Lessons from The Colony
For those that might not be aware (those like me) Discovery is airing season two of a very interesting and pertinent series titled “The Colony”. According to Discovery, the premise behind this series is as follows:
“THE COLONY is an experiment that simulates a post-apocalyptic world in which volunteers are tasked with surviving and rebuilding everything from scratch, using only raw ingenuity and supplies they scavenge from their environment. Here’s your destination to learn more about these bold experiments into a dark future that holds the promise of hopeful regeneration.”
Their season premier caught my eye immediately.
But the show is not about zombies, right?
Correct. It is not about zombies. However, when the undead walk and pillage the earth, would that not be a global catastrophe? Surely many, if not most, of the issues the colonists in this television series face could apply to a post-outbreak world. The basic concepts of survival and pushing beyond such a horrific event would still apply. How do you know that your way of finding out about the attack would not come from some type of instant quarantine where you have very little control over how you react?
Despite what many believe, when zombies attack, it will not be as simple as grabbing your fully automatic shotgun with unlimited ammunition and hopping into the tank that is parked in your backyard. You will most likely not find yourself in a totally secure area with loads of basic supplies. Chances are you are not an excellent marksman with years of training as a survivalist.
Chances are, you are a regular Joe. If that is the case, how would you survive. And not just that, how you would move forward?
So while this series is fictional and not surrounding a zombie-centered plot, The Colony is great research for gathering and collecting survival tips for when we are finally face to face with the zeds.
Comments (41)
McLuvin on 28 Jul 2010 at 11:45 pm #
I can’t believe this thread has been up all day and no one has posted yet.
I will have to watch the show online tomorrow. My DVR skipped it.
Ronin666 on 29 Jul 2010 at 2:58 am #
Don’t have TV. Will see if I can “find” it somewhere
sean on 29 Jul 2010 at 4:18 am #
yeah i have to second ronin’s statement..
3ID on 29 Jul 2010 at 11:18 am #
i watched a little bit but it just seems fake to me i cant get into it it is a cool idea though
McLuvin on 29 Jul 2010 at 12:30 pm #
Great first episode. The outsiders are much more physical this season. That really adds to the realism. As mentioned in the thread, the scenario is almost universal for any type of global catastrophe. The first things mentioned in the show are; shelter, water, fire, and security. You see what happens if even one of those is not available.
The fun threads are not always the most useful information. We all like to talk about what guns we are going to use and how we are training with a katana to decapitate zombies, but the threads about trapping game or rigging an electrical supply are the most useful by far. This show is a great way to think about these things while being entertained.
Semper Cogitant on 29 Jul 2010 at 3:23 pm #
I say a commercial for this series at work once, I thought it was something new, didn’t know there was a previous season. I rarely watch TV, but I’m downloading the first season and will start in on the second after that. Should be able to get it all watched in fairly short order and be able to post about it.
I hope it’s not something along the lines of that survivor show. I watched a couple episodes of the first of that one and was seriously disappointed. I imagine series like this pick their participants to make for good TV with the interpersonal relationships and competition and stuff, but it being Discovery might be a good sign.
Angryvikingman on 29 Jul 2010 at 10:27 pm #
The show is fake as hell, but the projects they do and the challenges they face are a lot like what I imagine they would be in a post apocalypse scenario. The producers leave them things lying around that they can use and I’m sure they have a show meeting every morning to tell them what they need to accomplish. Good show idea, theres just no really good way to showcase it short of kidnapping people who volunteered and having the outsiders be actually violent.
Semper Cogitant on 30 Jul 2010 at 12:30 am #
After watching some of the first season I have to say the show is not all that realistic, and really presents the survival situation in skewed way that would be dangerous to people that figured they could use this info so survive.
The first problem is that there is no real violence and no guns. In a real survival situation there would be real violence and real injuries, people would be killed. Also there would be guns, in Los Angeles there would be a lot of guns, they practically grow on trees there.
The second major problem is that everyone is relatively young, healthy and everyone has useful skills. In a real situation a randomly collected group would include people with health problem, people with no really useful skills, people young enough, old enough, or infirm enough that they would need to be protected and could contribute little to the effort, especially near the beginning.
They show does present a fey useful survival skills, including the filtering of water as we recently discussed here. I guess about the only useful thing in the show is it presents some of the improvised engineering that we’ll all have to do in in a long term survival situation.
Docwade on 30 Jul 2010 at 2:51 pm #
It’s a tv show. Get past the obviously contrived situations and controlled environment and see the useful info. How many of you less than fifty knew how to build a wood gassifier before season one? Of course the violence isn’t realistic. Season two would have been the shortest show ever produced- 30 aggressive individuals invade compound, encounter minor resistance, mob mentality ensues, 7 stripped corpses found during flyby over green zone, the end.
