What do you think?
Nikopol #3
Cimoc Extra Color numero 100: Frio Ecuador
tapa blanda, color, 56 paginas, primera edicion marzo 1993, buen estado general
Comic
First published September 1, 1992
About the author
Enki Bilal
246 books332 followersEnki Bilal (born Enes Bilal) is a French comic book creator and film director.
Bilal was born in Belgrade, then the capital of Yugoslavia, to a Czech mother, Ana, who came to Belgrade as child from Karlovy Vary, and a Bosnian Muslim father, Muhamed Hamo Bilal who had been Josip Broz Tito's tailor. When he was five years old, his father managed to take a trip and stay in Paris as a political émigré. Enki and the rest of the family followed him, four years later.
Enki Bilal has no sense of belonging to any ethnic group and religion, nor is he obsessed with soil and roots. He said in one interview: "I also feel Bosnian by my father's origin, a Serb by my place of birth and a Croat by my relationship with a certain friends, not to mention my other Czech half, who I am inherited from mother".
At age 14, he met René Goscinny and with his encouragement applied his talent to comics. He produced work for Goscinny's Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote in the 1970s, publishing his first story, Le Bol Maudit, in 1972.
In 1975, Bilal began working with script writer Pierre Christin on a series of dark and surreal tales, resulting in the body of work titled Légendes d'Aujourd'hui.
He is best known for the Nikopol trilogy (La Foire aux immortels, La Femme piège and Froid Équateur), which took more than a decade to complete. Bilal wrote the script and did the artwork. The final chapter, Froid Équateur, was chosen book of the year by the magazine Lire and is acknowledged by the inventor of chess boxing as the inspiration for the sport.
Quatre? (2007), the last book in the Hatzfeld tetralogy, deals with the breakup of Yugoslavia from a future viewpoint. The first installment came in 1998 in the shape of Le Sommeil du Monstre opening with the main character, Nike, remembering the war in a series of traumatic flashbacks.
In 2012, Bilal was featured in a solo exhibition at The Louvre. The exhibition, titled "The Ghosts of the Louvre", ran from 20 December 2012 to 18 March 2013. The exhibition was organized by Fabrice Douar, and featured a series of paintings of "Ghosts", done atop photographs that Bilal took of the Louvre's collection.
Bilal was born in Belgrade, then the capital of Yugoslavia, to a Czech mother, Ana, who came to Belgrade as child from Karlovy Vary, and a Bosnian Muslim father, Muhamed Hamo Bilal who had been Josip Broz Tito's tailor. When he was five years old, his father managed to take a trip and stay in Paris as a political émigré. Enki and the rest of the family followed him, four years later.
Enki Bilal has no sense of belonging to any ethnic group and religion, nor is he obsessed with soil and roots. He said in one interview: "I also feel Bosnian by my father's origin, a Serb by my place of birth and a Croat by my relationship with a certain friends, not to mention my other Czech half, who I am inherited from mother".
At age 14, he met René Goscinny and with his encouragement applied his talent to comics. He produced work for Goscinny's Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote in the 1970s, publishing his first story, Le Bol Maudit, in 1972.
In 1975, Bilal began working with script writer Pierre Christin on a series of dark and surreal tales, resulting in the body of work titled Légendes d'Aujourd'hui.
He is best known for the Nikopol trilogy (La Foire aux immortels, La Femme piège and Froid Équateur), which took more than a decade to complete. Bilal wrote the script and did the artwork. The final chapter, Froid Équateur, was chosen book of the year by the magazine Lire and is acknowledged by the inventor of chess boxing as the inspiration for the sport.
Quatre? (2007), the last book in the Hatzfeld tetralogy, deals with the breakup of Yugoslavia from a future viewpoint. The first installment came in 1998 in the shape of Le Sommeil du Monstre opening with the main character, Nike, remembering the war in a series of traumatic flashbacks.
In 2012, Bilal was featured in a solo exhibition at The Louvre. The exhibition, titled "The Ghosts of the Louvre", ran from 20 December 2012 to 18 March 2013. The exhibition was organized by Fabrice Douar, and featured a series of paintings of "Ghosts", done atop photographs that Bilal took of the Louvre's collection.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 26, 2026
2.5
Maalesef beğenemedim. İlk iki cildi çok başarılıydı o yüzden bu final cildinden de beklentim çok yüksekti ama kendi adıma beklentilerimi karşılamadı. O kadar çok sıkıldım ki kısa bir çizgi roman olmasına rağmen ancak günler sonra bitirebildim. Hikayeyi bir kenara bırakırsak çizimler yönünden çok başarılı diğer iki ciltte de olduğu gibi. Nikopol Üçlemesi benim için ilk iki ciltte çok etkileyiciyken üçüncü ve son cildi ile hayal kırıklığına uğratan bir final ile bitmiş oldu.
