Asterix and the Golden Sickle
| Asterix and the Golden Sickle (La Serpe D'or) | |
|---|---|
 Cover of the English edition | |
| Date | 1962 |
| Main characters | Asterix and Obelix |
| Series | Asterix |
| Publisher | Dargaud |
| Creative team | |
| Writers | René Goscinny |
| Artists | Albert Uderzo |
| Original publication | |
| Published in | Pilote magazine |
| Issues | 42–74 |
| Date of publication | 11 August 1960–1961 |
| Language | French |
| Translation | |
| Publisher | Brockhampton Press |
| Date | 1975 |
| Translator | Anthea Bell and Derek Hockridge |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Asterix the Gaul |
| Followed by | Asterix and the Goths |
Asterix and the Golden Sickle (also known as "The Golden Billhook" - translated from French: La Serpe D'or) is a French comic book story, written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo,[1] and published by Dargaud. It is the second story in the Asterix comic book series, and was originally published as a serial for Pilote magazine in 1960,[2] before being re-released as a comic book in other languages.
The story focuses on Asterix, accompanied by his friend Obelix, as they attempt to acquire a golden sickle for their druid, only to find themselves dealing with a criminal consortium trying to profit from a shortage of them in Gaul. Dargaud later planned an animated adaptation of the story, but scrapped the project after Goscinny and Uderzo blocked production following their animated adaptation of the first novel.
Plot summary
[edit]In the forest outside the village of Gauls in Armorica (present-day Brittany), Druid Getafix breaks his golden sickle. He explains to the villagers that this will prevent him not only attending the annual conference of druids in the Forest of the Carnutes, but also from making the magic potion that provides superhuman strength the Gauls use to resist the Romans. Determined to resolve his dilema, Asterix and his friend Obelix vow to travel to Lutetia (the predecessor of present-day Paris), ands secure a new golden sickle from Obelix's cousin Metallurgix, a renowned sicklesmith. On the journey to the city, the pair learn that Lutetia is currently suffering a shortage of golden sickles for unknown reasons.
Upon arriving in the city, Asterix and Obelix learn that Metallurgix has gone missing, and decide to spend the next day searching for information. This causes them to encounter Clovogarlix, a local rogue, who brings them to a club run by his superior, Navishtrix. After refusing to buy a golden sickle from him at an exorbitant price, the pair are forced to fight off Navishtrix's men. When the Romans raid the club, Navhistrix and Clovogarlix escape, while Asterix and Obelix are promptly arrested for their actions. When brought before the city's Prefect, Surplus Dairyprodus, they are surprised when he releases them for providing him with good entertainment. As they leave his palace, his centurion informs the pair that Metallurgix may have been kidnapped by sickle traffickers, who have taken advantage of the sickle shortage in Lutetia.
Seeking answers, the pair track down Clovogarlix's house to search it for clues, but are arrested by the Romans again and thrown into jail. To their surprise, they encounter a drunkard in their cell who reveals that Navishtrix has a hideout in the Boulogne forest. After Dairyprodus releases the Gauls once again, they head to the forest and find a trapdoor to an underground hideout, which contains a vast hoard of golden sickles. Before they can explore further, Navishtrix discovers them, and orders his men to apprehend them as he escapes. Following the fight, the pair interrogate Clovogarlix, who admits his boss is working for someone else. Tracking down Navishtrix, which results in another run-in with the Romans, the pair are shocked to discover the mastermind behind the sickle shortage is Dairyprodus.
The prefect freely confess to them and his centurion that he did so for his own amusement, sponsoring Navishtrix's illegal sickle operation. Dairyprodus and Navishtrix are arrested, while Asterix and Obelix are released. Learning Metallurgix had been held in the Prefect's dungeon, the pair rescue him, whereupon he greatly rewards them with one of his best golden sickles for Getafix. With this in hand, the pair return home to their village, which holds a banquet to celebrate the success of their adventure.
Characters
[edit]- * Asterix – Gaulish warrior, and the main protagonist of the story.
- Obelix – Gaulish menhir delivery man and warrior, and a close friend of Asterix. Following the first story, he was given more prominence for the plot of The Golden Sickle
- Getafix – Gaulish druid.
- Vitalstatistix – Chief of the Gaulish village.
- Cacofonix – Gaulish bard of the village. Goscinny and Uderzo used this novel to establish a recurring gag in which Cacofonix's singing is disliked, and that he is tied up most of the time for the banquet at the end of each story.
