When I recently finished reading another book in this series, U4 - Koridwen, I was unaware that this series bas based on a French novel series of the same name. Now that I've started reading these graphic novels from Europe Comics, I would love for the opportunity to read a translation of the original books if the quality is at least on par with these graphic novels. Sadly, it does not appear that such translations are available in English. As I stated before, this series is made up of four "main" books, each one telling the story of one of the principal characters, all leading to a convergence where a final fifth book is supposed to be read. While Koridwen was the tale of a modern day druid of sorts, this book sets up the path of a version of a warrior, all fitting in with the story's theme of these kids being players of a popular MMORPG called Warriors of Time and using their skills to become real life versions of those classes when the world needs them.

While the previous book showed the virus's impact on rural French life, this book concentrates on the character of Jules, who shows up towards the end of Koridwen's story. Jules live in Paris already (whereas Koridwen had to travel there) and had a first hand look at the aftermath of a virus that has seemingly devastated the entire country. This volume has WAY more information on what's actually going on - including the fact that U4 is the name of the virus, where it started, it's survivability rate etc. It is said that the virus has targeted adults, leaving mostly teenagers to fend for themselves in a world devolving into utter chaos around them. It honestly would have probably been better to read this volume before the one I actually did, but I kind of like the innocence in not really knowing anything as Koridwen had. That's one cool thing about this, nobody will likely have the exact same experience regarding this story due to the nature of how it's presented with the concurrently running volumes that you can read in any order.

One of the more interesting parts of this was Jules having to suddenly care for a young toddler named Alicia that dubbed him "Diego" due to his resemblance to the character of the same name in the popular children's show Dora the Explorer. Things get tough at times, but having someone to care for matures Jules, and he goes more and more down his path of becoming a warrior as he now sees himself. With this new quest - trying to keep Alicia alive and possibly saving his brother from a drug addiction, he sets out to do the one and only thing he can think of - head to a certain meeting point where various masters of the aforementioned MMORPG are supposed to come together to "rewind time". This was a directive that the game's nebulous creator "Khronos" set forth right before the servers went offline. As insane as that sounds, and much to the dismay of others he tells this plan to, this possible time traveling scheme is all he has to he runs with it. Hope is better than nothing, I suppose.

I talked about how much I enjoyed the last story simply because of how "different" it felt compared to other works within the same post-apocalyptic fiction genre. It feels fresh and timely with its references to videogames and the like, without immediately dating itself. I am excited to eventually try to read more of this if the opportunity presents itself, and as such I'd like to do more reviews. So far, this has been one of my favorite titles for the year, and hope that it keeps up - there would be nothing worse than having this turn out to have a bad ending or something!

U4 - Jules by Pierre-Paul Renders
Publication date: January 7, 2022 (originally published in French)

Date read: April 26, 2022



A virus has wiped out almost everyone on Earth, leaving only teenagers left. No one knows why. Jules is left alone, except for a drug-addicted brother who he never sees anyway. That, and a message he got before the internet went down, to meet someone named Khronos and try to save the world.

There are four volumes of this comic - Jules, Koridwen, Stephane, and Yannis - that can be read in any order. The conclusion - supposedly called Khronos - should be read only after reading the first four. *I say “supposedly”, because it looks like it was called Contagion in the French release…

…Which brings us to the only issue with this series: only Jules is currently available in English. Hopefully if this issue is a success, the publisher will release the others soon. Fingers crossed.

This is an excellent post-apocalyptic comic. I liked seeing a mostly teen world, just for the sake of seeing what would happen. Had a very Lord of the Flies vibe - not because of the outcome (no spoilers here), but just the general tone.

Jules was a wonderful character to start with. He’s incredibly likable and also relatable. I see a lot of people acting just like he does in this type of hypothetical scenario. I thought a lot of the other characters that we meet along the way are also pretty well-developed and - important in the case of a comic - easily distinguishable.

