Asterix Marathon #30 - Asterix and Obelix All at Sea

I wonder if Kirk Douglas is fan of the comics...

Admiral Crustacius has managed to lose possession of Julius Caesar's personal galley, after the slaves manning the oars staged a mutiny. Under the leadership of the impressively-dimpled Spartakis the Greek, the mutineers travel to Armorica to seek asylum in The Indomitable Village. Meanwhile, Obelix gives in to his curiosity and drinks a second cauldron of magic potion, which turns him to stone. Getafix's attempts to counteract the effects successfully revive him, but also turn him into a child. Unable to adjust, the young Obelix is captured by the Romans, who seek to use him as a bargaining chip in a bid to hand over Caesar's galley. Asterix and Getafix set out after Crustacius with the mutineers and rescue their friend. In a bid to restore him to normal, they sail on to Atlantis, the people of which inhabit what is believed to be the Canary Islands.

Personally, I love this story. It explores one of the biggest what-ifs of the series. It's established that Obelix fell into the cauldron of magic potion when he was a baby, and as a result is has a permanent effect on him. This also means Getafix refuses to give him any more whenever he doles out the potion, as he fears the side effects. It's when they have a fight with the Romans and notice that Obelix isn't with them that they realise something's amiss.

This surpasses Asterix and the Cauldron as one of the most serious stories in the series. We're treated to panels of Asterix maintaining an all-night vigil at Obelix's side while Getafix tries to brew an antidote, and he starts expressing self-doubt. Even after Obelix is revived, it doesn't let up. He can only manage a single boar in one sitting, and he can't lift menhirs or bash the Romans like he's used to. He's lost the ability to indulge in his greatest pleasures, and his failure to accept this results in his capture.

Meanwhile, the pirates get a bigger role in this story, rather than a throwaway gag. They get sunk by our heroes when they go after Crustacius, but then there's a ship swap after Obelix is rescued. Our heroes take over the admiral's galley, while the pirates take Caesar's galley back to Rome to hold for a ransom, along with Crustacius and his vice-admiral Nautilus. And because our heroes left their barrel of magic potion on the galley, there's a great pay-off to that subplot.

So, it's a good story, but it lacks the humour of the series and is also quite depressing.

Asterix Marathon #29 - Asterix and the Secret Weapon

I get the feeling that Uderzo had some strong views about feminism. Maybe he wanted to try and emulate Goscinny's talent for satire. Maybe he was pressured by the fans to try and develop the female characters. One thing leads to another, and I don't think this one really paid off.

The women of The Indomitable Village have called to replace Cacofonix as the schoolteacher, prompting him to leave. Not long afterwards, his replacement arrives; a female bard from Lutetia named Bravura. Not long after her arrival, she begins holding classes for the women, and her teachings start to develop rifts between them and their husbands. Meanwhile, the Roman agent Manlius Claphamomnibus is sent to Gaul with the eponymous secret weapon; an all-female unit of legionaries, taking advantage of Gaulish gallantry in that they will never fight a woman.

Not very secret, I know. A lot of the humour in this one simply revolves around gender stereotypes. Those kind of jokes you could get away with in the Nineties, when this album was published, but they haven't aged well. As for the story, it borrows a lot of elements from Asterix and Caesar's Gift, with an outsider prompting a leadership challenge in the village.

My main issue with this one is Bravura. She's what you might call a "straw feminist" who believes in gender superiority rather than gender equality, and merely exists to be proven wrong. She influences the village women to essentially take over, and make Impedimenta the chieftain, which results in Vitalstastix leading an exodus into the forests. She also makes some rather questionable advances on Asterix.

Now, to be fair, there are some moments which still make me laugh, cringe-inducing as this particular comic turned out to be. The women of the village set up a shopping mall to defeat the secret weapon, and Claphamomnibus tries to recruit the standing garrisons. Because Obelix feels sidelined, Asterix encourages him to follow the agent, so he can single-handedly clobber the garrison at Aquarium. After they're leaving, Asterix makes a comment about his friend not flattening the camp completely, when someone sneezes and the fortifications collapse.

Sorry, this one wasn't really my cup of tea. I think Rick and Morty explored this kind of story a little better.

Asterix Marathon #28 - Asterix and the Magic Carpet

This album was actually my original introduction to the series, through an audio book narrated by Willie Rushton, the editor of the satirical magazine Private Eye and a regular on the radio panel show I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue until his death in 1996. For this one, Uderzo tried to introduce more of a fantasy element to the series, drawing influence from 1001 Arabian Nights, along with a French old wives' tale about bad music making it rain (no prizes for guessing who that's applied to).

Anyway, The Indomitable Village has been rebuilt following the events of Asterix and Son, and a banquet is being held in celebration, when Cacofonix causes a rainstorm while testing the acoustics of his new hut. His impromptu weather manipulation attracts the attention of a fakir called Watziznehm, who literally drops in during the banquet. This new visitor has travelled from a kingdom in the Ganges Valley in search of "a village of madmen where a voice makes rain", based on a story told to him by a Roman merchant and former legionary. He explains that they are experiencing a drought during what is supposed to be the rainy season, and there are fears of a famine. A sinister guru named Hoodunnit has decreed that if there is no rain by the end of the season, he will sacrifice Rajah Wotzit's daughter, Princess Orinjade to appease the gods (and pave the way for him to become Rajah). So, it's up to our heroes and Cacofonix to return with Watziznehm so the bard can coax the monsoon rains with his singing voice and foil the grand vizier's scheme.

Nostalgia aside, this one is something of a mixed bag. I do quite like the darker element to the story, with the characters trying to prevent the death of an innocent which paves the way for a power-grab (and brief reference to Iznogoud, another character created by Goscinny). However, a lot of the story feels like padding, with the three-week flying carpet journey to India being broken up with repeated stops mostly to appease Obelix's hunger. I feel for him, but it does make him kind of one-note in this particular story. On the other hand, it does add a source of tension, as Cacofonix resents the fact that they're always permitted to stop to eat, but he's not allowed to sing during the journey (for the obvious reasons).

That said, the padding does take an interesting turn once they arrive in India, when Cacofonix loses his voice. While undergoing treatment, he is kidnapped by Hoodunnit's men and left to die in an elephant's graveyard. To be perfectly honest, most of the padding is kind of necessary; so our heroes can arrive in the nick of time.

While I'm here, I'd like to mention something I discovered while reading into this one a bit more. The two stories we most commonly associate with 1001 Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and Aladdin, don't actually appear in the Arabic texts. The earliest known appearances are from a French version of the text from the 18th Century. This is purely speculative, but I'm wondering if Uderzo was exploring that.

Anyway, considering the heatwave we've been having, this story became surprisingly relevant in recent weeks. It has neat ideas and a great payoff, but the humour wasn't as great in this one.

Asterix Marathon #27 - Asterix and Son

Blimey, that was a sudden shift in tone. Also, this review will contain spoilers.

Asterix wakes up one morning to find a baby left on his doorstep. As most of the villagers begin to speculate that he's the father, he and Obelix reluctantly take the baby in. As they're not accustomed to childcare, our heroes attempt to investigate the baby's real parents, their only clue being embroidered linen wrappings which suggest he was from a wealthy Roman family. Their investigation soon attracts the attention of Crismus Cactus, the Prefect of Gaul, who is ostensibly conducting a census but is actually searching for a baby on the orders of Caesar's adopted son, Marcus Junius Brutus.

Most of the humour revolves the ineptitude of our heroes to take care of the baby, which descends into slapstick after the gourd Obelix uses to feed him is revealed to have contained some leftover magic potion. Soon, the baby is punching in doors and rattling cows. Alright, the animal cruelty might not sit well with modern audiences, but I still like Obelix's logic that because babies drink milk, he should borrow a cow.

While the overall premise sounds like your typical 1980s family comedy about action heroes having to take care of a baby, the story takes a really dark turn once Brutus enters the picture. He's appeared in previous albums, but only for a Shakespearean reference and foreshadowing jokes. But here, he's serving as a particularly nasty antagonist who is obsessed with finding the baby. After two failed attempts to send spies to The Indomitable Village to kidnap the baby (thanks to their target being under the influence of the magic potion), he launches an all-out attack, using ballistas to fire flaming bolts into the village to burn it to the ground. And while the men are fighting the Romans, Brutus sneaks off to the beach where Impedimenta is sheltering the women and children, and is able to take the baby away to a waiting pirate ship. The fact that the women weren't given any magic potion is bad enough, and Impedimenta is genuinely devastated at her failure to protect the baby when Asterix and Obelix realise what's happening.

