Transperceneige : Terminus

Transperceneige #4

by Olivier Bocquet (Writer), Jean-Marc Rochette

Le train est en bout de course, le signal musical capté n'est peut-être qu'un signal automatique, mais perdu pour perdu Puig décide de continuer l'exploration des lieux avec ses arpenteurs. Ils découvrent un abri souterrain avec une source d'électricité et des rails. Alors que le chaos menace, cette gare enfouie sous la neige est une possibilité de salut inespérée pour les rescapés. Tout va basculer quand ils vont découvrir que cette gare dessert une base souterraine encore habitée. Ses occupants ont développé un modèle de société très aseptiséet des techniques médicales qui se rapprochent de l'eugénisme, afin de préserver l'humanité restante de la «dégénérescence». D'abord accueillis comme des pestiférés et mis en quarantaine, les passagers du train se verront ensuite proposer d'intégrer la communauté de cette base souterraine, qui a tout du paradis perdu mais pourrait bien être une cage dorée de la pire sorte.

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

222 pages, Hardcover

First published October 10, 2015

Reviews

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easily the strongest out of the trilogy, it picks up directly from the end of volume 2. Snowpiercer 2 has crossed the sea, following a faint radio signal, only to find no one controlling it. At the start of this volume they do find deep elevator shafts.



The series keeps exploring sci-fi and post-apocalyptic genres, but tries to avoid cliches - I'm not sure that works completely, but it also doesn't bother me. There's more than enough here to surprise, and this volume feels like it has more direction than the previous volumes.

The art is still rough but strong, and introduces small splashes of colour, that really enhance the story.

(Kindly received a review copy from Titan Comics through Edelweiss)

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conclusion to the Snowpiercer trilogy (for now), this volume continues to follow the train, holding the remnants of human civilization in a world in deep freeze. Outdoor temperatures reach -121 degrees Celsius, and the population of the train is beginning to collapse under social pressures. In the last volume, the Council decides to investigate music they pick up on a radio. In this one, they discover the source, coming from a City buried deep under the snow, where temperatures are mild. The society that lives there is run by strange people who wear mouse masks at all times. Something nefarious seems to be going on, although no one can quite put there fingers on it.

A good conclusions to a fairly good series. I didn't fully enjoy the first Snowpiercer volume, but the concluding two are much stronger. These books are set in a bleak post-apocalyptic world, and follow the social pressures of a society in collapse, closely mirroring modern issues. I enjoy the world-building here, and the conclusion to the story was satisfying. The science fiction elements are really interesting and creepy. An easy recommendation for those looking to consume post-apocalyptic or science fiction content.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could have sworn I had read the entire series when I finished the previous omnibus, yet I was still at a loss for how such a great film came from such a meh-to-crap graphic novel, so when I saw this I thought, "Aha! perhaps this will explain it!" It wasn't until I got to the "how this came to be" text in the back that I realized that this is a new installment, published well after the movie's release.

So, it explains nothing about the film itself. And yet, perhaps because of the influence of the film, I thought this was far better than the previous installments—not good, mind you, but better. Joon-ho Bong must be a genius to have seen the story he produced buried in or growing out of that... fertilizer.

Do note, however, that this is a sequel to Legrand's sequel and not to Bong's film, whatever influence the latter may have had. And even what story there is here (considerably more than in the others, but still not much) is not likely to be fully comprehensible without having read the previous works. Genius this is not, but it is more entertaining than I'd been led to expect by prior experience.

[Svetlana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume so much better than the previous two. In the first volume, the author came with a great idea, but execution was not as good as expected. Second volume, parts 2-3, was boring, messy, confusing.
This one, I liked the most. Definitely it’s stronger than other two, it’s trilled with secrets, tense, terrifying, and hope at the end. Also, I really liked that the colors were added to the drawing, not all black/ white art.
To summarize:
Volume 1: 3 ⭐️
Volume 2 (2-3): 2.5 ⭐️
Volume 3: 4 ⭐️

[Belfry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best book in the Snowpiercer trilogy, in my opinion. The pacing is just right, the story is interesting, the ending is satisfying, and the art is perfect for this type of story. Not to mention we find out what happened to Yona and Tim at the end of the Snowpiercer movie! If you like the first Snowpiercer book, push through the second one to get to this (it picks up right where the second leaves off).

[Terry Mcginnis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much better than the abysmal volume 2, but the more recent prequels are better. Recommended for fans of the series, especially to see how things wrap up.

[Thomas Edmund · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is really hard to review without spoilers. If you're following the series then Vol.2 ended with quite the gloomy cliffhanger and Vol. 3 does not disappoint in any way, although I will say there is a bit of a vibe change. Where Vol 1. was a sort of revolution story, and Vol 2. was a more dark nihilistic piece, Vol 3. is more of an out there "what if" type of scenario, it kind of reminded of the phase of walking Dead where they are endlessly finding new settlements - each try to top the last in terms of weirdness and conflict.

While I really liked the Volume, I will say its more melodramatic then character focussed, it does have its moments, but its very much about the final fate of the world and the Snowpiercer rather than focussed character development.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

First off, a correction to the media for this book - nothing here was used to inspire the movie - other than sharing the concept of a Snowpiercer, this is a completely separate entity. It picks up immediately after the ending of the previous volumes, turning the desolate ending of that into something completely different (and it has a very Eastern European mindset/mood that runs through it), and expanding the story in an interesting way. The idea of an underground EPCOT becoming a haven for survivors is intriguing, even if the plot follows in the footsteps of The Walking Dead (new refuge found, everything's good, then someone finds the secrets that make it unacceptable, then escape). The continuation of Val and Puig's stories works really well, though, and they make much more sympathetic protagonists here compared to volume 2.
I think I liked this volume best of the Snowpiercer volumes - even if the Snowpiercer itself takes a back-seat for most of the story. The art is more colorful and impressionistic, but in a way that is very fitting for the story. So even though it bears little resemblance to the initial concept, it still works very well as its own dystopian future exploration.

[Dane Cobain · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel series has been a bit of a weird one for me because it’s just got better and better as it went on. That might be a side effect of the fact that they had different authors for each book in the series, though.

But that could also be doing the series a disservice. Actually, I think this one was my favourite because of the subject matter. Set in the post-apocalyptic future on board a train that speeds through the frozen wastelands, in this final instalment, the train arrives at a final destination. What follows is basically an exploration of what happens when power gets to people’s heads, with everything from nuclear reactors and mutant babies to a few final answers and a little bit of closure.

I’d known about these books for a while, but it took me a surprising amount of time to get to it. Once I did though, I polished off the series in the space of a couple of months, and I’m kind of glad that I did. I think that I took more from it by reading it in that way, although I’ll also say that I think it could hold up well to a re-read. Definitely worth picking up.

[Etienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely the best of the 3 book in this series, but t the same time it's the less related to the main premise... And as good as it was, and each book were fun, but as a whole, this series and story lack a bit of that little je-ne-sais-quoi, like the glue didn't hold it that well together, the art change a lot, some collaborator change as well and we felt this ambiguous continuity in the story to. Worth it, but maybe not an essential read!

[George Ilsley · Rating 2 out of 5]

This the third volume, and has little connection to the others. A new twist is added, if not really explored. What the heck? The movie was such a hit, so publishers keep trying to ride that magical train, around and around the world, arriving nowhere.

[biblioteka.aleksandry · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this series overall!

What a fascinating way to bring up so many issues through a dystopian graphic novel!

[KK · Rating 4 out of 5]

Integral mi je bio mlak za razliku od filma koji je SJAJAN! ali ova završnica ima smisla i vrlo sam zadovoljna kako je sve ispalo na kraju!

[Caroline Harbour · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll be honest, as much as I love Bong Joon-Ho I did not enjoy this movie. This chapter takes place well after the movie concludes, I wish I could see a film adaptation of this.

[Edward Cheer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, it took me long enough to finally finish this damned trilogy. Although, these previous two entries have felt incredibly forced, like a guest at a party trying to overcompensate how amazing his wife is, when you can tell that she's obviously bored of him (and probably talking to another man at the same party).

Terminus concludes the story set up by Snowpiercer, with the final remnants of the train find a whole new society living underneath the petrifying cold and are actually doing pretty decently... but they hold many dark secrets within their own world.

Right off the bat, I can say that this is the best-looking comic in the entire trilogy. The drawing and shading of everything really instills a feeling of desolation from a frozen world. The actual city that the Snowpiercer remnants find is also pretty creative. It was fun to learn about how they survived and why they wear the mouse helmets and where their energy comes from.

But the story was still incredibly predictable. It felt like playing the intro to Fallout 3. "Oh, look! A fake-ass introduction made like a 1940's commercial!" and the helmets have turned the humans into metaphorical mice, and now we have to discover some big twist that makes the society far less desirable than before.

Along with that, most of the characters (especially Puig this time around) just weren't that fascinating. I didn't feel any true intrigue with any of their problems... well, I did think that Puig's wife trying to hide her baby was a pretty interesting plot development. But besides that, the two Switch Men revealed towards the end are just overly cartoony. Every scene they're in feels like a total shift in tone, going from grim dystopian commentary, to a wacky banter between to exaggerated stereotypes.

I only recommend The Escape to anyone who's curious about Snowpiercer. The continuation of this series really hasn't felt like anything new or particularly that good for reading. If you want a better comic book series, try Scalped.

[Gary Varga · Rating 4 out of 5]

This so much better that the second volume and almost as good as the first. It is so close to being as good as the first volume of the prequels too. In fact I think that it is my preference alone that puts them in this order. I can imaging many edging them the other way around.

A superb read.

Additionally, a great note from the writer (Bocquet) at the back both credits those who wrote before him but also the huge amount of creative input from the co-creator and illustrator of the whole series (Rochette). It also describes the process gone through to deliberately avoid clichés where a lazier team wouldn't have. The read is so much better for it.

Only 4 stars for such a glowing review? Yes, almost, but not quite, worthy of 5 stars. Worth your time.

This volume neatly finishes the tale. There is no real value in taking this story further. Probably why they went for prequels instead.

[Estibaliz · Rating 4 out of 5]

No doubt, the last one is also the best one.

The art gets a whole new layer of meaning with the addition of color, and the story provides an extra dystopic twist to the original concept that is both, entertaining and though provoking.

It's awesome to see how the final product accurately fits the profile of the original idea, by Rochette: "Describe the descent of the damned into a subterranean world. The fleeting joy of survivors who think they've finally managed to escape their fate, only to find that they've fallen into the very worst possibilities today's world could produce. But with a happy ending of a new model of society. Underlying criticism of contemporary society: migration, detention centers, nuclear power, the dangers of eugenics and transhumanism. Don't lose sight of what's at its heart: a hard-hitting action adventure."

[jedioffsidetrap · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most coherent story in the entire series. Things really go off the rails in this one, ho ho ho. Only ten cars of Snowpiercer 2 are left after all the fighting & such in Vol. 2. The beacon is unmanned but they keep searching for the power source & find a subterranean track and pull the train in so not not to just die out on the ice.

More murder & revolt, Puig is diposed and stuck in a drawer. Everyone else wanders off and come across the mice people in this huge underground complex. The mice people separate out the kids for some purpose. The trainees are in the mice’s city, called Future Land before. It was a project to research living in space & so is self-sustaining—this is probably the most realistic science element in the entire series. Very cool idea that dovetails withe larger story. The trainees learn there were ten Snowpiercers & Taichung others found their way here. Three were lost & theirs is the last. A satisfying payoff.

But the Land is under the nuclear plant that powers it, and people are irradiated & sterile. A mad scientist couple, the Switchers, do genetic manipulation to make children then. Can’t leave it to chance with humanity’s existence on the line. So it’s all messed up, and Puig & co. get back on their janky train and leave, to at least be free.

We see them next decades later. A killer whale has been caught. There is life. They’re living in caves somehow, the temp isn’t as low. Puig decides it’s time to let go. He’s blind & old and has Val take him up a hill to tell him what this new hopeful world is like. She lies and says it’s covered in flowers and green as he dies. The last image though is a small sprig of wildflowers at the edge of the snow…

[Michael Bertrand · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed the three volumes of the Snowpiercer series from the library because I am watching the TNT television version. I wanted to know what the source material was like.

Volume 1 was awful. I review it here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Volume 2 was much better. Less misogyny and more mystery. Unfortunately, most of the mystery was incoherent and nonsensical.

And now, Volume 3- Characterization is minimal and the art is much improved. (Doesn't look like Jack Chick drew it!) No spoilers: the plot isn't very original, but it does make sense. I read the entire volume in about forty minutes. I'm glad I did not buy it.

How do the three volumes compare to the movie and television series? The TV series is based on the movie. The movie... is an original work for the most part. The exploitative class system and the 1000 car train circling the globe come from the source material. The rest- the murder mystery, the three dimensional character development, and pretty much everything else- are all created for the film. Volumes two and three especially have little in common with the movie. I could see where volume three might be adapted into future seasons for the television series.

Avoid the first volume. Volumes two and three are quick, forgettable reads.

EDIT: took the time to read the appendix at the back of volume 3- and surprise, surprise, it was produced AFTER the movie. It's a recent production. The TNT series may draw from it in the future, but if you're interested in the inspiration behind the film, then look to volume one and two.

[Mark White · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will post the same review for Vol 2 and Vol 3 as I read them at one sitting. Vol 2 contains both #2 The Explorers and #3 The Crossing, yet is followed by Vol 3 Terminus. Obviously the authors had a change of plans part way.

The setting has expanded to a whole world, multiple trains etc. The story makes more sense than the isolation of the original. Less high concept but less lost opportunities as well.

Set aboard a second Snowpiercer train beset with similar sociological problems the crew begins to search outside for answers to their problems (The Explorers). They follow a radio signal across a frozen ocean (The Crossing) and eventually find an oasis of warmth in the endless frozen waste (Terminus ) that hides an awful secret. (Turns out the train can run without tracks as well, so why a train in the first place?)

Terminus' awful secret is crudely handled (atomic power bad!), its masked inmates bluntly obvious. The tempting warmth comes at an awful price, like the rabbits fed but snared in Watership Down. Character motivation and consistent, sensible action are still missing.

I liked these books better than the original Snowpiercer Vol 1 so 3 stars but it was really only that high for contrast with Vol 1. Still not great for me, I am surprised these books rate so well.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Snowpiercer's relentlessly downbeat narratives continue in this third volume. At this point, I'm bored with it. Terminus picks up where The Explorers left off, with Puig and some others exploring an underground lair that's releasing music. Unexpectedly, the subterranean realm is livable! And populated with mice people!

Will things go well for the trainfolk? No, of course not, this is Snowpiercer. Unlike previous volumes, where things go wrong along predictably political lines, things go wrong in Terminus in gross, horrific ways. Suffice it to say, the underground society is not well. Bocquet and Rochette revel in the weirdness rather than bother to tell a compelling story.

Rochette apparently broke his drawing arm shortly after starting the book - and then proceeded to complete the artwork without addressing the injury. Huh! Weird! Certainly didn't improve the look of the book, though the addition of a little color is a welcome surprise. I'll read the prequels next, but I've pretty much lost interest in the Snowpiercer series at this point.

[Gretchen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book picks up right where the last volume left off. They find the source of the music, but are disappointed. They realize that some sort of electricity was powering the music and decide to find that. While a small group explores, the train is overtaken by the passengers and they elect a president. The explorers find an underground city and a way for the train to enter it. Once the passengers have disembarked, they kill a former leader and imprison Puig for a trial that never comes. The other passengers are taken by a group of people wearing mice masks. They force them into quarantine and try to indoctrinate them into their way of life. They take all the children and pregnant women. It turns out they are living under a leaking nuclear plant, but are also conducting genetic experiments on children and unborn babies. Puig helps everyone escape that wants to on a repaired train and they make a life for themselves.

