Brian K. Vaughan’s Saga hasn’t changed during hiatus, and that’s good

polygon.com:

Saga, the acclaimed comic from Fiona Staples and Brian K. Vaughan, has finally returned from a three-and-a-half year hiatus with issue #55, the story leaping forward about as much time.

It remains as it was at the start: a story about Hazel, the child of parents from two warring worlds. Her mother, the winged humanoid Alana, is from Landfall, the largest planet in the galaxy, a world that built an empire on technological supremacy. Her father, Marko, is a horned man from Wreath, Landfall’s moon, and a world of magic. Each world views Marko and Alana’s union as sacrilege, and Hazel — who has wings and horns — as an abomination. Saga is the story of how Hazel grows up in a family that the entire galaxy wants to tear apart.

At the start of Saga #55, Hazel is now ten years old, having aged the exact number of real-world years that have elapsed since Saga began in 2012. We’re re-introduced to her in media res, as she’s being pursued by someone accusing her of theft. Hazel was a newborn when we met her, and now she’s an alleged thief. Again: The years, they fly by.

Whether you’ve been following Saga for the last decade or only recently caught up, readers know that Hazel has been forced to grow up faster than most. War and tragedy have followed her from day one, and Saga’s long hiatus began with her most severe loss yet: her father Marko, finally killed by the bounty hunter the Will after 54 issues worth of pursuit. Thanks to the time jump, Saga #55 isn’t really about grieving that loss, but showing what Hazel and her family has become since.

A lot of the fun of the issue is in returning to all of these characters and seeing what they’re like now — new readers ought not to start here — with only the slightest teases of