Pep Comics #287 (2026 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

With a cover teasing the most one-sided snowball fight of all time, winter fun is the theme to this 1974 issue of Pep Comics. The opening story virtually has no dialogue, except for an exclamation from Archie that closes everything with a punchline. In 'Archie Says "It's Always the Same Old Story on a Weekend Ski Trip", Archie and Reggie head to the slopes. The tale is narrated like one of those Disney mockumentaries starring Goofy, as it's explained what to expect when you make an impromptu trip to the mountains. The unseen voice regales the reader with narration of a magical weekend ski trip while in reality we see everything go wrong for Archie and Reggie.

Follow up stories include Li'l Jinx engaged in a good ol' fashioned 1970s battle of the sexes. The task at hand: who makes a better pilot; men or women? But since Jinx and her pal are way too young to fly a commercial airliner, they'll have to settle for figuring out who can fly the better paper airplane. 

Archie bemoans a sudden snow storm in one yarn while Reggie and Moose struggle to get Archie up in time for a big game. Rounding out the issue are one-page gags starring Coach Kleats and Big Ethel as well as prize winning reports from members of 'Archie's Club News'. There's also a pin-up in which Archie gets Jughead to wrap him inside a giant gift wrapped box as Veronica's Christmas present. It's the only holiday themed part of this issue.

There are no creative credits anywhere to be found in this issue. But according to MyComicShop.com, Dan DeCarlo penciled the cover, Bob Bolling was the artist behind the ski trip opener and the Li'l Jinx story was written and illustrated by character creator Joe Edwards.

Completing this review completes Task #25 (An Archie Comics release from the 1970s) of the 2026 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Valentine's Spectacular 2026 #1

The all-new feature for this year's Archie Valentine's Day Spectacular was a parody of the massive Netflix animated hit K-Pop Demon Hunters. Only it wasn't funny. Plus, it was the most dreadful thing I have ever read from Archie Comics.  It was such a disappointment. The writing was unpolished. The artwork was amateurish; supposed to invoke the styles of anime and Manga. The story succeeded in neither. It ends with a question posed to whether or not this was the end of the assault on the singing talents of Josie, Veronica, Sabrina and Betty by an arcane force. For my sake, I hope this experiment has concluded. I don't think I could read another chapter of the 'Spirit Slayers in Love'. 

The 5 backup reprints were better. Not by much. The Frank Doyle two-parter where first Veronica and then Betty go overboard in attempting to make Archie their Valentine had moments of funny antics and stunning art. It just didn't feel very original. Cheryl Blossom's attempts to permanently drive a wedge between Archie and the girls shows just how self-centered Archie and Veronica could be. It was reinforced by a follow up where Veronica sends Betty away in tears and Archie confesses that he woos Veronica because of how spoiled she is, just convinced me further that Betty would be better off dating someone who would appreciate her more. Jughead, anyone?

The fifth and final story featuring the talents of George Frese was my favorite of the bunch. Clearly from sometime in the 1940s or 50s, I liked the classic look and feel. It was a typical Archie love triangle story but it had a more timeless appeal to me. I would have loved it if all of the backup stories were from this era.

If anything, this special has convinced me that while I am a fan of Archie Comics, I can do without the schmaltz. I love the wholesome nature of Archie's holiday tales. I adore the ingenuity of the parody stories. Plus, Archie does horror so well with a balance of comedy and unsettling suspense. So what in the world went wrong with Becky G!'s original story? Maybe not being familiar with the source material had a little to do with it. Having Sabrina's cat Salem use the term 'sus' had me rolling my eyes. I'm going be honest, with the use of gender neutral pronouns and a mysterious character who hates the band's message of hope and love, I thought at first that this was some sort of allegory about the immigration policies of our current presidential administration instead of Archie's version of K-Pop Demon Hunters.

I think overall, the original tale lacked a timeless quality to it. Plus, the reprinted material reminded me how selfish Veronica is. Also, Archie is just a darn fool, thinking more with his pants than his brain. I think from now on, I'll stick to the deep ends of the Archie Comics pool that I like best. Just as long as that section stays away from Netflix series as inspiration!

