Tag Archives: Petrichor

Dec 6 2016

Saga 40

Today, Ryan and Patrick are discussing Saga 40, originally released November 30th, 2016.

Ryan: When I was a child, my least favorite sentence was “Life’s not fair.” As a hyper-verbal kid who was encouraged to talk out her frustrations, things boiled down to those three words far too often. It got to a point where my mother would only have to intake her breath to start to say it and I would finish the sentence, feeling a sense of injustice that the world cannot be bent to fit the ideals of fairness of my ten-year-old mind. It felt glib then, but I understand a bit more now. Fairness is an ideal and is easy to enforce in a tennis match or on tax forms, but when the stakes become more personal, there is no way to find a quantifiable balance. Saga 40 is made up of scenes of characters behaving unfairly to one another and Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples use thematic elements to hold together an otherwise scattered issue.

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Nov 1 2016

Saga 39

Alternating Currents: Saga 39, Drew and Ryan

Today, Drew and Ryan M. are discussing Saga 39, originally released October 26th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

The best-laid plans of mice and men
Often go awry

Robert Burns, To A Mouse

Drew: If I had to pick an epigraph for our discussions of Saga, this most well-known line from Robert Burns’ most well-known poem would be it (indeed, I also used it to kick off our discussion of issue 16). It’s a sentiment that comes up often enough to have entered the lexicon as a common expression, and could reasonably describe most narratives where the protagonist(s) could be said to have a “plan,” but I’d argue that it is woven into the very fabric of Saga. Nobody, from the highest princes of the robot kingdom to the lowliest mouse medic ever has their plans work out perfectly, leaving them in a constant state of flux. That leaves them all like the mouse Burns’ poem was written for — the one whose home he destroyed while plowing a field. Issue 39 makes that parallel even more explicit, as the home of our leads is threatened by a force apparently unaware of their presence. Continue reading →

Sep 7 2016

Saga 37

saga 37

Today, Ryan M. and Ryan D. are discussing Saga 37, originally released August 31, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Ryan M: When something bad happens, my first instinct is to go back in my mind and try to find all of the places where I could have seen it coming. Did I miss a moment of insight, overlook a bit of non-verbal communication or flat out ignore glaring signs? Then, I start looking at all of my life under that same lens. There is a sense that if I can see the bad things coming, they will hurt less when they hit. After all of the shock and heartache that Saga has offered, I may be hypersensitive because I saw potential for future pain everywhere. Continue reading →

May 4 2016

Saga 36

Today, Ryan M. and Patrick are discussing Saga 36, originally released April 27, 2016.

Ryan M: I’m a sympathetic cryer. When I hear that telltale catch in someone else’s voice, my eyes swell. It’s not limited to real people either. Characters in movies I don’t even like can get me pretty easily, as well as any one who is dying and says that they aren’t ready out loud. I’m also not really a fan of crying in front of people, so I tend to be wary about finishing a book on the bus or seeing heavy dramas at the movie theater. So, I made sure I was all alone when I read Saga 36. That’s how sure I was that Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples were preparing to gut me with empathetic sadness as they closed an arc with the death of one of the characters. Of course, I was pretty wrong about that. I still cried, but only happy tears. Continue reading →

Mar 9 2016

Saga 34

saga 34

Today, Spencer and Ryan M. Patrick are discussing Saga 34, originally released February 24th, 2016.

Spencer: Every once in a while, a long running series will introduce a new concept and try to say, “hey, this has been important all along!” This can be frustrating when it isn’t true (see: all the various retcons in Star Wars) or when the concept changes the entire dynamic of the series. Yet, when a new idea seamlessly integrates itself into the structure of the story, helping to express and define concepts that have been there all along, it can be absolutely enlightening. That’s what happens in Saga 34, where Fiona Staples and Brian K. Vaughan use the idea of “diversity” to dig into both the causes and the solutions to all the problems plaguing the world of Saga. Continue reading →

Nov 30 2015

Saga 31

Alternating Currents: Saga 31, Ryan and Drew

Today, Ryan D. and Drew are discussing Saga 31, originally released November 25 2015.

Ryan D: The hiatus is over! Superstar creative team Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples have been keeping themselves rather busy since issue 30 released a million years ago in July, hitting Comic Cons and embarking upon new series. Though Vaughn’s mini-series We Stand on Guard outsold Saga in the month of it’s debut, the Eisner-winning space opera returns with a new chapter which promises to keep returning readers satiated with its signature bend of absurdly imaginative and developed characters in an ever-expanding universe. Continue reading →