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Terres Lointaines #4
Distant Worlds, episode 4
Paul has learned that his father died in an accident - then, a few days later, he's seen him pass by in a car, alive and well! Shaken by the discovery, the young man continues his investigation and eventually manages to track him down. Unfortunately, that merely causes him to share in his father's serious troubles... Meanwhile, an increasing number of strange phenomena plague Altair - and awake the interest of the alien Stepanerks...
48 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2011
1 person is currently reading
31 people want to read
About the author
Luiz Eduardo de Oliveira (Leo)
107 books172 followersLuiz Eduardo de Oliveira (born on December 13, 1944 in Brazil),[1] more famous under his artist name LEO is a Brazilian comics creator.
After having graduated as an engineer in mechanics, Oliveira left Brazil because of the military dictatorship that was in power at the time. He went first to Chile, but the following year saw the Chilean coup of 1973. This led Oliveira to leave, moving to Argentina, from where he finally returned to Brazil in 1974.
He found work as an illustrator in the advertising industry of São Paulo, before once more leaving Brazil, in 1981, this time moving to France, hoping to illustrate comics. However as the Franco-Belgian comics industry was in recession at the time, he was forced to work in advertising once again, although he managed to get the occasional piece published in L'Écho des savanes and Pilote.
In 1986, with the assistance of Jean-Claude Forest, Oliveira began contributing to the youth dedicated magazines of Bayard Presse. He illustrated true stories for Okapi magazine. He then recounted Mahatma Gandhi's life in the album Gandhi, le pèlerin de la paix, for Astrapi.
In 1988, the comics writer Rodolphe asked him to provide the artwork for his stories. Their collaboration proved fruitful, producing 8 albums of material for their Trent series and 5 for their Kenya one.
In 1993, Oleveira finally achieved an old dream when Dargaud agreed to publish his first solo series: Aldébaran. In 2000, after 5 volumes of Aldébaran, he launched Bételgeuse, which was nominated for the Prize for a Series at the Angoulême International Comics Festival in 2004.
After having graduated as an engineer in mechanics, Oliveira left Brazil because of the military dictatorship that was in power at the time. He went first to Chile, but the following year saw the Chilean coup of 1973. This led Oliveira to leave, moving to Argentina, from where he finally returned to Brazil in 1974.
He found work as an illustrator in the advertising industry of São Paulo, before once more leaving Brazil, in 1981, this time moving to France, hoping to illustrate comics. However as the Franco-Belgian comics industry was in recession at the time, he was forced to work in advertising once again, although he managed to get the occasional piece published in L'Écho des savanes and Pilote.
In 1986, with the assistance of Jean-Claude Forest, Oliveira began contributing to the youth dedicated magazines of Bayard Presse. He illustrated true stories for Okapi magazine. He then recounted Mahatma Gandhi's life in the album Gandhi, le pèlerin de la paix, for Astrapi.
In 1988, the comics writer Rodolphe asked him to provide the artwork for his stories. Their collaboration proved fruitful, producing 8 albums of material for their Trent series and 5 for their Kenya one.
In 1993, Oleveira finally achieved an old dream when Dargaud agreed to publish his first solo series: Aldébaran. In 2000, after 5 volumes of Aldébaran, he launched Bételgeuse, which was nominated for the Prize for a Series at the Angoulême International Comics Festival in 2004.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 26, 2020
(3.5 stars, rather. It's possibly more than *** but not quite ****)
Things seem to come to an (early) conclusion, yet despite the twist in the end, there's no real twist in the story. Maybe it's setting up for something bigger, but there's a distinct lack of awesome here by Leo's standards. Even the landscapes/panels are a bit repetitive. With only a handful of great panels, I feel that part 5 needs to make up a lot for all this.
Things seem to come to an (early) conclusion, yet despite the twist in the end, there's no real twist in the story. Maybe it's setting up for something bigger, but there's a distinct lack of awesome here by Leo's standards. Even the landscapes/panels are a bit repetitive. With only a handful of great panels, I feel that part 5 needs to make up a lot for all this.
