Paul Monroe (Comic Series)

"If they could [laugh at us]... I know they would be. They're always out there... lurking around every corner, just waiting to kill us and eat us. So what do we do? We kill each other. We're making it easier for them."

- Paul to Rick about the zombies.

Paul Monroe, more commonly known as "Jesus", is a character first encountered in Issue 91 of Image Comics' The Walking Dead and is a survivor and resident who lived in a community called the Hilltop Colony which held almost two hundred other survivors. Paul now resides in the Alexandria Safe-Zone. While initially mistrusted by Rick and his group, he eventually gains their respect and becomes Rick's current right-hand man.

Overview
Paul is a natural survivalist in the zombie apocalypse, capable of extreme feats of human ability. His most notable feature is his uncanny likeness to the Biblical figure, Jesus, and his friends started calling him this because they view him as a savior, just like the Biblical figure was.

Paul is also a very good hand to hand combatant. He uses his skills to dispatch zombies with ease and deal with hostile threats easily. He demonstrates this when he manages to subdue both Abraham Ford and Michonne with relative ease. Paul, however, is not just a good hand to hand combatant, he is also a good escape artist, managing to escape from the most hopeless situations, such as his capture by The Saviors. It was these survivalist traits that gained him the position of the Hilltop's ambassador and scouter, a position he uses to try and recruit help against The Saviors.

Paul is a quick thinker and a great tactician, despite being a loyal ally. He helps Rick and Ezekiel co-ordinate their battle plans against The Saviors and is the man they use as their front-runner. His quick thinking and tactical nature helps him to overcome many odds, like rescuing Rick and his people from a twenty man strong Savior battalion, alone. His nature also causes him to clash with Hilltop's leader, Gregory, over many different topics and this has caused him to migrate to the Alexandria Safe-Zone, believing Rick is the leader humanity needs for the future and that he will do anything to help Rick make his goals a reality.

Location Unknown
Nothing yet has been revealed about Paul's life before or as the outbreak began. It is possible that he lived in or near Washington, D.C.

Hilltop Colony
At some point after the apocalypse, Paul made his way to the Hilltop Colony. He meets with their leader, Gregory, who is impressed with him and welcomes him to the colony. When he first arrived, many people at the colony noted his resemblance to Jesus Christ and most of the survivors began to refer him by the name "Jesus" instead of his given name. Sometime afterwards, The Saviors arrived and terrorized the colony into paying tribute to them in exchange for protection against walkers. One time, Paul tries to track them back to their base but narrowly escapes with his life. He eventually gets the idea to scout the surrounding area for other colonies to trade with in order to alleviate the pressure off of the Hilltop, an idea that Gregory agrees with.

A Larger World
Close to two years after the apocalypse occurred, Paul is preforming a run when he discovers the Alexandria Safe-Zone. After a pretty tense and unexpected introduction, Paul is forced to attack Michonne and Abraham, easily immobilizing them. He then instructs Michonne to arrange a meeting with their leader. Paul claims he is from a community with two hundred survivors and offers to trade equipment. He also states that there are two other groups that he knows about and trades with. Rick then asks him if he is here to ask Alexandria to join the trade network, Paul says that he is and Rick seemingly appears to trust him and extends his hand out to Paul. However, Rick knocks him out, distrusting him due to his previous encounters with the Woodbury Army and the Hunters. Paul is then tied up and held prisoner in the Safe-Zone's infirmary. He is visited by Rick, who he tries to convince that he is innocent and has no intention to harm Alexandria. Rick, however, tells him that he simply does not believe him. Much later on, Carl makes a visit to see Paul, in order to gain insight on his intentions. Paul warmly welcomes him in and tells him to take a seat, as he intends to tell Carl whatever he wants to know. However, Rick walks in on them and immediately tells Carl to leave, however Carl tells Rick that if Paul was a "bad man" he would have shot him already and angrily leaves Rick and Paul alone. Rick then proceeds to tell Paul that he intends to go to the Hilltop, telling him that if he does not like what he sees, he will kill Paul on the spot. Paul reluctantly agrees to this, saying if that is the only choice he has, then what other option is available.

