iSpoilers & Speculation

[Sakura12]

Liv is turned on the party boat but wakes up and goes back to her old life, she doesn't seek out Blaine.  Somehow she figures out she needs to eat human brains to survive, and lasts long enough to secure a job with the local morgue so she access to brains. 

 

Liv woke up with a craving for brains, that was a primal instinct. She even said she ate the brain of one of the dead boat party people. I imagine she tried to not eat brains for a few days after she was just turned and found herself getting dumber and meaner, which is what she told Ravi. She also watched a bunch of zombie movies for research. Then figured she needed brains and she is a Doctor, working at the medical examiners office would make sense. She has the right degree to work there and has access to all the brains she needs. 

 

The rest I do agree we need answers soon. I think that will be in second season though. They didn't know how the show would do, they needed to set up the premise first. Next season they can dig more into the mythology. 

[Sakura12]

Season Finale Press Release. 

 

“Blaine’s World” — (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET) (TV-14, LV) (HDTV)

LIV FACES A TOUGH DECISION — After discovering new evidence in the Max Rager case, Liv (Rose McIver) and Clive (Malcolm Goodwin) pay a visit to Vaughn Du Clark (guest star Steven Weber) at Max Rager HQ. Ravi (Rahul Kohli) continues his search for a cure. Meanwhile, Blaine (David Anders) makes Liv an offer she can't refuse. Lastly, Major (Robert Buckley) finds himself in an unbelievable situation. Michael Fields directed the episode written by Rob Thomas (#113). Original air date 6/9/2015.

 

What offer besides "I'mma let you kill me" can Blaine offer Liv that she can't refuse? 

 

For Major I'm guessing he believes in zombies and makes a vow to kill them all, only to find out the love of his life is a zombie. 

[LoneHaranguer]

 

What offer besides "I'mma let you kill me" can Blaine offer Liv that she can't refuse?

He promises not to do anything to her family?

[Julia]

He promises not to do anything to her family?

 

Yeah, this seems like her opportunity to keep him from eating Major, or her little brother.

[CinnamonCat]

Spoilers for season two from here: 

 

In our final episodes of the debut season, those closest to Liv are thrust into mortal danger and Liv will be forced to make the ultimate sacrifice to save them. There will be heartbreaking consequences and as the dust settles we’ll see that nothing in Liv’s partially dead life will ever be the same. In season two, Liv will face new and even more powerful enemies and old enemies in surprising new forms.  Unlikely alliances will be struck, relationships will be challenged, and the line between good and evil will blur for both zombies and the fully living.

 

Sounds interesting!

[Izeinwinter]

He promises not to do anything to her family?

Zombies with their head's blown off are also not a threat to kin and loved ones. If he wants to pressure her into not killing him, he needs a threat that will credibly be carried out even if he is dead.. Deader I mean, and that is not trivial to set up, particularly because most of his employees hate his ass. 

Edited May 23, 2015 by Izeinwinter

[Jazzy24]

Zombies with their head's blown off are also not a threat to kin and loved ones. If he wants to pressure her into not killing him, he needs a threat that will credibly be carried out even if he is dead.. Deader I mean, and that is not trivial to set up, particularly because most of his employees hate his ass.

Or he could tell her that if she kills him than all the other zombies he made will be out of his control and start turning and killing people. Blaine at least could control his zombies.

[Izeinwinter]

..Doesn't hold water. He's already supplying their dietary needs via murder. Even if you assume every single one of his customers would turn to murder to keep eating - and this is utterly implausible - the deathtoll would not rise because he was gone. That part of the situation can't get any worse, it's already maximally bad. As for turning people.. he's doing that too, and the zombies he has made do not have any reason to spread the contagion. In fact, they have every reason not to do so, so that also would be improved by putting an end to him. 

The most likely actual consequence of him disappearing is that the existence of zombies would shortly become public knowlege because one of his dumber clients would get caught standing in a grave hacking open a coffin or something... but this is also not the worst thing that could happen. I mean, it would complicate Liv's life, but it makes the zombie apocalypse much less likely. 

