Valerian and Laureline’s ship has crash-landed on an uncharted planetoid. The two castaways quickly discover a vast ship cemetery, leading them to believe that their arrival was not an accident. Before long, they make contact with a population whose sole purpose seems to be to gather and produce food for a mysterious “Master.” The Terran agents aren’t going to be turned into slaves easily, but the Master enforces his will through his terrible agents: the Birds of Madness...

The most terrifying birds since Alfred Hitchcock's! Valerian and Laureline's ship has crash-landed on an uncharted planetoid. The two castaways quickly discover a vast ship cemetery, leading them to believe that their arrival was not an accident. Before long, they make contact with a population whose sole purpose seems to be to gather and produce food for a mysterious "Master." The Terran agents aren't going to be turned into slaves easily, but the Master enforces his will through his terrible agents: the Birds of Madness...

In this book you will find volumes 3 to 5: The Land Without Stars, Welcome to Alflolol and Birds of the Master – three stories that introduce the societal criticism aspect of the series. Battle of the sexes, totalitarianism and extreme productivism are lambasted, but never at the expense of fantasy or of the action. And as they travel from world to distant world, Laureline becomes a truly equal partner, far from the stereotypical female sidekick roles of the time. Finally, the second part of the exclusive interview with the authors and director Luc Besson is followed by an in-depth portrait of Pierre Christin, the writer.

"Valerian on the big screen ? I blame it all on Jean-Claude Mézières and Pierre Christin ! When I was ten, every week I'd read the adventures of Valerian in Pilote... And I have to confess that I was very much in love with Laureline, even though I quite liked Valerian. It'd be great if the film could make as strong and long-lasting an impression on its viewers." Luc Besson (from his interview with J. C. Mézières and P Christin) Born out of the Wild imagination of Pierre Christin and Jean-Claude Mézières, the characters of Valerian and Laureline first appeared in the pages of Pilote in 1967. Through its creativity and daring, the series quickly became the definitive reference for all readers of science-fiction bandes dessinées.

."..Valerian and his beautiful, sharp-witted and sharp-tongued partner, Laureline, live adventures set against visually stunning backgrounds: complex architectural inventions, futuristic machines, otherworldly landscapes, and odd-looking aliens..."--Amazon.com.

Point Central is a multicultural space station that serves as a sort of United Nations to the galaxy. Tasked with protecting the new ambassador from Earth, Valerian is kidnapped alongside his charge in a lightning commando attack. It's up to Laureline to do all the heavy lifting and slog through the seedy bowels of the station as she tries to locate and rescue them - and figure out who kidnapped them and why.