Line #249 Characters/TheWalkingDeadNovels


1	Characters page for ''Franchise/TheWalkingDead'' novels: ''Literature/TheWalkingDeadRiseOfTheGovernor'', ''Literature/TheWalkingDeadTheRoadToWoodbury'', and ''Literature/TheWalkingDeadFallOfTheGovernor''.
2
3	[[foldercontrol]]
4	!Philip's Group
5
6	[[folder:Philip Blake]]
7	Philip is the leader of a small group consisting of himself, his brother Brian, his daughter Penny, and his friends Bobby and Nick. While fiercely protective of his loved ones the events of ''Rise of the Governor'' lead to him going through some major SanitySlippage. He is the man destined to become the Governor [[spoiler: until it's revealed that he's not. In reality, his brother ''Brian'' is the Governor]].
8	----
9	* BigBad: [[spoiler: Even though he's not the Governor he still serves as the main antagonist of ''Rise of the Governor'']].
10	* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: Nick shoots him in the back as he's about to rape/kill a captive girl]].
11	* ColdBloodedTorture: Inflicts this on two of the bandits who got his daughter killed. It's still horribly disturbing even though they may have had it coming.
12	* DisproportionateRetribution: See ColdBloodedTorture and NoHoldsBarredBeatdown.
13	* DotingParent: For all his flaws, Philip truly ''adores'' his little girl. [[spoiler: Her [[DespairEventHorizon death]] leads to his JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope for good.]]
14	* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: He sees himself as the responsible sibling to Brian's foolish sibling.
15	* ForegoneConclusion: We know that he loses his daughter Penny and becomes the Governor [[spoiler: until the TwistEnding averts that last part. See RedHerring for details]].
16	* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: He appears to be a JerkWithAHeartOfGold at first but as the book progresses he becomes more and more of a monster.
17	* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Does this to Brian for failing to prevent Penny's death.
18	* PapaWolf: His driving obsession is keeping Penny safe at all costs. [[spoiler: Even after her becoming a zombie, he just ''can't'' bring himself to put her down for good. After Nick kills him, Brian takes on this role.]]
19	* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: [[spoiler: Rapes April, although this wasn't his intention and he feels horribly guilty about it after. After Penny dies he repeatedly rapes one of the bandits who attacked her while forcing the other to watch]].
20	* RedHerring: [[spoiler: It seems obvious that he'll become the Governor, until it's revealed that his brother Brian is really the Governor and took his name after he died]].
21	* SanitySlippage: Starting with Penny's death, and it only gets worse from there. By the end of the book he's become a barely recognizable shell of his former self.
22	* SirSwearsALot: Swears like a drunken sailor.
23	* StrugglingSingleMother: A rare male version; Penny's mother died several years before the outbreak, leaving Phillip to support them both with various odd jobs.
24	* TemptingFate: [[spoiler: Claims that Nick doesn't have the guts to shoot him. He was wrong]].
25	* VillainProtagonist: Serves as one of two main POV characters in ''Rise Of The Governor'' and is certainly evil.
26	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds
27	[[/folder]]
28
29	[[folder:Brian Blake]]
30	Brian is the much more meek and less physically capable brother of Philip.
31	----
32
33	* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler: After he becomes "Philip", his "Brian" persona is mostly submerged and forced to watch helplessly and protest feebly at the Governor's atrocities. It's written rather like Philip's spirit is possessing his brother's body. Happens again in "Fall Of the Governor" where it's revealed that Lilly's headshot didn't kill him, and he's still aware while the walkers eat him alive.]]
34	* BecomingTheMask: [[spoiler:Takes on Philip's appearance and personality traits and comes to believe that he really ''is'' the original Philip.]]
35	* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler:Throughout the novel it was assume that his brother will be the one to become The Governor but however at the end it turns out it was ''Brian'' who ends up becoming The Governor who also took his brother's name and takes up his appearance as well.]]
36	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler: How Lilly kills him]].
37	* BreakTheCutie: ''Rise of the Governor''.
