Canto III Lionhearted #4

Canto III Lionhearted #4

IDW Publishing 2021

Written by David M. Booher

Illustrated by Drew Zucker

Coloured by Vittorio Astone

Lettered by Andworld Design

Fan-favourite CANTO continues! In the frozen north, Canto confronts someone he never thought he would see again. As the Shrouded Man’s army approaches, Canto must make one last desperate plea to his old foe for aid. Even if Canto succeeds, will it be enough? Join the latest adventure in the Canto-verse that Major Spoilers called “a quest story to savour.”

I’m not sure this is just a Fan-Favourite because it is also an Industry Favourite and a world-wide favourite as well. I’m not sure lightning can strike again like it did with this one. The further we get into the epic adventures of our young Knight the more we see him grow, evolve and learn from those whom he’s come into contact with. Canto is like this little sponge soaking up knowledge and proving he’s a natural born leader whether he believes in himself or not. The fierce loyalty he’s been able to instil in others is mind blowing as his actions speak just as loud as his words and he’s willing to do what is right regardless if it is deathly dangerous. The kind of admiration we see him garnering from his friends and those he meets is awe inspiring and the general spirit of his character makes me want to strive to be a better person.

I am in love with the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exquisitely. The character development that we see through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does such a magnificent job introducing new personalities and spotlighting the ever changing personalities of established characters. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing more of the story the more we are swept up in this epic battle between good and evil.

I am mightily impressed with the way that this is being structured and how we see the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. I’m also liking the way we see the layers open up new avenues to follow and the kind of depth, dimension and complexity they add to the story. How we see him sway the opinions of others, even old foes, is something to be admired. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward are impeccably handled.

The interiors here are just bloody beautiful. The linework is exquisite and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create this level & quality of work in the attention to detail is mindbogglingly brilliant to see. When we see backgrounds being utilised they enhance and expand the moments perfectly, hence why I’d like to see more of them in use. How they work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is masterfully achieved. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a masters eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work show a brilliant eye for how colour works and how to maximise their effects.

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What started out as a quirky little story about a knight searching for his heart has transcended age, race and gender to become something that we can all aspire to wanting to be. Canto is without a doubt one of the all-time greatest character finds in literature. The writing is extraordinary with this awe-inspiring characterisation and these absolutely bloody brilliant interiors bringing it all to life.