Which also brings me to the artwork, which I thought was great. My initial impression was that it was a little simple, but as it went on, I came to absolutely love it. The details were there just where they needed to be. All of the characters were easy to tell apart, and I thought that the characters were really expressive. I don’t know if the same artist drew the French editions, but I really like the artwork done here.

As long as the whole set of comics are eventually released in English, then I highly recommend this one. I add this stipulation, because if this ends up being a standalone comic, it will not work and be incredibly frustrating, since it does end on a cliffhanger. Also, while I obviously haven’t read the others, I think that Jules seems like a great starting point, just due to his character. Really enjoyed this one, and I will definitely pick up the other issues when they are released in English.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Trigger warning: mass death, pandemic, images of corpses, kidnapping, murder, threatening a child, rape (mentioned), suicide (mentioned), death of a family member, drug use (mentioned)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I was only able to read the first section of this book due to my own lack of scheduling prowess. I really liked both the drawing style and the writing, and am looking forward to reading the rest when the book is released.

Well, this looked a distinctive set-up, at least, so let's start with that as the obvious place. Four different European writers of young fantasy collaborated on a series of books, each doing their own thing with their own sets of characters, and then doing what the French wikipedia page says is a 'spin-off' fifth volume, being a bundle of short stories that expand the world. However these new graphic novel versions, rushed to the English translation market at a rate of one a month (no slacking allowed, it seems, as they only came out en masse in the original in January 2022) have not only retitled the fifth book, but seem to imply it's the conclusion of all the stories. So things would appear to have switched from being four stand-alones and one set of 'DVD extras', to being four prequels leading to one big shebang. Now, as much as I can trust wiki pages (and heck, it has to be said, Europe Comics), that's a big change-around.

But more important, perhaps, is that on my first evidence of all this I can see why it could seriously matter to people.

Things aren't perfect here, it has to be said – we're stuck in a Paris where practically only teenagers and the military have survived Covid (sorry, U4, a zombifying kind of death virus). Our lead, Jules, switches up from being a solitary survivor to being a part of a gang with all the relevant military and medical skills to keep them feasible in this dog-eat-man world. But Jules has one more task he feels he must do – beyond just survive – for he caught one of the last messages online before the Internet died, saying that the head honcho of his favourite time-bending online combat game will actually be leading a gang of players in turning back time for real, and resetting the universe.

Now, we've seen a lot of this content before – the tower block siege, the need for crazy rescue missions, the unrealism of the kids involved – but this is a light, quickly-read take on it all that will offend nobody. To me the jury was out on the whole element of the game, being of importance, then set aside, then being ramped up just in time for the mahoosive cliffhanger that ends this book. I suspect/hope the other stories get a greater handle on the time travel aspects, but have no way of finding out, especially as the flaws here may be doe to the original prose novel or the much shorter adaptation, and for the fact the rendezvous is so far in the future still when we close.

But for some reason, as contrast to all my reviews where I say "I can't judge this first book perfectly before reading all the rest of the series to come", here I felt much more wanting to say "I can judge this as a great launch-place, because I am left with no way of knowing what will come". It feels daft of me to rate this highly just because I like the publishing structure, and the way the franchise has been constructed. But I repeat, this was a perfectly serviceable "One of Four Part Ones", that gave me enough enjoyment to want to enthuse about the rest alongside it. There is more than a frisson of intrigue at seeing how everything works together.

His name is Jules. From the window of his Paris apartment, He can see the horror of the piles of bodies in the street below. Most of the world has died from an epidemic called U4, a plague that for some reason does not kill teens. After not seeing anyone alive for months, he finds a little girl who somehow escaped the virus and is all alone. He becomes her protector, her brother while he tries to join the other Warriors of Time masters.

I'm not ready for the flood of pandemic novels and comics that are beginning to flood the market but I am still drawn to read them, to share a version of the past few years that could have been our truth.

The bodies in the street, the government keeping any available supplies for themselves as they try to round up any survivors. It's brutal, violent, and has just that taste of helplessness we are all familiar with. And that spark of hope that is so hard to see, but abe if at least one believes there is hope they may not only survive but fix it all.

