Hambie on All of Us Are Dead refers to people who got infected by a zombie but only adapts half of the zombie features. Choi Nam-ra is one of the hambies who helps her friends to fight against the armies of the undead. Similarly, know every strengths and weakness about the zombies in All of Us Are Dead.
Based on Joo Dong-geun's webtoon of the same name (the local title of the source and series translates as Now at Our School), All of Us Are Dead on Netflix depicts a zombie outbreak that quickly overwhelms an ordinary Korean high school.
This modern zombie epic kicks off with a bang in the middle of a school bullying incident that takes place on a rooftop on a wet night.
The victim snaps, or rather, his limbs snap, as he transforms into something not quite human and fights back after being beaten. He's flung over the parapet and down into the alley below a few moments later.
Netflix released All of Us Are Dead on 28th January 2022 and has been a global hit since its arrival. The show is not only about the surviving students and zombies but it also includes hambies. So what exactly is a hambie? Let's find out below.
Previously, we touched on a potential Season 2, Ms. Park, Na-yeon, Eun-ji, and Gwi-nam.
What is a Hambie in All of Us Are Dead?
All of Us Are Dead adds a twist to their zombie scenario that is reminiscent of In the Flesh: some humans react differently to The Jonas Virus. Rather than becoming zombies, they become half-human, half-zombie hybrids, or hambies, as Dae-su prefers to call them.
Most horror fans are aware that after you've been bitten by a zombie, it's just a matter of time before you follow the lead of the undead. All of Us Are Dead, on the other hand, explores the concept of half-zombies – undead creatures with normal human brain function.
Choi Nam-ra, who is referred to as a "hambie" on the show, discusses her in-between state to further explain half-zombies:
You know how students are not children but not yet adults either? I’m like that. I’m neither a human, nor a monster.
Hambies have zombie strength and reflexes, but their hunger for human flesh will be half that of complete zombies. Hambies preserve their human nature and continue to be free-thinking beings capable of empathy.
Hambies exist as a result of each person's unique reaction to the Jonas Infection, much as every human in the real world will experience various symptoms from the same virus to varying degrees.
All of Us Are Dead: Zombie Strengths
Zombies in All of Us Are Dead have enhanced senses of smell and hearing—while this is generally a strength because it may be utilized to seek food, it can also be a weakness when there is a loud sound or heightened smell, as when a thunder and lightning thunderstorm descends on the school.
The undead in the series is also extremely powerful and resistant to damage. Gwi-nam falls off buildings three times and keeps moving forward. Nam-ra's sunken eye appears to have healed itself when we see her after the time leap in the last episode, implying some form of regenerative power.
Later in the series, we learn that people infected with The Jonas Virus, as Lee Byeong-chan and Detective Jae-ik refer to it, are medically dead.
Although their hearts stop beating, the virus activates their brain stems and causes their bodies to move.
We see hints that physically weaker humans, such as Cheong-san's mother, make for physically weaker zombies, but the zombies' bone-crunching flexibility and determination to eat brains make them far scarier than their human hosts could ever be.
All of Us Are Dead: Zombie Weakness
While the zombies in All of Us Are Dead have enhanced smell and hearing, they also lose some vision. They're also fairly stupid and can be readily fooled by humans working together with a well-thought-out strategy.
Taking out the brain stem with a bullet or by slashing, as in other zombie stories, kills the zombie.
Another potential weakness for these zombies is that the characters in this world are familiar with cinematic zombies, as evidenced by their frequent references to Train to Busan.
While the characters don't use this meta knowledge, it does play a role in the humans' decision-making, providing them with a working knowledge of what to do and what not to do when faced with a zombie.
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