Member Reviews
Aldo may be immortal but no one believes him. Or he may just be a crackpot. I found this too out there and often unclear about what was happening. There's some inventive uses of paneling and layout but I didn't care for the art very much at all.
It was a beautiful story about the tragedy of the human mind. I really like the twist at the end. It was beautifully done. The art was interesting and it fits the atmosphere of the story.
This comic sends a powerful and sad message to the reader. It offers an important life message.
The aspect of somebody lost in their own mind and puzzled by the perceptions of what they think they are meant to do versus the actual world they live in has long been a matter of discussion. The conflict within the story of “Aldo” [Yannick Penegrin/Europe Comics/81pgs] is what and when the lead character actually thinks he is. The author seemingly wants you to believe his story but the context of time and place to this character might be the exact same thing. Aldo thinks that he is immortal but he says he cannot tell the truth (or he can’t be honest as he says to his shrink). In that context, everything he says is therefore a lie. Despite this setback, Aldo does seem to be a very empathetic character if not a tad passive. He paces a lot and retraces his steps with a sense of ADD but he is never vengeful about it. His tenderness towards the dog he is babysitting shows that yet his father who is a senile and yet not has the same digs as him. As Aldo ventures to see a man in Washington DC that he also believes has been alive for 200 years, his delusion becomes more complete. He, of course, is the patient but ultimately this is his affliction denial or is just simply his lack of attention. The art compared with the story seems to focus on the minutae but also the balance of how time feels. “Aldo” is an interesting exercise but begs comparison to the actual meaning it is meant to show.
C
By Tim Wassberg
Aldo, hmm, not sure what to make of this. It’s an interesting journey into the mind of someone who tells us he is immortal, and the art is intriguing, but not interesting or intriguing enough to really keep me hooked.
It never really gets going, and ends suddenly and unsurprisingly. My main concern was that he’d left his dog shut up in his appartment, and I was more concerned to know what happened to the dog than what happened to Aldo.
Didn’t really work for me. Sorry.
This is an odd sort of duck. Aldo believes he is immortal. He has no one who will believe him, other than his friend, Oscar.
We keep seeing memories, or perhaps realities. It is hard to say. Either Aldo drives an Alpha Romero, or he did at one time, and it was destroyed in a fiery crash.
The art and story jump around like a medieval paining, where the people are seeing in different parts of the screen to show that there is movement in a painting.
<img src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Screen-Shot-2019-01-28-at-11.38.21-PM.png" alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-4930" />
In the end, what is sanity? What is memory? And what happened to the dog?
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
Have you ever been left so confused that you cannot just comprehend what you just read? This is the case with this graphic novel. The idea of immortality and trying to find some answers as to why interested me. I thought the story would be different and worth reading. I have seen reviews naming this a great graphic novel with a story. Why does it seem that I am one of the few that couldn't just get it?
From the first page, I was left confused and I couldn't understand what was going on. There were times where I had to take a couple of minutes wondering if it was still in the same time period or if it was some flashback. In a graphic novel with just a simple idea, a simple story, I think the approach of it somehow went wrong for me. Clearly it isn't a big program, but just for me.
A very accomplished exercise in pulling the rug out from under the reader. When our narrator complains of his immortality, with its attendant friendlessness, lack of social skills and so on, we feel sympathy for him. But should we? He seems able to fly across the Atlantic without buying an airline ticket, for one, and to always find a taxi. Lovely artwork that really suits the book with its unshowiness, and a short script all told, make this one to delve into at least once. Recommended – a strong four stars,
A strange and sometimes disjointed storyline but the art was a redeeming feature. The author/artist creates scenes that span multiple frames which is an unusual trait but I really liked it and it gave the art more fluidity.
The story itself was hard to follow at times and I’m still a little baffled by its conclusion but I would definitely look to explore titles by Yannick Pelegrin again.
I really loved the style of this graphic novel, the interesting art and lovely colour pallet really added to the story. So did the layout of the panels,which really gave a unique flow to the characters movements. Sadly I was a little let down by the story, Slow at times and confusing at others. I could sense the message that was trying to be put across but feel the format of reading on my phone made it pass me by. I'd give it a reread though!
