Graphic Films Collection - Aelita - Queen of Mars – act 1

Graphic novel in three volumes with over 300 pages. Aelita, Queen of Mars, is a 1924 Soviet silent science fiction film directed by Yakov Protazanov. It was based on the 1923 novel of the same name by Alexei Tolstoy. The story begins in Moscow in 1921, when a mysterious message—"Anta Odeli Uta"—is received by several stations. It is humorously assumed to have come from Mars, which intrigues the engineer Loss, obsessed with the idea of traveling to the red planet. On Mars, there is an authoritarian civilization, where Queen Aelita rules alongside the cruel Tuskub, keeping the underground slaves frozen when they are not useful. On Earth, Loss's jealousy of his wife Natasha and the involvement of a rogue officer, Erlikh, lead him to believe she is cheating on him. In a fit of rage, Loss shoots Natasha and flees, disguised, to Mars in his rocket, accompanied by Gusev, a former soldier. On the planet, they are captured. Aelita falls in love with Loss, who mistakes her for Natasha. Gusev incites the slaves to revolt, inspired by the revolution in Russia. Aelita leads the uprising, but later betrays the workers to seize power alone. Suddenly, back on Earth, a surprising turn of events unfolds...