Michonne

Michonne
The Walking Dead character
Michonne as portrayed in the comic book series (left) and in the television series by Danai Gurira (right).
First appearance	Comic: "Issue #19" (June 1, 2005) Television: Beside the Dying Fire (S02E13) (March 18, 2012)
Created by	Robert Kirkman Tony Moore (art covers) Charlie Adlard
Portrayed by	Danai Gurira
Voiced by	Samira Wiley (video game)
Information
Occupation	Lawyer (comic) Constable of Alexandria Fisherwoman at Oceanside (comic)
Family	Comic: Colette (daughter) Elodie (daughter) Two unnamed sisters Unnamed brother Television: Andre Anthony (son)
Spouse(s)	Comic: Dominic (ex-husband)
Significant other(s)	Mike Comic: Tyreese Morgan Jones Ezekiel Television: Rick Grimes

Michonne (/mᵻˈʃɔːn/ mi-SHOHN) is a fictional character from the comic book series The Walking Dead and is portrayed by Danai Gurira in the television series of the same name.^[1] Armed with a katana and harboring a mysterious past, Michonne is introduced clothed under a hood and pulling the shackles of two reanimated corpses for protection and camouflage. The two walkers are subsequently revealed to be her zombified boyfriend and his best friend. In both the comic and TV series, she has a prominent role in the conflict between the town of Woodbury led by The Governor, and the Prison crew (of which she was a member).

The direction of the character is contrasted between the two mediums (though in both mediums, Michonne is introduced as an outsider who quickly proves to be a valuable asset). In the comic, Michonne is a former lawyer as well as a divorcee with two missing daughters. She forms a complicated relationship with Tyreese. Her conflict with The Governor is much more violent in the comics, enduring sexual assault before mutilating him in revenge. Michonne's mental state deteriorates after many losses, bringing her closer to Rick Grimes who shares similar trauma. Despite finding temporary peace with Ezekiel at The Kingdom, Michonne runs away to Oceanside before making a return. Her absence was explored in a 3-episode mini-series by Telltale Games, exploring her departure and living life at sea.^[2][3][4]

Michonne's backstory is slightly altered in the television series, having a three-year-old son named Andre Anthony, while the fate of her boyfriend and friend remain the same. In the television series, Michonne's trauma and guarded nature gradually diminishes as she slowly recovers and finds herself opening up and investing in a community as well as Rick's core group. Her conflict with The Governor is motivated by his attempt to kill her after leaving the town under suspicion that he is dangerous and trying to protect her friend, Andrea. In addition, her relationship with the Grimes family is explored in more depth as she pushes her group to strive for a sanctuary in Washington, DC. In both mediums, she becomes a constable at the Alexandria Safe-Zone.

The character has been critically praised, often regarded as a fan-favorite in both mediums. Michonne was voted #86 on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes^[5] and Gurira's performance has been well received.

Appearances

Comic book series

Michonne, as she is first introduced in Issue #19 of the comic book series.

Michonne is introduced as a mysterious woman armed with a katana. She first appears towing two armless, jawless zombies in shackles and causes no small consternation among the group. She saves Otis from zombies and follows him to the abandoned prison where the group is based.^[6] She immediately bonds with Tyreese, recognizing him from his days in the NFL, and shares his passion for weightlifting.^[7] Having seduced him, she precipitates the breakup of Tyreese and Carol, which results in a relationship between Tyreese and Michonne.^[8]

Michonne reveals some details of her life before the apocalypse. She was a lawyer who had recently ended her marriage and lost all her children.^[9] At first, she appears to have suffered some kind of trauma or mental illness, often carrying on conversations with herself or with her deceased boyfriend, as Andrea first notices in the prison.^[8] Michonne later admits to Rick Grimes that she has imaginary conversations with her dead boyfriend to keep herself from breaking down, and as a coping mechanism to deal with the real world's horrors. In return, Rick shows her a rotary telephone he used to "call" his wife, Lori. Michonne appears to be reassured about her mental health.^[10]

Michonne is among the small group sent out to investigate the recent crash of a helicopter, and they stumble upon the town of Woodbury.^[11] The Governor betrays and captures them, and violently rapes and tortures Michonne^[12] He soon realizes she must be dealt with more aggressively when she kills all the participants in a gladiator-style tournament.^[13] The group escapes, but Michonne remains behind, saying "she has to take care of some things".^[14] She sadistically tortures the Governor before making her way back to the prison with the rest of the group.^[15] When the Governor retaliates, Michonne and Tyreese go on the offensive, attempting guerrilla warfare in order to buy the prison time to prepare for the next attack.^[16] Instead Michonne is forced to flee after nearly being captured, and Tyreese is captured and used as a bargaining tool to get into the prison.^[17] When this fails, the Governor kills Tyreese with Michonne's katana. Moments later, she returns and reclaims her sword, disappearing into the woods nearby.^[18]

