# The Walking Dead; 4.03 "Isolation" (open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 28, 2013, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400 "2013-10-28T00:04:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Just\_Ed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Just\_Ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Ed)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/41 "2013-10-28T18:42:04Z")
The others have not been burned because the virus is clearly not contained. Carol was attempting to prevent its spread. Hershel mentioned the symptoms are manageable with medication, so at this point they’re trying to isolate the infected and treat the symptomatic so they can survive the flu, containing via quarantine rather than sterilization. Rick’s burning of the pig sty was perhaps more symbolic of his abrogation of life as a farmer than a sterilization tactic, but it works on both levels. I’m just surprised that _Doctor_ S, of all people, doesn’t know enough to cover his damn mouth when he coughs. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/42 "2013-10-28T18:59:56Z")
So the foraging group is going out to get antibiotics. For a flu virus. Talk about a fool’s errand. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Ed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Just\_Ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Ed)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/43 "2013-10-28T19:12:30Z")
To be fair, I’m using “flu” and “virus” as shorthand. Hershel’s only “diagnosis” was stating the illness was survivable if the symptoms were treated, so presumably the list Daryl was given is medications to do just that (though I wouldn’t be surprised if the writers have conflated the whole flu/virus/antibiotics thing). ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/44 "2013-10-28T19:15:22Z")
I liked this episode. I am enjoying the Illness plot line. It is realistic given their circumstances and I am interested to see where it goes. I loved the shot of the hoard of zombies going off into the distance. Very unnerving and reminds you just how much a force of nature these zombies can be. It never even occurred to me that Carol wasn’t being truthful when she admitted to killing those people. I figured it was her when she freaked out and threw the water barrels. She felt guilty for lying to Tyreese when he went on about how much he trusted her. Regrading Tyreese, I got the impression he was committing Suicide by Zombie at first. Between his girl friend and (possibly) his sister dying plus I think he regretted his outburst with Darryl and Rick. He changed his mind and it was almost too late but he survived. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/45 "2013-10-28T19:16:14Z")
> [@Just\_Ed](#): > > I’m just surprised that _Doctor_ S, of all people, doesn’t know enough to cover his damn mouth when he coughs. Or the cough came on him so suddenly that, in his weakened state, he didn’t have time to get his hand over his mouth. The man looks to be about 10 minutes from becoming a zombie. Plus this way we get to see what a carrying fellow Hershel is, as he wipes his face with the blood covered cloth. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/46 "2013-10-28T20:39:53Z")
> [@Just\_Ed](#): > > To be fair, I’m using “flu” and “virus” as shorthand. Hershel’s only “diagnosis” was stating the illness was survivable if the symptoms were treated, so presumably the list Daryl was given is medications to do just that (though I wouldn’t be surprised if the writers have conflated the whole flu/virus/antibiotics thing). He (or someone) mentioned antibiotics right up front, which gave me an early :rolleyes:. The second :rolleyes: was when they decided to take a 2-wheel drive hot rod into unknown country, instead of the perfectly serviceable Hyundai AWD that they have sitting there. The writers are pretty much telegraphing the punches at this point. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/47 "2013-10-28T21:37:37Z")
Y’know, abuse of antibiotics is what caused the zombie plague… ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/48 "2013-10-28T21:46:20Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > …Of course, OTOH, at this point, running into other living people isn’t that big of a deal anymore, it’s not like it was in S1. Not only that instead of being happy to find other people they seem to treat them as a threat. It could also mean there’s another group of survivors out there organized enough to run a radio station. Maybe even some remnant of the government. We don’t really know what’s happening outside the Southeast. Hell for all we know there’s a rump government on the West coast or Australia’s doing just fine and starting to send expeditions to North America. BTW are there any real world diseases that match the symptoms of what’s going around on the show (& could plausibly arise in the prison)? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/49 "2013-10-28T21:50:50Z")
Pneumonic plague comes to mind, especially if someone in the prison has been deliberately handling rats. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/50 "2013-10-28T22:28:32Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Well, he _had_ to be the one driving. If anyone else in the group tried it, they’d get pulled over. And you know with that group, ain’t no way Darryl’s gonna get killed first. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/51 "2013-10-28T22:46:04Z")