Alright, I'm going to spoil it now. Asterix and Obelix rescue the baby and capture Brutus. Upon their return, they are met by Caesar, along with Cleopatra, who reveals that the baby is their son, Caesarion. While Caesar was campaigning in Germania, Brutus attempted to dispose of the child so he could become Caesar's sole heir. Cleopatra had Caesarion spirited away to The Indomitable Village, where she knew he would be safe.

So, Brutus is banished, Caesar offers to help rebuild the village, while Cleopatra hosts the traditional end-of-story banquet on her barge. But if you know your history, you'd know this happy ending won't last: Brutus would eventually kill Caesar, Caesarion would grow up to rule Egypt alongside his mother as Ptolemy XV, his mother would commit suicide, and then he would be killed on the orders of his distant cousin Octavian, who would go on to annex Egypt and become the first Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar. The last pharaoh would not live past seventeen.

This comic may not be as great as some of the other ones, but I do like the suspenseful tone it later adopts.

Asterix Marathon #26 - Asterix and the Black Gold

One thing which can be said about the Solo Period is that Uderzo's stories are a lot more experimental than Goscinny's. For example, his next piece ended up combining a biblical epic with a spy thriller.

Caesar is still reeling over his failure to conquer The Indomitable Village, and calls upon the aid of his spymaster Devius Surreptitius. The chief of MIVI has determined that the secrets of the druids are verbally passed down, and sends in a Gallo-Roman druid named Dubbelosix to obtain the recipe of the magic potion. Meanwhile, Getafix is eagerly awaiting the arrival of Phoenician merchant Ekonomikrisis (from Asterix the Gladiator) in the hopes of obtaining some rock oil, known in Latin as Petra Oleam (That's not a clever pun, it's the actual etymology). When the merchant doesn't have any, the druid has a stroke, and is cured by Dubbelosix. He then reveals that he needs the rock oil to make the magic potion, so Asterix and Obelix travel to Mesopotamia with Ekonomikrisis to find some. Dubbelosix also goes with them, planning to sabotage the mission.

The whole journey is essentially a series of incidents. The Romans blockade all the Mediterranean ports, so our heroes are taken to Judea, which is a Roman protectorate rather than a province. Because the garrison in Jerusalem is on alert, they spend the night in a stable in Bethlehem while waiting for some local traders to sneak them into the city. Once inside, they learn that the Romans have burned the local supplies of rock oil, so they have to trek through the Syrian Desert towards Babylon. In the process, they encounter numerous Mesopotamian peoples who mistake them for other Mesopotamian peoples they are fighting against, a satire on the contemporary conflicts in the Middle East. One of the main reasons for this setting was so Uderzo could pay tribute to Goscinny, who was Jewish. In fact, Goscinny himself makes an appearance in the form of Saul Ben Ephishul, who guides our heroes to the edge of the Syrian Desert.

Of course, he's not the only person who bears a certain resemblance. It's obvious that Dubbelosix is modelled after Sean Connery, and is an obvious reference to James Bond. He has a folding chariot with numerous hidden weapons, and relays information with a carrier fly who is attracted to him. Obvious reference or not, I think it's interesting that they made such a character as an antagonist.

My favourite joke involves Asterix and Obelix encountering the Sumerians in the desert who shoot arrows at them and then apologise for mistaking them for Akkadians, with Obelix saying his usual catchphrase. This is then repeated with the Akkadians, the Hittites, and the Assyrians. Asterix is thoroughly fed up at this point, asking the Assyrians who they were mistaken for, with the leader sheepishly answering that they're after the Medes. They then encounter the Medes, who are lost and ask them for the way out, with Asterix yelling "Nothing easier! Just follow the arrows!". I also love the scene before that, in which they pass the Dead Sea and Obelix decides he wants to go for a dip. There's also the underlying irony about people questioning the use of rock oil because of the nasty smell.

I think this is one of the strongest of the Uderzo stories so far, but I'm not too sure about the anti-climactic ending.

I'll be back tomorrow where I'll look at Asterix and Son and Asterix and the Magic Carpet. Somewhat appropriate, considering this recent heatwave we've been having.

Asterix Marathon #25 - Asterix and the Great Divide

After the death of Rene Goscinny, Albert Uderzo tried to keep Asterix going by doing the stories as well as the illustrations. The first album of the "Solo Period" was Asterix and the Great Divide, a Romeo and Juliet allusion published in 1980.

Another Gaulish village is suffering from a leadership dispute, and a giant ditch has been dug through the centre, a then-contemporary reference to the Berlin Wall. The left side of the village is ruled by the liberal chieftain Cleverdix, while the right is ruled by the more conservative Majestix. Amongst this, there is a star-crossed romance between Cleverdix's son Histrionix and Majestix's daughter Melodrama. However, Majestix's fishy adviser Codfix proposes to form an alliance with the Romans to help Majestix conquer the village in exchange for Melodrama's hand in marriage. Melodrama informs Histrionix, who is sent to The Indomitable Village by his father to seek out Vitalstatistix. Cleverdix's old comrade agrees to send Asterix, Obelix, and Getafix to the village to protect it from the Romans and help to resolve the dispute.

Uderzo later admitted that he wasn't sure about what direction to take the series in, and had borrowed a lot of elements for this one. Histrionix and Melodrama bear an uncanny resemblance to Panacea and Tragicomix from Asterix the Legionary, while Codfix's design makes him as subtle as Grima Wormtongue in The Two Towers.

That said, Codfix's schemes offer some interesting depth to the chieftains. To broker a deal, he takes advantage of labour shortages at the nearby fortified camp by offering Cleverdix's supporters as slaves. But when the Romans arrive at the village, Majestix refuses to let his rivals be enslaved, so he and his warriors are imprisoned. This would give Cleverdix control of the whole village, but he refuses to assert this.

Our heroes go to the camp to rescue the prisoners, offering themselves as slaves. When Obelix knocks out the sentry at the gate for calling him fat, Getafix uses an elixir which heals all wounds and makes the patient forget what happened to them. But he leaves it by the gates, which allows Codfix to make use of it after the prisoners are freed, healing the injured Romans and convincing them that the Gauls made an unprovoked attack. Again, I do give credit to Codfix's scheming, but I just don't see Getafix being that absent-minded.

All in all, I did enjoy this one, but I think it gets bogged down by certain things.

Asterix Marathon #24 - Asterix in Belgium

Well, we're coming to the end of the "Post-Protest Period" of Asterix, with the last story to be written by Rene Goscinny.

Asterix and Obelix notice that the Romans stationed at the fortified camps are unusually happy, and learn that after they have been fighting in Belgica, being posted to Armorica is akin to a rest cure. This was based on actual quote from Caesar, who said that the Belgae were the bravest of all the Gallic peoples he encountered during his campaigns. Anyway, this revelation hurts Vitalstatistix's pride, so he travels to Belgica with our heroes in tow. Encountering the jovial chieftains Beefix and Brawnix, he proposes a competition in which they attack the Roman fortified camps in the region to gain Caesar's attention.

Like Asterix and the Banquet and Asterix in Corsica, a lot of the humour revolves stereotypes which the French readers would be more familiar with than the international readers. One of the most notable references is a brief cameo by Thompson and Thomson from Hergé's Tintin comics. I've actually read that Hergé was not a fan of Asterix, which had surpassed Tintin as the foremost Franco-Belgian comic during the 1960s. There's also a minor character modelled after the cyclist Eddy Merckx, and Beefix's wife Bonanza was drawn to resemble actress and singer Annie Cordy.

To be honest, I think the Belgae seem a little overpowered. Unlike our Armorican friends, they don't have any magic potion, but are powered by really strong beer, a reference to the high alcohol content of some Belgian lagers. But that still kind of works for me, so it's not a glaring issue.

I think my favourite joke is a fourth wall breaking moment at the beginning when Vitalstatistix calls a village council meeting to discuss the Belgian matter. Obelix suggests that if there's nothing to really argue, they can tie up Cacofonix and start cooking the boars for the banquet held traditionally at the end of the story.