Jefforymandude on 31 Jul 2010 at 12:18 am #
I belive that season 2 is alot more realistic than season 1, because in the first season there was only about 3 people who werent rocket scientists. In this season people are more normal with more common jobs. Also the outsiders are more aggressive.
Ronin666 on 31 Jul 2010 at 3:57 am #
Just watched some of it on YouTube. This is just Survivor in a different setting.
Docwade on 31 Jul 2010 at 9:44 am #
Guardian
Century is always a gamble. They usually use nodak receivers at least lately, but you should always check your headspace on their builds. It’s hard to F up an ak build but they have managed to do it many many times in the past.
Semper Cogitant on 31 Jul 2010 at 12:14 pm #
@Guardian – I too have only heard negative about Century. In general an AK is an inexpensive, dependable rifle though, shouldn’t be hard to find a reliable one at about that price.
Both those shotguns are good choices too, but they have a different job than the AK does, you get them for different reasons. Ideally you’d want both of course, but if you can only get one you should pick based on what you want it for.
For myself, if I could only pick one weapon and it had to be either of those I’d go for the mossberg road blocker, figuring a close quarters defensive type engagement more likely in general.
Of course for our Zombie Apocalypse situation I’d go with the AK, greater capacity and versatility as far as range. The one problem is the 7.62×39 might be a little harder to scrounge than 12g.
Dfarrey on 31 Jul 2010 at 2:39 pm #
The problem I’m seeing here is that most of you seem to be viewing this show as a potential survival guide. The show was meant to be part entertainment and part sociological experiment, not a How-To on DIY post-apocalyptic living.
That being said, it does have some very informative elements. I’ve watched the first season now, and I’ve learned quite a bit: the wood gasifier and ozonation for water sterilization are two things I think could definitely be useful. (Not that I expect most people would be able to build a working Tesla coil, but I’m confident in my own abilities to accomplish just that.)
Bottom line: The show is entertaining, not meant to be instructive, yet manages to be informative. Also, I think it perfectly realistic for the group of thirty-ish to leave the seven of them alive. What use is a gang of thugs if they don’t have anyone to steal from? (Remember – humans, unlike zombies, have the capability for rational thought, even though it may seem like they sometimes don’t.)
As far as the gun goes, I have no input. Sorry, it’s not my specialty. (And it’s completely unrelated to the point of this entry.)
3ID on 31 Jul 2010 at 3:58 pm #
@Guardian Angel
Do not get a CA I had an AK by them it liked to go full auto and the trigger group had a tenancy to fall out, which is why it liked to burst fire, Kain can verify. If you want a good rifle and cross compatibility with your battle buddies IE other zombie hunters just get an AR like Rock River or Bush Master or if you want a high dollar AR get a LaRue but an Ak is not the best tool in the shed accuracy sucks and the ammo unless you live in a former Soviet block country is going to hard to find because most of the ammo for the AKs are imported here in the states and when the world goes to shit well there aint going to be much of that going on.
Guardian Angel on 01 Aug 2010 at 5:00 am #
Thanks for the info guys. I’ve been toying around with the idea of saving almost 2 months worth of checks for a good AR-15, and I’m thinking about just going with that. Or hell, while I’m at it why not got the extra mile and try and save up for a SCAR-L or an ACR. I’ve never been to great at saving , so maybe that would be a good experience for me. Thoughts on that?
Once again, thanks too everyones feed back, i’ll tell you what i go with as soon as i really make up my mind.
Stay safe, Guardian
Angryvikingman on 01 Aug 2010 at 11:34 am #
Go for an AR. It doesn’t have to be a top of the line rifle to be a really good one. I have a Stag, its a mid level AR and I’ve never had a problem with it that wasn’t associated with ammo. It doesn’t like wolf, but thats the only brand it won’t chew through. I recommend getting a 22 conversion and about 5 mags so you can train cheaply. On mine I have a quad rail, forward folding bipod for long range steadiness, and right now I have an Aimpoint on it for optics, but I have it on a riser so I can use the iron sights. I also keep a 4-16 power scope with an illuminated mil-dot recticle. The scar has a lot of problems from what I’ve heard, from the mag falling out, jamming from the bolt design, to the inaccuracy of the rifle at range due to a moving barrel. Like I said, thats just what I’ve heard. The ACR is just expensive, about twice what a good AR-15 will cost.
