WARNING: The following article contains spoilers from "Clementine Lives!" in Skybound X #1 by Tillie Walden, Cliff Rathburn, on sale now.
Clementine lives. Those were the words that got so many The Walking Dead fans excited. Clementine is a character who has arguably become as important to the world of The Walking Dead as Rick Grimes. And now, more than two years after her story supposedly came to a close, Clementine has begun a new journey.
But who is this young survivor of the zombie apocalypse and what has she done to make it this far? And more importantly, what is she going to do next?
Clementine first debuted in Telltale's The Walking Dead, a choice based video game where players took on the role of Lee Everett, a man who would become the then eight-year-old Clementine's protector in an newly unsafe world. The two would grow close, developing a father-daughter relationship and players would come to care about Clementine as well, viewing her as their moral compass for a world where trust and kindness were becoming increasingly hard to find. But this is still the post-apocalyptic world created by Robert Kirkman and tragedy was always bound to follow.
Clementine would lose her father figure when he was bit while trying to save her. Clementine was forced out into the world on her own, jumping from different groups of survivors over the years as she tried to survive. In one of those groups, Clementine became the sole survivor alongside a baby boy named AJ. At only eleven years old, Clementine became the boy's protector, as Lee was for her.
The two would grow up together in a world that only became more hostile with each passing day. Clementine would try desperately to keep AJ safe, teaching him to the best of her ability what was taught to her and everyday struggling to keep them alive, always promising him that they would find a safe place one day. But all the while she had no idea what she was doing, all she knew for certain was that she had to keep AJ's hopes alive that they would make it in the end.
But things changed for the small family when they stumbled upon the Ericson's School for Troubled Youth. Inside they found a group of survivors close to their age, a novelty for the teenage Clem and five year old AJ. They tried to adjust to this new place, finding it much safer than anywhere they had stayed before. There were struggles of course and a near fatal bite that resulted in Clementine losing her leg to save her life. But after all that, the two finally found a safe place where they could be at peace.
For a time anyway. An unknown amount of time later, Clementine has made plans to leave Ericson's. She tried to leave in secret, but was stopped by AJ, who couldn't understand why she was leaving their home after so many years there. But that was just it, Ericson's wasn't home for Clementine. She wasn't happy there, but she was happy that AJ had a home and with the coalition of communities growing in number the world was finally becoming safe again. AJ could have a normal life, but Clementine still wasn't sure what her place in the world is. She needed to find it and she could only do that alone. AJ, despite his misgivings and grief at losing the one constant in his life, understood. He promised that he would be okay, she had taught him how to be after all. The two bid a tearful farewell and Clementine began her journey North.
It's a start for Clementine as she officially connects to the world of The Walking Dead comics. But her new journey will be comprised of a trilogy series which will examine a relatively unexplored portion of The Walking Dead's history: the formation of the coalition. At this time, the world is still filled with zombies, but humanity is rapidly on the track towards rebuilding something close to the world they lost. And now Clementine will connect with other characters find out how that better world came to be as she searches for her place in it.
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