Michonne's backstory is slightly altered in the television series, having a three-year-old son named Andr Anthony, while the fate of her boyfriend and his 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 of Rick's core group. Her conflict with The Governor is motivated by his attempt to kill her after she left town after voicing her suspicion of him to 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. She also develops a romance with protagonist Rick Grimes, becoming a surrogate mother to his children, Carl and Judith. In the six years following Rick's disappearance and apparent death, she becomes one of the leaders of the Alexandria Safe-Zone, and has given birth to Rick's son Rick Jr. (RJ), before leaving to find the imprisoned Rick upon learning of his survival and abduction by the Civic Republic Military (CRM).