Another from Europe Comics, a publisher that is become my ultimate go-to when looking for intelligent graphic novels.

There are 4 stories in this series, each a separate book that can be read in any order. I highly recommend you give at least one of them a try and see if you can't reach for the rest of the story.

Thanks to @netgalley, Europe Comics, by Pierre-Paul Renders & Denis Lapière, and art by Adrián Huelva for the opportunity to read this eArc in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This is a great graphic novel for lovers of apocalyptic reflections. With only teenagers left in the world after a pandemic sweeps through. Taking his life in his hands in the search for food, Jules imagines himself the lead character in his favourite online game. Jules' main goal is to remain hidden until the day comes to meet with Khronos - the master of the game.

U4: 1. Jules by Pierre-Paul Renders & Denis Lapière

Sci-Fi, YA

Book 1 of a graphic novel series about surviving after a epidemic. A virus breakout kills 90% of the planet, only teenagers, few children and few adults survive. What’s left of the adults organise safe spaces for civilians where they offer medical care and safety. The surviving teenagers form organisations to keep themselves safe, distrusting the government. Set in Paris in modern times.

Read as an eARC on NetGalley. I think this graphic novel is appropriate for teenagers and up. I really enjoyed reading this, it took me 1hr and 5mins to read. I really enjoyed the storyline and I like most of the characters.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy films such as “28 days later” (without the zombies) and “The Maze Runner”.

TW/CWs:
- Corpses (graphic)
- Virus
- Vomit
- Drugs (mentions)
- Violence (guns, knives)
- Blood
- Death
- Animal death
- Child sacrifice (attempted)
- Fire
- Rape (gang)
- Suicide
- Murder
- War
- Addiction (drugs)
- Cussing
- Nudity

This is interesting. There is clearly more to this then this book in the series gives. The story gives a good foundation; enough that I know what is going on but no enough to know what is happening next. The art is different and it is growing on me.

We follow Jules in the mist of a pandemic. One that has killed all the adults and most kids in the city. All that remain is the teens now the teen gangs run the street with the miltary watching over head. With slow twisting turns that makes you follow closely behind. The characters are a little flat, we only have 150 pages to get to know Jules I hope the other books give us more. The plot was slow and kids not going anywhere for most of the book but at the end. It intrigue me enough to want to continue the series once it comes out. Plus now that I've read Jules. I see that I can read the next 3 in any order which is cool. This is very unique and I haven't seen this before.

This was a great read and a well paced, engaging graphic novel.

A pandemic has killed the majority of adults and dead bodies lie in the streets of Paris. Jules, a teenager, is managing to survive on his own by raiding local supermarkets. His brother keeps dosing himself up on drugs and his parents are probably dead. On one of his foraging attempts he meets some of the students who were at his college and he decides to join them. Jules has also found a young girl in an abandoned building and he knows the two of them stand a better chance of survival with his group of friends.

Jules joins the group and learns how to handle weapons in order to keep the group safe from the army and safe from other gangs and weird people, but Jules hasn’t told his new friends everything. He hasn’t told them about a message he received saying that someone in his gaming community can turn back time and Jules wants to know if this is true.

I did enjoy reading this. Having gone through the past two years, this reminds the reader of the early days of the pandemic and the fact that we don’t always control our environment. In this story the virus outbreak is truly lethal, killing the majority of people.

The story is gripping with a frisson of danger. The artwork is good with the colouring showing the drab streets of Paris and darkness. This story is also in four parts told from the perspective of other young people. This is a gripping story with great characters, and I shall definitely read the other books in the series.

Copy provided by Europe Comics in exchange for an unbiased review.

I wasn’t really sure what I was getting myself into when I picked up this comic, but the synopsis intrigued me enough! I liked the dystopian setting, but the art style felt a bit childish for the kind of dark vibe the graphic novel was trying to give off which made the experience of reading it a bit odd. I also liked Jules as a main character (him being obsessed with video games!) and I thought his relationship with Alicia was pretty cute. Sadly I didn’t really care about the other characters, so the later part of the book got a bit boring. I do like the idea of not having to read these graphic novels in any particular order before reading the last installment. Feels really unique!

