The Three-Body Problem, Vol. 1

The Three-Body Problem (Comic) #1

by Jin Cai (Adapter), Twilight Lu (Adapter), Silver (Adapter)

Beijing, 2007. A series of inexplicable suicides by prominent physicists has sent police officials into confusion and the public into a swirl of rumors and panic. When nanotech engineer Wang Miao is tasked by the military to infiltrate a secretive organization known as the Frontiers of Science, his path leads him to an interstellar conspiracy that spans decades and light-years, as well as to the true meaning behind a researcher’s cryptic suicide note: “Physics does not exist”… Experience the Hugo Award–winning sci-fi novel by CIXIN LIU, now brought to life in this full-color comic!

Genres: Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Fiction, Comics, Science Fiction Fantasy, Mystery, Asian Literature

184 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2023

Reviews

[Steph ✨ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have absolutely no idea what's going on. I thought this might be a good intro into Cixin Liu and would give me an indication as to whether or not I should pick up the novel, but alas, I'm none the wiser.

[Estibaliz · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

The fact Cixin Liu endorses this graphic adaptation of his novel gave me high hopes, but the storytelling was lackluster over all.

Of course, this version is much more faithful to the Chinese original that the Netflix TV adaptation, that I actually watched recently (and that subverts a lot of the novel characters just to be more inclusive), but it still lacks some of that needed entertainment element, to a higher level.

The characters are sometimes no easy to tell apart, and this volume doesn't really get too much into the meat of it all, so it just feels vaguely entertaining, but not fully engaging.

[Niina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nyt oli kyllä niin hämmentävää settiä että ei hyvänen aika. Meni kilometrin tajuntani yläpuolelta ohitse. Taide oli nättiä, mutta harmillisesti nelivärikuvitusta jäi harvoin ihastelemaan pitkäksi aikaa eli tavallaan meni vähän hukkaan se vaiva. Mahtaakohan olla romaaninakin yhtä vaikea?

[Cheesecat777 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, although I felt like the visuals could have been more interesting and I wish they included the same introduction as in the novel. The story is just not the same without it imo.

[Tricia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like the illustration style, colors, character rendition, or the translation. It was just a massive disappointment all around.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just not enough "there" there (i.e. the plot is barely hinted at with lots of atmosphere and hardly any character development).

[Josée Leon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story not grabbing me - I haven't read the original book. Artwork ok but a bit confusing at times. Won't be continuing with this series.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

summer 2025 reading challenge - read a translated book/ read the first graphic novel in a series

[mara - hyrulevalkyrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Currently unsure if this work is well-suited to a manhua format. Art style is good but unless you are well-versed in both sci-fi AND Chinese culture, this graphic novelization may be confusing to some.

[Lizzy Curse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wer kennt die SciFi Reihe rund um das 3 Body Problem von Cixin Liu?

Ehrlich, ich habe schon viel darüber gehört, auf Instagram gesehen oder im Buchladen in der Hand gehabt. Aber trotz latenten Interesse hat es nie dafür ausgereicht, dass das Buch mit zu mir nach Hause wandern durfte - weil ich nicht der passionierte SciFi Leser bin und mich in die Welten erst mal reindenken muss. Das hat mich immer abgeschreckt.

SplitterManga+ hat nun die Comic Adaption der Erfolgsreihe nach Deutschland gebracht (in 10 Bänden abgeschlossen). Was gäbe es also für einen besseren Einstieg in die Welt?

Bevor wir in die Welt entlassen werden, werden wir zunächst durch einen Brief von Cixin Liu begrüßt - der uns erst mal einordnet. Er sagt selbst, dass sein Werk bisweilen so abstrakt und utopisch ist, dass es besser als Comic dargestellt wirkt als in Romanform.

Der erste Band bewegt sich noch in der realen Welt - als Einstieg sozusagen. Er wird mehr von dem Crime- und Scienceplot bestimmt, als das die ScienceFiction Elemente groß zum Tragen kommen - was ich sehr begrüßt habe. Ich habe einen LowLevel-Einstieg lieber!

Der Crimeplot beschäftigt sich mit dem Selbstmord dutzender Wissenschaftler, die nicht mehr an die eigene Profession geglaubt haben. Wang Miao, ein Ingenieur, wird von den Ermittlern hinzugezogen, da er eine Einladung von „Frontier of Science“ erhalten hatte, den gemeinsamen Nenner der suizidalen Wissenschaftler.