[FurryFury]

Question: Big iZombie fan here, and I still have not recovered from Lowell’s death. What is Liv’s love life going to be like now? Will she hook up with Major by the season finale? —Affiong

Ausiello: Last I checked, Major had been kidnapped by Blaine, so I doubt a reunion with Liv is high on his to-do list (especially since his current predicament becomes even more dire in next Tuesday’s finale). Also, if you’ve been iffy on Liv’s do-gooder ex thus far, there’s an epic sequence in the season-ender that I have a hunch will make you a Major believer.

 

Sorry, Ausiello, but nothing will make me a Major believer at this point. 

[Sakura12]

I've seen the pics of the scene he's talking about. Which is pretty much what I predicted, they are trying to turn Major into a badass zombie hunter. But it's just like Arrow, you can slap a mask or put a gun in their hand but that doesn't suddenly make them badass or interesting. Maybe for some that's all it takes, but as a character watcher I need more. They need to be interesting before all that to even matter to me.

[FurryFury]

Can you link these pictures? I'd like to see them.

[Sakura12]

Here you go.

 

http://canadagraphs.weebly.com/other-celebrity-blogs-part-ii/izombie-shooting-season-1-finale-lets-just-say-meat-cute-has-a-major-problem-robert-buckley-aleks-paunovic-and-david-anders-on-set

Edited June 4, 2015 by Sakura12

[FurryFury]

Thanks. Yeah, I'm not ready to buy Major as a gun-toting zombie-killing badass, he's been way too lame/ineffective thus far.

Edited June 4, 2015 by FurryFury

[editorgrrl]

From Entertainment Weekly:

Major isn’t going to die in the iZombie finale, right? — Brynn
I can neither confirm nor deny whether he’s alive or dead by season’s end, but I can tease that Major will make a bid for freedom in a sequence that turns very bloody. It also backs Liv into making a decision she may soon regret.

[Cranberry]

Maybe she intentionally zombifies Major to save his life? That could be interesting. (I think it's too soon for that, though.)

[FurryFury]

Maybe she'll try but won't succeed, for some reason.

Or maybe she'll have to work with Blaine and help him achieve something to save Major.

[Cranberry]

Or her brother... what if Blaine makes her choose between saving her brother and saving Major?

 

There are so many ways this could all go...

[Cranberry]

Ahh, I just saw a really good one on Facebook: "I'm betting she uses the cure on Blaine so he can actually be arrested and put away."

[editorgrrl]

I really like this speculation. But if Max Rager is the big bad, does that mean Blaine will become Liv's ally (or at the very least frenemy)?

Max Rager Inc. might have several reasons to make zombies on a pure profit level. If there were a zombie outbreak, there would be heavy profit to be made in zombie defense and zombie cures. So causing a problem and then solving it would be highly profitable.

 

Moreover, even if we were to accept for argument's sake that corporate Max Rager has no interest in creating zombies, individual Max Rager executives could have non-profit oriented reasons (from one or more of them being zombies themselves and wanting to spread their kind to thinking that zombies are the next step in addressing human weaknesses.) 

 

[FurryFury]

I used to think Blaine would become an ally eventually, but I think him killing Lowell (and maybe even the homeless kids before that) made him far too evil for that. Maybe it could happen for like half an episode but not more.

I do think that him being cured (maybe even accidentally) and incarcerated via Lt.Suzuki is likely.

[Chicago Redshirt]

..Doesn't hold water. He's already supplying their dietary needs via murder. Even if you assume every single one of his customers would turn to murder to keep eating - and this is utterly implausible - the deathtoll would not rise because he was gone. That part of the situation can't get any worse, it's already maximally bad. As for turning people.. he's doing that too, and the zombies he has made do not have any reason to spread the contagion. In fact, they have every reason not to do so, so that also would be improved by putting an end to him. 

