Walking Dead 3

"It came out of the woods, tried to kill us... it almost got Donna, but Dale cut its head off... and it was still alive... they had to shoot it. Oh, God, Rick... it was awful."

- Lori Grimes

The Walking Dead #3 was written by Robert Kirkman and illustrated by Tony Moore. It was published by Image Comics with a December, 2003 cover date. No title was provided for this issue. After barely surviving a harrowing ordeal in Atlanta, Rick Grimes and his new friend Glenn make their way to a camp outside the city where they find a group of survivors. Rick is overwhelmed to discover that his wife Lori and son Carl are among them, as well as his old friend and partner, Shane. Shane however, is not quite as overjoyed to see Rick still alive.

Synopsis
Rick is reunited with his family, and for the moment, things seem well. Given a moment to finally relax, the terror of what he has been experiencing starts to creep in. Rick, Lori and Carl sleep in a tent for the night.

The next day, Shane tells Rick that they have to go hunting. Rick goes into Dale's RV to take a shower. Dale emerges and warns him about Shane, noting that he is not happy that Rick is back. Rick disbelieves Dale's warning, finding him to be just a crazy old man.

Rick and Shane go out into the woods armed with only a single shotgun, a hatchet and a service revolver. They come upon a walker eating upon the flesh of a dead deer. The walker does not seem to notice them at first, and they both wonder if the deer's meat is tainted. Rick doesn't want to take any chances however, and cleaves the walker in the skull with his hatchet.

Meanwhile, back at the camp, Donna Lori and Andrea go down to the pond to wash clothes. Donna gripes about the apparent sexism of this new hunter-gatherer mentality, but Lori points out that Rick and Shane are best suited to handle firearms, while only the women can be relied upon to get the clothes washed correctly. Donna bugs Lori to tell her about how Rick and she first met.

As they are walking back, a dead creature emerges and attacks Donna. The group scatters, but Donna is petrified. Allen and Dale hear her screams and come running. Allen tries to shoot the walker, but cannot get a clear shot without risk of hitting Donna. Dale however, manages to hack the monster's head off with an axe. The sound of Donna's cries of terror also bring Shane and Rick back to the camp. Lori is traumatized and holds onto her husband. Rick consoles her and assures her that everything is going to be okay, and the two embrace. Shane watches them with a scowl growing upon his face.

Appearances

 * Rick Grimes


 * Carl Grimes
 * Lori Grimes
 * Shane Walsh


 * Walkers (2)


 * Allen
 * Amy
 * Andrea
 * Ben
 * Billy
 * Carol Peletier
 * Dale Horvath
 * Donna
 * Jim
 * Sophia Peletier




 * Deer
 * Humans
 * Zombies


 * Georgia
 * Atlanta


 * Axe
 * Hatchet
 * Shotgun


 * Dale Horvath's RV



Quotes

 * Rick Grimes: I guess I owe you more than I'll ever be able to repay.
 * Shane Walsh: Rick, please. It was nothing. I had to make up for letting you get shot like that...
 * Rick Grimes: Man, that wasn't your fault. Besides, I'm fine now.
 * Shane Walsh: Fair enough. Let me show you around...

....
 * Donna: My word... that's the best news I've heard all month. Shane, darling... come with me... these two have got some catching up to do.

Reprints
The story from this issue has been reprinted in the following volumes:
 * The Walking Dead, Book One
 * The Walking Dead Omnibus, Volume 1
 * The Walking Dead Compendium, Volume 1
 * The Walking Dead, Volume 1: Days Gone Bye