[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_crew_firearm_volley.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Our protagonists.[[labelnote:From left to right:]]Monday, Lizzie, Alice and Lou.[[/labelnote]]]]

Created by Allison Shabet, '''Dead Winter''' is a ([[SlidingScaleOfSillinessVersusSeriousness mostly]] lighthearted) [[LongRunner long running]][[note]] Been around since 2007 [[/note]] webcomic chronicling the ZombieApocalypse starting from two points of view: Lizzie, an English major college student working as a waitress, and badass hitman Black Monday Blues.

Monday becomes involved in a vendetta against his former employer, while Lizzie simply tries to survive; eventually the two story arcs merge. Other members of the main cast include the [[ThePollyanna optimistic]] [[TheMedic medic]] Alice and Lou the fat Italian plumber. The comic has quite a bit of a rogues gallery; from the obvious zombies ([[NotUsingTheZWord although not called that]]), Lizzie's AxCrazy {{jerkass}} of a former employer Frank, a gang compromised of yellow poncho wearing survivors more interested in raiding, [[PoliceAreUseless the law enforcement]] and even ''[[ArmiesAreEvil the Army]]'' alongside a few others. Secondary plots (mostly in the chapter epilogues) include Lizzie's fiance Trevor, her cat Cuddles, other survivor groups/crews trying to do their best to live and the [[CarnivalofKillers mercenaries/assassins]] set loose by Monday's former employer and other bored rich men.

You can find and read the comic on it's website [[http://www.deadwinter.cc here]]. The series can get pretty NSFW (obviously because of all the blood and gore) but the comic includes some nudity, [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness especially in the early parts]]. The comic also has a [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic twitter account]] and a [[https://deadwintercomic.tumblr.com/ tumblr blog]], both post Dead Winter mini-comics (which according to WordOfGod, may be canon to the series itself). You can now check them out in the comic's archive page as well.

A videogame about the Webcomic is also under development. You can follow it's dev cycle through the aforementioned [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic twitter account]], or you can join the author's Discord server: [[https://discord.com/invite/y3A7aHm Lucky Raven Games]].

Not to be confused with the TabletopGame/DeadOfWinter tabletop game, which coincidentally enough is also set in a ZombieApocalypse. Nor should it also be confused with Music/DeadWinterDead.

Has a [[Characters/DeadWinter Character Sheet]], that's still under construction.
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!!This Webcomic provides examples of:
* AcquiredPoisonImmunity: Violet Blues [[spoiler:[[http://deadwinter.cc/page/448 poisons her would-be assassins]] while drinking the same tea. She even tells them what she's doing.]]
--> '''Violet''': Trying times, those were. Such poison in your own blood, it's unthinkable!
--> '''Violet''': You either build a tolerance to it, or it'll eat you alive, I'm afraid.
* ActionGirl: The cast has a large number of female characters, many of whom kick considerable amounts of ass. Liz slowly progresses into one.
* ActionSurvivor: Lizzie obviously, she's a former waitress forced to fend for herself in the Zombie Apocalypse. Alice and Lou can qualify as well, although the former has had training in how to shoot guns from her late father.
* ActualPacifist: Lizzie wants to be one, but see below.
* AdrenalineMakeover: Lizzie's part of the story revolves around finding her badass survivor self before she gets killed like everybody else.
* AirVentPassageway: Lizzie's only way [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/290 into the Omnimart]].
* AltText: Starting in strip 285, counting from the beginning. One particularly notable example comes on [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/473 Page 473]], which has the Alt Text "[[Website/YouTube KQMBz6HvSoM]]".[[note]][[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQMBz6HvSoM Kickstart My Heart - Motley Crue.]][[/note]]
* AmbiguouslyBi:
** Alice and Lizzie. Monday [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/608 spells]] out for Lizzie that Alice is attracted to the her. Alice also gave Trenton a tearful goodbye kiss [[spoiler:when he pulled a HeroicSacrifice]]. And then for Liz, she has a boyfriend named Trevor; the relationship was even going well enough that the two were actually thinking of getting married, yet she also seems to reciprocate and appreciate a lot of Alice's affection and kindness.
** Seems to leave the ambiguous territory and go straight into overtly bi with [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/621 this]] comic page, where Lizzie finally admits to herself that she's in love with Alice.
* AntiHero: Monday; he's a cold-blooded hitman out to kill his employers and the other assassins in their CarnivalOfKillers. Yet when push comes to shove, he's willing to do the right thing if he's able to.
* ArmiesAreEvil: The Army unit that Cpl. Ross used to be in got some ''interesting'' ideas about repopulating the earth. The National Guard and/or regular Army also ended up fighting a small war with the city Police, although they view themselves as the good guys and it could arguably be considered a huge misunderstanding.
* ArtEvolution:
** Compare the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/1 first comic]] to the [[http://www.deadwinter.cc most recent ones]]. Though evolution had been ongoing, on [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/139 page 139]] the artist started using sharper lines in the foreground, a change which gelled noticeably over the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/145 following pages]] and moved into the backgrounds as well. It has continued to evolve slowly, and by 2018 her style is pretty well settled.
** Also notable effects of the ArtEvolution are the guns, whom at first look [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/12 servicable]] and slightly recognizeable to slowly getting more and more detailed to the point that it's not only GunPorn but with a keen eye, some can be identifiable.
* ArtShift: The between-chapter short arcs are black-and-white line drawings, as compared to the shaded grey-scale main comic. Compare [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/136 this]] to [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/139 this]], for example. Most of the comic is in monochrome[[note]]except Lizzie's scarf and Monday's glasses of course[[/note]], but Lizzie's dreams are in color. Amusingly, the [[http://deadwinter.cc/archive archive page]] illustrates this in how it shows the individual page references: grey blocks for normal comics, hatched black-and-white blocks for the end-of-chapter arcs, and red blocks for colored pages.
* AssholeVictim: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/031 The old man that Monday bonked]], then [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/033 stole his home]] and [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/034 left to die a horrible death]]? [[spoiler:Turns out to be a pedophile who was [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/040 keeping a young girl named Sally in his closet]].]] You might've felt pity for him at first, but that reveal just throws it all out the window.
* AtomicFBomb:
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/394 Lizzie]] lets one loose [[spoiler:after going into her dream world and finding out that she's now Foite]].
** Stacy fires off another, with a literal (yet also obviously imaginary) [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/183 mushroom cloud]].
* AffablyEvil: Johnny Rhythm is a genuinely nice person and generally won't kill you unless you're his target or you give him a reason to.
