Michonne Hawthorne (Comic Series)

"This is not who I am. I used to be talkative and friendly even fun... and I don't think I can ever go back to that."

- Michonne to Andrea, regarding how much she changed after the outbreak.

Michonne (pronounced MI-SHOWN ) is a character first encountered in Issue 19 of Image Comics' The Walking Dead and is a member of Rick's group, and a major character and protagonist within the series, and also one of the last remaining survivors who made it out from The Prison. Armed with a Katana and the deadly skills to complement it, Michonne is an effective and crucial defender of the survivors.

Characteristics and Role
Michonne tends to work alone and quietly, but, still fights for the survivors defense as strongly as the other active defenders. She is frequently referred to, and perceived by the other characters as one of the strongest members of the survivors, and frequently participates in the violent, but, necessary actions of the group, such as the conflict against The Governor and his henchmen. Her participation in the torture and slaughter of The Hunters showed a much more detached side of her than ever before. She admits in her imaginary conversations with her boyfriend that she cares for the group, showing that some humanity remains despite her torturous experiences. Michonne has shown from her break-down after torturing The Governor that she is still capable of vulnerability.

Despite her experiences, Michonne has proven her worth to the group; not only in her practical skills with her katana, but, her constant participation in moving the survivors forward and keeping the group safe. She is the only survivor arriving Post-Prison and before Woodbury. She remains a vital member of the survivors.

Location Unknown
Michonne was one of four children that included a brother and two sisters. She practiced fencing when she was a child, and briefly picked the hobby up again when she was in college to study law. After graduating and getting her degree, she became a successful attorney and married a man with whom she had two daughters. They lived an average middle-class life in a suburban neighborhood, and often dealt with a troublesome teenager next door who she swore had once killed their cat and destroyed their fence with his katana. She spent much of her free time weightlifting and avidly following televised football.

She eventually divorced her husband and at some point started dating another man named Mike. She was out of town when the outbreak began, she lost contact with her two daughters whom she had left in the care of a nanny, she does not know their whereabouts.

Michonne Special
In the early stages of the outbreak, Michonne runs on foot to her house. This attracts a street full of zombies to follow her. While she arrives home, she meets her boyfriend, Mike and his brave, but, idiotic best friend, Terry. A zombie tries to break in, but, Mike kills it. In the process, Mike becomes bitten. At that time, Michonne bandages Mike, who is unaware that he is infected. That night, Michonne searches a neighbor's house for supplies and discovers her trademark sword. She gets pinned down in the house during the night and returns home the next day, finding that both Mike and Terry have become zombies. She manages to survive their attack and lock them away. Her noisy encounter causes her street to become overrun. Michonne becomes trapped and runs out of food. She notices zombies don't attack one another and hacks off the arms and lower jaws of Mike and Terry. She chains them up by their necks to use them as escorts for an escape that was successful. Michonne says her final words to the zombified Mike and Terry, to help remember who they are, and because she has no one to talk to.

The Prison
Michonne first appeared on the road at an unknown distance away from The Prison. Clothed under a hood, she pulled the shackled zombies of her boyfriend and his best friend along by chain to act as a deterrent to the undead. She cut off their arms and lower jaws so they wouldn't attack her. While traveling, she witnessed Otis attempting to ride back to The Prison, and saved him from a large group of zombies outside the prison's walls who had followed him. Once Otis spoke for her, Rick Grimes let her join the group in exchange for handing over her katana. Michonne mostly kept to herself within the first few days of integrating with the established group, but, quickly showed a keen interest in Tyreese, who was already involved with Carol. She bonded with him in their mutual interest in weight-lifting, and her recognition of him being an National Football League player back in the 1990s.

Michonne seduced Tyreese and gave him oral sex. Carol witnessed this act and broke up with Tyreese. Rick forcibly stepped in when Carol attempted to commit suicide by cutting her wrists. Confronting Tyreese, the two good friends ended up beating each other to the point where Rick passed out. Michonne expressed guilt at her involvement, but, ultimately continued to pursue Tyreese. Sometimes, Michonne would converse with her deceased boyfriend, as first noticed by Andrea in the prison. Michonne later went on to tell Rick that she talked to her dead boyfriend as a coping mechanism to deal with the horror of the real world, and Rick showed her a rotary telephone which he used to "call" his dead wife, Lori.

Woodbury and The Governor
After several months at the prison, Michonne, along with Rick and Glenn, were part of the group that went to investigate the crash of a helicopter. It was during their travel to find the source of the occupant's disappearance that she revealed parts of her past before the epidemic.

