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Astérix #38

Asterix and the Chieftain's Daughter

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Upheavals and pandemonium are definitely on the horizon! The daughter of the famous Gaulish chieftain Vercingetorix is being hunted down by the Romans. She secretly finds refuge in the village of our indomitable Gauls - the only place in Roman-occupied Gaul that can guarantee her protection. And let's just say that having this very special teenager around will cause a fair few intergenerational ructions...

48 pages, Hardcover

First published October 24, 2019

52 people are currently reading
619 people want to read

About the author

Jean-Yves Ferri

66 books73 followers
Jean-Yves Ferri is a French writer, designer and colourist of comic books.

In 2011, he was chosen as the new lead writer for the Asterix series created by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. He and illustrator Didier Conrad have so far produced five new books in the series.

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5 stars
574 (17%)
4 stars
1,039 (30%)
3 stars
1,354 (40%)
2 stars
353 (10%)
1 star
49 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 321 reviews
Profile Image for Matt.
752 reviews628 followers
October 31, 2019
Asterix and his friends are 60 today — Happy birthday, indomitable Gauls!

I expected a little more from this story after reading about it online. I thought the renitent teenage daughter of Vercengetorix was a bit more modeled after a certain Greta from Sweden. At least phenotypically she is:

Doesn’t matter much. This story is still quite nice and well drawn. Especially some of the names made me LOL (like Mouseclix, Meantrix, Selfix and of course Adrenaline). However, I found it a little strange that in one panel it is hinted that a character might be actually killed, and I wonder if this has been done before.

What lessons do we take with us from the story?
1) Resist and stay free – in your own way
2) Excessive consumption of wild boar is bad
3) The Romans are crazy


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Profile Image for Alexandra .
936 reviews369 followers
November 25, 2019
TAUGTNIX, der neue Asterix
Leider scheitert dieser neue Asterix an meinen persönlichen Erwartungen. Was habe ich mich gefreut, als ich die ersten Gerüchte vernahm, dass bei diesem neuen Band die Tochter des Vercingetorix die Hauptrolle spielen soll. Eine Fusion von Pippi Langstrumpf und Greta Thunberg habe ich in der streitbar gezeichneten jungen Frau Adrenaline mit dem langen roten Zopf vermutet, die die Dorfjugend aufwiegelt, alles auf links dreht, fridays for future-Demonstrationen anzettelt, Nachhaltigkeit und Umweltschutz einfordert, unbeirrt den massiven Wildschweinverzehr anprangert und der Fangemeinde mal verklickert, dass Asterix und Obelix mittlerweile auch zu alten weißen Männern mutiert sind. Das wäre mal eine mutige, wie spannende und auch anarchische Auseinandersetzung mit den Figuren der Reihe gewesen. Doch weit gefehlt!

Was habe ich stattdessen gekriegt: ein recht spießiges Mädchen, das nur ein bisschen herumpubertiert, eigentlich quasi nur ganz wenig herumzickt und in ihren Grundcharakterzügen eher zu einer Enid-Blyton-Geschichte passt. Da haben die Autoren die einmalige Chance vertan, auch mal im Sinne der Jugend subversiv gegen die Dorfgemeinschaft beziehungsweise Asterix und Obelix vorzugehen und sie am Ende eines Besseren zu belehren. Heißt ja nicht, dass die beiden immer Recht haben und nie etwas dazulernen können oder dürfen.

Möglicherweise haben die Macher sich das aber nicht getraut, gerade weil das Zielpublikum der Reihe mittlerweile unter den alten weißen Männern und deren Frauen zu finden ist, die man nicht vergraulen wollte. Auch wenn die Fans mittlerweile in die Jahre gekommen sind, sollten wir alle nicht vergessen, dass die Geschichte von Anfang an im Zeichen der Revolution, Anarchie und der Subversion gestanden ist. Trotzdem wir nun der Reibepunkt dieser Abarbeitung am System sind, müssten wir alte Asterix-Revoluzzer sowas schon aushalten können.

Ewig verschenkt wurde dieses wundervolle Ausgangspotenzial. So kommt der ganze Comic viel zu brav und zahm daher, macht einen Kotau vor dem System der Dorfgemeinschaft, das es doch eigentlich ironisch und augenzwinkernd kritisieren sollte. Da wurde ja bei Asterix und Maestria, als die ersten feministischen Anspielungen in der Reihe vorgenommen wurden, tausendmal mutiger und witziger vorgegangen. Ich glaube, damals gab es deswegen sogar Stunk bei den Fans.

