infected, and it will be counted as a casualty after the game ends. (In the series, it was just the saliva of patient zero, but we can never be sure.)
• They are mindless. They stay in place, unless they get attracted by a living person, a dead person, movement, light, or sound. If they find a dead body, they start to eat it, and they only leave it on a d6 roll of 1, even if they get attracted.

Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas

• Clean the place: There's a large area that is infested with creatures. They need this area to be used as a base, or it could be a large vehicle to be used for travelling. There are important devices around the place, and if they get damaged during the fight, the place will be useless. If they use ranged weapons, any missed attack hits the nearby device. The team has to clean the place, without damaging the devices. The team wins if there is no creature in the area, all of the devices are working, and they still have more than half of their units. The creatures win if they kill more than half of the attacking units.
• Supply run: There's a supermarket / warehouse with supplies for the attacking team. The area is infested with mindless creatures. The attackers don't have the right weapons to kill them all, or they have a limited supply of ammo to use. The supply objectives are assigned randomly around the area. The creatures can be lured by noise or movement, so a team can clear an area, and another team can get the supplies without opposition. The attacking team wins if they get the required number of supplies, and leave the area with more than half of their units. The creatures win if they kill more than half of the attacking units.
• Defence / evacuation: There is a building. The defending player deploys their units anywhere inside the building, with a number of supplies. The building is attacked by a large number of creatures, that are deployed outside of the building by the attacking player. The supplies can be moved by a model, but that model can't fight. The defending player wins if they wipe out the attackers, or if more than half of their units leave the area with more than half of the supplies. The attacking player wins if they kill more than half of the defending units. It's a draw if more than half of the defenders left the area, but they lost more than half of their supplies.

Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)

Civilians: Human-sized modern civilians.

Zombies: Human-sized modern zombies.

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Similar stories - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

Movies

Cockneys vs Zombies (2012): Zombie comedy movie, set in England.

Shaun of the Dead (2004): Zombie comedy movie, set in England. Better than Zomboat!.

Train to Busan (2016): People trying to leave a zombie infested city in a train. Not a comedy.

Wasting Away (2007): Zombie comedy movie.

Zombieland (2009): Zombie comedy movie.

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Frequently asked questions - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

How many episodes are in Zomboat?

There are six episodes in the Zomboat! series.

Is Zomboat! finished?

No, the story of Zomboat! season 1 ends on a cliffhanger.

Is Zomboat! film based on a book or comics?

No, Zomboat! is not based on either books or comics.

Will there be a Zomboat Season 2? / Will there be a second season of Zomboat? / Will there be a 2nd season of Zomboat? / Is Zomboat coming back?

As of 2021.06.07, Zomboat! is not renewed for a second season.

Is Zomboat! cancelled?

While Zomboat! is not exactly cancelled, as it has run its course of six episodes, it's not renewed yet for a second season.

Where can I watch Zomboat! online? Is Zomboat! available on Netflix? Is Zomboat! on Amazon? Is Zomboat! on ITV hub?

As of 2021.06.07, Zomboat! is on iTV, Hulu. Zomboat! was available on Netflix, but I couldn't find it now.

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Resources - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

Official

Zomboat!: Official article on the creator's website.

Zomboat!: Official article on the channel's website.

Information

IMDB: Zomboat! (2019): Database article.

Rotten Tomatoes: Zomboat! 2019: Database article.

Zomboat! Wiki

Creation

Reviews with no spoilers - Zomboat! series (2019)

Alex Finch (for Comedy To Watch): Zomboat! reviews:

• Alex Finch (for Comedy To Watch): Tv Review: Zomboat Series 1 Episode 1: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep1 with no spoilers.
• Alex Finch (for Comedy To Watch): Comedy Snippets: 20/10/2019: Short review article about the Zomboat! series Ep2 with no spoilers.
• Alex Finch (for Comedy To Watch): Tv Review: Zomboat Series 1 Episode 4: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep1 with minor spoilers.

Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! reviews:

• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 1: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep1 with no spoilers.Ł/§
• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 2: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep1 with no spoilers.Ł/§
• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 3: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep3 with no spoilers.Ł/§
• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 4: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep4 with no spoilers.Ł/§
• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 5: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep5 with no spoilers.Ł/§
• Brett Summers (for Cult Faction): Zomboat! Episode 6: Review article about the Zomboat! series Ep6 with no spoilers.Ł/§

Dom Robinson (for DVDfever): Zomboat – The DVDfever Review – ITV2 zombie comedy: Review article about the Zomboat! series with no spoilers.

Reviews with no spoilers - Zomboat! series (2019) - Greek

zombiemovies101: Zomboat! Season 1 (2019) - Another surprise! (in Greek): Review article about the Zomboat! series with no spoilers, in Greek.§

English version by Google Translate

Reviews with spoilers - Zomboat! series (2019)

Paul Brian McCoy (for Psycho Drive-In): Zomboat! reviews:

• Paul Brian McCoy (for Psycho Drive-In): EZMM 2020 Day 7.1: Zomboat Episodes 1.01-1.03: Review article of the Zomboat! series Ep1-3, with spoilers.
• Paul Brian McCoy (for Psycho Drive-In): EZMM 2020 Day 8.1: Zomboat Episodes 1.04-1.06: Review article of the Zomboat! series Ep4-6, with spoilers.

Analysis - Zomboat! series (2019)

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Buying the product - Zomboat!, TV series (2019)

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Have you seen the Zomboat! series? How do you like the episodes? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!