''Asterix and the Great Crossing'' is the twenty-second volume of the

Asterix ''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...

comic book series a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

, by

René Goscinny René Goscinny (, ; 14 August 1926 – 5 November 1977) was a French comic editor and writer, who created the ''Astérix'' comic book series with illustrator Albert Uderzo. Raised largely in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he attended French schoo ...

(stories) and

Albert Uderzo Alberto Aleandro Uderzo (; ; 25 April 1927 – 24 March 2020), better known as Albert Uderzo, was a French comic book artist and scriptwriter. He is best known as the co-creator and illustrator of the '' Astérix'' series in collaboration with ...

(illustrations).

Plot summary

Unhygienix has run out of fresh fish. Since his stock has to be transported from Lutetia (modern-day Paris), it will be some time before the next delivery of fish. However

Getafix This is a list of characters in the ''Asterix'' comics. Main characters Asterix, Obelix and Dogmatix are the first characters with short descriptions usually listed at the beginning of each of the ''Asterix'' books (after the map of Gaul). They ...

says he can't wait since he needs some for his potion. Asterix and

Obelix Obelix (; french: Obélix) is a cartoon character in the French comic book series ''Asterix''. He works as a menhir sculptor and deliveryman, and is Asterix's best friend. Obelix is noted for his obesity, the menhirs he carries around on his bac ...

volunteer to resolve the issue by going fishing, to which end they borrow a boat from Geriatrix. After a storm, they get lost, but despite Obelix's concerns, they do not reach the edge of the world; instead, following a brief encounter with the pirates, they arrive on an island (which the reader surmises is

Manhattan Island Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

) with delicious birds that the Gauls call "gobblers" (

turkeys The turkey is a large bird in the genus ''Meleagris'', native to North America. There are two extant turkey species: the wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') of eastern and central North America and the ocellated turkey (''Meleagris ocellat ...

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

s and "

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

" with strange facial paintings ( Native Americans). Soon they earn the "Romans"' affection, but they decide to leave after the "

centurion A centurion (; la, centurio , . la, centuriones, label=none; grc-gre, κεντυρίων, kentyríōn, or ) was a position in the Roman army during classical antiquity, nominally the commander of a century (), a military unit of around 80 ...

" chooses Obelix as his rather

rubenesque Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

daughter's fiancé. They go to a small island (which the reader surmises is

Liberty Island Liberty Island is a federally owned island in Upper New York Bay in the United States. Its most notable feature is the Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''), a large statue by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi that was dedicated in ...

). Seeing a boat coming, Asterix climbs a cairn of rocks holding a torch and a book like the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

to attract it. The crew are anachronistic

Norsemen The Norsemen (or Norse people) were a North Germanic ethnolinguistic group of the Early Middle Ages, during which they spoke the Old Norse language. The language belongs to the North Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages and is the pre ...

(with names like Herendethelessen, Steptøånssen, Nøgøødreåssen, Håråldwilssen,

Irmgard Irmgard is a feminine German given name. Notable people with the name include: * Irmgard of Berg (fl. 12th century), German noble, daughter of Adolf VI, Count of Berg * Irmgard of Chiemsee (c. 831/833 – 16 July 866) * Irmgard of Cleves (c. 130 ...

, Firegård, and their

Great Dane The Great Dane is a large sized dog breed originating from Germany. The Great Dane descends from hunting dogs from the Middle Ages used to hunt wild boar and deer, and as guardians of German nobility. It is one of the largest breeds in the world ...

, Huntingseåssen) – who managed a

Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact Pre-Columbian transoceanic contact theories are speculative theories which propose that possible visits to the Americas, possible interactions with the indigenous peoples of the Americas, or both, were made by people from Africa, Asia, Europe, ...

and take the Gauls, who they thought to be the local natives, to their homeland as proof that there are continents beyond Europe. The Gauls wanting to return home, and the Vikings' eagerness to prove their story of a new world, results in a trip back to Europe to the Vikings' homeland. The Vikings' chief, Ødiuscomparissen, greets them and is skeptical of their stories, until he sees the Gauls. They plan a celebration, then attempt to sacrifice the "natives", much to the chagrin of the other Vikings ("Why? They haven't done anything!"). Before this can be carried out, a Gaulish prisoner called Catastrofix, who can understand both Gallic and Norse, stirs up Ødiuscomparissen's suspicion that Herendethelessen is a liar, causing a fight between the

with the assumption that Herendethelessen has simply gone to Gaul rather than to a new world. Meanwhile, the Gauls escape. This escape is conducive to their original purpose, since Catastrofix is a fisherman and hence able to procure some fish for the magic potion. Unhygenix, however, prefers the scent of his own stock; a preference that explains why his product is such a delicate topic.