The most likely actual consequence of him disappearing is that the existence of zombies would shortly become public knowlege because one of his dumber clients would get caught standing in a grave hacking open a coffin or something... but this is also not the worst thing that could happen. I mean, it would complicate Liv's life, but it makes the zombie apocalypse much less likely. 

 

You would have to assume that a good portion of his clients would turn to murder to live. There are not a ready supply of brains that one can get outside a morgue or going gravedigging. And one has to assume the fresher the brains, the better.

 

So right now, Meat Cute is supplying X zombies with how much they need to unlive at a price. If Meat Cute were taken out of the occasion and these zombies were to fend for themselves, some would kill just the minimum requirement to stay undead. Others might kill more because a) they don't know how many brains they need b) because they are that hungry [think the difference between eating at an ala carte restaurant versus a buffet] c) because they come to enjoy it or see how easy it is or d) out of sloppiness/inexperience [killing one victim and then having to kill witnesses, for example]. Remember, Blaine and his crew basically seem to know what they are doing in terms of killing people. A half-starved zombie might not be as sharp.

 

In terms of turning people, while they might not do so deliberately, zombies forced to forage for themselves have a greater chance of accidentally infecting others.

[CinnamonCat]

Some spoilers for season 2:

 

From TV Line:

 

Vaughan, the head of Max Rager, says, “We’re going to take out all the zombies.” So that will be a big part of Season 2, and it will make Liv and Blaine strange bedfellows. Next season, you’ll see a lot more of them on screen, at the same time, with a common enemy.

 

 

We’re not going to make [blaine] cuddly next year. So it can be done, and maybe someday, we will attempt that. But for the immediate future, Blaine is bad.

 

 

TVLINE: Can Blaine keep his business going as a human?
RT: That’s going to be part of the fun of Season 2. He will need to trick his clientele. Next season, he may be passing as zombie in order to maintain the fear, which I think we’ll have fun with.
TVLINE: So instead of tanning, he’ll be putting on powder.
RT: It’s funny you say that because we already have a scene up on our writers’ board in which we will see him getting powdered up in order to appear as a full-blooded zombie.

 

 

Suzuki is going to get credit for being the hero of Meat Cute, and the police are going to very quickly and neatly wrap up that case, but Clive isn’t buying the story. He will be looking for Blaine and believing that Major has a connection to that. So that will be Clive’s great white whale of Season 2 — trying to solve that case.

 

 

From Sepinwall:

 

Blaine and Major are going to have some pretty serious side effects in season 2.

 

 

Major and Liv are going to start off season 2 on the outs. Major is still wounded by the decision that Liv made, still resentful of them.

 

 

We have discussed [Liv eating the brain of a person from New Zealand] many times. I think that is on our to-do list. It could be very fun.

 

[editorgrrl]

Season 2 spoilers from Rob Thomas:

We’re going to pick up the show a few months after the finale. Major still is not happy with Liv as we move forward.

As we go into season 2, they’re missing the tainted Utopium, which might allow them to make more. Ravi’s (Rahul Kohli) holy grail in season 2 is trying to track that down.

That cure is not perfect. There will absolutely be side effects. I’m not saying they’re heading toward death, but we have a mini-Flowers for Algernon story going on here with the rat. The rat is on the same cure that both Blaine and Major are. Whatever is going to happen to them may happen to that rat first.

I think we’re going to have a lot of fun next year with Blaine trying to pass for zombie with his clientele.
 

Zombies are going to start going missing. One of the things we want to do is make very strange bedfellows out of Liv and Blaine. They find themselves having to work together to fight a bigger evil.

Q: A commenter in our recaps thinks [Peyton] got scratched by Sebastian, and now she’ll be a zombie, too. A: She didn’t, so that one is off the table, though maybe it’s not a bad idea. 

Maybe I should go back. [Laughs]

Edited June 10, 2015 by editorgrrl

[GaT]

Huh, I really thought Peyton was going to be a zombie too.