A still tied-up Paul takes Rick, Glenn, Michonne, Andrea, and a stowaway Carl to the Hilltop Colony. After the group stops for the night, they are ambushed by a large group of zombies. Paul uses this opportunity to help build his trust with the group and starts to help dispatch the undead foes and secure the area for the night. The next day sees Paul and the group nearing the Hilltop. However, they are delayed by a vehicle wreckage in the middle of the highway. Rick exits the van to move it and Paul jumps out to help him and as they push the vehicle out the way, Paul falls backwards into a pool of mud. Rick helps him up, saying he is sorry, however Paul cuts him off, asking if he was sorry he fell or if he was sorry he kept him tied-up. Rick tells him that he is sorry he fell and that keeping him tied-up is a procedure as they move Paul back into the van. Later that day, Paul asks them to pull over, saying he has to go to the "little boys room". Rick tells him that he will assist him, however Paul reveals that he has freed himself, going on to say that he was never truly their prisoner. An astounded Rick asks Paul why he did not free himself earlier, to which Paul tells him that he was testing Rick his people and they passed that test. Rick thanks him for his trust in them and Paul says he needs him to return the favor, going on to say that they have arrived at the Hilltop.

Rick tells him that he still can't trust him enough to walk into Hilltop. Paul asks what's it going to take and says that he could have killed Rick's entire group in their sleep if he wanted too, but he didn't. After some convincing, Rick takes Paul's word and agrees to enter Hilltop. Paul also tells him that the Hilltop has ran out of ammo and that he is allowing Rick's group to take their weapons in and without further delay, Paul and the group approach the Hilltop's gates. When they get there, Kal attempts to stop them, saying Rick and his group could be dangerous. Paul angrily tells him to stand down, saying that he has control over who enters Hilltop. Kal reluctantly obeys Jesus' commands and opens the gate, allowing the group into Hilltop. Once inside, Paul starts to show the group around, taking them straight to Hilltop's leader, Gregory. Suddenly, a resident named Ethan returns from an expedition and attempts to kill Gregory in order for Negan to free a hostage of theirs named Crystal, causing a chaos that results in Ethan's death. After diffusing the situation, Paul informs Rick's group about The Saviors, the people who terrorize them and who caused Ethan's death. Paul is then interrupted by Carl, who proposes that if they kill The Saviors, the Hilltop will trade half of their supplies. Rick agrees with this proposal and a stunned Paul says that he thinks the trade can be arranged.

Later that day, Paul is seen attending Ethan's funeral with Rick. However, a resident known as Samuel interrupts Paul and Rick and punches Rick in the face, accusing him of murdering Ethan. Paul intervenes and says that Rick was merely defending himself, also saying that Ethan was a good man but had to die. He then helps Rick up and they walk away from the funeral, leaving a shocked crowd behind. Later on, Paul is seen helping unload supplies onto Rick's group's van. Rick thanks him for the offering and Paul says he will be in-touch, in case anything goes wrong.

Something To Fear
A week later, Paul is pleasantly surprised to see Rick again so soon. His jovial mood quickly shifts to one of horror after he sees Glenn's beaten corpse. After hearing Rick tell him and Gregory what happened since they were last at Hilltop, Paul is amazed that Negan actually came and dealt with Rick personally; he, like all the other residents of Hilltop, had never actually seen Negan and was believed to be a fabrication made up by The Saviors. He later decides to accompany Rick and the others back to the Safe Zone saying, "I'll feel a lot better knowing more about Negan and his people" and that "you guys seem to be on the front lines."

Paul is later shown to his new house in the Alexandria Safe-Zone by Heath. Heath contemplates why Paul would want to leave the Hilltop, saying that the community is much more preferable than Alexandria and Paul responds by telling Heath how he would trade the Hilltop's trailers for the Alexandria's houses any day. He also tells Heath that he is sorry for Glenn's death and Heath asks him if he is here to help them stop Negan, Paul tells him that he is going to try and help them. After Dwight is released, Rick tells Paul to follow him and see what they are up against, but to tell no one of their plans.

