I've literally never heard of this Comic Book! - Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017) Discussion

[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 8 years ago

And more importantly, should I check this comic book out? From what i am hearing, it looks great.

The Man in Black fled across the Desert, and the Gunslinger followed...

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[–] clong_clong 8 years ago

It's diffcult to answer that. I read it when I was much younger.
It was great IMO but it was France in the 80s when I had read it first. Maybe nowadays, with the huge offer (especially US and Japanese) this might not look as good as it used to look.

IMHO there are good things both in concept and drawing/art in it but can it still compete with the modern works?

Besides, so many sci-fi stuff has been done since then (I include Star wars as the comics Valerian started in 1967 - and I'm part of those who think several elements in Star Wars were likely borrowed from that comics (among many other sources of inspiration, of course)), many concept proposed, many great visual findings (etc...) the impact cannot be the same today.
It's still a pleasure to read the comics, including the ones of the last half of the 70s (the earliest ones look rather quite dated now), but maybe I still look at it with my eyes "of yore".

You might be underwhelmed and wondering why many Europeans were so "vocal" about it. It's difficult to answer. Personally I still like it.

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[–] mveliz 7 years ago

Indeed it seems like some of the star wars designs were influenced by it.

http://i.imgur.com/VkGO5B9.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CE5bREGUgAA6LNH.jpg

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[–] Tony_R_68 7 years ago

copied*

--- Chuck Norris threw a grenade and killed 50 people, then it exploded. ---

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[–] sens_death 7 years ago

$hit, you still alive?

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[–] mveliz 7 years ago

Oh Hey!

I guess I am haha.

But these boards are about to die soon :P

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[–] lotetne-58-287835 7 years ago

I read it in for for 30 years ago. Ok, typical french/belgian comic book (album).
Did not give me so mutch, liked better other comic books then Valerian.
But the epic space opera "The Incal" is another league.
Great, and its an long story, with total 6 albums.

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[–] abzurd 8 years ago

If you read the "Ambassadeur des Ombres" (the Ambassador of Shadows) of this serie, you will see where shows like Babylon 5 or videogames like Mass Effect got their inspiration.

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[–] politicidal 8 years ago

It's ok neither did I.

What's missing in movies is same as in society: a good sense of work ethic and living up to ideals.

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[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 7 years ago

Thanks. I appreciate the reassurance.

The Man in Black fled across the Desert, and the Gunslinger followed...

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[–] yannleroy 7 years ago

All those comics (Marvel, DC etc) are from the US. Don't take it the wrong way but, there is a whole bunch of countries outside your borders it's called... the world :)

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[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 7 years ago

Well, actually, the Incal Trilogy by Alejandro Jodorowsky is French/Chilean.

And, correct me if wrong, but Grant Morrison is from Scotland or Ireland.

But your point is valid. After all, home is behind me, the WORLD is ahead! Tolkein humor there.

What is the Goal of the life? It is to create yourself a Soul
~Alejandro Jodorowsky

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[–] Rockrover (1) 7 years ago

If you're into sci-fi comic books, I highly recommend the Aldebaran series by Léo. It's a real thrill ride! Not sure if it is available in English, but given its success I assume it is.

Although I've never read Valerian, I will def see this movie sooner or later. As a comic books nerd myself I am glad to see the more obscure series make it to the big screen. And the trailer does look wonderful!

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[–] Deimos-remus 7 years ago

I've never read them myself, but they seem to be a cultural zeitgeist, despite not being credited for such. Star Wars takes a lot of its visuals and story elements from the classic storyline (han solo in carbonite, etc). Visually, it's incredible, and was a very big influence on other seminal Sci-Fi visionaries such as Moebius.

The U.S only focuses on superheroes for the most part, and because they completely saturate the comic and comic movie market over here, it's understandable that one has never heard of it. It's a shame though, Europe has probably the most exciting and daring comics out there, wish they were given the reverence and recognition they deserve here in the states.

'Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do. I'm half crazy, all for the love of you..."

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[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 7 years ago

I'm intrigued by that statement about Europe having exciting and daring comics. Can you please give me a few titles to check out besides Valerian?

And I agree with you, Deimos, that we in the USA tend to focus on the Superhero genre. But in our defense, they are good reads.

What is the Goal of the life? It is to create yourself a Soul
~Alejandro Jodorowsky

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[–] yannleroy 7 years ago

Have a look :)

http://www.europecomics.com/catalog/?index=all

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[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 7 years ago

Thanks yannleroy! I truly appreciate it and will bookmark this site right now!

What is the Goal of the life? It is to create yourself a Soul
~Alejandro Jodorowsky

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[–] Nexus71 7 years ago

Check the Works of;
Don Lawrence-The Trigan Empire/Storm
Bert Bus-Stef Ardoba
Jules Radilovic-The Partisans
Victor Hubinon/Francis Bergèse-Buck Danny
Jacques Martin-Alex the Roman
Albert Weinberg-Dan Cooper
Carry Brugman-The Partners
Edgar P. Jacobs-Blake & Mortimer
Dino Attanasio-Johnny Goodbye
Hermann-Jeremiah

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[–] rmn_gonzalez 7 years ago

There is a gigantic tradition of European comics out there. Most of the best (in my opinion) come out of the French/Belgian realm. I haven't followed the scene for quite a few years (in my youth I amassed a huge collection), but there was some truly great stuff out there.

The best is, that it is so very different from the American comic book tradition, both in terms of story telling and in terms of drawing styles. I find it wonderful that there still is something out there that has not been homogenised in the global grinder.

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[–] p-j-amado 7 years ago

This website is probably the most exhaustive reference you can find of European (mostly French/Belgian) comic books: http://www.bedetheque.com. Unfortunately, it's only in French.