[editorgrrl]

Huh, I really thought Peyton was going to be a zombie too.

 

The Q&A reads as if the idea never even occurred to him.

 

Peyton's already mad at LIv. Just wait until she & Major find out that Ravi knew all along.

Edited June 10, 2015 by editorgrrl

[Sakura12]

I never thought Peyton was going to be a zombie. Sebastian hit her on the head most likely with an object> The only wound we saw was on her head. He probably never even touched her. Then he waited for Liv to come home. 

Edited June 10, 2015 by Sakura12

[FurryFury]

Yeah I was never even contemplating that it would happen.

 

Hmm, I like it that Liv and Major will be on the outs, hopefully there won't be as much of him as in the last few episodes, at least for some time. And Liv/Blaine interacting should be interesting. That said, I do not believe RT when he says Blaine could be redeemed theoretically. I thought he made him so cartoonishly evil specifically to make it impossible.

[ruby24]

You wouldn't think so, but shows have brought back evil characters before, Jamie Lannister being one of them, like he said. I could see it happening, but if they ever had that in mind, you'd think they'd have limited the number of people he actually killed, or at least not had so many of them be homeless teenagers. If he was targeting criminals or bad guys even, like a Dexter situation, I could have seen a redemption arc more easily than what it is right now.

[CinnamonCat]

Two words: Logan. Echolls. 

 

Now, I'm not necessarily saying it will happen, or that those two are even in the same ballpark when it comes to villainy. All I'm saying is, if the pretty, pretty Blaine were to turn over a new leaf, complete with a nicely written redemption arc and a swoon-worthy speech or two... I might just suspend my disbelief enough to buy it. What can I say? I'm a weak woman.

[Cranberry]

Eh, bum fights and drugging his friends are pretty shitty, but not in the same league as murdering tons of homeless teens and eating their brains (and possibly feeding their flesh to shop customers as well; did we ever get confirmation of that?). I'll be irritated if he's "redeemed."

[FurryFury]

Seriously, Logan? I mean I could understand if somebody said "Spike". Or "Regina Mills". Or "Damon Salvatore". But Logan never even killed anyone! His misdeeds were laughable even in the context of his show, much less on the grander scale. Blaine killed helpless kids for their brains, shot Lowell, tortured Major (not that I care about Major, but still, not cool). I don't see any way back from that, as long as the show doesn't want to turn into something like Once Upon A Time or later seasons of Buffy. The most I could see for him is Redemption Equals Death scenario coupled with a really good Freudian Excuse.

[Sakura12]

Logan was an asshole not a murderer. Blaine killed homeless kids and turned people into zombies for profit. There is no coming back from that for me. Just like Grant Ward on Agents of Shield. 

[CinnamonCat]

I never said their actions were similar in their badness. What I meant is that RT knows how to make his audience love someone they previously hated, that's all.

[ruby24]

I fully expect this to happen, so everyone should probably get used to the idea. It does seem like a lot to come back from, and he said that himself in an interview, but I still think they're going to find a way. I mean, you have to admit that Blaine and David Anders is far more interesting as a character than Major/Buckley. For that reason alone, I'm sure they're going to figure out how they can work around his evilness.

[Julia]

I mean, you have to admit that Blaine and David Anders is far more interesting as a character than Major/Buckley. 

 

You know, I'm surprised that I'm saying this, but no, I really don't. Blaine's had way more interesting, flashy stuff to do, and he's more active than reactive, which is generally fun to watch. But I don't know that David Anders is knocking it out of the park with him. He's pretty much manic and evil, and then he's evil and manic, and then he's manic and evil again. I would have been OK with Blaine dying either time Liv couldn't manage to kill him. 

[editorgrrl]

From the "Blaine's World" episode thread:

Curing the big Z seems to be a big part of the show. Utopium might as well be Unobtainium. Why can't Ravi get more? How exactly is it "tainted?"