That said, there is one truly poignant moment I discovered while reading further into some of the content. A scene where it rains to reflect the Belgian weather was actually used by Uderzo to signify the point in the production where Goscinny died, and makes the skies overcast for the rest of the story. This later concludes with a rabbit looking mournfully at Goscinny's signature on the final panel.

But the show must go on. In a bid to keep the series alive, Uderzo began to write the comics as well as illustrate them. I'll begin to look at the "Solo Period" tomorrow.

Asterix Marathon #23 - Obelix & Co.

Out of all of Goscinny's more satirical stories, this has to be my favourite one.

It's Obelix's birthday, and Asterix lures the new garrison at Totorum to The Indomitable Village for him to clobber on his own. When word of this gets back to Caesar, he sends in Caius Preposterus, a graduate from the Latin School of Economics who had suggested "the profit motive", or a conquest through capitalism. Preposterus travels to Gaul and offers to buy the menhirs which Obelix carves and supplies. He later offers more money if Obelix can give him more menhirs, so Obelix begins paying the other villagers to carve menhirs and hunt boars, becoming one of the wealthiest and influential villagers in the process. When this starts to fuel resentment, Asterix makes a suggestion which results in Fulliautomatix, Unhygienix, and Geriatrix setting up their own menhir carving businesses. And they're employing villagers as carvers and hunters, so eventually the only people who aren't making money are Asterix, Getafix, and Vitalstatistix (whose shield-bearers have gotten new jobs). Meanwhile, Caesar now has a surplus of menhirs, so Prepostorus suggests they sell them to Roman patricians by marketing them as status symbols. But things get complicated when a Roman patrician starts undercutting costs by selling slave-carved menhirs.

One of the big running jokes in this album involves Preposterus explaining his plans to people in business terms, and then having to explain in whatever lies below "Lay Person's Terms". Which make frequent use of "heap". This is going along with the overarching theme of an economic system being applied to what are essentially big rocks. Even Getafix (who has been providing magic potion to all the villagers carving menhirs) mentions that he doesn't know what the menhirs are actually for. There's a particular scene when Prepostorus is explaining to Caesar his plan to sell the menhirs they've acquired. It's actually such an accurate depiction of business and marketing that it's being used in school textbooks on the subject.

With all that, I think my favourite joke has to be at the beginning when the villagers are trying to prepare Obelix's birthday surprise. Obelix begins to suspect something when he overhears Fulliautomatix talking about it to Unhygienix, who deflects attention by making a remark about the fish yet doesn't provoke a fight.

It's a pity that Asterix is not really involved in this particular story, but that's only a minor issue. After all, the album is called Obelix & Co. It's one of the best albums, and I might say it's required reading for anybody interested in studying business and economics.

This album was also the last story to be published during Goscinny's lifetime. The series writer died the following year, and his final story, Asterix in Belgium, was published posthumously in 1979.

Asterix Marathon #22 - Asterix and the Great Crossing

At this point in the series, this was the furthest distance our heroes travelled on an adventure abroad.

Another fish fight breaks out in The Indomitable Village after Vitalstatistix complains about his shield-bearers getting food poisoning, while Unhygienix protests that his latest delivery hasn't arrived from Lutetia due to an ox-cart drivers' strike (despite the fact they live by sea). However, Getafix needs fresh fish in order to make the magic potion, so in order to preserve the security of the village, Asterix and Obelix volunteer to go fishing. Unfortunately, neither of them are competent fishermen, and they're both caught in a storm and are soon out in the open sea. Time goes by, and they're eventually washed ashore. They initially think they're home, but realise they're somewhere completely different when they encounter gobbling birds, bears, and "Colonial Romans". After earning their respect our heroes choose to stay with these new people until Obelix is arranged to marry the "Centurion's" daughter. They attempt to escape, and soon encounter a group of Norsemen led by Herendethelessen, who believe them to be natives of a "New World".

A lot of the humour in this one revolves around references to America, and later to Denmark. It's not explicitly stated by anybody that our heroes are in America, but it's the First Century BC, so why would they? The primary implication is that they ended up on Manhattan Island, which is reinforced when they hide on a smaller island nearby and Asterix signals the longboat by standing on a pile of rocks with a torch, posing in a similar manner to the Statue of Liberty. I also like the return of the language barrier jokes, similar to those in Asterix the Legionary, but this time without an interpreter. In which Dogmatix learns to bark in Danish after befriending Herendethelessen's Great Dane, Huntingseassen.

The story does take a dark turn during the crossing, as our heroes find themselves lost without a wind or supplies. Obelix eventually goes mad from hunger, and jumps overboard when he hallucinates seeing boars. Asterix tries to retrieve him, but they lose their boat. Fortunately, Obelix sights a floating branch, so they're close to land, but they were incredibly lucky to survive that one.

My favourite joke has to be at the beginning, with how Unhygienix is loathe to get his fish from the sea, choosing to import them from wholesalers in Lutetia.  In fact, I did some crude number-crunching on Google Maps:

• I've already established that Lutetia is Paris, and I'm using the town of Erquy in Brittany as a stand-in for The Indomitable Village. Depending on the route the ox carts take, the distance travelled is 450 to 500 miles. I'll go with 450 miles.
• And ox carts are slow. Let's say they travel at a speed of two miles per hour. If they travel for eight hours every day, that means they cover sixteen miles every day.
• Time is determined by dividing the distance by the speed, so that's 450/16, which equals 29 (rounded up to the nearest whole number).
• This means that it would take almost a whole month for Unhygienix to replenish his stock. Blimey, no wonder the place stinks.

Anyway, I'd better go before he overhears that. I'll be back tomorrow to finish the "Post-Protest Period" by looking at Obelix & Co. and Asterix in Belgium.

Asterix Marathon #21 - Asterix and Caesar's Gift

1974 was an election year in France, so Goscinny decided to turn his eyes towards political campaigning for his next album.

Perpetually-inebriated legionary Tremensdelirius is coming to the end of his twenty years of service, and is due to receive his obligatory land grant (which was actual practice in the Roman Army). However, because he had made some unsavoury remarks about Julius Caesar, he is given The Indomitable Village. He promptly trades the grant to an innkeeper named Orthopaedix in exchange for another drink. Orthopaedix travels to The Indomitable Village, but his claim is laughed off. Nonetheless, Vitalstatistix symapthises with the newcomer (owing to them both having domineering wives and financially successful in-laws in Lutetia), and allows him to open an inn. Unfortunately, his wife Angina persuades him to claim the village, and the elections cause significant divisions amongst the villagers. Meanwhile, Tremensdelirius has decided that he didn't get enough wine for the village and wants it back - seeking out his old friend Claudius Egganlettus, a fellow veteran who got bored of retirement and re-enlisted, now serving as an optio at the fortified camp of Laudanum.

The story is similar to Asterix and the Roman Agent, showing divisions within the village, but it doesn't re-tread the same ground. One of my favourite moments involves Vitalstatistix asking Cacofonix to conduct an opinion poll. The bard learns that most of the villagers don't really care (and gets a black eye from Fulliautomatix who thought he was going to sing), but when the incumbant chieftain insults his singing, he chooses to side with Orthopaedix and even acts as a very partisan mediator during a public debate. Angina canvasses the village by supporting the local businesses (buying fish from Unhygienix and then burying them in the back garden). Even Geriatrix tries to step in as third-party candidate (with an anti-immigration platform).

Yeah, there's plenty skewering of election campaigns, but there's also a strong sense of tension. The divisions get so heated that Getafix refuses to give anybody magic potion, and it isn't long before the Romans begin to suspect this. There's also a bad-ass moment from Asterix when he intervenes as Tremensdelirius confronts Orthopaedix and demands his village back. It's one of the few times we see our hero use the sword he carries around.

And because it was 1974, there's no mention of "Making Armorica Great Again". Speaking of which, I'll see you later today to look at Asterix and the Great Crossing.

Asterix Marathon #20 - Asterix in Corsica

The 20th album in the series, and also the last one to be serialised in Pilote.