*A copy of Aldo was provided by Netgalley in return for an honest review.*
Aldo is a book that requires some thought to understand it. It makes a little more sense the second time reading it and some scenes are required to be read more than a couple of times.
In terms of the story line, I like how the writer is able to make the readers relate to Aldo’s confusion of his immortality. The story revolves around Aldo and he is rarely seen having a conversation with someone else which reflects his loneliness really well. However, it does get confusing at times since the narratives were unclear.
I really like the art style and the colours Pelegrin used. I like the contrast in colour, the red and green tones were very consistent in this work and it highlights which part the readers should focus on. The style also accentuates the sadness and confusion Aldo feels.
This review was first published on https://skavansieur.home.blog/
Despite the truly beautiful art work and tantalising concept, the cop-out ending left me feeling like this graphic novel didn't deliver on its gorgeous premise.
Book depicts mental turmoil of Aldo, who suffers every moment, every day in every possible manner. His mind doesn't sleep and he thinks he has lived for centuries and all his relatives are long dead.
He likes his car and his dog, who give him some moments of happiness.
I am very happy with illustrations, use of shades, depiction of night, car movements and depiction of thought process of Aldo.
But story can be difficult to grasp fully.
You don't know till it ends. Captions are nice and not overstretched.
Different sort of graphic novel with excellent art and little difficult story.
Thanks netgalley and author for e copy for honest review.
WOW this is a dark comic but amazing. I wasn't understanding in the beggining but then all made sense.
I am speechless. It was amazing and I would love to read more about Aldo.
The graphics are very well done, I would just like to see the letters a bit better. However, in paper format it must be way better
I thought this graphic novel was quirky and had an interesting character who is supposedly immortal. It was a bit confusing for me, but I'm not used to this reading format where storylines are more condensed. The artwork did a wonderful job of showing you the story. It really amazes me the creativity that goes into graphic storytelling such as this one.
I loved the fluidity of the art style that carried into it's narrative. We follow a man called Aldo who believes been immortal for 300 year. One day he sees a man on TV who he had last seen 100 years ago and he went to search for answers.
His loneliness is sad to read about but what's even sadder is what happens to him and I love how the ending isn't 'explained' but left to decipher by your own comprehension and how his anxiousness/depression was potrayed. Without words but through silent blocks of art. I loved it.
I didn't see the plot twist coming but it didn't surprise me but again it's one of my absolute favorite kind of plot twist. I hope Europe Comics keep publishing awesome stories like this one.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC to read and review.
The artwork and flow of the narrative on the pages was amazing. But I couldn't quite grasp the narrative or the concept the author was trying to convey.
It starts out with Aldo in a therapist's office and the reader comes to find out from Aldo that he is immortal. But from there, basically, I didn't follow the story. I wish I did because the artwork was impactful.
Thank you NetGalley and publisher, Europe Comics, for the opportunity to read this ARC.
2.5/5
Aldo may be immortal. He’s been roaming the earth for 300 years. He believes he is the only one of his kind until he recognises a man that should have been dead a long time ago. Aldo sets out to get answers on his life.
A quirky artwork matches the strange story, but I didn‘t like it. Pelegrin plays with the rules with his fluid art and unusual reading layout. The storyline offers a good final twist and feels rather depressing.
Overall, an ok read.
Aldo is a 200 year old immortal who has done absolutely nothing with his life, and found the need to attempt a confession to a psychiatrist. As the story languidly unfurls, Aldo spots a man on TV that he knew from the 18th Century and sets off to find him.
This is a case of a graphic novel setting out to be different, and succeeds. The writing was wonderful. The artwork is a huge part of the storytelling and the story came with a twist in the last pages. I'm shook, y'all. This is the best thing I've read this week.
ARC courtesy of NetGalley.
I legitimately have no idea what I just read.
It starts out with the story of a guy who claims to be immortal and then it just becomes like a weird trippy nightmare daydream scenario that makes no sense.
Aldo was an enjoyable read. The art style is very interesting and suits the concepts explored. I really liked how it explored immortality and had a bit of humor too. The plot twist at the end was really surprising and made me rethink all the events that had happened prior in the novel in a new light, and was something that made me enjoy Aldo more.