Monstress
Monstress is an ongoing epic fantasy comics series written by Marjorie Liu and drawn by Sana Takeda, published since November 2015 by the American publisher Image Comics. The series has earned many awards, including seven Eisner Awards, four Hugo Awards, and the Harvey Awards Book of the Year in 2018.
Monstress
- Date
- 2015.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Monstress is an ongoing epic fantasy comics series written by Marjorie Liu and drawn by Sana Takeda, published since November 2015 by the American publisher Image Comics. The series has earned many awards, including seven Eisner Awards, four Hugo Awards, and the Harvey Awards Book of the Year in 2018.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Monstress. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q21775821
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Title — Monstress • Ongoing — y • Publisher — Image Comics • Date — November 2015 – present • Issues — 64 (plus 2 Talk Stories issues) • Genre — * Dark fantasy • Steampunk • Main Char Team — * Maika Halfwolf • Kippa • Ren Mormorian • Zinn the Monstrum • Corvin D'Oro • Writers — Marjorie Liu • Artists — Sana Takeda • Letterers — Rus Wooton • Editors — Jennifer M. Smith, Ceri Riley • Creators — Marjorie Liu & Sana Takeda • Subcat — Image Comics • Sort — Monstress (comic book) • Tpb1 — '1. Awakening • Isbn1 — 9781632157096 • Tpb2 — '2. The Blood • Isbn2 — 9781534300415 • Tpb3 — '3. Haven • Isbn3 — 9781534306912 • Tpb4 — '4. The Chosen • Isbn4 — 9781534313361 • Tpb5 — '5. Warchild • Isbn5 — 9781534316614 • Tpb6 — '6. The Vow • Isbn6 — 9781534319158 • Tpb7 — '7. Devourer • Isbn7 — 9781534323193 • Tpb8 — '8. Inferno • Isbn8 — 9781534399525 • Tpb9 — '9. The Possessed • Isbn9 — 9781534392618 • Tpb10 — '10. Hollow Gods • Isbn10 — 9781534332690
Summary
Summary
The series is set in a matriarchal world inspired by early 20th-century Asia, and tells the story of Maika Halfwolf, a teenage girl who shares a mysterious psychic link with a powerful monster. The background to the story is a war between the Arcanics, magical creatures who sometimes can pass for human, and the human Federation, led by the Cumaea, an order of sorceresses who consume Arcanics to fuel their power. Maika is an Arcanic who looks human, and who is set on learning about and avenging her dead mother. Maika's left arm has been severed and a "monster", Zinn, occasionally emerges from its stub. The demon, who takes over her body and mind, is a source of great power, but challenging for Maika to understand and control. The story unfolds as Maika navigates through the power games of humans and Arcanics while learning truths about the "Ancients" and her family.
Publication history
Publication history
Liu first introduced the story to Takeda in 2013. The two started working together a year later, and the first issue was published in November 2015; the trade paperback first volume in July 2016, the second in July 2017, the third in September 2018, and the fourth in September 2019. Liu has said that she struggled with depression before writing Monstress. She had taken a hiatus from writing before returning to the industry with Image Comics. She has described the comic as "a huge epic fantasy." As such, the story required world-building. The first issue was triple-sized (70 pages) in order to properly introduce the various characters and factions. Liu and Takeda first worked together on Liu's run of X-23 for Marvel. Liu would later describe her work with Takeda as "a wonderful process; it felt like she was reading my mind." A native of Japan, Takeda's art takes inspiration from manga.
Themes
Themes
• Illustration — Liu at a 2019 signing for Monstress #24 at Midtown Comics in Manhattan. According to Liu, among the series's themes are the inner strength required to withstand constant dehumanization, as well as the power of friendship among women. Race also plays a large role in the series. In the series the Arcanics, a race of magical creatures, have been at war with humans for decades, and they are now at a stalemate; however the humans are taking Arcanics and selling them as slaves to other humans.
Course of the series
Dated record
Course of the series
The full dated record · 2 entries
2015
Monstress created.
