Saga Volume 10

by Brian K. Vaughan

[Quirky Cat]

Ohhhh, my heart. I'm not sure I can take another volume of Saga. Not if it goes anything like Volume 9. I say that – knowing I will read every single volume of this series. Still, it's nice to have the series back from hiatus.

Side note: If you haven't read volume 9 yet, do NOT flip through 10, as there will be significant spoilers. Also, you're probably better off not reading the rest of this review. I'll try to be careful, but it's easy to forget how much the little things add up.

Hazel and her family are still very much on the run. Sometimes, it feels like everyone wants to kill them – especially little Hazel. She's the embodiment of something neither faction can afford to have lingering around.

Despite this danger (or perhaps because of it), her family still gets to have plenty of adventures, taking them to new worlds and meeting all sorts of people. Sometimes they make friends, but more often, they make enemies.

Writing

Ow. I thought I had gotten over the conclusion of Saga Volume 9. As it turns out, I was wrong. Saga Volume 10 hits like a ton of bricks. So it's basically on par for the rest of this series. As per usual, Brian Vaughan isn't here to pull punches. However, he may rip out a heart or two (of his readers – I need to be clear when talking about Vaughan).

The story starts with another time jump. This isn't the first time this has happened, so no big surprise. It's been three years since the final panel of the last volume. So everyone has had time to adjust to what went down. Mostly.

I adored seeing Alana and Hazel together. Their lives have not been easy, but it is nice to see that their family is still together. And they've found another member or two (trying to be vague here) to add to their ragtag crew. It's heartwarming and more than a little bit bittersweet. It's perfect for the series.

Their endearing and sometimes traumatic plot is balanced out by the adventures of The Will (and other characters introduced in this volume). These plots may boil your blood, but I expect that's the point. Once again, we're seeing some fresh tension, likely leading to another fatal confrontation. I don't know that for a fact – I'm just assuming. Again, this is Vaughan we're talking about.

Readers should prepare themselves for a couple of kicks to the heart. They're not as bad as they could have been (or as bad as they have been in the past), but they are still very much there. Since this is Saga we're talking about, I probably don't need to include such a warning. But it feels like the kind thing to do.

Artwork

Fiona Staples is and has always been the perfect artist for Saga. Her character designs are out of this world (pun not intended, sorry). Not to mention her level of detail when it comes to portraying emotion. It's just...so much. It makes the stories hit all the harder. Admittedly, we probably didn't need that. But hey, that's life, right?

As always, there are little details that took my breath away. Background and colors, little hints tucked here and there. This is one of the reasons why I love the series so much. There's text, and then there's subtext.

Oh! And I can't forget about the lettering. Fonografiks did a freaking fantastic job with the lettering. I love the creative placement and design of some of it. It makes it feel more like a story a kid would tell, which is appropriate and accurate (remember, this is still Hazel's story).

Conclusion

Oh, Saga. How do you keep doing this to me? More importantly, why do I keep coming back? Oh, right – because the writing and artwork are brilliant. Oh well, I guess I'm back in a cycle of reading and crying. But seriously, Saga Volume 10 is a long-awaited volume that is worth the wait. Fans of the series should pick this up and dive right in.

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