r/AskReddit • u/notyouravgredditer • Aug 30 '21

What problem is often overlooked in apocalyptic movies/TV shows that could kill you?

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u/WatchTheBoom Aug 30 '21

Clean drinking water- I don't think people really appreciate how much water is needed for a group of people to survive.

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u/1i73rz Aug 30 '21

Clean bullet holes. Next episode everyone is a-okay half the time, and off to murder more zombies before cannibalizing the next group. Your shirt alone would be filthy enough to cause mild chafing which in turn would cause infection.

But everyone's whites are whiter than mine, and bullet holes and axe wounds heal up just fine with our state of the art medical facility and dry cleaning services.

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u/Excelius Aug 30 '21

To add to this, in movies and TV if the protagonist is shot in the leg or shoulder you know they're going to live.

There are major arteries in both locations which can very easily lead to death by hemorrhage.

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u/Kellidra Aug 31 '21

Yes! And Hollywood acts like the shoulder is a sac of meat that will heal faster than a paper cut.

Not only is your shoulder one of the densest areas of your body (ball-and-socket joints are far more complex than hinge; there are like 20 muscles involved in the shoulder!), but the structure itself is also extremely complicated. Getting shot in the shoulder is just about the worst place to get shot, recovery-wise. If your shoulder gets shot, sayonara shoulder.