What Comes After
After gearing up, Paul begins to follow Dwight, hoping to discover The Saviors base of operations. While overlooking Dwight on a highway, he is taken by surprise by a lone zombie and is almost bitten. Paul, however, manages to throw it off the highway overpass and is almost caught by Dwight in the process, only being saved by ducking down at the last possible second. Paul is later ambushed by three Saviors, two of whom are called John and Tara. Paul tries to fight of The Savior trio, but is subdued by Tara. After being knocked to the floor, Paul is almost killed by The Saviors, however, he is saved by Dwight and another Savior, who tell Paul's attackers to stand down, as they have some "important" questions for Paul. Dwight and the other Savior tie Paul up and load him onto a jeep. They drive to Sanctuary, allowing Paul to get a good look at the area and he bails out of the jeep at the very last second, narrowly avoiding capture.

After escaping from Dwight and his men, Paul is seen using his martial arts skills to easily dispatch a zombie, allowing him to hot-wire a car back to the Safe-Zone. After arriving back at Alexandria, Paul is greeted by Heath, who let's him in. He quickly proceeds to Rick's house in the dead of night and wakes him up. Rick is startled by this and demands to know how Paul got in his house, Paul tells him that he left the front door unlocked and that the information he has is urgent. Paul informs Rick that he knows where The Saviors live and Rick asks him if he saw Carl there, Paul is confused by this and Rick tells him that Carl has gone missing. Paul quickly recalls his trip there and says that he heard automatic rifle fire while leaving, Rick then tells him Abraham's machine gun is missing and Paul tells him he can take him there in the morning. Rick, however, says he can't wait that long.

Paul, Rick, Michonne and Andrea set out towards The Sanctuary, while on their way there, Paul tells them of The Sanctuary's lay-out. He explains that The Saviors have set up a "killing floor" of zombies in front of The Sanctuary's fences and that there is no good spot around the place for reconnaissance. Rick, however, tells him that he just plans to knock on the front door and they soon, unexpectedly run into Negan on the road there. After a tense stand-off between Rick and Negan, the group retrieve Carl unharmed and well. After The Saviors leave, Rick asks Paul if Negan was lying about being reasonable. Too everyone's surprise, Paul says that Negan has some strange rules, but if you follow them, he can be reasonable most of the time.

After arriving back at Alexandria, Paul joins Rick and Andrea to discuss The Savior situation. He is informed by Rick, that, Carl managed to provide significant information on The Sanctuary. Paul is surprised by this and the information provided, mostly due to the fact that The Saviors do not have as many men as everyone believed stationed at The Sanctuary. After some careful consideration, Paul decides that it is time Rick met Ezekiel.

Days later, he travels with Rick to The Kingdom to meet Ezekiel. There, they manage to convince Ezekiel to join their rebellion against Negan and The Saviors, using the information Carl provided. Ezekiel the surprises them by informing the two that an inside man within The Saviors has betrayed Negan; it is revealed to be Dwight, Abraham's killer. Rick angrily attacks Dwight, but is held off by Ezekiel and Shiva, his tiger. Paul and Rick are both suspicious of Dwight but they agree to work with him.

March To War
Some time later, Rick asks Paul to go and inform Maggie about his plan. He sneaks into Hilltop and tells her their plan to deal with Negan and The Saviors. He also tells her that he and Rick do not trust Gregory enough to keep the plan under wraps from Negan and says that he wants her to keep an eye on him. He visits Gregory, who is fearful about the plan and thinking of backing out of the original deal set up with Rick regarding The Saviors. Paul tries to convince him by telling him that Ezekiel has now joined their forces. Gregory says that Ezekiel is crazy and that he has never liked him, so he can't trust him. Paul retorts by saying Gregory does not have to like him, just trust that he hates Negan enough to go through with the plan. Gregory stays silent and Paul asks him if he knows how many people Hilltop can spare and Gregory says he does not even know how many people live in Hilltop.

Later that day, Paul goes to the Hilltop's guard wall and inform his friend, Kal, about rounding up men who can assist in the fight. Kal is hesitant to do this, but Paul seemingly sways Kal to his side by informing him of Dwight's betrayal. He also introduces Maggie to Earl Sutton, the blacksmith, and asks him to craft a combat knife for Maggie. When asked about if Kal had come by, Earl mentions that Kal left for a perimeter check and won't be back until nightfall. Paul is in shock and asks himself how he could have been so stupid, realizing that Kal is about to tell The Saviors his and Rick's whole plan of attack.

