Archie Comics/DC Comics 2018
Written by Jeff Parker & Michael Moreci
Pencilled by Dan Parent
Inked by J. Bone
Coloured by Kelly Fitzpatrick
Lettered by Jack Morelli
There are strange going ons with Batman’s rogues gallery and they’ve been showing up in Riverdale as a result. Even stranger Veronica’s father, Hiram, seems to be influenced so that he’s become public enemy #1, yes again. Veronica having no where left to turn went to Dilton who hooked her up with radio that ended up calling the Batcave where Veronica made an impassioned plea for help.
So naturally the dynamic trio are going to Riverdale to investigate what is happening and Batgirl and Robin will go undercover as students! I love this it not only so perfectly fits into the shows dynamic even in Riverdale where the villains are corrupting the town it still feels like this is what could/should/is happening. At least this time around we get both Cheryl and Kevin appearing in the story making the retro feel of the current cast completely natural and up to date. Jeff and Michael have this down and it is my humble opinion that this is better than the first issue as well as the last Archie Crossover we got, which I liked a lot too.
The way that this is structured is amazingly well done. The intrusion of the villains and the way they find targets to take under their wing all feel as natural as a summer shower in broad daylight. It reminds me of the past when it was more than fighting each other but the planning and plotting and a true vision of what these master of menace were so good at. Through all the scheming there is still humour and delight to go along with the devious plans set in motion. We just don’t get to see that any longer and it’s a shame. So that this has that and so much more well this is what comics used to be about and a reminder that it still works incredibly well today.
The characterisation here is beyond on point. Regardless of which character it is they seem to be handled with the utmost care to remain true to who they are. Yes Mr. Weatherbee aside though let’s face it the kids are no slouches at figuring out how to save the day and he’s the first clue. Only it seems that things with the kids have a touch of the teenager about them. Plus while missing Egghead and King Tut everyone else is around including Bookworm and I have to say that this many villains being there will make the kids role in all this more essential than anyone currently realises.
Dan is my pre-eminent world of Archie artist. So that he gets to tackle the Batman cast of characters and can uniformly make everyone appear as they are supposed to is a thing of beauty. The talent that he has is so underrated by the general populace and that needs to change because he does some of the smoothest, cleanest linework that we see today. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off his masterful eye for storytelling. Even seeing how backgrounds are utilised help flesh out the story more. Of course he also has hella good talent behind him to complete the work.
This is beyond a shadow of a doubt one of those books that every single comics fan/reader should have on the pull list to read. There is nothing happening within these pages that isn’t nearly perfectly executed so that the experience this book has on you is undeniable.