Joel Phillips
Apr 22, 2005, 02:08 am
<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0405/Memories.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0405/MemoriesT.jpg" alt="Bilal Library: Memories Preview" hspace=10 align=left></a>Reviewer: Joel Phillips
144 Pages, Full-Color; $17.99
Artist/Writer: Enki Bilal
Writers: Pierre de la Varech (Stricken); Automarchi (The Big Space Opera); Jean-Pierre Dionnet (A Planet for Every Magrobian and The Omnibus to Vega); Dominique Grange (One-Death Furlough)
Translators: Justin Kelly & Jonathan Tanner
Book Designer & Letterer: Thierry Frissen
Editor, Collected Edition: Francis Lombard
Editors, Original Edition: Maximilien Chailleux & Fabrice Giger
Things I learned from reading Memories:
If you ever meet multiple copies of yourself, don’t start killing them. Unless you were supposed to, in which case kill them all the way so they don’t put their heads back on and steal your stuff.
Giant, floating gall stones can’t send anybody to Albania, so don’t even bother going there. You’re just gonna wind up starting the apocalypse.
There are entire towns filled with grotesque monsters, and everybody knows the town is filled with grotesque monsters, yet taxis still go there.
Politicians are stupid.
If you think you’ve figured out the twist ending of a Bilal story, you’re always right.
There’s a fine line between humans and machines. The line becomes even finer when they have sex with each other.
Human heads cannot be safely removed without insulting alien dignitaries.
Enki Bilal really likes Stanley Kubrick, H.P. Lovecraft, and the Beatles. But Sigmund Freud can go **** himself.
You should learn how to fight in case your ancestors rise from the dead and challenge you to a duel. Watch your ears.
Always believe crazy people… they’re the ones who don’t die or get transformed into gargoyles.
The Berlin Wall is a dick.
Mickey Mouse is a junkie.
Alien gynecologists are stupid.
If a raving madman with no eyes hands you a bowl and tells you that by accepting it you’re going to become an undying minion of demon gods from space… don’t take the bowl. Or at least don’t be surprised when the other thing happens.
Stories that make no sense, but are funny, are entertaining. Stories that make no sense, but are introspective, are thought-provoking. Stories that make no sense, but attempt to have an actual narrative, make no ****ing sense at all… which is still kinda cool.
One afternoon with an Earth wino can transform an entire alien civilization into the cast of Animal House.
Robots want to conquer France. Which, as it turns out, is surprisingly easy to do.
You really can’t recycle episodes of the Twilight Zone… we can tell.
The surviving Beatles are experts in advanced robotics and finding escaped mental patients.
Don’t fondle billboards.
If you would like to learn these wonderful lessons and more, go ahead and grab the latest addition to the Bilal Library: Memories. It’s a collection of short stories and vignettes that range from the kooky to the nonsensical. None of the stories here have anything resembling an actual plot, and a few of the stories attempt twist endings that are either painfully obvious or totally incomprehensible, but who cares? This stuff is so strange it’s entertaining by default, and Enki Bilal’s art is gorgeous throughout. Those in need of a conventional story may disagree, but I think it’s worth the cover charge.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humnone.jpg
144 Pages, Full-Color; $17.99
Artist/Writer: Enki Bilal
Writers: Pierre de la Varech (Stricken); Automarchi (The Big Space Opera); Jean-Pierre Dionnet (A Planet for Every Magrobian and The Omnibus to Vega); Dominique Grange (One-Death Furlough)
Translators: Justin Kelly & Jonathan Tanner
Book Designer & Letterer: Thierry Frissen
Editor, Collected Edition: Francis Lombard
Editors, Original Edition: Maximilien Chailleux & Fabrice Giger
Things I learned from reading Memories:
If you ever meet multiple copies of yourself, don’t start killing them. Unless you were supposed to, in which case kill them all the way so they don’t put their heads back on and steal your stuff.
Giant, floating gall stones can’t send anybody to Albania, so don’t even bother going there. You’re just gonna wind up starting the apocalypse.
There are entire towns filled with grotesque monsters, and everybody knows the town is filled with grotesque monsters, yet taxis still go there.
Politicians are stupid.
If you think you’ve figured out the twist ending of a Bilal story, you’re always right.
There’s a fine line between humans and machines. The line becomes even finer when they have sex with each other.
Human heads cannot be safely removed without insulting alien dignitaries.
Enki Bilal really likes Stanley Kubrick, H.P. Lovecraft, and the Beatles. But Sigmund Freud can go **** himself.
You should learn how to fight in case your ancestors rise from the dead and challenge you to a duel. Watch your ears.
Always believe crazy people… they’re the ones who don’t die or get transformed into gargoyles.
The Berlin Wall is a dick.
Mickey Mouse is a junkie.
Alien gynecologists are stupid.
If a raving madman with no eyes hands you a bowl and tells you that by accepting it you’re going to become an undying minion of demon gods from space… don’t take the bowl. Or at least don’t be surprised when the other thing happens.
Stories that make no sense, but are funny, are entertaining. Stories that make no sense, but are introspective, are thought-provoking. Stories that make no sense, but attempt to have an actual narrative, make no ****ing sense at all… which is still kinda cool.
One afternoon with an Earth wino can transform an entire alien civilization into the cast of Animal House.
Robots want to conquer France. Which, as it turns out, is surprisingly easy to do.
You really can’t recycle episodes of the Twilight Zone… we can tell.
The surviving Beatles are experts in advanced robotics and finding escaped mental patients.
Don’t fondle billboards.
If you would like to learn these wonderful lessons and more, go ahead and grab the latest addition to the Bilal Library: Memories. It’s a collection of short stories and vignettes that range from the kooky to the nonsensical. None of the stories here have anything resembling an actual plot, and a few of the stories attempt twist endings that are either painfully obvious or totally incomprehensible, but who cares? This stuff is so strange it’s entertaining by default, and Enki Bilal’s art is gorgeous throughout. Those in need of a conventional story may disagree, but I think it’s worth the cover charge.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/humnone.jpg