When the trio stumbled upon the town of Woodbury, Georgia, Michonne became a tragic victim of a cruel and psychotic survivor named Philip Blake, the "Governor" of Woodbury. The Governor betrayed and captured them, violently raping and torturing Michonne to acquire the location of the prison. The Governor later attempted to toy with her skills and sent her into their stadium fights as a participant for the crowds, however, she caused more trouble than satisfaction when Michonne proceeded to kill her opponent and the zombies with her katana in a gladiator style tournament. When the others eventually escaped, Michonne remained behind and tortured the Governor by scooping his eye out and chopping his arm off before making her way back to the prison with the rest of the group.

When The Governor retaliated, Michonne and Tyreese went on the offense, attempting guerrilla warfare in order to buy the prison time to prepare for the next attack. However, this act proved too careless and dangerous resulting in Michonne barely escaping and Tyreese being captured and used as a bargaining tool in order to get into the prison. When that failed, The Governor killed Tyreese, decapitating him with Michonne's katana. Days later, she returned and reclaimed her sword, put Tyreese's reanimated head to rest, and fled into the woods nearby.

The Road to Washington, D.C.
After the attack on the prison, Michonne tracked footprints, which led her to Rick and Carl. She saved Carl from a roamer, who then proceeded to hug her. She then joined up with the pair and bonded with them, even keeping Rick's own phone conversations with his dead wife secret. Michonne protected Carl as a mother would, and went out of her way to protect Rick, due to her great respect for him. While traveling with the others, Michonne inquired about Morgan, hinting at a possible interest in him. When Rick asked if she was attracted to Morgan, Michonne was initially hesitant, but, finally admitted she was. She wanted to get to know Morgan better, but, decided to wait a bit, as she was still recovering from Tyreese's death.

Alexandria Safe-Zone
As with the rest of the survivors, Michonne successfully traveled and made it into the Alexandria Safe-Zone. She, like the other survivors, were now trying to adjust to their new life in the community. But, like Carl, she's also having troubles getting used to what seems normal there. As seen in Issue 71, Douglas Monroe does have a problem with her keeping her sword. However, thanks to Olivia, she persuades him to let her keep it. She admits the people seem nice. Douglas goes to Rick to ask what job he could give Michonne for their community, since there didn't seem to be a need for a lawyer. Rick suggests that since she upheld the law as a public defender, she would be suitable as a constable.

Later on in Issue 72, Michonne is seen nailing a mantle to hang up her old sword. As she looks on, she begins reflecting on how she used it, specifically remembering the first time she used it in combat. During a line of flashbacks, she remembers she used it in self-defense when her boyfriend and his best friend reanimated as zombies and attacked her. She cut off their arms to defend herself. She reflected on how she used her sword to kill and how it was even used by The Governor to kill Tyreese and defend others like Carl. She then looks at her sword angrily, saying "I'm through with you."

She attends the welcoming party thrown by Douglas to welcome their group to the community, with Barbara, Olivia, and several other women. Through most of it, Michonne mostly listened and rarely talked, though Barbara began to try to see if she'd be interested in dating Heath. Michonne seemed to care little for the conversation that was going on around her, that included their attempts at match-making her. Finally tired of being at the party, she attempts to leave only to be halted by Barbara who begins to annoy her by asking her what she'd like to cook for her. She said it was something she liked to do for new arrivals. Although Michonne tried to calmly decline Barbara's offer, Barbara kept insisting, saying she'd be so worried if she cooked something she didn't enjoy.

Annoyed and frustrated, Michonne shouts, "Worried? This is what you worry about?!" This leaves Barbara and others silent as she angrily leaves. As she makes it to their house, she sees Morgan there, who tells her he had already left the party a while ago. They begin to talk a little and Michonne mentions she made a little scene at the party. She begins to explain she, like Morgan, didn't feel comfortable with all the happy people. She also said she couldn't take the chattering of the other women as it was not only frustrating, but, made her feel alone. After saying that, she rests her tired head on Morgan's shoulder for comfort. Although he notices, he does not seem to protest against her resting on his shoulder.

Alexandria Safe-Zone Chaos
In Issue 81, after Morgan said that he deserved to be happy after getting over the loss of his son Duane, Michonne becomes angry, replying that he wasn't the only one who has lost loved ones; she walks out the room, claiming to get a glass of water. After Morgan is bit, she amputates his arm, and helps him get to Rick's house. She says he's a damn fool, and nervously waits by his side. Michonne opens up to Morgan on his death bed about how she doesn't usually express her feelings as it would make her look weak. Asking for forgiveness, Michonne discovers that Morgan had sadly passed away. After she impales Morgan to prevent reanimation, she volunteers to take part in Rick's escape plan by rubbing zombie guts on herself. She helps Dr. Cloyd get to her house and then slashes through zombies with her sword to try and help Rick save Carl after he was shot in the eye by Douglas.