Rating; 4 out of 10 stars.

Archie Christmas Spectacular 2025 #1

I've said it once and I will say it again: the Archie Christmas Spectacular is the holiday release I look forward to the most. Maybe it's a longing for nostalgia in my getting older. Maybe it's because I love Archie. Maybe it's because I love Christmas. More than likely it's all 3!

This year's offering features Dan Parent, my pick for the definitive modern era Archie creator. Parent has a love of classic Archie while not being afraid to embrace modern norms. Case in point: the fan favorite Kevin Keller, Riverdale's first gay character. While Dan Parent has been quite progressive, his all-new story features a trio of classic Christmas characters from Archies past.

Christmas fairy Sugarplum insults Jingles the Elf when her first pick for her date to the North Pole Christmas Dance- Archie- is snapped up by Santa's daughter Noelle. In response, Santa's helper promises revenge.Jingles snatches up Veronica and he does it by deception, transforming himself into a hunk. Sugarplum ups the ante by turning herself human and bringing Reggie to the North Pole. Soon, it's a love triangle of Yule tide proportions with Archie and the gang smack dab in the middle!

This special also features 4 additional stories which are supposed to be reprints but were all new to me! Dan Parent pens and pencils 3 of them and they all pay tribute to the publisher's rather large and somewhat forgotten cast of supporting characters.

Betty and Veronica flashback to the Little Archie days thanks to being hypnotized. Foes from Sabrina the Teenage Witch's past threaten to disrupt Riverdale's New Year Eve festivities. The last pair of stories star Jughead's cousin Wilbur Wilkins. Wilbur and Archie both go ice skating only to be outdone by Juggie. Then in a story penned by Tom DeFalco, Wilbur has trouble finding the perfect gift for his secret Santa. Featuring dozens of characters from over 80 years of Archie Comics, it was a real Who's Who and it had a great punchline.

I did find that a couple of the stories were a bit clunky; especially the all-new tale. I just don't think 5 pages is enough for an epic level opener. The Halloween special had this problem too. If the high ups at Archie ever read this review, I hope that they might consider devoting more pages for the all-new feature in the holiday specials. I think 8-10 pages would be acceptable and if the cover price had to go up 50 cents to do it, I would be okay with that.

Massive kudos once more to my favorite LCS. They've been managing to get me the classic variant covers for the holiday specials lately. Once again, I got the cover I wanted. It's an all-time Christmas classic by Dan DeCarlo. I must have been really good this year!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars. 

Christmas With Archie

I think my favorite comic book store likes me. This Summer, when they took in a collection, they bought this 1974 Archie classic. And they gave it to me as a gift!

This one has been on my wish list for a long while. In the early 1970s, after comic artist Al Hartley became a Christian, he was recruited by the newly founded comic imprint Spire to work on their growing lineup of faith-based comic books. After initial success, Hartley reached out to Archie Comics co-founder John Goldwater to license out the Archie characters. From 1972-1982, a total of 19 Archie one-shots were created to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

One of those books was 1974's Christmas With Archie. Here, the Archie gang and the citizens of Riverdale put the 'Christ' in Christmas with visits from Santa to the local orphanage, a Christmas party at Riverdale High and some last minute holiday shopping. While the message of Christianity is tied into many of these stories, that does not mean that this was not a fun book. It was not all angels floating on clouds with harps. The opener where Archie fills the tires of his jalopy with helium and becomes a one-made holiday parade was hilarious. The 'Finding the Santa' fun page was a great challenge. I also enjoyed the look at Christmas future starring the high school cafeteria lunch lady, Miss Beazley.

Things did get a little preachy. The scene in the first story when Mr. Lodge turns on the TV to the middle of a televangelist's dissertation on appreciating teenagers was a bit on the nose. I also felt that the message of the story where Archie tries to find the perfect Christmas card for Veronica was too syrupy. 

