Star Trek: Holo-ween II #2

The spooky mystery vibe continues in issue #2. With Sisko and Kira away on the USS Defiant on a secret mission and Chief O'Brien missing, Deep Space Nine is operating with a skeleton crew during a very tense situation. Already, the space station is swarming with ambassadors and diplomats who have come to DS9 for a vital peace summit. Now an unexpected Federation starship has docked claiming that the ship's captain was assassinated by Lt. Commander Dax!

With 2 mysteries now to solve, plus a peace summit to oversee and a sick bay full of injured crew from the newly arrived starship, it will take every bit of resolve Worf has to keep the powder keg that is Deep Space Nine from ignitng!

Another great chapter. It's got a Victorian murder mystery feel that reminds me a lot of the board game Clue. I like it. I've not yet figured out who kidnapped O'Brien and killed the other crew member. I have zero idea why Sisko and Kira needed to be sent away from the space station. Plus, a dignitary has been murdered! It's very complex. But for now, I'm able to follow everything. Here's hoping things stay that way.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars. 

Star Trek: Holo-ween II #1

In 2023, Star Trek debuted it's Halloween spirit with the 4-issue miniseries Star Trek: Holo-ween. Set on the holodeck of the Enterprise-D, the Next Generation tale tapped into the original series with having the murderous entity Redjac involved. While I enjoyed the sentiment, 'The Wolf in the Fold' is perhaps my least favorite original Trek episode. If a sequel was to be forthcoming, I just hoped that it would leave Redjac in the past. 

Well 2 years passed. I figured that the franchise's Halloween experiment was over. But then by absolute surprise, I learned that IDW was coming out with another Holo-ween mini. This one set aboard Deep Space Nine! I was thrilled. As much as I love The Next Generation, DS9 is my favorite Star Trek series. Just, please... PLEASE, no Redjac.

Here's the setup, which is rather complex. 1) The Federation has sent Sisko and the USS Defiant into the gamma quadrant in search of a mythical Bajorian weapon that could end the current hostilities with both the Dominion and the Klingon Empire. 2) Worf has been made acting Captain of DS9 in Sisko's absence. With a major peace summit bringing dozens of dignitaries from across the galaxy, it's up to the Klingon to maintain peace and diplomacy. 3) With one of the Holosuites on the fritz, Chief O'Brien goes to repair it and ends up being attacked by an unseen adversary. 4) Another crew member is attacked outside of the Holosuites. He appears to be killed. 5) All communication from DS9 to the outside universe has been cut off. 6) A Federation starship supposedly light years away on a mission suddenly appears at the space station with a damning accusation against one of the space station's crew

So this Holo-ween story isn't set during Halloween. But it's creepy as all get out. It's like a Victorian era murder mystery. The surprise cliffhanger ending was so shocking. I just had to read issue #2 immediately even though sequential art seems to tire me out more these days. Fingers crossed that Redjac isn't going to be revealed as the baddie.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Halloween Spectacular #1 (2026)

Halloween night and my wait was over. Archie's Halloween Spectacular is what I look forward to the most. It's fun. It's slightly spooky. And it's safe. Halloween 2026 really seemed to be my year of Archie what with my crippling bone pain, cognitive function decline and bouts of extreme exhaustion. I stayed mostly away from the really scary stuff as I was already low in spirit. But despite my limitations, I did my very best to embrace the fun and frights of the season. 

The Archie Halloween Spectaculars always start with an all-new story. And they're usually way too short. A blast from the Little Archie past returns with the daughter of Mad Doctor Doom creating a massive robot out of a haunted house in order to terrorize Riverdale. It's run by stolen Halloween candy, and when the robot captures Betty and Veronica, it up to 2 unlikely heroes to save the day! 

Pairing Cosmo, the formerly Merry, Martian and Fly Girl from the Crusaders, they team up to rescue the girls and put an end to the Doom Family's reign of terror!

The cool thing was that this was a longer story. Usually the all-new adventures are no more than 6 pages. A couple have been as short as 3! This story was chopped into 2 stories for about 12 pages. It makes me wonder if Archie Comics has been listening to my requests for longer original frights. I have said in past reviews that I would be willing to pay more for more original material. But going from $4.99 last year to $7.99 in 2026 seems a bit steep. Plus I am pretty sure I said that I would be willing to pay more if all the material was new. 

Reprint tales include a Betty and Veronica adventure where they investigate sightings of a ghost at an abandoned theater owned by Mr. Lodge, a new costume shop turns the Archie gang into actual monsters and there's a one-pager in which Veronica scolds Reggie for not coming to her Halloween party in costume.

The Betty and Veronica mystery was a classic that I remember reading when it first dropped decades ago. The costume story seemed familiar to me as well. I think it was edited because in the scene where Dilton texts Archie that he will be late to the costume shop, the art for that sequence just didn't match the rest of the page. The punchline to the one-pager with Reggie was a hoot.

Speaking of Reggie, what's up with him wearing a fish bowl over his head with him dressed as a vampire? Is this a reference to a classic Archie Comics character back in the 60s when they were known for their horror parodies?

