Swine Flu Information
Review
May 2009, Free
The premise of this story has been done before, many times. A deadly plague spreads around the world bring death and destruction to civilisation. Unusually, unlike many recent apocalypse plague stories, there are no zombies. Instead, this concentrates purely on the human aspect of a epidemic.
The story does take the unusual and experimental style of an information leaflet, showing the panicked response to a pandemic sweeping the world. The style makes for a short, fast paced read. While this experimental style could have been interesting, in execution it falls flat.
All I can say is that it is a good thing that the authors are not writing a real emergency advice leaflet. There is no clear voice, nor a coherent plot. It is not until nearly half way through that it is revealed how the deadly virus is transmitted. Worse, in a failed attempt to increase suspension, it isn’t until the end that the symptoms are revealed. And then there is the climax, where the virus is finally overcome. By washing hands. Is that it? Will civilisation fall because people can not wash hands? Despite the early promise, this fails to entertain or inform.
Really, this story could have benefited from a
more potent and real threat. And Zombies. But then, couldn’t everything?
Not recommended.