Scout’s Honor #3 Review
Scout’s Honor is written by David Pepose, illustrated by Luca Casalanguida, colored by Matt Milla and lettered by Carlos M. Mangual, Scout’s Honor continues the adventures of the Ranger Scouts.
Synopsis:
After the apocalypse a cult arose and now hundreds of years later, they rule. Kit previously discovered a secret behind her society and now is undercover to get closer to the truth behind her world.
Scout’s Honor is published by Aftershock Comics and is available from your local comic shop.
Scout’s Honor #3 Story
Pepose has crafted one of the best side characters in Dez, who initially was the annoying best friend but as we learn more about him, he becomes easily relatable. We all had times when we wanted to impress our parents and Dez takes that to the extreme. With his father being the leader of their society, he feels that he has to be the best scout of all. This sets up the core drama of this issue between Kit and Dez, the true story is not about the trials but them testing their friendship.
Then the trials begin. The trials are a series of tests designed to see what scouts are worthy to be part of the Eagle Guard. The first is a fight against suicide hornets, something that reminds one of the infamous murder hornets of 2020 but supersized. Dez has a chance to kill the queen except he ends up setting the hive into a frenzy. Much to his annoyance Kit uses a wrecking ball to save his life by killing the queen.
The second trial is a march up a mountain through treacherous territory while wearing a heavy pack. One of their fellow scouts is hit by a plume of fire that erupts from the ground. Kit tries to go back for them but is reminded that the laws of their society say to leave others behind if they are a burden. A few hours later while the rest of the victors are sitting around a fire, Kit shows up carrying the barely living body of the hurt Scout. Pepose has crafted a true hero in Kit, not someone who follows the rules of their society perfectly but breaks them to save others.
Kit then encounters the third trial which is truly something out a nightmare. She has been thrown in a well and drugged to see a zombified version of her father. These types of moments are where Pepose works his magic. Instead of diving into true horror and torturing Kit, Pepose has Kit face her fears about her journey forward after the loss of her father. This true heart moment has Kit grow as a character and come closer to who she is going to become.
After climbing out of the well Kit travels to the final trial. Her and Dez are the final scouts left and have to fight for one place in the Eagle Guard. In a scene mostly wordless they relentlessly destroy each other. The fight concludes in sadness when Kit breaks her best friend’s arm and probably his heart. Having built these two up as friends and potentially more, this broke my heart.
Without even celebrating her victory Kit realizes it is time to find the truth. She takes the drone she had found in issue one and scales the central headquarters. This is where she discovers the truth. Not only was the Ranger Scouts a failed government program but they have been supplying weapons to the same maunders who killed her father. That’s when she is discovered by Dez’s father with multiple guns trained on her.
Scout’s Honor #3 Art
Casalanguida’s work in this issue is by far their best work so far in this series. Beginning with the suicide hornets Casalanguida creates terrifying monsters that haunt one even after they turn the page. By far the most dynamic page is when Kit uses a wrecking ball to destroy the queen hornet. The striking image is truly a team effort with letters and colors. Milla strikes a contrast with their muted palette with neon green blood bursting forth. Mangual’s letter’s wrap around the destruction and truly showcase the talent of this team.
Another great page of Scout’s Honor #3 is during the final trail when Dez and Kit fight. Casalanguida uses a nine panel grid with very little dialogue and a variety of angles that shows how painful this fight is to the friends.
Scout’s Honor #3 Conclusion
Scout’s Honor had the potential to become another typical apocalypse series but Pepose has steered in a completely different direction. This is a series about how relationships between people create who we are on the inside. Kit, like all of us, is made of pieces of everyone she knows.
Scout’s Honor #3 was no exception with moments where she faces her father’s ghost and fights her best friend. Now she has to face the world that has shaped her. Who will she be afterwards? I personally can’t wait to see what happen in Scout’s Honor #4.
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