The idea of the cure being communicable would be interesting. It was the reveal in one of my favorite vampire movies,

Daybreakers

. You could never be turned back into a vampire because the blood of the cured former vampire became the cure.

What can get dumb is chasing the cure for the next 3–4 seasons. If Liv doesn't eat brains, there's no show. If there's a cure and Ravi can't replicate it, it becomes a stupid plot device. I can only hope that Cure 1.0 has major (pardon the pun) flaws with it.

As I posted upthread, Rob Thomas says the flaws in the cure will become apparent in zombie rat #2, giving Ravi time to save Major & Blaine.

SyFy's Z Nation starts with the cure. The show is all about getting the test subject cross country to a lab to synthesize more cure from his blood.

Eventually, it's revealed he can transmit the cure.

If the supply of tainted Utopium is gone, maybe Ravi could use Blaine's blood? It'd serve him right to become a guinea pig.

Does Super Rager make zombies all on its own? I think Vaughn du Clark hired that doctor to dezombify the products. Is Vaughn's plan B to kill zombies? (Damage control.)

Edited June 12, 2015 by editorgrrl

[robertorv]

Wild guess ....

I have a feeling that Major and Blaine are going to develop superpowers. Those will be the side effects that we see on the rat first. Whatever happens to the rat will have to be something that Ravi will be able to notice, and also be something that can be depicted on camera. So unless if they manage to cast the Daniel Day-Lewis of rat actors, my guess is that the side effects we see on the rat are not going to be very subtle and nuanced ... but rather be something very big. I'm guessing it will be telekinetic powers. It's easy to show on camera ... a couple of tight close-ups of the rat's face/eyes, a couple of close-ups of an object in the office, the object moves.

It works pretty well for Blaine since so far all we know about him in season 2 revolves around him having funny scenes to play. But at some point Blaine is going to have to get down to the business of keeping all his zombie minions in line. Imagine one of his minions talking back to Blaine and questioning his authority ... Blaine simply looks at the minion and with the power of his mind sends the minion flying across the room and crashing him against a wall. Or maybe with the power of his mind Blaine levitates a knife and sends it flying into the minions brain.

It works for Major as well. Rob has said that he wants to show Major being more fun/funny. Well I can easily see Major having a blast with his telekinetic powers like the guys in the movie Chronicle did at first. I can even see Ravi joining in on the fun with him.

btw, I'm not saying that I necessarily want to see any of this happen or even that it's a good ideal ... it's really me just taking a guess.

Edited June 12, 2015 by robertorv

[LoneHaranguer]

 

So unless if they manage to cast the Daniel Day-Lewis of rat actors, my guess is that the side effects we see on the rat are not going to be very subtle and nuanced ... but rather be something very big. I'm guessing it will be telekinetic powers. It's easy to show on camera ... a couple of tight close-ups of the rat's face/eyes, a couple of close-ups of an object in the office, the object moves.

It would also be easy to do mind reading or control (that's just voiceovers). I wouldn't want to see them follow in the steps of Heroes, where they started off on relatively solid scientific ground, but abandoned it and started giving characters increasingly implausible abilities.

[ketose]

Mind control is one of the worst powers plotwise. If it's effective, it basically trumps every other power since they can control everyone else with a power. My guess is that every "power" would be different.

Vaughn's plan for Super Max is to make an energy drink that eliminates the need for sleep. Every scientific study in the world says that sleep deprivation will basically turn you into a zombie, angry and unable to mentally function. Plus, we middle aged people like sleep.

Liv wants to cure zombisim. Vaughn wants to kill all zombies because it's the kind of evidence that would destroy his company. Blaine wants to keep his customers. It will be interesting to see how all of them intersect next season.

[The Cake is a Pie]

I kinda love the idea that Blaine and Major might develop superpowers as a side effect of the cure. I don't think I would be in favor of something like telekinesis, though. That might be too far out on the supernatural side, even for a show about the undead who receive visions from the brains they eat. It would make sense if it were powers that they previously had as zombies that somehow lingered, like for example, if Blaine and Major had episodes of super strength or rage blackouts, only they couldn't control when they happened.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

Mind control is one of the worst powers plotwise. If it's effective, it basically trumps every other power since they can control everyone else with a power.

