Archie Comics 2017
Written by Frank Tieri
Illustrated by Michael Walsh
Coloured by Michael Walsh & Dee Cunniffe
Lettered by Jack Morelli
Jughead Jones has always had an insatiable appetite... but what if his hunger came from a sinister place? When a murderous menace is on the prowl, taking the lives of some of the most well-known and esteemed inhabitants of Riverdale, Jughead and his family's dark legacy comes to light.
Well for me I was thinking that this would be part of the zombie thing that’s kind of been going on. I mean in Afterlife it did seem that Jughead has something special going on as some kind of lead zombie. Still I suppose anyone with knowledge of horror movies should’ve deduced from the title here what was really going to happen. I will say that Frank weaves a tale here that took me by surprise with the characterisation, plot device and how it all unfolded. I really like how familiar it all feels and yet how disturbingly original it is as well.
Well this is a welcome addition to the line of Archie Horror books. Personally i’d like to see more takes such as this one come to us in the future. This has the classic kind of old school horror to it that is so appealing and yet it mixes that with the feel of MTV’s Teen Wolf series so that it’s completely modern. Gone are the Buffy days where the thrills were cheap and it was more soap opera than horror. So that we see how certain characters are used here to not only show the antagonist in a light you don’t expect we get the “hero” role in the form of someone that well you’ll see.
Michael and Dee do some great work on the interiors here. Love the use of page layouts through their angles, perspective and the use of backgrounds. The close-ups at the right moment to really sell the moment while kind of keeping the killer hidden was a perfect way to open up this issue. Jughead and the Riverdale residents look like they should, they are instantly recognizable and yet have a more modern appearance to them as well which is what I was hoping the current series would feature.
When dealing with Jughead I love a few facts and that’s among them is penchant for eating. I mean when we first see the gang Jughead is at an all you can eat joint and they are willing to give him a blank check to never come back. Seeing what he’s about to put into his mouth and that he gains nary an ounce well it’s kind of horrific in it’s own right. Still there are aspects of this that capture everything we know and love perfectly and still allow that freedom for Frank to take this someplace else entirely.
I really do like the tone, mood and feel here and that it combines so many different franchises into it’s story makes me happy as well. The history of the characters involved in the Hunger aspect were delightfully revealed. The way we understand how this changes everything was superbly represented.
Archie has another stellar story on their hands with this one it’s all it promises to be and so much more!