Saga: Vol.1- Review

"This is how an idea becomes real."

I absolutely love a story where it feels like anything can exist in it. Where a creator can truly spread their artistic wings and fly me off to an amazingly big world of even bigger dreams. Science-fantasy properties like the original Star Wars trilogy and the comic Gold Digger have always been up there as some of my favorite stories because of the sheer imagination they have at work. Everything they offer is so fantastical and cool that I can't help but feel inspired by their respective visions. So when I read Saga I felt like it was a comic created specifically for someone just like me, and ultimately as a love letter to all of the science-fantasy genre.

Normally I don't like reviewing something until it has seen some degree of completion so that I may judge it based on the sum of its parts. As an avid fan of the comic book format though, I can honestly say that Saga Vol.1 is one of the best comics that I have had the privilege of reading in years. It has quickly skyrocketed up my list, becoming one of my current favorites, if not one of my all-time favorites beyond any doubt. While there are plenty of comic books out there that I do read and absolutely love to death, only a select few have ever managed to entertain me to the level that Saga has. In fact I would go so far as to say that Saga actually served as a nice little reminder as to why I love sequential art to begin with.

Hell, I've read this book five times already! Yes, it is that good! I found myself feeling inspired and real anxious to get back to working on creating my own comic after reading Saga. Putting it bluntly, this is exactly the kind of comic that I wish I could create one day. Dark/serious, but also sexy/fun, and always entertaining. Granted I haven't exactly yielded results as of this review, but it's the thought that counts...

Describing Saga to someone is actually pretty difficult without sounding like a horny 13 year old boy on a sugar high. Brian K. Vaughan's (Y: The Last Man, Pride of Baghdad) writing and Fiona Staples' (North 40, Dv8) art are just so seductively imaginative in so many ways that it's crazy awesome. I feel words almost fail to describe how successful they were in creating such an openly adult, yet also amazingly vivid and genuine book about the troubles of new parents trying to raise a child. I think Mr. Vaughan himself may have put it best when he jokingly described Saga as "Star Wars for perverts."

For centuries a galactic war has raged between the Coalition of Landfall and Wreath. Numerous planets and races have become entangled in the war, with survivors always picking sides and continuing the everlasting conflict. A midst the chaos Alana and Marko, two soldiers on opposite sides of the war, fall in love and have a daughter they name Hazel. Knowing that they will be hunted/killed by their respective factions for treason, Alana and Marko attempt to leave for the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Their only comfort being the hope that they can escape the endless battles and raise their child in peace. The family has to move quick though, as bounty hunters and a robot prince have joined in pursuit of the traitors, with orders to kill them and take their daughter.

I dare not go much further into the plot's details as I feel everyone should experience Saga unspoiled and come to their own conclusions. There are numerous characters, plenty of twists, and enough mystery to keep a reader like me invested for the long-haul of Volume 1. Let alone enough action and drama to get me excited about Volume 2.

This just feels like a great T.V. show waiting to be made! Seriously!

I believe Saga succeeds with me as well as it does due to how perfectly the art and the writing mix. Brian K. Vaughan made his big return to comics with Saga and he shows he still really knows how to write engaging characters as if they were real people. He avoids what I like to refer to as "The Author's Voice." Which is where all the characters are simply author avatars that have the same personality, talk in similar/exactly the same fashion about things the author wants to discuss, or exist only to serve as a microphone for the author to talk directly to the audience. To me the author's voice bleeding through into the story is something I don't like when it happens. Saga thankfully is littered with subtlety and nuance to its cast making every major character stand out with no two ever sounding or feeling alike.

The scale and imagination of the story is well... huge to sum it up in a word. A galactic sized war with laser gun wielding winged people against magic using horned humans is ironically only the tip of the iceberg. We also have such things as robot princes, the babysitting ghost of a teenage girl's torso, a large hairless cat capable of telling when someone lies, rocket ship trees that are open to suggestions on travel plans, giant tortoises that fire lasers from their eyes, and a sexy spider bounty hunter all making life for our heroes more strange/interesting as the story progresses. Hell! There is even a planet devoted entirely to prostitution with the puntastic name Sextillion. For fans of the science-fantasy genre I think you definitely have a cool new poster child in town.

All of this would probably be pretty hard to swallow if it wasn't presented and framed in such an expertly done manner. Vaughan and Staples truly outdid themselves here as the world is revealed little by little to the viewer. For all of its bombastic ideas, Saga is actually quite restrained in how it displays its world. Making everything easier to take in and appreciate for its imagination, magnitude, and outright crazy awesomeness. Because of the clever setup to the story's universe nothing ever truly feels like it is out of place or tacked on just for the sake of having it. Everything in Saga feels like it has some purpose being there, creating the stronger sense of a living/breathing setting. A setting that frankly I just can't get enough of.

Kudos also goes to how the story opens. Some comics just tend to take too long with establishing the setup of their story. This is not the case with Saga. Instead of showing Alana's and Marko's romance form, Vaughan instead opted to to have the subversive opening of them already being together at Hazel's birth. This may have actually prevented Saga from being a more slow and cliched tale. Granted, their love is still very much real and well felt throughout mind you, but by having Hazel's birth mark the beginning of the plot we're allowed get straight into Saga's narrative and universe much faster. There is very little in the ways of padding, making Saga all meat and potatoes.

