Monstress #12

Sana Takeda's cover for Monstress #12 is a breathtaking showcase of the series' distinctive aesthetic — a young dark-haired woman with intricate tattoos and ornate jewelry raises a shadowy, claw-like hand toward her face, half-concealing it behind an unsettling mask-like form, while skulls and drifting debris frame her within an elaborately decorated arch. The composition balances delicate beauty with unmistakable menace, rendered in Takeda's signature blend of fine linework and luminous color. Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda continue to make Monstress one of 2017's most visually ambitious series, and this twelfth issue looks every bit the part.