Was bleibt, ist eine nicht witzige, feige, langweilige Geschichte, die in ihren Ansätzen einfach steckengeblieben ist. Symptomatisch dafür ist auch der Umstand, dass die Jugendlichen sofort den Schwanz einziehen, als sie es wagen, auf Seite 33 den Müll im Meer und den exzessiven Wildschweinkonsum zu kritisieren und massiven Gegenwind von einem wütenden Obelix bekommen. Sie werden abgewiegelt, müssen sich dem tobenden rotbezopften fetten alten Mann unterordnen, die Argumente werden unter den Tisch gekehrt und es folgen leider keine weiteren Aktionen, weil sich die Kinder nicht mehr trauen. Ja, so stellen sich manche Betonschädln der alten Generation ein angemessenes Verhalten der Jungen vor. Gottseidank ist die heutige reale Jugend da wesentlich unangepasster und hartnäckiger, um mit dem Finger immer und immer wieder auf die Probleme unseres Planeten zu zeigen, auch wenn wir sie nicht hören wollen. Ich sag’s ja nicht gern, aber Asterix und vor allem Obelix sind bedauerlicherweise zu RÖMERN mutiert, sie sind im Laufe der Jahre zu dem geworden, was sie immer witzig bekämpfen wollten.

Sonst gab es noch ein paar jugendliche Namen wie Selfix, ein Mini-Aufbegehren – fast nur ein Sturm im Wasserglas – bei der Berufswahl der Söhne des Fischhändlers und des Schmiedes und am Ende siegte bei der jungen Frau Adrenaline die Liebe anstatt der wehrhaften Selbstbestimmung, was aber dann auch wieder zur eigentlichen Selbstbestimmung uminterpretiert wurde. Das ist soo patriarchalisch und Rosamunde-Pilcher-Kitsch, dass mir tatsächlich die Spucke wegbleibt. Dabei hätte ich die Autoren gar nicht so spießig traditionell eingeschätzt, denn im Papyrus des Cäsar (Band 36), und bei den Pikten (Band 35) haben sie durchaus bewiesen, dass sie moderne Themen sehr gut und witzig in den Ursprungsplot adaptieren können.

Fazit: Langeweile, zweimal Schmunzeln, kein einziges Lachen und eigentlich sehr viel Ärgerlichkeit in dieser Geschichte. Ich werfe deshalb TAUGTNIX und KANNNIX in die Runde der Fans.
Profile Image for Susana.
542 reviews180 followers
February 28, 2020
(review in English below)

Pela primeira vez, fiquei completamente indiferente a um livro de Astérix.

Não me lembro de ter achado graça a nada nesta história - eventualmente, apenas às referências a aventuras anteriores.

Consolo-me com a ideia de que tenho todos os outros livros para reler...

For the first time, I was completely indifferent to an Astérix book.

I don't think I found anything funny about this story - eventually, only the references to previous adventures...

I find solace in thinking that I've got all the other books to reread...
Profile Image for António.
127 reviews23 followers
November 8, 2025
Uma genial sátira à adolescência. Os diálogos dos adolescentes ficaram rapidamente datados porque agora falam de uma forma completamente diferente do que falavam em 2019, quando o livro foi editado. De qualquer forma, estão lá o espírito, a inquietação, a rebeldia e também a parvoíce...
Profile Image for D.
526 reviews84 followers
March 14, 2020
Not as good as the older ones but still hilarious. Note Charles Aznavour as one of the pirates.
Profile Image for Xabi1990.
2,129 reviews1,390 followers
December 8, 2019
Es inevitable comparar cada nuevo Asterix que sale al mercado con lo que ya te has leído suyo (en mi caso todos, soy fan irredento)

Y solo desde la condición de fan te puede encantar esta nueva entrega. Los dibujos son buenos, pero no tiene la chispa de los clásicos. Y es en los diálogos donde la cosa no tiene comparación, la verdad.

Esas joyas clásicas como Asterix y Cleopatra, Asterix el Galo, Asterix en los Juegos Olímpicos, etc, parecen inalcanzables -desgraciadamente- para el tándem que escribe y dibuja ahora. Lastima.