Hilltop Colony
Michonne, along with Rick, Carl, Glenn, and Andrea, are brought to the Hilltop Colony by Paul Monroe. There, they are shown around and introduced to Gregory. Another resident of the colony, Ethan, returns from a failed mission where all of his companions were killed except for himself and a woman named Crystal, who is believed to be dead as Negan doesn't take prisoners. Ethan then tells Gregory he has a message for him and stabs him. Rick tackles Ethan to the ground and in the struggle cuts his throat, while the rest of the residents stare at him, shocked. When she finds out that Rick had volunteered the Safe Zone to deal with the Saviors, she is shown to be somewhat upset and asks why they are helping "a group that gives offerings to murderers." Rick brushes it aside by saying that whenever they are faced with a new situation, she looks for something to be afraid of and that in the long run, this will be worth investing in.

Dealing with The Saviors
On the way back to Alexandria, the survivors run across the first group of Saviors who demand they give the supplies they received from the Hilltop to Negan; after killing all, but, one they make it back to the Safe Zone. A week later Michonne accompanies Rick once again to go back to the Hilltop to gather Paul and other residents to help fight the Saviors; during the night, they are captured and their leader. Negan decides that one of them must pay for the deaths of his men by getting the 'honor' of being beaten to death with his bat, 'Lucille'. As he goes over each of the survivors, he pauses at Michonne commenting that he doesn't want to be a racist by choosing her, Glenn, or Heath; he also didn't want to kill her because he's "got a list of things I want to do to you, but, killing isn't high on that list. Still on it, though." Michonne is eventually spared. Michonne is then forced to helplessly watch as Negan smashes Glenn's skull in with Lucille.

Michonne then continues on to the Hilltop with the group and Glenn's corpse. On the journey back to the Alexandria Safe-Zone, Michonne questions Rick to their plan on dealing with Negan and the Saviors. Before addressing the community, Rick goes to Michonne and asks for her opinion on not fighting the Saviors. Michonne says that she is tired of fighting and that she 'could use a break' from it.

After Rick's initial trip to The Kingdom, Michonne is shocked to hear of Rick's plan to unite with the Kingdom to fight the Saviors; although she is hurt that Rick did not tell her his plan to attack until after Paul, Andrea and several others were informed about it, she was the one who suggested to Rick that the Safe-Zone take the passive route and not fight the Saviors immediately. She then reiterates that she wants to be done with fighting all the time and dreams of one day getting rid of her sword.

The Kingdom and Meeting Ezekiel
Michonne accompanies Rick and a small group of Alexandria survivors to The Kingdom. After being introduced to Ezekiel, she pulls her katana on him and he responds by pulling out a blade hidden in his staff. Ezekiel tries to win her over, but, Michonne ignores him. While the others in Rick's group eat with the Kingdom survivors in the cafeteria, Michonne goes outside to be alone. She sees that Ezekiel followed her outside and at first ignores him. Ezekiel proceeds to tell her about his past and how he saved Shiva from bleeding to death before the apocalypse occurred. Michonne begins to show interest in Ezekiel and they formally introduce themselves to each other. Ezekiel then leaves and wishes Michonne good night. Later on Michonne can be seen training with swords with other Kingdom residents. She continues talking to Ezekiel and is even seen to joke with him. Michonne is then present at the meeting discussing the upcoming war.

The War Begins
Michonne is seen sleeping with Ezekiel in her house in Alexandria. Michonne informs Ezekiel that this meant nothing and that it has the potential to eventually be something. Ezekiel responds saying that he can work with potential and heads downstairs to check on Shiva. Michonne goes to make coffee and is soon confronted by Ezekiel, who informs her that Shiva was very well behaved and "she shit in your tub". Michonne asks him if he is being serious and he says he is, however they are interrupted by The Kingdom's head of security Richard, who takes Michonne by surprise and quickly introduces himself to her.

Michonne accompanies Ezekiel to Gabriel Stokes' Church to discuss battle plans for the upcoming battle of Sanctuary. She is later seen alongside a group of one hundred people from The Kingdom, Hilltop Colony and Alexandria Safe-Zone marching upon The Sanctuary.

