First official image of Michonne from The Walking Dead!

Fans have been waiting a long time for this and today the wait is over.  The first official image of Danai Gurira as Michonne, the fan-favorite character from THE WALKING DEAD, has arrived.

Get a slice:

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, creator and executive producer Robert Kirkman touched on the character of Michonne and what to expect in season 3.

On Michonne’s transition from comic to screen:

“The essence of the character — her personality, her motives, everything that makes Michonne Michonne — remains intact from the comics,” he said, “But like a lot of things on the show, there will be little tweaks and differences here and there. We saw that her introduction is slightly different from how it was in the comic, and her interaction with Andrea is really going to be a really cool addition to the character that I think will get television viewers up to speed, and they’ll get to know her a lot faster than comic book readers did.”

On the casting of Danai Gurira in the role:

“We looked at a lot of talented people that were really fantastic, but we were waiting for that one spark, that moment where everyone was completely in agreement and completely excited, and we felt like we had found the essence of this fictional character that just randomly appeared in another person, and that person was Danai Gurira. She kind of came in and really just blew us all away. She’s got incredible presence, and she’s got a theater background, and is very physical, and was just perfect for the role.”

On what to expect from the new setting in season 3:

“It looks absolutely amazing,” gushes Kirkman. “They are shooting the hell out of this prison. It just looks absolutely stunning, and I think when people start seeing trailers and stuff for this season, I think people are just gonna be like, “Wait, what? This is what? I can’t believe this is a TV show!” It’s really creepy, really moody and it’s just gonna be really awesome.”

As I stated in the recent behind-the-scenes story, this is the season I am most excited for, given the corresponding events that transpire in the comics.  Seeing Michonne in the flesh is definitely the geek-gasm of the day for me and suddenly October can’t get here soon enough.

The Walking Dead season 3 will premiere in October 2012 on AMC.