Cultural references

* Asterix and Obelix discover a

turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

and decide to eat it. Asterix says it tastes great, but Obelix notes that it might be better to stuff it with another type of food. This is a reference to

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...

, when American families traditionally eat stuffed

Thanksgiving turkey The centerpiece of contemporary Thanksgiving in the United States and in Canada is Thanksgiving dinner (informally called turkey dinner), a large meal generally centered on a large roasted turkey. Thanksgiving could be considered the largest ...

. * On page 21 Asterix calls the country ''"a

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

",'' a reference to the nickname 16th century discoverers gave America. He also claims that in this place everything is possible. Asterix is actually talking about possible dangers, but the authors wrote this quote as a reference to the American Dream. * When Obelix punches one of the attacking Native Americans K.O. the warrior first sees American-style emblematic eagles; the second time he sees stars in the formation of the Stars and Stripes; the third time, he sees stars shaped like the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

roundel A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of differ ...

. * On page 29 Obelix claims that this way he will certainly not be eating cold dog meat. This is a reference to

hot dog A hot dog (uncommonly spelled hotdog) is a food consisting of a grilled or steamed sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced Hot dog bun, bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener (Vienna sausag ...

s. *

's idea for getting the attention of the nearby Viking ship by holding up a torch references the

(which was a gift from France). Obelix is first sceptical, but when Asterix reminds him that if they don't try this plan he will have to marry the Native American Chief's daughter, Obelix gets frightened and states: ''"I value my liberty",'' as another reference to the Statue of Liberty. * The idea that Vikings reached America centuries before

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

is one that was seriously considered at the time and is now seen as fact. However, the Vikings landed in America around 1000 C.E., roughly a thousand years after the time period where Asterix is set. * When the Vikings set foot on American ground Herendethelessen paraphrases

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...

's famous quote: "It's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind," defending the quote on the grounds that it "just came to im. * When the Native American scout who got caught by Obelix related what happened to his Chief with physical actions is probably a reference to different tribes of them communicating with each other through sign language. * On the night when Asterix and Obelix were welcomed into the tribe of Native Americans, the latter found out from the chief that their dinner is dog meat which is probably a reference to certain tribes viewing it as a delicacy. * In the original French version, on page 32, Obelix claims he learned a thing or two while he was at the prairie and uses the word ''"yep!"''. This is a reference to

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

s, and incidentally to Franco-Belgian comics series

Lucky Luke ''Lucky Luke'' is a Western ''bande dessinée'' series created by Belgian cartoonist Morris in 1946. Morris wrote and drew the series single-handedly until 1955, after which he started collaborating with French writer René Goscinny. Their par ...

, also written by

at the time, set in the

American Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

, and whose titular character frequently used the expression. In the English translation this is rendered as "I've sure learnt a thing or two home on this range." * On page 36 the Vikings give Asterix and Obelix

bead A bead is a small, decorative object that is formed in a variety of shapes and sizes of a material such as stone, bone, shell, glass, plastic, wood, or pearl and with a small hole for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under ...

s, just like 15th–17th century European settlers gave beads to the native tribes in America. * The nationality of the Vikings in this story is

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

, while the Vikings in the earlier ''

Asterix and the Normans ''Asterix and the Normans'' is the ninth book in the Asterix comic book series, written by René Goscinny and drawn by Albert Uderzo. It was first published in serial form in ''Pilote'' magazine, issues 340–361, in 1966. It depicts a meeting b ...

'' were depicted as

, a more general term. Several references make this clear: **This is made clear by several references to

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's play about the Danish prince

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

. Odiuscomparissen at one point says: "Something is rotten in the state of ..." while holding a

skull The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...

in his hand. In the play, the character Marcellus claims "something is rotten in the state of Denmark", and Hamlet delivers a monologue on death while holding the exhumed skull of his childhood playmate, the court jester

Yorick Yorick is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet''. He is the dead court jester whose skull is exhumed by the First Gravedigger in Act 5, Scene 1, of the play. The sight of Yorick's skull evokes a reminiscence by Prince Hamlet of t ...