August 3, 2022
Paul is hot on the trail of his dad, but as well as the bounty hunters, there are now gangsters after his dad too. The alien world they are on might have started to feel a bit redundant were it not for some unusual vegetation and the presence of the superb Mr Step.
August 11, 2022
Recent Reads: Distant Worlds - Episode 4. Leo's xenotravelogue continues, as Paul looks for his missing father, who isn't dead after all and in trouble with gangsters. At the same time mysterious phenomena continue to confuse, not just the humans but also the alien Stepanarks.
August 29, 2019
Quarta parte della serie. Ci avviamo alla conclusione. PS. Il personaggio migliore della serie é Mr Step, senza dubbio 😉
June 25, 2022
Yes, more Stepanerks!
September 23, 2020
Paul’s life hasn’t been an easy one of late. After his family made the tremendous journey from Earth to Altair-3 at the request of his father he’s spent all the time since trying to track him down. It’s been one frustration after another. His father always seems to be a step ahead of his efforts to trace him, and now there are bounty hunters involved too. Nothing makes sense. And when Paul finally gets what appears to be a definitive answer – that his father is dead – he spots him behind the wheel of a car. Reinvigorated, but no less frustrated, Paul embarks on a search of the surrounding farmsteads. Someone, somewhere, must know something of his dad.
This quest leads Paul to pass a group of Stepanerks carrying out some sort of ritual or experiment, and his thoughts return briefly to Mr Step. It’s only when events turn sour that this fortunate encounter brings the odd-looking alien to the rescue. And it’s not just Mr Step who’s looking out for Paul. Beltran, Paul’s boss, thinks he needs to toughen up in order to survive on this planet, and he’s also keen to help with Paul’s father’s problems. This could, finally, lead to some sort of resolution. Well, if only.
Mr Step, and the Stepanerks in general, are such a curious design. An amalgamation of a prawn, a spider, a crab and a human does indeed make them far more alien than your average TV or movie alien. Personally I’d like to see more alien creations, and by the looks of things that may well be on the cards for the final issue. We’ll have to see.
Leo and Icar work hard to create a believable frontier planet aesthetic, where lawlessness is a natural byproduct of early settlement. Leo has plenty of form with this sort of thing, and it generates a much greater sense of peril. After all, who’s there to call upon when things go wrong? I’m looking forward to just where we’re going to end up with the fifth and final volume. Judging from Leo’s other work there’s no guarantee we’ll be given all the answers. It’s this awe of the mysteriousness of the universe that makes the books so fascinating in the first place, so I’m definitely intrigued.
This quest leads Paul to pass a group of Stepanerks carrying out some sort of ritual or experiment, and his thoughts return briefly to Mr Step. It’s only when events turn sour that this fortunate encounter brings the odd-looking alien to the rescue. And it’s not just Mr Step who’s looking out for Paul. Beltran, Paul’s boss, thinks he needs to toughen up in order to survive on this planet, and he’s also keen to help with Paul’s father’s problems. This could, finally, lead to some sort of resolution. Well, if only.
Mr Step, and the Stepanerks in general, are such a curious design. An amalgamation of a prawn, a spider, a crab and a human does indeed make them far more alien than your average TV or movie alien. Personally I’d like to see more alien creations, and by the looks of things that may well be on the cards for the final issue. We’ll have to see.
Leo and Icar work hard to create a believable frontier planet aesthetic, where lawlessness is a natural byproduct of early settlement. Leo has plenty of form with this sort of thing, and it generates a much greater sense of peril. After all, who’s there to call upon when things go wrong? I’m looking forward to just where we’re going to end up with the fifth and final volume. Judging from Leo’s other work there’s no guarantee we’ll be given all the answers. It’s this awe of the mysteriousness of the universe that makes the books so fascinating in the first place, so I’m definitely intrigued.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews