Comic Review: Saga Volume 9

There are a number of comic book series that I like but only read sporadically.  Most of them were series where I had no real excuse to do so.  But I did have a reason not to push ahead on Saga:  it was on hiatus for the foreseeable future.  If I finished too quickly, I would still have a long wait before more issues came out.

But I could only hold off for so long and finally got around to Volume 9, the halfway point for the series.

From the very beginning, Saga has presented the fledgling family of Alana, Marco, and Hazel as one where things can change at the drop of a hat.  Anyone could die at any time, and this was a series that killed off a ghost babysitter, so that does mean anyone can die.  But here, at the halfway point, one of the more implacable of pursuers following the family is closing in on them without even trying.  The bounty hunter once known as The Will may not have been looking for them, but he wants his honor back, and he has a longstanding grudge against Prince Robot, still in the family’s company.

However, there’s a possible way out of their problem as the two journalists traveling with them have an offer:  a magical new identity for their story.  That would allow the family to have new names and faces, allowing them to slip away and live peacefully for the rest of their lives.  Will any member of this ragtag group of cast-offs take the offer?  Or is it too late?

Saga has always had a tragic aura going back to if not the first issue than the very first trade.  About all the reader knows for certain from there is Hazel will survive.  That’s it.  What exactly that meant was unclear, and this trade ends with a sight that is sure to be a heartbreaker for fans.  Brian K Vaughn and Fiona Staples have always had a series that could make the reader smile or cry in equal measure, and the series cannot return fast enough for me.  9.5 out of 10 monsters in an abandoned amusement park.