After the glorious romp that was 'Asterix the Legionary', Goscinny and Uderzo apparently decided to get serious, at least as far as an 'Asterix' album can get. The result feels a little unusual even as the funny names, barrages of puns and wholesale whomping of Romans continues unabated. It has a serious tone on the very first page, not just with actual history but also with an intricate transfer of ownership of what will become the MacGuffin of the piece that sets up the entire story. It's the key to the book and, if we're paying extra close attention, it gives away the twist.

The first panel features the most pivotal moment in Gallic history, the transfer of power from the Gallic tribes to the invading Romans. Vercingetorix, leader not only of his own tribe, the Arverni, but an army comprised of united Gallic tribes, accepts defeat after the Siege of Alesia and throws his arms at the feet of Julius Caesar. Of course, being an 'Asterix' comic, that translates to on the feet of Julius Caesar, but the import of the moment is not lost. All these names are real, so don't try to analyse them for puns.

Those arms, his weapons and shield, initially remain there because nobody dares touch them. It's an almost sacred thing. Another note to make here is that nobody in this book acknowledges the location of Alesia, where this crucial battle took place. "We don't even know where it is!" tends to be the response whenever anyone even mentions it. I wondered if this was Gaulish stubbornness but no, it's because historians really can't come to a solid agreement on where it is. Nowadays, it seems to be somewhat agreed that the Siege of Alesia was fought on top of Mont Auxois, above a town called Alise-Sainte-Reine, but it doesn't fit Caesar's own description of the battle.

Anyway, the MacGuffin to be is the shield of Vercingetorix, thrown down with his sword and other weapons. It's stolen by a Roman archer who immediately loses it in a game of "ruber et niger" (or red and black). It's then confiscated by a centurion, who swaps it for an amphora of wine at a local merchant. And then it's handed over to a Gaulish warrior who had survived the Siege of Alesia and is happily getting drunk in response. And then, depicted by shrinking panels, it fades into legend. That's a heck of a first page!

And so we shift quickly to comedy. Page two is all about Vitalstatistix, the chief of our indomitable village of Gauls, the one and only standout since the Siege of Alesia. As you can imagine from the previous ten books, he's been eating and drinking too much again and it's affecting his health. It's not just a hangover. Getafix takes a look and discovers that it's his liver. His wife Impedimenta is a joy here. When he rebels at the druid's suggestion that he go on a diet and visit a spa, getting up and pretending like he's feeling better now, she pokes him in the liver so he leaps in pain.

A page of everyone else doing the same thing and he agrees to go to Aquae Calidae, i.e. Vichy, to take its water. Of course, Asterix and Obelix accompany him as an escort and they eat and drink at all the best inns on the way so, by the time they get there, they have to literally carry him in to see the druid in charge, Diagnostix. He's put on a diet of boiled vegetables, like everyone else there, but Asterix and Obelix sit at the same table, wolf down wild boar and douse it with beer and they soon get kicked out for undermining the operations of the hydro.

And so they wander the countryside of Arvenia on a holiday to see the local sights while the chief recovers, like Puy de Dôme, another real place, which is the largest volcanic dome in the region, central France containing a range of dormant volcanoes. What could possibly go wrong while they enjoy a sightseeing holiday? Well, because you asked, they bump into the entourage of the local tribune, Noxius Vapus, special envoy of Julius Caesar, who has the gaul to ask them to get off the road. That goes as well for them as you might expect, but there are two notes worthy of mention here.

One is that Obelix tossing Noxius Vapus over his shoulder like he's a pinch of salt has extra import in 2025 given that he kind of looks like Donald Trump. He's notably overweight but much smaller than Obelix, he wears a blue toga and he has a shock of yellow hair. The other is that he's carried in a litter by four frustratingly stereotypical African slaves who don't move a muscle in any scene with Vapus—you just know that they're going to beat him on his return journey too—except one. They all share the same calm frown until Obelix beats him up and then it shifts to a broad grin.

The real story triggers here because Noxius Vapus returns to Rome to report to Julius Caesar, who decides to quell any thought of Gaulish rebellion by hosting a triumph. That's a word we use a lot today but in Roman times it meant a celebration, usually for a victorious military commander, so a little late but appropriate. It would serve as a reminder to the Gauls that he had conquered them and they shouldn't get any bright ideas. Crucially, he wants to rub that in by being carried on top of Vercingetorix's shield. Which, of course, they don't have.

And so the Romans search for the shield to enable Caesar's triumph. And, when Asterix and Obelix get wind of this search, they search for it, too, to disable Caesar's triumph. And so the shield is now a capable MacGuffin and everything plot-related revolves around that. You'll remember that first page with the serious stuff? Both the Romans and our indomitable Gauls have to follow that path of ownership almost as detectives to figure out where the shield ended up. Which, of course, is not as difficult to work out as you might expect.

All this happens in Gergovia, the capital of the Averni tribe, where Asterix and Obelix settle down in the company of Winesanspirix, a merchant who saw them dispose of Noxius Vapus. This is where the real barrages of puns begin, this time in the sort of waves that we have in our family when we launch into pun battles, ruthlessly milking one theme until someone is unable to think of another pun and it all calms down until the next battle. So there are lots of ham puns, lots of nut puns, lots of break puns, lots of clean puns, lots of wheel puns... all with relatively expected results. It's fun but not so much as the character names, always a favourite aspect of 'Asterix' books.

Winesanspirix's wines and charcoal shop is in a row with those of Localpolitix, Forinpolitix and his brother-in-law, Thermostatix. The trail for the shield takes us to Circumbendibus, namedropped by a drunk legionary called Caius Pusillanimus. Circumbendibus runs an international wheel company with a hot secretary, Memoranda, not quite as blistering as Panacea last time out but similar, and a set of fast black kids as an intercom system. Oh dear. Then it's Marcus Carniverus, who worked at a hydro for Therapeutix, where we meet Applejus, Carrotjus, Prunejus and Tomatojus. Then it's an inept centurion called Titus Crapulus and... well, you'll have to read the book to solve the mystery. I'm just dropping names.

This is fun but the fun is tempered by the serious aspect. The refusal of anyone to acknowledge the location of Siege of Alesia is the angle that stands out the most. Initially, I struggle to get the joke because it didn't seem funny. I couldn't figure out why nobody knows where the battle was, given that they were likely part of it. Only after looking it up did it make sense and then it took on a sad tone that hangs over the story like a cloud. These stories are wild and wacky slapstick comedies in which a village of indomitable Gauls continually flout the actions of the Romans. That's fun. When we're reminded that the Romans conquered the rest of Gaul and they're understandably not very happy about it, it plays a little differently.

Next month, Asterix and Obelix visit the Olympic Games, which should be fun. I wonder if there's a serious aspect to that one. ~~ Hal C F Astell

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