Yesterday’s episode of The Walking Dead season 10, titled “Look at the Flowers,” introduced a brand new character into the show, one comic book readers will be familiar with. As Eugene, Yumiko and Ezekiel embarked on a mission to rendezvous with Stephanie, who comes from a mysterious other community, the trio passed through a deserted Pittsburgh. Apparently the only person left alive in the city is Juanita Sanchez AKA Princess (Paola Lazaro), who’s not your average apocalypse survivor.
You can get a better flavor of her kooky personality in the sneak peek above, which comprises the opening minutes of next week’s penultimate episode/impromptu finale of season 10, “The Tower.” The scene follows on from Princess’ introduction in the previous outing and the motor-mouthed character explains how she hasn’t seen another living soul for a whole year, which makes her wonder whether she’s just hallucinating her new friends. Even a general knowledge test with Eugene doesn’t convince her they’re real.
Ezekiel’s able to remain polite with the stranger, complimenting her colorful walker displays, as seen in the last episode, which she explains she does out of a combination of boredom and to make the empty city feel more alive. On the other hand, no-nonsense Yumiko doesn’t take to Princess at all. Their strained relationship gets even worse when she attempts to save them from some walkers coming up behind them by mowing them down with her machine gun – only to scare the group’s horses away, taking their supplies with them.
In the comics, Princess was brought into the story around the same time and lasted until the series ended some 20 issues later, so she might be one of the show’s regulars from now on. EP Angela Kang told Entertainment Weekly that Princess “becomes an important catalyst for some of the things that are to happen” and added that she’s “excited for people to see what she brings to this mix going forward.”
Be sure to catch The Walking Dead 10×15 “The Tower” on AMC this coming Sunday, before the show takes an indefinite hiatus. The season finale will then arrive later this year.