* AxCrazy: Frank, Lizzie's old boss. The man seemed to have anger issues before the ZombieApocalypse started, but when it rolled around he's gotten even ''[[SanitySlippage worse]]''.
* BadassBoast: Yuri delivers a pretty damn [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/338 good one]].
* BadassDriver: As we discover when [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/441 Patrick lends the team his car...]]
-->'''Liz:''' [[DrivingStick Standard]]? Pssh! No sweat, Chet! I'm English, I can drive ''anything!''
* BadassInANiceSuit: Monday, most of the time; here's an [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/351 example.]]
* BadassLongcoat: Monday, again.
* BadassNormal: Lou, compared to Monday, Alice, or Liz. He's pretty naive, yet he's a smart and stalwart friend fights off zombies with whatever he has to hand (including [[ImprobableWeaponUser a plunger]]).
* BandageMummy: Happens to [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/617 one of the members of the trio]] that checked out Tombstone, specifically the one who taunted Liz that he didn't tip.
* BatterUp:
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/019 Monday]] shows [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/021 proficiency]] with this trope. He even calls out some baseball plays, although he later discards it.
** Fittingly enough, this is also [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/317 Dale's]] weapons.
* BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind: Lizzie's dream sequences consist of her trying to come to terms with her inner badass "Foite", whom she had suppressed for most of her life. She's literally forced to fight her own inner demons in order to be able to cope with the zombie-infested environment.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: ''Apparently'' [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/77 Monday is responsible]] for the deaths of [[spoiler: Anna Nicole Smith, John F. Kennedy Jr., and Kenneth Lay]].
* BerserkButton:
** Do ''not'' tell Lizzie that she doesn't have a choice.
** Also do ''not'' taunt Lizzie [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/588 about not tipping her because the food was bad]].
--> "THE FOOD IS NOT THE SERVER'S FAULT."
* TheBerserker: ''Frank''; the bastard's completely lost it thanks to the Zombie Apocalypse and his former employee Lizzie bailing out on him.
* BewareTheLiving: The Dead slowly become less and less of a nuisance to our heroes, so naturally the living people that have turned into psychos or are only out for themselves become more of a threat.
* BigFun: Lou, as a giant contrast to Frank. Lou is overweight, but overall is a very friendly and helpful guy.
* BigWhat: Liz is asked to perform an heroic acrobatic feat on top of a moving van that's mowing down zombies, while she is suffering from multiple injuries and taking codeine[[note]]which would affect her reflexes and judgement[[/note]]. Her reaction is [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/276 less than enthusiastic]].
* BirdsOfAFeather: Monday and Dale, the silent and incredibly badass members of their respective groups. When they first meet the two are clearly cautious of each other, but once they learn how similar they are the two get along really well.
* BlastingItOutOfTheirHands: Monday both delivers one and is a victim of this trope.
** He shoots a police officer's shotgun [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/239 out of their hands]] although it leaves him annoyed.
** While Monday is playing with his knife, one of Tombstone's guards [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/498 catches his attention]]. Just like the former he's ''very'' annoyed.
* BlueIsHeroic: Whenever the group is drawn outside its usual DeliberatelyMonochrome colors. Alice is usually depicted with shades of blue, which is quite fitting for the group's resident TeamMom and TheMedic.
* BoisterousBruiser: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/203 Yuri]], the resident burly HuskyRusskie.
* BreakTheCutie: Alice, both in the present and the backstory. However, she ''never'' knuckles under.
* BrickJoke: Monday walks out after ordering [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/32 here]]. Lizzie presents him with the bill [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/300 here]] to get some cash for the vending machine. Then he finally gets his sandwich when Alice mans the cafeteria of Omnimart.
* BringMyBrownPants: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/262 Take a look at the ground]] next to the soldier that nearly got a close shave.
* BroomstickQuarterstaff: Lizzie's iconic weapon is a mop she's grown proficient with not only in her days as a waitress but also being forced to use it throughout the zombie apocaylpse. While Frank does break the one she used throughout her time in his Diner, she picks up a replacement when going out of Chantelle's Birch Street Apartment.
** And it seems to run in the family; when we get glimpses of her mother, it appears she's armed herself with a broomstick!
** After losing her [[FryingPanOfDoom frying pan]] and Lizzie being needed to get into [=OmniMart=] through the [[AirVentPassageway air vents]], Alice [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/278 borrows]] her girlbro's weapon for [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/280 a while]] to [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/295 fend off]] the undead.
* TheBrute: ''Frank''; he may be overweight, but that guy's got some insane StoutStrength and durability.
* BulletproofVest:
** Befitting his job as a badass assassin. Monday secretly wears one underneath his clothes. Apparently it's strong enough to save him from a ''close-range shotgun blast to the chest'' -- even after that, he only appears to be lightly bruised. He's just ''that'' badass.
** One of the [[ArmiesAreEvil pursuing army]] guys [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/257 wears a bulletproof vest.]] It saves him from dying, and lets Monday adhere to Lizzie's ThouShallNotKill rules.
* TheBusCameBack: Happens twice when the Lizzie's group end up in Tombstone.
** The [=OmniMart=] employees make their [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/600 grand return in style]]!
** Remember that girl Monday saved from a pedophile and brought back to her parents despite having to face an entire horde of zombies? [[spoiler:It appears they made it to Tombstone and Sally even [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/613 made a return]]!]]
* CallBack: In the flashback showing the time when Monday was ambushed while resting in a hotel. The person manning the lobby is [[https://deadwinter.cc/page/632 armed with a revolver]] that the Danny Trejo-looking assassin [[https://deadwinter.cc/page/10 is seen using]] when accosting Monday in the alleyway.
* CarFu: After the crew finally arrive in [=OmniMart=], they realize they lost the ladder they were planning on using to gain access to the rooftop and now have to improvise. Seeing a large mob of shufflers near the area that Lizzie needs to climb for access to the [=OmniMart=] rooftop, Monday [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/279 elects]] to use Lou's van for these [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/280 purposes]].
-->'''Monday''': Tell me...\\
'''Alice''': Hmmm?\\
'''Monday''': How far would you say that mob of stiff is?\\
'''Alice''': Huh? About.. fifty feet? I don't know.\\
'''Monday''': Closer to five hundred.\\
'''Alice''': Wh-what are you doing?! Is that bad?\\
'''Monday''': It ain't enough room.\\
'''Alice''': Enough room? Enough room for what?!\\
'''Monday''': Ramming speed.
