Collection of three Asterix books. In Asterix the gladiator, Julius Caesar plans to throw the captured Cacofonix to the lions. Asterix and Obelix enlist as gladiators in order to rescue him, and teach their colleagues some interesting new tricks. In Asterix and the banquet, the Romans build a barricade around the Gaulish village, but Asterix and Obelix break out and travel the entire country, collecting local specialties along the way. In Asterix and Cleopatra, Asterix, Obelix, and others visit Egypt where they are entranced by the Sphinx, the pyramids, and Cleopatra's nose.