38	* CoolUncle: For Penny. [[spoiler: At first, anyway.]]
39	* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:''Fall of the Governer'' revises his fairly quick comic death into this; the bullet with was a .22 round that just paralyzed him, and for a few minutes he felt the zombies eat him.]]
40	* DespairEventHorizon: Seeing his civilization completely fall apart around him, spending months roaming from place to place, trying desperately to survive attacks from zombies and bandits, seeing his niece [[spoiler: and brother]] shot to death in front of him and being unable to stop either happening, witness beforehand[[spoiler: his brother going batshit insane and turn into a torturer and murderer before his friend shoots him like a rabid dog, causing him (Brian) to shoot said friend in a fit of rage and then go catatonic for the next 24 hours]], and finally being stuck in a [[WretchedHive town]] lorded over by a bunch of corrupt, dictatorial National Guardsmen who shoot anyone who so much as speaks out against them… yup, that did it.
41	* DrivenToVillainy: Over the course of ''Rise of the Governor''.
42	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: After Philip dies, he makes a full transformation into the Governor]].
43	* FromNobodyToNightmare: [[spoiler:He goes from being a sweet-natured, geeky, physically frail failed businessman who can't even bring himself to shoot a walker, to a terrifying mass murdering, raping, sadistic, power-tripping dictator.]]
44	* TheLoad: Brian starts out almost useless to Philip's group, and is mainly relegated to keeping Penny safe while Philip, Nick and Bobby do all the real work. He's timid, anxious, indecisive, bad with guns and not very physically fit. He improves somewhat over the course of the novel, but not enough to make any real difference [[spoiler: until the TwistEnding that is.]]
45	* MySiblingWillLiveThroughMe: [[spoiler: Assumes Philip's name and even his personality after he dies, effectively convincing himself that he is Philip]].
46	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler:See AndIMustScream. The part of him that is still Brian is absolutely appalled and horrified at the Governor's actions, particularly his [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil rape of Michonne.]]]]
47	* NiceGuy: [[spoiler: Well, he ''was''…]]
48	* NonActionGuy: He can't even bring himself to shoot a walker at first. [[spoiler: Especially ironic considering who he later becomes]].
49	* SplitPersonalityTakeover: [[spoiler:His POV in ''The Road To Woodbury'' and ''Fall Of The Governor'' shows that although he has taken on his brother's personality, his original personality is still in there deep inside, although mostly smothered by his "Philip" persona. Following his ColdBloodedTorture at Michonne's hands, his "Brian" persona is completely obliterated, and only "Philip" remains.]]
50	* PapaWolf: He tries to be this for his niece. Unfortunately she gets killed and comes back as a zombie anyway. [[spoiler:When he assumes his brother's identity, he also continues "caring" for his "daughter" and providing fresh human remains for her.]]
51	* RevengeByProxy: [[spoiler:''Rise of the Governor'' reveals that Brian's "crazy" Jamaican wife divorced him shortly before the ZombieApocalypse began. Given what the Governor [[ColdBloodedTorture later]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil does]] to Michonne, it's a [[FridgeHorror possible]] [[FridgeBrilliance hint]] that he's venting some ''very'' ugly feelings that he held towards his ex-wife onto Michonne because she reminds him of her.]]
52	* StartOfDarkness: [[spoiler: ''Rise of the Governor'' is one for him]].
53	* TookALevelInBadass: Goes from the dweeby brother of Philip who can't even get a headshot on a walker to [[spoiler: the most dangerous villain in the Walking Dead universe, barring ''maybe'' Negan.]]
54	* TookALevelInJerkass: [[spoiler:Naturally, considering that he changes from a harmless guy to the monster from the comics that we know and love (to hate)]].
55	* TraumaCongaLine: ''Rise of the Governor'' is one big one for him [[spoiler: and leads to him becoming the Governor; it keeps going even after he becomes the Governor, what with the accumulated injuries and Michonne's ColdBloodedTorture.]]
56	* VillainProtagonist: [[spoiler:It is he who eventually becomes the Governor]].
