TWD 3x03 "Walk With Me" episode discussion...**SPOILERS WITHIN**

[bassman]

How can it be premature to hate something that bugs the hell out of you? As I said, I hope she gets killed off. Soon. It seems premature to me because of exactly what I said in my previous post - the character has really only been in one episode. And she basically didn't talk in that episode. Give them more time to flesh out the character and your opinion will likely change. Let me ask you this - do you read the comics? I've noticed around the net that non-comic fans are generally not pleased with the character because, as they claim, "she's a super ninja". Fans of the comic know that there is much more to the character than that, so we know great things are in store for Michonne.

[EvilNed]

No, I did not read the comic, and sorry for sounding arrogant, but neither am I judging it... With your argument, one would never be able to voice one's opinion about characters in films, because they "don't have enough screen time to form a valid opinion" and all opinions would be premature. I feel that we've had enough screentime of her to make our minds about her. Sorry to see you disagree.

[bassman]

I didn't think you were being arrogant. Just stating my opinion based on yours. I would agree with you if this were a film, but it's not. It's a long running TV series. With 16 episodes, this season alone will run roughly 720 minutes, whereas a film is about 90.

[EvilNed]

But in a film, by this point, I would have received enough screentime to judge her character. So for me, I don't see the problem.

[babomb]

I'm on the fence as far as Michonne is concerned. Only because they haven't given us much to work with yet in order to form a real opinion on the character.

[krisvds]

I've noticed around the net that non-comic fans are generally not pleased with the character because, as they claim, "she's a super ninja". Fans of the comic know that there is much more to the character than that, so we know great things are in store for Michonne. Well, having read all the comics up to issue 86 I can say you are right about there being more in store for Michonne than just the samurai side of her character. However, seeing as how the tv series can be very different from the comic and a certain new found focus on more action and faster pacing I am too still on that fence. I really hope they give her a lot more to do in future episodes than play the cool silent samurai chick. The decapitating coolness was a bit silly in the comic as well and at times felt out of place. For me at least ...

[babomb]

Well, having read all the comics up to issue 86 I can say you are right about there being more in store for Michonne than just the samurai side of her character. However, seeing as how the tv series can be very different from the comic and a certain new found focus on more action and faster pacing I am too still on that fence. I really hope they give her a lot more to do in future episodes than play the cool silent samurai chick. The decapitating coolness was a bit silly in the comic as well and at times felt out of place. For me at least ... I agree with this completely. There's some things I think they're dropping the ball on here. For 1, Michonne is supposed to be this hardcore survivor that knows how to thrive in this new world. Yet, she does stupid things like stab her sword through the chests of 2 walkers, which she would know very well has no effect. She knows enough about walkers to use 2 of them for protection, but doesn't know that no matter how someone dies they come back as a walker? They're creating her character based around cheap thrills like double decapitations and sword play. But at the same time trying to make her this silent, wounded warrior type that talks like Cobra Commander. "You had a gun on usssssss"-----I hope she doesn't draw those S' out all the time. That'll make me hate her.

[MinionZombie]

I always took it that the skewering of the two zeds was to halt their pace, so she could push them back a touch and pause them, so that she could take the appropriate swing (otherwise with them still advancing in such close quarters, she might have come a cropper). As for not knowing that someone who dies of non-bite circumstances still comes back as a walker, that's entirely plausible. They might have steering clear of all humans in their eight months out there (entirely possible), and even if they did encounter some humans, what's the likelihood that they would have not only seen one die of non-bite circumstances, but been around long enough to watch them come back to life?

[kidgloves]

After watching this episode yet again, did anyone else notice the strange way Laurie Holden was walking when they first go out into the night at Woodbury? Apparently she hurt her back and they had to rewrite Michonnes and her parts accordingly in the 1st 2 episodes.

