The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2 dives deeper into the titular character’s backstory. Michonne’s not able to control her hallucinations; it’s clear something horrible is about to happen to the character that will force her to survive the new world on her own.
Michonne is destructive. She’s running on survival mode and doesn’t know when to turn it off. She believes everything and everyone is a threat to her, which leads her into trouble. In Episode 2, Michonne is arrogant and unwilling to compromise her safety. She’s forced to protect Sam since she’s killed one of Norma’s people. However, the chaos still manages to follow Michonne everywhere she goes.
There are some awesome moments for comic book fans in The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2. First, we finally learn the names of Michonne’s two daughters: Elodie and Collette. Their names are surprisingly feminine and soft. Michonne references her kids in the comics, but never says their names. She bonds with Rick over speaking to her dead loved ones, so hearing Michonne say her daughters’ names is quite special for comic fans.
The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2 also integrates QTE actions much better than its predecessors. Sam gets shot this episode and you have to tend to the wounds. The action of having to hold open her wound and pick up a pair of pliers to take out the bullet is cringe-worthy, in good way. There’s also a fight scene where Michonne dislocates her shoulder and you have to pop it back in for her like a badass. Telltale Games wasn’t afraid to embrace the goriness of the zombie apocalypse.
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Unfortunately, you don’t have much control over Michonne’s actions in this episode. You’re given the option to “save” Randall, Norma’s brother, after he attacks innocent people. He says vile things to Michonne, using her family to provoke a reaction. You could kill him, but Randall is as good as dead: Michonne has basically broken both his hands and bloodied his face. Randall might lose the use of one or both of his hands and die of infection. Still, he’s the only bargaining chip you have against his sister Norma, so killing him is a stupid move. However, it seems like Norma will still try to kill you either way in the next episode. Killing Randall or keeping him alive seem to lead you down the same road.
These kinds of decisions are a big issue with Telltale Games; the problem is, you’re not allowed to be passive and avoid bloodshed. Death is a part of Michonne’s story, but it seems like all she’s done so far is kill people. It would be interesting to see Pete’s more diplomatic approach to handling situations rub off on Michonne, otherwise you’re left with a killing machine only concerned about herself.
Still, the imagery used in Michonne’s story is beautifully done. Telltale Games does a great job bleeding Michonne’s hallucinations into her reality. Once you see Robo, her daughter’s toy robot, you know she’s starting to lose her grip on reality. There’s never a moment where Michonne seems okay; if she’s not in survival mode, she’s back in her apartment trying to figure out what happened to her little girls. It’s a powerful way to illustrate the instability of Michonne’s world and a great insight into her actions later on in the comic books.
The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2 is available on PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, iOS, Android, and PC now.
