HONOR AND CURSE #12 – An Honest Review

In HONOR AND CURSE #12, available from Mad Cave Studios on June 30th, 2021, Fanuk has taken control of the Koga and either captured or killed everyone, including the visiting Lady Akemi. Can Genshi and Yua find a way to end the demon plaguing their clans for years?

The Details

• Written By: Mark London
• Art By: Nicolás Salamanca
• Colors By: Tekino
• Letters By: Miguel Angel Zapata
• Cover Art By: Nicolás Salamanca, Tekino
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: June 30, 2021

Was It Good?

My expectations were subverted. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t. Whether or not that works for you is up to you.

To be clear, this was a very good issue, but there’s one point I was hoping to see in the final fight that I didn’t. Maybe that point will be saved for the series return in 2022, or maybe I imagined an expectation that I had no right to expect.

“What is this magical plot point?” you ask. I wanted to see Genshitake on his Tengu form to unleash its fury on Fanuk. The evil Tengu in Fanuk needed a proper butt whooping, and technically, he got it, but it just didn’t have quite the oomph of a Tengu-vs-Tengu throwdown.

Besides that unmet (perhaps unfair) expectation, this was a great issue. The writing from London is some of the best coming out of Mad Cave. The art from Salamanca is, likewise, some of the best coming out of Mad Cave. If you’ve been following this series, you’ll be well and truly pleased with the finale of the current arc.

Check out the art and writing in our HONOR AND CURSE #12 preview.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]

Fanuk is reveling in the death and destruction he’s caused, now that his identity has been revealed. Read our HONOR AND CURSE #11 review to see how the monster revealed himself.

Cut to Yua recovering in the Jade Caverns with Genshi and her father, the Blacksmith. Her father used magic to heal Yua’s wounds, but she’s not nearly healed enough for a big fight. Genshi, however, is in good shape but his control of the Tengu is tenuous. Despite the Blacksmith’s warnings not to confront Fanuk, they feel they have no choice.

Yua and Genshi arrive at the Koga palace to find most of the guards are dead and Fanuk holding Akemi, Esaki, and Takeshi hostage. In a moment of deception, Yua pretends to be on Fanuk’s side so he will focus his attention on Genshi. Once he’s distracted, Yua frees the hostages so everyone can combine their fighting forces.

Genshi then reveals something the Blacksmith gave to him before they left the Jade Caverns, a blue rose from the Shinto realm. Looking into it seems to have the power of temporarily hypnotizing every Shinto in the room. Unfortunately, it has a very weak effect on Fanuk and he shakes off its spell to snatch the blue rose from Genshi.

Seizing the moment of weakness, Akemi and Takeshi attack Fanuk to save Genshi from a vicious chokehold. Akemi is knocked away but Takeshi gets the worst of the exchange and has his back broken.

Finally free of the blue rose’s spell, Akemi, Esaki, and Genshi activate their Shinto powers and attack Fanuk separately. Realizing that individual attacks aren’t enough, the three combine their powers for a combined power blast that overcomes Fanuk and reverts him to a human form.

Genshi urges the others to remember the Shinto way by not killing the defeated Fanuk. We conclude the issue one month later with old wounds being healed and old grudges refusing to die.

How Does It End?

The paralyzed Takeshi is on a downward spiral. Fanuk, much like Nature, finds a way. Using the blue rose may have been strategic error that will come back to haunt the clans later.

Final Thoughts

HONOR AND CURSE #12 ends the current arc with top-notch writing, high-quality art, and an open-ended finale that promises bigger battles to come in the next volume. The final battle ends with a big bang, but we’d like to see the bang get a little bigger next time.

Score: 8.5/10