We have a very exciting “Versus” for you this week! It’s a real slice of heaven! We have a couple of very dangerous sword wielding femme fatales! Two women no one would ever dare to mess with, or to take on alone, or even a group. These women mean serious business! So let’s get right down to it. Who would win in a sword fight? Would it be Michonne from “The Walking Dead,” or would it be Beatrix Kiddo (“The Bride” from Kill Bill)? Who would you like to see win this sharp edge blade fight? Here is a little about each character…
Michonne (The Walking Dead)
Michonne is a character from the comic book series “The Walking Dead” and is portrayed by Danai Gurira in the television series of the same name. Armed with a katana and harboring a mysterious past, Michonne is introduced clothed under a hood and pulling the shackles of two reanimated corpses for protection and camouflage. The two walkers are subsequently revealed to be her zombified boyfriend and his best friend. In both the comic and TV series, she has a prominent role in the conflict between the town of Woodbury led by The Governor, and the Prison crew (of which she was a member).
The direction of the character is contrasted between the two mediums (though in both media, Michonne is introduced as an outsider who quickly proves to be a valuable asset). In the comic, Michonne is a former lawyer as well as a divorcee with two missing daughters. She forms a complicated relationship with Tyreese. Her conflict with The Governor is much more violent in the comics, enduring sexual assault before mutilating him in revenge. Michonne’s mental state deteriorates after many losses, bringing her closer to Rick Grimes who shares similar trauma. Despite finding temporary peace with Ezekiel at The Kingdom, Michonne runs away to Oceanside before making a return. Her absence was explored in a 3-episode Telltale Games mini-series, exploring her departure and living life at sea.
Michonne’s backstory is slightly altered in the television series, having a three-year-old son named Andre Anthony, while the fate of her boyfriend and friend remain the same. In the television series, Michonne’s trauma and guarded nature gradually diminishes as she slowly recovers and finds herself opening up and investing in a community as well as Rick’s core group. Her conflict with The Governor is motivated by his attempt to kill her after leaving the town under suspicion that he is dangerous and trying to protect her friend, Andrea. In addition, her relationship with the Grimes family is explored in more depth as she pushes her group to strive for a sanctuary in Washington, DC. In both mediums, she becomes a constable at the Alexandria Safe-Zone.
The character has been critically praised, often regarded as a fan-favorite in both mediums. Michonne was voted #86 on IGN’s Top 100 Comic Book Heroes and Gurira’s performance has been well received.
Her first appearance in the season finale of Season 2 of the TV series was just a cameo and she was played by a stand-in.
Producer Frank Darabont stated in an interview with Fearnet in 2011 that Michonne would appear in the third season of the show.After Darabont was fired, there was speculation that those plans might have changed. However, in an interview with The Watercooler in late January 2012, Gale Anne Hurd confirmed that Michonne would appear in future seasons.
Danai Gurira was officially announced, during an episode of “Talking Dead”, to have been cast as Michonne. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Kirkman was quoted saying “there’s a lot to that role, and Danai, more than any other actress, showed us that she could exhibit that strength and show what an intense character she could be and, at the same time, have that emotional core and be able to show a vulnerability to a certain extent that we don’t see much of but is definitely there.” He added, “She really was the whole package, and I think she’s going to do a really good job”. Danai later commented on implementing her comic counterpart’s traits:
“I was trying to really investigate a character and allow her to have as much dimension as possible and crack it open even more. What you see through the writing and vision of the creator, you add to it by bringing your full humanity and by really delving into the character’s background and their motives and fears; all those things can make a multidimensional character come to life. That’s how I’ve been trained from the beginning and how I’ve created characters in the past on the stage or through my playwriting. I plan to bring all of that to the table to allow Michonne to be as rich and complex as possible. I’m excited to bring her to life as someone who really has a lot of life and a lot of complexity.”
Michonne was voted #86 on IGN’s Top 100 Comic Book Heroes. Regarding the television portrayal of the character, her scowling expression, reserved nature, and “Magical Negro”qualities have been much-discussed by reviewers. Michonne’s uniquely independent nature has been praised, with one website commenting, “A case could be made that no character is as independently strong as Michonne.”However, others have criticized Michonne’s lack of development on the show, writing that she “was quickly sinking into the “strong black woman” trope. She is constantly assaulted and manhandled with seemingly very little concern shown for her wellbeing.”
Beatrix Kiddo (The Bride – Kill Bill)
Beatrix Kiddo (primarily known as “The Bride”), codename “Black Mamba”, is a character and the protagonist of the two-part movie Kill Bill directed by Quentin Tarantino. She is portrayed by Uma Thurman and was selected by Empire Magazine as one of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.Entertainment Weekly also named her as one of the 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years.