Kain - ZAC Weapon Consultant on 01 Aug 2010 at 1:08 pm #
Yes, I will verify that 3ID’S Century Arms AK like to dump mags. That was due to the fact that the entire trigger mechanism liked to pull out when you pulled the trigger. We spot welded the bolt that held the the trigger in and he sold it.
Truthfully an AR will do everything that you want and never betray you as long as you keep it clean. Quad rails aren’t a must, decide on the mission of the rifle and whether or not you want the extra weight, I cannot nor can anyone here make that decision for you, personally I’ve kinda come to the conclusion unless you are running everything from lights, plural lights, lasers and the kitchen sink on the rifle you don’t need them, but that’s me and I want a lightweight rifle. But I would look at a quality optic I prefer Aimpoints for close in engagements, but that is just me. A good scope wouldn’t be bad either, just do your homework. Iron sights are a must, again do you homework and remember the most expensive does not mean that it is what you need.
Also a quality AR won’t break the bank, at least not at the moment. I recently saw a S&W AR15 for 599.99 at CDNN Investment. Half the MSRP. Hell if you really want a piston design they have Sig 556s and are running a deal buy the one of the rifle and you can get the .22lr version free. As for the SCAR and the ACR they are going through a period of growing pains and if you have you heart set on one then wait at least one year, better yet two and then look at what the rifles are doing and buy new from factory.
“They won’t get me they won’t get me thought they never cease to try
they won’t get me they won’t get me I would rather fight and die
they won’t get me they won’t get me well my friend will they get you?
when they get you when they get you tell me what are you gonna do?”
Dropkick Murphys – The Gauntlet
Semper Cogitant on 01 Aug 2010 at 8:39 pm #
Yeah, an AR needn’t be too expensive. I built one that came in under $600 before I decided to add a more expensive stock and a couple other things. It’s fairly easy to do, or you can find them for sale not much higher than that.
McLuvin on 04 Aug 2010 at 4:49 pm #
The second episode focused on what makes the show good. The ingenuity. Making a bridge without getting wet was pretty cool but the bio-fuel and diesel generator were great survival ideas.
Angryvikingman on 04 Aug 2010 at 5:15 pm #
Now that I have a yard, and garage to work in, I’ll be building some things, and I’ll post some youtube videos.
-ma-kay-la- on 06 Aug 2010 at 3:49 am #
You guys were talking about guns, wow. I have no clue about any of that. I mean I know some of what you were talkin about but otherwise I’m completely lost. Why don’t they have a book called Firearms For Dummies? That would be nice for people like me who don’t know more about them then loading, how to aim, and pulling the damn trigger.
wheelgunner on 10 Aug 2010 at 8:13 pm #
@-ma-kay-la-Don’t feel too overwhelmed. These guys have just spent a lot of time researching, and way too much money experimenting to find out what is good and what isn’t. That experience is what is allowing them to talk so familiarly about them. Mess up enough and you learn what is good and what not to trust under any circumstances. I’m as guilty as any on here. The really good stuff is rare, and as you can read above, is quickly brought to the fore when anyone who knows of it is aware of the discussion. Be patient and keep your eyes and ears open, and you’ll figure it all out eventually.
wheelgunner on 11 Aug 2010 at 12:28 am #
There seems to be a lack of defensive awareness amungst the colonists this season. They are canstantly caught off gaurd in potencially harmful situations, and they aren’t very strict with there adhoc deciscions.
McLuvin on 11 Aug 2010 at 9:07 pm #
I agree wheelgunner, they seem to forget about the attack from the first week. They should all be more aware of their surroundings. The two new survivors walked right up on them.
Another couple cool projects this week. The forge and smoker could both be very handy.
wheelgunner on 11 Aug 2010 at 9:43 pm #
Potentially, yes. But I noticed that the matchete, while cool enough in it’s own right, was not the Boar Spear that they so desperatly need a few of. He could have easily made three exceptionally fine examples out of that matchete, provided they can find hafts. Which, incidentally, should have been found prior to the forging so that they could properly size the blades to them. A cane pole or hand club isn’t going to cut it for hafting material for what they have in mind for the tool. And the “red hot steel” thefire would need to produce for good forging didn’t happen, and you could tell by the lack of an intimidating hiss when he quenched it. I’m honestly very curious as to what the hilt is going to end up like.
If they continue to treat, and spread out, all of there work areas and equiptment, it will get rescavenged, like the New Members tried to. That whole situation should never have happened! Particularly them engaging in close quarter discussion with people who are supposed to be quarantined. Had they had anything, the whole camp would have caught it then anyway.