* CarnivalOfKillers: Monday's subplot; he's been hired to take part in a little sport [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame where assassins are being hired to hunt each other down]] by bored rich millionaires. [[spoiler:Even when the zombie apocalypse happens it doesn't stop the games from continuing]].
* CasualDangerDialogue: As the undead becomes less and less of a threat the characters slowly start to engage in this.
** The message Mr. and Mrs. Cooper leave for Lizzie while fighting off zombies. "Tell her Mum says to pack clean socks!"
** Late in the comic, the group has picked up enough experience and weapons that the zombies are more of a nuisance than a genuine threat. This culminates in a scene with Lizzie and Alice singing as they're driving down the street at high speed while being chased by angry zombies, police, and a biker gang.
* TheCharacterIceCreamBar: A fictional one, but the artist has drawn [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a9f7479cf81618ac710e32ebc4afe5b5/e8ef8a385827879c-73/s1280x1920/0ec836aeaf4c0e37338364129305adca8febe429.png ice-cream bar versions of the main cast]]. [[invoked]]
* ChefOfIron: A horrible psychopath he may be, but you can't deny that Frank's one tough bastard. [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/133 Crosses over to even]] MadeOfIron as surviving [[spoiler:getting hit by [[PipePain a huge metal pipe to the face]] that came from a speeding car is definitely nothing to scoff at]].
* ChekhovsGun: Unfortunately for the heroes, it's a bad one. The police hat Trenton gives to Alice comes back to haunt the group in a later chapter, when an Army squad [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/246 sees the hat]] and think Alice is with the police, whom they are opposed to.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Every child that has appeared in the comic are usually shown to be cheerful and friendly despite it being the end of days.
* ClusterFBomb: Quite a few to go around, naturally because of the dire and stressful circumstances.
** The leader of the Yellow Poncho group that sent a raiding party on [=OmniMart=] [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/345.htm lets one out]] as the entire thing goes to hell.
* ContinuityNod: The [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/060 house]] Alice and Trenton bring Lizzie to [[spoiler: after her accident]] is the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/046 same house]] the noob lived in. Kind of a stretch, but there's a ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' poster on a door in Pg. 46, and what looks like the same poster on the door Lizzie closes on Pg. 60.
* CoolCar: Patrick's ride, [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/459 It's the blue one just down the street ... you can't miss it]].
* CoolShades: Monday sports sunglasses with red-tinted lenses, [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/119 He also has spares if they get broken.]]
* CosyCatastrophe: Zigzagged.
** On the one hand, the zombies are still a threat and are the main catalyst for why society has broken down. On the other hand, it's ''that'' reason why everyone seems to be living much differently, some better than others. Thanks to a massive case of ZombieGait and most of the undead being rotten enough to be easily taken care of, they're usually not that much of a threat (in fact, this comic has a big case of BewareTheLiving). Some shelters seemingly try to live their lives normally, although still knowing that they have to be careful with limited resources.
** Nothing exemplifies this trope more than ''Tombstone'', a settlement where survivors have managed to at least find the next best thing to normality in the ZombieApocalypse. People still have to do their parts and work jobs to help keep the town running; Tombstone even has their own currency.
* CoveredWithScars: Lizzie after her car accident; they're healing (slowly), but are still lasting.
* CrazySurvivalist: Most characters are starting to sport shades of this to some degree, but the [[BadassPreacher Reverend Phillip]], who occasionally appears in intermission comics, [[MissionFromGod tops most of them.]]
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Lou is a naive BigFun plumber, but when it comes down to it, he's pretty damn good at being crafty and fending off the [[NotUsingTheZWord diseased cannibals]] or belligerent survivors.
* DanceBattler: [[MeaningfulName Capo Errol]], who's got [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1342532935048695808 dance moves that are fast enough]] to easily dodge Monday's shots.
* DeadlyGame: A large group of rich people is apparently behind a game of world-renowned assassins hunting each other for sport, with the assassins and their sponsors getting the bounty when they kill one of the other participants. Apparently, not all of the assassins in the game are there by choice; [[spoiler:Monday certainly isn't]].
* DecapitationPresentation: Frank, after his SanitySlippage into an AxCrazy SerialKiller obsessed with Liz, begins decapitating and then attaching the heads of his victims to his belt. The [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/093 first of them was Jack]], and he is very eager to have Liz be the next one. [[spoiler:After further SanitySlippage, he starts targeting any blond woman that looks like Cooper]].
* DeliberatelyMonochrome: Except for epic red accessories, and Lizzy's dreams. Actually played with when Lizzie [[https://www.deadwinter.cc/page/558 gets her third headband]], turning red as she puts it on.
* DenserAndWackier: While the main comic itself isn't exactly exempt from comedy and silliness, the mini-comics on the other hand crank it up to eleven.
* TheDeterminator: Everyone to an extent, given the environment, but boy does Frank [[DisproportionateRetribution hate Lizzie]]. Also [[IWillFindYou Lizzie's cat]], but that's just ''adorable''.
* DisturbedDoves: A murder of crows a short distance away takes off when Lizzie lets out a BigWhat on [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/276 this page]].
* DividedWeFall: Though the [[NotUsingTheZWord zombies/shufflers/infected]] are a serious threat, the cast often have more problems with other survivors being either [[BewareTheLiving overtly hostile]] or just unwilling to share resources. The Military, the Police ''and'' the Yellow Ponchos (later named Harbor City Hornets) are prime examples of this, as demonstrated [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/247 here]].
* DramaticIrony: ''All the time''. This comic loves showing us perspectives of people who are justifiably not communicating with each other due to mistrust, and that's not the least of the irony going around.
* TheEngineer: Lou; he's a handyman who can do more than just fix up pipes, electricity, and vehicles. Even Monday made a passing snark that Lou may have been planning to make a vehicle out of scrap when they go to the Sons of Surtr's Scrapyard.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Quite a few.
** Mr. Benjamin Sanders made his first appearance on the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/001 first page]] of the comic.
** Tombstone's Gate-B gatekeepers made their appearance way back in [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/101 page 101]].
* EarNotch:
** A rare human example on Lizzie's right and Alice's left ear, mainly thanks to Arlen nearly hitting the two with his revolver.
** Yuri also has one. [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/849830173313466398/072.png Apparently, he got it while he was fighting a bear]].
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
** While he may have a heart, Monday ''is'' a hitman, and he has killed innocent people, either because they were his targets or because they were collateral damage[[note]]He killed JFK Jr.(and, by extension, his wife Carolyn Bessette and her sister), as well as Anna Nicole Smith[[/note]]. However, he still cares about his parents.