After the events at the prison, she returns to look for the RV survivors and puts Tyreese's reanimated remains to peace.^[19] When she finds only footprints, she begins to follow them and stumbles upon Rick and his son, Carl. She saves Carl from a roamer and joins up with Rick and Carl.^[20] She bonds with them and keeps Rick's self-conversations secret.^[10] Michonne protects Carl as a mother would, and goes to great lengths to protect Rick out of respect for him.^[20] They rejoin other surviving members of the group at Hershel's farm.^[10]

Michonne travels with the survivors in search of safety, and inquires about Morgan Jones' whereabouts.^[21] When Rick asks if she finds Morgan attractive, Michonne admits that she does, but is still grieving over Tyreese's death.^[21] When the survivors locate the town of Alexandria, a safe haven from the undead, and think they have finally been given an opportunity to rest, Michonne has a difficult time relinquishing her sword, as seen with her confrontation with Alexandria resident Douglas.^[22] Another resident, Olivia, persuades Douglas to allow Michonne to keep her weapon.^[22] Michonne settles into her new "home" and even hangs her sword above the mantle. She recalls all of the horrific ways she has used it to survive, and finally proclaims, "I am through with you."^[22]

Michonne begins to let her guard down, and Rick asks Douglas if there is a job for her in the community. Since there is no need for lawyers, Douglas recommends making her a constable to uphold the law in Alexandria.^[23] Michonne attends a welcome party held by Douglas in honor of Alexandria's new residents, but is quiet and reserved during the festivities. When one of Alexandria's residents, Barbara, tries playing matchmaker between Michonne and a young man named Heath, Michonne wearies of the conversation among the partygoers and attempts to leave. Barbara makes a well-intentioned attempt to dissuade her, but becomes insistent about what Michonne would care to eat and says she'd hate to cook a meal Michonne did not enjoy. Michonne snaps and asks if that's all she truly concerns herself about. The guests grow silent. Michonne, uncomfortable, leaves.^[24]

She finds Morgan, who confesses to having left the party earlier, and they commiserate about not caring for chipper people. Michonne admits their conversation made her feel even more alone. She lets her guard down and rests her head on Morgan's shoulder. They end up having sex that night,^[24] but Michonne is annoyed and turned off by Morgan's refusal to let go of the fact that his wife is dead and gone.^[25]

Michonne ends up falling for Morgan. The two ultimately get a chance to make up afterwards, with her agreeing to take things slow and get to know each other better.^[26] She's devastated when he gets bitten, amputating his arm in an attempt to save his life.^[27] Michonne later apologizes to a seemingly-unconscious Morgan. She says she doesn't mean to be an insensitive person and asks for his forgiveness, only to realize he has already died.^[28]

The group successfully fends off an attack when Alexandria is swarmed by walkers, later holding funerals for Morgan and other fallen friends.^[29] Rick finds Michonne sitting at Morgan's grave, and she says she would have lived with Morgan for the rest of her life.^[30] Michonne asks Rick if this is funny, to which he replies everyone wants a relationship, and Michonne says she doesn't think she will ever be happy.^[30] Michonne helps in clearing up the last of the zombie horde in Alexandria and Rick approaches her, asking how she feels. Michonne replies that she is getting by, and thinks it's nice someone cares about her.^[31]

Michonne and Abraham are clearing roamers away from the Alexandria Safe-Zone perimeter when they are surprised by an unknown man, later revealed to be named Paul Monroe and nicknamed "Jesus".^[32] Paul reveals he has traveled from a community nearby and wishes to establish an alliance between them all.^[32] Rick lashes out at Paul, knocking him unconscious, and Michonne helps in tying him up.^[33] Rick, Michonne, and Abraham set out to scout the area for an impending threat, but realize Paul was telling the truth, and Rick decides to work with him.^[33] Rick, Michonne, Paul, Glenn, Carl and Andrea travel to Paul's community, the "Hilltop".^[34] Along the way, Paul helps the group defeat walkers even with his hands tied, proving his trustworthiness.^[33]

Once inside Hilltop, the group learns that Hilltop's leader, Gregory, has established a deal with Negan, the brutal leader of a group of bandits known as "The Saviors".^[35] The Saviors keep the area clear of the dead in exchange for half of everything the Hilltop survivors manage to gather.^[36] However, the Saviors have been abusing members of the Hilltop Colony and Rick volunteers to help deal with Negan, a decision Michonne seems angry about.^[37] The group is attacked by a group of Saviors on their way back to Alexandria, but Rick's group emerges victorious and kills all but one of them.^[38] Rick spares him so he can deliver a message to Negan, saying they are protecting Hilltop now and want half of Negan's supplies.^[39]