[babomb]

I always took it that the skewering of the two zeds was to halt their pace, so she could push them back a touch and pause them, so that she could take the appropriate swing (otherwise with them still advancing in such close quarters, she might have come a cropper). As for not knowing that someone who dies of non-bite circumstances still comes back as a walker, that's entirely plausible. They might have steering clear of all humans in their eight months out there (entirely possible), and even if they did encounter some humans, what's the likelihood that they would have not only seen one die of non-bite circumstances, but been around long enough to watch them come back to life? My logic behind her stabbing them in the chest was not only that it's not effective at killing them, but that it also adds wear to the blade. Seems like if she's as good with that katana as she is, she would also understand its limitations and make an effort to preserve its integrity. It is her primary weapon after all. If your primary weapon were a shotgun you wouldn't use it as a baseball bat on walkers unless it was your last resort. Her katana is not indestructible, and the more rigid surfaces like a breast plate she plunges it into the lower its lifespan will be. I did consider the idea that Michonne may not have had the opportunity to see someone die of non-bites and come back. But it seems likely that she would've. She has an extensive backstory in this world, which is why she can thrive in that environment. She's obviously been in a situation that made her aware that keeping pet walkers offers a certain amount of protection, and that when you remove their ability to feed it kills their desire to. While it is completely plausible that she just never observed that to be the case, it just seems very likely that she would have.

[Wyldwraith]

I agree it's odd how surprised so many of TWD characters are to find that it doesn't take a bite to reanimate, That said, one would assume a character like Michonne would, if forced into a life-or-death conflict, finish her business and evac from the area before more Walkers arrive to investigate the ruckus caused by said conflict. Even with her "Pet Zeds" to serve as repellent, to survive to the extent she has she's had to have become like those elusive huge-racked older bucks. They KNOW when hunting season is, and will become elusive ghosts until its over. Same principle at work. Michonne's survival is evidence she has what it takes to go it alone for an extended period in a Walker-infested America. Since she's only human, however skilled, the only logical conclusion is that she's honed her ability to choose her battles, and perhaps more importantly, choose when NOT to fight, beyond even her skill with her famed katana. A note on the chest stabs via katana. If Michonne is TRULY a master of the weapon, she could conceivably bypass the sternum and strike the Xyphoid process just beneath it. The Xyphoid is composed of cartilage, and while denser then say the nose, is no more durable per equivalent thickness. Not saying that's what Michonne IS doing, just offering up a possible explanation for that particular scene. Sometime during her wanderings it seems like developing a "stop-thrust" effective against an enemy without a self-preservation instinct or capacity to feel pain would almost have been a prerequisite to Michonne surviving this long. Just look how often other prepared, aware, nerves-on-edge survivors have nevertheless ended up in an unwilling clinch with a Walker. See what I mean? Otherwise, I completely agree that Michonne's use of her katana should be MUCH more judicious. Reserved for those situations requiring speed, precision AND violence of action. For "everyday" elimination of single or paired Walkers it would make much more sense to employ a sturdier bludgeon or even a Machete, and reserve the katana for when things get thick. However, Michonne is by nature a "trenchcoat character" so she either has to be afforded more suspension of disbelief than usual, or she could quickly come to grate on a certain kind of viewer's nerves. Since all indications point towards her being a long-running character, personally I'm trying to muster that extra suspension of disbelief....because yes, I CRINGE when I see heads lopped off via katana as if the wielder were instead using a lightsaber.

[Andy]

Obviously talking more about the comics than the TV series here but michonne is not supposed to be a master ninja or anything.. I cant remember becuase she first appears in volume 3 i think and its been that long since i read it but im certain shes supposed to just be a hobbyist and a fencer who has just been forced to improve her skills since the zombocalypse.

[Moon Knight]

Obviously talking more about the comics than the TV series here but michonne is not supposed to be a master ninja or anything.. I cant remember becuase she first appears in volume 3 i think and its been that long since i read it but im certain shes supposed to just be a hobbyist and a fencer who has just been forced to improve her skills since the zombocalypse. Correct, sir.

[Tricky]

Great episode but as others have said, the military guys got taken down way too easily in that ambush! In reality the governer would have been taken down by one of the others as soon as he fired the first shot. Also why kill them? I'd have thought they would have been useful to Woodbury, but then again I suppose the governers command would have been removed straight away if the army moved in.

[paranoid101]

Great episode loving the 3rd season, hate having to wait till Friday to come this forum, but its either that or I sleep downstairs If I watch it early without my better half lol.