Aama, Vol. 3: The Desert of Mirrors

Aâma #3

by Frederik Peeters, Edward Gauvin (Translation)

Verloc Nim and his brother, Conrad, depart on an expedition to recover the mysterious substance aama, which has transformed the environment of a distant planet. As they progress through a world that is both hostile and amazing, the mystery begins to unravel—but the truth about aama remains unknown, and reality begins to waver.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Bande Dessinée, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Mystery

86 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Frédérik Peeters (born 13 August 1974, in Geneva) is a contemporary Swiss graphic novelist. He received his bachelor of arts degree in visual communication from the École Supérieure d’Arts Appliqués in Geneva in 1995. Peeters currently lives with his partner Cati, her son, and their daughter in Geneva.

His autobiographical graphic novel Blue Pills received the Polish Jury Prize at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, where it was also nominated for Best Book. Blue Pills also won the Premios La Cárcel de Papel in Spain for Best Foreign Comic. This is his first work to be translated into English.

Reviews

[Jan Philipzig · Rating 5 out of 5]

With this third volume, the series reaches a new level of awesomeness for me: at the mercy of their alien environment, our heroes appear more fragile and relatable than ever - but are they even human? And are those fantastic landscapes really alien in nature? As the boundaries of time and space gradually dissolve and things take increasingly alien shapes, Peeters keeps the vessel on course with wonderful clarity and a childlike, unpretentious sense of curiosity. Outstanding stuff!

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The suspense is building in this series, where we are trying to figure out what this planet-altering substance really is. It feels like some things are shifting, becoming more bizarre or surreal as they proceed. This planet is seeming stranger and stranger, with dream sequences and all, involving Verloc, our main character. Are both time and space altering? Seems like it. We are building to a place where we will know more about what this substance is. And this girl on the cover, what does she have to do with it all? Time and another volume will tell. It's got a dark vibe, with all these psychedelic elements.

This is one of the most intriguing series out there, from a sci-fi perspective, with the art probably the central standout feature. But the dream sequences seem sort of tied to all the crazy multi-colored plants and creatures. . . hey! I may have just figured something out! Maybe. This is one to check out, my friends. But you have to be patient, because mystery is at the heart of it.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Siamo nel cuore del processo di creazione di una tecnonatura… e la tappa successiva sarà per forza la creazione di una tecnoumanità.

Questo volume, pur contenendo degli episodi chiave per lo svolgimento della trama, mi è piaciuto meno dei precedenti. È un volume di passaggio ed ha tutta una parte centrale che, purtroppo, mi è sembrata solo un riempitivo. Per fortuna si riprende sul finale, lasciandomi il desiderio di scoprire cosa accadrà.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 4 out of 5]

So by volume 3, Verloc Nim has finally finished reading his diary and we've caught up to the scene that opened volume 1. Not complaining, just observing. As always, Peeters displays an impressive visual imagination. This alien planet truly feels alien. There's certainly an element of surrealism to the whole enterprise, especially in the dream sequences, but it still feels as if there's an underlying reality anchoring it. This remains a very European series, reminiscent of Moebius and Bilal and everyone. The closest North American analog I can think of would be maybe the much-lauded Saga series. Aama is an impressive feat of world-building that is sadly still not complete with this volume. Things seem to be coming to a head though. We'll see what volume 4 brings.

[Sonic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Flippin' Brilliant and I love everything about it!

Fantastic assortment of well developed (and developing) characters

in incredible environments

making their way through an Awesome plot!

And no matter how alien or foreign or weird and wild it gets, everything is rendered with astonishing clarity!

This is first-rate concepts, with first-rate storytelling, combined with first-rate illustration!

And it is all done by one guy!

This is one exquisite science-fiction Graphic novel!


+++

[Riddhish Bhalodia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5
Weird and really abstract but there are some threads this opens which I am dying to know more about. Appreciated the ending of this quite a bit.

[Petitpois · Rating 4 out of 5]

Se mantiene y expande la intriga, y la imaginación y el color estallan.

[Thom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best book of the series so far, including a very cool dream/hallucination sequence. All of the past timelines and journals have been completed, so the fourth book will carry one story to completion. Churchill, Roosevelt - where is Stalin?

[Jonathan H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bizarre and nightmarish, but also fascinating.

[Drew Canole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically just the third chapter as opposed to a stand-alone book.

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another incredible volume from Peeters. Secrets are revealed and characters die. I'm truly blown away by his creativity in designing the biology of the world.

[William Holm]

Well things get even more surreal in the third volume of the story of aama. The flash back filled diary the protagonist has been reading in an attempt to retain his memory comes to an end. I did find it confusing sometimes that so much of the story was told as flash backs within flash backs but I must admit that there i no less confusion when the diary finally comes to an end. In a way this is a story of a man trying to cope with his divorce and his parents deaths. In other ways it is a surreal existential discussion on life and evolution. There is one volume to go and I'm curios if Peeters will manage to end the story in a meaningful way or if there will just more questions and more surrealism.

