4.07 AVERAGE


Brilliant as ever!
This was my first try at reading Asterix in it's original French, and although I'm still quite at the beginning of my French journey, I'm happy to say I even got most of the jokes.

Can’t go wrong with a good old classic comic series such as Asterix!

In this first volume, we meet a majority of the main characters and get a good introduction to the village of unbeatable Gauls. Who they are, why they are important and what they do. We even get a preview of some important Roman figures but won’t spoil who ;)

I’m quite familiar with the series but it’s always fun to go back to the beginnings and I think this start was a pretty successful one.

Recently, I just felt like taking a small ride back to my childhood and going through a few Asterix tomes recently, mostly for the sake of nostalgia. This series is somewhat of a comfort comic for me.
adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced
Loveable characters: Yes
funny lighthearted fast-paced

This volume, being the first of the series, has always been the lesser book in my memory. The artwork of the characters is quite off from what is later established and the opening is very basic and introductionary in nature. I also first read it in a black and white book form edition with the pages falling out of it.
In rereading this for the first time in a long time, I can say that my memory doesn't know what it was talking about. Yes, the art and introduction is like that but the rest of the story is first-rate, very funny (strawberries scene in particular) and very endearing. It was also surprising how many of the later established Gauls feature here. There's the five that feature in the introduction page of every book as well as Fulliautomatix (doesn't look anything like him, but his physical displeasure of Cacofonix's singing is).
These books are full of bright, fun and delightful characters who go on various adventures and get to beat up a bunch of Roman soldiers. Accompanying the story and the characters is a plethora of clever puns and word play that the translators should get a medal for. There are always a few gags or phrases in Latin that may mean nothing to the non-Latin speakers (such as myself) but Google can lend a helping hand there.

Tämäkin on varmasti tullut luettua jo lapsena, mutta nyt Keskisuomalaisen listan innoittamana ajattelin lukea uudelleen. Ensimmäinen Asterix-sarjis oli ihan hauska näin aikuisellekin, mutta muistelisin, että myöhemmissä on monipuolisempia tarinoita.
funny lighthearted fast-paced

First Asterix book. I read a fair number of these as a kid. This one is like watching a tv sitcom pilot... mostly setup and introduction, and not really as much fun as what follows.

C'est encore trop drôle et ça me fait retomber très rapidement en enfance, en fait un classique indémodable.
funny