The Impact of Wounds

"I've done things to protect this place. Some things I'm not proud of. Some I try to forget. To save my people, I had to risk others. It hasn't been easy, but it's what I had to do. I've made my peace with that." - Michonne, "The Walking Dead"

"The Walking Dead" returned for the second half of its ninth season on Feb. 10. Each week I'll be looking at the episode, the deeper themes, and the world.

What wouldn't a parent do to protect their child? What wouldn't they do to keep them safe from a dangerous world gone mad? That's been a theme of this second half of "The Walking Dead's" ninth season. It began earlier in the season as we learned more about Alpha (Samantha Morton), and the way she reacted to the world crumbling. It led her to create a violent and dark world view, but one which has attracted like-minded people and is meant to keep her daughter safe.

Similarly, since the time jump, we've know that something went wrong with Michonne (Danai Gurira) after Rick's death, something that caused her to become a closed, guarded person. Something that caused a rift with the other communities. Something that pulled her away from the path that Rick and Carl set out, and one for which she was the fiercest advocate.

In last night's episode, "Scars," we saw the reason why, and the explanation for the scar she and Daryl (Norman Reedus) still bare. And it gave quite a bit of insight into how Michonne became so guarded. She did it for love, and to protect her child.

Michonne, even after losing Rick (Andrew Lincoln), was open to the ideas he fought and possibly died for. And that meant opening their gates to strangers, one of whom turned out to be an old friend (Rutina Wesley). But that friend turned out to be an enemy, one that tried to take all the children, including Judith.

Michonne and Daryl tracked them down, and earned their scars in the process. And what they learned was that in a world gone made, Michonne's former friend was taking children and turning them into  weapons. In order to save Judith, and the rest, Michonne had to cut her way through those recruits and it was hard and took a toll on her.

She felt responsible and weak, and as a reaction she closed herself, and her community, off to the outside world. Including their friends. It was an understandable response to a difficult situation, one that left her feeling helpless and alone.

In the present, we've seen a slightly older Judith (Cailey Fleming) push her mother to be more open. Something that Michonne heard from an even more unlikely place, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), as she searched for Judith. And while the threats of the world never disappear, it doesn't mean you have to stick your head in the sand and hide. And we're seeing Michonne open to the world again.

That means finding Daryl and helping him get to the Kingdom. And we'll see what happens when the confrontation with Alpha finally comes.

We've seen two mothers who were faced with horrors in a world gone made. Both reacted by trying to protect their children to the detriment of the world around them, and we've seen both children reject that protection. Michonne has shown a willingness to change and grow. How will Alpha react? We'll know in two weeks.