So how does it all end?

For this post, I'd like to discuss the most important facet of any post-apocalyptic setting:  The End.  The world as we know it being destroyed is the only thing that EVERY piece of PA (I'll be using this shortened form a lot, since writing the whole thing is going to get very tiresome) must include.  So what are some of the more popular forms of destruction?

1.  Nuclear Winter:  This is probably the most common form of apocalypse.  Considering how much the cold war influenced this sub-genre, it's more than understandable too.  Even today we worry about rogue nations with their finger hovering over that big red button, and in the blink of an eye everything we know could be wiped away.  Common elements of this scenario involve the many ways people avoid the radiation that lingers for so many years afterward.  This usually means people retreating underground, like living in train tunnels in the novel Metro 2033, or residing in giant vaults in the Fallout game series.

2.  The Virus:  The 2nd place spot goes to viruses.  Whether a terrible biological weapon or just some mutated, unstoppable strain of the flu, humanity has been reduced to almost nothing by it.  Examples include Stephen King's novel (and movie adaptation) The Stand, or the Terry Gilliam film 12 Monkeys.  The interesting part about this scenario is that there isn't really any place to hide.  The survivors of this apocalypse are usually just the lucky few that are somehow immune to the virus, or they're a group in an isolated community that has somehow avoided contamination.

3.  Zombies!!!:  Honestly, zombies are so prevalent in movies, games, and literature that they technically encompass their own genre.  But the elements of PA are usually found in them.  People still clinging to survival, the world in shambles, and an ever-present threat making life a living hell.  I shouldn't even have to list examples of media that include zombies.  The one thing of note is that a majority of the time, the cause of the zombies is rarely ever explained.  I personally recall watching Night of the Living Dead with a former girlfriend, and she was asking repeatedly why there were zombies.  All I could really do was shrug and just say "there just are."

4.  Justin Bieber:  Yep, the Canadian teen heart-throb may not be the most common reason condemning the world to death and mayhem, but he IS the most believable cause.  Don't believe me?  I dare you to look at his youtube channel for more than 15 minutes without stopping and realizing that we are all doomed.