This was a book I remember owning and loving as a kid. It's the book that made me mistakenly think that Archie Comics was a Christian publisher. I had a fun trip down memory lane with this. Thanks Gordon and the rest of the fellas for it! Awesome Christmas gift, dudes!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

World of Archie Jumbo Comics #84

One of my biggest complaints about the Archie series of digests, both regular, double, jumbo, and giant, is that they are never 100% topical. You would think with over 80 years of stories, gags and fun pages, (not to mention all-new material that's still being churned out) that Archie Comics would have no problem filling a jumbo digest sporting a Christmas cover with nothing but holiday material. Yet, they are always book-ending these digests with the seasonal material, while the majority of the filler is a smorgasbord of random material that has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas.

Now Archie has gotten a little bit better at this.The very recent Halfway to Halloween digest I read at least had the fillers containing spooky characters or mysterious encounters. But with the stories here that weren't holiday related, they could have occurred on September 16th or May 12th. They are that generic looking. 

I would say least been okay if all of the stories occurred while it was snowing. But only a 2-parter in which Archie travels to the Arctic for a report on the habits of wolves, seems to involve really cold weather. Plus I have read this story several times prior! Sure, this collection of Archie works is from 2019. But I remember reading that wolf tale when it was brand new in the late 80s. I even think that I can recall where I got the book: from my childhood dentist who gave away comic books as prizes to the patients. 

The Christmas material that we do manage to get was enjoyable. There was a classic looking story by Joe Edwards where Mr. Weatherbee decides he's had it with playing Santa every Christmas at the Riverdale Orphanage, so Archie tries to recruit someone else which has results on par for when Archie dates both Betty and Veronica at the same time.

Speaking of Veronica, she's the focus of another holiday classic. Bummed out that her folks are making her spend Christmas on a cruise ship, Betty gets the Archies signed up as the on-board entertainment. But when the kids start driving Mr. Lodge bonkers, the millionaire arranges for everyone's parents to join the cruise. It's a delightful tale that may be one of the only times you see and engage with Reggie's parents!

A fun, classic holiday read that needs more Christmas cheer.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie Halloween Spectacular 2024 #1

I found it! Also, I am not crazy. Scatterbrained because of symptoms from fibromyalgia. But I knew that I had read this before. Apparently, I filed this into my collection before reviewing it. (This is becoming an annoying pattern.) But I had read it before and yes, based on the events in this book going on to the events of the Halloween specials for 2025, I have missed something in the Amber Nightstone Saga featuring Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

In the all-new feature, Sabrina is summoned to Riverdale by Jughead. Juggie apparently is the only member of the Archie gang that knows Sabrina Spellman is a witch. Though, like with Batman, I think a whole lot of people know her true identity but they keep it quiet in order to stay out of trouble.

Anyways, Jughead is aware that his good buddy Archie is going on a date with Amber. Sabrina realizes that Arch has been entranced and along with Jughead, Sabrina seeks to save Archie from her enemy's clutches. Behind all of this is an ancient evil and the promise of more trouble from Nightstone.

Though they appear on the cover, Halloween sprites Trick and Treat don't have anything to do with this issue; even with the reprint stories. So when Archie expressed trepidation over being fooled by those characters again, as with what happened 'the previous Halloween' and Amber Nightstone is revealed to having ensnared Trick and Treat, I knew that I missed something. I still don't know where all that background stuff happened and it's a bit infuriating. Hopefully, Archie will produce a complete Amber Nightstone Saga trade so that I can get the full story. 

Next Halloween, perhaps?

The other reprints are more modern tales. There's a spoof on the M3gan movie where Veronica buys an expensive luxury toy that seemingly comes to life with malicious intents. As for the other stories, I can't really recall them. It has been over a year, ya know...

Obviously, I liked this special enough to have remembered bits from it. I don't think forgetting to review it speaks to it's diminished quality or anything like that. Although I really enjoy the stories from the Archie Madhouse era. People don't seem to realize it, but  Archie Comics was a pioneer, utilizing vampires and other monsters during a period in comics history when monsters and ghouls were verboten! And they managed to still receive the CCA stamp on their covers. I guess it goes to show that humor can trump horror and it's detractors - if it's done as a lampoon. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie Halloween Spectacular 2020 #1

A couple of days ago, I reviewed this year's annual Archie Halloween special. I had mentioned that there was a story inside that seemed to continue a continuing plotline from the past couple of spectaculars and it made me feel like I had missed something. Afterwards, I did some digging and discovered that I had somehow missed last year's edition! Not sure how I did that. But it lit a fire under me to search around for it as I still have a couple of gigantic piles of books to bag, inventory and add to my collection.

