
A promotional image for “Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter”. Image: Albert René editions
60 years after he first appeared in the pages of the French comic magazine Pilote, Asterix, the creation of René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, returns in an all-new album this October – and a new animated TV series, Dogmatix and the Indomitables, is also in the works, although the details of this remain scant so far.
If Asterix and Obelix thought they could recover from their last expedition in the tranquil setting of their beloved Armorica, they’d better think again!
A mysterious teenage girl has just arrived in the village escorted by two Arverni chiefs. Caesar and his legionaries are searching for her, and with good reason: word on the ground in the village is that the visitor’s father is none other than the great chieftain Vercingetorix, who, in the real world, was a warrior defeated at Alesia.
René Editions have been teasing the new album since January, first with an exclusive teaser image and interviews with the creators published by Le Journal de Dimanche, followed by the social media release of the page, featuring Getafix the Druid, attempting to teach a class of unruly children.

A page from the French edition of “Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter”. Image: Albert René editions
Due for release in the UK on 24th October from Hachette Children’s Group, Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter – the 38th Asterix adventure, to be released in France as “Astérix et la fille de Vercingétorix” – is the work of Jean-Yves Ferri and Didier Conrad, the team now firmly established as creators of new, authorised Asterix adventures.
In the world of Asterix, Vitalstatistix stands on Vercingetorix‘ old shield when addressing his villagers, an artefact that featured prominently in Asterix and the Chieftain’s Shield, the eleventh Asterix story, first collected back in 1968.

Vitalstatistix stands on Vercingetorix‘ old shield. Image: René Editions
“From what we know of the the chieftain’s daughter, she’s a rebellious teenager,” the authors, who have written the Asterix stories since 2013, tease. “Hardly surprising – it can’t be easy having a name like Vercingetorix!”
“We did quite a lot of research into her for the album: her appearance, her name, her personalit… as you may know, Vercingetorix didn’t give much away about his private life, and there are very few historical sources.
“But, as you’ll see, we’ve managed to track down quite a collection of scoops!”
• Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter goes on sale 24th October 2019. You can pre-order it here on Amazon (Affiliate Link, help support downthetubes, thank you)
• Asterix is online at www.asterix.com/en
ASTERIX IN NUMBERS
• Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter will have a print run of over five million and be published in more than 20 languages in 2019
• Excluding new publications, album sales continue to grow in France with more than 600,000 copies sold a year
• Asterix has his own thriving theme park, with over two million visitors a year

A French poster for “Asterix and the Magic Potion”, released in 2018

A scene from “Asterix and the Magic Potion”, released in 2018
• To date, there have been four live-action films and 10 animated films. The latest, Asterix and The Magic Potion, released last year, was the biggest French animation hit since 2006

A teaser image from the “Idéfix et les irréductibles” (Dogmatix and the Indomitables), due for release in 2020
• A TV series, Dogmatix and the Indomitables (“Idefix et Les Irreducibles”), is currently in development with France Télévisions and Futurikon, expected to launch in 2020. The show stars Dogmatix, Obelix’s pet dog, who has previously been the focus of a number of his own adventures in books
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: Animation, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Television