- Surplus Dairyprodus – Prefect of Lutetia. The character's appearance was based upon the real-life actor Charles Laughton, who was known for playing Roman statesmen.[3]
- Navishtrix – Ringleader of a syndicate running an illegal sickle operation.
- Clovogarlix – Navishtrix's second-in-command, responsible for dealing with troublemakers.
- Metallurgix – A sicklesmith in Lutetia, and Obelix's cousin.
A caricature of French cartoonist Jean Graton was created for the comic, appearing in a scene as a ox cart competitor.[4]
Cultural References and Story Notes
[edit]- In a frame of the comic, Asterix and Obelix encounter competitors taking part in the "Suindinum 24 hours" ox-cart race. The event is a reference to France's 24 Hours of Le Mans sports car race, with Suindinum being the ancient name for Le Mans.[5] For the American edition, the name was changed to "Suidinum 500" to reference the 24 Hours of Daytona sports car race.
- When the comic was originall released, fans noted that Uderzo made an error with his illustrations, causing pages after the page 36 to be drawn with smaller panels in comic strip format, resulting in larger margins on those pages in the printed comic book.[6]
Cancelled Adaptation
[edit]Following the release of their first animated film adaptation of Asterix the Gaul, Dargaud had planned to create a second film based on The Gold Sickle. However, Goscinny and Uderzo were not impressed with their first film, which they reluctantly allowed to be released, and firmly rejected any work to be done on the proposed film with the company's animation team. As a result, Dargaud scrapped the project at the pair's request.[7]
In other languages
[edit]- Arabic: أستريكس والمنجل الذهبي
- Bengali: 'এসটেরিক্স ও সোনার কাস্তে
- Bulgarian: Златният сърп
- Catalan: La falç d'or
- Croatian: Asteriks i Zlatni srp
- Czech: Asterix a Zlatý srp
- Danish: Asterix og trylledrikken
- Dutch: Asterix en het gouden snoeimes
- Estonian: Asterix ja Kuldsirp
- Finnish: Kultainen sirppi
- French: La Serpe d'or
- West Frisian: De gouden sichte
- Galician: O fouciño de ouro
- German: Die goldene Sichel
- Greek: Το χρυσό δρεπάνι
- Hungarian: Az aranysarló
- Indonesian: Asterix dan Sabit Emas
- Irish: Asterix agus an Corrán Óir
- Italian: Asterix e il falcetto d'oro
- Latin: Falx aurea
- Latvian: Asteriks un zelta sirpis
- Norwegian: Asterix og styrkedråpene
- Polish: Złoty sierp
- Portuguese: Asterix e a Foice de Ouro
- Romanian: Asterix si Cosorul de Aur
- Russian: золотой серп
- Scots: Asterix and the Gowden Heuk
- Serbian: Астерикс и златни срп/Zlatni srp
- Slovak: Asterix a zlatý kosák
- Spanish: La hoz de oro
- Swedish: Asterix och guldskäran
- Turkish: Asteriks Altın orak
- 한국어 : 아스테릭스, 황금낫을 찾아랏!
Reception
[edit]On Goodreads, Asterix and the Golden Sickle has a score of 4.13 out of 5.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ "La Serpe d'or – Astérix – Le site officiel". www.asterix.com (in French). 20 June 2017. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
- ^ "the golden sickle hatchette – Google Search". www.google.com. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
- ^ "Surplus Dairiprodus". Asterix The Official Website. LES ÉDITIONS ALBERT RENÉ. Archived from the original on 2017-12-24. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
- ^ "2. Asterix and the Golden Sickle". Asterix Around the World. HJH & SLLS. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
- ^ Matthew Screech (2005). Masters of the Ninth Art: Bandes Dessinées and Franco-Belgian Identity. Liverpool University Press. pp. 79–. ISBN 978-0-85323-938-3.
- ^ "Asterix, tome 2 : La serpe d'Or". Coin BD. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
- ^ "Asterix the Gaul adventures Vol. 2 – Asterix and the Golden Sickle". Asterix The Official Website. LES ÉDITIONS ALBERT RENÉ. Archived from the original on 2017-12-24. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
- ^ "Asterix and the Golden Sickle (Asterix, #2)". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
- The complete guide to Asterix by Peter Kessler ISBN 0-340-65346-9
External links
[edit]| Authority control databases: National |
|---|
