Douglas Monroe

"You saw in Pete something none of us did. And I know why we survived this attack today. It was your idea to put Andrea in that tower. I shudder to think about how things would have gone had you people not come along. Look at me, I've got nothing left for these people. They don't need me, Rick... What they need is you."

- Douglas to Rick.

Douglas Monroe is a character first encountered in Issue 70 of Image Comics' The Walking Dead and is a former Democratic Ohio U.S. Congressman who leads the Alexandria Safe-Zone when he takes control after Alexander Davidson. Douglas is the comic counterpart of Deanna Monroe.

Characteristics and Roles
Being the leader of the Alexandria Safe-Zone, Douglas was respected by many of the residents there and was called a good leader on many different occasions. However, Douglas was very fond of attractive women and placed them in the highest positions in the community. Women who caught his interest, like Andrea, were often targeted by him. Meaning that he followed them around and tried to flirt with them, trying to get them to become his girlfriend, even though he was married to Regina. He considered his marriage to her "political" and they were only still together for his benefit. However, after Regina's death at the hands of Pete Anderson, he regrets these advances deeply, blaming himself for her death and going into a deep state of depression. This depression would later prove to be his fatal undoing.

Despite his advances towards women, Douglas deeply cared for the Alexandria Safe-Zone community and he would do anything to protect it. When Rick accused him of not being a good leader, Douglas told him of the time he murdered his best friend, Alexander Davidson, to protect the community, saying that his actions caused people's deaths and he simply could not allow it to go on. He also threatens to murder Rick when he attacks and assaults Peter Anderson, saying he does not want another Davidson situation. His disgust of Davidson is so great, that the very mention of his name makes him very angry and aggressive, as evidenced when he attacked Heath, after he said Davidson's name. This is also one of the few times Douglas is shown to be angry, as he has a very calm nature and is able to keep his cool in the most extreme situations.

Douglas is also shown to be a very capable leader, putting personal differences aside in the benefit of the community. This is shown when Rick asks him if he knew of Pete's abusive nature, to which he replies he has and the only reason he has not acted against it is because Pete is a doctor and an extremely valuable asset to the community. Though this judgement proved to be a mistake and caused Regina's death and as such, Douglas saw himself not fit to lead anymore, handing the position to Rick.

Story
Douglas was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from the state of Ohio before the outbreak occurred. This position gained him and his family a spot in the Alexandria Safe-Zone when the outbreak started. He was invited by his best friend Alexander Davidson, who worked as security liaison in the white house.

Douglas was a seemingly friendly person who cared for people. Douglas was married to Regina, who could be seen as quite his opposite at times. They had one child, Spencer. He held a great deal of trust in Aaron and the other people of his community, as all he wanted to do was keep the peace in the community.

While he appeared friendly, in truth, he's also suspicious of Rick Grimes and his group just as much as they are of him and the Zone residents. Despite this, he does seem to put some trust in Rick, as he confides in him that he honestly can't remember what day it is anymore and asks advice on giving jobs to Andrea. He also hoped to expand more streets and buildings into the Safe-Zone eventually.

Before establishing the Zone, Monroe lived in the open for three months after the apocalypse, killing two living men.

There were two notable times when he's shown angry, one during his conversation with Rick about a father who hurt his child during his drug hallucinations and expressed his desire to hurt people like that. Another was when Heath mentioned Davidson, causing Monroe to become very angry and to lash out at Heath for even mentioning his name. Monroe is attempting to give Rick and his friends a fair chance in the community, giving each one a job. Given the knowledge that Rick was a sheriff, he's given him the job of constable. He chose Glenn as a runner, Maggie as a school teacher, Morgan as a chef, Abraham as security in construction, Eugene as a community planner, Gabriel Stokes a pastor when the church is made part of the zone, and Rosita to be trained with medical personal. He admits he has difficulty finding jobs for Andrea and Michonne, because of their strength in fighting and defense. After consulting with Rick, he decides to make Michonne a constable and Andrea as a look-out, after Rick says it may be necessary to have one.

Before his death, he seemed to have his sights set on Andrea. In Issue 71 and Issue 72, he had made unrequited advances to Andrea, despite her constant assurances that she has no interest, especially since he's married. He claims that his marriage to Regina is purely political and that they stay together only for their children, and that there was no love between them. When Andrea told this to Rick, both laughed and neither one believed his excuse. Bruce's conversation with Abraham in Issue 73 suggests that this lecherous streak is not an isolated incident, ironically mirroring Davidson's own habits that led to his eventual exile from the community. Further, it is implied that at least some of the placements Douglas makes are not based on individual skill, but, how expendable a person is.

When zombies started to crowd into Safe-Zone, Douglas was hiding out in his house, planning to attempt suicide. When the roamers had almost completely overran the Safe-Zone, Douglas emerged from his house and began to shoot at the roamers. After killing numerous roamers, he was finally devoured by a group of roamers. However, while being swarmed and devoured, he fired off a series of random shots. One managed to hit Carl in the eye and nearly killed him, yet it only managed to scar him for life.