Maalesef beğenemedim. İlk iki cildi çok başarılıydı o yüzden bu final cildinden de beklentim çok yüksekti ama kendi adıma beklentilerimi karşılamadı. O kadar çok sıkıldım ki kısa bir çizgi roman olmasına rağmen ancak günler sonra bitirebildim. Hikayeyi bir kenara bırakırsak çizimler yönünden çok başarılı diğer iki ciltte de olduğu gibi. Nikopol Üçlemesi benim için ilk iki ciltte çok etkileyiciyken üçüncü ve son cildi ile hayal kırıklığına uğratan bir final ile bitmiş oldu.
January 11, 2023
D.L. 09/1992 = A.I. 08/1992 = eo
->Grand Format
I hated it!
It's so confusing and trips over itself trying to over-dramatize unconvincingly within a plot that I cared nothing about. As a finishing tome (of 3) it's an absolute failure that riffs it all out of focus instead of "wrapping->it->up" so there is no closure besides some typical Bilal tragedy.
->Grand Format
I hated it!
It's so confusing and trips over itself trying to over-dramatize unconvincingly within a plot that I cared nothing about. As a finishing tome (of 3) it's an absolute failure that riffs it all out of focus instead of "wrapping->it->up" so there is no closure besides some typical Bilal tragedy.
February 10, 2026
Cet album, froid Équateur met fin à la trilogie Nikopol. Trilogie intéressante, où l'on reconnaît bien le style de Enki Bilal.
Cette série compte l'histoire d'Albus Nikopol qui vit dans un monde "futuriste" (pour l'époque) miné de conflit sociale, politique, environnementale... C'est intéressant de voir comment E. Bilal a dépeint notre époque...
Cette série compte l'histoire d'Albus Nikopol qui vit dans un monde "futuriste" (pour l'époque) miné de conflit sociale, politique, environnementale... C'est intéressant de voir comment E. Bilal a dépeint notre époque...
October 19, 2020
Bilal gooit met fascinerende ideeën en creëert grimmig maar uiterst mooi tekenwerk. Een goed verhaal moet men niet verwachten, eerder een surrealistische trip.
May 14, 2015
Der Weltraum ist kalt wie Afrika
Manchmal fühlt man sich als Leser eines Comics etwas veralbert, wenn zum Beispiel Grant Morrison seine Pseudokryptizitätsnummer abzieht - so tun, als ob etwas hinter der prätenziösen Kulisse wäre. Letztlich geht es mir bei Bilal ähnlich, mit dem Unterschied, dass ich im Gegensatz zu Morrison vermute, dass wirklich mehr hinter der abstrusen, schwer folgbaren Handlung steckt als ich auf Anhieb erkenne. Bei Bilal ist es mir in diesem Band (ganz stark im Kontrast zum Vorgängerband, der mich überhaupt nicht überzeugen konnte) aber egal, dass ich vielleicht was nicht erkenne, denn er entschädigt mich mit viel Sense of Wonder und unterhaltsamer SciFi-Steampunk-Pseudomythologie, sowie herrlichen Zeichnungen, die mich an meine gute alte "Bitmap-Brothers"-Computerspielvergangenheit erinnern.
Schachboxen, eine Figur namens Johnelvis Johnelvisson, die grüngestreifte telepathische Katze Gogol vom Algol, eine etwas verworrene Familiengeschichte, die allgegenwärtigen Nashörner, Giraffen und Nilpferde im Zug und in Büros des eiskalten äquatorialen Afrika, die sehr gelungene Vermischung afrikanischer Eigenheiten mit Steampunk und ein sehr hintersinnig-witziger, äußerst ansprechender Zirkelschluss zum ersten Band - - eine wahrlich herrliche Melange.
Die Trilogie ist ingesamt, mit Ausnahme des etwas wunderlichen zweiten Bands, sehr lesenswert für alle Fans abgedrehter SciFi.
