Surprisingly Improved Sequel: A rare, possibly even unique instance of this trope applying to the same basic story across three different forms of media:
The Asterix comic book series had gradually improved in quality over the course of the previous stories, though stumbled a little with Asterix and the Banquet. With this one, the series finally hit its stride when it came to story and artwork, and it's still regarded by much of the fanbase as the best story in the entire Asterix series, an opinion that co-creator René Goscinny also held.
Whereas Asterix the Gaul got a middling at best reaction, the animated adaptation of Asterix and Cleopatra was seen as a huge improvement for the all-around better animation and capturing the feel of the books much better.
The 2002 Live-Action AdaptationAsterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra by Alain Chabat was also regarded as a considerable improvement over Asterix & Obelix Take on Caesar, and is still considered the best out of the five Asterix live-action films thus far as well as a landmark in French comedy films in general and the French big budget comedy every other French big budget comedy is inevitably compared to.
Audience-Coloring Adaptation: It's not uncommon among French people to remember the Arsenic Cake Villain Song (or Obelix's song to a lesser extent). Few would be able to tell it's not in the comic book.
Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: "When you're eating well, you're well" is a song about food fantasy. (The Dutch version cut the sequence.)
Les Yay: Cleopatra is in a relationship with Caesar, but she also keeps 3 half naked, singing dancing maids around when taking a bath.
Memetic Mutation: The Arsenic Cake ("Le Pudding à l'Arsenic") song has remained memorable in France, to the point of being famously remixed by a hip hop band. A pastiche was also sung by the Joueur du Grenier.
Only the Creator Does It Right: René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo didn't even know Asterix the Gaul was being made until a few months before release, and did not look back fondly at it. They demanded to direct the next film, Asterix and Cleopatra. It got a much better reception overall, and left a pop culture impact the first film never reached.
Padding: The film adds several scenes not found in the comic book album which have little purpose other than being funny. It stretches the film just to feature-length, at about 70 minutes.
Franchise Original Sin: The following live-action movies are often criticized (among other things) for their overabundance of cameos and guest stars, which relies too much on the real actor's fame, and for turning Asterix and Obelix into secondary characters of their own film. However, both of these trends actually started with this movie. The movie features many minor characters, often played by famous actors or comedians at the time in France or members of the director Alain Chabat's company. While the key scenes of the comic book featuring Asterix, Obelix, and Getafix are kept, it can be argued that the main character is actually Edifis.
Memetic Mutation: The film had quite a few memorable gags and lines that have lingered in French pop culture since 2002.
Jamel Debbouze's constant Malaproper lines as Edifis/Numérobis, such as "droid" when he means "druid", or him never getting Getafix/Panoramix's name right.
"There's no good nor bad situations..."
"Ça va, imhotep"
The scene of Asterix's Love at First Sight in slow-motion with Cleopatra's servant on "Ti Amo" by Umberto Tozzi has generated countless parodies.
Retroactive Recognition: In a Deleted Scene, Omar Sy played an Egyptian wall painter. He wasn't yet appearing in Canal+ comedy shows (he would start the next year, in Groland).
Sequel Displacement: It got a much better reception from critics and audiences than the first Asterix film, to the point the latter is either barely remembered or completely forgotten.
The Itineris phone company was defunct by 2001, and a gag with an Egyptian worker's name references it in the film. Young folks born in the 21st century won't get it unless told about it.
The presence of comedian Dieudonné M'Bala M'Bala, when he wasn't yet making extremely controversial/offensive one-man-shows and statements on a regular basis, which had him permanently banned from French television and mainstream movie productions.
Woolseyism: The Hungarian dub. The translator thought the film needed to be even crazier and rewrote every line of dialogue as an unrelenting barrage of puns and tongue twisters, spoken in poetic, rhyming verse. It's regarded as one of the most brazenly creative yet bizarre movie dubs ever made in the country.
Alternative Title(s):Asterix And Obelix Mission Cleopatra
by a hip hop band. A pastiche