The Indomitable Village is holding a feast to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Gergovia, an important Gaulish victory against Caesar. Many of the characters from the previous albums come to the village to join the festivities, which includes a surprise raid of the nearby fortified camps. This brings them into contact with Boneywasawarriorwayayix, an exiled Corsican chieftain being detained at Totorum. After rescuing him, the chieftain invites Asterix and Obelix to accompany him back to Corsica, where he shows them how the Corsicans deal with the Romans.

I've heard that this album was one of Uderzo's personal favourites. I've not been to Corsica, but I can imagine from the pictures I've seen. It's a beautiful place, and looks like a pleasure to draw.

However, I have to regard this as one of the weaker albums. My main issue is that Asterix and Obelix aren't really involved in the story. They don't even have any real reason to go to Corsica. There's no fetch quest, nobody in need of help, and nothing threatening The Indomitable Village. They're literally on holiday.

My other issue is that a lot of the humour is something of an acquired taste, similar to Asterix and the Banquet. Many of the jokes revolve around Corsican stereotypes, which didn't really permeate outside of France, and most of the jokes in the English translation are references to Napoleon.

But does that mean I don't like it? Not at all! I love the portrayal of the Corsicans, who are incredibly work-shy, hold age-old vendettas which emerged over trivial things, and hold elections with pre-stuffed ballot boxes (reflecting a political scandal from the time of writing). There's also the infamously labyrinthine maquis, and a Greek Chorus of four old men sitting on a bench observing the events of the story. There's even a reference to Corsican cheese being depicted as so strong-smelling that the other Gauls can't stomach it. And it's explosive. We all know the stereotype of the French loving smelly cheeses (I like those cheeses, by the way), but it's hilarious that they have their own stereotype which takes it up to eleven.

My favourite joke has to be at the beginning, when the garrisons of all four camps surrounding The Indomitable Village use Gergovia Day to go on "special manoeuvres" so they're away from the camps when the Gauls show up. But the garrison at Totorum is waylaid by the delivery of Boney, and have to stay in. There's a collective chattering of teeth from the whole garrison, and Centurion Hippopotamus actually releases their prisoner. Who refuses to leave because he's having his siesta.

This was one of the best-selling albums in France, and I did enjoy it, but I think it had some major issues which I can't really overlook.

Asterix Marathon #19 - Asterix and the Soothsayer

Damn, that opening is atmospheric.

Getafix is attending a druids' conference, and the rest of the villagers are sheltering from a storm in the chief's hut when a mysterious visitor arrives. The stranger introduces himself as Prolix, and claims to be a soothsayer with the ability to read the future from the entrails of animals, predicting that the weather will clear when the storm passes (which is obvious), and that a fight will break out in the village (which happens regularly). Asterix remains unconvinced, but the rest of the villagers are entranced, giving Prolix food to "read". When he leaves, they believe that Asterix has driven him away, and he becomes a pariah. In truth, Prolix had been arrested by a Roman patrol, as soothsayers have been outlawed. However, he tries to keep his freedom by convincing the Gauls to leave The Indomitable Village.

As mentioned above, I like how creepy the opening is, if it's a little cliched. There's even a dialogue about the numerous Gaulish deities, which adds some comedy when it's made to look like the storm god Taranis hates the idea of Cacofonix singing.

Overall, the story is satirising the general gullibility of humanity, whether the stories come from entrails or the side of a bus. Prolix, like most soothsayers, is a con artist. His predictions tell the stories which people want to hear. But I love how he convinces the Gauls that he's a real soothsayer but has to convince the Romans that he isn't real, which repeatedly backfires. He's even successful in getting the Gauls to leave the village, so it feels like the Romans have finally achieved ultimate victory in Gaul.

When everything seems lost, Getafix returns, and he and Asterix devise a plan to drive the Romans out, discredit Prolix, and teach the other villagers a lesson in faith. I won't go into detail, but it's one of the funniest parts of the album.

Also, this introduces the running joke of Impedimenta referring to Vitalstatistix as "Piggywiggy".

Asterix Marathon #18 - Asterix and the Laurel Wreath

I think this one might be one of the most adult stories in the series.

Vitalstatistix is taking his wife Impedimenta on a shopping trip to Lutetia (Paris), with Asterix and Obelix tagging along as his 'honour guard'. Unfortunately, the trip also includes a dinner invitation from Impedimenta's brother Homeopathix, a wealthy and successful merchant who looks down on Vitalstatistix. The chieftain soon gets into a drunken argument with his brother-in-law, and claims that he will serve him a stew garnished with Julius Caesar's laurel wreath. An equally drunk Obelix accepts the task, and he and Asterix are sent to Rome, where they plan to pose as slaves to gain access to Caesar's palace.

The way their plan backfires is pure hilarity. They offer themselves as slaves to Caesar's main supplier, Typhus, but then accidentally sell themselves to a patrician they mistake for Caesar's majordomo. When they realise their mistake, they try to get themselves dismissed, but their attempts backfire: they try cooking a deliberately horrible stew (which includes carbolic soap as an ingredient), but the patrician's alcoholic son finds it to be a great hangover cure; and an impromptu midnight percussion routine inspires the patrician's family to throw an all-night party.

They later get framed for treason by the patrician's jealous majordomo, and implicate themselves so they'll get fed to the lions because Caesar will be watching and it will give them a chance to steal his laurel wreath. The whole segment adds a new air of black comedy to the story.

I also think the greyer morality makes an interesting change. Our heroes are not trying to help a person in need or do something which preserves the safety of the village, but to help their chieftain win a game of one-upmanship with his brother-in-law. Speaking of which, Vitalstatistix provides some great snarky dialogue when dealing with Homeopathix.

This is another one which I'd rate quite highly. Sorting out my Top Five at the end of this is going to be Hell.

Asterix Marathon #17 - The Mansions of the Gods

Something tells me that Goscinny wasn't too fond of urban planners.

In Caesar's latest scheme to achieve ultimate victory in Gaul, he commissions architect Squaronthehypotenus to cut down the forests surrounding The Indomitable Village and replace them with a planned community known as 'The Mansions of the Gods'. Caesar's hope is that by surrounding the village with high-rise flats inhabited by Roman families, he will slowly absorb the Gauls into Roman culture. The Gauls initially sabotage the project by replanting the felled trees using acorns enhanced with one of Getafix's magic potions, but their concern for the welfare of the slaves soon complicates matters.

In addition to the skewering of urban planning, there's also a satire of the French labour movement of the time. When they believe the Romans intend to work the slaves to death, the Gauls give the slaves magic potion and persuade them to revolt. But instead of revolting, they go on strike, demanding wages, better working conditions, and their freedom once the first block of flats is completed. When they get what they want, they end up being paid more than the legionaries, who go on strike upon learning this.

However, this means that the slaves end up telling the Gauls to stop replanting the trees, meaning that the first block of flats gets built. Soon enough, the Roman families start moving in, and end up buying fish from Unhygienix and ornamental weapons from Fulliautomatix, which in turn prompts the other villagers to start setting up their own businesses catering to the Romans.

This story probably contains the most overt social commentary to date. It's easy to understand, but it was probably a lot more relevant when the album was released in 1971. I think my favourite joke involves Asterix, Obelix, and Getafix having a celebratory meal after replanting a set of trees. Obelix realises he still has an acorn left, and throws it away, giving our heroes a tree-house. And Obelix is reluctant to uproot it because Dogmatix will get upset.

And I won't dare spoil the method Asterix uses to get rid of the Mansions. You have to check it out for yourself.

Asterix Marathon #16 - Asterix in Switzerland

Looks like our heroes are going to be enjoying some mountain air, following a suggestion in a fan letter submitted by French President Georges Pompidou.

In Condatum (Rennes), the Roman governor Varius Flavus has been embezzling the region's tax revenue to fund his extravagant lifestyle of debauched parties, while sending a mere pittance back to Rome. Soon enough, this begins to raise suspicion, and Rome sends Quaestor Vexatius Sinusitus to Condatum to audit the governor's finance. When the Quaestor falls ill, he sends his bodyguard to The Indomitable Village to find Getafix (having heard mention of the druid in Caesar's rants). Asterix and Obelix are sent to Helvetia to find a rare flower which grows at high altitudes known as the "silver star" (an edelweiss) required for the druid's medicine. Meanwhile, Getafix returns to the village with his patient, ostensibly as a hostage to guarantee our heroes' return. In reality, he has determined that the Quaestor has been poisoned, and the hostage-taking is a pretext to keep him in the village where he'll be safe. However, Varius Flavus is friends with Helvetia's equally corrupt governor Curius Odus, and warns him of the Gauls' arrival.