I thought I hit pay dirt when I found this book. Satisfied, I began reading it without checking the publication year. After reading the first story that was devoid of neither Sabrina the Teenage Witch or those Halloween sprites Trick and Treat, I discovered that this was the Halloween special from 2020!

Now October, 2020 was right in the middle of the pandemic. The entire comic book industry shut down and most of the holiday specials announced for release in October and December were postponed. So I likely didn't get to buy this book until early in the new year of 2021. That would explain how I missed this one. But where in the heck is last year's book?

The 2020 special was in my opinion kinda dull. Although I suspect that if I would have had this during the doldrums of COVID-19, it would have been a highlight of my home bound Halloween season. (It's amazing what seasonality and your current circumstances will make a ho-hum book feel like a masterpiece.) (And compared to how good this year's Archie's Halloween Spectacular was, this book just couldn't compete!)

The all-new opening story finds Archie determined to scare Reggie after being humiliated for the last time. It's a story that I know that I have read before, only by different writers and artists. And probably not set during Halloween.

The immediate follow up story was much better, even though it wasn't set at Halloween. Inspired by the movie Night at the Museum, Jughead and Archie spend the night at the local history museum. As a prank, a couple of employees dress up as cavemen and scare the boys silly. 

The next tale funds Archie in his eternal predicament: committed to taking Betty and Veronica to the Riverdale High Halloween Dance at the same time. But in a twist, there's a third player who's impersonating both the the girls. If you're familiar with the legend of the Betty-Archie-Veronica love triangle, you'll know immediately who the fourth wheel is and it's NOT Sabrina! 

And yes! I knew who it was!

Archie specials typically have 4 stories. But the 2nd and 3rd yarns are pretty long. So the 4th entry is a one-pagers that I've read previously somewhere before. It's a parody of the famous demon on the airplane wing episode of The Twilight Zone. I love it and I wonder if they ever made more of those...

I enjoyed this read. I would have really loved it if at least all 3 large tales were all about pranks instead of just the first 2. Plus I wish there was more creativity behind the new opener. It felt more like a mid-90s stagnant era Archie Comic instead of a more dynamic 2020s offering. I guess I have been spoiled by the superior quality of the past several years of holiday specials...

As for the cover by Jeff Shultz and Rosario 'Tito' Pena, this is why I would choose Betty over Veronica any day of the week?

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Halloween Spectacular #1

As strange as it may seem, the Archie Halloween Spectacular is the Halloween special that I most look forward to! This annual one-shot is just so fun. Contrary to what you might think, while it is all-ages appropriate reading, it not all sunshine and lollipops.

The all-new opener is from the mind and might of Dan Parent; who in my opinion is the definitive modern day Archie creator. The story involves the South Side Serpents who have been transformed into actual monsters thanks to a defective invention of Dilton's. Transformed, the bullies look pretty terrifying and they seem eager to do some damage against Archie and his pals. 

It's the second story that I thought was the most intense of the bunch. In yet another reputed Riverdale haunted house, the gang seeks to put on a Halloween bash. Archie is on guard, expecting trouble from those Samhain sprites, Trick and Treat. Archie is on the money as the two do indeed cause calamity. Only there's an air of evil in these pranks which lead to teenage witch Sabrina to go into battle versus an old foe.

That story, along with the other 3 or 4 other tales are supposed to be reprints. But Trick and Treat were only introduced to the Archie universe a couple of years ago. And the last Archie Halloween Spectacular I read, which I assumed was last year's special, alluded to a rematch between Sabrina and Amber Nightstone. So did I miss something?! I mean obviously I did. I just don't know when and where I did and is there even more to this saga that I have yet to encounter because I am not reading a monthly Archie title regularly?

