For those who have not yet watched last night’s season finale of The Walking Dead, today is already fraught with spoilers, so consider this ample warning before everyone ruins it for you that [Ill-defined Character] expressed [Unearned Emotion] to [Ill-defined Character] despite [Total Lack Of Established Motivation]. But also, the final moments saw the introduction of another, potentially better-defined character who will play a large role in the upcoming season—the sword-wielding Michonne, whose arrival as a cloaked figure leading two chained, literally unarmed zombies promised to rescue the series from its sophomore season stagnation just as dramatically as she rescued Andrea from certain death.
And as revealed on both The Talking Dead and subsequently all over the Internet moments later, Michonne will be played by Danai Gurira, an actress familiar from The Visitor, but perhaps best known for her role on Treme, where she plays the girlfriend to that guy who plays jazz. (You know the one.) Gurira joins the recently cast David Morrissey, whose The Governor is another equally anticipated addition from the comic book—though of course, showrunner Glen Mazzarra has admonished that Gurira will represent “our vision” of Michonne, which will once again involve some creative license. “We know that she's a loner, we know she kicks ass. But we have some other traits about that her that are not in the comic book that we'll deviate,” Mazzarra tells The Hollywood Reporter, hinting that the TV version of Michonne will have all sorts of as-yet-unexplored thoughts about making tough decisions that she can express through endlessly circular arguments, so you just buckle up, mister.