This is probably one of the darkest stories to date, with the attempted murder of an innocent man adding a sense of drama and jeopardy never seen before in this normally whimsical series. In fact, it shows Varius Flavus poisoning his unwelcome guest's food, and he struggles to find a ring with a dose, implying that this isn't the first time he's got rid of an enemy this way. On top of that, the Roman orgies add some rather risque imagery in this album, even it is referencing an obscure film from the time. Curius Odus has a fondue party where punishments for losing one's bread is taken to an extreme level, with third time offenders being thrown into a lake with two weights tied to their feet. And everyone's excited by that. Wow, they were allowed to print this?

That said, it makes a fresh change of tone, and still has Goscinny's signature humour. The Helvetians are depicted as fastidious, punctual, expert bankers and diplomats, with a love of fondues and yodelling. This provides a comedic contrast to the Roman orgy scenes, with the household servants being chastised by the governor for cleaning up, and protesting his guests' punishments because the whip isn't dry yet or the lake is very muddy at this time of year. There's even a stab at international conferences, when our heroes and the innkeeper Petitsuix try to elude the Romans by hiding out at The International Conference of Tribal Chieftains, pretending to be asleep as a chieftain gives a long-winded speech. With the exception of Obelix, who actually does fall asleep.

This is probably another one I'd consider to be a favourite of mine.

Asterix Marathon #15 - Asterix and the Roman Agent

Another home-centred story this time around. And another one which I've only read recently.

Caesar is losing the support of the Roman Senate, who refuse to fund his campaigns if he can't maintain order in the territories he has already conquered. While consulting with his inner circle about how to deal with The Indomitable Village, someone suggests enlisting the aid of Tortuos Convolvulus, a Machiavellian civil servant with the power to cause arguments and fights with his mere presence. After establishing himself in the fortified camp of Aquarium, Convolvulus starts sewing paranoia and distrust amongst the villagers by presenting a valuable vase to Asterix as "the most important man of the village" during the run-up to Vitalstatistix's birthday.

The best part of this album is Convolvulus. His powers are established early on, when he's mentioned to have escaped execution at the Circus Maximus by causing the lions to eat each other. Even when he is brought before Caesar, he's already got the two guards escorting him to argue, and triggers a fight amongst Caesar's friends. That's enough to convince Caesar that he's the man for the job. There's a genuine sense of tension within the village when he carries out his strategy of psychological warfare (which burly legionary Magnuopus takes to mean "hit on the head with a club"), with Fulliautomatix and Geriatrix suspecting that Asterix may have been a traitor. When this triggers a fish fight, they promptly stop and "act natural" as Asterix walks past.

If the eponymous Roman agent's plan isn't enough, then there's also the plan Asterix devises with Obelix and Getafix to beat him at his own game, culminating in a mass battle which has to be illustrated with its own map.

This is one of the albums that's definitely worth checking out.

Asterix Marathon #14 - Asterix in Spain

This is another one which passed me by the first time around.

Caesar has conquered Hispania and subjugated its people, with the exception of an indomitable village in the vicinity of Munda (Montilla), ruled by Iberian chieftain Huevos y Bacon. Fortunately, he is able to pacify them after capturing the chieftain's son Pepe and holding him hostage, where he is taken to the fortified camp of Totorum in Gaul. Naturally, the escort runs into Asterix and Obelix while in the forest, who give them a thumping and shelter their hostage in The Indomitable Village. Unfortunately, their charge is a colossal pain, whose mischief annoyed the Romans so much so that they're content to let the Gauls keep him. Eventually, Vitalstatistix decides that our heroes should take him back to his home village.

A lot of the humour in this one stems from the characters having to give in to Pepe's numerous demands, with his quirk that he holds his breath until he gets what he wants. This was to do with the fact that the Romans have to treat hostages well as part of the truce they're trying to uphold. But even when he's with the Gauls, he still holds his breath (prompting Obelix to do the same at one point).

Unlike most of the stories centred around journeys abroad, our heroes don't actually set out until about halfway into the story. Once they do arrive in Spain, a lot of the humour is making fun of the country's popularity with tourists, and the state of the roads. There's also a random focus on a procession of druids in every city. It reflects the religious processions of later Spanish culture, but to me it just feels like padding.

I think my favourite joke has to do with the introduction of Unhygienix the Fishmonger. Pepe refuses to eat the boar he's been given, so Asterix sends Obelix out to get some fish. But while Obelix is out, Pepe tries the boar and likes it, eating both his and Obelix's. When Obelix tries to return the fish, he  ends up starting a brawl amongst the villagers after throwing it out. These "fish fights" would go on to be a running gag in subsequent stories.

Personally, I was a little disappointed in this one, but the humour's still there.

Asterix Marathon #13 - Asterix and the Cauldron

This one is what you might call a "Broke Episode".

The Indomitable Village holds a formal reception for Whosemoralsarelastix, a chieftain from a neighbouring village who has a reputation as a miser and is a known friend of the Romans. When the chieftain arrives, he brings with him a cauldron full of money, explaining that Caesar is levying heavier taxes to fund his military campaigns. He has gathered all the village's savings to prevent them from being seized by the Roman tax collectors. Asterix is entrusted to guard the cauldron, but when the money is stolen during the night, he is banished from the village until he can repay the debt and restore the village's honour.

This album takes a far more serious tone than any of the others to date. After Asterix is banished, Obelix goes into self-imposed exile as well, so he can travel with his friend, prompting them to share a teary embrace. It's probably one of the most heartwarming moments of the series. The overall story mostly consists of the numerous ways our friends try and raise money, but nothing really works for them. They try selling boars, but their poor understanding of commerce and lack of greed crashes the market. They try betting on chariot races, but they only lose money after taking bad advice. They even resort to bank robbery, only to find that the banks are also chafing under Caesar's taxes.

And that's not to say it isn't funny above the despair. There's one scene where our heroes join a theatre troupe led by Laurensolivius, who is putting on a play designed to shock audiences. When show-time arrives, and they are presenting to the Prefect and other important Roman officials, Obelix is due to take the stage and freezes up. While the play was made to be offensive as possible, the Prefect enjoys it until Obelix finally says his trademark catchphrase, "These Romans are crazy!", and orders the arrest of the whole troupe (which the rest of the audience assumes to all be part of the act).

The best moment is when they encounter a Roman tax collector, whose dialogue is presented like a tax form. For example, his speech bubble when they approach:
"Occupation: Are you:
a) Ordinary passers by?
b) Motivated by friendly intentions?
c) Bandits?"

Asterix demands he hands over his money in the next panel, and the speech bubble appears again, but this time answer C is checked. I've heard that this particular character was modelled after French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who at the time of writing was Minister of Finance. I guess Goscinny wasn't too keen on his policies. Speaking of which, Goscinny and Uderzo both make cameos in the theatre audience with the prefect. And they make fun of their success earlier in the story, when Asterix dismisses a suggestion from Obelix that they could make a fortune telling stories of their adventures.

In conclusion, this one is a much bleaker story, but it's a good change of tone within the formula.

Asterix Marathon #12 - Asterix at the Olympic Games

While everyone was getting hyped for the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Goscinny and Uderzo decided that might make a good concept for a story.

While out hunting, Asterix and Obelix encounter Gluteus Maximus, a buff legionary stationed at the fortified camp of Aquarium who is training for the Olympic Games. Our heroes' potion-fuelled antics shake the legionary's resolve, so his centurion Veriambitius appeals to Vitalstatistix for the Gauls to leave him alone. This piques the Gauls' interest, and they decide that they want to take part as well, despite the fact that Romans are the only non-Greeks allowed to take part. But wait a minute; Gaul is part of the Roman Empire, so the Gauls are Roman subjects, and that technically makes them Romans. So, all the men of The Indomitable Village travel to Greece, crushing the resolve of all the Roman athletes. However, when the magic potion is seen as illegal doping, Asterix has to train hard for the competition.