** [[spoiler: Nigel Cooper, Lizzie's dad, acquires and manages safe houses for Santos' assassins, and possibly other things. He does love his family, which is why he keeps a good distance between his work and his family.]]
* EyeObscuringHat: Quite a few of the characters with headwear fall under this trope; examples include Jack, Reverend Phillip, and Sixgun Johnny.
* EyepatchOfPower: Discussed by Lou. According to him, pirates wore eye patches to keep one eye dilated for fighting in the dark below deck.
** Foite has a bandanna covering one of her eyes to make it much more obvious that she's Lizzie's inner warrior and badass.
** Then there's also Snake-Eye, one of Tombstone's Gravekeepers, though he wasn't wearing the eyepatch in his first appearance.
* ExpressiveMask: Monday's red glasses often not only show his inner thoughts but also show things that wouldn't be in actual reflections, like the two skulls shown in the fourth panel [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/257 here]]. Borders on WingdingEyes at times.
* {{Expy}}: One of the assassins sent after Monday by Sloppy Joe looks remarkably like {{Creator/DannyTrejo}}.
* FanDisservice: Nothing serious, but in a couple panels you can very clearly see Lou's buttcrack, and there are at least one or two instances where you can see a zombified woman's bare breasts. Also, Liz's scars from the car crash she got into can count as this.
* {{FanService}}: A little in the beginning, especially during the shower scenes, but nonexistent in later chapters. Really, with all the gore going on, would you want it?
* FictionalCurrency: The Tombstone settlement has its [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/514 own currency]].
-->GOOD LUCK FORGING THIS IDIOT
* FingerGun: After stunning clark, she gets behind him and uses a FingerGun while doing the StickEmUp trope.
* {{Fingore}}: Hinted at by Alice, when Liz knocks on the Omnimart door.
* FlippingTheBird: Liz really loves doing these.
* {{Foil}}: Lou and Frank are almost the complete opposites of each other. While Frank is a FatBastard, Lou is BigFun. Even their relationships with Lizzie are polar opposites; while Frank was pretty close to being verbally abusive (now upgrading to physical abuse with a dose of psycho killer thanks to SanitySlippage), Lou and Liz are quite friendly, though not close. The two can clearly depend on each other when they need each other's help and trust one another to have each other's backs.
* FridgeHorror: In-universe, [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/295 Alice has a nasty realization.]] The implication seems to be that the bloodstain on the wall was there when she and Liz moved in because the last person who lived in there realized they were infected, and A) took their own life, or B) Chantelle took it ''herself''.
** Most likely A, due to the, ah, spray pattern above the couch.
* FryingPanOfDoom: Alice employs one of these on several occasions. She loses her first one while being chased by the police, but quickly arms herself with a new one when she and the group enter [=OmniMart=].
* FunetikAksent: Mainly Lou and Foite, but the author tends to have fun with those.
* GangOfHats: The first true post-apocalypse bandit group to emerge are the Ponchos, so named because they all wear bright yellow ponchos as an identifying mark. They besiege the [=OmniMart=] a few days before Liz and co. arrive, and eventually encroach on the settlement of Tombstone.
** To a lesser extent, the [[PoliceAreUseless police]] and [[ArmiesAreEvil military]] have also become little more than glorified bandit clans utilizing the resources of their former occupations, all while waging a violent turf war against each-other. The police are [[MoralMyopia myopic]] {{Knight Templar}}s who intercept travellers and confiscate their goods, even going as far as to run vehicles off the road. The military platoon, meanwhile, suffered from a bad case of TestosteronePoisoning after the apocalypse and is heavily implied to be engaging in sex slavery under the pretext of repopulating the human race.
* GardeningVarietyWeapon: The hat-wearing member of the trio of raiders led by Marv uses the seldom seen [[https://www.deadwinter.cc/page/581 manual polesaw]] as a weapon, wielding it like a [[SerratedBladeOfPain Serrated]] spear with [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/588 pretty good efficiency]] in a fight.
* GrievousHarmWithABody:
** Foite tends to use Flight for these purposes. Such as using her as a ball-and-chain [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/053 during a battle inside Lizzie's dreams]] and [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/170 even throwing her at Lizzie]] when she tries to run away from them.
** Lizzie herself uses this trope twice, using one zombie's head as a soccer ball against another zed. Another has her [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/587 lifting a zombie]] (that soon turns into a corpse thanks to Alice's support) before slamming it down into one of the Yellow Poncho members.
** [[RunningGag And yet again]], Lizzie finds herself being subjected to this trope, [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/863979383266082816/083.png courtesy of Lou.]]
* GoodOldFisticuffs: Quite a few characters are willing to get their knuckles dirty when fighting the undead or belligerent survivors. Most of them even have the strength and badass-ery to back it up (though a looter in one of the early comics [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/79 wasn't so lucky]]).
* GoofyPrintUnderwear: Apparently, Monday has fish-printed boxers.
* GunPorn: Plenty of them to go around due to the ZombieApocalypse. Despite the comic's artstyle, quite a lot of them are drawn in careful detail; if you have a keen enough eye, you can easily identify what kind of gun is being used. The crew has quite a bit of this to go around, but most definitely Monday's different handguns, Alice's Kel-Tec SUB-2000 and Lou's O/U (Over and Under) sawed-off shotgun.
* GunsAkimbo:
** Monday really loves this trope as a part of his EstablishingCharacterMoment. He steals a would-be assassin's revolver and [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/011 begins raining hot lead]]. He also [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/041 pulls out his signature glocks (with extended magazines)]] when bringing Sally back to her folks.
** Johnny Rhythm is also quite fond of this, carrying a pair of Schofield revolvers.
** Somewhat implied with Clark as he carries two revolvers. Although we mostly see him use one.
* TheGunslinger:
** Monday again; he has a preference for handguns with having the most varied usage of firerms out of the main crew.
** Also, Sixgun Johnny Rhythm, who has been brought in to go after Monday, looks like he stepped right out of a Western and has the aim to prove it too.
* GunTwirling:
** Due to being the main crew's gunslingin' assassin (although the other three don't know about that). Monday has pulled this [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/013 trick]] off a few times. Even his [=WIP=] [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/621102038310453268/861058067365625866/mondaywin.gif win animation]] has him spinning his pistols.
** As shown in some [[[=WIP=]] alternate win animations, [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/621102038310453268/861058734246854656/lizrwin.gif Liz]] and [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/621102038310453268/861062262080274462/lourwin.gif Lou]] try to pull this trick off too, but they aren't as skilled as Monday and end up [[EpicFail self-owning themselves]].