According to Uma Thurman, the character was created collaboratively during the filming of Pulp Fiction, with Thurman providing the character’s first name and Tarantino her last name. After the release of Kill Bill: Volume 2, Tarantino commented that he “love[s] the Bride” and that he “killed [him]self to put her in a good place” at the end of the two-part film.
Tarantino has said he saved most of The Bride’s nuanced character development for the second half: “As far as the first half is concerned, I didn’t want to make her sympathetic. I wanted to make her scary.” Thurman cited Clint Eastwood’s performance in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as a central inspiration for her performance because, in her words, Eastwood “says almost nothing but somehow manages to portray a whole character.”
“Looked dead, didn’t I? Well, I wasn’t. But it wasn’t from lack of trying, I can tell you that. Actually Bill’s last bullet put me in a coma–a coma I was to lie in for four years. When I woke up, I went on what the movie advertisements refer to as…’A roaring rampage of revenge.’ I roared and I rampaged, and I got bloody satisfaction. I’ve killed a hell of a lot of people to get to this point, but I have only one more. The last one. The one I’m driving to right now. The only one left. And when I arrive at my destination, I am gonna kill Bill.”
Beatrix Michelle Kiddo, also known as The Bride and also the daughter of her married parents Marc and Michelle Kiddo, is the main protagonist in the Kill Bill movie series. Once a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, known by her code-name Black Mamba, Beatrix was romantically involved with Bill. After her premature retirement from her assassination career, Beatrix left the squad to escape the life of an assassin and start a new one for her unborn daughter. However, Beatrix’s friends and her fiance were murdered at the marriage rehearsal. But Beatrix herself was shot in the head and put into a four-year coma, during which her and Bill’s baby was delivered successfully. Once she woke up from her coma, Beatrix plotted her deadly vengeance against all members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, including Bill himself, killing them all one-by-one and killing anyone who stood in her way.
After her parents died by unknown means, Beatrix and Bill started off their relationship during an unknown time while she served as right hand of Bill and as a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. Elle, a fellow member of the squad, also desired a relationship with Bill and consequently developed hostility towards Beatrix.
Several years before the massacre, Bill and Beatrix travelled to China, where he recited the story of a legendary martial arts master named Pai Mei, and of a deadly attack only Pai Mei knows, called the Five-Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique. Shortly after, the two reached Pai Mei’s residence, where Pai Mei agreed to take Beatrix as his student, although she represented all the aspects he hated. After presumably a couple of years, Beatrix returned to the United States, and continued to serve as the deadliest assassin at Bill’s service.
After an unknown period of time, Beatrix, finished with her training and after a period of working with the Deadly Vipers, got pregnant with Bill’s baby. While on a mission to kill a woman, the woman sent an assassin of her own after Beatrix, who tracked her down moments after Beatrix took a pregnancy test and learned she was, in fact, pregnant with Bill’s child. After a short face-off in which Beatrix convinced Karen that she had no intention to fight, Beatrix faked her death and disappeared from Bill’s life.
Beatrix went under the name of Arlene Machiavelli, and met a guy named Tommy Plympton in rural Texas. Tommy worked at a record store, and the two fell in love, and ran his store together. The couple eventually got engaged, and planned to have their wedding ceremony at the Two Pines chapel. They arranged a wedding rehearsal, fully dressed and attended by their friends and family, and it became apparent that no one from Beatrix’s side would attend.
While taking a break, Beatrix found Bill at the exterior of the chapel, playing his flute. Although at the time, Bill believed that Beatrix’s baby was Tommy’s, he insisted on attending her wedding. He was introduced to Tommy as Arlene’s father, who returned from Australia after a silver mining operation. When Tommy walked away, Bill and Beatrix shared a tender kiss.
Beatrix returned to the ceremony, while moments after, the four members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad entered the chapel, and killed all the attendees. Beatrix, the last survivor, was brutally attacked, being thrown from one member of the Squad to another and beaten to death. Lying on the floor, she saw a woman whom she recognized as one of Bill’s protégés. Bill approached her, yet just as she began to reveal to him that the baby was his, he shot her in the head and left her for dead.
Now that was a mouth full, wasn’t it? Who do you think would win this very serious fight? We want to know. Vote on the poll below. Then let’s hear from you. What do you think were the pros and cons of the fight? Who would win? We’ll leave it up to you, the fans. Comment below.
“Those of you lucky enough to have your lives, take them with you. However, leave the limbs you’ve lost. They belong to me now.” (The Bride – Kill Bill)
-The Engineer