57	* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler: Ladies and gentlemen, the once and future Governor.]]
58	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: [[spoiler:As the Governor, he's a horrific monster, but ''good lord'', he was a geniunely sweet, harmless guy who obviously hadn't had a particularly happy or successful life even before the ZombieApocalypse happened, and he didn't so much JumpOffTheSlipperySlope as he was kicked off it with a lead weight attached.]]
59	[[/folder]]
60
61	[[folder:Penny Blake]]
62	The daughter of Philip.
63	----
64	* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: After dying she reanimates. Philip refuses to put her down, instead feeding her corpses. [[spoiler: After Philip dies, Brian continues this practice. She's ''finally'' put down by Lilly after Brian is killed]].
65	* BreakTheCutie: What happens to her over the course of the book.
66	* CharacterDeath: Shot in the abdomen by bandits.
67	* DoomedByCanon
68	* ForegoneConclusion: Thanks to the comics we already know that she dies and reanimates.
69	* TheQuietOne: Is very shy and rarely speaks.
70	* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth
71	* UndeadChild: Her ultimate fate. [[spoiler:Lilly finally kills her near the end of the book trilogy.]]
72	[[/folder]]
73
74	[[folder:Nick Parsons]]
75	One of Philip's good friends, Nick is very religious.
76	----
77	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler: Brian shoots him in the head after he kills Philip]].
78	* TheLancer: Is this for Phillip for the majority of the book due to Bobby's unexpected death and Brian's reluctance to fight. [[spoiler:By the end, however, he considers Phillip to be too far gone to try and save.]]
79	* OnlySaneMan: Becomes this for the group after Penny dies; Brian tries to rationalize Philip's increasingly unstable behavior, but Nick is the one to recognize that something needs to be done about it and [[spoiler: kills Phillp when he see him dragging a girl which he either plans to rape or kill her and despite Brian trying to stop him, Nick kills Phillp but accidently kills the girl along with him.]]
80	* TokenReligiousTeammate: Very religious.
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Bobby Marsh]]
84	Another one of Philip's friends, Bobby is somewhat looked down upon by the rest of the group.
85	----
86	* BigEater: A more mild and subdued example due to the serious and realistic nature of the book, but he consumes an entire package of Oreos by himself when the group finds a stocked pantry and is always described eating or lusting over food the few times the book focuses on him.
87	* ButtMonkey: Never gets much respect from the rest of the group [[spoiler: and ends up being the first to die]].
88	* MercyKill: [[spoiler: Philip puts him down after he is bitten]].
89	* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler: The first member of the group to die]].
90	* SirSwearsALot: Lampshaded by the other characters.
91	* WeHardlyKnewYe: [[spoiler: Doesn't even last fifty pages]].
92	[[/folder]]
93
94	!Atlanta Apartment Survivors
95
96	[[folder:April Chalmers]]
97	A young woman who is trapped inside an abandoned apartment building with her father and sister who offers Phillips group a place to stay when they get stranded in the middle of the city surrounded by the zombies.
98	----
99	* ActionGirl: She heads out scavenging with Phillip and kills several zombies.
100	* BatterUp: Her main weapon when gathering supplies.
101	* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Unfortunately, Phillip ends up loving her a bit too much...
102	* FriendToAllChildren: She develops an instant liking to Penny and has trouble putting down a zombie girl she encounters in a store.
103	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Tara is at least seen in the chapter where [[spoiler:she kicks the group out]] but the last time we see April is when she is [[spoiler:walking off to her room in traumatized silence. Given that she disappears from the story completely after that and the fact her sister is absolutely LIVID the next day could imply that she committed suicide, ran away or went into a completely catatonic state due to Phillip's actions.]]
104	[[/folder]]
105
106	[[folder:Tara Chalmers]]
107	April's older sister who isn't quite as friendly and welcoming as her younger sister is.
108	----
109	* {{Foil}}: To Brian. Both are the elder of two siblings, but far less effectual than Phillip and April, whom they rely on to keep them safe and cared for in the apocalypse. [[spoiler:Also like Brian, she finally steps up — albeit too late — when her younger sibling is brought down.]] Unlike Brian, however, her final actions hint at a streak of heroism in spite of her spiteful and difficult personality; while Brian is a mostly useless but fairly decent person who [[spoiler:goes on to become one of the biggest villains in the series in his brother's honour.]]