2015
Monstress is recorded from 2015.
Collected editions
• Title — Material collected — Publication date — Format — ISBN • Monstress – Volume 1: Awakening — Monstress #1–6 — July 19, 2016 — Trade paperback • Monstress – Volume 2: The Blood — Monstress #7–12 — July 5, 2017 • Monstress – Volume 3: Haven — Monstress #13–18 — September 5, 2018 • Monstress – Volume 4: The Chosen — Monstress #19–24 — September 25, 2019 • Monstress – Volume 5: Warchild — Monstress #25–30 — October 6, 2020 • Monstress – Volume 6: The Vow — Monstress: Talk-Stories #1–2 Monstress #31–35 — September 8, 2021 • Monstress – Volume 7: Devourer — Monstress #36–41 — September 7, 2022 • Monstress – Volume 8: Inferno — Monstress #42–48 — November 22, 2023 • Monstress – Volume 9: The Possessed — Monstress #49–54 — November 13, 2024 • Monstress – Volume 10: Hollow Gods — Monstress #55–60 — December 2, 2025 • Monstress – Book One — Monstress #1–18 — July 3, 2019 — Hardcover • Monstress – Book Two — Monstress #19–35 Monstress: Talk-Stories #1–2 — December 7, 2022 • Monstress – Book Three — Monstress #36–54 — August 5, 2025 • Monstress – Compendium One: Enter the Halfwolf — Monstress #1–48 Monstress: Talk-Stories #1–2 — October 7, 2025 — Trade paperback compendium
Reception
At the review aggregator website Comic Book Roundup, the series received an average score of 9.0 out of 10 based on 212 reviews. The first, triple-sized issue of Monstress received critical praise. Writing for Kotaku, Evan Narcisse called it "a gorgeous comic book about racism, war and slavery", noting the intricate detail of Takeda's manga-inspired art. Reviewing the book for The A.V. Club, Caitlin Rosberg described the leading characters, all women, as "deeply flawed and showing layers of nuanced characterization that you don’t often see in comic books", and appreciated the series's "sense of in-between-ness—(...) neither traditionally Western nor manga, paced like a novel but drawn like a comic". The comic was described by the Los Angeles Review of Books as "ambitious as George R. R. Martin or J. R. R. Tolkien" for its high fantasy concepts and heavy world-building.
Awards and nominations
• Award — Year — Category — Nominee — Result • Bram Stoker Award — 2018 — Best Graphic Novel — Monstress – Volume 2: The Blood — rowspan=3 • 2019 — Best Graphic Novel — Monstress – Volume 3: Haven • 2020 — Best Graphic Novel — Monstress – Volume 4: The Chosen • British Fantasy Award — 2017 — Best Comic / Graphic Novel — Monstress – Volume 1: Awakening — rowspan=2 • 2018 — Best Comic / Graphic Novel — Monstress – Volume 2: The Blood • Best Artist — Sana Takeda — rowspan=6 • Eisner Awards — 2016 — Best Writer — Marjorie Liu • Best New Series — Monstress • 2017 — Best Publication for Teens — Monstress • Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) — Sana Takeda • Best Cover Artist — Sana Takeda • 2018 — Best Continuing Series — Monstress — rowspan=7 • Best Publication for Teens — Monstress • Best Writer — Marjorie Liu • Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) — Sana Takeda • Best Cover Artist — Sana Takeda • 2022 — Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) — Sana Takeda • 2023 — Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) — Sana Takeda • Harvey Awards — 2018 — Book of the Year Award — Monstress • Hugo Awards — 2017 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 1: Awakening • Best Professional Artist — Sana Takeda • 2018 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 2: The Blood — rowspan=3 • Best Professional Artist — Sana Takeda • 2019 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 3: Haven • 2020 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 4: The Chosen — rowspan=5 • 2021 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 5: Warchild • 2022 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 6: The Vow • 2023 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 7: Devourer • 2025 — Best Graphic Story — Monstress – Volume 9: The Possessed • World Fantasy Awards — 2022 — Special Award, Professional — Monstress – Volume 6: The Vow
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Liu, Marjorie. Marjorie Liu.
