Asterix the Gaul was published in 1961, well over 50 years ago. How time flies.
This is the first Asterix book and it sets everything up. The magic potion and various characters are introduced.
The most striking thing I noticed was Obelix is considerably thinner. He’ll fatten out soon enough in later episodes.
The beginning of the story sets everything up. Gaul is occupied by the Romans but there’s one village that holds out and that would be Asterix’s village. Thanks to their druid, Getafix, these Gauls have a constant supply of magic potion which makes them invincible.
The centurion in the nearby camp, Compendium, is perplexed at how these Gauls have so much power. He decides to send in a spy into the village.
The spy finds out about the magic potion and reports back to Compendium. The Romans kidnap Getafix and try to force him to make the magic potion for them. Asterix comes to the rescue and these two tease the Romans for days.
It’s a simple story and it all takes place in two places, the Gaul’s village and the Roman camp. The Romans as usual are bumbling idiots and there’s a feast at the end of the story.
I thought it was a bit strange for the Asterix and Getafix to be away from the village for so long. Wouldn’t the villagers be worried or willing to search for them? Ah well, it’s just a comic.
The illustrations in this story are well done. There’s nothing really spectacular or mindless blowing about the them, mind you, but the characters are all very well done.
I didn’t find myself laughing out loud while reading this story. The jokes are light and there are a lot of joking around among Asterix and Getafix when they are captured.
The story is a simple one and I didn’t feel that the story had any kind of morals or messages.
On to the next book!