Anybody else think that since Glenn is sick, they will get the medicine in time? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/52 "2013-10-28T22:53:45Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Anybody else think that since Glenn is sick, they will get the medicine in time? Well, they will for Glenn. Of course, what could be a shocking twist is if Glenn gets the medicine, dies anyway, reanimates as a zombie but slowly regains his awareness as the lethal infection fades. Of course, at this point that’d just be a ripoff of _Warm Bodies_. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/53 "2013-10-28T23:01:00Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > It could also mean there’s another group of survivors out there organized enough to run a radio station. Maybe even some remnant of the government. We don’t really know what’s happening outside the Southeast. Hell for all we know there’s a rump government on the West coast or Australia’s doing just fine and starting to send expeditions to North America. Hell, for all we know, everything is totally normal if they get a few hundred miles or a thousand miles away or just off the continent. Of course, if that was the case, I’d think “they’d” be sending in air support to, at the very least, observe what’s happening. Unless they’ve decided that even doing that might infect that pilots and it’s best just to write off America as another Chernobyl. > [@](#): > > BTW are there any real world diseases that match the symptoms of what’s going around on the show (& could plausibly arise in the prison)? Tuberculosis is what I’m going with, just because of them coughing up blood and how quickly it’s spreading. Looking at wiki, the rest of the symptoms for TB are just general “I’m sick” type symptoms. Fever, chills, sweating, fatigue etc. Plus, it’ll spread rapidly in a jail cell block with all that coughing. ---
**Author:** ![Flander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Flander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flander)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/54 "2013-10-28T23:08:39Z")
I believe Carol killed those people. However, I also don’t think the little girl has anything to do with it. There is no established link between her and Carol. Carol has no motivation to save a psycho girl. Plus, I hate the idea that some little girl can overpower even a sick adult. Next, she’ll be whispering for no reason like those crappy horror movies. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/55 "2013-10-28T23:18:00Z")
> [@Flander](#): > > I believe Carol killed those people. However, I also don’t think the little girl has anything to do with it. There is no established link between her and Carol. Carol has no motivation to save a psycho girl. > Plus, I hate the idea that some little girl can overpower even a sick adult. Next, she’ll be whispering for no reason like those crappy horror movies. :rolleyes: I don’t think she did it either, but if a little girl came up to me when I was sick, she could probably stick a knife in my ear before I even thought about why she was visiting me. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/56 "2013-10-28T23:25:30Z")
> [@Flander](#): > > There is no established link between her and Carol. Carol has no motivation to save a psycho girl. Carol made a promise that she would care for the psycho little girl as if she were her own to the psycho girl’s father on his deathbed. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/57 "2013-10-28T23:36:24Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > Carol made a promise that she would care for the psycho little girl as if she were her own to the psycho girl’s father on his deathbed. Carol would have said anything to ease his suffering and make him die easily. She’s very much a ‘for the greater good’ type person. She even tried to train his two daughter in zombie killin’ with him like he was some random dead guy. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/58 "2013-10-28T23:41:38Z")
Question: if everybody is already infected, why does a bite from a walker make you turn? In the story, it seems you have to die first to be reanimated, but a simple bite wouldn’t be enough to kill you, unless the virus was substantially different than in living hosts. However, if it is substantially different, why would it turn you if you died from natural causes? ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2013, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/59 "2013-10-29T00:23:21Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Carol would have said anything to ease his suffering and make him die easily. She’s very much a ‘for the greater good’ type person. She even tried to train his two daughter in zombie killin’ with him like he was some random dead guy. Nevertheless, it is an established link between Carol and the psycho girl, as well as motivation for Carol to help her. In that scene the guy said that Carol was good with his daughters, so it’s not like Carol had never met them before. > [@Superhal](#): > > Question: if everybody is already infected, why does a bite from a walker make you turn? In the story, it seems you have to die first to be reanimated, but a simple bite wouldn’t be enough to kill you, unless the virus was substantially different than in living hosts. However, if it is substantially different, why would it turn you if you died from natural causes? Bites don’t turn you, they kill you. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2013, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400/60 "2013-10-29T00:30:31Z")
It’s like everyone has a low-level case of Virus X, and the human immune system can easily keep it at bay. Upon death (from any cause), Virus X multiples rapidly, permeates the tissue completely and takes control of various bodily functions like walking and moaning and eating, etc. A zombie is rife with Virus X, and a bite on a living person injects that person with such a massive dose of Virus X that death soon follows. Why a bite specifically? Who knows? The Romero Rule is in effect. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-walking-dead-4-03-isolation-open-spoilers/672400.md?page=4)