Coalford reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Probably the best first comics in a series I've ever read.
Box set, 1524 pages
English language
Published Jan. 29, 2021 by Image Comics.
4 stars
(137 reviews)
Saga is an epic space opera/fantasy comic book series written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples, published monthly by the American company Image Comics. The series is based on ideas Vaughan conceived both as a child and as a parent. It depicts a husband and wife, Alana and Marko, from long-warring extraterrestrial races, fleeing authorities from both sides of a galactic war as they struggle to care for their daughter, Hazel, who is born in the beginning of the series, and who occasionally narrates the series as an unseen adult.
The comic was described in solicitations as "Star Wars meets Game of Thrones", and by critics as evocative of both science fiction and fantasy epics such as The Lord of the Rings and classic works like Romeo and Juliet. It is Vaughan's first creator-owned work to be published through Image Comics, and is the first time he …
Saga is an epic space opera/fantasy comic book series written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples, published monthly by the American company Image Comics. The series is based on ideas Vaughan conceived both as a child and as a parent. It depicts a husband and wife, Alana and Marko, from long-warring extraterrestrial races, fleeing authorities from both sides of a galactic war as they struggle to care for their daughter, Hazel, who is born in the beginning of the series, and who occasionally narrates the series as an unseen adult.
The comic was described in solicitations as "Star Wars meets Game of Thrones", and by critics as evocative of both science fiction and fantasy epics such as The Lord of the Rings and classic works like Romeo and Juliet. It is Vaughan's first creator-owned work to be published through Image Comics, and is the first time he employs narration in his comics writing. Vaughan indicated that the entire series will span 108 issues.
Noisy Deadlines reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Excellent!
5 stars
There's no way you can't love the characters. It's just mindbogglingly full of creativity, emotion and authenticity. I'm loving this series and I immediately started reading Volume 2.
Noisy Deadlines reviewed Saga Box Set by Brian K. Vaughan (Saga, #1-9)
Review of 'Saga Box Set' on 'Storygraph'
5 stars
Excellent!
There's no way you can't love the characters. It's just mindbogglingly full of creativity, emotion and authenticity. I'm loving this series and I immediately started reading Volume 2.
Amerdale reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
fjordic reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Vol. 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
What a great introduction to graphic novels!
Minotaur reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
4.5 ohhh next one
Wetdryvac reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Vol. 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Significantly explicit, but not in a way that detracts from the story, which rocks - and the art is most excellent.
SpiderKitten reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I was a little reluctant to read this. I kept hearing amazing things about it, and thought no way it could live up to the hype. Well, I was wrong because Saga is amazing! I love the diverse range of characters and species and the story has sucked me right in.
I loved these first 6 issues and look forward to reading more!
Vedang Manerikar reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Refer to my review here: www.goodreads.com/review/show/883769807
Yashima reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
The only bad thing I can say about this, is that I was finished too fast.
I enjoyed the drawing style a lot and I am looking forward to reading volumes 2 and 3.
My favorite character must be the ghost girl ... and of course the spaceship that is a kind of tree.
Robin Marx reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
While it's definitely not the first story dealing with star-crossed lovers (almost literally in this case, as it involves a romance between soldiers on opposite sides of a genocidal moon/planet war), Saga handles this high concept trope in an action-packed, engaging way.
Furthermore, Saga very skillfully blends the core family drama with grand scale space opera. This series has super science, magic, robots with CRT heads, lie-detecting mercenary cats, living tree rockets, and more aliens than the Star Wars cantina scene. This isn't "by engineers, for engineers" hard SF, it's "wouldn't it be cool if...?" space opera. Vast, with a barrage of cool stuff on every page. And the artwork is some of the most beautiful I've seen in comics.
The characters are ridiculously appealing. For a pair of aliens, central couple Alana and Marko feel like real people, with all the foibles that entails. They're resourceful, brave, and admirably …
While it's definitely not the first story dealing with star-crossed lovers (almost literally in this case, as it involves a romance between soldiers on opposite sides of a genocidal moon/planet war), Saga handles this high concept trope in an action-packed, engaging way.