The strange thing about this one is that I actually feel kind of bad for Gluteus Maximus. His confidence drops to the point where he consigns himself to fatigue duty in the camp rather than training. Veriambitius actually seems concerned for his well-being, although this is more to do with the prestige they'll both get if they win an event. However, this does bring about a hilarious misunderstanding about Gaulish tradition; Vitalstatistix is having his annual bath when Veriambitius asks for an audience with him, so his shield-bearers carry him out in the bath to speak with the centurion. Later on, Vitalstatistix travels to Aquarium to speak with Veriambitius, and the centurion is carried out to meet him in a bathtub, believing that was the Gaulish custom.

There's another joke in which the Romans are convinced the Gauls will beat them, so they spend their time at the Olympic village feasting, which causes friction with the Greek athletes who are on strict diets. Maybe it's because I'm doing the marathon, but I saw that joke as recycled from the previous album. However, my favourite joke is when the Gauls are travelling to Greece, having obtained cheap passage which is "one class only, deck games, open air sports, and marvellous atmosphere". It turns out that they have to man the oars. And stopping to fight pirates is an optional extra that isn't covered in the cost, which annoys the pirates who had scuttled their own ship when they realised they'd encountered the Gauls.

As for continuity, this album introduces Geriatrix, one of the oldest inhabitants of The Indomitable Village. He had made a few minor appearances before, but this one gives him his name and establishes his character as a cantankerous skirt-chaser.

Personally, I don't rate this one as highly as the other ones I've read, but I still think it's worth checking out.

At this point, I'm entering what I'd like to call the "Post-Protest Period" of the series. 1968 was a year which saw a lot of unrest in France, with mass demonstrations and general strikes bringing the country's economy to a halt. This inspired Goscinny to begin incorporating more adult themes in his work, such as in this story which satirises the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports.

Anyway, I'll see you later today for my review of Asterix and the Cauldron.

Asterix Marathon #11 - Asterix and the Chieftain's Shield

This is another album I discovered this time around, like Asterix and the Golden Sickle and Asterix and the Normans.

We open with a flashback two years earlier (or fifteen) at the Battle of Alesia, a decisive Roman victory in the Gallic Wars. After the battle, the Gaulish chieftain Vercingetorix lays down his arms before Caesar, but his shield is stolen, and changes hands repeatedly over the course of a single night.

Anyway, excessive indulgence in rich food and wine is taking its toll on Chief Vitalstatistix, so Getafix sends him to a health spa in Aquae Calidae (present day Vichy). Asterix and Obelix volunteer to escort him, but their dining habits at the spa cause friction with the other patients, so their chieftain sends them on a holiday in the Arvernian countryside (Auverne). While trekking, they pick a fight with the Roman Tribune Noxius Vapus, and befriend an Arvernian wine and charcoal merchant named Winesanspirix. They later discover that Vapus is searching for the Shield of Vercingetorix, so that Caesar can hold a parade with it in the town of Gergovia (a previous failure in his campaigns). As the shield is an important patriotic symbol, our friends follow the trail of those who handled it on that dark day in Gaulish history, hoping to find it before Caesar does.

I think the element of mystery they add to the story makes a fresh change, but they still leave room for Goscinny's signature humour. I especially like the running joke in which Vitalstatistix and Winesanspirix become irate at the mention of Alesia, to the point where they say they don't even know where it is. This denial is based on the fact that archaeologists had not yet determined the exact site of Alesia at the time this album came out. There's also the joke in which Asterix and Obelix are not on a diet while at the spa, so they can eat roast boar and drink beer while everybody else is stuck with boiled vegetables. It's harsh, but it's hilarious in a schadenfreude kind of way, especially with the pay-off after they leave.

As for continuity, this album starts to flesh out Vitalstatix's wife, Impedimenta. While she did make a minor appearance in Asterix and the Big Fight, this one establishes her overbearing nature.

While this one does need some knowledge of the historical context (but not much), the comedy and action are still on top form, and the mystery also comes with a great twist.

Asterix Marathon #10 - Asterix the Legionary

Now, there's a name and a role you'd never expect to see together. It's also one of the albums I rate quite highly.

After Obelix starts acting strangely - bumping into trees and not having the appetite for a third boar - Asterix realises that he is madly in love with Panacea, the daughter of another villager who had left to study in Condatum (Rennes). Asterix persuades his friend to act on his crush, but they both learn that Panacea has a fiancé in Condatum named Tragicomix, who has been conscripted by the Romans and shipped off to North Africa to fight in Caesar's civil war against Pompey. Although heartbroken, Obelix promises to get Tragicomix back, and he and Asterix end up enlisting in a legion with numerous other recruits: Neveratalos the Greek (who starts an argument about their meagre wages), Gastronomix the Belgian (whose hairline resembles that of a certain other popular comic character), Hemispheric the Goth (an apology for the writer's harsh treatment of Goths in a previous story), Selectivemploymentax the Briton (the only person to enjoy the military catering), and Ptenisnet the Egyptian (I'll talk about him in a moment).

Amateur historian me is going to briefly take over now, by saying that service in the Legions was reserved for Roman and Italian citizens during Caesar's lifetime, with other subjects serving in units known as Auxilia. However, this is hand-waved in favour of a more contemporary reference; a military force comprised of multiple nationalities and serving in North Africa is a parody of the French Foreign Legion. And that's fine, because it brings with it plenty of laughs.

One of my favourite characters in this album is Ptenisnet. His dialogue is comprised entirely of hieroglyphs, and the language barrier adds to the humour of why he's there; He initially mistakes the recruiting office for a hotel, and they go along with it so he'll enlist, and he spends the entire story convinced he's on a package holiday. He's also quite fond of a popular child's game in which you respond to something with the phrase "old hairy", followed by a body part which rhymes with whatever word the person said last. This culminates in a galley captain promising everybody a tot of rum, and then quickly threatening to throw him overboard if he says another hieroglyph.

If that prolonged misunderstanding isn't enough, then my other favourite joke revolves around how the Gauls' eagerness to get shipped off to Africa combined with their very un-military behaviour repeatedly reduces their superiors to sobbing, prompting an onlooker to ask if they're missing somebody back home. Again, this culminates in the reinforcements arriving at Caesar's camp, but upon reporting to the Centurion of the Watch, everybody's wandered off except the interpreter.

If you only read one Asterix comic in your lifetime, I recommend you make it this one.

Asterix Marathon #9 - Asterix and the Normans

Another story centred on the home, but this time with no Roman plot.

Justforkix, the cowardly nephew of Chief Vitalstatistix, is being sent to The Indomitable Village from Lutetia to learn about courage. Unaccustomed to the rural life, he nonetheless strikes an unlikely friendship with Cacofonix. However, he later gets kidnapped by a group of Norsemen led by Olaf Timandahaf, who have travelled to Gaul to learn about fear.

I must admit that I'm not particularly keen on Justforkix. He's made to resemble a trendy teen, but comes off as a spoiled brat. Even after the character development set up for him to go through, I still don't find him endearing. All he really does is deliver a verbal beatdown to the Normans, which is admittedly kind of badass, but he doesn't do much else afterwards.

Which is a pity, because I love the characterisation of the Normans. They're depicted as being fearless to the point of not knowing what fear is, which causes problems as no fear of authority means they have no discipline (and curing hiccups is impossible). They're not here to conquer Gaul (that's for their descendants), they're here to learn about fear, as there is a saying that "Fear lends you wings". Taking this literally, they believe that they'll be able to fly if someone scares them. There are a few contemporary references to Normandy as well, mainly the heavy use of cream sauce in their cuisine. The mention of boar in cream sauce even piques Obelix's interest that he briefly stops fighting to ask about it.

There's even a satire of red tape with the Romans, who use excessive reports as a means to stay out of danger.

As for continuity, the most characterisation gets employed elsewhere. This album develops Fulliautomatix the Blacksmith (who had made a few minor appearances in earlier albums), by giving him a more distinct design and establishing him as Cacofonix's primary nemesis. It also introduces a running gag in which Dogmatix gets distressed when he sees someone knock down a tree.

So, it's good, but not as good. Fortunately, Justforkix doesn't appear in the main series again, but did get a breakout role in a series of "choose your own adventure" books. Well, he's also something of a blank slate, so that's quite suited to him.

Asterix Marathon #8 - Asterix in Britain

I say! It was rather nice of the Gauls to pay us a visit, what?

