In the latest volume of the endless saga about rebellious drinking gas stations, the village community is faced with a truly indomitable enemy: a mindful attitude to life, healthy food (“Eat fresh fish? Isn’t that harmful?”) and politeness instead of fights. Are the villagers now getting rid of their resistance and leaving behind only smelly feta cheese instead of barefoot Romans? We’ll see, because as the saying goes: “The wild boar doesn’t mind when the fork rubs against it.”
Does the white flower, which is a symbol of wisdom and knowledge, really come from ecologically harmless overexploitation? The new opponent Visusversus prefers to let his delicate fingers (and his aura) run over it again.
Let’s be honest: you only expected anything from the new Asterix if you wanted to celebrate every funny paperback with an anthem. (“Donald was skiing there – and had a crooked face. Kuuult!”) Yes, the last three Gaul volumes were mediocre at best (= “The Griffin”), but mostly a series of slapstick and unsympathetic characters (“Asteric in Italy”, “The Daughter of Vercingetorix”).
The food for long-term memory was often limited to a dry mistletoe and half a drop of magic potion. – Somehow nothing half useless and nothing completely useless.
I can understand and welcome the fact that the author was replaced with another artist – while the artist remained the same!
And holla, the new guy is now a TEXTER!
His name is Fabrice Fabcaro.
And if his performance continues like this, I’ll soon be sending him red roses for his name day.
Contradictions attract… the hair: Here, two gentlemen argue about the most mindful organic products and feel-good sayings. After the volume “Papyrus of Caesar” I had to realize that this is the better Twitter/Facebook criticism. To criticize club-like communication, you don’t need antique tin telephones or gags about canaries called Zwitscherix.
It feels like the dialogue has increased by 50% and the density of gags has even increased by 200 to 300%. At times I even caught myself looking to see where the next “action sequence” begins. Precisely because the many ping-pong dialogues from the worldbuilding diorama were almost too much for me.
You’re no longer used to so many larger pack quantities – for the same price – in the supermarket?!
(“Minchen was engraving all night. I thought she was making the shopping list.” – “Is the text even from her?” – “Of course, I know her engraving claw.”)
Every two pictures there is a little swipe at God and the world, a renewed narrative element, an insider or an allusion to modern problems. For example, on train journeys (“We are late because of a donkey cart in front”) or on arrogant city dwellers who rave in the beer garden about how great the country people have it. Before you visit an art exhibition with pictures of white marble (“Very meaningful”)…
For the first time in YEARS I also paid attention to all the side jokes. Be it the demonstrating workers demanding “inequality with slaves” or the inevitable gags about e-scooters in Paris… er… Lutetia. Someone here has actually studied the Homer… er… humor of the ancient volumes! Sure, not everything is premium snark and laugh-out-loud funny, but the higher beat rate and the somewhat more intimate moments (= in a luxury restaurant) are good for the whole thing.
Even Uderzo would have been proud in 2010. Uh, if he had still known how to spell humor.
Exchange motivational seminar for 0.001 pension points: At first the Romans are put off by the new guru. But later they are thrilled by his promising little saying. As the saying goes among retired German teachers: “It doesn’t matter what you accumulate in life, as long as you have a well-earning husband at Siemens.”
Yes, as a reader I felt like I was 12 years old again – when you were still excited about every new volume in the city library without being able to put the great thing into words. (“They just fight each other. And Obelix isn’t fat!”)
Although the story about the election-woke do-gooder is always on the spot, it’s rarely noticeable. How do you say so beautifully? “One swallow doesn’t make summer – but the feathers shine so beautifully.”
Admittedly, the text and saying landscapes of the characters are occasionally annoying – due to their large number. On the other hand, it seems cute how everyone freely changes the language culture just because someone puts a new image of society among the stinking fish. Suddenly everyone is nice to each other because that’s just how you do it – and you somehow associate it with polite society.
I give the author great credit for the fact that they thankfully forego the use of VERY clumsy allusions (e.g. Greta Thunberg sticking herself to a menhir). Fabcaro himself mentioned that he even had to curb his inventiveness a bit.
Something that Uderzo actually didn’t have to blame himself for in his UFO episode (“Gaul in Danger”)…
Asterix connoisseurs know: the Gauls used to visit a colosseum or a theater – which is ALWAYS funny because of the meta-meta levels. Suggestion for Volume 41: “Asterix and the Traveling Circus”. With people who ALL dress up as Caesar and use a magic potion to hit the head. As a comment on the superhero nonsense.
The puns are no longer so clumsy, but instead rely on harmless repetitions, slips of the tongue and questions (“Huh? What kind of air does Gutemine want to breathe?”).
And just for the record in the Boomer City Archives:
I particularly liked the volumes “The Seer”, “Dispute over Asterix” and “Obelix GmbH & Co.” because an external way of life flashed by and put the worldview of the village microcosm to the test. This also comes into play in this album. Although… you shouldn’t draw too many parallels with the current wokeness. It’s less about gender diversity, racism and language corruption, but more about vegetarians, the positive thinking cult and spontaneously spread stupid language.
Sure, in summary, the story about Gutemine, who voluntarily leaves the village, sounds like the famous ash filler in animal feed: not tasty, but somehow obvious. But even before (I meant the “1980s”) people often “just” traveled around until they finally came together at a certain place for a final exchange of fists. And I don’t think I’ve had this feeling since “Asterix in the Orient”. And this compliment counts twice because, upon closer inspection, the opponent is a fart in the wind both in terms of drawing and character.
In a good comic, however, the real antagonist is (in my opinion) never a superior enemy force, but rather, for example, the danger of being exposed somewhere, attracting attention or (very blatantly!) falling in with inferior wild boar dealers. After all, Asterix and Obelix have already had to pose as lower class representatives such as slaves, gladiators or Roman soldiers. Just a kind of Günter Wallraff documentary in antiquity.
(“My noticeable beard?! Uh… Just call me little snout and don’t talk about it anymore.”)
Because the antagonist Visusversus still seems quite harmless, he is even relieved of his calendar jokes. Which is great again! Because it doesn’t always have to be the baring-teeth comic seducer… And some of the stupid wisdom the Romans used to gloss over their defeats seemed so appropriately inappropriate that one would like to ask Visusversus to please comment on a football game or a debate in the Bundesliga .
I also enjoyed the little subplot about a depressed Majestix. Especially since some of the comments (“That tuuut weeeh!” – “That’s the liver!”) are clever insiders that newer readers won’t understand. And you don’t have to.
It’s great when fan service isn’t beaten with a menhir!
No means no: self-determination and grumbling from others play an important role in this adventure. It’s not always super funny, but it does encourage you to think and donate blood.
Conclusion:
I always disapprove when people tell me that some “bad” stories (Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who) just have to be that way – because that’s just how they do things today.
But Asterix proves how incredibly easy it can be: choose the most suitable author from many (?) applicants, trust in his love for the original – and off goes the wild laughing bag Luzi!
Of course, this volume also has minor problems, a few lengths, weak figures and the usual problems with the low-detail drawings, but: What Fabrice Fabcaro has created is impressive! Especially since I like this volume even better than some works like “The Great Ditch” (1980) or “Asterix and Maestria” (1991), which came across as very cramped and cerebral.
Woe betide you, the man is not allowed to continue.
Then you see the white.
Namely in my iris.
2023-11-07 21:54:09
#Asterix #Volume #White #Iris #Review #Zukunftia
