It’s Canto against Ferro! But if he can get the monster’s horn, will the Giants hold up their end of the bargain for Fra and Ba? Find out in Canto and the City of Giants #3 from IDW Publishing!

CANTO AND THE CITY OF GIANTS #3

Writer: David M. Booher
Artist: Sebastián Piriz
Letterer: Andworld Design
Editor: David Mariotte
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 30, 2021

Previously in Canto and the City of Giants: Canto and the Misturian Witch go to the labyrinth where Ferro lives. Grudgingly, Canto unlocks the Witch’s restraints. She tells him her name is Elda, and she claims to want to help him. She believes Ferro may be part mechanical. Canto’s axe may not be able to injure it, but her magical powers might. As they wander further into the maze, Falko and Rikta fight off a giant beetle that has come to torment Fra and Ba. Elda and Canto reach Ferro’s nest. Canto touches a dead crystal and has a vision of the Shrouded Man, who says that Elda will betray him. Canto refuses to let him get into his head and strikes the crystal with his axe. Ferro arrives – and Elda is gone!

THE FINAL SHOWDOWN!

Canto and the City of Giants #3 opens as Ferro attacks! Indeed, the beast looks kind of like a giant rhino and appears to be made mostly of metal except for the purple crystal horn on its snout. That horn snags Canto’s cape and the beast flings him around, trying to hit him as Canto flails wildly about the monster’s head until his cape rips and he flies off.

Elda returns and uses her powers to grab a sword. Canto tries to distract the beast, but Elda tells him to throw her his axe. His weapon will do no damage in his hand, she says, but she can use it. He does so and she leaps at the best, striking off its horn and getting flung back in the process. The beast dies; Elda lives.

Elda confesses that she did leave Canto, but she also heard the Shrouded Man say that she would betray the little knight. There is no love lost between her and Canto, but she will not pass up the chance to prove the wizard wrong, so that is why she returned. The enemy of an enemy, indeed.

Together they take the horn back to the King and Queen of the Giants and Canto asks again that they free Fra and Ba so the Witch can build them legs. They agree, calling Elda a “mysterious” witch, which appeals to her. Elda requests the metal body parts of Ferro to use as materials for Fra and Ba, and the Giants agree. Showing some honesty, the Queen says that the Giants of their city still may not accept Fra and Ba, even when they have legs again. Canto says that what he really wants is their help as allies to fight against the Shrouded Man.

The Queen calls him foolish for even thinking of this fight. He warns her that the Shrouded Man will turn against them in the end and try to enslave them. This angers the Queen who refuses to believe it. Still, Canto and Elda did get what they came for. They return to Fra and Ba and Canto asks if they will join him once the Witch builds them legs. They gladly agree, while arguing with one another. Canto also officially frees Elda for her help.

This is the end of an interlude story that connects the last main story arc to the upcoming new arc. We met the Misturian Witch in a similar short story, and I like how she returns here, and how Fra and Ba, whom we thought were minor characters, may be coming back to the main plot. It is a fun way to fill in the time between chapters.

ANOTHER INTERESTING CORNER OF THE WORLD

Monster design in Canto and the City of Giants #3 is terrific. I’ve already mentioned that, with the single horn, Ferro resembles a rhino. He also has a ruff of crystals around the back of his skull, so he also resembles a dinosaur. His metal mouth is full of sharp teeth, and I love the solidity we get in his form. His limbs look heavy, and the joints appear solid enough to support him. Bolts hold his hinged jaw in place, but his head does not look like a mask. Ferro looks like a fearsome metal construct and the glow of his eyes hints that some sort of magic may be giving him life.

I like the use of color as well. Between the maze and the Misturian Witch, there are a lot of earth tones against which Canto’s cloak stands out and draws our eye through the battle with Ferro. Ferro’s crystal horn, which glows purple, picks up on that and gives us a focus on the second half of the fight. That pinkish-purple returns again in Brob, the Giants’ city, where the King and Queen both have hair of that color. I think this emphasizes their connection to the labyrinth and its crystals, whatever it may be.

BOTTOM LINE: CANTO’S ADVENTURES CONTINUE

For a short interlude, Canto and the City of Giants #3 finishes a compact story well. These three issues can stand on their own perfectly well, but I like how the also give us plot points and events that make Canto’s main story that much richer.

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