Customer Reviews

The Nikopol Trilogy

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Enki Bilal, The Nikopol Trilogy (Humanoids Publishing, 2002)

There is no denying that the Nikopol trilogy is eye-catching. Artist and film director Bilal has created something of striking beauty in the three comics that come together to comprise The Nikopol Trilogy. And there's certainly the sort of weirdness one has come to expect from the plot of a graphic novel-- Egyptian gods who travel the heavens in a pyramid, a frozen astronaut, a paranoid mechanical soldier who gets roped into a gubernatorial race, a city on the equator where it never stops snowing... it's all here, pretty much.

Set against all that is the fact that the characters in this story are cardboard cutouts there solely to advance the plot. There are a few moves towards giving the characters a bit more shading (especially the character of Jill Bioskop, who in the film based on the book takes center stage-- hmm, wonder why?), but none is entirely successful; these are characters straight out of a fifties dime novel, with no more depth than the page they're printed on.

A decent read, but not something that will keep me coming back over and over again. ***

Originally published between 1980-92, the three books by Bosnian-French artist/writer/filmmaker Bilal that comprise this trilogy are collected here in a very nicely printed and bound volume. There's no doubt that they are a stunning achievement in illustration, however it has to be said that they are also a massive disappointment in storytelling. Set in a dystopian future in which the world appears to have reverted into some kind of city-state system, most of the first two books take place in Paris. The city's urban core belongs to the rich and powerful, and zones of increasing poverty and desperation radiate outward. Bilal's dense, detailed artwork is perfectly suited to capturing the dirty, grim cityscape, with crumbling buildings and train stations, ragtag people, and battered trains and planes. The fascist ruling elite are very distinctive, with uniforms and color schemes lifted straight from the Nazi palate and German iconography, accented by garish face paint rendering them horrorshow clowns.

The trilogy opens with a mysterious pyramid containing the pantheon of ancient Egyptian gods hovering over Paris. It seems they need fuel for their pyramid-craft and are negotiating with the fascist governor to supply them (gods who are hostage to fossil fuels, hmmmm) . It is these gods and their inscrutable machinations which drive the story (what story there is) forward, notably, the god Horus' desire to create a new world order. The vehicle for this is Nikopol, a man in stasis who pops out of a space capsule which falls to Earth over Paris (you'd think they'd have built in guidance systems to avoid populated areas). The body of this former dissident becomes the host to Horus, as the ancient god attempts to change the world.

This is all set up within the first part of the first book, and events grow rapidly more nonsensical as the story continues. Bilal has a gift for interesting notions, but is totally incapable of tying them together into any kind of coherent vision. Those who aren't adverse to impressionistic narrative may not mind this, but I found it pretentious and ultimately unsatisfying. There are plenty of funny little moments, such as the Egyptian gods playing Monopoly, or a little creature who lurks in a bar sink, cleaning glasses. There are also plenty of neat ideas about politics, such as the various turf wars in London between various ethnic groups, or the unholy industrial-religious alliance who rules over Equator City. But there are also many more bizarre elements which remain unexplained. The only robot in the book is a very capable AI-enabled construct who falls from the sky with Nikopol, why aren't there others? Why is the telepathic cat green? What are the gargoyle-like cherubs who are multiplying in Notre Dame all about? What's up with the giant egg bombardment in London? There are far too many scenes which don't seem to serve any narrative purpose, and seem to exist solely for Bilal's own amusement.

It also doesn't help that a lot of the dialogue and writing is really clunky and bad. This may be due to the translation, but I suspect that it's more to do with Bilal overextending himself. He's got an excellent visual style, but he should leave the writing to others -- for example, his collaborations with Pierre Christian are far better works. Overall, nice to look at, but not to actually read.

Note: Bilal wrote and directed a 2004 film called "Immortal" based on parts of the trilogy. It's almost entirely CGI , and according to the reviews I've read, visually stunning and totally incomprehensible.

Make no mistake about it: Bilal has a wonderful style as a graphic artist. I love to look at his art. Unfortunately, he did not stop there and tried to write a genuine sci-fi story.

I got this series when it first came out in France and was learning French, so had looked at the pictures and was intrigued to get into the story. Alas, dictionary in hand, I went through slowly and carefully and found it, well, stupidly unbelievable, with stilted dialogue, little hard sci-fi that reflected some current trend in reality (what can make sci-fi great literature), and silly characters with no resonance whatsoever.

So, if you just want to look at the images, I wd give this five stars - easily. Bilal's sense of scene and the atmosphere of decadence, the acuity of his characters' poses, and a mysteriousness that runs thru his work are wonderful. However, the writing is so bad as to be laughable, which a recent re-reading reinforced for me. Moreover, the Egyptian Gods are props and equally boring, without any dimension that makes them interesting in any quirky way.

Not recommended as a sci-fi experience, tho it is fun to flip thru as a visual extravaganza. Bilal should be an illustrator for a good writer.

