A science fiction saga first translated into English in 2002 has been reprinted by IDW. The Invisible Frontier is a stark, paranoic paramble into the world of mapmaking and intrigue.
It’s an unusual premise, to be sure. Roland de Cramer, (he of the Cremer map-making family!) has just been assigned to the Centre of Cartography in a secluded place in the desert. He has to find his way there, ironically without a map or consistent mentor. The sands of politics are already shifting under Ronald’s feet, as he rights himself to pursue his passion: making accurate maps. His dream job becomes a Kafka-esque nightmare.
Writer Benoit Peeters weaves and charts a crooked course for the reader. There is a lot to ‘unpack’ here in The Invisible Frontier: complex character names, the dense political milieu, the strange prostitute with the map tattooed on her back. The intermingling of the facts and naked human figures tends to overshadow and camouflage the undercurrent of anxiety in this story. But sure enough, the tension increases at a steady clip.
Artist Francois Schuiten provides arrid, breathless scenarios, with wonderfully imaginative vistas, flying machines, and world-building. It’s marvellous to look at, to admire the carefully hand-drawn faces and figures while we figure out what is transpiring. The visuals are quiet, detailed, and fully coloured, reminding the reader of Moebius, the ultra-visionary late French artist. Or perhaps Logan! Edward Gauvin translates, and Amauri Osorio letters.
Ultimately, The Invisible Frontier, one of The Obscure Cities series, has a very strong start, a complex and dense narrative, but lets the reader down with a plunk, just when we are rooting for the characters. Until then, it’s hopeful romance, escapist adventure, active rebellion. But then it stalls, the wind subsides, the gate comes down on the narrative. So sad, this final gust of dry sand, covering up the fine mechanisms, a spanner in the works.
IDW, The Invisible Frontier, $24.99 for 138 pages. Science fiction/Steampunk influences.
Newsdesk