'The Last Man on Earth': Choose Your Own TV Apocalypse!
Will Forte's new Fox comedy The Last Man on Earth, where he plays the only survivor of a globe-spanning virus, makes the apocalypse seem almost… fun! He gets to squat in abandoned mansions and get really drunk and smash stuff with no consequences. He's king of the woooorld! (By default.)
Photos: 'The Last Man on Earth' Premiere Red Carpet
But of course, this isn't the only post-apocalyptic wasteland we've encountered on TV lately. Here, we round up a few of the recent TV apocalypses and rank them, from "absolute hell on earth" to "relatively pleasant." Although we don't think anything below can top soaking in a wading pool filled with tequila and margarita mix.
The Walking Dead
What Killed Everyone? Zombies, duh. It's the No. 1 show on TV! Where have you been?
Pros: If you've ever had the urge to stab, shoot, and decapitate dozens of people without going to prison, well, this is the apocalypse for you!
Cons: A gruesome death is always just around the corner… especially if you're not one of the main cast members.
Would We Even Want to Survive? Hell to the no. We'd have eaten a bullet as soon as we saw that poor horse get devoured by walkers in the pilot. Best of luck, guys; we're out.
Falling Skies
What Killed Everyone? Aliens, aka "skitters," who attack with robotic killing machines and try to attach mind-control devices to Earth's kids.
Pros: At least there's some form of order here: Human militias are fighting back against the alien invaders. Not very successfully… but they're trying!
Cons: Did we mention "robotic killing machines"?
Would We Even Want to Survive? Not really. If the skitters want Earth that bad, let them have it. It'll be all underwater in a few years anyway!
12 Monkeys
What Killed Everyone? A virus that wiped out half the planet's population. Scientists send James Cole back in time to kill the guy that started the plague. (You saw the movie, right?)
Pros: We have time travel! If we were James, actually, we'd forget about this whole "saving the world" thing and find a nice, peaceful decade to hide out in for a while.
Cons: The post-virus world is pretty desolate. We'd be volunteering for time travel, too, if we had to live there.
Would We Even Want to Survive? No thanks. Although having half the people on the planet gone would make traffic a breeze.
Dominion
What Killed Everyone? Archangel Gabriel and his legion of angels, who take over after God vanishes and are punishing mankind.
Pros: We do have archangel Michael on our side, and prophecy promises a savior is on the way to rescue humanity. (Yeah, we've heard that one before.)
Cons: Gabriel and his crew are able to possess humans, which turns them into black-eyed vampire types known as "eight-balls." And they're not nice.
Would We Even Want to Survive? Probably not. Las Vegas doesn't even exist anymore, you guys!
Jericho
What Killed Everyone? A nuclear attack on 23 U.S. cities. The citizens of tiny Jericho, Kansas band together to survive in the aftermath.
Pros: The big cities are screwed, but life in Jericho is pretty bucolic, with farming and windmill power. Plus, look! It's Morgan from The Walking Dead!
Cons: Skeet Ulrich is prominently involved.
Would We Even Want to Survive? Yeah, we'd stick around. Unfortunately, the show didn't; despite a fervent fan campaign, CBS nuked it after two seasons.
The Last Ship
What Killed Everyone? A viral pandemic. A lone Navy battleship survived, and is now looking for the cure.
Pros: Things look pretty grim on land, but as long as you stay on the ship, life is OK. (Hope they packed a whole bunch of rations!)
Cons: Everyone you ever loved is either dying or dead. Attacks from rogue Russian forces. Seasickness.
Would We Even Want to Survive? A cure seems like an actual possibility here, so we'll say yes. We like boats!
The 100
What Killed Everyone? Nuclear war. The only survivors live on space stations, and they sent one hundred juvenile delinquents back down to Earth to see if it's habitable.
Pros: They may be juvenile delinquents, but they're good-looking juvenile delinquents. (This is The CW, after all.) And it's been 97 years since the nukes went off, so Earth looks like a lush paradise…
Cons: A lush paradise inhabited by irradiated beasts and cannibals, that is.
Would We Even Want to Survive? Sure. If we absolutely have to repopulate Earth, we could do a lot worse.
Revolution
What Killed Everyone? A worldwide electrical blackout, which happened 15 years before the series started. Governments have collapsed, and the world is run by roving militias.
Pros: It's kind of nice to not have electricity, actually. You can just farm in peace, without people texting you emojis every ten seconds.
Cons: Those pesky militias are kind of a pain, controlling the food supply and all. Plus, candles are expensive!
Would We Even Want to Survive? Heck, we'd go there now if we could. No Twitter? No Facebook? No cell phones? Sign us up!
The Last Man on Earth premieres Sunday, March 1 at 9 p.m. on Fox.
