The Walking Dead Will Revisit Michonne’s Past in Her Final Story

The Walking Dead will revisit Michonne’s past as part of the final story for Danai Gurira, who confirmed her exit from the series at San Diego Comic-Con last July. The sword-swinging zombie slayer was last seen in the midseason finale sailing away with stranded survivor Virgil (Kevin Carroll), who claims his home on a fortified naval base holds a cache of weapons needed to destroy Whisperer Alpha’s (Samantha Morton) walker horde threatening to destroy Alexandria. In exchange for a trip home reuniting him with his family, Virgil will supply Michonne with the firepower needed to win the Whisperer War — if Michonne survives the dangers facing her on this risky mission.

The newest trailer for the second half of the season shows Michonne utilizing an old trick from the earliest days of the apocalypse, before Andrea (Laurie Holden) became her sole companion following the destruction of the Greene family farm in Season 2. Michonne can be seen leading a pair of leashed walkers — their jaws and arms removed to prevent bites and scratches — a tactic used to camouflage herself from roaming walkers.

In Season 3, Michonne used a pair of neutralized walkers — the reanimated corpses of ex-lover Mike (Aldis Hodge) and his friend Terry (Brandon Fobbs), who were responsible for the death of Michonne’s young son Andre — to help protect herself as a lone traveler. Michonne uses this technique again in present day, as evidenced by the hairstyle she only adopted in Season 9, sometime during the six-year time jump that followed the presumed death of lover Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln).

A past trailer for the back half of Season 10 revealed Michonne’s final story will also involve a flashback to the earliest days of the apocalypse, as hinted by a shot of a cloaked Michonne crouching near “pets” Mike and Terry. Because Michonne’s dreads are in the pre-time jump style, this flashback is set sometime before the events of Season 3 Episode 3, “Walk With Me,” where Michonne was forced to put down her walker escorts to prevent being discovered by the Governor (David Morrissey).

This new pair of walkers won’t be the only call back to Michonne’s history: her final story will see her processing the death of close friend Siddiq (Avi Nash), who was murdered by a Whisperer spy sent by Alpha to infiltrate Alexandria. An emotional Michonne learned of Siddiq’s death over walkie talkie in the midseason finale, “The World Before,” and it was the memory of both Siddiq and Rick that ultimately pushed Michonne to trust Virgil for the time being.

“We examined what are some of the journeys that she’ll take that have both plot resonance but also just personal resonance for her,” showrunner Angela Kang previously told Deadline. “Also, Michonne’s struggling with the death of her friend, Siddiq. He was so tight with Carl (Chandler Riggs) and after Carl’s death, I think Siddiq took on a lot of significance, and that definitely plays into her story going forward, as well.”

The final episode for Lincoln’s Rick also touched on the past: a gravely wounded Rick hallucinated encounters with the dead Shane (Jon Bernthal), Hershel (Scott Wilson) and Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green), with voice cameos made by past Walking Dead stars.

TWD Season 10 returns with new episodes Feb. 23 on AMC. For more TWD intel, follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter.