Asterix Conquers Rome

Asterix Conquers Rome
English Cover Back
Date	1979
Main Characters	Asterix and Obelix
Writer	René Goscinny
Artist	Albert Uderzo Marcel Uderzo
Original Publication
Published by	Pilote
Date of Publication	1976
Language	French
Translation
Date	1979
Chronology
Preceded by	Asterix and the Great Crossing
Followed by	Obelix and Co.

Asterix Conquers Rome, also known as The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (French: Les 12 Travaux d'Asterix), is a print adaptation of the animated film The Twelve Tasks of Asterix. Though it was published after Asterix and the Great Crossing and before Obelix and Co., it is not usually considered a canonical volume of the Asterix comic book series.

Plot

After a Roman centurion is continually defeated by the Village of Indomitable Gauls, he and the Romans came to the conclusion that the Gauls are not humans but gods. However, Julius Caesar, not believing this, sets twelve tasks that only gods could perform, similar to that of the legendary twelve labors of Hercules, to prove that the Gauls are only mere mortals. If the Gauls succeed, he will admit defeat and let them become the new rulers of Rome in his place, but if they fail, they will become his slaves.

The Gauls accepted the challenge is accepted and they chosen Asterix and Obelix to represent the village. After the duo successfully accomplished the tasks prepared for them, with the aid of the rest of the Gauls in the final task, Caesar admits the Gauls' superiority and steps down as dictator of Rome. He is then shown living in retirement and had married Cleopatra, although it is explained that the ending is what it is because it's just a cartoon film, so "anything goes".

Characters

• Asterix
• Obelix
• Getafix
• Cacofonix
• Vitalstatistix
• Unhygienix
• Fulliautomatix
• Impedimenta
• Julius Caesar
• Brutus
• Caius Tiddlus
• Asbestos
• Verses
• Cylindric the German
• Iris
• Calorifix
• Old Man of the Mountain
• Zeus
• Hermes
• Athena
• Ares
• Aphrodite
• Hephaestus
• Unnamed Centurion
• Unnamed Native American
• Ghost soldiers
• Priestesses of the Isle of Pleasure

Trivia

• The name "Verses" might have come from the word "Versus".
• Calorifix's name came from the word "Calorie", which refers to the energy/nutrition in food.
• The Cave of the Beast is seemingly able to send people through time, which might explain why Asterix and Obelix ended up in a subway as they traverse the cave.