[7.7/10] A fun bit of escalating insanity, especially for those who know and enjoy zombie movies and TV shows. Even for those who’ve never seen *Outbreak* (see: me), this one rocks from Randal getting an idea from pop culture stuck in his head and then blowing it out of proportion until it’s everyone’s problem, with hilarious results. The threat of a zombie virus is the engine, but what really clicked for me here are the running jokes and layered gags that the episode has to offer. The peak is probably the shtick with Mr. Plug and Dante being accused of being robots, which leans into the goofery, while mixing in multiple stages of the bit and even throwing in an amusing Star Wars reference. But really, this episode is chock full of that sort of thing. The ongoing bits about various town functionaries being dressed up as characters from McDonalds and answering questions about their characters, the digs at Quentin Tarrantino, the bit about Dustin Hoffman forbidding the use of his likeness, the introduction and return of the giggling girl, and scads more all reward the viewer who’s paying attention and ready to see *Clerks* double down on a joke. My favorite routine in the whole thing is probably Datne and Randl using their alleged last day on earth to order fast food, in an increasingly amusing bit of customer service snafus gone mad. It’s the right mix of observational humor and absurdity that Kevin Smith and company do well. Heck, even the opening gag with Randal failing to take in the box of burrito that causes all the ruckus is the kind of multi-layered bit that *Simpsons* viewers know and love. Granted, the show continues to be of its time in ways that are occasionally uncomfortable. The show glibly and preemptively dismissing gripes about the lack of female characters isn’t great. But the introduction of Lando, their Black pal who’s constantly cut off, works well as an amusing spoof of tokenization, even if it feels like an odd attempt to immunize the show from similar criticisms. And while there’s some gay panic humor, the climax resting on Dante “admitting” his homosexuality to save the town is just off-the-wall enough to work for me. This is also a great guest star episode. James Woods sucks as a person, but he’s good here, and it’s amusing for *Simpsons* fans to see him pop up in another animated convenient store. Gilbert Gottfried as Patrick Swayze is some out of left field casting, but the loony take on Swayze as a pet shop employee who can't keep his story straight works well. Al Franken randomly popping up as a politician goes well. And the fact that the story’s crescendo rests on a speech from none other than Bryan Cranston is a real treat. Overall, after a hit-or-miss first episode, the show seems to have found its footing, delivering a great number of laughs per minute, stitched onto a comically outlandish plot that gets bigger and bigger without sacrificing the comedy.