Paul asks Earl how long ago he left; after receiving an answer, Paul grabs a horse and heads out to pursue Kal. He ends up catching Kal, who had fired a flare to contact the Saviors. Kal tells him to leave, but Paul refuses and Kal retaliates by throwing his spear at him. Paul easily counters the attack, grabbing the spear and snapping it. Having no other choice, Kal reveals himself to Paul, saying that Paul is acting like a lunatic and that he is playing around with people's lives. Paul tells him to stop messing around and to trust him, immediately asking how long ago he set the flare off, but before Kal can answer, Connor and his men show up. Kal starts to tell them about the planned revolution, but, Paul interrupts him and says that next time The Saviors visit the Hilltop their "offering" is going to be a little shy of the expectation. Connor angrily tells Paul that there is nine more days until the drop and that they better hope it is not light. He then punches Paul in the stomach for wasting his time and leaves the area. After Connor and the other Saviors leave, Kal apologizes to Paul for his stupidity and says that he is now willing to help in the coming battle. Paul berates him for this and when Kal asks if they can keep this between themselves, Paul gives him an angry glare and rides off without saying a word. Later on, back at the Hilltop, Paul is seen rounding up men and women to join the fight against the Saviors. He stops Eduardo from joining them, saying that he's too young and isn't ready. Gregory continues to remind Paul how uneasy he feels about this, but Paul tells him that for all he knows, they defected. When Gregory says that it's the safest way to avoid putting others at risk, Paul reminds him that if he had thought about the welfare of others over himself, 'maybe we wouldn't be in this position.' Gregory takes offense and claims that his cautious nature was what prevented things from getting worse; he also says that he was the one who's kept Negan at bay and that he isn't scared of the Saviors. Paul calls his bluff and leaves, saying that their argument is pointless.

Paul arrives at the Kingdom with roughly twenty people from the Hilltop. During a meeting with Rick and Ezekiel, Paul says that the head of security, Kal, rounded up the most able bodied members to join them. Rick questions if he trusts Kal and his judgement; Paul (with the recent attempt by Kal to sell them all out to the Saviors still fresh in his mind) says that he does.

Paul alongside Aaron is later seen infiltrating one of the Savior outposts. He inquires that the outpost is empty and that no guards are in the vicinity. He suddenly notices something and says, "Oh, damn." It is revealed that he knows The Saviors have gone to Alexandria and gathers Ezekiel and his men to help him save the Safe-Zone.

Jesus arrives at the Safe-Zone, hidden away from Negan and his men. He then grabs a Savior by his foot and trips him over. The Saviors open fire, but instead of hitting Paul they kill the Savior. Negan tells them to hold fire and at that moment Paul throws himself at the nearest Savior and orders Rick, Heath, Holly, and Nicholas into a trench. He proceeds to fight The Saviors until he works his way to Negan, who he disarms and captures. Negan frantically tells The Saviors to hold fire and Paul issues an order to let the survivors go and threatens to kill Negan. He tells Paul that even if he were to succeed, the Saviors would still open fire and kill Paul. However it was revealed that Paul's intentions were to stall the Saviors until Ezekiel and his soldiers arrive.

After the Saviors retreat, Paul converses with Ezekiel about the Safe-Zone and Ezekiel tells Paul that he greatly undersold the community to him. He is later seen outside of Rick's house where he informs Rick that he is the leader the people need and that he is the one who they will follow.

All Out War - Part One
Paul is seen with Rick, Kal, Ezekiel, Michonne, Andrea, and Richard conversing over the battle plans for the upcoming battle of Sanctuary. He is later seen talking to Rick before they attack The Sanctuary, Rick asks Paul how he feels and he replies by saying; "Nervous as hell, but that's to be expected." Rick agrees and they resume their march to The Sanctuary.

He arrives alongside over one hundred men from The Kingdom, Hilltop Colony and Alexandria and together they demand that Negan surrender or they will storm The Sanctuary and kill all of his people. Negan refuses and states that he has a different plan and brings out Gregory. Paul watches in horror as Gregory informs him and the other members of the Hilltop rebel group that Hilltop has sided with The Saviors and that if they want to see their friends and families again they must surrender. Rick tells Paul that he will understand if he chooses to leave the battle. However Paul affirms that he's staying, saying that "all I have at the Hilltop are a bunch of books." It is shown that Paul was one of the few fighters from the Hilltop to stay with Rick and that eight men, including Kal, leave. On their way out of the battlefield, Kal informs Paul that he can't go through with the battle, knowing Negan has control over the Hilltop.

