She is put into the story for that reason, and I see that Vaughan thought that that is more important than literally the emotional conclusion of a major storyline. Petrichor’s only defining characteristics are that she’s transsexual and always angry. I still haven’t seen Alana being happy that they got their daughter back after all those years, because Petrichor was pushed to the front in those scenes. That’s how emotions are processed in this story: constant edgy quibbling between immature characters and nobody talks about people that die along the way, because shock is more important than psychological consequences. In any case, the comic turned very preachy, locations were uninspired and all fun had disappeared.īesides that, one of the characters (Isabel) was unceremoniously killed off and nobody talks about her again, and she’s replaced by this annoying and confrontational character Petrichor. The story isn’t even properly set up for a sci-fi treatment of this theme, as Alana’s case is about a medical emergency. A full third of this book is filled with hearing everyone’s opinion on abortion. Using current political speak like that just completely destroys my immersion. A galaxy far far away and a character talks about being “pro-life”. So Marko, Alana and the rest fly to the Planet of Westerns, which is full of stone arches and rednecks with thick accents, and they don cowboy hats for a heavy-handed abortion storyline.

1400 pages in and it is all just background for the family drama. Ok, so I may have had the wrong expectations.įor the first parts of this book, Vaughan decided that he wanted to write a western instead. In the first book I wondered if Vaughan would do anything with the fact that he puts two cultures against each other where one is modelled on a contemporary USA culture and one on fairy tale logic, and I wondered what he would do with the galactic war. If there was a story it would take me out of it. Am I the one who is crazy? I’m getting tired of how this comic does things of its constant need to be edgy, of its focus on sex and cringe teenage dialogue, of its lack of story and its blunt insertion of contemporary politics with all its current lingo.

The first volumes were great, but after that it has been a steady downward spiral of slight disappointment for me, and now its about to crash into the ground. I must be the only person on the planet who isn’t in love with this comic.

Which covers volumes 7-9, or issues 37–54.īoy oh boy what a disappointment.

Fiona staples books