Amazon Quiz: As per Asterix Comics, which character decides to climb this statue, and ends up breaking its nose?
Asterix
Obelix
Vitalstatistix
Getafix
Answer: Obelix
Asterix or The Adventures of Asterix (“Asterix the Gaul”) is a comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic with the help of a magical potion during Julius Caesar’s era, in an ahistorical telling of the time. On October 29, 1959, the serial debuted in the Franco-Belgian comic magazine Pilote. René Goscinny wrote it and Albert Uderzo drew it until Goscinny’s death in 1977.
Uderzo then took over the writing until 2009, when he sold the rights to Hachette; he died in 2020. In 2013, a new team was formed, consisting of Jean-Yves Ferri (writing) and Didier Conrad (artwork). As of 2021, 39 volumes had been published, with the most recent being published in October 2021.
Asterix comics typically begin with the following prologue:
“The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely… One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders. And life is not easy for the Roman legionaries who garrison the fortified camps of Totorum, Aquarium, Laudanum and Compendium…”
The series depicts the exploits of a Gaulish community as they resist Roman control in 50 BC. They accomplish this through the use of a magical potion created by their druid Getafix (Panoramix in the French version), which momentarily grants the user superhuman power. The protagonists, Asterix and his pal Obelix, encounter a variety of adventures. The “-ix” suffix (meaning “king”) in both names (as well as all the other pseudo-Gaulish “-ix” names in the series) alludes to the “-rix” suffix (meaning “king”) in the names of several historical Gaulish chieftains such as Vercingetorix, Orgetorix, and Dumnorix.
They travel to faraway nations in many of the stories, while others take place in and around their town. For much of the series’ existence (Volumes 4 through 29), the settings alternated between Gaul and elsewhere, with even-numbered volumes set abroad and odd-numbered volumes set in Gaul, primarily in the village.
As of 2009, the Asterix series was translated into 111 languages and dialects, making it one of the most popular Franco-Belgian comics in the world.
