Retro Review: 'The Walking Dead' #171: The first appearance of Princess is an unforgettable and fun moment
Spoilers for 'The Walking Dead' #171
With the first appearance of Princess (Paola Lázaro) on 'The Walking Dead' TV series, and the halting of physical comics releases due to coronavirus concerns both happening in the same week, there's never been a better time to look at Princess' actual first appearance in the comics. Introduced in 'The Walking Dead' #171, Princess is a marked departure from most 'The Walking Dead' characters, bringing a sense of humor and eccentricity quite alien to the series.
The issue opens with a tense conversation between Eugene and Siddiq — that Rosita had been in love with Siddiq while dating Eugene. Eugene, of course, remembers things differently — Rosita had told him that her affair meant nothing to her — but given Rosita's passing in the comics, he lets it go, forgiving Siddiq, and the two share a moment of comfort together. The rest of the issue, however, is very much the story of how the survivors met Princess.
Michonne, Eugene, Siddiq, Magna and Yumiko have set out to meet another community, whom Eugene has been in contact with through a mysterious radio voice named Stephanie — a situation that viewers will recognize from the show, albeit with a slightly altered expedition team. The team has entered a city for what may be the first time since the apocalypse began. Once avoided for their dense populations, cities have now become largely empty of walkers, who all wandered away to seek fresh meat elsewhere.
Michonne takes the risk of calling out, to see if the city has any survivors — which is when Princess shows up, large gun in her hand, at the ready. She notes, though, that she wasn't pointing the gun at any of them.
Right off the bat, Princess sets herself apart. She talks a LOT for a comic that usually accomplishes so much with curt words, and silence. There is a tension there — every time a new character shows up on 'The Walking Dead,' there's a 50/50 chance there may be a terrible new villain — but Princess manages to talk her way into joining the group, promising to earn their trust.
She's just this side of unhinged, in her first appearance, having had no other humans for company for over a year. Her scenes are highly amusing, however, and Princess excels in a sort of twisted logic that looks at things in a whole new way.
Princess is a sharp left turn from the darkness of 'The Walking Dead,' especially in the aftermath of the Whisperer War. While it easily could have gone the route of eccentric characters, 'The Walking Dead' tended to avoid bringing up a lot of silliness, which is what makes Princess stand out so much. However, they've balanced that silliness with a sense of smarts, wonder, and general badassery.
'The Walking Dead' #171 is a rare fun issue in a series that isn't known for being fun. While the show appears to have upped Princess' silliness and eccentricity a smidgen, her opening scene is pretty faithfully reconstructed from her first meeting with the survivors, down to verbatim dialogue lifted straight from the comic. You can see that first interaction here:
The most significant difference here, of course, is that Michonne's lines are largely taken up by a more open-minded and welcoming Ezekiel (Khary Payton), but aside from that, it's an impressively faithful translation of Princess' first comics appearance to her first one live-action.
'The Walking Dead' #171 can be found in digital comics stores, or collected in trades. Quite a few stores are now providing home delivery and curbside pickups. You can also check this list compiled by Morgan Perry of Boom Studios to see if your local store provides mail subscription services. Stay safe and happy reading!