Asterix and Obelix will take on the Romans in Portugal, a country they have never been to before, in their 41st album, Asterix in Lusitania, released today in France and in more than 20 countries.
On a business trip to the Portuguese
“My friends, bem-windos!” “(“Welcome” in Portuguese): Asterix, Obelix and Dogmatix are given a warm welcome when they arrive in Lusitania, which was then a Roman province on the western edge of the empire.
Unsurprisingly, the “steadfast Gauls” come to the aid of the Lusitanians, who are fighting Roman soldiers led by the centurion Nuvelope, who are aided by a traitor named Pirespes.
“The Gauls and the Lusitanians had many common features: patriotism, a sense of humor, gluttony, the spirit of resistance, love of travel…” greeted the Portuguese Ambassador to France, Francisco Ribeiro de Menezes, on the occasion of the album’s presentation.
Screenwriter Fabkaro does not hide that he “wanted” to make “a glowing album with sun, colors…” that would make people “go on vacation.”
“We have been asking for the album to be released in Portugal for decades,” adds Celeste Surug, CEO of Éditions Albert René, which published the album.
“Earthware and cod”
“It’s not easy to avoid clichés, but we tried to find ones that have a welcoming humor, where we laugh not against, but together,” explains Fabcaro.
Thus, the board depicts a busy village square, where all the shops sell the same thing: “faience and cod.” A reference to two great Portuguese dishes: azulejos, decorative pottery, and bacalhau, a national dish made from the country's emblematic fish.
What Obelix doesn't like, who clearly prefers boar.
Air of welcome
The authors also create humor around saudade, that melancholy feeling mixed with dreaminess that is expressed particularly in Portuguese fado.
In one of the album's preview boxes, the Lusitanian, along with Asterix and Obelix, evokes “pride in resistance and sadness in our betrayal.” “These people are crazy!” – Obelix immediately answers.
It is thus about Viriatus, the leader of the resistance to the Roman occupation, whom Fabcaro introduces as “the Lusitanian Vercingetorix” who was betrayed by his friends.
Since the names of the Gauls end in “ix”, the names of the Lusitanians end in “ès”, such as Boulquies or Pataquès.
Experienced duo
After L'iris blanc, released in 2023, Asterix in Lusitania is the second album from the experienced duo of screenwriter Fabcaro and designer Didier Conrad.
The latter, based in Austin, Texas, has been a veteran since he took over the pencil helm from Albert Uderzo in 2013, with the script written by Jean-Yves Ferri.
Fabcaro, whose real name is Fabrice Caro, is a fan of Goscinny and Uderzo, and is in turn a screenwriter, designer, writer and musician. He made a name for himself with the comic strip Zai Zai Zai Zai and has just published a novel, Les Derniers Jours de l'apesanteur (Gallimard), about his school years.
International success
The album will be released Thursday in 19 languages and dialects, including English, German and Italian, as well as Finnish and Basque, and in about 25 countries.
Five million copies have been printed, including two million for France, where the price remains unchanged at €10.90, Switzerland and Canada. In total, 400 million Asterix albums have been sold worldwide since its inception.
“Every time, Asterix is our biggest deal of the year,” says Isabelle Maniac, CEO of Hachette Illustrated Book. The stakes are that the album will be kept secret until the day of its release.
In Portugal, a country where the publisher says “Asterix is very popular”, circulation will be double that of previous albums, and events are planned for the launch.
Along with the release of the new album, the exhibition “Asterix and the Sea” will open on October 25 at La Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg (until May 31, 2026).
