Asterix and the Class Act (2003)
Asterix and the Class Act Review
Asterix and the Class Act is the 32nd volume of the Asterix comic strip series that was written and illustrated by Albert Uderzo. It was published in 2003 and it’s a very amusing compilation of stories.
This isn’t your standard Asterix comic. In fact, it’s not a full story, but a collection of short stories that were previously published in a magazine and forgotten until this volume came out. Overall, this experiment was mostly a success. It’s uneven as expected, but the majority of these stories were a delight.
The introduction by Vitalstatistix was repeated from ‘Asterix and the Big Fight’, so it was just filler. The titular story was quite funny as Obelix got to go to school with the kids. The story about the birth of Asterix and Obelix was also quite amusing, though more could have been done with this premise. Obelix failing to kiss Panacea made for one very endearing and fun story. The wintery landscape there was gorgeous.
Chanticleerix is the only story here that was created just for this volume with Uderzo at the helm. It is an example of his clear affinity for animal-centric gags. It’s rather solid and reasonably diverting, but Dogmatix speaking and Obelix understanding him was not a good idea at all. A fashion show and the discussion about hosting the Olympics made for two forgettable stories that were not all that interesting. The spring story was too fantastical, but the kidnapping of Dogmatix story was quite fun and charming.
Let’s talk about some of the best stories in this volume. Asterix As You Have Never Seen Him Before… is an utter delight. This section was dedicated to fans and their crazy ideas that were here put to paper. Those include sci-fi Asterix, a black and white as well as a psychedelic take on the series.
Another highlight is the Latinamania story about the bastardization of French language. It was insightful and quite funny. I also loved the final two stories starring the authors. One is about them brainstorming ideas while the other is about them bumping upon Obelix’s descendant. That one was so charming. Most of these stories ultimately worked, though obviously a sense of momentum and a strong connective tissue were absent here. But the introductory pages were fittingly contextual and informational. The illustrations were also incredible and with frequently colorful, gorgeous color palette.