After Negan declares war on Rick's forces, Paul is seen crouched with Rick behind a bus, ducking from Savior gunfire. He notes the walkers around the wall are going crazy and asks Rick if he's really sure his plan will work. To which Rick replies by saying; "Yes, I am." He is later seen with Rick retreating back inside the buses. Paul is still unsure that Rick's plan will work, however Rick assures him that it will. After getting on one of the buses, he tries to stop Holly who says that she is trying to find Rick. His attempt to stop her fails and she goes to confront Rick.

After escaping from an oncoming herd (drawn to The Sanctuary by the noise of the battle), Paul finds Michonne. She asks him where Rick is. He responds by saying that, as part of the plan, Rick stayed behind. However he is cut short when Rick appears behind him and declares that the war has just begun. A few hours later Paul and Rick are talking about the battle and how Holly smashed through The Sanctuary's fences instead of Rick, who blames himself for her actions. He goes on to say that he knows Negan would never kill him immediately and that he will kill Holly. Paul tells him to eat and that there is nothing they can do about Holly, however he says that The Saviors are probably too busy with the zombies to care about Holly. Rick says that he hopes he is right and Paul responds saying; "Me too."

Paul later accompanies Rick and many other fighters in a raid on one of The Savior outposts. He, alongside Eric are the first people to run into combat, however, Eric is gunned down by a Savior and Paul quickly rushes to disarm another Savior in order to gain access to the inside of the outpost. Paul holds the Savior at gunpoint so that he will open the door for Paul and the rest of the fighters. The Savior does so and is immediately shot in the head by Paul, who proceeds to gun down The Saviors who opened the door and the oncoming Savior forces alongside Rick and the others.

After capturing The Savior outpost, Paul burns the bodies of the fallen Army and Savior members. He soon catches up with Rick and asks him if he thinks the undead are laughing at them. Rick tells him that he prefers to not think about it and they both join the other Army members and depart back to Alexandria.

After arriving back at the Safe-Zone, Paul joins a meeting to discuss the next phase of the war plans. Shortly after, Paul and the other meeting members are startled by a large explosion, caused by a Savior grenade and are forced to take cover. Soon after this, Negan and his Saviors begin to bombard the Safe-Zone with grenades. Paul is seen desperately searching for Rick in the chaos. He is almost killed by a grenade thrown by one of The Saviors, but, manages to toss it over the wall and kill a Savior named Gary. After doing so, he investigates some gunfire coming from outside the Safe-Zone and finds that Dwight has killed his Savior squad. Dwight tells him that he is on Rick's side, not Negan's, and will do whatever it takes to help them win.

Killed Victims
This list shows the victims Paul has killed:
 * Gary
 * Numerous counts of zombies and unnamed Saviors.

Ezekiel
"It pleases me to see you, old friend. Tell me, what news do you bring good King Ezekiel? Is this a new ally you've brought me?"

- Ezekiel to Paul, upon his arrival at The Kingdom.

Paul and Ezekiel are good friends, as he happily greeted Paul when he arrived with Rick. Although he considers Ezekiel and his community "more like a tumor rather than a participant" of the trade network with the Hilltop, they are both allies against Negan and the Saviors.

Gregory
"Maybe if you hadn't bent over backwards to keep your ass out of the line of fire--We wouldn't be in this position. Ever consider that?"

- Paul berates Gregory for his cowardliness.

Paul seems to be split on Gregory's methods. Although he thinks Gregory is suitable as a leader, he agrees that he is not the ideal man to face confrontations. When Paul comes to Gregory about rustling up the most able-bodied members of the Hilltop to help Rick fight the Saviors, Paul is shown to be disgusted by Gregory's extreme reluctance to help, the latter using Glenn's brutal death as an excuse to back out of the deal between the Hilltop and Alexandria. Their relationship is shown to have taken a severe blow when it's revealed that Paul went behind his back and rounded up men anyway. They argue and Paul calls him a coward for "bending over backwards to keep your ass out of the line of fire."