Manchmal fühlt man sich als Leser eines Comics etwas veralbert, wenn zum Beispiel Grant Morrison seine Pseudokryptizitätsnummer abzieht - so tun, als ob etwas hinter der prätenziösen Kulisse wäre. Letztlich geht es mir bei Bilal ähnlich, mit dem Unterschied, dass ich im Gegensatz zu Morrison vermute, dass wirklich mehr hinter der abstrusen, schwer folgbaren Handlung steckt als ich auf Anhieb erkenne. Bei Bilal ist es mir in diesem Band (ganz stark im Kontrast zum Vorgängerband, der mich überhaupt nicht überzeugen konnte) aber egal, dass ich vielleicht was nicht erkenne, denn er entschädigt mich mit viel Sense of Wonder und unterhaltsamer SciFi-Steampunk-Pseudomythologie, sowie herrlichen Zeichnungen, die mich an meine gute alte "Bitmap-Brothers"-Computerspielvergangenheit erinnern.
Schachboxen, eine Figur namens Johnelvis Johnelvisson, die grüngestreifte telepathische Katze Gogol vom Algol, eine etwas verworrene Familiengeschichte, die allgegenwärtigen Nashörner, Giraffen und Nilpferde im Zug und in Büros des eiskalten äquatorialen Afrika, die sehr gelungene Vermischung afrikanischer Eigenheiten mit Steampunk und ein sehr hintersinnig-witziger, äußerst ansprechender Zirkelschluss zum ersten Band - - eine wahrlich herrliche Melange.
Die Trilogie ist ingesamt, mit Ausnahme des etwas wunderlichen zweiten Bands, sehr lesenswert für alle Fans abgedrehter SciFi.
August 26, 2017
C’est un étrange mélange de périodes historiques : un futur qui ressemble aux quartiers populaires des métropoles des années 30 du XIX siècle qui s’unit à l’esthétique de l’Egypte ancienne, surtout en ce qui concerne ses divinités.
L’intrigue est liée au personnage de Nikopol, un astronaute qui est retourné sur Terre après de nombreuses années. Malheureusement, il découvre qu’il a le même âge que son fils et que sa femme est morte. La chose la plus étonnante est que le dieu égyptien Horus, arrivé sur Terre grâce à un vaisseau en forme de pyramide accompagné de toutes les autres divinités égyptiennes, décide de posséder le corps de Nikopol, en lui conférant de nombreux pouvoirs. Ainsi, Horus peut connaitre la vie des mortels.
En réalité, l’intrigue est très simple : c’est seulement un prétexte pour montrer ce futur très bizarre et angoissant à la fois, qui ressemble à la dictature fasciste italienne (du moins, c’était le contexte du premier volume de l’histoire). Chaque situation est décrite pour permettre à l’auteur de dessiner un maximum d’éléments très curieux de ce monde. En effet, il faut faire très attention aux détails des images pour bien apprécier l’ouvrage de Bilal.
Le deuxième volume est lié à la figure de Jill Bioskop, une femme très sensuelle d’une peau très blanche et aux cheveux bleus. Elle devient la protagoniste de l’histoire : Horus essaye de faire l’amour avec Jill, mais systématiquement elle tue l’homme qu’Horus a possédé. C’est un volume splatter, où Bilal nous montre ce monde en guerre.
Si le premier volume est lié au masculin et le deuxième au féminin, le dernier rend compte de l’union des deux. C’est une sorte de représentation d’un songe futur, où l’on bâti l’espoir en une nouvelle humanité, qui naîtra quand le pouvoir du capitalisme et de la religion se détruiront mutuellement.
L’œuvre parle de la lutte intime contre chaque forme de dictature, qu’elle soit politique ou qu’elle soit psychologique : et c’est seulement quand on aura combattu les deux que l’homme pourra être vraiment libre.
L’intrigue est liée au personnage de Nikopol, un astronaute qui est retourné sur Terre après de nombreuses années. Malheureusement, il découvre qu’il a le même âge que son fils et que sa femme est morte. La chose la plus étonnante est que le dieu égyptien Horus, arrivé sur Terre grâce à un vaisseau en forme de pyramide accompagné de toutes les autres divinités égyptiennes, décide de posséder le corps de Nikopol, en lui conférant de nombreux pouvoirs. Ainsi, Horus peut connaitre la vie des mortels.
En réalité, l’intrigue est très simple : c’est seulement un prétexte pour montrer ce futur très bizarre et angoissant à la fois, qui ressemble à la dictature fasciste italienne (du moins, c’était le contexte du premier volume de l’histoire). Chaque situation est décrite pour permettre à l’auteur de dessiner un maximum d’éléments très curieux de ce monde. En effet, il faut faire très attention aux détails des images pour bien apprécier l’ouvrage de Bilal.
Le deuxième volume est lié à la figure de Jill Bioskop, une femme très sensuelle d’une peau très blanche et aux cheveux bleus. Elle devient la protagoniste de l’histoire : Horus essaye de faire l’amour avec Jill, mais systématiquement elle tue l’homme qu’Horus a possédé. C’est un volume splatter, où Bilal nous montre ce monde en guerre.