Furthermore, Saga very skillfully blends the core family drama with grand scale space opera. This series has super science, magic, robots with CRT heads, lie-detecting mercenary cats, living tree rockets, and more aliens than the Star Wars cantina scene. This isn't "by engineers, for engineers" hard SF, it's "wouldn't it be cool if...?" space opera. Vast, with a barrage of cool stuff on every page. And the artwork is some of the most beautiful I've seen in comics.
The characters are ridiculously appealing. For a pair of aliens, central couple Alana and Marko feel like real people, with all the foibles that entails. They're resourceful, brave, and admirably devoted to each other, but can also be dense, stubborn, or petty. I won't spoil it, but the inspiration for Alana's initial interest in Marko (revealed in Volume 2) is funny and seemingly trivial, but also authentic-feeling. Alana and Marko talk to each other like a real couple, not like an idealized Romeo & Juliet, and as a new parent I found it easy to relate with their interactions involving their baby daughter.
Saga feels like a SF comic for adults. Not because of the sex, violence, and profanity (although it has all of these, in detail), but because it's uncommonly smart and mature. It avoids treating its aliens like mono-cultures, with members of the same alien species look and act differently, rather than being more or less interchangeable. There are different ethnicities, body types, and sexual preferences represented within the same alien species. The characters have different points of view, and even the antagonists are usually treated with sympathy and nuance.
Highly recommended for comics and/or space fantasy fans, and new parents.
Vedang Manerikar reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
The artwork is interesting, but the narrative is a bit of a let down. Characters are wiped out just as we're beginning to develop a sense for them, and the dialogue feels disjointed to me. I had high expectations from this book after all the praise I'd heard about it. I didn't get my money's worth.
Chris reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga, Volume 1' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Most bizarre thing I've read for a long while.
Good, just very weird.
halkeye reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
And then my grandparents came to live with us :3
johnny dangerously. reviewed Saga, Volume 1 (dupe)
Review of 'Saga' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I am a big fan of Brian K. Vaughan, and was interested to see him try something new; sadly, it seems, the 'something new' involved abandoning his previous habit of methodical, precise plots and solid characters. That isn't to say that Saga is irrevocably a failure; only, the first book was, pacing-wise, a huge mess. Characters appear in and out of focus with little information, too many flashbacks, and narration that did more to obscure, confuse, and over-stimulate than it did to elucidate.
The worst failure, I think, is the addition of the narrator. Without spoiling anything, I'll say that their inclusion makes the story confusing and disjointed, adding a new perspective to a story already overladen with perspectives, and it compounds that sin by making their perspective tantamount to the survival of certain characters who are often in peril. Which is to say, basically, it takes all the suspense …
I am a big fan of Brian K. Vaughan, and was interested to see him try something new; sadly, it seems, the 'something new' involved abandoning his previous habit of methodical, precise plots and solid characters. That isn't to say that Saga is irrevocably a failure; only, the first book was, pacing-wise, a huge mess. Characters appear in and out of focus with little information, too many flashbacks, and narration that did more to obscure, confuse, and over-stimulate than it did to elucidate.
The worst failure, I think, is the addition of the narrator. Without spoiling anything, I'll say that their inclusion makes the story confusing and disjointed, adding a new perspective to a story already overladen with perspectives, and it compounds that sin by making their perspective tantamount to the survival of certain characters who are often in peril. Which is to say, basically, it takes all the suspense out of scenes which would, otherwise, be suspenseful. The narration doesn't explain things we need to know, either; it disappears in truly confusing scenes where narration would be welcome. It only adds a saccharine and unnecessary comment in twee font; it adds nothing thematically or narratively, and it stalls and slows scenes that could otherwise be gripping and fast-paced.
By the final quarter of the book, things calm down, perhaps due to BKV running out of characters to randomly introduce with no warning or foreshadowing. The story's disparate elements finally come into their own, and that's the story I'll pick up the next volume for.
As for this volume, I only wish BKV had a better editor or collaborator, someone to take him aside and tell him to pace himself. There are so many elements in this story. I don't know why, if you're so interested in splashy shocking cliffhangers (as Saga clearly is), you'd introduce all your elements and players at once, with no tension or surprise.