* HammerSpace: Implied. Lou's companions have started to notice that he always seems to have a fresh sandwich. When [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/416 called on it]], he doesn't say anything, but zips his jacket closed.
--> '''Monday''': ''Where do you keep getting those things.''
* HandCannon: A few to go around, like Yuri's obrez,[[note]]''A sawed-off Mosin Nagant''[[/note]] Chantelle's revolver, and Clark's new handgun, which appears to be a Smith and Wesson Model .500 revolver.
* HandwrapsOfAwesome: Both Yuri and Dale have their hands wrapped in boxing tape/bandages, although for differing reasons. Yuri uses it to protect his [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/569 fists]] when engaging in GoodOldFisticuffs against ''zombies'' (one notable moment has him punching a zombie's head off), while Dale has a few cuts on his arms [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/347 which Alice patches up]] but it definitely increases his badass-ery.
* HassleFreeHotwire: Lou teaches the girls how to do this. [[ChekhovsSkill This later proves to be a critical skill.]]
* TheHeart: Alice is this for her group, although at times she can be pretty mean.
* HenpeckedHusband: Ron, the assistant manager at [=OmniMart=], suffers the boyfriend version of this trope thanks to Chloe.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Trenton pulls this for both Alice and Lizzie, getting most of the horde's attention and opening them a path so they could escape while he mows as much of them down. He does this out of necessity due to being a ZombieInfectee and already feeling himself succumb.]]
* HiddenDepths:
** At first glance Lou's just a fat plumber, but he knows ''[[MotorMouth a lot]]'' about Roman history.
** Hey, man, wouldn't ''you'' put some effort into studying the inventors and codifiers of your discipline? 'Sides which, the Romans are one of those classic subjects of study, between the politicking, the wars, the engineering, and the general debauchery of the later empire.
** There's also Monday, the man maybe a cold-blooded hitman but he has his moments to show there's more to him than just guns and violence.
* HitmanWithAHeart: Monday; he may be cold-blooded at times, but when it comes down to it, he can show some pretty good heart. See PetTheDog.
* HuntingTheMostDangerousGame: Shortly before the zombie apocalypse, Monday is forced into a competition set up by a group of wealthy businessmen where a number of trained hitmen and assassins hunt each other in a crowded city. Even with the ZombieApocalypse rolling around, the competition is still on.
* IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim: Lizzie says this, to Monday's exasperation.
* ImplacableMan: Frank. Took a steel pipe to the face at several miles an hour, and he's still going!
* ImprobableAimingSkills: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/478 Alice has them.]] [[ShootTheRope Shooting the Rope]] while hanging out the window of a moving car? That's driving across the grass in the middle of a ''park?'' [[Literature/FenimoreCoopersLiteraryOffenses Natty Bumppo]] would be impressed!
* ImprovisedWeapon: Plenty, the most notable one being Lizzie and her [[BroomstickQuarterstaff mops]] alongside her using [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/324.htm a soccer ball]]. At this point it almost seems like Lizzie's a master of this trope.
* InfernalRetaliation: The gang once encountered a horde of zombies that were on fire. Courtesy of Monday having kicked a highwayman into a pool of gasoline and throwing a lit cigarette at him.
* InstrumentOfMurder: Meet [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/771229387059363860/008.png Eddie]] the [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/833546868360609802/059.png Axe Man]].
* IWantMyMommy: [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/294 Lizzie calls out for her mommy]] when the [[AirVentPassageWay air vent]] she was in begins collapsing. Provides the page image!
* {{Jerkass}}:
** Rick. He talks Trevor into leaving Lizzie behind in the ZombieApocalypse. Why? [[spoiler:So he can drag Trevor up to a cave outside the city and [[WhileRomeBurns live out some idiotic college fantasy with his old frat buddies drinking beer and getting laid]]. Trevor does not take this well at ''all''.]]
** Frank, who treats Lizzie like dirt when she was working in the diner despite her being pretty much his only reliable employee. When she finally defies him, [[AxCrazy he doesn't]] [[SanitySlippage take it well.]]
* KatanasAreJustBetter: Played with, while in one page there's [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/124 a corpse with a katana laid beside it]]. We also see another survivor group that has [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/165 one fighter armed with a katana]] and fending for himself quite easily. And one of the Yellow Poncho members is pretty good with a Katana and even puts up a good fight against Liz (even dual wielding it with the [[SheathStrike sheath]]) although sadly it gets broken when the user gets slammed by [[GrievousHarmWithABody a zombie corpse]] courtesy of Liz (with some assistance from Alice).
* LawOfInverseRecoil: [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/260.htm Averted here]] with an UnsoundEffect.
* LetsGetDangerous: All the main characters, in some sense or another. Alice turns out to be extremely competent with guns thanks to childhood training, and Liz's mop-slinging abilities also prove useful for fighting off zombies. Lou eventually reveals a lot more toughness than his fat and [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/78 flatulent]] exterior implies. Monday is ''introduced'' in this way, seeming like just some [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/6 random guy in a bar]] about to be killed by a gang until he [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/11 effortlessly slaughters them all]].
* LetsSplitUpGang: The main party frequently splits into pairs (usually Liz/Alice and Monday/Lou) to cover more ground and break up local herds of zombies into managable chunks.
* LittleNo: Lizzie lets one out when she realizes [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/456 her bag (and the keys to the car she was aiming for)]] are in the hands of a bunch of cannibals on the other side of a fence.
* LighterAndSofter: The mini-comics are this in both tone and style. While the main comic is DeliberatelyMonochrome with a stylized semi-realistic style, the mini-comics are black-and-white with the characters being slightly deformed into more cartoon-ish versions of themselves. In terms of tone, while the comic itself is for the most part pretty light-hearted and quite optimistic, the mini-comics are more focused on just being fun.
* TheLoad: Lizzie at first, but she [[ActionGirl gets]] [[TookALevelInBadass better]]. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in that she started as a waitress and a pacifist with no martial training, and had just gotten out of a car accident with serious injuries.
* LoveEpiphany: Happens on [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/621 this page]] of the comic, where Lizzie finally comes to terms with the fact that she has fallen for Alice after everything they've been through together while also getting over her relationship with Trevor.
* TheMedic: Alice, with a dosage of TeamMom for good measure. She's always there to help patch up the group whenever they get into some scuffles, but she's more than willing to extend that helping hand to other people.
