Saga, Volume One (2013)
collects the first six issues of the Image comic written by Brian K. Vaughan
and illustrated by Fiona Staples. Here, two lovers whose people are at war
attempt to flee the planet with their newborn baby.
Saga is an
interesting and imaginative blend of science fiction and fantasy that calls to
mind both Star Wars and Mass Effect, but which does so without
feeling particularly derivative. Vaughan has created a cast of good characters,
all with believable motivations. In fact, The Will and Prince Robot IV might be
more interesting and more sympathetic than the wishy-washy Marko (although he
gets better quickly) and the walking annoying rage tantrum that is Alana. The
themes of parenting and family are particularly well done, though, which makes
them endearing enough.
Saga is
consistently explicit, both in terms of violence and sex. At times, this is
used to good storytelling effect (e.g., Prince Robot IV and his wife in issue
#1), but more often, it’s just gratuitous. In combination with some of the
dialogue, Saga sometimes feels like
Vaughan is trying too hard to be edgy, and it works a lot better when he’s not.
Entirely apart from this issue, Staples’ art is quite good.
Her characters are realistic, and she uses backgrounds to create a rich world.
The highlight, though, is her faces, which are excellent both in their
expression and consistency. The only real complaint with the art is that the
heavy inks on the characters often make them look like paper cutouts overlaid
on the much softer backgrounds.
So, while it’s got a few issues, Saga is a reasonably compelling story that’s rich with potential. I
don’t know that I’d run out for Volume Two, but I was invested enough to
wonder, at least, what happened next.
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