Asterix and Obélix: The fight of chefs: Alain Chabat still hits, and it’s Fantastix! (critical)

More than 20 years after mission; Cleopatra, the director returns to the universe of the little mustachioed Gauls, but in animated version, in a series kneading of delightful finds, once again mixing the Chabat spirit with that of comics.

When Alain Chabat Seening our favorite Gauls, the magic potion has an effect of thunder! The man who had already offered us the unstoppable Asterix and Obelix: Cleopatra mission (always the best feature film Asterixlet’s not face it) comes back this time via animation to adapt The fight of the chiefs. And after viewing of the first three episodes – projected last night in preview event at the Séries Mania festival – it’s a flawless.

The mini-series carried out with Fabrice Joubert (which will be released on April 30) offers an adaptation which, while remaining faithful to the emblematic album of Goscinny And Uderzoauthorizes refreshing freedoms that enrich the Gallic universe. Caesar has not yet invaded Gaul, but Chabat has already won over the hearts of fans.

Visually, it is a slap (Roman). Halfway between 2D and 3D, the adopted graphic style is round, warm and dynamic. The characters benefit from a striking volume that literally makes them get out of the screen. Skillfully mixing techniques, the style reproduces the line ofUderzo While reinventing it – with respect! Petting colors, daring contrasts and meticulous decorations bring a new life to the Gallic village.

In the register of the pure staging, the series is gaining momentum and it is episode 3 which deserves a special mention. This nugget manages to merge the crazy cartoon spirit Warner Brosthe feeling of adventure of the great epic films and the scrupulous respect of the original album. When a Roman flies through the screen after a well -placed Gallic punch, it looks like seeing Vil Coyote propelled by dynamite. Tex Avery And Chuck Jones would acquiesce an appreciating head nod. Uderzo And Goscinny Also…

But the interest of this series is not only in its realization. By daring to explore the youth ofAsterix And Obelix In the first episode, Chabat commits the Gallic equivalent of a crime of lese majesty-and it works! Apart from a famous box among fans in How obelix fell into the pot when it was smallthis territory remained practically unexplored. We discover a Asterix miniature already smart like a fox, and a small Obelix Sensitive and clumsy, luggling a wooden dog with a roller already baptized Idefix. The scene of the fall in the pot finally comes to life, and the emotion takes precedence over laughter.

If the designs of young heroes are perfect, it is above all the voices and the interpretation that affect. The emerging complicity between the two kids explains the entire depth of their adult friendship, giving a new meaning to each of their future bickering on the sharing of wild boars.

The special humor of Chabat goes perfectly with that of Goscinny. From the absurd to word games through tasty anachronisms, everything is there. The dialogue crackles of jubilant finds. Did you know that what makes the potion really magical is “lobster and strawberry”? This kind of pearl makes the kids laugh for his absurdity and the parents for the well -felt tip. This is precisely what makes the trademark ofAsterix and Chabat Always: a multi-layer humor that seduces all generations.

The mother of Caesar (lined beautifully by Jérôme Commandeur) is a little comic gem alone. This authoritarian Roman matriarch Rabroue Rabroue her conquering son with such a mastery that would almost be to complain about the poor Jules.

Contrary to Asterix and Obelix: Cleopatra missionwhere the Egyptians often stole the show from our Gauls (Numélis And his clique were so charismatic that we can understand them), The fight of the chiefs refocus the action in the village. Banquets, fights, running gags – everything that makes the salt of the series is magnified by an energetic staging that makes you want to happily type on a legionnaire. Modernization is intelligent without being free. The special effects transform our Gauls into real superheroes with a force that “slams on the screen”. Noises are written as in albums, references to Star Wars appear stealthily, and even Gallo-Roman advertisements on mosaics spice up the whole. All carried by music and impeccable vocal cast.

By placing friendship Asterix-Obelix in the center of the story, Chabat touches the universal. This duo is no longer just a pair of complementary characters, but the emotional engine of the whole story. Their complicity is treated with tenderness without ever falling into marshmallow.

Asterix and Obelix: the fight of the chiefs succeeds in this tour de force: to be faithful to the original spirit while bringing your touch of novelty. After Cleopatra missionwho had redefined the adaptation in real shots, Chabat proves that he is at theAsterix that Panoramix is at the magic potion: the only one to really master the formula.

This mini-series is likely to permanently mark the landscape of French animation-and to make the Romans who thought that the series, after more than sixty years, began to run out of steam. The universe ofAsterix still contains unexploited narrative treasures.

Asterix and Obélix: the fight of chefs, mini-series in 5 episodes to see on Netflix on April 30.