Saga by Brian K. Vaughan is a modern space opera with a vague resemblance to Romeo & Juliet as two star-crossed lovers from planets at war go on the run with their child. Stalked by their respective species, pursued by bounty-hunters, Prince Robot IV and spurned ex-lovers, they struggle to keep their family together. Vaughan is a master at building a vast mythology the reader can easily slide into. With a host of fascinating characters, you find yourself rooting for people from every side of a multi-faceted conflict. The characters feel real, set in a completely insane universe and the action is dramatic, terrifying and yet completely hilarious. The tone and pace shift smoothly from panel to panel without compromising the narrative’s cohesive structure. Both victorious and tragic, this story takes place in a far-flung universe with people who look nothing like us, but eerily resemble us.
Saga’s artwork is drawn by the wonderfully talented Fiona Staples, whose work is absolutely gorgeous. While previous recommendations on this list have used more classic black-and-white art, Staples’ colours are bold and bright, combining the familiar with the fantastical. The glorious character-designs are jaw-dropping and the planet-scapes, in turns, are stunning and terrifying.
In 2013, Saga received Best Continuing Series, Best New Series and Best Writer at the Eisner Awards as well as the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story. It continued to rake in awards with Best Painter/Multimedia Artist, Best Writer and Best Continuing Series at the 2014 Eisner Awards and Best Continuing Series and Best Penciller/Inker at the 2015 Eisner Awards. Saga is increasingly receiving a lot of attention from Comics Studies and other academic fields, as evidenced by its presence in the book Bad Girls and Transgressive Women in Popular Television, Fiction and Film. Unfortunately, we do not have a copy of this wonderful series in the David Wilson Library, but those of you who’d like to read and or work on the book for your studies (say in English, Education, Media and Communication, Philosophy or Politics) can always use our More Books scheme to request the library purchase a copy.