As for the other stories, only one sticks out to me as being memorable. It is by Frank Doyle and Harry Lucey and it looks like it's from the 1950s or early 60s. Betty and Veronica plan to meet up with Archie and Jughead at yet another haunted house. (How many violent deaths have occurred in this tiny burg to warrant so many haunted places?) The girls think that the guys are trying to scare them. The boys think that the gals are trying to spook them. It turns out that it's really the ghosts who occupy the dilapidated structure. And yet because each group thought the others were behind the frights, nobody gets scared. 

There was another story that looked like it's from the Silver Age that has Archie being the mark on a prank TV show similar to Candid Camera. Only, Archie has been warned ahead of time of the ruse and doesn't react to the ghost, which turns out to be the real thing! It wasn't a bad story. It just didn't feel as fresh being in the same book with another similar story. 

As for story #5 and #6 I think it involves Reggie. Maybe...? I just can't recall what happened in either. They must not have been all that great.

I enjoyed this special. It feels like Archie Comics is reading my annual reviews and making changes. At 30 pages and no middle ads, this felt like a giant read. Many thanks to my favorite LCS for ordering me the vintage looking variant cover. I like it so much more than the standard cover which looks CGI to me. Also, taking center stage is some random character that I bet most readers don't even know. Heck, I'm still not 100% sure I know who they are. I just with the green face paint, purple and black hair and fangs, whomever it is just is NOT recognizable. 

I loved this special. But it wasn't a perfect read. And it left me wondering if I missed something important.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Archie Showcase Digest #24- Halfway to Halloween

This book debuted in stores in May. I was very lucky to find a copy still on a Harris Teeter magazine rack just a couple of weeks ago. Boy am I glad I did because there's a ton of stuff that I have never read before!

Archie, both Little and as a teenager, Sabrina and her bewitching family and Betty and Veronica all have both Halloween themed and regular day supernatural adventures in this book. I didn't realize how many abandoned mansions that are supposedly haunted, occupy the town of Riverdale. In this gigantic digest, I lost count after 4!

The best story was a multipart tale where an Addams Family archetype clan moves into the haunted mansion behind Archie's house. I liked this story because of how creepy and kooky this family is and yet Archie treats them like normal people. He even treats their man-eating shrub like you would a beloved family dog.Once he got to know their true character, of course. It's how if I meet the Addams Family or even the Munsters, I hope I would react and interact with them.

Another thing that was really good didn't involve anyone from the Archie gang. It was the monster heavy pieces from the 1960s horror comedy anthology titled Archie's Mad House. Those pieces looked like something from EC Comics and had the humor of MAD Magazine. I thought they were great! I've never actively pursued these issues. But I've never turned down a chance to purchase one of I ever find them while searching through discount long boxes. But I might just start...

My choice for the worst story was the story from Archie's Weird Mysteries. Adapted from the monster and alien heavy 2000 cartoon series of the same name, I was excited about this one at first. I loved the animated series and I had put the 25 issues based on it on my wish list. But after reading this one, I might have to rethink that. The story, which recounts how Veronica became chosen as the Riverdale version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer as well as the betrayal of their friend Scarlet, who was a bloodsucker all along, relies too much on the TV series. The recap is too long. Inside jokes about the cartoon are referenced way too much and I had trouble relating to the mentor character of Dr. Beaumont.

I didn't know that Halloween in May was a thing. I know all about Christmas in July. But if Archie Comics wants to make this digest an annual thing, I'm all for it! This Summer time digest had more new-to-me material than this year's October published Halloween themed Archie digest, which was almost comprised entirely of Archie Halloween Spectacular material of the past decade!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

The Unofficial Archie Hostess Snack Ads Collection

We all know that during the 1970s and 80s, the heroes of DC Comics and Marvel fought crime with the assistance of Hostess Twinkies, cupcakes and fruit pies. But did you know that the teens from Riverdale used snack treats to improve their love lives?

Archie and his pals, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Josie and the Pussycats all manipulated the objects of their desire to fall head over the heels for them thanks to creamy vanilla frosting and delicious fruit filling. The most frequent purveyor of the delights was Josie, trying to either win over the muscular blonde roadie, Alan B. or attempting to outmaneuver her ditzy drummer who won all the hunks, Melodie. Sabrina mostly used her powers for good, conjuring tiny cakes for hungry kiddies she was babysitting. Meanwhile, Archie scored with both Betty and Veronica, thanks to Hostess, while Jughead was actually pretty chill, using an amazing withstand to not eat all the treats being advertised.