Ich habe schon auf den ersten paar Dutzend Seiten bemerkt, dass die Geschichte sehr komplex und das Verhältnis der Charaktere untereinander spannungsgeladen ist und viel Zündstoff bietet. Das hat Cixin Liu sehr gut angelegt. Besonders ins Auge sticht hierbei das Verhältnis von Wang und Kommissar Shi, die sich gegenseitig immer wieder Wortgefechte liefern und vor allen Dingen Shi Wang durch seinen provozierenden Charakter immer wieder zu Höchstleistungen antreibt.

Die SciFi Elemente blitzen immer wieder durch - und ich bin schon gespannt auf die Expansion in den nächsten Bänden. Ich hoffe, die ursprüngliche Struktur bleibt zum Teil erhalten. Crime und SciFi verstehen sich unter der Feder des Autors ziemlich gut. Die Themen Physik und Wissenschaft und die immer wieder kehrenden Neujustierung von physikalischen Systematiken stehen thematisch im Vordergrund.

„3 Body Problem“ ist ein düsterer Roman - natürlich ist die Manhua-Adaption ebenfalls ziemlich düster und in weiten Teilen distanziert. Mir wurde es ein bisschen zu viel mit den düsteren Panels - aber das ist persönliche Geschmacksache.

Ich vergebe vier Sterne für die düstere Manhua-Adaption von Cixin Lius modernem Klassiker, die bei mir die Hemmschwelle für den Einstieg in seine Welt erheblich herabgesetzt hat.

[karenbee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't realize this was only part of the story when I picked it up. Yes, "The Comic Edition" makes it sound like this is THE comic edition, not PART OF the comic edition, but you'd think the "1" on the cover would've clued me in. It did not.

I could mostly follow along, you know, figure out who people were, what they were doing in each panel, whatever, but there was no real story; if you read the blurb for this book, almost NONE of it shows up in this volume.

This is the only part of the blurb that is relevant to this volume: "a group of scientists and a cunning detective investigate a series of mysterious suicides." Don't get me wrong, there are no conclusions reached within these pages, but the mysterious suicides do exist and some people are investigating them and there are scientists and a detective involved. And someone plays a video game and one guy loves grinding cigarette butts on the ground.

I'd only recommend this volume to people who already know the story and like it, tbh. Or people who have access to all ten volumes from the jump. (I don't think the complete set is available in the US yet. My library only has Volume 1. So I am not those people.)

[Mea Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Yen Press for this review copy - my review still remains honest and without the influence of the publisher.

The Three-Body Problem is a very interesting work out of the sci-fi genre. Netflix did an interesting adaptation of it which got me interested in the novel, but I will admit that it was a bit of a tough read, so I agree with the author that a visual element to accompany the story’s strong narrative was an avenue to explore next where sci-fi elements may go over my head due to limitations. I can see the differences between all three mediums, but with the comic version, certain elements are bit slower to come up and the pick-up point doesn't match the novel. For those getting into this with the expectation of it's 1-to-1 comparison to the original novel, you will be disappointed. I am still willing to read the following volumes just to see how they continue to adapt the rest of the plot.

[Yeollie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What would you do if you found a cryptic note that reads “physics does not exist?” Everything you knew is put into question.

Overall thoughts
I was sold from the premise. I’m a pretty hardcore sci-fi fan and indulge in it every moment I can. I’m very curious to see what twists and turns the story is going to take next.

Be warned that this is the first Volume, so you’ll likely get the answers you’re looking for in Volume 2. The ball just got rolling! I’ve caught a lot of foreshadowing in this Volume. If you get the second installment, as well, I’d advise reading both together and binge them together!

Who is this manga for
Science fiction fans will likely have a field day here! If that’s your jam, I highly recommend this story.

Check out the full review on the blog: https://yeolliestorytime.com/the-thre...

[Adam Barrett · Rating 1 out of 5]

Having just finished the novel, I thought reading this would be a good way to add some depth or at least a new spin on the original. It did not. This graphic novel has almost nothing to do with the original work. The same pacing and time/ location jumps difficulties plague this also and add to the general confusion and readers inability the clearly follow the weak plot points the writer has chosen to focus on.
I'll summarize it for you: a bunch of scientists are killing themselves because they are shallow and have no deeper belief system. A bunch of angry men spend 180 pages yelling at each other while the writer has an over inflated sense of "great/suspenseful" storytelling. Plus, the art is meh.