Si le premier volume est lié au masculin et le deuxième au féminin, le dernier rend compte de l’union des deux. C’est une sorte de représentation d’un songe futur, où l’on bâti l’espoir en une nouvelle humanité, qui naîtra quand le pouvoir du capitalisme et de la religion se détruiront mutuellement.
L’œuvre parle de la lutte intime contre chaque forme de dictature, qu’elle soit politique ou qu’elle soit psychologique : et c’est seulement quand on aura combattu les deux que l’homme pourra être vraiment libre.
January 24, 2025
Mejor que la segunda parte, pero no recupera la potencia y posibilidades de la primera y se pierde en un remolino de piezas confusas y mal encajadas. El mundo es tan diferente, raro y original que podía haber dado para mucho más, pero las tramas de Bilal se enzarzan en sus propias rarezas y autocomplacencia sin terminar de crear una historia clara y saltando de un elemento a otro de forma algo ilógica. Es una pena, la trilogía no acaba como podría si se hubiese centrado un poco, supongo que es parte de su estilo. Al final son unos cómics que empezaron a salir en los 80 y nunca puedes escapar de eso porque la mirada masculina que tienen envejece fatal. Extraño mundo de gran potencial, dibujo oscuro y atractivo, pero confusa y surrealista trama sin orientación definida.
January 8, 2019
I'd never heard of these comics until a friend recommended them to me but they were a surprisingly good. I don't think it'd be for every reader because the story sometimes gets very strange and lost in its own ideas while the art style is very dark, but if you're willing to stick it out, it's quite an interesting and surreal sci-fi tale.
November 25, 2024
Visually stunning (hence the 3 stars) but the plot is confusing and I really didn't care or engage with the characters that are either semi-comatose, like Nikopol, or less that one-dimensional with no real substance or purpose. Also, times have changed-the male gaze and instances of graphic violence didn't really age well.
February 18, 2024
Edellisen kerran luin Nikopol-trilogian yli 20 vuotta sitten. Tomiihan tämä yhä, vaikka ihan varma en ole vieläkään, että mistä tässä on kyse. Hauska yksityiskohta on, että ensimmäinen osa Jumalaton näytelmä alkaa vuodesta 2023, aika futuristista, mutta ei sekään haittaa.
June 28, 2019
Je voulais savoir si le film se rapprochait de la BD...
March 12, 2023
Je ... Je suis perdue .... Un film ou non ? Faut savoir la !
July 29, 2026
By the third volume I'd stopped expecting to understand anything; which might be exactly what Bilal intended.
February 25, 2011
There's something so indulgent about French stories, which is at the same time their strength and their downfall. They lilt along, laughing and provoking, never shying away, but there is also a lack of self-editing there that tends to leave them a bit silly and unfocused.
Sometimes, I think it's a problem of translation, and this translation is so unusually literal from the French, as if it were meant for primary English readers who understand the French language and culture, but who are unable to read in the language on their own. This is certainly one style of translation, but for a story like this, I tend to prefer a translation of idioms, emotions, and speech into the new language; but that requires a new writer just as creative and interesting as the original author.
But I also know it isn't entirely the problem of translation, as I've seen complex, intriguing stories that are delightful and deep even in translation, such as the works of Kurosawa or Charlier's 'Blueberry' comic. Then again, they are both familiar with the same Western traditions I am, so perhaps it's an easier shift.
Nikopol shows some of those indulgent tendencies, but also has an undercurrent of satire for overblown space operas like 'L'Incal'. Between engaging in indulgence and mocking indulgence, we get some fun, ironical, self-aware amusement, but there isn't a very strong plot to hang it all on. Perhaps it's my problem, but I tend to feel that nothing can really replace a good story.
The art was good, but the stylization was rather extreme. Everyone had the same cheekbones and the range of expression was disappointingly lacking. The world design was fun and detailed, though it all became similar rather quickly.
The colors were surprisingly straightforward, showing little dynamic exploration, especially when compared to the Moebius works that inspired it. The soft colors were pretty, but Bilal wasn't exactly pushing the boundaries. People were pinkish and the backgrounds were washed out browns and blues. When people were blue or green, it wasn't a mood choice, just some aliens.
It's always interesting to see the sci fi influence of Jodorowski's failed European Dune, from Blade Runner to most of Moebius' sci fi, but Nikopol is just another entry, not particularly revolutionary in its own right, though it was the inspiration for the sport of Chess Boxing, which is amusing enough, as legacies go.