Things are quiet in The Indomitable Village, as most of the Romans are away fighting in Britannia. Fortunately, the monotony is broken up by the arrival of Anticlimax, Asterix's cousin and a warrior from another indomitable village in the region of Cantium (present day Kent). Anticlimax has come to Gaul after hearing rumours of a magic potion which grants superhuman strength, and Getafix sends Asterix and Obelix back with him, along with a barrel of the magic potion. Unfortunately, while fighting aboard a Roman galley during the channel crossing, Obelix lets slip that they're giving the potion to the Britons, and the garrisons are on the alert. To make things worse, they lose possession of the potion while hiding out in the city of Londinium (London). On top of the Romans, the Gauls also have to deal with weather which alternates between fog and rain, boiled boar with mint sauce (which is normally served with lamb), warm beer (bitter), drinking cups of hot water, driving on the wrong side of the road, imperial measurements, and unusual coinage (pre-decimal currency was still in use at the time of writing).

Yeah, most of the humour in this album comes from what is basically the French perception of British stereotypes. Goscinny even added a note saying that he and Uderzo weren't prejudiced against the English when it was first translated. However, he didn't have to, because we make fun of ourselves all the time, so this story became one of the most successful albums in the UK market. Sometimes I think they overdo the references to Britain though, but that's not much of an issue. The end of that last paragraph doesn't cover it, but you get the general idea.

My favourite moment is probably when they initially lose the potion. The Roman prefect orders the confiscation of all barrels of beer and wine from every pub in Londinium, and then orders a legion to sample their contents in order to find the potion. This starts out with military precision, but soon collapses when all the legionaries get incredibly drunk, to the point that one soldier finds the potion, and ends up picking fights with everybody else. The segment is only topped when Obelix tries the same method and gets drunk too. Speaking of Obelix, he's not fond of the cuisine, but he does get hooked on rugby, reflecting the sport's popularity in France.

Oh, and speaking as someone with a casual interest in history, I need to point out an elephant in the room; the Romans never conquered Britain during Caesar's lifetime. While he did lead two military expeditions there, neither of them made any real territorial gains, but he did secure an allegiance with a local tribal king. But if it was historically accurate, Asterix and Obelix would have no reason to go to Britain. You can't always let something like historical accuracy get in the way of a funny story.

Jolly good show, what?

Asterix Marathon #7 - Asterix and the Big Fight

After plenty of overseas adventures, it's time for a story to take place at home.

In the fortified camp of Totorum, hammy centurion Nebulus Nimbus and his scheming optio Felonius Caucus devise a new plan to conquer The Indomitable Village through an ancient Gaulish custom known as "The Big Fight". According to tradition, two chieftains may face each other in single combat, and the loser forfeits control of his village to the winner. The Romans sponsor Cassius Ceramix, a Gaulish chieftain who embraces Roman culture and imposes it on his village. Ceramix is eager to please the Romans, but reluctant to face Chief Vitalstatistix due to his access to the magic potion brewed by Getafix. So, they try and take the druid out of the picture, which apparently works when Obelix tries to save Getafix but ends up crushing him with a menhir. The druid survives, but has lost his memory and his mind (he even ends up liking Cacofonix's singing), so it's up to Asterix to try and find a way to cure him while training the chief for his upcoming bout.

The eponymous fight is a parody of professional boxing, hence why the translators gave the pro-Roman chieftain the name Cassius Ceramix; it's a reference to then-world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, whose birth name was Cassius Clay. Ceramix is certainly no pushover, and a truly integrated Roman, who insists that his villagers shave their moustaches, cut their hair short, and wear togas. He even orders the construction of an aqueduct, despite the fact that the river runs through their village.

I like the sense of jeopardy this story has, with the freedom of the village being at stake when Getafix is in no fit state to make the potion. I like the idea of a Rocky-style training montage, but most of the time is dedicated to trying to cure Getafix as he concocts potions which either explode or turn the drinkers funny colours. However, that still gets plenty of laughs, especially when Asterix tries to enlist the aid of Psychoanalytix, a druid who treats mental disorders. Unfortunately, this plan goes wrong when Obelix tries to demonstrate how Getafix went into his condition.

Overall, this one's pretty good. Especially when Vitalstatistix gets a moment to truly shine.

Anyway, I'll be back tomorrow, where I'll look at Asterix in Britain.

Asterix Marathon #6 - Asterix and Cleopatra

Another journey abroad, this time travelling to Egypt. Asterix writer Rene Goscinny is purported to have said that this was one of his favourite stories he'd worked on. In fact, the edition I have contains a dedication to him at the beginning of this particular album.

Julius Caesar has infuriated Queen Cleopatra by claiming that the Egyptians are decadent and inferior to the Romans. In response, she makes a bet that she can have a magnificent new palace built within three months. A bumbling and timid architect named Edifis is commissioned to carry out the project, with the promise of a vast fortune if he succeeds or a meal for the sacred crocodiles if he fails. Fortunately, he happens to be an old friend of Getafix, and travels to Gaul to seek his aid. The druid agrees to return, accompanied by Asterix, Obelix, and the newly-named Dogmatix. However, an unscrupulous architect named Artifis is resentful that the queen commissioned Edifis rather than him, and is all too eager to see his competitor get fed to the crocodiles.

I like the sense of jeopardy this one has, about whether or not the palace will be built on time (especially since Edifis is likely to have used a lot of it sailing to and from Gaul). This is mostly offset by Getafix giving magic potion to the labourers, which is in turn offset by the numerous methods Artifis uses to sabotage the construction.

There are plenty of parodies of ancient Egyptian culture, most notably the use of hieroglyphics in dialogue. My favourite use of that is when Artifis' lackey Krukhut bribes the ship captain carrying a consignment of stone to dump the cargo into the Nile. The crew obeys, while their hieroglyphic conversations are translated into West Country dialect with the phrases "Bain't no use argufyin' with me" and "Oi reckon gaffer be crazy". It also explains why the Sphinx has no nose; Obelix broke it trying to climb up. Speaking of which, this album features one of the only times that Getafix allows Obelix to take some magic potion when they're trapped in a pyramid by Krukhut.

This particular album was popular enough to get two film adaptions: a 1968 animated feature, and a live-action adaptation in 2002. I haven't seen the live-action one, but for the sake of nostalgia, I'll discuss the animated film before I go (I saw it for the first time in almost twenty years the other week - gaining closure on a longstanding grudge in my family). They try and keep it a faithful adaptation, but they do pad things out with a few musical numbers that don't really add much (that said, I do like the 20s swing feel of the villain song in which Artifis and Krukhut make a poisoned cake). And they did make a couple of interesting changes to try and expand:

1. The Gauls actually fight the pirates en route to Egypt, and Artifis later hires them to waylay the heroes. This made sense, as the pirates hadn't appeared in the animated films before. In the comics, they had previous encounters with the Gauls and scuttle their own ship rather than fight them again.
2. In the comic, Artifis and Krukhut kidnap Edifis, only for the Gauls to rescue him and imprison their nemeses. This doesn't happen in the film. Instead, Caesar hires mercenaries to kidnap Getafix when he learns the Gauls are in Egypt. Again, I think it makes an interesting change, as it gives Caesar a greater role in the story rather than just the climax in which he lays siege to the building site once Artifis is no longer a threat. It also brings about my favourite moment in which Asterix and Obelix break down the door to Getafix's cell and the Romans block the exit with a giant stone wheel - so Obelix leaves through the wall instead.

Overall, I still get a few laughs from the film, but it's not on par with the comic. And for the record, I won't discuss any of the other adaptations during this marathon. I haven't seen the others, and mainly wanted to discuss this one for the nostalgia factor.

Anyway, I'll be back tomorrow evening to look at the next album.

Asterix Marathon #5 - Asterix and the Banquet

After two trips abroad, it's time for our heroes to take a trip across their homeland. I've already mentioned this one in my retrospective, but I'm doing this marathon so I can discuss them in greater detail.

Inspector General Overanxius recruits the garrison stationed in the fortified camp of Compendium to conquer The Indomitable Village. Naturally, they get thrashed, so Overanxius elects to build a stockade to isolate the village from the rest of Gaul. In response, Asterix makes a bet that he and Obelix can escape and go on a round trip of Gaul, bringing back regional delicacies as proof. If they succeed, Overanxius will take down the stockade and report his failure to Rome.