110	* GetOut: When [[spoiler:Phillip rapes her sister]] she loses all patience and sympathy with the group and kicks them out of the apartment at gunpoint.
111	* HeroAntagonist: Despite her increasingly {{Jerkass}} persona, an overweight stoner putting aside her self-centred attitude and [[spoiler:single-handedly kicking a group of strong men out of her apartment building — having safely disarmed them in their sleep — because one of them raped her sister and she's (presumably) too traumatised to ever face them again]] is a pretty brave act. Too bad most of the group never learn of the justification behind her actions, making her seem like a heartless villain who turns on them for no good reason.
112	* SmallRoleBigImpact: She only sticks around for the middle portion of the novel and doesn't get too many lines, but her deciding to [[spoiler:kick out Philip's group is what forces Brian to slowly adapt to the crumbling world around him and eventually becoming the Governor, which in turn leads to the massacre at the prison.]] In other words, her actions began majorly shaping and influencing the entire storyline from issue 48 onward.
113	* TookALevelInJerkass: She becomes much more cold and distant once [[spoiler:her father dies and comes back as a zombie that almost kills her]], but after [[spoiler:Phillip rapes April]] any hint of niceness she had left evaporates completely.
114	* WouldHurtAChild: [[spoiler:When she kicks the group out both Brain and Phillip bring up the fact that this is practically a death sentence since she doesn't leave them any guns or food. When its pointed out that Penny (who is only seven years old) is likely to perish as well she flatly says that she doesn't care.]]
115	[[/folder]]
116
117	[[folder:David Chalmers]]
118	A withered old man hooked up to a breathing machine. He is the father of both April and Tara.
119	----
120	* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:He comes back despite not being bitten and almost kills April, which he would have done had Phillip not bashed his skull in.]]
121	* LifeWillKillYou: [[spoiler:He collapses due to a stroke or some other form of illness brought on by his age or weak lungs and slowly wastes away in bed.]]
122	* PapaWolf: He may be old, frail and hooked up to a breathing machine, but that won't stop him from confronting you with a shotgun if he thinks you might be a threat to his girls.
123	* WeHardlyKnewYe: Only lasts a couple chapters.
124	[[/folder]]
125
126	!Tent City Survivors
127
128	!!!Lilly's Group
129
130	[[folder:Lilly Caul]]
131	The main protagonist of the Road To Woodbury novel who finds her self struggling with the recent loss of her father in the ZombieApocalypse while also dealing with the other survivors and possibly even forming a romance with one of her close friends. She is the same character who appears in issue 48 of [[ComicBook/TheWalkingDead the comic]] and [[spoiler:kills the governor for making her shoot Lori (Rick's wife) and Judith, who was only a baby.]]
132	----
133	* ActionGirl: Takes a while but she eventually becomes one of the best examples in the entire series and even manages to [[spoiler:kill the Governor.]]
134	* AscendedExtra: She was an extremely minor character in the comic, here she's the main protagonist.
135	* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. She suffers several nasty injuries that leave her looking like a mess.
136	* HumansAreTheRealMonsters: Blatantly invokes this trope when the Governor uses [[spoiler:Josh's death]] as an excuse to begin the gladiator games Woodbury becomes imfamous for.
137	* ShovelStrike: Uses a shovel as a weapon early in the book.
138	* YoungerThanTheyLook: She's in her 30's, but the constant stress and struggles of the post-apocalyptic world leads to her looking at least 40.
139	[[/folder]]
140
141	[[folder:Josh Lee Hamilton]]
142	A large African American man who quickly develops a friendship with Lilly at their camp. After [[spoiler:killing Chad Bingham to protect her]] he and Lilly hit the road with a few other survivors and eventually find themselves in a place called Woodbury.