A great way to finish up my Halloween reads of 2026. One of the rare times where I am kinda bummed that I didn't get the variant cover. Bill Galvan's homage to the Ben Cooper costumes of my childhood, this one bearing Fly Girl, is something I would have loved to add to my holiday comic collections. It would have made the extra cost worth it. 

Inflation. It seems to be the scariest monster of this book! Until next year (God willing)...

Worth Consuming!

Rating 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie x Army of Darkness #5

The epic 2026 crossover between Archie Andrews and Ash Williams comes to an end. A bloody end. There's a splash page scene where Betty, Veronica and Reggie have guns and they're blowing Deadites to pieces. I'm not normally one for overly gory violence. But it's done in that campy Bruce Campbell way that I spent several minutes just marveling at its insane imagery. Fantastic fun by artist Bill Galvan. 

When it comes to miniseries, I've gotten to where unless something really changes in terms of plot, originality or just does something totally different, I'm not going to spend my hard earned money for it. Plus I don't have that much room in my house and collection. I've got to be really picky these days and understand that I just can't possibly own it all. But if Archie Comics and Dynamite Entertainment decide to pair up again, I have the perfect idea: Sabrina the Teenage Witch x Army of Darkness x, wait for it: Josie and the Pussycats! Have it take place in Greendale. Have the Pussycats performing a Halloween night concert. A new S-Marts has just opened in the Riverdale sister city. Deadites abound! It could happen. It should happen. I'd be first in line for it.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars. By the way, I rated every issue a perfect 10. I don't think I have ever done that before for any miniseries longer than 2 issues. It's a testament to how awesome this story was. If you missed it for this Halloween, do yourself a favor and gets your hands on these 5 issues from your local comic shop and be ready to be blown away by the horror, humor and depravity of it all!

Archie x Army of Darkness #4

Ash helps Archie locate the Deadite spell in the Necromonicon. Archie must first finish the spell and then immediately recite the words to vanquish the Army of Darkness. Unfortunately, doing this in a S-Mart isn't a pure enough location to send legions of demons back to the underworld. So the gang decide to head to Pop's as it's a place of the happiest of memories! 

But first, Ash and Archie must battle the duplicate Archie gang that have broken into the big box store. Then they have to make it to their car in the parking lot, which is swarming with Deadites. Lastly, they have to save their friends and family because with the original spell now completely spoken, the Deadites have no restrictions from entering Riverdale. 

A fun issue. I've been so impressed with writer Erik Burnham. There's not been a single down energy moment to this crossover. The art by Bill Galvan has been amazing (See the variant cover from the last issue). It's so cool seeing an Archie Comics version of Ash. And the variant covers have been a delight. Such a great spooky read as we count down to Halloween.

Worth Consuming!

Rating 10 out of 10 stars.

Archie x Army of Darkness #3

Ash and the Archie gang have holed up in Reggie's new lake house. Deadites surround the compound. But the living have some weapons. Just not very good ones. With the Necromonicon in hand, Ash and the kids need to make a supply run if they are going to take on the Army of Darkness. 

To the S-Mart!!!

Normally the middle issue of any crossover is where the joining entities get to know each other. There's a lot of ego. A lot of someone thinking that the other character is a bigot, racist, creep or all 3 rolled into one. Usually nothing happens to move along the plot. But not this time!

Ash learns that Archie didn't finish the spell. In the last issue, we're only made aware of it because of the leader of the Army of Darkness explains to his lieutenant why the Deadites haven't invaded Riverdale yet. Anyways, Ash getting the Necromonicon in his possession is a big plot mover. Wrangling up the Archie gang and heading to the S-Mart- another big plot move. Add in a Deadite version of Archie, Betty, Veronica, Reggie and Jughead. It's a trifecta of big plot moves. So rare and I loved it!

I also love the variant cover that my favorite comic shop ordered for me. It's pretty much the only thing missing from this miniseries; an appearance from Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Seems this amazing cover from Bill Galvan might be the closest we get to that. Ooooooh... I'm getting vibes of what the sequel could be: Army of Darkness x Sabrina the Teenage Witch x Josie and the Pussycats!!! Archie! Dynamite! Make this happen!!!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars

Archie x Army of Darkness #2

The action returns to the present minus maybe 2 or 3 hours. At the S-Mart, Archie's car wouldn't start, so his new trainer Ash offers to drive him to Reggie's lake house bash. On his way back to Riverdale, Ash runs into an old friend who's literally a chip off the old block. This signals to Ash that the kids are next on the Deadite menu and with his trademarked duffel bag of weapons, the Main Man hoofs it! 

Meanwhile, it's discovered that Archie actually read from the Necromonicon. But he didn't finish the incantation. That limits how much damage the Deadites can amass and keeps Riverdale safe... for now. But if the Deadites can capture Archie, they can make him finish the spell and open the town up for the Army of Darkness!

I've not been disappointed with this series. True, I'm only on issue #2. But it's been a ton of fun. I must embarrassingly admit that I totally blanked on who the main antagonist of this crossover is. I knew that it was a character from Army of Darkness. But I just couldn't place the name. Shame on me. Shame.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.