| “ | Kenny, I love you very much. I love our son more than life itself. I need you to hear me. What you are saying, that he may not turn, is foolish.
―Katjaa convincing Kenny of their son's impending fate.[src]
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” |
Katjaa, also known as "Kat", is an original character who first appears in Telltale Games' The Walking Dead: Season One. She is from Belgium, but she lives in Fort Lauderdale, is the wife of Kenny and mother of Kenny Jr.. Katjaa is a kind and nurturing woman who isn't afraid to say what is on her mind.
Character
Headstrong and resilient, Katjaa is the very pillar of strength and voice of reason for Kenny when matters arise. Katjaa would put her child, Duck and her husband, Kenny in front of her before anything or anyone. As a mother, housewife, and middle-aged woman in the group, Katjaa was one of the characters within the game whose personality experiences a drastic change due to the events that occur from "A New Day" to "Long Road Ahead".
As the game starts out, Katjaa is portrayed as a kind and caring lady, whom due to her experience as a mother, allows Clementine to bond well with her the moment they meet. This is supported by the fact that throughout all episodes, she is often only seen with her family, Clementine, and Lee. When Lee has important matters to attend to, Katjaa adopts the role of a temporary caretaker for Clementine.
A pacifist, Katjaa rarely, if at all, displays aggression or violence throughout the story. Even when Larry threatens to throw her son out onto the streets to the Walkers, Katjaa does not seem to respond to the man with harsh words. As of result of being peaceful, she bears no grudge towards anyone and is assumed to be in good stand with the rest of the members in the group, although her name has not been mentioned by anyone aside from Lee, Lilly and Kenny during any ensuing conversations. In fact, Katjaa is the only adult member in the group who has not uttered a single profanity (except under duress such as when Lilly shoots one of the bandits).
Unlike Kenny who is often worried and paranoid about the safety of his family, Katjaa seems to be more calm, collected, hopeful, and optimistic about the situation. She believes that the zombie apocalypse is only a temporary matter, and expresses hope that things will be taken care of sooner or later. It is this trait of hers that eventually keeps her family together and prevents Kenny from acting out impulsively. Due to her background in biology, Katjaa displays a certain amount of knowledge regarding the human anatomy and is thus often sought for help or treatment if anyone in the group suffers from injury, making her the de-facto "doctor" of the group.
In "Starved For Help", however, Katjaa becomes a blunt person, who while retains her optimism, has become accustomed to the events happening around her and finally acknowledges that the situations may not be as hopeful as she once thought. Her bluntness was displayed when she straightforwardly remarked to Lee that Travis/David Parker would have never survived their wounds, even though she had still tried to treat them.
Katjaa's character is not heavily explored until "Long Road Ahead", where Kenny and his family becomes one of the highlights of events in the episode. She is seen arguing with Kenny about how everyone carries around guns and other wepons, showing she is still trying to keep some of her, and the group's, humanity. When Duck was bitten by a walker during the raid by a group of bandits at the motel, Katjaa seemingly lost all hope and optimism that she previously had held back in the first two episodes. Despite that, Katjaa retains her calmness and is determined on finding a cure for Duck, as she had mentioned "from a medical perspective". Gradually though, she comes to accept the fact that there is truly no cure for a bitten survivor and finally insists on putting Duck down, along with a persuaded Kenny who was previously in denial of the truth.
Unfortunately, Ben's act of betrayal towards the group that has lead to the occurrence of several chain events eventually takes a toll on Katjaa's emotional well being. Overwhelmed with immense grief, sadness, and depression, Katjaa commits suicide, unable to handle the death of her son. Whether her suicide was planned or an impulsive moment of madness and excitment is left in the dark. The death of herself and her son will go on to affect Kenny's character as well, who sinks in to a deep depression and apathy following the drama as well as starting to become more violent and lashing out more as well as seeking revenge on whoever was making the deal with the bandits.