Eso sí, seguiré comprando cada título que salga. Irredento, ya he dicho.
94 reviews
October 29, 2019
I own all the Asterix books in their original French. I’ve loved the series since I was a child and once had the thrill of meeting Albert Uderzo.
I did not realise that the last few novels were all completely by a different duo. The stories and writing were still ok. But this “album”? Oh boy!
Barely any plot. Shorter than most of the other stories, but including far too many characters from Asterix’s past in an attempt to make it popular.
I liked the introduction of the teenage sons of Ordralfabetix (Unhygienix) and Cétautomatix (Fulliautomatix). Long overdue. But their treatment was poor. And where was Assurancetourix (Cacofonix)?
I notice that it is normally 1 star reviews that are unaccompanied by an actual review, whereas with this book it is the 5 star reviews that are surprisingly blank.
A lot of work needed if they are going to make more books.
Profile Image for Nariman.
166 reviews87 followers
January 10, 2020
انتظار بیشتری داشتم ازش، ولی تجربه به فرانسه خوندن همچین متنی عامل اصلی جذابیتش بود

چقدر لغات متن فرانسه، از ترجمهٔ انگلیسیش سخت‌تره! پر از اصطلاعات عامیانه‌ است
کلا بعید میدونم هیچ وقت بتونم فرانسه‌م رو همسطح انگلیسیم کنم... هنوز در افق، نقطه روشنی مشاهده نمیسه :))
Profile Image for Macqueron.
1,035 reviews17 followers
October 26, 2019
Un retour en forme pour Ferri et Conrad avec un album qui fourmille de jeux de mots et situations cocasses. Bel hommage à Aznavour. Asterix comme on l’aime, simple et efficace (sans atteindre cependant le niveau des indétrônables classiques type JO, Tour de Gaulle et autres Cléopatre).
Profile Image for Dirk Grobbelaar.
865 reviews1,227 followers
December 1, 2021
I really like the Asterix books. I mean, I really, really like the Asterix books. This one, however, not so much. Not sure if I am just turning into an old crank (I'm not all that old either) or whether I am so resistant to change that any alteration to the status quo of the Asterix-verse just rubs me the wrong way, but this attempt at bringing the Asterix books into the modern age with teenage jokes in tow just didn't resonate with me. It's my opinion, so there.

I may give this another go, in a year or two, then I'll see if my rating changes.
Frankly, I hope it does, because have I mentioned that I really like the Asterix books?
Profile Image for Sophie Crane.
5,235 reviews179 followers
November 22, 2019
I have been reading Asterix for over 10 years and I have to say that I find several of the other reviews pretty unfair and harsh.
The illustrations by Didier conrad are, once again, excellent and I must say are an improvement on those in (an elderly) Uderzo's last few volumes, which tended to lack detail and look rushed.
Despite some other comments in these reviews, I think that Jean-Yves Ferri (an award winning writer) has really found his feet with this book. The book really harks back to and captures the spirit of Goscinny's Gaulish Village set tales.
The stories themselves have always been fairly simple (what do you expect in 48 pages?) but have always been driven by dialogue and narrative.
On top of which ( I don't know what other people were missing) this is really funny. There are many cultural, classical and historical references as well as plenty of glorious and in some cases painful puns - several of which made me laugh out loud. There is also a nice tribute to the late Charles Aznavour, who passed away a year ago, and has a small cameo as one of the pirates.
This book is far superior to the last Asterix volume, which after Asterix and the Lost Scroll, I found somewhat disappointing.
Finally, as translators, Derek Hockridge and Anthea Bell left massive boots to fill, however, Adriana Hunter, an experienced and award winning translator of French literature, seems to have done a fine job here.
Profile Image for Eddie Clarke.
239 reviews58 followers
November 2, 2019
Not great. Trailed as being a more feminist Asterix adventure, the female heroine was pretty weak for me - standard damsel in distress stuff with a few elements of grumpy teenager attached. Humour simultaneously considerably less sophisticated at the top end and less imaginatively slapstick at the bottom end than in the classic Asterix days
Profile Image for Andy Jesse.
388 reviews3 followers
December 27, 2023
Okay. Nicht mehr. Schön gezeichnet. Im Ansatz gute Geschichte. Aber laaangweilig.

Warum ⭐️⭐️⭐️◾️◾️?
Sehr schön gezeichnet. Geschichte magichnix so.
Deshalb drei Sterne im Ergebnis.
Laaangweilige Rezi? Verdient.
Profile Image for Pauline Van etc..
92 reviews3 followers
April 19, 2020
La fille de Vercingétorix is the latest edition of the famous Astérix comic book collection. The original artists Goscinny and Uderzo are now dead but the two new cartoonists Ferri and Conrad did a pretty good job keeping up the spirit of the series.