Abraham is killed by the Saviors and Eugene is captured, sparking a conflict between Alexandria and the Saviors.^[40] Michonne travels with Rick, Carl, Glenn, Maggie and Sophia to Hilltop, but they are captured by Negan along the way.^[41] Negan savagely bashes Glenn's head in with a baseball bat and leaves the other survivors, saying they will be back to collect half of Alexandria's supplies.^[42] Michonne and the others return to Alexandria, to find a battle has taken place between the Safe Zone and the Saviors, resulting in Rick's group capturing one of Negan's men.^[43] Rick lets the man go free, but Carl disappears sometime later, and Michonne joins Rick, Andrea, and Jesus on a trip to Negan's community, suspecting the Saviors have kidnapped Carl.^[44] After a brief scuffle between Negan and Rick, it is revealed Carl is safe and they return to Alexandria.^[45]

Michonne tries unsuccessfully to seduce Heath, who reveals Maggie told him about what happened between Michonne and Tyreese.^[45] She leaves and asks Heath to pretend as if the moment had never happened.^[45] Michonne and Carl are later seen fighting a group of walkers, and Carl is surprised by one of them, which falls on top of him.^[46] Carl says he is useless with only one eye, but Michonne assures him Rick is fine with only one hand.^[47] Michonne later tells Andrea that she feels as if she cannot talk normally to anyone anymore, including Heath.^[48]

Michonne, Rick and several others travel to a community known as "The Kingdom" where Rick plans to get help from Ezekiel to defeat Negan.^[49] She and Ezekiel become romantically involved, despite starting off on the wrong foot.^[50] Michonne participates in the war against Negan and the Saviors, which ends in Rick's group emerging victorious and imprisoning Negan.^[51] Michonne presumably resides in the Kingdom with Ezekiel, because she is not seen for a prolonged period of time, and Rick states that he still misses her "even after all this time." ^[52]

Michonne is first revealed stepping off of a sailboat. She immediately shows her negative feelings toward Ezekiel by asking herself, "Seriously, there was no one else he (Rick) could have sent?" As Rick asks many questions as to why Michonne had left Ezekiel and the Kingdom, she reveals that she abandoned her daughters during the outbreak and that she would never be able to start a new life with all of her regret. The conversation ends with Rick telling her to "get her shit together" and to "go back home."^[53]

Rick and Michonne discover the decapitated heads of Ezekiel and Rosita on pikes, and Michonne is devastated by her lover's death. They later find out that someone helped Negan escape from his cell. ^[54]

Michonne initially desires to go back to sailing with Pete, but Rick encourages her to become the Kingdom's new leader, since Eziekiel was killed.^[55]

Television series

Season 2

Michonne makes her first appearance as a hooded figure near the end of the second season finale, "Beside the Dying Fire" (though at the time Danai Gurira had not been cast for this role), wherein she saves Andrea from a walker by decapitating it with her katana, which features a triquetra on the inner crossguard.^[56][57]

As in the comics, she is accompanied by two chained walkers, side-by-side with their arms and lower jaws removed to prevent them from attacking. In removing their ability to eat, Michonne effectively tamed these walkers. Michonne has demonstrated economic uses for her pet walkers, such as using them as human pack mules by loading supplies onto their backs as well as a camouflage/repellent, as their presence and scent fools other walkers into thinking those accompanying them are also walkers. Michonne later decapitates the walkers shortly before she and Andrea are discovered by Merle.

Season 3

In the episode "Walk with Me", Michonne and Andrea are taken by a group led by Merle Dixon (Michael Rooker) from a nearby town called Woodbury, run by the Governor (David Morrissey). Andrea, having been severely ill after spending eight months on the road, embraces the town's sense of community which Michonne resists, suspicious of The Governor and his leadership. In the episode "Say the Word", Michonne ultimately decides to leave alone after failing to convince Andrea to leave. In the episode "Hounded", Michonne's suspicions of The Governor's true nature prove to be true as Merle and his men go after her under the orders of killing her. However, Michonne kills two of Merle's men and escapes. She then spies Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Glenn (Steven Yeun) on a supply run in a nearby town and overhears directions to the prison where they are staying, but Michonne is not able to make contact with them as they are ambushed and kidnapped by Merle. A wounded and weakened Michonne soon arrives at the prison with Maggie and Glenn's basket of infant supplies. In the episode "When the Dead Come Knocking", Michonne is brought into the prison, albeit cautiously, by Carl (Chandler Riggs) and Rick (Andrew Lincoln), who directs Hershel (Scott Wilson) to tend to her wounds. Michonne informs them of Glenn and Maggie's abduction by Merle, of the Governor, and of Woodbury. In the mid-season finale "Made to Suffer", she accompanies Rick, Daryl (Norman Reedus), unaware he is Merle's brother, and Oscar (Vincent M. Ward) to rescue Glenn and Maggie from Woodbury. In the process, Daryl is kidnapped. After Glenn and Maggie are rescued, Michonne breaks off from the larger group and proceeds to discover the Governor's zombie-head aquaria and reanimated daughter, Penny, whom she kills despite his pleas not to. She and the Governor get into a hand-to-hand fight, which she wins, stabbing him in the eye during the scuffle. Andrea's arrival and intervention at gunpoint prevents Michonne from killing the Governor, and Michonne instead withdraws. When Michonne returns to Rick's group, they question her reliability after her disappearance, but she counters that they need her due to the loss of Daryl.