After drawing a massive herd towards The Sanctuary, Michonne quickly finds Ezekiel and asks him what he is doing. Ezekiel tells her that he was waiting for her to find him, they both then get on a bus alongside other Army members and depart the area. After arriving back at a temporary camp, Michonne is seen, alongside Ezekiel, clearing zombies from the camp's perimeter. They are soon interrupted by Rick, who tells Michonne that he wants her to head back to Alexandria. Michonne hesitantly agrees and departs back to the Safe-Zone. After she arrives at Alexandria, she is confronted by Carl, who she asks how things have been back at the Safe-Zone. Carl tells her that everyone is worried, though she assures him that is fine. Michonne is later seen back at her house, comforting Ezekiel after the losses of his men and Shiva.

The War Escalates
Michonne is seen still comforting Ezekiel after his loss. He starts to talk about how he does not want to lead anymore, saying that he has failed his people and does not deserve to lead. Michonne responds by punching him in the face, telling him that he is a "pussy" and that people back at The Kingdom are still counting on him. She angrily walks off and is soon confronted by Rick, who asks her about the Ezekiel situation. She tells him that all, but five, of Ezekiel's men are dead and Shiva is also dead. Rick asks her to call a meeting and to start gathering people immediately. She is later seen taking part in that meeting, alongside many of Rick's closet allies. However, they are suddenly interrupted by a large explosion, caused by a Savior grenade and alongside the others, Michonne ducks for cover. Michonne and Ezekiel are seen running away from the explosions. A grenade is tossed in front of Michonne, and Ezekiel quickly pushes her out of the way. Ezekiel explains to her that they must flee the area, however, Michonne is determined on getting all of the Alexandria citizens out of the houses to safety. After the devastation, Michonne relocates with the group to the Hilltop. That night, Ezekiel and Michonne are sleeping together and Ezekiel promises to her that he will become a stronger person starting tomorrow, earning a smile from Michonne, who is pretending to be asleep.

Killed Victims
This list shows the victims Michonne has killed:
 * Mike (Zombified)
 * Terry (Zombified)
 * Eugene Cooney
 * Curtis
 * James Lee Steagal
 * Eric
 * Raymond Hilliard
 * Tyreese (Zombified)
 * Gus Strunk (Zombified)
 * Chris
 * Theresa
 * Albert
 * David
 * Greg
 * Charlie
 * Scott (Before Reanimation)
 * Morgan Jones (Before Reanimation)
 * Denise Cloyd (Before Reanimation)
 * Many unnamed Saviors
 * Numerous counts of zombies

Relationships
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Tyreese
"Tyreese, shut up. Don't fuck up whatever it is we have between us by talking about it."

- Michonne to Tyreese.

Tyreese is Michonne's first love in the Prison. Tyreese cheated on Carol with Michonne, and later, Tyreese moved into his own cell with Michonne. They are seen engaged in intercourse a couple of times, and when Michonne got raped, she went to Tyreese's arms crying. They both went to the woods to kill Woodbury soldiers, but, failed; Tyreese got captured and killed. Michonne became vengeful, but, wasn't able to kill the Governor. Later, she drove her sword through Tyreese's reanimated, decapitated head. Her relationship with Tyreese was shown to have a lasting emotional toll on her well-being, as she confides to Morgan how much she loved him before his death.

Morgan Jones
Morgan is Michonne's second lover. When all was going well, Michonne couldn't stand that Morgan always talked about his guilt over his son's death. When Morgan was eventually bitten, Michonne told him she was sorry, and she didn't mean to be harsh. Morgan was ultimately put to rest by Michonne. She later told Rick that she really did love him and wanted to build a life with him.

Ezekiel
"Those people have families that live in your community... they need you. You're not going to let them down. If you're really this much of a pussy, do what you do best... act like you aren't."

- Michonne to Ezekiel.

Ezekiel's regal posture and the presence of Shiva rubbed Michonne the wrong way at first, almost leading to violence. Ezekiel decided however to handle the hostility with good will and almost immediately made attempts at attaining Michonne's trust. He has also admitted that he finds Michonne attractive and both started to flirt a bit in Issue 110. Later, when Michonne went to bed, she initially let her guard down by putting her sword far from hand reach, implying that she has come to trust Ezekiel enough to not think about eventual dangers inside The Kingdom. Their relationship greatly improves by issue 115, as they are seen in bed together, suggesting the start of a romantic relationship.

Rick Grimes
"Okay--so we're both crazy."

- Michonne to Rick.