Among all deaths, the departure of Katjaa seemed to be the most shocking to fellow players, as the resilience that she displayed throughout all episodes seemed to suggest that she was unlikely to succumb to any of the emotionally taxing events due to her strong personality. In "Long Road Ahead", however, perhaps the death of Katjaa showed that she was not a woman of resilience and strength, but a woman who struggled to battle with the emotional toll and bottled up her entire feelings out of fear that her emotional weakness will become a burden to the group. Ultimately, the emotional toll eventually gets the better of her and Katjaa succumbed to it.
Pre-Apocalypse
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Before the outbreak, Katjaa worked as a veterinarian and lived with her husband, Kenny, and her son, Duck, in Fort Lauderdale. Katjaa met Kenny when she moved to America from Belgium with her family when she was a teenager. She started working in a vet's office, and received her license a few years later. During the beginning of her training, she regularly practiced on farm animals. She started her veterinarian office and met Kenny when he brought in a sick octopus that needed help. She merrily told an anecdote once of how the Wildlife Rescue Center would regularly bring in injured alligators to be treated before their release back into the wild. She was traveling with her husband and son from Memphis, Tennessee after visiting her sister when the outbreak started. She was at a gas station when she first encountered a zombie.
Post-Apocalypse
Season 1
"A New Day"
Katjaa is first seen on Hershel's Farm with the rest of her family. She spends time talking with Clementine and gets to know her. Like her husband, she believes the outbreak will be dealt with soon, but is scarred by the horrific things she witnessed driving through Atlanta. When her son, Duck, and Shawn Greene are attacked by walkers she is seen running towards them. Later, along with her family and the rest of the survivors, she ends up in Lee's family's store, the Everett Pharmacy Drugstore.
When the drugstore is attacked by walkers, Katjaa and Duck hide in the office. While in there, a walker almost reaches them but Glenn saves them. Eventually, the group escapes and sets up a base at an abandoned motel, where Katjaa is safe with her family.
"Starved For Help"
Katjaa tries to save David Parker/Travis after one of them is brought back to the motel badly wounded. However, she fails and David/Travis dies. He comes back as a walker and attacks her, but she is saved by Lee. Later, Katjaa is seen at the St. John's Dairy Farm helping and watching their pregnant cow. Around this time, Katjaa will either thank or scorn Lee for his actions on Hershel's Farm. She is later seen at the dinner table eating Mark's legs without realizing. Later, she is held hostage by Brenda St. John. Lee tries to convince Brenda to let her go but she refuses while backing up the stairs. A zombified Mark reaches out, grabs, and kills Brenda, which in turn helps Katjaa escape. She managed to grab the video recorder that was taken from Lee, and hands it on to him later on.
"Long Road Ahead"
This is the last episode Katjaa appears in, since she commits suicide halfway through the episode via gunshot after heading into the forest with Duck and Kenny (Determinant) after the incident with a walker while fleeing the motel that resulted in Duck getting bitten. Before her death, Katjaa spends most of the episode tending to Duck in the RV, at the train crash site, and finally when they stop the train to say farewell to Duck. Throughout this time, while Kenny remains in denial for the most part, Katjaa slowly seems to accept her son's fate, although this may have been the trigger that ultimately led to her taking her own life. And no matter what choice the player makes, Katjaa will still take her own life.
Season 2
"All That Remains"
Clementine was looking at a drawing of Katjaa along with Kenny and Duck, that she made near the end of "Long Road Ahead", when she was looking for a lighter in her pack.
"Amid The Ruins"
Kenny mentions Katjaa along with Duck and Sarita when he talks with Clementine in the tent.
"No Going Back "
When Clementine talks to Kenny in the power station, he will reveal to her how much he misses Katjaa, and that would do anything to have one more second with her and Duck. Clem can tell him that Katjaa was one of the nicest people she's met during the apocalypse.
Later, Katjaa appears in Clementine's dream after she is shot, holding Duck in the RV.
