Saga #63
The kids take on a dangerous mission as Gwen tries to get the Robots to leave Landfall’s Coalition in Saga #63, by writer Brian K. Vaughan, artist Fiona Staples, and letterer Fonografiks. This issue builds up the plot more, setting things in a dangerous new direction.
Hazel and Squire visit Vitch, questioning her about how she can raise their fathers from the dead. She reveals the key ingredient is a very valuable four-dimensional dust called Wormfood, which can turn back time. Unfortunately, the amount they need will be very expensive, but Hazel has a solution: theft. Petrichor dreams about Sir Robot and wakes up to Erving begging her for death. He warns her that the Will is more dangerous than ever, but that doesn’t change her mind. Alana works her job at a fulfillment center, talking to her co-worker about wanting to save up to leave. He gives her a new idea to get off the planet by taking a job on an unregistered ship, one that will put the children to work too. She balks at this, but thinks twice as she realizes how terrible her job is. Gwen and Sophie meet with Countess Robot X, who sees no reason to leave the Coalition. However, they show her the number of planets that have signed secret agreements with Wreath, which changes her tune. Hazel and Squire make their way to the Wormfood wholesaler, using magic to sneak in. A Lying Cat tries to attack them, but Squire kills it, showing how far he’s willing to go to get the powder.
This is about the place in any Saga arc where a few things happen. The stakes of the story are raised, new dangers are placed in front of the family, and new plots are introduced. It’s just the way the book works now, but this issue does take things to some intriguing places. For example, it explains how Wormfood works. It’s not magic at all, but science. Petrichor learning about the Will from Erving throws her survival into doubt. The Will was always a formidable enemy, but him being more dangerous than ever is interesting, especially since that’s not what readers have seen so far.
Alana’s job at the Amazon-like fulfillment center is a fun bit of social commentary, opening with her peeing in a grate and her co-worker imploring her to get back on the line to save her job. The best part of all of this is when the foreman flies by. All readers see are dark tendrils, and seeing it changes Alana’s mind immediately about her job and what she’s willing to do. Wreath’s growing empire is a great subplot, as it promises to change the war that has often been in the background lately.
Staples is fantastic, but that’s no surprise. The best page is probably the last one. Squire is standing there after killing the Lying Cat. Staples captures his determination beautifully. It’s all about posture and body language, working with Hazel’s caption to sell readers on just how far Squire is willing to go. It’s a powerful image, and it’s pages like this that really separate Staples from other artists out there.
Saga #63 follows the plot formula of this book to a tee, but as usual, Vaughan and Staples make it work. There are enough tantalizing developments in this issue to get readers excited about what’s coming next.