For the first time in Astérix, the main character is a woman, a teenager who feels stifled by the pressure of her people to fight in the name of her father, the famous Gaulois hero who surrendered to César. While the plot is not fantastic, the comic book is entertaining and funny and I particularly liked the references to the late Charles Aznavour.

Finally, I would like to thank my friend Dennis for encouraging me to read comic books and share my reviews on Goodreads.
Profile Image for Robert.
827 reviews44 followers
February 12, 2020
I was worried about the future of the Village of Indomitable Gauls we know so well, after finding the first Ferri & Conrad outing good but the subsequent two volumes to be following a deteriorating trend. My persistence paid off, however, with this return to form. It's the story most like one Goscinny would have written we have been given since the great writer's death. It focuses on some of the most beloved tropes of the series; bickering amongst the villagers, puns, daft character names, standing up to the Romans, long-suffering legionaries... and we get insight into the teens in the village, too - an amusing innovation. Delightful!
Profile Image for Gretel.
338 reviews61 followers
October 29, 2019
The beginning was abysmal. The "satire"/"critique" of young people here was ridiculously lazy, mean and just plain bad. There are things one can make fun of lovingly about teenagers without being condescending and just factually wrong. Hurrdurr, young people care about the environment, want to have their own lives and end "boar-economy" (capitalism)! Those IDIOTS, harr harr harr!
The middle part was just a huge Meh.
The ending on the other hand turned it around considerably and was almost cute with a nice message. It felt like from a completely different comic, written by other people.

But to be honest and fair, it was disappointing and mean-spirited for the sake of being boomer edgy. This could be stolen straight from an FB boomer meme group.
Profile Image for Rui Alves de Sousa.
315 reviews51 followers
November 7, 2019
Até agora é a melhor aventura assinada pela dupla que sucedeu aos criadores - e tal como se sucedeu com os seus 3 álbuns anteriores, é superior a qualquer aventura que teve somente a autoria de Uderzo.
Profile Image for Titanic Lego Boy.
20 reviews4 followers
February 9, 2020
Not very asterixy :-( :-( :-( :-( :-[ :O 😐😯😶😞👤👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎wait I thought it was the English version!!!
Profile Image for _Leselust_.
295 reviews38 followers
January 2, 2020
Der Comic hat mich nicht begeistert, war aber auch nicht so schlecht, wie die letzten beiden. Die Story war unterhaltsam, aber nicht spannend und nicht mit so vielen Anspielungen, wie bei den alten Geschichten. Und der ein oder andere guten Namenswitz war auf jeden Fall dabei.
Profile Image for Fifi.
538 reviews20 followers
February 16, 2025
'Eigenaardig. Je krijgt de indruk dat ze niet van oorlog houdt.'
#DeZinVanHetBoek

Een titel uit het post-Uderzo&Goscinny-tijdperk die ik had gemist, en die je gerust kunt overslaan.
De tekeningen van Didier Conrad zijn prima, maar de teksten van Jean-Yves Ferri: mwah. Slap verhaal, suffe zijpaadjes, stramme dialogen.

Ferri is inmiddels opgevolgd door Fabcaro, die met deel 40, De witte iris, wel weer de juiste snaar raakte. Benieuwd naar zijn volgende album, dat schijnbaar in oktober van dit jaar uitkomt.
Profile Image for Laurène.
64 reviews76 followers
September 27, 2022
A few good jokes, but I feel like the last Astérix keep getting worse and worse as the authors don't really seem to know what to write about anymore
Profile Image for Jonath666.
397 reviews25 followers
November 1, 2019
Album relativement décevant.

Je n'ai rien à reprocher au dessin mais le scénario trop simpliste et les dialogues qui manquent de subtilité font de cet album une BD plus que dispensable.

Moi ce que j'aime dans les albums d' Astérix, ce sont les multiples références et les anachronismes.

Ici il n'y en avait pas assez. De plus, on a connu les auteurs plus inspirés dans les noms donnés aux nouveaux personnages.

Lecture vite oubliée. Mais ça reste tout de même mieux que les derniers albums dessinés par Uderzo qui faisaient intervenir des extraterrestres. Ca reste la catastrophe ultime quand on y repense...
Profile Image for R.
119 reviews
November 22, 2019
I never thought I'd be saying this, but I was a tad bit disappointed in the latest adventure of our indomitable duo from that little Gaulish village we know so well.