143	----
144	* BewareTheNiceOnes: The man is extremely friendly and polite, but god help you if you threaten or insult Lilly within earshot of him.
145	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler:After knocking Sam down and refusing to give him the supplies he and Lilly found the butcher goes into a rage, whips out a gun and shoots him right in the back of the head.]]
146	* GentleGiant: Noted several times throughout the book.
147	* SupremeChef: He was a master cook before the ZombieApocalypse and even comes up with the idea of preparing a fancy dinner for Lilly with salvaged food supplies. [[spoiler:Sadly, he dies before he ever gets the chance to fulfil this dream.]]
148	* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:Shot in the head out of nowhere.]]
149	[[/folder]]
150
151	[[folder:Bob Stookey]]
152	An alcoholic former army medic who accompanies Lilly and Josh when they leave camp and began travelling on the road.
153	----
154	* AscendedExtra: Played a minor role in the comics but is more of a main character here.
155	* TheAlcoholic: About half of the time the story focuses on him he'll be drinking some kind of booze. By the end of ''Fall of the Governor'', he has overcome his alcoholism. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, he has a brief relapse in ''Invasion'' after Gloria dies.]]
156	* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: During the fight with Jeremiah's group in ''Invasion'', he dies from a heart attack and is put down by Lilly, though not before saving her from some walkers.]]
157	* CoolOldGuy: Becomes this after overcoming his issues.
158	* TheDeterminator: [[spoiler: Even in the midst of a ''heart attack'' he manages to crawl for a long period of time, headshot four walkers, and hand Lilly his dynamite before dying.]]
159	* DirtyOldMan: He spies on Megan and Scott having sex through a hole in the wall and even admits to the Governor that he'd like to get with her for at least one night if he ever has the chance.
160	* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler: Already dying from a heart attack, his last action is to kill some walkers that were about to devour Lilly.]]
161	* TheLancer: Becomes Lily's closest ally over time. [[spoiler: His death devastates her.]]
162	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Saving the Governor from death after the latter is tortured by Michonne leads to the devastating attack on the prison.
163	* NonActionGuy: He doesn't really do much fighting at first, but grows out of this eventually.
164	* TookALevelInBadass: Becomes a capable survivor after a while.
165	[[/folder]]
166
167	[[folder:Megan Lafferty]]
168	Lilly's friend from high school who joins her on the road. Her two loves are getting high and getting laid.
169	----
170	* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:Reanimates in front of Lilly and is put down by Bob.]]
171	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler:Done to her zombie form by Bob.]]
172	* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Hangs herself.]]
173	* SexForServices: [[spoiler:Her eventual "job" is this once the group makes it to Woodbury. Lilly is so disgusted by this that she ends their friendship.]]
174	* TheStoner: Constantly smoking pot and having sex.
175	[[/folder]]
176
177	[[folder:Scott Moon]]
178	Megan's stoner boyfriend who follows her when she joins up with Lilly.
179	----
180	* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:His reanimated head is kept in one of the Governor's fish tanks.]]
181	* OffWithHisHead: [[spoiler:After disappearing about halfway through the book he is found by Megan at the Governor's apartment near the end, with his zombiefied head floating in one of the Governor's many fish tanks.]]
182	* TheStoner: Same deal as Megan.
183	[[/folder]]
184
185	!!!Bingham Family
186
187	[[folder:Chad Bingham]]
188	The unofficial leader of the tent community who spends most of the first three chapters of the book ordering everyone around. [[spoiler:He is killed by Josh when he attempts to murder Liily in revenge for his daughter.]]
189	----
190	* NeverMyFault: Despite taking all of the guns and heavily armed men with him out of camp he has the gall to blame Lilly when [[spoiler:zombies show up and eat his daughter along with several of the other defenseless survivors.]]
191	* PapaWolf: A dark example. He [[spoiler:tries to kill Lilly because he believes she let his daughter die.]]
192	* UngratefulBastard: Even though Lilly saved three of his daughters from walkers at great risk to her own life he [[spoiler:tries to kill her just because she couldn't save Sarah.]]