This unofficial collection was published by Trident Studios. They keep surprising me with these mini comics that pay homage to the advertisements disguised as comic books from my childhood. Included in this collection are several comic ad one-pagers that used Archie characters as four-colored pitchmen. Archie, Jughead and Betty went on a trio of three-part adventures in search of Capri Sun. Fruit snacks, make-at-home slush packs and even a universal video game controller were hawked by members of the Archies. 

I can't believe that I paid money for a bunch of old ads. I also cannot believe how much I enjoyed this trip through my childhood. The scans were vibrant and clear as crystal and the font size was big enough to enjoy without severe eye strain. I hope Trident has some more offerings up their sleeves. Though I can't imagine what else from the realm of commercial comic books is out there in need of collection and publication. I guess only time will tell.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie Christmas Spectacular 2024 #1

I waited as long as I could to read the Christmas annual I look forward to the most. This year's 2024 Archie Christmas Spectacular did not disappoint in the least. In fact, I feel like Archie Comics might have listened to some of my criticisms, because instead of trying to cram in a brand new magical, they went into a totally different direction.

In order to enjoy the opening story, you had to have read this year's Halloween special. In that issue, a foe of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, threatened revenge upon the blonde pixie. Since that episode, Sabrina gifted her foe, Amber Nightstone, with a holiday present. One that was personal and really well thought out. The story opens with Archie and friends being kidnapped by Amber. But they're not in danger from the events that occurred during All Hallows Eve. Instead, they're being forced to help their kidnapper find an even better present for Sabrina!

There's also 4 other stories in this special. Normally, they're reprints. But not one of them are stories that I've ever read before. So I don't know if they were previously published or if Archie took my advice and crafted more all-new festive fare for their Christmas special. 

The fun begins with Jughead and Big Ethel getting to the bottom of a rumor that Christmas is cancelled. Then Betty and Veronica, as their superhero alter egos Power Teen and Super Teen, help the two Mighty Crusaders who bear the moniker of the Jaguar to recover Santa's stolen sleigh. Betty and Veronica then give a potential new recruit to the Mighty Crusaders a makeover.

Lastly, Archie helps the Shield solve the mystery of a super-weapon that was stolen during a Christmas party at a museum dedicated to America's first patriotic superhero. 

Every story was great fun. But the last story was my favorite. The story is set up where readers are supposed to examine the party-goers for clues to the whereabouts of the missing artifact. But in reality it was a ploy to prevent the readers from missing the countless cameos of iconic and forgotten characters from 85 years of Archie Comics that were hidden in every panel. While I do wish that I could have solved the mystery, I greatly value the deception because I would have missed out on seeing some long lost friends from my childhood, such as L'il Jinx!

This is perhaps my favorite of all the Archie Christmas Spectaculars. It was magical. It was fun. It was nostalgic. It's everything that I've been asking Santa for in an Archie holiday special.

Keep up the good work!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Archie & Friends: Summer Lovin' #1

This summer time fun special was something I meant to read when it debuted in 2022. Unfortunately it got buried in my ever growing to-read pile, only to see the light of day just recently.

The main story introduces a new love triangle to Riverdale. Veronica's cousin Harper has returned for the summer. This means for Reggie a chance to restart his relationship with the teen. However, there's a new player in the mix, Eliza Han, an African-Korean American with ADHD and is pansexual. At the summer carnival both Reg and Eliza vie for the affections of Harper. But it looks like love will have to wait when everyone gets sick from riding the Gravitron. 

The opening story was written by Tee Harper with artwork provided by my favorite modern Archie artist, Dan Parent. I was surprised that the main feature was only 6 pages in length. Especially since the cover promises an introduction to Eliza Han. Instead, the back-up feature took up the majority of this book, which was 32 pages in total length. It involves Archie trying to win the affections of Veronica by practicing for the Riverdale beach windsurfing championship. Did I mention he's rather bad at it? Written by Tom DeFalco, the story features an often forgotten member of the Archie-Betty-Veronica love affair; one Ms. Cheryl Blossom who decides to train poor Archie just to get revenge on Veronica.

