Review

The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2: Give No Shelter

Telltale’s latest mini-series isn’t what I’d thought it would be. The thrills are there for sure; Michonne’s “sabbatical” isn’t as uneventful as I’m sure she’d hoped. The current calamity, however, isn’t unique to her journey considering what she’s (we’ve) been through. Like I said in my review of “In Too Deep”, humans are worse than zombies. The good news is that Michonne’s past is still worth exploring.

Before going into the good and bad, I have to point out that my progress was erased after the game received the update unlocking this episode. And because my saved data was housed on Telltale’s cloud, I had no way of retrieving it. Regrettably, this meant that I had to start the second episode with simulated choices, most of which were in opposition to what I actually picked. Now, I won’t hold this against the mini-series as it seemed like there was an issue with the cloud service and not the game itself. Please note that this was not an isolated incident and that many other players were affected!

“Give No Shelter” picks up seconds after the last episode left off. Michonne and Sam had just dealt with Zachary, a younger guy who was reluctant to participate in their interrogation. After subduing another guard, they managed to find Pete as he’s being questioned by Norma and Randall. A fight ensues between the two groups, ending with a freed Pete and an armed Michonne – her enemies should really learn to not leave swords, machetes or any sharp objects around this woman. Making their escape via a damaged boat, they end up beached a about a mile away from their pursuers. With a sniper pelting their position and an army of zombies slowly marching towards the ruckus, our group is in a tight spot. Thankfully, Michonne has some tricks up her sleeve…

This episode is certainly a lively one. Most of it sees our group running for their lives or making a stand in bloody fashion. Still, the most interesting segments are those that foreshadow a possible mental breakdown; Michonne’s hallucinations are getting worse. At one point she ends up back in her apartment after fighting off some walkers. The combination of blood stains and open suitcases paint a grim picture. After investigating further we find out who the two little girls haunting Michonne are as well as what happened moments before she arrived home. Some of these revelations came as no surprise, though what ultimately happened that day is still up in the air.

Unfortunately, most of the story still suffers from the mundane. There are no truly notable villains, nor is there any great character development or even any unusual events (outside of the surreal stuff mentioned above). The voice acting is top notch, as always, and the fighting can be entertaining. But, due to my extensive following of all things Walking Dead, I’ve seen how this sort of story plays out. And while the pacing is great, dividing the story into only three episodes means there isn’t time to experiment. Is that an unfair criticism given the nature of this mini-series and Telltale in general? I’m not so sure. After all, the adventure genre’s bread and butter are interesting characters and well told stories. If those two elements are lacking, no matter the reason, the end product is worse off.