Asterix Omnibus

 

(Asterix Omnibus: Asterix and the Actress, Asterix and the Class Act, Asterix and the Falling Sky) By Goscinny (Author) Paperback on by unknown author
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Asterix (& Obelix!) formed much of my sense of humor since I first discovered the series back in 1975. I can trace my first desires to learn Latin back to the series, as well. Only now, when the clever Latin puns start flying, I understand (many of) them.

While this is not my favorite Asterix title (that honor is reserved for Asterix and the Goths), this is a very interesting collection. The three full-length adventures, "Asterix and the Actress," "Asterix and the Class Act," and "Asterix and the Falling Sky" are all fine, funny stories. But what really sets this omnibus apart are the number of short pieces between the longer stories. My favorite of these is entitled "Asterix as you have never seen him before . . .". And how! Here Goscinny and Uderzo show their artistic versatility, drawing (and writing) five vignettes in wildly different styles, each in response to a letter from fans and critics.

My favorite of these is a one-panel piece drawn in a style that looks like a cross between Mad Magazine and Crumb comics, written in response to the letter "Why don't you, like, you know, have the druid inventing modern gadgets? The characters don't talk, like, natural. And even worse, the drawing's just for kids, like Mickey Mouse stuff. Signed, a pal". The panel is a bizarre scene with Asterix (who looks like he belongs at a doom metal concert, stoned out of his gourd) on the phone with Getafix ("Getty"), while, in the background, Obelix smashes a group of Roman Soldiers with a browning machine gun he wields as a club.

You get the point. Yes, this book might be for "completists," but if you love Asterix like me, it's worth picking up, even if it's just for the smattering of short, very clever pieces throughout.

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