And I mean that on two levels. First, Bilal's comic style is distinctive. His palette has almost no saturated colors, except a few where you least expect them. His people - well, looking at most of his faces, you'd get the impression that he really doesn't like people very much. A few of the women aside, he uses many kinds of ugliness to express the many ways for someone to be worth avoiding. And, maybe it's just the French comic style, but his stories are baffling, if they're stories at all.

The second level, within the Bilal style, is the visual style created and sustained throughout this series. There are green cats, blue hair, and garishly painted faces. Those few features stand out against a world generally gray with decay, and apparently heading downward fast. Over this crumbling cityscape, the ancient Egyptians gods return for reasons unknown. So does Nikopol, exiled into deep-space hibernation decades ago, and also returned for reasons unknown. He enters into a dispute between the gods, unwillingly at first, then because he can't function function any other way.

That's about the last thing that holds together as a story. The rest of the book is more of a sequence of vignettes flying in close formation. Like Druillet's work from the `70s, it's probably best to sit back and let it all unroll before you. Fans of tight scripts (which I am, mostly) might not find much to cling to, but there are other ways to enjoy a comic.

//wiredweird

Though violent and grotesque at times, the story line kept me wanting to turn each page. Bilal's work is definitely art to me because his renderings are so original. I was drawn to his novels (The Nikopol Triology and The Beast Trilogy) because I'd seen the movie version of the The Nikopol Trilogy, "Immortal". The movie blew me away. It uses CGI and live action like no other film I've seen, but it wouldn't have done well without the storyline Bilal kept throughout the film. I hope to keep seeing his work on film and in graphic novels.

This book is the one of the most origninal works of imagination I have read. If you want to know what it is like, imagine a David Lynch project, like Twin Peaks or Dune, and something written by Alan Moore, with some Blade Runner thrown in, and you have The Nikopol Trilogy.

The translation of the book is a bit clunky at times, but the story is great. And the art is detailed, but not to the point of your eyes wandering everywhere. Bilal puts in just enough detail for you to take a closer look at his panels. The colors reflect a grimy, claustrophobic, old city feel.

If you have the money and are tired of the same old same old, get this book. You wil find yourself rereading it to make sure you got everything the first time, which you probably did not.

So one afternoon I am looking around the net for new Blu-Rays, I keep coming across a movie called Immortel/Immortal Ad Vitam. I see the blue haired lady on the cover, read a few small reviews and bite. After watching the movie I was intrigued and kind of confused all at the same time. I then realized that the movie is based on the first two comic books in a trilogy. I bit again.

The comic book(s) are a three part story starring (primarily) Horus the Egyptian God, Nikopol (senior & jr), and Jill (the blue haired lady). The art is a mix between drab and really colorful, hard to describe but the front of the cover should give you a good impression of the style used. It's very nice and meshes perfectly with the story-line and feelings the comic is trying to portray.

The story-line is a strange one involving the Egyptian God Horus who came down to earth and is looking to overthrow the government while inhabiting Nikopol's body. All the while we have some political satire (which I don't get fully not being from France), A post apocalyptic/Sci-Fi setting in France, a love story, and some weird characters who intertwine through out the three tales.

If you can use your imagination a bit and not need to be spoon fed with the stretches and leaps this writer takes in his comics, then I think most people would enjoy this. I also recommend reading it previous to seeing the film. The film was very good as well, but this fills in the "whats?" & "huhs?" that will most likely drip into your mind while watching the Blu-Ray/DVD. (The movie concentrates more on Horus's plan to impregnate an alien/human host to further his bloodline, while the comic has this same story to a degree, it is most definitely not a main plot point. Or even really mentioned in the books in terms of why Horus is in France.)

I think the style and substance of the comic is great, the translation can be a touch wonky and the story is most definitely an imaginative one with strange mixes, but that doesn't make it any less appealing or solid. I will for sure re-read this in the future and have already watched the movie twice. If you are into post apocalyptic stories I think you may also find the comic(s) enjoyable. Give it a while, then watch the flick. Let me know whatcha think ;) .

Story-line: B
Translation from French: B
Art: B+
Length: B+

P.S. There is also a computer game called Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals. I have yet to play this but it had gotten excellent reviews by adventure game enthusiasts. It stars Nikopol Jr. from the comic book series.

I am not in comics but this work is it.

Sci-fi presented perfectly by Enkil Bilal of former Yugoslavia leaves none indifferent.

A story in the Heavy Metal by way of Aeon Flux vein.

This book contains three separate stories. Nikopol is a prisoner, returned to Earth after being in suspended animation for quite a long time.

You might expect a few problems after that, but not to be possessed by an ancient Egyptian god, for one.

I found the Nikopol Trilogy an engaging and thoroughly entertaining story filled with plenty of outstanding artwork. I was impressed with the difference this work had to most other comics/graphic novels I've read recently, and it certainly was original in my opinion. High calibre. I won't give a play by play on this story, as that would just ruin the read. I will say instead that I look forward to reading more of Enki Bilal's work.