In the mid-season premiere "The Suicide King", Rick continues to show distrust toward Michonne, and tells her that she will be sent away when she is fully recovered. In the episode "Home", Michonne observes Rick as he hallucinates an encounter with his recently deceased wife, Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies). When the Governor and his men attack the prison, Michonne helps defend it. In the episode "I Ain't a Judas", when Andrea comes to the prison to start a negotiation with them, Michonne tells her The Governor sent Merle to kill her, demonstrating that he won't allow anyone to leave (or live) who isn't under his control. In the episode "Clear", Rick has her join him and Carl on a weapons run to Rick's hometown, where she bonds with the two and eventually earns their trust (Rick confirms to her that she is "one of us"). She confides in him about his hallucinations and tells him she used to speak to her dead boyfriend. In the episode "This Sorrowful Life", Rick reveals to Merle that the Governor claimed he would leave the prison group alone if they handed over Michonne. Merle takes it upon himself to capture her and deliver her to the Governor, but as they talk in the car he has second thoughts and releases her; he instead ambushes the Governor's group alone and kills a number of them before the Governor finds him and kills him. In the season finale "Welcome to the Tombs", following another attack on the prison Rick, accompanied by Michonne and Daryl, sets out to locate the Governor. However, they come across the scene where the Governor slaughtered his own troops. One survivor (Karen) (Melissa Ponzio) leads the group back to Woodbury to locate Andrea, as they fear the worst for her safety after learning she had fled Woodbury for the prison, but never arrived there. They manage to find Andrea but not before she has been bitten by the reanimated Milton (Dallas Roberts), whom she managed to kill. Michonne offers to stay with her in her last minutes before killing herself to prevent reanimation, using a pistol borrowed from Rick. While Michonne is with Andrea in the room, the others outside the room hear a gunshot offscreen. Michonne is seen with Woodbury's remaining citizens and the rest of the group returning to the prison, as they also bring Andrea's corpse back to bury it.^[58]

Season 4

In the season premiere "30 Days Without an Accident", Michonne comes back to the prison from her tireless search for the Governor which have proved unsuccessful. In the episode "Infected", Michonne is about to head back out on her search, but tries to get back in when a walker attack is announced and she injures her ankle. Beth (Emily Kinney) tends to her wounds, and asks her to watch Rick's baby Judith; when Beth leaves the room, Michonne breaks down crying as she cradles the baby. In the episode "Isolation", she volunteers to go with Bob (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.) and Daryl to get antibiotics from a veterinary college to treat a deadly illness that has broken out among the prison population, and Tyreese (Chad Coleman) joins them before they leave. On the car radio they hear a message offering sanctuary at a place called Terminus before the car is swarmed by walkers and they are forced to flee on foot. In the episode "Indifference", they obtain the needed medicine from the college. Daryl and Tyreese argue with Michonne that the Governor won't be found, and that she is more needed at the prison, and she ultimately agrees to give up her search. In the episode "Internment", they return to the prison with the medicine after Rick and Carl have defended the prison from a walker herd. Michonne takes the bodies to be burnt offsite and Hershel decides to go with her. In the episode "Dead Weight", Michonne and Hershel are seen chatting and laughing in the distance as they prepare the bodies for disposal, unaware they are being watched by The Governor who aims his gun at them. In the mid-season finale "Too Far Gone", the Governor kidnaps Hershel and Michonne and convinces his new group to use them as hostages to take over the prison. At the prison, the Governor takes a well-armed caravan with a tank and demands that Rick order his group to leave the prison, using Hershel and Michonne as leverage. Rick tries to reason with the Governor with the offer of living together peacefully but The Governor declares him a liar and decapitates Hershel with Michonne's katana. Rick's group opens fire, and Michonne rolls away and unties herself. The Governor orders his group to kill everyone at the prison, and they attack, breaking down the fences with their vehicles. When the Governor is punching Rick in the face, Michonne impales him through the chest with her katana and escapes as the prison is overwhelmed by walkers drawn by the noise.