I really liked this. Good storyline and very clear graphics. I would like to read the others! Reviewed on goodreads as well.

<b>Storyline</b>:

A pandemic has killed 90% of the population, with teenagers being the most likely to survive the U4 virus. Before the internet and power went out, a mysterious message went out on World of Warriors, an online game, signed by Grand Master Khronos. This message raises the possibility of rectifying the world situation via time travel, and requests a meeting with the players at a designated spot.

Survival is difficult when most of the world around you is either fighting for resources or trying to build influence in a newly destabilised world ... Even for those of us exhausted by COVID and pandemic mentions, this has been an interesting read!

<b>Characters</b>: This volume follows Jules, a teenager from Paris. He was a player of WOT and received the message by Khronos. His brother becomes addicted to drugs, and he is left to fend for himself. <spoiler>He finds a young girl who he adopts as a younger sister, and they join some former classmates for safety in numbers. </spoiler>

<b>Art style</b>: The art style is good, some of the writing was slightly difficult to read due to the chosen font but a simple zoom rectified that. The whole thing was in colour, as opposed to black-and-white manga strips. I will admit the art style took some getting used to as I am used to Japanese manga drawings, but it grew on me throughout this volume.

<b>Note</b> This comic should be read left to right. Four volumes (Jules, Yannis, Stephanie and Koridwen) can be read in any order, but the last book in the series has to be Khronos, the fifth volume which ties things together. This is my first volume and as such I can't comment on the whole story, only the 1/5 of it I have read.

<b>TW</b>: pandemic, death, rape mention (nothing shown!), addiction/drugs, torture (referenced not shown)

<i>I received a complimentary copy from <b>Europe Comics</b> via <b>NetGalley</b> in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

U4 by Pierre-Paul Renders, Denis Lapière, and Adrián Huelva is a sci-fi/horror graphic novel that will appeal to fans of The Walking Dead or Scott Westerfield's sci-fi novels. The story revolves around Jules, who is surviving a virus devastating the streets of Paris. One day while exploring, he discovers Alicia, a little orphan girl all by herself. According to the description, his "only hope is to join the other Warriors of Time masters." Will Jules succeed in his quest of joining the group?

Overall, U4 is a graphic novel that will appeal to the sci-fi/horror fan in your life. One highlight of this book are the vibrant colors, which really contrasted with the dark nature of the story. The art made me want to keep reading. I took off 3 stars, because I didn't really enjoy the story though. I'm not really a fan of zombie apocalypse stories. Even though this story was more than that, I found it a bit too dark for what I'm wanting to read right now. I'm sure this book will appeal to others though. If you're intrigued by the description, you can check out this book, which is available now.

*Huge thanks to ‘Europe Comics’ and ‘Netgalley’ for providing me with an ebook for Review*
After reading ‘The Wolf queen’ from Europe comics I was keen to read more of their releases.

The first one I found was this U4. A post-apocalyptic Pandemic story set in Paris…Yes please! These comic books are based on a French-language series called U4 by multiple authors.

The story kicks off immediately with everyone dead due to a pandemic that only leaves teenagers alive. This book follows ‘Jules’ and his fight for survival. As a fan of the genre, I was immediately drawn into his plight and enjoyed everywhere his story took us. I liked the video game aspects and it's something that makes me wonder where the story will end.

As soon as I finished, I wanted more. I found the series is going to follow multiple characters and culminate in a joint character book. Very cool. I’ll be reading these as soon as they are available.

My review can be found on Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/26094184-cadguycad

He leído la saga y la verdad que es increíble 🤯 Cuando ví que saldría un cómic definitivamente tenía que leerlo porque es mi personaje favorito.
Sin lugar a dudas no me decepcionó y ya quiero que salga paga comprarlo en físico!!

this was very odd, but i think i liked it? the story was great, but i didn't really love the illustration style, to be honest. i think it was fun, but also explored some difficult themes. overall, it was pretty good!