Album #40 is coming out the end of next month. It’s got a new writer in Fabcaro, taking over for Jean-Yves Ferri. Didier Conrad remains the artist, and I think he’s done a great job following the late Albert Uderzo.

As for the theme? Well… I don’t know. Evidently the story’s about a faddish, influential figure who gets most of the Roman world interested in healthy diets and ‘New Age’ philosophies, which eventually spreads to The Village and creates a strong divide, as you can pick up on looking at the background characters on the cover. “Bleeding Cool” has more details here.

Oh, and here’s some alternate wallpaper, below:

So, I could see this one turning out anywhere from ‘lamely trying to interject modern topics’ all the way to being a surprising success. Apart from that, dividing the Gauls has always been a fruitful theme, as we saw in previous albums such as The Mansions of the Gods, The Soothsayer, Caesar’s Gift, The Roman Agent, and Obelix & Co.

Finally, I took the preview page from that last article and upscaled it, below. Let’s cross our fingers that the album’s good, let’s say at least at the level of the last one, Asterix and the Griffin!