Yesterday's edition of Mark Trail happened to talk about wasps that take over other insects; using a parallel on this show is likely to mean that mind control would be a short-term effect on the way to the victim becoming a zombie, so it's not going to work on other zombies.

[Moviesnob]

Two words: Logan. Echolls. 

 

Now, I'm not necessarily saying it will happen, or that those two are even in the same ballpark when it comes to villainy. All I'm saying is, if the pretty, pretty Blaine were to turn over a new leaf, complete with a nicely written redemption arc and a swoon-worthy speech or two... I might just suspend my disbelief enough to buy it. What can I say? I'm a weak woman.

 

When I read the info on season two, this was my exact thought. Not that RT could accomplish the same thing with Blaine that he did with Logan, but that he would try. I would be very hard-pressed to buy a redemption from killing people, but I would not be surprised if RT tries to lead us down that road.  

[FurryFury]

The show is all about getting the test subject cross country to a lab to synthesize more cure from his blood.

 

These guys probably really loved "The Last Of Us".

 

I would be very hard-pressed to buy a redemption from killing people, but I would not be surprised if RT tries to lead us down that road.

 

Yeah, pretty much. I think it will be seriously hard to make me believe in Blaine's redemption, but I'm still interested in his character and, well, maybe RT will manage to do something that many other writers failed at. We'll see.

I'm still looking forward to seeing him interact with the other characters because he's been way too isolated in season one. At least there's bound to be snark.

[jaytee1812]

I hope they don't do Blaine's redemption. I thought the finale was a let down as it became all about Major v Blaine with Liv, Ravi and Clive as afterthoughts. If season two continues in that vain I won't last through it.

For me the show is about a zombie ME,her boss and the cop she works with. Her boring love interests should stay a side show not the main event.

[FurryFury]

Only 13 episodes for season 2. Boo!

I really don't think this show (unlike, say, The 100) works well in this format - it's too procedural. Hopefully the next season will be more serialized.

Edited June 17, 2015 by FurryFury

[Free]

Only 13 episodes for season 2. Boo!

I really don't think this show (unlike, say, The 100) works well in this format - it's too procedural. Hopefully the next season will be more serialized.

 

I think it's also the scheduling because they renewed so many shows, some of which they're trying to get to syndication, so it's unfortunate that it seems to be heading into the 100 route.

[editorgrrl]

Only 13 episodes for season 2. Boo!

 

I'd rather have a short, good season than a long, crappy one. Like Empire—or even Z Nation. Always leave them wanting more!

 

From Entertainment Weekly's "Spoiler Room":

Do you have any scoop on the fallout of the Meat Cute massacre on iZombie? — Kinney

 

Unfortunately, Seattle PD is all too happy to close the book on the case, thinking Suzuki stumbled into a gang shooting and died a hero. But Clive is not ready to give this up. “That’s going to be Clive’s white whale in season 2,” EP Rob Thomas tells me. “Clive thinks that Major is somehow involved with it. And he met Blaine very briefly in Meat Cute. He doesn’t know that Blaine is his name. He never got his name. [suzuki] writing Blaine on the wall sends Clive off into what he’s going to be digging into in his free time in season 2.”

[dubbel zout]

I'd rather have a short, good season than a long, crappy one.

Same here. With a short season, the writers are forced to keep things focused.

[robertorv]

Rob has said that they have been picked up for 13 with the possibility of getting 9 more. In fact the writers are planning the season out as a 22 ep season. So since they are planning for 22, I hope they get them ... or else they force 22 eps worth of story into 13 ... that cant be good.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

With a short season, the writers are forced to keep things focused.

After seeing a repeat of the first episode knowing where the season ended, it's clear that they had some trouble with even a short season.