* MercyKill: Trevor [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/14 nearly does this to Lizzie]] at the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, since he believes she doesn't have the skills necessary to survive. He couldn't force himself to do it, though.
* MoreDakka: [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/361.htm This page.]]
* MundaneMadeAwesome:
** Every 100th page is an animated gif comic. No. 100 is Monday defending himself from a bad crew in an amusingly badass fashion, while no. 200 features Monday demonstrating why one does not fuck with him. In both cases, pretty damn badass and with explosions. In no. 300, there's no gunplay, no explosions... just [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/300.htm Liz presenting Monday with his bill.]]
** Behold, the power of a '''[[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/853828675874455553/075.png Full Night's sleep!]]'''
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Trevor, who always regretted abandoning Lizzie when the zombie apocalypse started. Eventually his guilt gets the better of him when he sees that he abandoned his girlfriend for an absolutely asinine reason, and he goes back to try to find her.
* NailsOnABlackboard: A variant: [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/273 zombie fingernails on a metal door]]. Which shortly upgrades to [[HellIsThatNoise "zombie fingernails being torn off on the door as rotting connective tissues give way"]], ''thoroughly'' {{squick}}ing Liz out.
* NeckSnap: Monday [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/87 breaks the neck]] of a wannabe highwayman with one hand [[note]]After sticking his cigarette in his [[Eyescream eye]], then stealing his gun[[/note]] and also to [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/451 a police officer]].
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Trenton goes out of his way to ignore the orders of leaving the city's denizens to fend for themselves, even charging into the local hospital to save Alice. All it gets him is a [[spoiler:bite to the leg]].
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Lizzie [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/588 delivers]] and is on the [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/589 receiving end]] of this trope while fighting the Yellow Poncho trio led by Marv. All happening one after the other, too!
* NotUsingTheZWord: Though it's obviously a ZombieApocalypse, the zombies are referred to as "cannibals" and other terms when given a name. Otherwise, people make reference to them being sick, somehow.
** Judging by the GenreBlindness these people have (they're doing well, but they're still GenreBlind), it seems like the concept of zombies was never conceived in this universe.
** Lampshaded in the cast sheet, where their entry is outright titled "The Z-Words", and opens with the following: "Shufflers, rots, shamblers, cannibals; anything but the Z-Word."
* OddFriendship: Monday and Lou get along surprisingly well, even if it appears one-sided. Hell it's almost a wonder Monday put up with [[MotorMouth Lou]] when they met in the first place.
* OffWithHisHead: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/104 Frank tries this with Lizzie]], [[spoiler:and then goes on to [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/339 inflict this on various blonde women he mistakes for Liz]], with one recent victim being a [[CopKiller cop]]]].
* OhCrap: Many times, but [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/261.htm here's a good one]].
* PapaWolf: Monday goes on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge after his family is threatened.
* PetTheDog: Monday gets one when he saves the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/040.htm kid]] from the zombies. He also adheres to Lizzie's maxim of ''"Don't kill anybody"'' for no apparent reason. [[spoiler: Until the incident with Ron, that is.]]
** "No apparent reason" could be that he [[spoiler: (correctly)]] believes Lizzie's father is one of his employers, so he wants to stay on her good side to get to him.
* PillowPistol: During their stay in Tombstone, Monday has [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/598 one of his Glocks hidden underneath his pillow completely visible]]. He [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/599 nearly reaches for the damn thing]] thanks to Lou's MotorMouth tendencies, thankfully stopping once Lou's sound asleep and immediately conking alongside him.
* PoliceAreUseless: Worse yet, they're part of the ''problem''. When the apocalypse hit, the police chief called a "Code Citadel", which apparently means "Abandon the citizens, fortify police station, confiscate supplies". They're seen to send out cruisers and teams to apprehend and rob survivors like bandits, as Liz and co. experience firsthand. However, [[{{Hypocrite}} they still insist that they're maintaining the rule of law,]] and react [[BerserkButton harshly]] to [[MoralMyopia any sort of resistance]]. So far there seems to be only ''one'' cop that's [[TokenGoodTeammate actually chosen to still try and save people]], [[spoiler:but sadly Trenton bites it]].
** The cops hate the military for taking over the task of containment, the deployed military troops hate them back for defying military orders. It gets to the point where both sides are willing to kill people from the other group and start a violent Turf war.
* ThePollyanna: Alice, who's a never-ending ray of sunshine in the darkness of the ZombieApocalypse.
* ProfessionalKiller: Monday's a hitman who's worth as much as he has killed. Taking some of his [[BeenThereShapedHistory victims]] into account, he's worth ''a lot''.
* PurpleIsPowerful: Whenever Monday is drawn with color outside the comic's DeliberatelyMonochrome style, for some reason he is predominantly purple/violet. Even his CoolShades which are usually colored red in the comic itself.
* {{Ramprovisation}}: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/478 Alice shoots down a hanging sign]] to serve as a ramp when the gang are leaving the park by car.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech:
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/10 Monday]], when asked for some last words by his sloppy would-be assassins..
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/24 Lizzie]] when she tells Frank to TakeThisJobAndShoveIt.
* RedemptionQuest: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/403 Trevor]] is on one, after not only trying to MercyKill his girlfriend but leaving her to die in the ZombieApocalypse.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Quite a few characters tout six-shooters that are chambered in pretty strong calibers, Sixgun Johnny Rhythm being one of the most prominent.
** RevolversAreForAmateurs: Then there's Arlen, who uses a snub-nosed revolver and clearly hasn't had proper training with it. He pulls it out to protect himself and his children (mostly by pointing it at strangers). Unfortunately, his gun-toting overprotectiveness [[spoiler:costs him his life when he meets someone faster on the draw]].
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge:
** Monday is on one against his former employers, which is only ''temporarily'' interrupted by the ZombieApocalypse.
** Frank is also on one, but for DisproportionateRetribution reasons.
* RuleOfCool: The webcomic runs on this rule sometimes, which is probably why quite a few of the main, supporting, and even antagonistic cast are still ''alive''.
* RunningGag:
** Lou and his sandwiches.
** Lou ''will not shut up'' about Ancient Rome.
* RussianReversal: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/338.htm Uttered by the resident Russian, no less.]]
* SelfPoisoningGambit: Violet Blues [[spoiler:[[http://deadwinter.cc/page/448 uses this]] against her would-be assassins.]] Also see AcquiredPoisonImmunity.