- 2.Cruz, Lenika. Marjorie Liu on the Road to Making 'Monstress'. The Atlantic. September 14, 2017.
- 3.Kelts, Roland. Breaking the comic book glass ceiling. The Japan Times. 2017-12-14.
- 4.Monstress, Vol. 3 TP. Image Comics.
- 5.Monstress, Vol. 4 TP. Image Comics.
- 6.Cruz, Lenika. Marjorie Liu on the Road to Making 'Monstress'. The Atlantic. September 14, 2017.
- 7.McMillan, Graeme. 'Monstress': Inside The Fantasy Comic About Race, Feminism And The Monster Within. The Hollywood Reporter. 3 November 2015.
- 8.Monstress Reviews. Comic Book Roundup.
- 9.Narcisse, Evan. Monstress Is A Gorgeous Comic Book About Racism, War and Slavery. Kotaku. November 23, 2015.
- 10.Rosberg, Caitlin. Monstress captivates with its fusion of Western comics and manga. The A.V. Club. November 10, 2015.
- 11.Song, Min Hyoung. Monsters Come Home: On Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda's "Monstress". Los Angeles Review of Books. December 24, 2016.
- 12.Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Marjorie M. Liu Awards. Science Fiction Awards Database.
- 13.Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Sana Takeda Awards. Science Fiction Awards Database.
- 14.Announcing the 2017 British Fantasy Award Winners. Tor.com. October 2017.
- 15.British Fantasy Society, British Fantasy Awards 2018. British Fantasy Society.
- 16.2016 Eisner Award Winners (Full List). Newsarama.
- 17.2017 Eisner Awards Winners (Full List). Newsarama.
- 18.2018 Eisner Awards Nominations. Newsarama.
- 19.Kaplan, Rebecca Oliver. SDCC '22: 2022 Eisner Award winners, top moments, and more!. Comics Beat. July 23, 2022.
- 20.McMillan, Graeme. And the winners of the 2023 Eisner Awards are. Popverse. April 24, 2023.
- 21.2018 Winners - The Harvey Awards. Harvey Awards.
- 22.MONSTRESS Wins 2017 HUGO AWARD. Newsarama.
- 23.Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Sana Takeda Awards. Science Fiction Awards Database.
- 24.Morgan, Cheryl. 2018 Hugo Award Winners. The Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. August 19, 2018.
- 25.Morgan, Cheryl. 2019 Hugo Award Winners. The Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. August 19, 2019.
- 26.World Science Fiction Society. 2020 Hugo Awards. The Hugo Awards.
- 27.World Science Fiction Society. 2021 Hugo Awards. The Hugo Awards.
- 28.World Science Fiction Society. 2023 Hugo Awards. 2023-07-06.
- 29.World Science Fiction Society. 2025 Hugo Awards. 2025-04-10.
- 30.World Fantasy Awards 2022. The Science Fiction Awards Database.
- 31.Monstress, Vol. 1 TP.
- 32.Monstress, Vol. 2 TP.
- 33.Monstress, Vol. 3 TP.
- 34.Monstress, Vol. 4 TP.
- 35.Monstress, Vol. 5 TP.
- 36.Monstress, Vol. 6 TP.
- 37.Monstress, Vol. 7 TP.
- 38.Monstress TP, Vol. 8.
- 39.imagecomics.com. Monstress TP, Vol. 9.
- 40.SimonAndSchuster.com. Monstress Volume 10.
- 41.Monstress, Book One HC.
- 42.Monstress, Book Two HC.
- 43.Monstress HC, Vol. 3.
- 44.Monstress Compendium TP, Vol. 1.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Comics and comic art
9,920 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Monster Hunter OrageSeries
- Monster MusumeSeries
- Monster SoulSeries
- Monster-Colored IslandSeries
- Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kunSeries
- Monthly in the Garden with My LandlordSeries
- MontySeries
- Monty WeddArtist
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a copy of Monstress?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.