by Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples (Illustrator)
Publisher: Image Comics
Format: Paperback
Genre: Sci-Fi
Release Date: November 15th, 2023
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Reread Reviews: Volume 1 / Volume 2 / Volume 3 / Volume 4 / Volume 5 / Volume 6 / Volume 7 / Volume 8 / Volume 9 / Volume 10
Glancing back over the previous volumes, this is actually my lowest rated (at 4 stars, mind, so not a huge drop). This one in particular just felt like it was a bit more…bland? The art is still excellent and the story is still compelling, but Volume 11 feels more like a bridge than a full volume.
It feels like we’re meandering a bit here. We get some interesting stuff going on with Hazel and Squire, and an intriguing visit elsewhere, but this more than any previous volume just made me feel like we’re a bit unmoored, and it suffers from Marko’s absence.
Which, really, is the main thing driving this plot at the moment. Alana is doing what she can to keep her family safe, and we get more of an idea here of the grief the kids are experiencing, but it almost feels a bit late. Deaths in a long running series (of almost anything) are to be expected, and it’s not so much Marko’s absence here that mars it but more like other elements are being pushed to almost hide it, without us getting to really see or understand the grief the characters are experiencing.
Up to Volume 9, Saga feels like a coherent, planned out story. With Volume 11, it starts to feel a bit more directionless.
It’s still good! Still very good, otherwise it wouldn’t have got 4 stars from me. But so far this is definitely the weakest volume, and one which feels like it’s had the least impact in the whole run. I have my fingers crossed that 12 will feel better, and I really hope this one is just a slight blip which, again, after 11 volumes, is kind of to be expected. So, I’ll forgive Saga a slightly weaker volume, and focus ahead to getting my hand on 12, hopefully before 13 is released.
Unwrapping Words 