While the writing in Saga is superb, it is Fiona Staple's artwork that truly helps to sell Vaughan's vision. Quite simply it is in a league all its own, and I couldn't imagine anyone else doing the art to Saga. She has been heralded by critics as not only one of the best female artists in the industry today, but also as one of the best comic artists ever. From the lines, to the inks, to the colors, Staples does it all. The way she makes characters emote and interact through their body language with each other is truly something to behold. Her panels flow with such grace and fluidity that at times I almost thought I was watching Saga instead of reading it. Her backgrounds pop with just as much intensity as the characters do, and details created through her lines/colors are always easy to read. I've tried to find fault with the art and honestly I can't. Fiona Staples has (very much so) earned her praise as an all in one artist.

As great as the art is overall I have to say that the character designs are the standout feature for me. Everyone looks like something from the 1980's Sci-Fi and Fantasy movie boom. Alana and Marko are probably the simplest of the designs, but have such a breadth of humanity to them that I immediately fell in love the moment I saw them on the cover. Others like Prince Robot IV, The Will, and The Stalk are all iconic in their own quirky ways as well. If there is one thing that Saga has going for it at all, it's that nothing else out there quite resembles it. Except for maybe Star Wars itself or the newer episodes of Doctor Who...

From left to right: Alana, Hazel, Marko, The Will, The Stalk, Prince Robot IV

For all the positives that I've said about Saga there are a few things that have to be addressed. First and foremost this is a very mature comic, so younger readers are to be kept away. I'm gonna tell you now, you don't want to read this with your children around. There is quite a bit of profanity, nudity, sex, and graphic violence to be found. So if you're the kind who doesn't prefer or can't handle any of those things in their entertainment then you're not going to like this book. Granted I do not feel that any of it is done to a level that is outright distasteful, but others may disagree. In fact I think the mature material gives the comic a little bit of a much needed edginess. Some sequences in the book though could be considered outright disturbing to some readers. As an example, during a scene on the planet Sextillion, there is a segment that involves a child being sold into sex slavery. I know for some this may just simply be too much for them.

The more scientifically inclined may also take issue with Saga as some things only happen or exist really because of the fact that this is a somewhat silly comic with somewhat silly ideas. With rocket ships that grow like trees I think everyone can get an image of what kind of story we're dealing with here, but still... Not everyone will like the more "out there" concepts that Vaughan and Staples have to offer. If you're looking for your science-fantasy to be a little more grounded, you may want to look elsewhere.

Some have claimed Saga to be the comic book equivalent to the show Game of Thrones. If you've seen Game of Thrones then you're familiar with the fan slogan of "anyone can die" for that show. Characters there don't really exist with a set of plot armor, thus not making them immune to the possibility of death, and the same goes here for Saga. Characters as early as this volume have already met their end, and I can see how some readers could very quickly be turned off by this. I understand how hard it can be to invest yourself with a character when you feel like they're just a page turn away from an untimely demise. For me this was never really a problem, as I think Saga handles character death well. It never feels like it is done for shock value, but more so for showing how dire the situations are becoming for the characters, as well as how dangerous the world they live in is. Still some may take issue with the creators seeming to be cavalier with killing a likeable cast member, let alone before we really got to know them.

During my own little bit of research I did before buying Saga, I found an interview with Brian K. Vaughan. One particular bit stood out of the interview and I feel it sums up everything quite well with how he approached creating the comic:

"I realized that making comics and making babies were kind of the same thing and if I could combine the two, it would be less boring if I set it in a crazy sci-fi fantasy universe and not just have anecdotes about diaper bags. I didn’t want to tell a Star Wars adventure with these noble heroes fighting an empire. These are people on the outskirts of the story who want out of this never-ending galactic war. I’m part of the generation that all we do is complain about the prequels and how they let us down. And if every one of us who complained about how the prequels didn’t live up to our expectations just would make our own sci-fi fantasy, then it would be a much better use of our time."

After all they've been through they deserve a moment.

With that in mind I can honestly say the duo have certainly done their job as far as this one nerd is concerned. While it may not be for absolutely everybody, I do feel that if you're a fan of comics you owe it to yourself to buy and read Saga. If you're looking for a huge and imaginative science-fantasy world with likeable characters you can't do much better than this. It has already sold out twice on its first issue alone. As well as received praise from professional critics all around, and awards as high as "Best Comic of 2012!" Even the price point is low for a trade costing all of $9.99, or $2.99 each for the individual six issue release . I only wish more comics could be as fun and enthralling as Saga was for me.

So give yourselves a pat on the back Mr. Vaughan and Ms. Staples! You guys created one hell of a comic! Too bad it isn't a totally awesome TV show too... hint hint...

Positive Factors

• Good source of inspiration for the more creatively inclined.
• Crazy Awesome to the MAX! Imagination and fun are king. This will tap into your inner 13 year old. 
• Great writing on the characters. Everyone feels like their own person. No dreaded "Author's Voice."
• More direct opening moves the story forward with great momentum.
• Even more crazy ideas like a giant laser-shooting tortoise feel like they have their place in the story at large.
• Sequential artwork is top notch! Easy to read and to appreciate. It doesn't get more cinematic than this.
• Character designs are retro and instantly iconic. Have fun picking out your favorites!
• Mature content gives the story a nice edge. Sexy and violent, but never distasteful.
• Characters die, but it never feels like it is done for shock value. Only to show how dire things have gotten.
• A low price even makes it affordable! $9.99 for the six issue trade and $2.99 for the single issues.

Negative Factors

• Mature material makes it only available to adults. Sorry kids... Also maybe too graphic for some.
• Not everyone will be on board with the story's more silly aspects. Hard science nerds need not apply.
• Characters will die. Look elsewhere if you don't want to become attached to a potential dead-man walking.

Final Rating: !!!AWESOMESAUCE!!!