193	* WouldHitAGirl: [[spoiler:He damn near beats Lilly to death, the only thing that saves her is the fact that Josh was close by.]]
194	[[/folder]]
195
196	[[folder:Sarah Bingham]]
197	Chad Bingham's 15 year older daughter (not to be confused with the Sarah from the video games) who is left under Lilly's watch early in the story.
198	----
199	* EatenAlive: [[spoiler:She gets pinned and devoured by the small herd of zombies that pass through the tent city.]]
200	* SacrificialLamb: [[spoiler:Killed off early on just to give Lilly something to angst about and set the main plot into motion.]]
201	[[/folder]]
202
203	!Woodbury Survivors
204
205	!!!Woodbury Militia
206
207	[[folder:The Governor]]
208
209	See [[spoiler:Brian Blake]].
210	[[/folder]]
211
212	[[folder:Caeser Ramon Martinez]]
213	The leader of a group of Woodbury soldiers who find Lilly's group in an abandoned Walmart and offer them a place in their town. Shortly, after the events of The Road To Woodbury he meets up with Rick's group which leads to his role in the comics.
214	----
215	* AdaptationalHeroism: In the comics he was AmbiguouslyEvil and a possible traitor to Rick's group. In Road To Woodbury he is a genuinely decent guy who saves Lilly's life several times and even plays a major role in her attempt to overthrow the Governor.
216	* BigDamnHeroes: He saves Lilly a few times during The Road To Woodbury. Unfortunately, the second time he arrives too late to prevent [[spoiler:Josh being killed.]]
217	* InVinoVeritas: After having a few drinks at Doctor Stevens Christmas party he reveals that [[spoiler:despite being one of the Governor's best soldiers he doesn't trust the man to rule over Woodbury for any long term amount of time.]]
218	[[/folder]]
219
220	!!!Racetrack Clinic
221
222	[[folder:Doctor Stevens]]
223	Woodbury's resident doctor who ends up forming a friendship with Bob Stookey. Appeared briefly in the comics.
224	----
225	%%zce* OnlySaneMan: Both him and Alice.
226	[[/folder]]
227
228	[[folder:Alice Warren]]
229	A fairly major character from the comics who serves as doctor Stevens assistant.
230	----
231	%%zce* OnlySaneWoman: Alongside Doctor Stevens.
232	[[/folder]]
233
234	!!!Other Survivors
235
236	[[folder:Sam The Butcher]]
237	Woodbury's local butcher who runs most of its barter business with an iron fist. He is rude and quick to anger, ultimately going so far as to [[spoiler:murder Josh in cold blood over a bag of supplies.]]
238	----
239	* {{Greed}}: He works poor Josh like a dog to pay him back for food, adding on excessive debt when it looks like Josh might finally be in the clear. Then he [[spoiler:outright murders him for refusing to hand over a bag of supplies.]]
240	* IcyBlueEyes: The book describes him as having "diamond chip blue" eyes.
241	* OffWithHisHead: [[spoiler:Gets decapitated by Stinson in the arena.]]
242	[[/folder]]
243
244	[[folder:Stinson]]
245	A former officer at the local national guard station who was captured by the governor and placed in a holding cell with some of his fellow guardsmen. After a failed attempt at ambushing the Governor he is chosen to be the first fighter at the Woodbury arena and defeats [[spoiler:Sam the butcher in single combat.]]
246	----
247	* BringMyBrownPants: He pisses himself in fear when [[spoiler:the Governor locks inside the trailer. Understandable, given that he was seconds away from being devoured by a mob of zombies.]]
248	* EatenAlive: [[spoiler:Chained to the inside of a trailer and used as live bait for a pack of incoming zombies.]]
249	* MacheteMayhem: His weapon choice in the arena.
250	* SanitySlippage: By the time the Governor [[spoiler:uses him as live bait for a herd of zombies his remaining sanity is completely gone. Even before then he kills the butcher in a murderous rage after getting heavily beaten up during their fight.]]
251	[[/folder]]

Context Characters / TheWalkingDeadNovels