Monstress, Vol. 1

Initially I wasn't sure what i was getting myself into. The art style lies somewhere between the goth, manga and furry sections of deviant art, and it opens with a slave auction and quickly moves onto an extremely violent jail break. But along the way a deep and complex world is built up and i found myself getting drawn into the many mysteries surrounding the protagonist.

In a way it's reminiscent of many other epics, Naruto and Harry Potter in particular, but the predominately female cast, ornate decoration and grand spectral vistas set it apart. The stark brutality that the protagonist suffers through reminds me of The Fifth Season and The Parable of the Sower as well. Against my expectations, I'm looking forward to the next books and finding out more about this world.

Also, cats. Lots of cats.

Merged review:

Initially I wasn't sure what i was getting myself into. The art style lies somewhere between the goth, manga and furry sections of deviant art, and it opens with a slave auction and quickly moves onto an extremely violent jail break. But along the way a deep and complex world is built up and i found myself getting drawn into the many mysteries surrounding the protagonist.

In a way it's reminiscent of many other epics, Naruto and Harry Potter in particular, but the predominately female cast, ornate decoration and grand spectral vistas set it apart. The stark brutality that the protagonist suffers through reminds me of The Fifth Season and The Parable of the Sower as well. Against my expectations, I'm looking forward to the next books and finding out more about this world.

Also, cats. Lots of cats.

I was drawn into this series mainly by the art work, which is luscious. However, my interest petered out - I haven't seen the most recent volumes and will probably not do so. The heroine seems to only have one gear, and this gets wearing after a while.

Merged review:

I was drawn into this series mainly by the art work, which is luscious. However, my interest petered out - I haven't seen the most recent volumes and will probably not do so. The heroine seems to only have one gear, and this gets wearing after a while.

Maybe it's because I read it in fits and starts, but I found it difficult to follow the story. The art is great, and I've got the second book lined up already, hoping to read it with more focus.

Gorgeous art and a riveting, gory, and disturbing story. As one if the characters says "monsters are people too" - Monstress spares no one from scrutiny, and I found myself swinging between compassion and horror.

Merged review:

Gorgeous art and a riveting, gory, and disturbing story. As one if the characters says "monsters are people too" - Monstress spares no one from scrutiny, and I found myself swinging between compassion and horror.

I was drawn into this series mainly by the art work, which is luscious. However, my interest petered out - I haven't seen the most recent volumes and will probably not do so. The heroine seems to only have one gear, and this gets wearing after a while.

Initially I wasn't sure what i was getting myself into. The art style lies somewhere between the goth, manga and furry sections of deviant art, and it opens with a slave auction and quickly moves onto an extremely violent jail break. But along the way a deep and complex world is built up and i found myself getting drawn into the many mysteries surrounding the protagonist.

In a way it's reminiscent of many other epics, Naruto and Harry Potter in particular, but the predominately female cast, ornate decoration and grand spectral vistas set it apart. The stark brutality that the protagonist suffers through reminds me of The Fifth Season and The Parable of the Sower as well. Against my expectations, I'm looking forward to the next books and finding out more about this world.

Also, cats. Lots of cats.

I've read issues 1 - 9, and I am still a little confused. The art is amazing, though. I picked this up when the first printing got such amazing reviews, and ended up with the second printing ordered in for me.

Beautifully drawn. I just love the clothing the characters wear, such beautiful ornaments that contrast with all the blood and gore in the action scenes.

The story starts out a bit confusing and it took me a while until I got a handle on the cast. The main character is Maika Halfwolf, an Arcanic who is carrying some kind of „monstrous” entity inside her. When the hunger takes over and the thing wakes up... bad things happen...

Maika‘s friend Tuya never really shows up again. Instead Maika collects a small band of „allies“ most notably Master Ren, a cat, and a small fox-girl named Kippa who is so cute, loyal, innocent and wise... I can‘t get enough of her.

The world is explained in the lecture excerpts of Professor Tam Tam (a cat!) at the end of each chapter. Cats, children of Ubasti, are one of the 5 races in this world - obviously. That in itself already makes this worth reading ;)

The others are the Humans, the Ancients, the Arcanics (hybrids of the first two) and the Old Gods - represented by a Cthulu-oid mess of eyes and tentacles.

Opposing Maika is basically ... everyone. The monster she carries, the Arcanics, the Ancients and the Humans, mostly an order of witches called the Cumaea who are killing Arcanics to get at a substance called Lilium that apparently gives Humans some of the powers of the Arcanics. Most notable among the witches are Lady Yvette - who used to be a friend of Maika‘s dead mother - and the Holy Mother of the order along with her Inquisitrixes.

I also kind of like the raven-born knight Corvin who appears at the end and am hoping he might play a larger role. Is it because I like guys with wings?

Monstress is one of the most beautiful comics I have ever read, its art taking inspiration from Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles and a hit of ancient Egypt. It’s a joy to look at even without the fantastic story, themes and characters. It’s rare to see such well-drawn and powerful emotion in the faces of comic book characters. Sana Takeda has so much talent.

Teenage Maika Halfwolf is considered a monster by humans. She’s Arcanic, although she would pass for human when many of her kind display animal characteristics. She is the survivor of a terrible war between humans and her kind. The Cumaea round up Arcanics for sinister purposes, experimenting on children and consuming their life force.

Maika may look innocent but there is a darker being lurking beneath the surface. Yet she is kind and tries to save the children she can. One of which ends up accompanying her on her travels, along with a rather wise cat.

The world Maika inhabits is brutal and terrifying, but the beauty of the artwork absorbed me, kept me turning the pages and I soon became attached to these characters, became afraid for their safety. Marjorie Liu was inspired to create Monstress by the tales her grandparents told her about wartime China. The horrors of the opening chapter definitely echo the atrocities of war.

It’s a story of corrupt power but also prejudice. It looks at how the actions of a people can taint their ancestors, breeding hatred and distrust, meaning peace is a distant prospect. It attempts to show how war affects those left behind. But there is also magic, and demons, and talking cats!

Most of the chapters end with an excerpt from the lectures of Professor Tam Tam (one of the Children of Ubasti, a race of many-tailed cats) which fills in some of the gaps in the world-building. And of course, there are the gorgeous full-page illustrations that Image Comics are known for putting in each issue.