In the mid-season premiere "After", Michonne returns to the prison, where she discovers Hershel's reanimated head. After putting her katana through his head as a mercy kill, she takes two new walker pets and travels through the woods. While sleeping, she has a nightmare about her former life. The nightmare reveals that Michonne lived a comfortable life with her boyfriend Mike and her young son Andre before the apocalypse.^[59] While walking through the forest, she encounters a walker that looks disturbingly similar to her. Realizing the walkers will not attack her because they think she is already dead, Michonne chooses to embrace life instead and cuts down the entire herd of walkers. Following this, she has an emotional breakdown and has a brief monologue addressing Mike. Later in the episode she investigates footprints belonging to Rick and Carl and follows them to a house that they have taken shelter in, crying when she sees them.^[60] In the episode "Claimed", Michonne joins Carl on a run for more supplies in the neighborhood and reveals more about her past in an effort to cheer him up. She reveals she had a three-year-old son named Andre Anthony who died shortly after the outbreak began. Rick, Carl and Michonne are forced to travel in the direction of a camp known as Terminus because a group of men intrude on their house.^[61] In the episode "Us", Michonne, Rick, and Carl are following a set of train tracks, and it is revealed that the group of men have been tracking them. In the season finale "A", Michonne, Rick and Carl are nearing Terminus. In the night they are ambushed by the group of marauders and held at gunpoint. Daryl, who is travelling with the marauders, attempts to reason with the leader - Joe (Jeff Kober), to no avail. Joe orders his gang to beat Daryl to death, before telling Rick his group will rape Michonne and Carl before assassinating him. Enraged when Dan (Keith Brooks) tries to rape Carl, Rick snaps and brutally kills Joe by biting out a chunk of his throat. In the following confusion, Michonne manages to get hold of a gun and kill two marauders. With the marauders dead, the reunited gang continue to Terminus. On the outskirts of Terminus, Michonne confesses to Carl the details of Andre's death and the reasoning behind keeping two walker pets. Upon entering Terminus and realizing it is a trap, Michonne along with Rick, Carl and Daryl flee across the grounds, to eventually become captured. Forced into a container, the group are reunited with Glenn, Maggie, Bob and Sasha, as well as meeting Sergeant Abraham Ford, Dr. Eugene Porter, Rosita Espinosa and Tara Chambler. Michonne is present as the season closes with Rick uttering the words: "...they're screwing with the wrong people."

Season 5

In the season five premiere "No Sanctuary" Michonne and the others are able to escape Terminus and are reunited with Carol, Tyreese and Judith. In the episode "Strangers", as the group continues travelling Michonne offers to take out a nearby walker only to realize her sword was left behind in Terminus and kills it with a gun instead. As they travel they encounter Fr. Gabriel Stokes (Seth Gilliam) whom they distrust but he gives them shelter in his church. Abraham tries to insist they travel to Washington D.C. where they can cure the outbreak, but Michonne insists to him they find supplies first. Later Gabriel leads Rick, Michonne, Bob and Sasha to a store to find supplies where Michonne reveals the sword was not hers to begin with but she found it and confesses to missing Andrea and Hershel but not the sword. In the episode "Four Walls and a Roof", the group takes shelter in the church while being hunted by the last of the cannabalistic members of Terminus. Rick's group gains the upper hand and Michonne helps in killing Gareth and the others. She discovers the Terminus group has been keeping her katana, which she takes back. In the episode "Crossed", the group learns Beth is still alive and being held captive in a hospital in Atlanta, so Rick leads a team to rescue her, leaving Michonne, Carl and Judith at the church. In the mid-season finale "Coda", Michonne helps defend against a herd of walkers that attack but the church is quickly overrun. They are saved by the timely arrival of Glenn, Maggie, Abraham and the others, and decide to help Rick in Atlanta. Upon arrival at the hospital, Michonne and the others witness Daryl carrying Beth's corpse out of the building.

In the midseason premiere "What Happened and What's Going On", Michonne pushes the idea of going to Washington, D.C. despite Noah's (Tyler James Williams) community being overrun in Richmond, Virginia. Later, Tyreese is bitten and Michonne is forced to amputate his arm, but he dies of blood loss anyway. In the episode "Them", Michonne shows concern for Sasha telling her not to give in to anger like Tyreese over her recent losses, but Sasha then breaks formation in silently pushing away walkers by attacking them. Sasha walks off irritated. The group trudge on sixty miles to DC, as they face a tornado in the process. In the episode "The Distance", Maggie and Sasha introduce Aaron (Ross Marquand) to the group, who reveals himself as a recruiter for a safe haven, Alexandria, and takes them there despite going a dangerous route because of their previous mistrusting of communities like Terminus and Woodbury.^[62]), they are hesitant to trust him because of what happened in Woodbury and Terminus. Rick initially decides not to take the risk, prompting Michonne to step in and challenge his decision. She argues that the group should give Aaron a chance for the sake of survival, successfully convincing Rick to change his mind.^[63] The group arrives at the gates of Alexandria the next day. Rick hears children laughing inside the community's walls, and Michonne smiles, knowing they have made the right decision.