Another site worth visiting, which does have an English language version, is http://www.izneo.com. Here you can rent or buy many European comics to read online, and there is a decent selection of English translations.

Enjoy... :-)

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[–] larsped 7 years ago

Some of my favorites:

Jodorowsky:
Metabarons (epic storytelling, great art)
Juan Solo (epic storyline)

Enki Bilal:
The Nikopol trilogy (atmospheric rather than gripping but with amazing art)

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[–] theconstantdvdcollector-90610 7 years ago

I'll look into those. I thought Juan Solo was a screenplay by Jodo, though.

What is the Goal of the life? It is to create yourself a Soul
~Alejandro Jodorowsky

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[–] bsy 7 years ago

As a teen I read Heavy Metal (originally a French publication) and Epic (published by Marvel) magazines and they introduced me to these wonderful European artists and graphic novels. There's a lot of talent and creativity though sometimes a little risqué with sex, violence, and gore. The popularity of manga/anime and DC/Marvel movies have resulted in them being largely ignored. This looks a little fluffy but fun and it is a Besson flick so will check it out. Would love to see more European material in animation or live action film adaptations.

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[–] petekrug17 7 years ago

Most people had never heard of the "Guardians Of The Galaxy" comic either, but the movie was a mega-hit.

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[–] Kelju Ivan 7 years ago

One of my favorite comics is Spirou and Fantasio, which is about two reporters going on adventures around the world.

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[–] Tony_R_68 7 years ago

I don't know if you saw the marsupilami movie, but I hated it.

--- Chuck Norris threw a grenade and killed 50 people, then it exploded. ---

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[–] redsmurph 7 years ago

That movie is not representative of the Spirou universe. I enjoyed the Marsipulami family moments though. There's a comic about that specifically.

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[–] oqphier 7 years ago

I'm intrigued by that statement about Europe having exciting and daring comics. Can you please give me a few titles to check out besides Valerian?

Just a few essential European titles in SF and Fantasy :

(sorry I give you only the original titles in french, dunno how many of them have been translated)

Sci-Fi
La Caste des Méta-barons (Jodorowsky/Gimenez)
Le Vagabond des Limbes (Godard/Ribéra) -> a bit dated but also a seminal BD
Lupus (Peeters)
Aâma (Peeters)
Le Cycle de Cyann (Lacroix/Bourgeon)
Universal War One (Bajram)
Sillage (Morvan/Buchet)
L'Incal (Jodorowsky/Moebius)
Aldébaran (leo)
Nikopol (Bilal)
Le Monde d'Edena (Moebius)
Le Transperceneige (Lob/Rochette) -> the famous "Snowpiercer"
Le Monde d'Arkadi (Caza)

Heroic-Fantasy
La Quête de l'oiseau du Temps (Le Tendre/Loisel))
Légendes des Contrées Oubliées (Chevalier/Ségur)
Le Grand Pouvoir du Chninkel (Van Hamme/Rosinski)
Donjon (Joann/Trondheim) -> divided into 5 series, huge work !
Ralph Azham (Trondheim)
Lanfeust De Troy (Arleston/Tarquin)

Fantasy
Julius Corentin Acquefacques (Mathieu)
Les Cités Obscures (Peeters/Schuiten)
Silence (Comès)
Requiem, Chevalier Vampire (Mills/Ledroit)
Philémon (Fred)
Capricorne (Andreas)

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[–] bsy 7 years ago

Thanks oqphier! I've been racking my brain trying to remember some artists and glad you mentioned Juan Gimenez because his work is wonderful.

Requiem Chevalier Vampire is also one of my faves and would love to see a film adaptation of it but it would be X-rated. Instead we'll have to settle for the watered-down Underworld which in itself isn't too bad.

Shout out to: Simon Bisley, Michael Kaluta (Starstruck), Luis Royo, Arthur Suydam, Pepe Moreno, Tamburini & Liberatore (Ranxerox), etc.

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[–] oqphier 7 years ago

Indeed, Juan Gimenez's art is mind-blowing, one of the top european artists working in old-fashioned direct color (along with Bilal, Liberatore, Rosinski, Ledroit, Mattotti, Segrelles...)
All his work is really worth a look, even if his stories are often pretty light (but there are some cool SF ideas tho).

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[–] clong_clong 7 years ago

Nice list.

Among the best-sellers of Franco-beligian comics (BDs), we can add "Thorgal" which is kinda medieval history, heroic fantasy and sci-fi at the same time (but generally much less sci-fi though).

Maybe also Bourgeon's trilogy "Les compagnons du crépuscule" which is also medieval history but with some mystical/"fantastic" undertones.

In sci-fi, we can add the "Golden city" comics, I guess (though it's heavily inspired by US and Japanese stuff).

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[–] oqphier 7 years ago

Indeed 'Thorgal' and 'Les compagnons du crépuscule' are seminal.

More recent (but still seminal), the "new french school" (Trondheim, Sfar, Blain...well, not so new now) worked hard to renew the fantasy genre (among others).

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[–] CultcinemaDOTnet 7 years ago

You literally don't understand the meaning of the word literally.

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[–] Yooka333 7 years ago

Well it isn't a comic book to begin with. Might explain your lack of culture.

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[–] Eric_Eh 7 years ago

Uh, yes it is. What did you think it was?

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[–] gcarras (2727) 7 years ago

I saw it today and enjoyed it greatly. We get another take on Siri (Alex), the always stylishly hot Cara Delevigne (though Britt Roberston, herself in space earlier with "Space Between Us", could also have just as easily played this), strange surprises (like the time sweep at the open to the film's settng and the connection it has to the film's setting the strange changing bacvkgrounds. I'd love to the books..I love laureline's name/

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