By the By, isn’t night lighting in an unprotected and ungaurded house where you,AND ALL YOUR EQUIPTMENT, suicide? I’ve been trying to reserve judgement, but they seem to be getting worse, not better, and they are most definately not learning from past mistakes, i.e. surviving. You would think that they would at least hide the important or at least special purppose gear in a seperate local.
And why did they bury the soup in a two foot hole in the first place? It’s clearly not deep enough, and that ice chest would probably have poisoned them anyway.
wheelgunner on 11 Aug 2010 at 11:23 pm #
This being my area of the world, I want to throw this out there. A sling would not be a bad idea for the Colonists to invst a little time in. It’s a simple to make, simple to maintain, not hard to use weapon, and God knows they need them desperately. Louisiana gumbo(clay/claylike mud) is perfect for making slingstones out of. It’s literally the dirty they’re standing on. It has a consistent mass, and can be either sun or kiln hardened, essentially a shaped brick. Throwing it in the fire during dinner would do it. I’ve scene tests on t.v. showing them crushing Spanish helments and armor from the Conquistador days. With a little practice, they are lethal. David and Goliath and all that. At the least you get a new belt or carry strap.
Kyrah Abattoir on 12 Aug 2010 at 2:38 pm #
Okay it’s a tv show it’s also a lot staged, but what i found concerning is that after the first attack they where dead set on getting juice to power up their tools to improve the defences of the house and they got… carried away… i mean… shower stall? smoke house?
Also check the two “new” survivors, first thing they did was hide their supplies, and barricade their building.
Safety first! The first group even if ingenuous is doing a lot of things “wrong”.
I see the forge as an interesting thing for defence/offence, at least now they can make machette and other pointy metal bits, which should allow them to defend/threaten their enemies the next time they get mobbed.
It’s an entertaining show, and if anything it makes you THINK. They might top the audimat if season 3 is about a zombie flu :D
Kyrah Abattoir on 12 Aug 2010 at 2:41 pm #
I would like to add that the colonists in season 2 seems to have a harder time defending their perimeter, but at the same time i would assume that season 1′s warehouse was just like a big junk fortress, there is only so many entrances.
While in season 2 they go back inside only to sleep.
For night time they should at least install a “string and tincans” alarm…
Guardian Angel on 30 Aug 2010 at 2:53 am #
Just got my stag arms model 2. $750. Just need to get some ammo, then I’m gonna go break it in. First AR. Pretty damn stoked!
wheelgunner on 02 Sep 2010 at 1:03 pm #
Might live up to your monicer now, Monsuer Angel. How does it shoot?
McLuvin on 02 Sep 2010 at 9:45 pm #
Pretty good price. Hope you like it.
wheelgunner on 24 Sep 2010 at 12:46 am #
Yo, Angel, what’s the verdict?
Guardian Angel on 28 Sep 2010 at 10:16 pm #
i decided against the ak and went with a stag arms ar. model 2 i believe. veeery fun to shoot.
Guardian Angel on 28 Sep 2010 at 10:18 pm #
oops wrong thread. it shoots great, hasnt given me any troubles so far. maby 400 rounds through it. very tight build, and the irons on it are superb. highly recommended.
Guardian Angel on 28 Sep 2010 at 10:20 pm #
and i lived up to my moniker with my ruger m77 lol. got it for my 14th bday, first gun after my 10/22.
wheelgunner on 01 Oct 2010 at 11:15 pm #
Nice.
big bear29 on 14 Oct 2010 at 10:13 pm #
There is a book I would like to recommend it is ” Back to Basics : How to learn and enjoy traditional american skills ” . It has absolutley nothing to do with zombies , but it has a wide array of information on things like how to build your own house , raise and process livestock , grow crops , dig a well , store food , rig up a low tech power source , cure animal hides for use as clothing , how to make furniture and even how to make your own beer . While the information does not pertain to zombie survival it does show how to thrive in a low tech enviroment . Which all the survivors will find themselves in , especially if the zombies are a long term threat for several years .
wheelgunner on 14 Oct 2010 at 10:48 pm #
Yo, big bear, you should repost this on the scavenging post, it’s a litttle more on topic there. That being said, I have seen the book advirtized. It’s that good, huh? THanks for the info.
big bear29 on 14 Oct 2010 at 11:26 pm #
@ wheelgunner
Yeah the book has tons of information , its about 450 pages long , it tells you how to do stuff , what tools you will need , it would be a treasure trove of information for those trying to survive and rebuild after the zombie outbreak . Also there have been three different editions of this book printed in the last thirty years .
And thanks for the advice I will repost it in the scavenging section.
Umbrella Stand · on 14 Nov 2010 at 11:57 am #
the most common electrical supply that i always buy at the local store is the elecrtical tape and electrical wire ‘.`