In the episode "Remember", Rick's group has difficulty assimilating into the daily routines of the Alexandria residents.^[64] The people of Alexandria, led by politician Deanna Monroe (Tovah Feldshuh), have been shielded from many of the dangers and tribulations that the new world holds, which causes Rick's group to believe they are weak. Deanna asks Rick and Michonne to become the town constables, and they both accept their new roles. In the episode "Forget", Michonne has traded in her usual clothes for a police uniform.^[65] Deanna explains to Rick and Michonne that their basic roles as constables are to keep the peace and establish a sense of civilization inside the walls of Alexandria. Deanna invites the entire group to a welcoming party at her house, and Michonne reluctantly attends. Abraham finds her outside by herself, and the two have a discussion about adjusting to their new lives. Michonne is later seen hanging her sword on the fireplace mantle of one of Alexandria's houses, though she doesn't appear happy about doing so.

In the episode "Try", Rosita tells Michonne that Sasha has gone missing from her post in the tower. Worried, they venture outside the walls to look for her. They find several dead walkers and realize Sasha is actively hunting them. They track her down and help her eliminate a large pack of walkers, which leads to an outburst from Sasha. Later, when Rick and Pete fight in the street, Rick begins ranting to the gathered crowd and pointing a gun at them, and Michonne eventually silences him by knocking him unconscious. In the season finale "Conquer", Rick admits to Michonne that he and Carol stole guns from the armory and tries to return the gun, though Michonne says she would not have stopped him, and that she knocked out Rick to protect him, not Alexandria. She also tells Rick she is confident that they can find a way to integrate with Alexandria, but she will still follow him even if they cannot. At the town forum, Michonne is one of the people who speak in Rick's defense then witnesses Rick arrive with a dead walker, who got in because Gabriel left the gate open, and addresses Alexandria itself and how they aren't ready to survive but they have to be and he'll show them how. Pete arrives, drunk and angered, during the meeting with Michonne's katana, bent on assassinating Rick, and Michonne witnesses him killing Reg, Rick killing Pete and Morgan's arrival. Michonne is later seen contemplating mounting her katana back on the wall, but ultimately decides to carry it.

Season 6

Season 6 finds Rick, Michonne and the others struggling to keep the Alexandria members safe while also teaching them how to survive. In the season premiere "First Time Again", the group discovers an enormous herd of roamers trapped inside a quarry not far from Alexandria. They decide to use the herd as a learning opportunity and also eliminate the threat before it becomes a problem later. While trying to draw the herd away from the walls, Michonne, Rick, Morgan and a few others hear a horn sounding from Alexandria. The noise draws the attention of the walkers and the herd begins heading toward the walls. Morgan is sent ahead of the others to find out what is causing the noise. Rick decides to split up to draw more walkers in another direction, giving Michonne and Glenn the task of ensuring they get the others back to Alexandria and find out what is going on. In the episode "Thank You", Michonne, Glenn, and Heath struggle to stay ahead of the herd and keep the others alive. Glenn gets separated from the group and only Michonne and Heath return to Alexandria alive. In the episode "Now", Michonne informs Maggie she isn't sure what happened to Glenn, but that he would send up a signal if he was alive. Rick returns to Alexandria as well, but has been followed by the herd, and barely makes it back inside Alexandria's walls as Michonne helps close the gates. With walkers gathered outside the walls, the group must decide how to address the problem while waiting for Glenn, Daryl, Sasha and Abraham to return. Rick and Michonne learn more about what happened when the Wolves attacked, and Carol informs them that Morgan allowed several of the Wolves to escape (later killed by Rick). In the episode "Heads Up", Morgan maintains his belief that "all life is precious", and Michonne argues that life is not as simple as four words anymore.

In the mid-season finale episode "Start to Finish", the herd finally breaks through Alexandra's walls after knocking over the guard tower. Michonne, Rick, and Deanna flee towards the houses, but Deanna gets knocked over and falls onto a saw blade, causing a mortal wound to her side. Rick, Michonne, Deanna, Gabriel, Jessie, Carl, and others manage to get inside a house and struggle to keep the walkers from breaking in. Michonne tends to Deanna's wound, only to discover a walker bite on her side. Realizing her end is near, Deanna and Michonne bond while waiting out the herd. Michonne affirms her belief that the new plans Deanna drew up for Alexandria can still work, and Deanna encourages Michonne to find her own answer for what survival means for her. Michonne admits she isn't sure, but later promises she will figure it out. The walkers eventually break into the house and the group is forced to move quickly and leave the dying Deanna. Michonne spends a few last minutes with her, offering to put her down before she turns, but Deanna insists on ending her own life with a gun. Deanna tells her to "give them hell" and Michonne leaves. Rick devises a plan for the group to cover themselves in guts from two walkers they have killed, which allows them to move outside the house undetected by the dead. However, Jessie's son, frightened by the situation, begins calling out to his mother as the group joins hands and moves through the herd.