* SerialKiller: Various intermission pages reveal that [[spoiler:Frank survived being nailed in the head by a ''drive-by giant metal pipe'' and now stalks the city as a deranged maniac, ambushing and [[CreepySouvenir decapitating]] any blonde woman who passingly resembles Liz (to go along with his dead buddy Hijack's head)]].
* SharpDressedMan: Monday's preferred sartorial mode. Includes BadassLongcoat and WaistcoatOfStyle.
* ShirtlessScene: Monday shows off a rather impressive physique on their first night in Chantelle's apartment building.
* ShoutOut: The main comic has quite a few references, but the mini-comics however crank these up to eleven.
** Probably one of [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/89 the first]] {{Easter Egg}}s in the comic is a [[TheCameo cameo]] appearance of [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1378910303589634048 Jenny]] from ''Webcomic/TheZombieHunters''. ZombieApocalypse Webcomics gotta stick together.
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/012.htm Monday quotes]] ''Film/{{Dolemite}}'' while gunning down some goons that were sent to assassinate him.
** In one of Lizzie's dream sequences, the alt text [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/399 references]] ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear''.
--> '''Alt Text:''' ''Heaven or Hell. Duel 1. Let's rock!''
** And the mini-comic [[https://help.twitter.com/using-twitter/how-to-tweet#source-labels "Here Comes Daredevil"]] is more overt with it's ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' references.
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/315 This]] [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1378882800795926531 page]] has several, in plush form. A baby [[Webcomic/StarSlip Cirbizoid]], [[Webcomic/PvP Skull the Troll]], what may be the 'This is fine' meme dog and possibly others.
** When Lizzie is driving Pat's car, you can see [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 a familiar]] [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/623290823794229248/945308407114661928/unknown.jpeg logo]] on [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/623290823794229248/945308375707684914/Screenshot_20220221-080043_Chrome.jpg Pat's air freshener]].
** The [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1378810999722160129 two protagonists]] from ''VideoGame/ZombiesAteMyNeighbors'' [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/600 appear]] [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/603 among]] [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/604 the survivors]] residing in Tombstone. Thanks to the comic's DeliberatelyMonochrome style (with the only thing colored being red accessories), the red lens of Zeke's 3D glasses is colored.
** The aptly titled [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1338957994667749376 "You Gotta Believe!"]] mini-comic is an obvious one to ''VideoGame/ParappaTheRapper''.
** [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1360303950549909506 "Straight to Monaco"]] does the [[Franchise/{{Peanuts}} good old Charlie Brown Football gag]] although the context is very different.
** While operating on a patient [[labelnote:*]](who wears a cap that makes him look suspciously like a scout[[/labelnote]] in [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1357766128446173185 "Sunny Side Up"]] Alice finds [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 a bird inside of someone's intestines]].
** [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1355241219023122438 "Quittin' Time"]] is just Lou channeling his best [[Franchise/TheFlintstones Fred Flinstone]] impression.
** [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1362835585942044673 "Brimstone Boleros"]] is an obvious one to the famous ''WesternAnimation/TheSkeletonDance''.
** [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1369368830041071620 "Reckless Hold'em"]] has a few to other card games.
** [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1379503557162991616 "Double Shift"]] has [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog double]] the [[Film/TheAvengers2012 references]].
** [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/861455471541747753/081.png "Outfoxed"]] is clearly modelled after old Rubber Hose era cartoons.
** [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/860015890132500511/080.png "Mix-Ups"]] has Sally and Monday play a fighting game that's clearly based on Franchise/StreetFighter.
** The Cast page also has quite a bit of this. Clark's a competitive ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' player and Dan is the world 's #1 ''living'' ''Franchise/MegaMan'' fan.
* SmokingIsCool: Surprisingly large amount of smokers in this webcomic. Monday is a chain-smoking badass and his fellow stone-cold badass Dale enjoys a cig too.
* SpareAMessenger: The {{Creator/DannyTrejo}} look-a-like asks to be spared to be used as a messenger for his employer after their attempted assassination on Monday ends horribly, [[AvertedTrope Monday doesn't really care for that sort of thing]].
-->'''Monday:''' ... What survivor?
* SplashOfColor: While the comic has a DeliberatelyMonochrome style, red accessories tend to be one of the only things colored. [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/356 Monday's shades and Lizzie's bandanna]] are rendered in bright red; in [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/332 one very angry frame]], so are Monday's eyes.
* StupidCrooks:
** [[MeaningfulName Sloppy Joe]], a clumsy hitman who outsources his work and is easily killed by Monday. Even the crooks he hired to kill Monday aren't exactly professionals either, with Monday [[ReasonYouSuckSpeech makes a point of it]] just before tearing through them.
** While Lou and Monday are walking around during the early stages of the ZombieApocalypse, a bunch of looters steal a TV while a bunch of undead are converging on them. It doesn't take a genius to guess what happens to them next.
* SunglassesAtNight: Monday yet again, with the reasoning being handily explained [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/391.htm here]].
* SurprisinglyCreepyMoment: The mini-comics are normally more brighter and light-hearted than the main series [[https://twitter.com/deadwintercomic/status/1340018238059634689 but it's not afraid]] [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/789029848231182356/022.png to catch you off guard]].
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Lizzie and Alice think there's some great loot to be found inside of a highrise office building. [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/796665789909827597/030.png There's not]].
* TaintedVeins: Jill, one of the [=OmniMart=] employees, is a ZombieInfectee sporting these.
* TeamMom: Sweet ol' Alice; she also doubles as TheMedic.
* TechnicalPacifist: Lizzie eventually develops into one of these. Killing rotters is simple matter of self-preservation, even though she believes that they're just insane plague victims, but she eventually accepts the need to fight [[BewareTheLiving human beings]] in order to protect the people she cares about (though she staunchly [[ThouShaltNotKill refuses to kill]] if it can be avoided, which leads to friction between her and Monday).
* TerrifiedOfGerms: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/25 Frank]]. Lizzie uses this against him [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/104 to win a fight]].
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/333.htm Page 333]] showcases a perfect example of this trope.
* ThirdPersonPerson: Yuri, in the intermission strips. Somewhat fitting, as he's a big HuskyRusskie.
* ThisIsForEmphasisBitch: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/100 Meeting's adjourned, BITCH!]]
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Monday turns [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/085 his butterfly knife into a throwing knife]] almost effortlessly when facing some wannabe highwaymen.
* ToastOfTardiness: One of the [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/595 Tombstone guards has a piece of toast on their mouth]] while they are running late for their shift. The AltText is just the author cheekily giggling.