This one left me with mixed feelings. While it was great to catch up with old friends, I don't think I have come to terms much with the next generation in the village growing up to take prominent role. The adventures of Asterix and Obelix have been special because they never get old. In this book, sadly, they seem to be.

Now, every Asterix fan connects with these delights in their own way, ergo my way does not have to be everyone's and there's no dispute or contest here. For me, the stories have remained special for many reasons. One of them being that they were frozen in the icicle of time (perfect world to escape to, which was a steady constant while the years changed much of everything else in the real world). An icicle that seemed to have started melting in the latest adventure. Mayhap I am rather partial to what I fell in love with so many years ago as a 6-7 years old. While change is the constant of real world and it does bring its decays to almost everything, you do not expect the horse to one day break away from carousel, have little ponies, grow old and buy a farm. No, barring for the elemental decay on the outside (the pages going yellow), the spirit of carousel has a constant that keeps the music, the lights and the ride going round and round night after night, year after year so that the adventure is not lost in translation from one generation to the next.

(never came to terms with Asterix & Obelix's Birthday: The Golden Book either)

Ferri/Conrad did a decent job reviving the series for a whole new generation, but they seemed too focused on making this edition appealing to the young readers of today instead of being subtle about it (or, may be it was the translation). As a lifelong Asterix fan, I could sense the duo being torn apart between keeping true to the legacy and desperation to maximize its sale to contemporary audience.

For many of us die-hard fans, it's a world to escape to (has been...for decades). To be left in peace without much interference from comings and goings of the real world, so that it's always there, unchanged (Julius' royal hide still getting the good thumping, Obelix's insatiable appetite for Roman bashing and boar hunting, Getafix aged perfectly as his magic potion...a world to love and cherish and retire to till the day eyes close upon the world around). It's horrifying to even think of arriving one day and finding that world inhabited by altogether different Gauls, those you don't know at all, and none of the friends we shared so many decades of adventures with.

That said, I have not given up on the series or its new storytellers. Look forward to the next ride.
Profile Image for María (NefertitiQueen).
454 reviews36 followers
July 22, 2020
De vez en cuando, vuelvo a leer alguno de los cómics de Astérix que mis hermanas y yo tenemos en casa de nuestros padres. Y cuando salió publicado este, me llamó la atención, sobre todo cuando leí la sinopsis.

Y con gran pena tengo que decir que me he llevado una gran decepción ahora que lo he leído. Yo pensaba encontrar a una protagonista con gran carácter, provocando todo tipo de conflictos en la aldea, sacando de quicio a Astérix... En fin...

Y me he encontrado con un cómic muy soso, la protagonista parece un personaje secundario en vez del principal, y el guión no me ha atraído nada. Me he quedado desilusionada. ¡Con lo que me gustaban estos libros de Astérix y Obélix y todos los habitantes de la aldea irreductible! ¡Con las cosas que aprendí de niña sobre Roma, las legiones y Julio César al leer estos divertidos libros!

Le voy a dar una puntuación de 3 sobre 5 porque me ha hecho recordar lecturas de mi infancia, pero creo que no se merece más que un 2. No sé qué opináis vosotros... 😉
Profile Image for Neo.
880 reviews34 followers
December 29, 2019
Vercingetorixin tytär ei mielestäni yllä aiemmin julkaistujen uusien Asterixien tasolle. Seikkailuna se on kädenlämpöinen pyörähdys gallien kylän lähivesillä, eikä nykyajan kommentaarikaan oikein pure. Adrenalinen hahmossa olisi ollut huomattavasti enemmän potentiaalia, joka nyt hukataan heti löytyessä.

Sääli erityisesti tarinaan nivottua sodanvastaisuutta ja väkivallattomuutta, jota ei kuitenkaan käsitellä. Aineksia paljon parempaan!
Profile Image for Unai.
975 reviews55 followers
October 27, 2019
Mejor que el anterior, sin duda. Al menos para mi gusto, el enfoque en los adolescentes de la aldea tiene su gracia. Si que como Obelix dice, se echa de menos a veces el ir a recorrer mundo, pero aun así, es un ratito ameno.
Profile Image for Gorgowood.
459 reviews55 followers
December 29, 2019
Un capítulo algo adolescente de las aventuras de mis galos favoritos. Sigo echando de menos la frescura y la emoción de las primeras aventuras, pero tras casi 40, y fallecido su extraordinario guionista, es de entender. Aún así, cómic nuevo que se haga, estará en mi estantería.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 321 reviews

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