The back up was illustrated by Pat and Tim Kennedy. The brothers artwork looks really new and I know that it's a newer story because Kevin Keller is a main character in the story and he's only been around since 2010. What I want to know is this: was the windsurfing story brand new or like with other specials of the past, a reprint? 

With a Halloween or Valentine's Day spectacular, the reprinted tales look older. Why didn't the editors pick such a more modern story to fill in the gaps? And if it's an all-new story as well, I'm crying FOUL! Why does this one-shot get special treatment of original material but the holiday annual books get stuffed with stuff that I've more than likely already read!?

I've said it before and I will say it now: I'm willing to pay $3.99, up from the standard cover of $2.99 for all my Archie specials to contain more original stories than 1 measly 6-pager. C'mon Archie Comics! You do so well responding to fan demand, let's make this happen!

Before I go... Great cover by Bill Golliher. Love the Easter egg to the birth year of Archie!

Worth Consuming!

Rating 8 out of 10 stars.

Bite Sized Archie: Going Viral

I was such a fan of the first volume that I eagerly anticipated a follow up. While that first year of Bite Sized Archie was a groundbreaking romp that paid tribute to over 75 years of Archie lore and the entire Archie Comics library, there was something not quite right with the second year of strips. It was almost like Ron Cacace and Vincent Lovallo tried to get too experimental with a concept that in of itself was an experiment. The genius of Bite Sized Archie is how an entire story is told in just 4 square panels. Here, the creators tried to do a drawn out story over several strips and the way they did it just didn't work.

First of all, the concept was too wacky. An anthropomorphic cheeseburger takes revenge on Jughead with the help of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and a leprechaun. Then the story is told sporadically instead of several weeks in a row. That's hard enough to keep up with but the creators end up jumping ahead into the storyline with events that happened off page, like Veronica and Reggie getting kidnapped by the reindeer. Add in Sabrina the Teenage Witch and a Kaiju version of Jughead fighting the Cheeseburger and wrap it all up with a stupid punchline for an ending and I was begging for this volume to be over!

Thankfully, Cacace and Lovallo continue to add their director's cut commentary to their strips. Without it, I would've been lost, thinking that some pages of that continuous story were missing. I appreciate the creators wanting to try something new by having a lengthy story. However, I think they were too indulgent with their efforts. 

As Bite Sized Archie continues on over at Archiecomics.com, there's a good chance for a third volume. I just hope Cacace and Lovallo learn from their sophomore year mistakes and can recapture some of that magic from the inaugural year.

Rating: 6 out of 10 years.

The Death of Archie: A Life Celebrated

The Death of Archie was the explosive comic event of 2014. Just like with the death of Batman's sidekick Robin in 1988, when the news broke of the looming demise of the World's Oldest Teen, fans lost their minds. Only, unlike where an actually Robin died, just not fan favorite original Dick Grayson, the death of Archie wasn't canon. Yes- the Archie Andrews generations grew up reading since his debut in 1941 died from a gunshot wound. But the murder takes place in the distance future of about 15-20 years from now. 

Volume 2 of Life With Archie, known by its storyline 'The Married Life' showed two possible futures for Archie Andrews. Debuting in 2010, fans got a glimpse of what life after high school would be like if he finally answered the eternal question 'Betty or Veronica?' Fans got to see what married life would be like not just with socialite heiress Veronica but the consummate girl next door Betty.

At one point towards the end of the storyline, the marriages kinda fused together in which you never saw the face of Archie's singular one true love. Thus when Archie is ultimately killed, he confesses as his last words '... I've Always Loved You...' to his bride without truly revealing just whom it is the redhead is confessing his devotion towards.

Reading the story wasn't really something I felt like I had to read. A chance find at Ollie's for only $2.99 was enough to entice me to give it a go. The story is actually quite good. However, it's not Archie's death that made this a story to remember. Instead, it was both how the reader never really knows who Archie's soul mate was as well as the last issue in which Archie's friends and family join together a year after his death to reflect on how their lives were impacted by Archie.