My Suggested Reading In Comics
Sometimes, I think it's a problem of translation, and this translation is so unusually literal from the French, as if it were meant for primary English readers who understand the French language and culture, but who are unable to read in the language on their own. This is certainly one style of translation, but for a story like this, I tend to prefer a translation of idioms, emotions, and speech into the new language; but that requires a new writer just as creative and interesting as the original author.
But I also know it isn't entirely the problem of translation, as I've seen complex, intriguing stories that are delightful and deep even in translation, such as the works of Kurosawa or Charlier's 'Blueberry' comic. Then again, they are both familiar with the same Western traditions I am, so perhaps it's an easier shift.
Nikopol shows some of those indulgent tendencies, but also has an undercurrent of satire for overblown space operas like 'L'Incal'. Between engaging in indulgence and mocking indulgence, we get some fun, ironical, self-aware amusement, but there isn't a very strong plot to hang it all on. Perhaps it's my problem, but I tend to feel that nothing can really replace a good story.
The art was good, but the stylization was rather extreme. Everyone had the same cheekbones and the range of expression was disappointingly lacking. The world design was fun and detailed, though it all became similar rather quickly.
The colors were surprisingly straightforward, showing little dynamic exploration, especially when compared to the Moebius works that inspired it. The soft colors were pretty, but Bilal wasn't exactly pushing the boundaries. People were pinkish and the backgrounds were washed out browns and blues. When people were blue or green, it wasn't a mood choice, just some aliens.
It's always interesting to see the sci fi influence of Jodorowski's failed European Dune, from Blade Runner to most of Moebius' sci fi, but Nikopol is just another entry, not particularly revolutionary in its own right, though it was the inspiration for the sport of Chess Boxing, which is amusing enough, as legacies go.
My Suggested Reading In Comics
April 20, 2014
Reiterando lo escrito para el Tomo 1.
Otra re-lectura, rescatada de ese tesoro de BDs/Comic que es Issuee. Issuee es como el YouTube de los Comics. Con un buscador menos brillante, quizá, pero con un poco de paciencia puedes desenterrar perlas raras y maravillosas, como esta. Imposible, creo, encontrar nada de Enki Bilal en mi país. Son lejanos recuerdos de mi juventud universitaria que explotaron al encontrar y reconocer la tapa de esta BD. Me encantó re-leerla. Los ecos de la magia del dibujo exquisito y onírico de Bilal siguen intactos luego de la lectura. La historia me impresionó algo menos, pero igual me pareció genial. Une grandiose retrouvaille!
Otra re-lectura, rescatada de ese tesoro de BDs/Comic que es Issuee. Issuee es como el YouTube de los Comics. Con un buscador menos brillante, quizá, pero con un poco de paciencia puedes desenterrar perlas raras y maravillosas, como esta. Imposible, creo, encontrar nada de Enki Bilal en mi país. Son lejanos recuerdos de mi juventud universitaria que explotaron al encontrar y reconocer la tapa de esta BD. Me encantó re-leerla. Los ecos de la magia del dibujo exquisito y onírico de Bilal siguen intactos luego de la lectura. La historia me impresionó algo menos, pero igual me pareció genial. Une grandiose retrouvaille!
June 1, 2014
I have to admit that it is quite a rare occasion in one´s life to read about a universe so original and fresh as the one depicted in "The Nikopol Trilogy" - maybe a bit silly at times, sure, but that is the price we pay for eploring new things, right? I really admire Bilal for creating a world so captivating and intriguing and making it everything happen all by himself: both the visual and the written part of the story, which complement one another in a brilliant way.
March 27, 2022
I thought this book was very messy, a lot happens in too small a space, it’s muddled and poorly formed. The ending is alright, not what I would’ve preferred but it’s still apt. I don’t have a problem with the character’s respective arcs, I just needed the storytelling to be cleaner and more succinct.
2.5/5
2.5/5
October 27, 2013
Jälleen kerran todella kaunista kuvaa, juonessakin oli hetkensä sekä koukkunsa, mutta ei tämä kahden edellisen Nikopolin tasolle kipua. Tai sitten ei saisi verrata, jolloin tämä olisi ollut oikein hyvä. Nyt vertasin.
May 18, 2013
Un dernier opus de la trilogie Nikopol qui tient toutes ses promesses, parfois un peu difficile à suivre mais sinon superbe: dessin, histoire, personnages...
December 20, 2014
Not as good as the prequel: "la Mujer Trampa", this book closes the trilogy, still a sci-fi classic that every comic owner should have in its collection
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews