Dungeon: Early Years, vol. 3: Without a Sound

by Christophe Gaultier, Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim

The legend of the founding of Dungeon continues with two all-new chapters! Old Arakou, Hyacinthe's father, feels rusty and mopes at the idea of dying in his bed. He never ceases to remember the old heroic days and his pals he wants to connect back with. So, he mounts his faithful steed, much to the chagrin of Alexandra who, worried for him, accompanies him on this crazy ride. Meanwhile, in the ruins of Antipolis, Comor and a handful of lords are preparing to take back power... The second story presents the arrival of young Marvin to the Dungeon, ready to become its most faithful protector. The city of Antipolis destroyed, his father dead, Hyacinthe de Cavallère finds himself alone to fight against the threats of the attackers eager to appropriate the Dungeon. The duchies of Clérembard and Vaucanson are determined to enlarge their territories... Prospects for the Dungeon look dire but as the two forces attack, they are not expecting the fierce opposition awaiting them in so many forms, including that of the most powerful of the warriors in the Marvin the Saurian.

Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novels

96 pages, Paperback

Published September 21, 2022

Reviews

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first story in this volume is very dark, both artistically (with dingy colors and copious inking) and narratively (as we explore torture, self-delusion, and the slow degradation of a city). But Sfar, Trondheim, and the artists use all that darkness to set up Hyacinthe and how he responds to tragedy and violence in his family. A tough read, but worth it.

The second story is much lighter and is basically the origin story for the Dungeon. (You could do more stories from this era, but you are pretty close to Zenith at this point.) It's quite fun and probably even better if you have read some Zenith recently.

[Václav · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3,8 of 5 for one good and one mediocre story)
I really like the Dungeon series, even if not all stories bear similar levels of dark humour, wit, thrill, innovation and fun. This one consists of two main stories, kind of linked together. They lead to the born of the Dungeon in terms as we know it best. The first one is much more fun than the second one by quite far. Because the second one focus on Hyacinth and the Dungeon and more feels like a storyline supporting smaller sketches, which doesn't work much for me to build the tension and drive to read fully devours me and sucks in the story. This repeats through Dungeon books several times. But the amount of the good ones, like the first one in this book, is still high.

[Thomas Perscors · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of the three timelines available in English (Early years, Zenith, and Twilight) I find the Early Years hardest to jump back into. Zenith is the most outwardly funny/zany. Twilight I find most inventive. Early years is the darkest. That said, once I’m in the world I’m entirely absorbed and invested.