Death
Killed By
- Ben Paul (Indirectly Caused)
- Save-Lots Bandits (Indirectly Caused)
- Kenny Jr.(Indirectly Caused)
- Herself (Suicide)
Unable to cope with the impending death of her son, which was caused by a zombie bite during a raid performed by the Save-Lots Bandits in response to what they believed was Ben backing out on a deal, Katjaa commits suicide by shooting herself in the head.
Killed Victims
This list shows the victims Katjaa has killed:
- Tess (Indirectly Caused)
- Elizabeth (Indirectly Caused)
- Herself (Suicide)
- Possibly numerous counts of zombies
Katjaa and her husband were the strongest supporters of pillaging the station wagon. This pillaging caused a building distrust between the Stranger and his wife, Tess, who eventually took Elizabeth and ran away, leading to both of their deaths.
Non-Canon Deaths
If Lee fails to complete certain tasks, it is possible for Katjaa to be killed. These deaths are considered non-canon and result in a game over. Lee will then re-spawn and be allowed to try again. Below is a pictorial list of when Katjaa can die.[1]
"Long Road Ahead"
Relationships
Kenny
Kenny and Katjaa were husband and wife. They had a child together and seemed to love each other very much. They both trusted Lee very much. After Katjaa killed herself and Duck was put out of his misery/left to reanimate, Kenny fell into a deep depression. Over the next few days, he was conflicted with a combination of immense sadness and anger towards his wife for killing herself and Duck dying. He forgives her in the end, but still acknowledges that what she did was wrong and makes a point to mention that no one should give up so easily to simply avoid pain and tough circumstances. Kenny never stopped loving his wife no matter what though and continuously asks himself if he would still be able to protect her if she were alive and with him in Savannah. Duck
Katjaa is Duck's mother. They clearly love each other and Katjaa always shows great concern for his well being. Katjaa talks about Duck to Lee and about the years before the outbreak, for example, She claimed to have trouble getting him to use a fork at dinner. Towards Duck's death Katjaa does not seemed phased as she thought Duck would survive. Her son's impending death was what drove her to suicide, as she could no longer endure everything that was happening. Lee Everett
Lee and Katjaa have a friendly relationship because Katjaa takes care of Clementine when Lee is unable to. Lee is the first non-family member to be told about Duck's bite. This shows that Katjaa thinks Lee is a very trustworthy person. When Duck is about to die Katjaa asks Lee to be there for Kenny, if Lee volunteers to shoot Duck then Katjaa is grateful, saying he'd be doing the family a great service. Later, in "No Time Left", Kenny reveals that Katjaa always wanted him to be more supportive towards Lee, showing that she also cared much for him. Clementine
Katjaa and Clementine meet on Hershel's farm and quickly become friends. Katjaa shows concern about Clementine's well being on numerous occasions and looks after her fairly often, along with Duck. When Lee volunteers to shoot Duck to end his suffering, Katjaa agrees with him so that Clementine doesn't have to see it happen. Katjaa's death affected Clementine, and she fell into a temporary depressed state. In Season 2, it is revealed that Clementine keeps the picture she drew of Katjaa and her family, indicating that she misses them very much. Carley
Katjaa and Carley have a slow but developing friendship with each other. The two first met each other in the pharmacy when Carley and Glenn saved Katjaa's group. In the pharmacy, Carley defended her and the others from Lilly and Larry's arguments to kick them out, stating that she couldn't bring herself to leave her out there for the walkers. While Katjaa was tending to David/Travis, Carley helped to babysit Clementine and Duck, a task which was normally done by Katjaa. It can be assumed that Katjaa is grateful to Carley for doing so. After escaping the dairy farm, Katjaa hands Carley the camcorder Lee found at the bandit camp and asks her to hand it to Lee, showing that she trusted Carley. It is presumed that Katjaa was grateful towards Carley, who saved Katjaa's son, Duck, from Andrew St. John. When Carley died, Katjaa was mournful and expressed sorrow over her death. Doug