. Towards the end of the comic Herendethelessen is seen wondering if he is a discoverer or not? He concludes by quoting Hamlet: "To be or not to be, that's the question." **When the Vikings' village is in sight, Herendethelessen tells his crewmembers to get ready to be covered with honors only for them to be greeted by an angry booming voice. Steptøånssen remarks that it is their fearsome chief Odiuscomparissen, to which Herendethelessen tells him that it certainly is not a mermaid — a reference to the statue

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a h ...

in the port of Danish capital

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

. **Herendethelessen's dog, Huntingseåssen, is a

. **Pseudo-Danish spelling (English replacing all the O's by Ø's and all the A's by Å's) is used for the Vikings' speech. **The Norwegian version neatly avoided some of the Danish references by naming Hereendeththelessen after the historical Leiv Eiriksson, making a point of his father's red hair (

Eirik Raude Erik Thorvaldsson (), known as Erik the Red, was a Norse explorer, described in medieval and Icelandic saga sources as having founded the first settlement in Greenland. He most likely earned the epithet "the Red" due to the color of his hair a ...

). Thus, a Norwegian reader instinctively puts the Viking village on

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

or possibly

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

. * In the English translation a Viking in the voyage is named Håråldwilssen, presumably because the English translators felt he shared

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...

's physical features.

Film adaptation

*The 1994 animated film ''

Asterix Conquers America ''Asterix Conquers America'' (in France as ''Astérix et les Indiens''; in Germany as ''Asterix in Amerika'') is a 1994 German animated film, directed by , and co-produced by Hahn and . The film is a loose adaptation of the ''Asterix'' graphic no ...

'', starring

Craig Charles Craig Joseph Charles (born 11 July 1964) is an English actor, comedian, television and radio presenter. He is best known for his roles as Dave Lister in the science fiction sitcom ''Red Dwarf'' and Lloyd Mullaney in the soap opera ''Coronation ...

as the voice of Asterix and

Howard Lew Lewis Howard Lew Lewis (21 August 1941 – 20 January 2018) was a British comedian and actor, best known for his roles in comedy series including ''Maid Marian and Her Merry Men'', ''Brush Strokes'' and ''Chelmsford 123''. Biography Lewis was b ...

as the voice of Obelix, is based on this book. The most noticeable differences between the book and the film is that in the film, Getafix accompanies Asterix to America – albeit because he had been abducted by Romans seeking to get rid of him by throwing him off the edge of the world – and that the Vikings do not appear in the film.

In other languages

*Catalan: ''La gran travessia'' *Croatian: ''Onkraj oceana'' (Beyond ocean) *Czech: ''Asterix a Velká zámořská plavba'' *Danish: ''Asterix opdager Amerika'' (''Asterix discovers America'') *Dutch: ''De grote oversteek'' *Finnish: ''Asterix ja suuri merimatka'' (''Asterix and the Great Sea Journey'') *Galician: ''A gran travesía'' *German: ''Die große Überfahrt'' *Greek: ''Το μεγάλο ταξίδι'' *Hebrew: ''אסטריקס מגלה את אמריקה'' (''Asterix discovers America'') *Icelandic: ''Ástríkur heppni'' *Italian: ''Asterix in America'' *Norwegian: ''Asterix oppdager Amerika'' (''Asterix discovers America'') *Polish: ''Wielka przeprawa'' *Portuguese: ''A grande Travessia'' *Russian: ''Астерикс и Великое Плавание'' *Serbian: ''Velika plovidba'' *Spanish: ''La Gran Travesía'' *Swedish: ''Resan över Atlanten'' *Turkish: ''Büyük Yolculuk'' * Ukrainian: ''Астерікс та Обелікс завойовують Америку''

Reception

The book has a score of 4.04 on

Goodreads Goodreads is an American social cataloging website and a subsidiary of Amazon that allows individuals to search its database of books, annotations, quotes, and reviews. Users can sign up and register books to generate library catalogs and read ...

References

External links

English Website
{{Asterix, Great Crossing, Asterix and the, type=book Great Crossing, Asterix and the Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact 1975 graphic novels Works by René Goscinny Comics by Albert Uderzo Comics set in the Viking Age Pre-Columbian America in fiction Comics set in New York (state) Comics set in Denmark Cultural depictions of American people Cultural depictions of Danish people Native Americans in popular culture Nautical comics