Asterix and the Banquet
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Asterix and the Banquet (Le Tour de Gaule d'Astérix) |
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| Date | 1979 |
| Series | Asterix |
| Creative team | |
| Writers | René Goscinny |
| Artists | Albert Uderzo |
| Original publication | |
| Date of publication | 1965 |
| Language | French |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Asterix the Gladiator |
| Followed by | Asterix and Cleopatra |
Asterix and the Banquet (French: Le Tour de Gaule d'Astérix, "Asterix's Tour of Gaul") is the fifth volume of the Asterix comic book series, by René Goscinny (stories) and Albert Uderzo (illustrations). It was first serialized in Pilote magazine, issues 172-213, in 1963.
Fed up with the resistance the indomitable Gauls show, Julius Caesar sends Inspector General Overanxius to the camp of Compendium. Once there, Overanxius sees Centurion Lotuseatus and takes command of his men to lead them on an attack of the Gaulish Village (much to the delight of Obelix, who has been getting bored from no recent Roman attacks lately), but as usual (and despite Lotuseatus's warnings about the Gauls' magic potion), the Gauls repel the attack. Undeterred, Overanxius attempts a new strategy: setting up a stockade around the village to keep the Gauls contained and prevent them spreading their rebellious ideas to the rest of Gaul.
When Asterix, Obelix and Vitalstatistix see this, Asterix makes a bet with Overanxius that he and Obelix will get out of the village and go on a tour of Gaul, collecting the various specialties of the towns they visit and inviting him to a banquet at the conclusion, with which Overanxius promises to raise the stockade if the Gauls succeed. Once they've mapped out a route, Asterix and Obelix take a large sack, start out and go through the stockade, while the rest of the village attacks the stockade on another front, sidetracking the Romans from stopping the pair. However, Lotuseatus knows who Asterix and Obelix are and dispatches a messenger under Overanxius's orders as Overanxius is determined to win his side of the bet.
Rotomagus (Rouen): The next day, Asterix and Obelix make their way to the Normandy region, where they spot a Roman rider, but upon arrival in Rotomagus, they realize the rider was a messenger when a Roman patrol recognizes them. The pair make their escape by winding through the streets (with the added help of the inhabitants of Rotomagus giving the patrol clueless answers) and taking over control of a wealthy Roman couple's yacht down the Seine.
Lutetia (Paris): After arrival in Lutetia, Asterix and Obelix make their way through the traffic jams and buy ham from a butcher shop (where from this point on, Dogmatix (unnamed until the next adventure) follows the duo through Gaul), but have to make a premature departure when a wagon driver spies a Roman patrol coming (only he wants the patrol to get a wine cart driver (revealed to be the source of the traffic jam) to move his cart out of the way). However, when Asterix and Obelix decide to get out of town by chariot, a con man sells them a chariot and horse where the horse is only painted black and the chariot has a loose wheel, but the duo gets back on track when they knock out the driver of a Roman break down chariot and take the chariot.
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