I am now afraid to watch more of the TV series and the movie. I do not want to see many of these things portrayed by real people.

[Dustin · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a huge improvement over the second book. The history of this series is weird - 3 authors, same artist, each nearly 15-20 years apart, with the first and last books being the only ones worth a damn. The movie coming out seemed to inspire the artist to keep the series going who the sought out a writer and what they made is solid dystopian sci-fi that has plenty to say about our world. What separates this from the first and second book is that trains are barely involved except at a few key parts. This allows them to use the world built up from the first two books to take a look at concepts like transhumanism, long-term impact of nuclear power, and more. This book is also good at leaving open the possibility that can be more to what you're seeing in this specific part of the world and society. A better world that breaks the boundaries of the series itself which the second book massively failed to do. If you can make it this far into the series it's worth it.

[Mitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actually really good. The story was great, as well as the ending. The incorporation of color in this novel really added to the story.
After reading the first novel (which was just meh, it was alright), I wanted to continue on with the story. I thought the two would be connected. They weren't. So, I read the second novel, and well it was bad. There was a big overlaying story, and a couple subplots, and the whole thing was divided into two separate stories. Anyways, it wasn't good and I didn't really want to continue onto the third novel. However, since I impulsively bought all three at the same time, I had no choice. This story was fantastic. It connected to the first part of the second novel. It connected all the dots and came to a full circle at the end.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished the last available translated volume in the comic book series Snowpiercer. I can honestly say that after having read all the volumes and having seen the tv show, that I think Netflix did a better job. The comics were a bit disjointed - there wasn't a good flow because we don't necessarily follow the same characters or the same time era. I think it's pretty clear that the last issue wasn't done by the original author - while I think Olivier Bocquet did a great job with his interpretation of the story, it didn't feel quite the same. I'm not sure how I feel about the series. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it but it isn't terrible either. I just had higher expectations for it.

[Molly Lazer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is easily the best of the three Snowpiercer volumes. The subtle addition of color in the opening pages is very effective and a wonderful surprise. The characters were easily identifiable in the art as well. The story took the standard "we found a new world but it is messed up and our old world may have been better in certain ways" third act turn I've found in many works of dystopian fiction, but it was still engaging. I wonder, though, if I would have been as engaged if I weren't already a huge fan of the TV show. It was exciting to see the Headwoods and to have them be as bonkers in the book as they are in the show.

Overall, this series has been worth reading, though I find both the film and the show to be improvements over the comic in terms of both story and character.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was starting to lose hope for this series, but this is, by far, the best volume of the trilogy... by FAR. It was clear and concise and it had something to say! (I know that's a low bar)

This one picks up directly after the last, so I would honestly say that the first volume is standalone and these next two volumes are a series. I'm glad that Val was treated as an actual character and I liked her in this (I would have liked more of her). I thought the art direction was great for this volume with many silent panels that conveyed a lot and even a few silent splash pages that really hit. I still don't love the art style, but they really worked it better in this volume. I'm so happy that I can say my investment in this series wasn't wasted on a lackluster end.

[Dwight · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Snowpiercer series is worth our attention but I actually liked the movie the best. The third volume is slow to get moving and once it picks up steam it is excellent. My overall rating reflects 120 pages of slow boring introduction followed by 100 pages that are much more satisfying.

As if being at the end of the world isn't enough, the mice cover their radiation scars and the truth that paternalistic caretakers are attempting to rekindle the flame of humankind through bizarre experiments that just might lead to the destruction of what remains of their civilization.

[Tyler Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most definitely the best of the series so far. I’m hoping to enjoy these two prequel volumes. This is the most direction the series has had and really fleshed out the story with the longest page length so far and a far slower pace. It was also nice to pick up right where we left off so I didn’t have to learn new characters again. This story gets wild at the end but reads so much better than before. The translator really did their job this time. I’m happy this mid series ended on a high note but I hope the show doesn’t go down this path, it’ll be too much of a shakeup.