The Holiday Tradition Continues…
It’s time once again to dive into the wonderful world of Asterix – a holiday tradition at Major Spoilers! The druid conference is just around the corner, and all good druids will be there with their golden sickles.
Category Archives: Asterix
RETRO REVIEW: Asterix in Britain (1966)
or These Britons are crazy!
It’s become a holiday tradition at Major Spoiers – after we awake from the Turkey Sleep, we stagger to the keyboard and tell you of the adventures of Asterix the Gaul. This year the first volume to catch my eye was Asterix in Britain. Does the book stand up to the other great Asterix stories out there?
MOVIE: Asterix 3D animated movie on the way
Sometimes it pays to live in France – especially when a new Asterix movie is about to be released. The good news is the upcoming movie will be a 3D animated tale Astrix: Land of the Gods. The bad news… I double we’ll see this hit the states at all.
RETRO REVIEW: Asterix in Spain (1969)
The turkey is gone, and before the tryptophan coma kicks in it’s time to get to one of our other traditions at Major Spoilers – our Retro Review of another Asterix book. This time around, Asterix and Obelix make their way to Spain.
Asterix getting 3D treatment
I don’t know what Asterix hasn’t taken off in the States like it has in Europe, but the comic book series is a delightful read, and the movies that I have seen have been well done (and well received in France). Now it looks like the next film is going the 3D route in “Asterix: The Land of the Gods,” an adaptation of the 17th Asterix book “The Mansion of the Gods.”
Gallic hyphenate Alexandre Astier is attached to pen the adaptation, which follows the exploits of a village of ancient Gauls as they resist Roman occupation. Astier is best known for creating the hit M6 comic skits series “Kaamelott,” an Arthurian legend lampoon.
The animated featured will be done by the same group that did “Despicable Me.”
Top Ten Tiresome Tropes
A trope is a recognizable theme used in storytelling. The kidnapped princess, the final battle, the training montage, these are all tropes we have seen again and again. Usually recognition of a familiar trope is a good thing, it lets the audience know how they should feel about things and sets them up either for a satisfying conclusion or an excited twist. But what happens when a trope goes stale? When you can’t watch two hours of TV without seeing the same situation over and over, like the writers just emptied their cliche bladders all over the place? Some themes have suffered this fate, through excessive use now they accomplish the opposite of what the writers want. They take the viewer out of the experience. What follows is a list of tropes that I find tiresome, troubling and most of all, trite.
Art Appreciation Moment of the Day: Tom Fowler
Comic Twart was on an Asterix kick over the last week, and this entry from Tom Fowler brings a realistic gritty approach to the comic heroes.
Art Appreciation Moment of the Day: Mitch Gerads
It’s Asterix week at Comic Twart, and Mitch Gerads enters into today’s Art Appreciation Moment with a nice piece featuring Astrix and Thor.
Review: Asterix and Obelix’s Birthday: The Golden Book
Fifty years of Asterix and Obelix is certainly something to celebrate, and in the tiny Gaul town, the celebration is just getting started.
Asterix & Obelix’s Birthday available in the U.S.A. right now
Fans of Asterix and Obelix were able to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the comic book series in October of this year with the release of a brand new Asterix and Obelix book. Unfortunately, those of us in the United States of America had been denied that opportunity at the time. According to some websites, those in the USA won’t be able to get your hands on the 34th Asterix book, Asterix and Obelix’s Birthday: the Golden Book until January 2010, but I have it in my hands at this very moment. It arrived last night from Amazon.com and it looks fantastic. I only had a moment to flip through the issue before other Major Spoilers duties called me away, but you can expect an American perspective on the book this weekend.
Retro Review: Asterix The Gaul
It worked before, let’s try it again
Even though it is a holiday in the United States of America, we at Major Spoilers realize there are a great many of our readers that hail from places not contained within 50 states. Last year, I took down memory lane with a look at one of my favorite comics of all time Asterix and Cleopatra. It was so well received last year, we’re repeating the stunt again. Considering there are thirty plus Asterix titles, I think it is safe to say, we won’t be running out of material anytime soon.
DVD Review: Astérix et Obélix contre César (Asterix & Obelix vs. Caesar)
Bonjour class! Today we’re taking a look at a French film filled with action, adventure, romance, magic, and a lot of Roman-bashing. The film, Astérix et Obélix contre César (or Asterix & Obelix vs. Caesar) is the first in a string of adaptations based on the classic graphic novels by René Goscinny, and is also one of the most expensive live-action films to come out of France. As an added challenge, we’re going to take a look at it in its original language, partially to broaden our outlook on foreign films, and partially because the only copy I could find was an old VHS that did not include English dubs or subtitles. Make sure you take notes, because there may be a pop quiz afterwards.
(I’m totally kidding about the pop quiz.)