Asterix And Cleopatra – René Goscinny & Albert Uderzo, 1965 ★★★★

One for the Ages

Many classic serials have early peak moments, single entries that make their claim for greatness and set a bar for all future installments.

Consider that hallmark of American culture, the sitcom. There is always that one episode people point to, like Seinfeld’s “The Contest,” Community’s “Modern Warfare,” or for us older folk, M*A*S*H’s “Sometimes You Hear The Bullet.” Fans know them well. Some argue their primacy, but not their place in the pantheon.

The same goes for bandes dessinées, or Franco-Belgian comic books. With Asterix, the first great book to call out is fairly clear. It’s this one, six books into the series, which not only made its mark as a favorite back when it came out, but set the tone for all that followed.

After all these years, it must be said, Asterix And Cleopatra is still fun.

My Wicked, Wicked Ways – Errol Flynn, 1959 ★

Confessions of a Debauched Swashbuckler

When it comes to getting a manuscript published, most times an author’s sudden death won’t help it to the finish line. In the case of My Wicked, Wicked Ways, I think Errol Flynn dying helped get it out. Hard to imagine him ever wanting this version of himself exposed in public.

Maybe it was the spirit of the 1960s. True, the decade was still days away when My Wicked, Wicked Ways was released, two months after Flynn’s October 1959 death. The author’s desire to shock and offend readers with his wild life feels more in tune with the coming decade.

Whatever era you are in, it’s hard to like this guy. In his own telling, Flynn was a rank bastard. What starts out as candid recollections over drinks soon feels more like an exclusive audience with a sociopath.

As he so charmingly puts it late in the book: “Ts-t! Ts-t! It takes some ladies so long to realise they have been raped.”