Rick Grimes
"Rick, I let you tie me up, I risked my life to prove I wasn't a threat to you. I could have attacked you in the van, while you were sleeping last night. What's it going to take?"

- Paul to Rick, about his hesitance to enter Hilltop.

Paul and Rick are very good friends. Since he introduced Rick's group to the Hilltop, he has realized that he is similar to Rick by leading a group of survivors in the undead epidemic and since then, Paul has taken Abraham Ford's place as one of his most trusted allies. He has proven himself to be an important and prominent member of Rick's group, even moving to Alexandria from the Hilltop. Paul holds a great deal of respect for Rick for being the first of the DC area leaders to take a stand against Negan.

Dwight
"I want you guys to trust me."

- Dwight to Paul.

Paul first encountered Dwight when Rick assigned him to tail Dwight back to the foundry that the Saviors use as their main base. He is captured by a few Saviors and menaced by Dwight, implying that Negan would torture him for trying to follow them home. Paul encounters Dwight again in the Kingdom and is shown to be a little more understanding of Dwight's past than Rick is, but is still suspicious of what Dwight's ultimate plan is.

Kal
"Kal--Stop fucking around and trust me. I'm not doing anything that's going to endanger us."

- Paul to Kal, about his betrayal.

Paul and Kal have been living together at the Hilltop for an unspecified amount of time. Paul trusts Kal, choosing him as one of the few individuals to be in on the planned attack of Negan. Kal, in fear, betrays Jesus and takes off to warn Negan of this. Jesus tracks him down and confronts Kal about his actions and after the Saviors show up, due to a flare that Kal previously set off before Jesus arrived to his location, Jesus understands Kal's actions and they both ride back to the Hilltop together.

Negan
"Your soldiers suck. And the apple doesn't fall too far--"

- Paul subduing Negan.

Paul has a significant role in planning to overthrow The Saviors reign of tyranny and kill Negan. He has a strong dislike of Negan, yet has only seen him in person a few times.

Samuel
"Back off, Samuel! I don't care how much we loved Ethan! He was trying to kill this man. All he did was defend himself."

- Paul to Samuel, after Samuel assaults Rick.

These two haven't been seen interacting much. After Samuel punched Rick at Ethan's funeral, Paul intervened and told everybody that Rick did what had to be done and that Ethan was nothing more than a coward that deserved to die.

Carl Grimes
"Jesus seems like a good guy, dad. I don't think we need to have him all tied up."

- Carl to Rick, about Paul's capture.

Despite not being seen interacting much, they are in good terms, as showed by the fact that Carl was the first to fully trust Jesus when being held as prisoner at the Safe-Zone, and that Jesus fully trusted Rick's group because of Carl. Carl also has a high trust in Jesus's judgement as he states that he trusts Ezekiel as long as Jesus trusts him.

Appearances
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Volume 20: All Out War - Part One

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Trivia

 * Paul prefers the nickname, "Jesus", as his friends at the Hilltop Colony call him that. This is due to his uncanny resemblance of Jesus Christ not only in appearance, but in behavior.
 * His ultimate acceptance of the Alexandria Safe-Zone survivors actions could be considered Christ-like, as Jesus Christ fought with peace and forgiveness throughout his persecution.
 * It was revealed by Robert Kirkman in Letter Hacks that his name is pronounced Jee-zuss; the biblical version.
 * After Rick is attacked at Ethan's funeral, Paul yells to the crowd, "Until you can convince me none of you would have done the same--leave him alone." This is similar to a line Jesus Christ was known for; "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
 * Robert Kirkman has confirmed in Issue 113's 'Letter Hacks' that Jesus isn't related to Monroe Family inside the Safe-Zone.
 * In Issue 118's 'Letter Hacks,' Robert Kirkman reveals that Paul is a fan of the novel series "Goosebumps".
 * Paul has displayed exceptional skills in close-quarters combat; it has not been elaborated if Paul has had previous military or law enforcement training before the undead apocalypse began. He has also shown to be an excellent escape artist twice, as he managed to single-handedly untie ropes that bounded his limbs.

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