But Goscinny had a different picture in his mind.
Uderzo's first sketches portrayed Asterix as a huge and strong traditional Gaulish warrior. The ninth Asterix volume, when first released in 1967, sold 1.2 million copies in two days. A year later, the fifth sold 300,000 1966's Asterix and the Big Fight sold 400,000 upon initial publication. Their success was exponential the first book sold 6,000 copies in its year of publication a year later, the second sold 20,000. From then on, books were released generally on a yearly basis. In 1961 the first book was put together, titled Asterix the Gaul. ]Īstérix was originally serialised in Pilote magazine, in the very first issue published on 29 October 1959.
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Prior to creating the Asterix series, Goscinny and Uderzo had previously had success with their series Oumpah-pah, which was published in Tintin magazine. To date, 325 million copies of 34 Asterix books have been sold worldwide, making co-creators René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo France's bestselling authors abroad. There have also been a number of games based on the characters, and a theme park near Paris, Parc Astérix.
The success of the series has led to the adaptation of several books into 12 films: eight animated, and four live action. The Asterix series is one of the most popular Franco-Belgian comics in the world, with the series being translated into over 100 languages, and it is popular in most European countries. For much of the history of the series (Volumes 4 through 29), settings in Gaul and abroad alternated, with even-numbered volumes set abroad and odd-numbered volumes set in Gaul, mostly in the village. Many of the stories have them travel to foreign countries, though others are set in and around their village. The "ix" ending of both names (as well as all the other pseudo-Gaulish "ix" names in the series) alludes to the "rix" suffix (meaning "king") present in the names of many real Gaulish chieftains such as Vercingetorix, Orgetorix, and Dumnorix. The protagonist, the titular character Asterix, along with his friend Obelix have various adventures. They do so by means of a magic potion, brewed by their druid called Getafix in the English translations, which gives the recipient superhuman strength. The series follows the exploits of a village of indomitable Gauls as they resist Roman occupation. As of 2013, 35 volumes have been released. The series first appeared in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote on 29 October 1959. In the front row are the regular characters, with Asterix himself in the centre.Īsterix or The Adventures of Asterix (French language: Astérix or Astérix le Gaulois, IPA: ) is a series of French comics written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo (Uderzo took over the writing after the death of Goscinny in 1977). For the character, see Asterix (character).
This article is about the comic book series.