These two have lost so much in the apocalypse, so they seem to understand each other better than anyone else. Since they have confided in each other regarding their similar, and seemingly crazy, coping methods - Michonne talking to her dead ex-boyfriend and Rick talking to his dead wife on a rotary phone he keeps with him - they have been able to use that mutual understanding to tightly bond. It has been hinted in a recent issue that Michonne may harbor romantic feelings for Rick due to comment she made about Rick's new-found relationship with Andrea. Michonne is often seen as Rick's right hand woman. However, she is starting to be a bit disappointed and angry towards Rick's decision to risk his life giving out their cover.

Carl Grimes
Michonne and Carl have established a caring relationship. After the bloodbath of the Prison assault, Carl often seeks protection from Michonne. When Carl calls himself useless, due to losing his eye, Michonne quickly reassures him that he is not useless.

Barbara
"WORRIED?! This is what you worry about?!"

- Michonne to Barbara.

Michonne and Barbara seemed to have a good relationship at the welcome party, but when Barbara said she was worried about what to cook Michonne, it angered Michonne because they were worried about what food she would like when there are hundreds of roamers outside of the Alexandria Safe-Zone. Michonne left the party early and her and Barbara have never talked since.

Heath
"I don't know what it is--Something where you need to show you're better than other women by getting who's unavailable... it's just not... necessary. You're beautiful... if things go south with Denise, sure. But... have some self-respect."

- Heath to Michonne.

Michonne and Heath seem to have a stable relationship. They haven't been seen to converse very much; however, in Issue 107, Michonne makes a move on Heath while he's on guard duty, under the impression that he and Denise were not on good terms. Heath tells her that if things don't work out between Denise and him, he'd go out with her. Heath politely rejects Michonne, trying not to hurt her feelings.

Terry
Michonne states that she did not like Terry, although Terry was Michonne's boyfriend's best friend, she was not fond of him and even stated she thought he was stupid.

Mike
Michonne and Mike were boyfriend and girlfriend. Since Michonne chose to talk to him after he was dead to help her cope with her situation, it can be inferred they had a stable relationship and cared for each other. After the apocalypse began, Michonne joined Rick's group at the prison, and started to talk to Mike as if he were right next to her.

Abraham Ford
Abraham and Michonne did not interact much in the series until Issue 92. Abraham and Michonne went out of the Safe-Zone to scout the surrounding area and she opens up to him about her loneliness. The two share a bonding moment before taking out a few roamers and finding Paul Monroe. At Abraham's funeral in Issue 99 she showed sadness, even shedding a tear.

Brian Blake
"I'm--I'm not crying for me. I'm crying for you. I think about all the things I'm going to do to you and it makes me cry. It scares me."

- Michonne to Brian, after he raped her.

Michonne and Brian had a bad relationship. When Rick, Glenn, and Michonne encountered Woodbury, Brian came out to greet them in a pleasant manner. However, when he reveals his true self by cutting off Rick's right hand, Michonne lunged herself at him and tore his left ear off. Enraged, Brian had Michonne locked up in a garage. The Governor then proceeded to rape her and beat her twice. When finished Michonne tearfully states that she's afraid of what she's going to do in retaliation. This comes to fruition in Issue 33 when Michonne goes to Brian's apartment and mutilates him. When Tyreese died during the battle with Woodbury, Michonne became vengeful, but did not manage to kill Brian.}}

Appearances
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Volume 21: All Out War - Part Two

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Trivia

 * Robert Kirkman mentioned in the Letter Hacks of Issue 49 Michonne is the strongest character in the comic book.
 * Before the apocalypse, it has been confirmed Michonne didn't know any martial arts.
 * Although she has been seen as a fairly good shot with a gun, Michonne rarely uses one, preferring to almost exclusively use her sword.
 * This is shown to be almost the exact opposite as her TV series counterpart, who is not adept with firearms at all.
 * Michonne, along with Rick Grimes, Andrea, Abraham Ford, Brian Blake, and Negan have killed the most named characters either as a zombie or as a living person.
 * In Issue 36, Robert Kirkman wrote of Michonne's rape and revenge in a letter as follows:
 * It was always my plan to NOT show what happened to Michonne--to show the "closed door"...But then when it came time for HER revenge--I wanted to show every single action taken against The Governor (aside from a few done while he was passed out).
 * The idea is that you never SEE the evil person's actions...but when the good person does their thing--you see just how evil they can be. It makes you question the character-and hopefully yourself--especially if you're cheering them on the whole way.


 * In the Comic Series, she claims that she suspects that her sword collecting neighbor might have killed their cat, but in the "Michonne Special", she states that it was her dog.
 * It was in this neighbor's collection that Michonne acquired her signature katana.
 * Coincidentally, Michonne was introduced in Issue 19 of the Comic Series, whereas she was introduced in the 19th episode of the TV Series.