We already knew that Brian K Vaughn and Fiona Staples were taking a year off from creating ‘Saga‘ after issue #54 and now the co-creator is opening up as to why. Oh, he also talks a little bit about that cliffhanger that we’re now all stuck waiting a year to find out more about. Don’t worry; I’ll throw out a spoiler warning before we get to him talking about that part if you’re somehow behind.
First, we’re going to talk about the intermission that we’re all waiting impatiently through. According to Vaughn, this decision wasn’t made lightly but the reasoning is easy to understand:
“Yeah, it’s something Fiona and I first talked about a few years ago, when we were on a signing tour in France. I can’t think of the last comic artist who drew, colored, and even partially hand-lettered every single panel of more than fifty consecutive issues, so I was first and foremost concerned about not killing Fiona.
While we’re all dying from the intermission, we can all relate to needing a break now and then, and as Vaughn has stated: “readers have been almost unanimously supportive of our intermission, I’m relieved to report.” We are all happy that Brian and Fiona are getting to take a break, we’re also just ticking off our calendars for the “at least a year” to get done with!
Kidding aside, let’s get to what those who are caught up with the comic really want to know more about – that cliffhanger!
When it comes to the dramatic change of what has happened with the cast of characters, this was all planned out from the beginning as Vaughn shares:
“This was all part of the plan from the very beginning. I always hoped that readers would become attached to everyone in our cast, regardless of whether or not those characters were “heroes” or “villains,” but as Hazel’s narration suggested way back in our first issue, she’s the real protagonist of this story, so everyone else is, if not expendable, definitely at risk, especially in our war-torn universe.”
So while that cliffhanger was unexpected, it was set in stone right at the outset that Hazel would be the only one who is safe. As Vaughn says, “this is the most significant change to the narrative yet, and I think it’s fair to say that our story will look and feel entirely different when it returns.”
That is an understatement as we’ll be entering an entirely different dynamic when the book does return.
Are you glad that Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples are taking a break from ‘Saga’? What did you think about that unexpected cliffhanger? How will that impact the world of ‘Saga’ when we return to it in issue #55? Share your thoughts below!
For those who don’t collect the comics each month, ‘Saga’ Volume 9 which collects issues 49-54 will be available on September 26th, 2018!
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
