By Mezieres & Christin
Publisher: Cinebook
ISBN: 978-1-84918-087-0
That's quite a lengthy title they've got there, haven't they? This second Cinebook volume sees Valerian and Laureline heading to the planet of Syrte, the capitol of a thousand planet-wide system. They've been tasked with discovering if the Syrtians may present a danger to Earth, but instead of finding a military powerhouse they find the entire empire in decay. The ruling class's focus has turned inwards towards their own pleasures and aims allowing all about them to crumble and a group of elaborately masked individuals to gain a degree of power and influence.
Laureline spies an old pocket watch in a market and Valerian buys it for her, but little do they realise that this innocent purchase will make them stand out from the crowd and bring them in to direct conflict with the planet's real power.
Created forty years ago, this is a space opera tale of heroics and discovery on a grand scale. Despite it's age it does feel remarkably fresh and inventive, despite the fact that subsequent writers and artists have built upon the ideas making some commonplace in today's Sci-Fi (there's an interesting page at the back comparing and contrasting George Lucas's creations with Mezieres and Christin's).
This has been a remarkably successful series since its creation, and for that reason alone it's worthy of your attention.
And if you liked that: A third volume is coming soon
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