[Zec · Rating 4 out of 5]

This third book is a huge culmination of the patient build-up from the previous two. Verloc finally stops drifting aimlessly and plots his own course. The world of Aama continues to be both vicious and beautiful, inspiring wonder but barely survivable. The intentions of the project and Verloc’s connection to Aama are beginning to make sense. There’s a fantastic dream sequence in the final third of the book that finally provokes Verloc to awaken. Aama has been a trippy but heartfelt journey of self-discovery and I look forward to the final chapter.

[fiafia]

J'ai adoré le premier volume, c'était un peu plus compliqué avec le deuxième: surtout parce que je ne les ai pas lus dans la foulée, du temps est passé et je ne me souvenais plus très bien de tous les détails de l'histoire. Et c'est encore pire avec ce troisième volume: je ne me souvenais plus de tant de choses que je ne comprenais strictement rien, j'ai dû abandonner. Un jour j'emprunterai à la bibli les quatre volumes à la fois...

[Koen Claeys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deze stripreeks doet me denken aan ‘Annihilation’ (met name de verfilming door Netflix met Nathalie Portman) in die zin dat ik ook de meest ongelooflijke vervormingen van de natuur voorgeschoteld krijg, de grenzen van het waanzinnige worden opgezocht en je als lezer/kijker nogal kan speculeren over wat er zich afspeelt.
Hopelijk krijgen we in het vierde en laatste deel een bevredigend einde voorgeschoteld. Sowieso verwacht ik geen “En ze leefden nog lang en gelukkig”.

[Kevin MacDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Undoubtedly the best volume yet. Our cast of characters venture further into the eye of the storm as they work to survive environments and the tolls they have on their psyches. There are a few very interesting reversals that set up an exciting final volume. I particularly liked that the diary flashbacks have finally caught up with the base story and by the final page, the nature of aama and Verloc’s role in everything has never been so clearly defined.

[Leif · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peeters maintains the spin: here's where things get weird and the plane of narrative interest transforms, but the intensity stays razor sharp as attention narrows on Verloc. Some mysteries are answered; others arise. Stick with it. This is one hell of a story.

[Celina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork, interesting story and characters. Verloc may not by the best person but still manages to be a likeable narrator. The mystery really develops in this volume, probably my favorite of the series. Some really interesting ecology as they traverse the planet, and great use of color.

[Leif · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art keeps getting more extraordinary.

The story keeps me going.

This being the penultimate installment in the series, I'm going to say that I have enjoyed this weird journey, regardless of the outcome.

[Mattouille · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une série qui finit en beauté et en apothéose. On découvre un réel univers instauré par Peeters, avec de belles références dans le dessin (Moebius, l'incal noir,...). Une belle intrigue qui toutefois peu débordé de créativité ou l'on peut si perdre.

[Vittorio Rainone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dove Verloc Nim diviene, dopo un'ordalia di sangue e morte, il portatore di una forza impressionante.

[Bill Coffin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wait, wait, wait...*this* won Best Series, Angoulême International Comics Festival 2013? Oooookay, then.

[Grg · Rating 2 out of 5]

The trippy sci-fi fever dream was fun for a while but got boring quickly. Also the food looked disgusting.

[Shivam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Things have gone completely bonkers and I can’t wait to see how this all ends. Brilliant stuff.

[Rafaela Oliveira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quoi ?! Comment ça ?? La cible principale était Verloc ?? Et sa fille est vraiment sur place avec eux ??!

[Tar Buendía · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lo de las piernas no me lo esperaba. Para nada.

Me ha gustado mucho aunque se me ha quedado un poco cojo.

El color y los diseños en algunas viñetas ha alcanzado mi perfección personal.

Aconsejable si os gusta la ciencia ficción europea, tenéis paciencia para ir descubriendo las cosas poco a poco y no necesitáis saberlo todo todo para que una historia os guste.

Da para un buen debate.

Más en: https://gorgonas.com/2020/05/29/aama-...

[Brian Dickerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matter did indeed become unstable. Dreams and hallucinations occur while transversing an alien landscape that seems to be evolving while having it’s own fever dream. Dali would be proud of Peeters.

The mystery elements deepen as this reader moves anxiously but briskly toward the concluding fourth volume.

[David H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retroactive Review (11 Sep 2021): Please see my review of the series here under the first volume.

[Nore · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this art so much.

[Lionel · Rating 1 out of 5]

Je suis un fan de SF et c'est exactement le genre de tournant que je déteste