Doug and Katjaa have a friendly relationship and cared for each other. The two first met each other in the pharmacy when Carley and Glenn saved Katjaa's group. In the pharmacy, Doug defended her and the others from Lilly and Larry's arguments to kick them out, and doesn't blame Glenn and Carley for attracting walkers. It is presumed that Katjaa was grateful towards Doug, who saved Katjaa's son, Duck, from Andrew St. John. After escaping the motor inn, Doug was concerned for Katjaa who split her head open slightly, and asked if she was okay. Katjaa speaks warmly about Doug after his death and says she liked him very much and that he had spent time in Belgium, suggesting they had a good and friendly relationship. Mark
Mark and Katjaa were on good and friendly terms. Mark seemed to admire Katjaa's veterinary skills, and told the St. Johns that Katjaa could definitely help them with their cow. Katjaa was concerned for Mark when they arrived at the St. John's Dairy Farm and found him with an arrow in his shoulder. Katjaa also volunteers to help Brenda St. John fix Mark's wound, showing that she cares for him. After finding out that Mark's legs were chopped off by the St. Johns, Katjaa was horrified by what happened to Mark. Glenn
Glenn was caring to Katjaa, as shown when he risked himself to save her and the others when they were surrounded by walkers. Glenn later defended her from Lilly and Larry's arguments to kick her and the others out. During the walker attack, Glenn immediately went out to help Katjaa upon hearing her request for help, showing that he obeys and cares for her. Ben Paul
Katjaa and Ben have a slow but developing friendship with each other. While Katjaa was tending to David/Travis, Ben helped to babysit Clementine and Duck, a task which was normally done by Katjaa. It can be assumed that Katjaa is grateful to Ben for doing so. After the death of David/Travis, Katjaa was sorry and concerned for Ben, who lost a friend, to the point of bringing it up to Lee. Ben was extremely remorseful for causing Katjaa much sorrow, as Ben was the one who indirectly caused Katjaa's son, Duck, to be bitten. The guilt over Katjaa's death, along with Carley's/Doug's and Duck's, makes Ben reveal to Lee that he was the one who gave the bandits supplies. In No Time Left, Ben stands up to Kenny, saying that he is very sorry for causing the death of his family and that he never meant to hurt them. Chuck
Katjaa and Chuck had a friendly relationship and were on good terms during the short time they knew each other. She regarded Chuck as kind and caring, due to his concern for Duck. She also appreciated his immediate generosity in giving candy to the kids, including Ben. Their friendship was not further explored, unfortunately, as Katjaa committed suicide, being unable to handle the grief of her son's death. Chuck was angry and saddened of Katjaa's death, and comforted Kenny by having a drink with him. Lilly
Katjaa and Lilly have a neutral relationship. Lilly most likely saw Katjaa as very valuable due to her medical training. However she displayed a lack of consideration for Katjaa when she decided that Kenny's vote regarding the stealer of the group's supplies would count for both him and Katjaa. Katjaa stayed neutral in her and Kenny's leadership disputes, and Katjaa showed no ill will towards Lilly until Lilly killed Carley/Doug on the road. If Lee left Lilly on the road, Katjaa will say that she would've done the same thing. Larry
Despite Larry wanting to throw her son out of the pharmacy in belief that he was bitten, Katjaa doesn't seem to harbor any ill feelings towards him. Katjaa and Larry were on neutral terms, and weren't seen interacting much. Larry most likely saw Katjaa as very valuable due to her medical training and probably tolerated Katjaa the easiest due to her usefulness and neutrality. Hershel Greene
Hershel was kind and caring towards Katjaa, as he took in Katjaa along with her family for a few days while Kenny worked on getting his truck working again. Katjaa and Hershel seemed to have a good relationship. However, after Duck accidentally drove the tractor onto Shawn's leg and walkers attacked, resulting in Shawn dying, Hershel seemed to be enraged that Duck survived but Shawn didn't. Lost in anger and grief, he kicked everybody off of the farm, Katjaa included. Shawn Greene
