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Reviewer: Marzee Doats Signed [Report This]
Date: 12 Oct 2013 10:20:59 PM Title: Party Crasher

Quote: Dale sighed. “There's being a good friend and there's being stupid, getting yourself killed.”

I think this was the perfect subject matter for Dale to write about, and this quote really kind of sums up Dale.  He's a pragmatic kind of guy, and he knows when to move on. 

Quote: Skylar looked unimpressed. “Why are you so sure nothing will survive?”

Dale looked sadly at her. “I know how it is to want to stop it. To think you can wish it away, when someone dies. But you can't. The only sane thing to do is to move on, and get as far the hell away from here as we can.”

 

This also sounds like Dale to me.  He's a little guarded, probably because he's lost so much, and it isn't like he had a lot to spare, but he's also doing the best he knows how to just survive.  And isn't that what he was doing all along on Jericho?

I also found it interesting that Dale writes a story where he and Skylar go their separate ways. (Okay, it wasn't for long, but it was still an interesting choice).  They were both so mature – I think he's trying to tell Emily something here…. "We're grown up," or "Do you really think you can give homework assignments to the man who controls your access to personal care products?"

Lastly, I just have to give a shout out for Darcy.  She was a good leader in this, and it left me wondering how Dale might have come to know her (through Allison, obviously, but since we don't see them interact on screen in Jericho there is still a lot of possibility).  As we all know, Dale is motherless and while Gail is the go-to choice for mothering him when he needs it, he left her out of his story and put the mother of a friend in instead.  And made her pretty bad ass.  I like the choice.

 

Thanks for sharing!  Our very own little bit of World War Z Jericho.



Author's Response:

Thanks for your review Marzee!

I really liked writing this exploration of death and moving on for Dale, and I'm glad the subject matter and his dealing with it came across as well-suited. It was fun to go zombie-story dark for this part, though I confess it was also nice that it was in a fictional context too.

I think you're right that Dale's trying to tell Emily and maybe the older generation in general something about himself and his experiences, though I think also he's coming to terms with their differences and sense of community and responsibility for himself too. And not just the elders but maybe also with Skylar, hence this separation story (though I also think maybe, since Skylar did this too in her story, they both decided that if they were going to put themselves out there, they weren't going to put their significant other out there too, so it has sort of a practical narrative purpose as well).

I'm glad you liked Darcy's appearance in this story. It was so much fun to write her as a badass zombie fighter, it seemed to me like a perfect role for her, though of course she doesn't get to show this side to other people much. I like to think, as you said, that Dale has gotten to know Darcy a little through Allison, and while I'm sure he hasn't really gotten to see the hardcore Darcy we've only gotten glimpses of with our omniscient view, I like to imagine he's used his people-observing skills to pick up on a possibility or maybe a tiny bit of kindred-spirithood. I don't think Dale could situate Gail in this story, or at least not in this grieving but also ruthless fighter mom role, maybe actually because of the motherly role you pointed out that Gail has had in his life. Interesting for me to think about so thanks for pointing it out.

Thanks again for reading and commenting!

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