In the midseason premiere, Jessie and her sons are devoured by the walkers.^[66] Michonne is forced to stab Ron, who shoots Carl in the eye. Rick and Michonne get Carl to the infirmary and help the surviving residents drive the herd out of Alexandria. Two months later, Alexandria is being rebuilt and things have more or less returned to normal. After sharing a sincere moment with Carl, Michonne realizes what she desires in her life. That night, she and Rick kiss and have sex, beginning a romantic relationship.^[67] However, Rick's group soon becomes involved in a conflict with Negan, who captures most of the survivors and kills one of them with "Lucille" a bat wrapped in barbed wire.^[68]

Season 7

Michonne witnesses the deaths of her group members, Abraham and Glenn. She is later held at gunpoint, along with the rest of the group, and Michonne tells Negan that they now understand, as Negan demands Carl's arm be chopped off by Rick, but Negan stops him as it was all a test to break his will, which is successful. Sasha then helps get Maggie to the doctor at the Hilltop after Negan and his people leave. Michonne goes with Rick and the others in the RV.^[69] She later practices shooting a walker with a rifle, and does not want her community to allow Negan and his people to take all their guns. Rick then tells her about Shane being Judith's real father, and that he will raise her as his own daughter, so he must comply.

Development

Her first appearance in the season finale of Season 2 of the TV series was just a cameo and she was played by a stand-in.^[70]

Producer Frank Darabont stated in an interview with Fearnet in 2011 that Michonne would appear in the third season of the show.^[71] After Darabont was fired, there was speculation that those plans might have changed. However, in an interview with The Watercooler in late January 2012, Gale Anne Hurd confirmed that Michonne would appear in future seasons.

Danai Gurira was officially announced, during an episode of Talking Dead, to have been cast as Michonne. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Kirkman was quoted saying "there's a lot to that role, and Danai, more than any other actress, showed us that she could exhibit that strength and show what an intense character she could be and, at the same time, have that emotional core and be able to show a vulnerability to a certain extent that we don't see much of but is definitely there." He added, "She really was the whole package, and I think she's going to do a really good job".^[72] Danai later commented on implementing her comic counterpart's traits:

"I was trying to really investigate a character and allow her to have as much dimension as possible and crack it open even more. What you see through the writing and vision of the creator, you add to it by bringing your full humanity and by really delving into the character's background and their motives and fears; all those things can make a multidimensional character come to life. That's how I've been trained from the beginning and how I've created characters in the past on the stage or through my playwriting. I plan to bring all of that to the table to allow Michonne to be as rich and complex as possible. I'm excited to bring her to life as someone who really has a lot of life and a lot of complexity."^[73]

Reception

Michonne was voted #86 on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.^[74] Regarding the television portrayal of the character, her scowling expression, reserved nature, and "Magical Negro"^[75] qualities have been much-discussed by reviewers.^[76][77] Michonne's uniquely independent nature has been praised, with one website commenting, "A case could be made that no character is as independently strong as Michonne."^[78] However, others have criticized Michonne's lack of development on the show, writing that she "was quickly sinking into the "strong black woman" trope. She is constantly assaulted and manhandled with seemingly very little concern shown for her wellbeing."^[79]