Shawn was kind and caring towards Katjaa, as he took in Katjaa along with her family for a few days while Kenny worked on getting his truck working again. Katjaa and Shawn seemed to have a good relationship. Shawn stated that Katjaa could help him fortify the fence, showing that he viewed Katjaa as a helpful woman. David Parker
David never had a chance to know Katjaa as he was already unconscious when Lee, Mark, and Kenny brought him to the motor inn. Katjaa stated she didn't have a lot of faith in saving David, but promised that she will do her best. Later on, Katjaa said that she was unable to save David as he had lost too much blood, and was sorry for him. Travis
Travis never had a chance to know Katjaa as he was already unconscious when Lee, Mark, and Kenny brought him to the motor inn. Katjaa stated she didn't have a lot of faith in saving Travis, but promised that she will do her best. Later on, Katjaa said that she was unable to save Travis as he had lost too much blood, and was sorry for him. Andrew St. John
Andrew admired Katjaa's veterinary skills and was very grateful to Katjaa as she took care of the dairy cow, Maybelle, and showed nothing but gratitude and kindness towards her. Their relationship was gravely wounded when Katjaa found out that Andy and his family were cannibals and that they had chopped off Mark's legs for food. Andrew had no qualms about having Katjaa at gunpoint and held her and her son hostage, which ruined any friendship the two had. Danny St. John
Katjaa doesn't say much about Danny, though it can be assumed that she viewed him as a kind and generous man, as he and his family offered them food and hospitality. Their relationship was gravely wounded when Katjaa found out that Danny and his family were cannibals and that they had chopped off Mark's legs for food. Danny had no qualms about having Katjaa at gunpoint and held her and her son hostage, which ruined any friendship the two had. Danny stated that Katjaa and the group would be useful to them, implying that he intended to have Katjaa killed and turned into human meat. Brenda St. John
Brenda admired Katjaa's veterinary skills and was very grateful to Katjaa as she took care of the dairy cow, Maybelle, and showed nothing but gratitude and kindness towards her. She thanked Lee for getting her to help Maybelle and states that she is a lifesaver. Their relationship was gravely wounded when Katjaa found out that Brenda and her family were cannibals and that they had chopped off Mark's legs for food. Brenda had no qualms about having Katjaa at gunpoint and having her as a hostage, which ruined any friendship the two had. |
Appearances
Video Game
Season 1
- "A New Day"
- "Starved For Help"
- "Long Road Ahead"
Season 2
- "No Going Back" (Dream)
Trivia
- It is worth noting that Katjaa's interactions with the rest of the survivors are rather minimal, as she is only close to Lee and Clementine and as well as to her own family, yet isn't criticized or mentioned by the others in a bad light.
- If Lee chooses to tell her about his conviction, and does not tell Kenny, he acts as if Lee told them both, hinting that he had discussed it with Katjaa at some point.
- She is generally a neutral or forgiving character, as she was never shown harboring any ill feelings towards anyone, even Larry for that matter when he ordered Duck to be thrown out of the drug store, only referring to the man as "him" when she pleaded for him to stop upsetting the boy.
- Her death is very uncharacteristic and came as a surprise to many as she has proven to be one of the strongest and kindest members of the group, with very good control over her emotions.
- Unlike her husband who is deeply affected by the decision makings within the group, Katjaa seems to be less edgy or touchy to minor issues.
- In fact, she is more concerned about the welfare of the members in the group rather than anything else.
- She originates from Flanders in Belgium, making her one of many characters with a non American heritage.
- In A New Day If you are around Clementine and Katjaa for a while, Katjaa will mention that they owned a Labrador named Franklin back in Fort Lauderdale
References