[Shiritaku · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. Ich hab das Gefühl, dass ich kaum was richtig verstanden hab, haha. Dennoch find ich's super interessant und spannend! Wahrscheinlich wird es nach und nach ersichtlicher und zugänglicher.

Optisch ist's richtig gut! Wirkt wie ein gedruckter Anime für mich. Sehr detailliert, auch die Hintergründe. Die Charaktere haben sehr viel Mimik und Gestik, man merkt ihnen auch ihre Gefühlslage und Stimmung sehr gut an. Es ist ein sehr markanter Stil, der super gut dazu passt!

Der Plot wirkt hier schon komplex, aber das wird wahrscheinlich nochmal getoppt. Bin aber sehr davon angetan und freu mich schon auf die weiteren Bände!

[Annika Hebenstreit · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited when I saw this in the book store today and immediately had to read it.
I loved the trilogy, and hoped to enjoy the series in a new format.
They made a good decision by not starting the graphic novel the way the regular novel starts. I liked the art in general.
But the scenes were way too dark, colour wise, sometimes it was hard to make out details. It might have worked better in a bigger format.
Also I found it being dragged out and too short at the same time. When it finally gets somewhere, the book is over. If I didn't know the story already and where it goes, I probably wouldn't continue.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read The Three-Body Problem a few years ago, and instead of rereading it before launching into the sequel, I thought the graphic novel adapatation would help.
It does not at all.
Yes, there are beautiful illustrations (though 2 male characters look too much alike, it's confusing). But it took me a while to recognize the original novel I had read!
Cixin Liu seems to be thrilled about this adaptation, so I must have missed the whole point.
If you haven't read it as a novel, starts by the novel (not an easy one, but rewarding, with great writing), ignore the comic edition, as it's even more confusing!

[Mickey Bits · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a highly anticipated read for me but I felt a little let down. Perhaps I need the subsequent volumes to tie it all together. Perhaps something is lost in the translation. I thought I was familiar with the plot, having watched the Netflix special. Nevertheless I felt a bit lost at the end of this. It felt as if I was barely scratching the surface.

It's the winner of all these awards, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt and check out the next installments. But I'm admittedly a bit more skeptical.

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been going back and forth whether to rate this low or high. It is interesting but the plot doesn't really go anywhere. I hoped it was just a slow start, but volume 2 doesn't really go anywhere either. If you have read the book this is based on, you might enjoy it. As a stand alone with no prior knowledge of the plot, I would wait until the end of the story (if it ever happens) to read all as one. It presents too many questions with no answers for my taste.

[Adrienne Kern McClintock · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it enough that I decided to check out the actual book from the library. The book version describes images and pictures that are sometimes difficult to visualize, and the comic version did well enough to give me some ideas. I am sad that the library did not have the rest of the comic series.

[Lorin]

I read the original a while back, and I thought this would help me remember details I'd forgotten or never fully understood. That was extremely incorrect. It's confusing. Art is largely detail-less, and it is frequently so dark that the characters are hard to differentiate. Settings are also difficult to ascertain.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series was recommended to me by someone.
I’m giving it a go, but it’s not really my cup of tea at all. The printing is quite bad, making the artwork hard to look at, at times.
It doesn’t help that I don’t really understand what’s happening much, nor do I really care…
I’m going to give Volume 2 a chance, but not sure I’ll finish all 10 volumes at this rate….

[Amanda Sabel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was fine, I do wish it was a little longer because it felt like nothing really happened. Some advancements in the suicides or the countdown would have bumped up my rating, because everything is left totally unresolved.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the Novel along with the Graphic Novels.

This Graphic Novel enhanced this part of the story form and and helped me understand some things I missed in the Novel version. I very much enjoyed the images and it also helped keep the characters straight.

[Bexa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just don't think this is for me.

[Tara Tyler · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to give this a shot with the graphic novel version, but I didn't really know what was going on at all. Thinking this is just not for me!

[Jacqueline · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars

[Aileen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just because one can make a book into a graphic novel doesn't mean you should.

[Pennywise just needs snuggles · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5