I liked what I read of this but this volume was too short, maybe the length of an American comic. It's mainly about some gangsters running hidden poker machines in France. But it's also about some birds that aren't migrating. I'm curious about where this heads and may check out more in the future.

This isn't your typical Franco-Belgian art and has a bit of improvisation and spontaneity with sketchy lines that don't portray a lot of detail. This gives it more of a noble art feel than your typical comic book.

Against the backdrop of an alternate present day France (a world in which Algerian independence happened a decade and a half later than in reality), is an introduction that sets up a combination of Sci-Fi nuclear robots interwoven with a gritty and realistic gangster story. There isn't a story-arc in the book, so it doesn't function as a single episode of a larger story - it's pure background-building.

The translation (by Edward Gauvin, who has done the translation work on many of Europe Comics BD localizations) is smoothly done, which isn't always an easy task on a book with this tone. The art (which is well done and wonderfully detailed) may be a harder sell for some audiences, purely because this particular style (common for French crime books) is more commonly used in caricatures in the English market.

The first chapter of the first part of Last of the Atlases provides a curious making introduction to some of the characters and the very early beginnings of a mystery and maybe a crime (?). I was able to read a little further on the site of the French publisher (up to and including page 47) and therefore had the opportunity to learn a bit more about the story and especially about the mystery surrounding the birds and insects.
But, all in all, not enough to be able to form a judgment about. All I can say about what I could read is: it is probably a intriguing and well told story. And what I saw was excellent: great colors, beautiful bold drawings, and really, really great faces. I’ll certainly plan to check out the whole trilogy of Last of the Atalases.

Possibly an OK start to a series, with gangsters leaning on small-time cafes and using antique gaming consoles to rake in some money, until something else turns up – only for it to stop. With 30pp of this actually being the story this is an episode, a monthly issue, and not a book. Certainly the blurb mentions a host of plot strands that haven't even been reached yet. So with no idea of how many further episodes are to come, or what it'll concern and how good it'll be, this is hard to recommend. Ditch the FOMO attitude, and wait til this is complete before diving in.

'Last of the Atlases' by Fabien Vehlmann & Gwen de Bonneval with art by Hervé Tanquerelle & Frédéric Blanchard is a really short graphic novel, so it's a bit hard to review, but I liked what I read and saw.

The story is about gangs running a street and shaking down vendors for protection money. The time frame is a bit rough to pin down, but there are arcade games that double as slot machines and the hint of a giant construction robot.

It's hard to tell what this is about in just a few pages, but I did like what I saw. The art has a cool quality to it. The story is just a hint of what it's probably about. I'd be interested in reading more.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

This was a brief but enjoyable comic book/graphic novel, likely aimed at older readers — lots of striking images.

Europe comics bring a world of different culture and tradition to the reader through their various projects. I always look to see what is available. Many cover several episodes and so it is usually the first instalments I am reading.
Also best to start at the beginning right; often though you can be left hanging, making a review difficult to gauge. Bit like a first date - will he call or text me again.
For Last of the Atlases (Chapter1) you get a mere taster and it is really hard to make a judgement on where things are going and if it will hold your interest.
Set in a criminal world of petty enforcement around gaming machines tension is created. A mystery has also been introduced around bird migration perhaps irreversibly changed due to global warming.
It has a tough broody feel with tense dialogue but little is made clear in this first chapter to make an informed review.
Sufficient perhaps just to say I’d like to read more and the range of topics and the location makes for an interesting story to be revealed.
There is a talented team producing this graphic novel, across its script and art illustration that it appears to have real potential.