References

1. Neumann, Clayton (March 18, 2012). "Actress Danai Gurira to Play Michonne in The Walking Dead Season 3". AMCtv.com. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
2. https://www.telltalegames.com/blog/discussion/96344/telltale-and-skybound-announce-the-walking-dead-michonne-a-telltale-games-mini-series
3. http://m.uk.ign.com/articles/2015/06/15/e3-2015-the-walking-dead-michonne-miniseries-announced
4. http://www.wired.com/2015/06/the-walking-dead-michonne-game/
5. "Michonne - #86 Top Comic Book Heroes". IGN. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
6. Kirkman, Robert (w), Adlard, Charlie (p), Adlard, Charlie, Cliff Rathburn (gray tones) (i), Moore, Tony (cover) (col), Kirkman, Robert (let). "The Heart's Desire" The Walking Dead v4, 19: [22] (June 2005), 1942 University Avenue, Suite 305, Berkeley, CA 94704: Image Comics
7. The Walking Dead #20 (July 2005)
8. The Walking Dead #21 (August 2005)
9. The Walking Dead #19 (June 2005)
10. The Walking Dead #53 (October 2008)
11. The Walking Dead #27 (April 2006)
12. The Walking Dead #29 (June 2006)
13. The Walking Dead #31 (September 2006)
14. The Walking Dead #32 (October 2006)
15. The Walking Dead #33 (December 2006)
16. The Walking Dead #45 (December 2007)
17. The Walking Dead #46 (February 2008)
18. Kirkman, Robert (w), Adlard, Charlie (p), Adlard, Charlie (inker, cover), Cliff Rathburn (gray tones, cover colors) (i), Wooton, Rus (let). "Here We Remain" The Walking Dead v9, 49: [22] (May 14, 2008), 1942 University Avenue, Suite 305, Berkeley, CA 94704: Image Comics
19. The Walking Dead #49 (May 2008)
20. The Walking Dead #52 (September 2008)
21. The Walking Dead #62 (June 2009)
22. The Walking Dead #71 (April 2010)
23. The Walking Dead #74 (July 2010)
24. The Walking Dead #72 (May 2010)
25. The Walking Dead #73 (June 2010)
26. The Walking Dead #79 (November 2010)
27. The Walking Dead #82 (March 2011)
28. The Walking Dead #83 (March 2011)
29. The Walking Dead #85 (May 2011)
30. The Walking Dead #86 (June 2011)
31. The Walking Dead #87 (July 2011)
32. The Walking Dead #92 (December 2011)
33. The Walking Dead #93 (January 2012)
34. The Walking Dead #94 (February 2012)
35. The Walking Dead #96 (April 2012)
36. The Walking Dead #96 (April 2012)
37. The Walking Dead #96 (April 2012)
38. The Walking Dead #97 (May 2012)
39. The Walking Dead #97 (May 2012)
40. The Walking Dead #98 (May 2012)
41. The Walking Dead #100 (July 2012)
42. The Walking Dead #100 (July 2012)
43. The Walking Dead #101 (August 2012)
44. The Walking Dead #106 (January 2013)
45. The Walking Dead #107 (February 2013)
46. The Walking Dead #108 (March 2013)
47. The Walking Dead #108 (March 2013)
48. The Walking Dead #108 (March 2013)
49. The Walking Dead #115 (October 2013)
50. The Walking Dead #115 (October 2013)
51. The Walking Dead #127 (May 2014)
52. The Walking Dead #131 (September 2014)
53. The Walking Dead #139 (March 2015)
54. The Walking Dead #144 (July 2015)
55. "The Walking Dead" #151 (February 2016)
56. "The Walking Dead Michonne's Katana (SKU: MC-MC-WD001, Price: $249.99)". Medieval Collectibles. Retrieved April 2013. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
57. Lacey (November 8, 2012). "The Blah-king Dead – Walking Dead Recap – Episode 3.3 – Walk With Me". Geekenfreude.com. Retrieved April 2013. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
58. Sepinwall, Alan (Mar 3, 2013). "Review: 'The Walking Dead' - 'Clear': The weak shall inherit the earth".
59. McIntyre, Gina. "'Walking Dead': Danai Gurira on slaying zombies, Michonne's nightmare". Hero Complex. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
60. Tepper, Sean (2014-02-10). "Spoiler alert: Mid-season premiere focuses on just a handful of prison survivors". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
61. Rawlings, Nate. "The Walking Dead Watch: 'Claimed'". Time. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
62. Goldberg, Lesley. "'Walking Dead's' Andrew Lincoln Previews What to Expect From Alexandria". hollywoodreporter.com. Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
63. Bryant, Adam. "The Walking Dead Postmortem: Danai Gurira on Michonne's Big Choice". tvguide.com. TV Guide. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
64. Moylan, Brian. "The Walking Dead Season Five Episode 12 - Recap". theguardian.com. The Guardian. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
65. Carbone, Gina. "The Walking Dead Spoilers: Analysis of Episode 513 "Forget" Promos, Sneak Peeks". wetpaint.com. Wet Paint. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
66. Egner, Jeremy (2016-02-14). "'The Walking Dead' Midseason Premiere: Carl's Big Moment Arrives". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
67. "'Walking Dead' Stars on Rick and Michonne's Surprising New Dynamic". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
68. Whitbrook, James. "The Walking Dead has Reportedly Filmed Death Scenes for All 11 of Negan's Potential Victims". io9.gizmodo.com. Gizmodo. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
69. http://www.rollingstone.com/tv/recaps/the-walking-dead-season-premiere-recap-the-big-bash-w445350
70. Neuman, Clayton. Actress Danai Gurira to Play Michonne in The Walking Dead Season 3 The Walking Dead (March 18, 2012)
71. "Darabont on 'The Walking Dead': Stephen King a Possibility; Michonne in Season 3". Screen Rant. June 25, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
72. Goldberg, Lesley (March 19, 2012). "'The Walking Dead's' Robert Kirkman on the Casting of Danai Gurira as Michonne". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
73. Goldberg, Lesley (March 22, 2012). "'The Walking Dead's' Danai Gurira Excited to Embody Badass Michonne". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
74. "Michonne - #86 Top Comic Book Heroes". IGN. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
75. DeVega, Chauncey (Nov 26, 2012). "Michonne or Maggie? Race, Gender, and Rape on The Walking Dead TV Series". Daily Kos.
76. Shaunna Murphy, Hollywood.com Staff. "'The Walking Dead' Recap: Walk With Me". New York Post. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
77. David Hinckley (November 15, 2012). "Renegade fighter Danai Gurira finds a fatal attraction in 'The Walking Dead'". The Daily News.
78. Ogden, Maxwell. "The Walking Dead: Setting A High Standard for Women on Television". Movie Pilot. moviepilot.com. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
79. "Is Michonne Really Progressing in The Walking Dead". Movie Pilot. moviepilot.com. Retrieved 5 January 2016.