The trip our heroes take is based on the Tour de France annual cycling event. The shopping bag which Obelix carries is based on the yellow jersey worn by the race leader, and in one town they get cheered on by spectators in a similar manner to that of the Tour. In fact, the original French title of this album was Le Tour de Gaule d'Astérix (Asterix's Tour of Gaul).

While this is a great story, it is more of an acquired taste, as a lot of the humour revolves around  French regional stereotypes. For example, the first port of call is Lutetia (Paris), which is permanently gridlocked, and the residents later waylay our heroes en route to Nicae (Nice) when they travel south for the summer holidays, mirroring the French Riviera's infamous holiday traffic. The foodstuffs picked up are also based on actual regional specialities, such as a wine from Durocortorum (Rheims) which is Champagne in all but name. It's for this reason that it wasn't translated into English until 1979, fourteen years after being published in album form. I had to read up on a lot of this to truly appreciate it.

However, there are still plenty of great moments. My favourites are two segments in which the heroes get captured. In the first occasion, they stop over at a cabin in the woods owned by Unpatriotix, who betrays Asterix to the Romans while Obelix is out hunting. Obelix traces him to the nearby garrison town of Divordorum (Metz), and tries to get himself arrested by slapping a legionary. Being Obelix, this goes about as well as you'd expect, so he ends up dragging the unconscious legionary through the street demanding that someone arrests him before a local resident gives him directions to the prison.

This is topped by a second moment in which the heroes accidentally spend the night in a Roman camp and get into a fight, but surrender when they learn the Romans intend to take them to the Prefect in Tolosa (Toulouse), their next port of call. A smith is asked to put them in chains, but they repeatedly break free during the process for some of the funniest reasons until the smith gives up.

As for continuity, this is the first album to refer to previous comics, such as a mention of the previous visit to Lutetia in Asterix and the Golden Sickle. Additionally, it's the first album to introduce Obelix's sensitivity about his weight, and he gets angry if someone calls him fat or even says the word "fat". Finally, this album introduces Dogmatix, a small dog who appears outside a pork butcher in Lutetia, and accompanies the heroes on their tour until Obelix notices him at the very end and decides to adopt him.

All in all, this one's pretty good, despite the somewhat insular humour.

Asterix Marathon #4 - Asterix the Gladiator

So far, I think this might be one of my favourites.

Odius Asparagus, the Prefect of Gaul, is being recalled to Rome and is required by tradition to present a gift to Julius Caesar. Wanting something special, he recruits the garrison stationed at Compendium to capture Cacofonix, the village bard who often wanders the forests to hone his (non-existent) musical talent. After learning of his capture, Asterix and Obelix travel to Rome to rescue their comrade. Upon arrival, they learn from the Gaulish restaurateur Instantmix that Caesar has ordered the bard to be fed to the lions at the Circus Maximus. On top of that, they're being sought after by Caius Fatuous the Lanista; the man in charge of recruiting (or kidnapping) and training gladiators for the games. Our friends casually fend off the Lanista's press gangs, but later seek him out in order to become gladiators and gain access to the circus.

In addition to the dramatic irony provided by the press gangs, another recurring joke is Cacofonix's singing, first introduced in this album. Living up to the name he has in the English translation, his voice scares the Romans away during their initial capture attempt, so they get around it by stuffing their ears with parsley...and then the squad leader captures the bard on his own because the other men didn't hear him give the order.

This album also introduces two other recurring elements to the series: The helmet game, and the pirates.

The Helmet Game is one of Obelix's quirks, in which he collects the helmets of the legionaries he beats up. He often challenges the other Gauls to this contest, but he's the only one who really takes part.

The pirates are encountered by our heroes while travelling to Rome on a Phoenician merchant ship. They fend them off, and repeatedly encounter the crew on their subsequent adventures, but they never pose a genuine threat to the Gauls. The pirates are actually characters from a Belgian comic series called Redbeard, which also debuted in Pilote alongside Asterix. Redbeard writer Jean-Michel Charlier co-founded Pilote with Rene Goscinny, but most people only know about Redbeard from their cameo in Asterix.

If there's anything I do have to criticise, it's the change of antagonists. Odius Asparagus sets the plot in motion when he orders the capture of Cacofonix, but after delivering the bard to Caesar, he doesn't appear again. The main antagonist for the rest of the story is Caius Fatuous, and he's the one who gets his just desserts. After all, a Lanista always pays his dues (sorry).

Other than that, this is one I do recommend.

Asterix Marathon #3 - Asterix and the Goths

Time for the next album, and the first one to take the action outside of Gaul.

With his new golden sickle, Getafix is off to attend the druid's conference mentioned in the previous album. Asterix and Obelix escort him to the Forest of the Carnutes, but have to wait outside as they're not druids themselves. After winning Druid of the Year with his magic potion, Getafix is kidnapped by a band of Goths, who seek to use the potion to conquer Gaul and Rome. Our two friends travel to the unconquered region of Germania to mount a rescue mission, but the druid is reluctant to leave right away, as he believes the Goths still pose a threat to the Roman Empire.

As mentioned in my previous retrospective, the cultural stereotypes in Asterix are seldom anything other than good-natured, but this is a notable exception. The Goths are depicted as militaristic warmongers who eat sauerkraut, speak in Gothic script, and march in goose-stepping formation. Granted, this story was published when the Second World War was a recent memory, and there was still a lot of anti-German sentiment around, particularly in France.

There is also a Cold War allegory pertaining to the time. The Germanic peoples are mentioned as being divided into the Visigoths and Ostrogoths as a parallel to West and East Germany, and there's an element of paranoia satirising the Red Scare. Asterix and Obelix are mistaken for Goths and the Romans put a price on their heads. They later disguise themselves as Romans, and when this is discovered, the Romans all start suspecting each other of being spies, much to the dismay of General Cantakerus. This does bring with it a particularly hilarious moment when Asterix tells Obelix that if they're questioned by other legionaries, he must say "Ave and by Jupiter, I'm Legionary Obelus and my friend is Legionary Asterus." When they are confronted by two legionaries, he almost blows their cover by laughing too much at what he has to say, and later says it right...when they're in Germania and no longer posing as Romans.

I think my favourite joke is when everybody is imprisoned alongside the Gothic interpreter Rhetoric, pending execution, and Getafix plans to make some magic potion under the guise of a Gaulish soup for their final meal. Obelix calls the guard by breaking down the door to their cell, so Getafix can give him a list of ingredients. The guard returns with the ingredients and repairs the door. Not long afterwards, Obelix breaks down the door again so Getafix can ask for something else, and again because he forgot to thank him. Rhetoric then breaks down the door under the potion.

All in all, it's a good story, but some of the humour didn't age well.

Asterix Marathon #2 - Asterix and the Golden Sickle

After the success of Asterix the Gaul, it wasn't long before a sequel was in the works. I'd say this is a far superior sequel. Also, this is one which I have only discovered recently.

Things start off when Getafix's golden sickle breaks, meaning that the mistletoe needed to make the magic potion will not have any magical properties, and that he will be unable to attend the annual druids' conference which is coming up soon. In order to preserve the security of the village, Asterix and his best friend Obelix volunteer to obtain a new sickle from Metallurgix of Lutetia (Paris). Unfortunately, there's a shortage of sickles in Lutetia, and Metallurgix has disappeared. Something nefarious is afoot, and it's up to Asterix to investigate, soon discovering a sickle trafficking ring spearheaded by Navishtrix.

This is the first story in the series to take place away from the village and the surrounding camps. It also fleshes out some of the major characters who only appeared briefly in the previous story. For example, while Asterix travelled alone previously, this time he is accompanied by Obelix, forming the "brawn and brains" duo which would persist throughout the series. While the first story was more world-building, in this one they flesh out the signature humour of the series.

One of my favourite moments is during the trip to Lutetia, in which Asterix is having a casual conversation with Obelix when they are jumped by bandits in the forest. They don't stop walking or even their conversation as they fight the bandits off. It's one of the many slapstick fight scenes which makes this series so endearing. I also love the recurring joke in which the two Gauls are repeatedly arrested and brought before the Roman Prefect, Surplus Dairiprodus, only for him to pardon them because he finds their antics amusing.

Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow, where I'll look at Asterix and the Goths and Asterix the Gladiator.