Monstress #39 Review - But Why Tho?

Monstress #39 is published by Image Comics, written by Marjorie Liu, with art by Sana Takeda and letters by Rus Wooton. With the Dusk Court continuing their attempts to unlock Maika’s secrets, all eyes are on Tuya as she works to learn what she can from Kippa and Corvin. But what motivates the soon-to-be Baroness? A glimpse into her past in this issue explains much about her character.

This month’s story opens with an extended flashback look at a young Tuya before she met Maika. While she did not yet possess the Baroness’s spirit, she was aware of what the Ancients had ordained to be her fate. And the girl was not pleased about it.

The firey, rash, and obstinate version of Tuya that Monstress #39 presents us with is a dramatically different person than the woman we have come to know and periodically hate. Liu’s intent through this sequence seems clear. She wants to bring the reader to a more sympathetic place with Tuya so the woman’s actions in the present will be less hateful. In this, the book succeeds, to a point.

Back in the present day, Monstress #39 focuses on Tuya as she works to get information out of both Kippa and Corvin. While the woman seems to bear no love for either of the duo at this point, there is a conflict felt coming from her. Whether it is a measure of compassion for the Dusk’s Court’s captive or the reminder Kippa is of her part in Maika’s capture is unclear, but this lack of clarity simply deepens the need to know the concert answers to these questions.

The final pages of the book see the beginnings of possible alliances that could shift the balance of power once again. Exactly where they will lead I won’t even bother to guess, seeing as Liu’s writing has managed to outsmart me every previous time I’ve had the audacity to think I knew what was on the horizon for this story.

With the entirety of Monstress #39 taking place at the Dusk Court, Takeda kicks the ornate designs and opulence of this issue’s art up a notch. And when the book does slip away from the indulgent setting of the court for a moment of mysticism, Takeda does not fail to remind the reader of just how terrifying this world can be.

Wrapping up the book’s presentation is another wonderful lettering job by Wooton. The lettering continues to find its way through the panels in a way that guides the reader along while never detracting from the rest of the book’s presentation.

When all is said and done, Monstress #39 continues to deliver the excellent storytelling long-time readers have come to expect. Despite the slow pace of the story in this issue, it nevertheless manages to hit hard, reveal some key elements of its cast, and keep the reader’s attention till the very last page.

Monstress #39 is available now wherever comics are sold.