It was in 1959 that Astérix and the rest of the village of unyielding Gauls, who resisted Roman occupation thanks to a magic potion, first appeared in the French magazine Pilote.
Since then, Astérix, always accompanied by his faithful friend Obelix and his dog Ideiafix, have travelled to every part of the Roman Empire and beyond… all of it? Until this year, Portuguese fans of the series lamented the fact that Lusitania, the territory that corresponds to what is now Portugal, had not yet been visited by these heroes who have enamoured and amused several generations of readers.
That omission has finally been addressed with the release of Astérix in Lusitania, the 41st album in the series, the seventh drawn by Didier Conrad (who received the testimony of Albert Uderzo, creator of the characters) and the second scripted by Fabrice Caro(Fabcaro), after The White Lily.
So far, it’s been a resounding success, according to David Lopes, general director of the Leya group who told Euronews it’s broken a Portuguese book publishing record for the most sales in the first four days.
That revelation was doubly confirmed by the series’ editor in Portugal, Vítor Silva Mota and also by the enormous number of people who packed into the sold-out screening at one of the largest rooms in the El Corte Inglés cinema complex in Lisbon.
Since its launch on 23 October, Astérix in Lusitania has asold more than 50,000 copies, from an initial print run of 80,000. Globally, five million copies have been printed, published in 25 countries and 19 languages (including little-spoken dialects such as Mirandese).
The secret to its success? The usual biting humour, the puns, the anachronisms, the wink to current issues (between two laughs, serious topics such as anti-immigration discourse or the dominance of large economic groups are mentioned) and, of course, the parade of clichés about the countries visited.
In Lusitania, you can’t avoid hearing fado (sung by a Lusitanian called Amália), seeing or tasting pastéis de nata (custard tarts), codfish (which Obélix hates), experiencing Portuguese pavements, the tiles… and that very Portuguese feeling, saudade, or that state of mind that can be summed up in Astérix’s words to Obélix when they dress up as Lusitanians: “Try to look sad and happy at the same time”.
“The funny thing is that you start reading the book and say ‘we’re nothing like that’! When you finish, you admit that yes, we are all that,” says comedian Hugo van der Ding, who presented the book.
There’s also an ancestor of the XXVIII tram in Olisipo (Lisbon), a revolutionary called MCMLXXIV and a young man who plays football with the number VII on his shirt, among many winks to contemporary Portugal.
Interview with Fabrice Caro
Fabrice Caro (Fabcaro) and Didier Conrad met Euronews Culture during the Lisbon bookshop presentation and discussed the entire process that led to the creation of this album.
Euronews: Why did it take our friends Astérix and Obelix so long to come and visit their Lusitanian cousins?
Fabcaro: I was wondering the same thing. When I had to make a travel album, I realised that they had never been to Portugal, and I didn’t understand why. I wondered why it took them so long, when it seemed like a pretty obvious destination. It’s not far from Gaul, you can go by boat. It’s a well-known country, it’s a neighbouring country with a strong culture. So I don’t know what took them so long.
Didier Conrad: When we resumed the series, Portugal immediately came up as a possibility, perhaps also because we came to Portugal straight after Astérix Among the Picts ( 2013) and there was a certain insistence from the Portuguese (in particular, from Vítor Silva Mota, NDR) that we should make an album in their country. I know that the previous writer, Jean-Yves Ferri, of Spanish origin, didn’t feel very comfortable with the theme. On the other hand, Fabrice (Caro) immediately wanted to come to Portugal. We were very happy with the idea.
There are always clichés in the Asterix albums and this story is no exception. There’s cod, which Obelix hates. Then there are the custard tarts, fado, all that… Apart from the clichés, what aspects of Portugal and the Portuguese did you identify during your preparatory journeys and decide to include in the album?
Fabcaro: Hospitality. Hospitality wasn’t necessarily part of the initial script.
I had realised the gastronomic clichés, the codfish, the characteristics, the nostalgia, and that was our starting point. I wasn’t very focused on hospitality, on the warm and welcoming side of the Portuguese. When we came with the editor, I realised I had to add that aspect. I rewrote and added to the script the part about the welcoming and supportive side of the Portuguese people.
Didier Conrad: I’d only been here once before. What surprised me most was the climate, which is very different from Spain. It’s humid and hot. In fact, it’s not very different from Texas, where I live.
I also noticed that there are tiles everywhere, even under the sinks. The need to decorate everything is incredible. It’s really typical of here, I think. On the other hand, there’s a lot of fish, a lot of fish-based dishes.
Is the legacy of Uderzo and Goscinny difficult to carry on?
Fabcaro: They were two geniuses. A drawing genius and a writing genius. So it’s very difficult to follow in their footsteps, but it’s a mission. At the same time, it serves as a constraint. We tell ourselves that we have to keep that spirit. When we make a travel album, we must maintain the spirit of benevolent humour, of laughing together, of sharing. We want to keep that spirit so dear to the creators.
Didier Conrad: It’s a bit like being in a big family. I grew up with Astérix. It’s something that’s part of my daily emotional life. So it’s more of a tradition in which we were brought up. It’s not that heavy.
In your specific case, you’re the designer, you have your own style, but you had to adapt a little to Uderzo’s style…
Didier Conrad: I started working on Astérix when I was just over 50 years old and I had already developed a bit of everything I wanted to develop personally. I’d already done several personal albums and evolving after a certain age is more difficult, because we form habits.
I told Uderzo that by doing this I was relearning my craft, because I was forced to revise everything I knew according to his way of working. It was good for me.
On this album, like your previous ones, you mix current themes with classic ones. You talk, for example, about anti-immigration discourse or tourism. Have you read anything about the situation in Portugal?
Fabcaro: I haven’t read specifically about Portugal, but I know about the situation in France and the impression I get is of a European climate. In general, I think we’re in a bit of the same situation. Each album takes a look at society. There’s the main story and then there’s always a cross-cutting theme. It’s always a snapshot of the society in which it’s set and the era in which the album is released.
Following on from this question, does the redesign of the character of Baba (the black pirate) have anything to do with this new climate? Because before he was a character who very much reflected the stereotype that some white people have of black people…
Didier Conrad: You have to understand that the character of Baba came about as a parody of another series that was on at Pilote at the same time, a series called Barbe Rouge, which continues to this day, where there was a large black man called Baba who spoke without pronouncing the R. It was just a reference to a friend’s series, really. After a while, the parody became better known than the original series.
Eventually, it began to fit in as a stereotype that meant something else. What’s more, we’re in a tense period regarding the representation of different ethnicities or cultures, and that causes problems, especially for people who don’t know the universe of Astérix, who see it from the outside and realise that, with all the impact that Astérix has, it’s not good to do that, and that complicates things. It was above all the North American publishers who had a problem with the character.
Next album? Any next ideas?
Fabcaro: For Didier, for sure. I’m on an interim basis because the appointed main screenwriter is Jean-Yves Ferry, who wanted to take a break, at least during these two albums. So I’m waiting to see Jean-Yves return. At least I’m still in the mood, I’m still having a lot of fun.