* TooDumbToLive: Considering this is a ZombieApocalypse story, we naturally get examples that show how people aren't exactly cut out for surviving the end of times. Granted, zombies seem to not exist in their universe thanks to how GenreBlind even some of the savvier characters are, but there's still a couple examples that really take the cake.
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/046.htm The noob]]. Wearing headphones blasting loud music when you go out and fight a horde isn't exactly the best idea -- it lets them sneak up on you.
** A couple of looters think it's a good idea to steal a bunch of stuff from an appliance store. While hordes of [[NotUsingTheZWord diseased cannibals]] are running around. [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/079 They pay dearly for it]] ''almost immediately''.
** Ron is operating under the impression that his pitiful role as store manager means jack during a ZombieApocalypse. As if his employees care about keeping their shitty part-time jobs or even authority when there are zombies clawing at the doors. [[spoiler: Needless to say, Ron overestimating his authority gets him killed.]]
* TwoLinesNoWaiting: Alongside the main plot, there's quite a few sub-plots. Most are shown during the end-of-chapter intermission strips, but some happen congruently with the main plot.
* TragicKeepsake: As Trenton pulls a [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]], he gives Alice his hat before ordering the two women to escape the horde.
* UnflinchingWalk: [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/100 Monday]] lights a small fire to let off some steam. Page 100, so it's animated, for more awesomeness.
* UngratefulBastard: Arlen, full stop. Even after the group risks their lives to get more food and supplies for Chantelle's building, Arlen convinces her to kick them out while they were doing it. [[spoiler:If that wasn't enough, he sabotages their vehicle by taking the keys]]. [[LaserGuidedKarma This all bites him in the ass later on]].
* UnsoundEffect: Frequent throughout the comic. Such as, but not limited to:[[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/027 Mop!]], [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/42 Dooooor-Bell!]], [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/260.htm RECOILLESS]], [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/295.htm Plunge!]]
* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: Monday doesn't seem to be perturbed at all by the fact that he's surrounded by the undead, and Lizzie just doesn't notice for a couple hours.
* TheVillainKnowsWhereYouLive: After Monday's rebellion, his employer sends two [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/446 hitmen]] to his parents' house. [[spoiler:Unfortunately for him, Monday's mother was herself an assassin in her heyday, and she discreetly poisons them.]]
* ViolentGlaswegian: Lizzie's inner personality [[strike:Fight]] [[FunetikAksent Foite]] has the accent, anyway.
* WaistcoatOfStyle: After ruining his old shirt, Monday replaces it with a three-piece suit from [=OmniMart=].
* WalletMoths: Lizzie needs a cold drink, but is [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/298 short on cash]].
* WallOfText: Tends to happen when Lou starts talking, especially [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/354 about the Romans]].
* WeaponTwirling: A [=WIP=] alternate win animation for [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/621102038310453268/861062082120384543/alicemwin.gif Alice]] has her doing this with a [[FryingPanOfDoom frying pan]], but ends up [[EpicFail owning herself]].
* WeaponBasedCharacterization: Many characters tend to stick to weapons they really seem to like, which makes sense as using a weapon they are familiar with is key to surviving.
** ImprobableWeaponUser: Lizzie + Mop.
*** Might be too early to say, but Liz seems to have averted [[GunsAkimbo the]] [[HandCannon usual]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter gun]] [[SniperPistol tropes]] and chosen a basic, easy-to-use, automatic pistol for her weapon. [[FiringOneHanded She even holds it with both hands]] -- [[AvertedTrope a rarity indeed.]]
** FriendlySniper: Alice, although Friendly Marksman would be more fitting thanks to her choice of weaponry.
** SawedOffShotgun: Lou begins lugging around a sawed-off over & under shotgun after stocking himself in [=OmniMart=].
** GunsAkimbo[=/=]{{Handguns}}: Black Monday Blues, of course. Overall he has a preference for sidearms/handguns but at times is willing to use bigger weapons.
*** See MoreDakka above for all four at once!
** Hilariously, there are alternate win animations with their alternate weapons that involve fumbling their Weapons Of Choice.
* WebcomicTime: As of December 2010, over 40% of the entire comic is about the ill-fated trip to the grocery store and back to the apartment and [[spoiler:back out again after being kicked out at gunpoint]], taking place over the course of a single day.
** Lampshaded by Liz on page 393.
--> '''Liz:''' My every bone is thankful this yearlong day has mercifully come to an end.
* WhamShot:
** The gang has just gotten a ride in Lou's van, and taken out Frank by hitting him with a drive-by pipe! Then, in the [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/135 last panel of the chapter]], astute readers might notice ''[[NotQuiteDead Frank's fingers twitching.]]''
** [[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/444 The zombies can]] ''run''.
* WorldOfPun: ''Especially'' the mini-comics.
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/455 Alice wasn't listening because]]:
---> '''Alice:''' Oh, sorry! I was in the zone. [[BoomHeadshot T-zone!]][[note]]The "T-zone" in shooting is formed by the line from the outside of one eye socket to the outside of the other, and the line down the bridge of the nose from there to the upper lip -- a successful shot to this area [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaccid_paralysis_(shooting) basically causes the target to collapse like a puppet with its strings cut.]][[/note]]
** [[http://deadwinter.cc/page/451 This cop]] pretty much writes Monday's PreMortemOneLiner for him:
---> '''Cop''': Alright, Bill, look sharp! They're trying to jackknife around us. Stay on point and don't let them edge out of --
---> '''Monday''': Let me just... cut you off right there.
** [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/758776616573730856/851316433865932810/073.png "Yo, Jimbo"!]]
* YouShallNotPass: [[spoiler: Trenton does one for Alice and Lizzie ([[HeroicSacrifice (but doesn't survive).]] Monday successfully pulls one off [[spoiler:against Frank]] and lives to tell about it.
* ZombieApocalypse: Duh.
* ZombieInfectee:
** Jill, one of the [=OmniMart=] employees, who was bitten in the arm at some point and [[AmputationStopsSpread cut it off in the hope of preventing infection]]. It didn't work. By the time the protagonists reach the [=OmniMart=], Jill has developed conspicuous TaintedVeins, but she's actually [[HandicappedBadass competent]] and at peace with her condition. Unfortunately, she ''does'' eventually turn and has to be put down.
** Averted in the case of [[spoiler:[[http://www.deadwinter.cc/page/184.htm Stacy]]]], but this wasn't enough to convince [[spoiler:Chantelle]]. Eventually it is revealed that [[spoiler:she escaped to the streets, met up with Cuddles, and found her way to Tombstone]].
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