There are about 15 pages of extra material. Don't pass those up! There's an article on the character's impact on both comics and pop culture, a look at all the great variant covers along with artist inside info and a look behind the scenes at the original artwork and the changes recommended to it by the editors. Be sure to also catch the foreword by the EIC Victor Gorelick which explains why Archie Comics decided to kill off their signature character- even if it was a 'What If' type situation.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie Valentine's Day Spectacular 2023 #1

For some reason or another, I didn't get my hands on last year's Archie Valentine's special until after February 14th. That's why I'm reading and reviewing it now.

This special introduces a new student to Riverdale High. Cassie Cloud is a tall, beautiful blonde who could be mistaken for Betty if note for the sky blue highlights in her hair. All the guys seem into Cassie. Archie thinks she's a dancing queen. Moose is enamored by her physical abilities as a girl's football player. Jughead is head-over-heels with Cassie's baking abilities. And all of the girls are jealous with a capital J!

Only the macho guys of Riverdale don't even appear on Cassie's romantic radar. She's into the more nerdier population of Riverdale. Cassie digs comic books, RPG games and sci-fi movies. 

I think Cassie Cloud is fascinating and I hope we see more of her. She kinda reminds me of my wife who is a lady of multiple talents and interests. Only I wouldn't classify Cassie Cloud as a nerd. That's what the green eyed gals of Riverdale High call Cassie's role playing guy pals. And Cassie claims the title of NERD for herself. Only because of her interest in sports and other popular activities, I would seem Cassie to be a geek. That's what I was in high school and if my wife has been a student athlete in high school, so would she.

 Other than the mislabeling, I enjoy this new tale.

There were 4 reprint stories. Two were by the amazing Dan Parent. All of them seemed to be from the past two decades. While I would have appreciated a classic tale from the 50s or 60s, these were all good holiday reads. Sure, that Veronica's new boyfriend story had a predictable ending (maybe I've read it before), but this annual Valentine's Day read was the total package!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Valentine's Spectacular 2024 #1

The 2024 Archie Valentine's Day special has arrived. Once again, Archie is introducing us to some all-new characters. But the players are not human but manifestations of the spirit of the holiday. Not only has that idea been used in previous Halloween specials but several Archie Christmas Spectaculars as well. 

At first I was having fatigue in what I thought was the overuse of the plot trope. Yet the characters of Flowers, Hearts and Candies were really well written by Ian Flynn and they were so funny. It also helped that Archie editor Mike Pellerito admits that the idea of the trio of characters was based on those previous holiday annuals. If the Archie talents understand that they might be dipping a little too frequently into the same idea well, I guess I can let things slide for another year. But I expect the next couple of years to give these characters a rest. I like tradition. But there's such a thing as taking a break from time to time to keep things fresh as well.

One tradition that I hope never stops is the new larger amount of material. My biggest gripe with all of the Archie spectaculars are that they are too darn short. It feels like the editing staff listened to me as there was 2 all-new stories (though a repeat of you bought this year's Valentine's Day themed Archie Jumbo Comics Digest #347) along with 3 classic tales and a Bite-Sized Archie short.

The second new feature has Sabrina the Teenage Witch trying to summon Cupid in hopes of persuading Jughead to finally ask Big Ethel out. Instead, she conjures a demon that ends up being the antithesis of everything Cupid stands for. It was a good story. Though that evil creature wasn't my type of thing. Plus, I never knew that Jughead knew that Sabrina is a witch!

I liked 2 of the 3 classic stories. Sadly, the Dan Parent yarn about love triangles in the Archie Universe was the weakest of the three. I say unfortunately because I feel that Dan Parent is the best modern Archie creator out there but this experimental piece was in need of more data gathering before going to press. Plus I didn't understand that Bite-Sized Archie web comic preview. 

I enjoyed this Valentine's special. It's just in danger of getting stale if the creators keep relying on magical representations of the embodiment of the holiday of the month in future editions. In terms of the reprints, it's not feasible to expect every selection to be something everyone likes. So I'm not taking away points for that Dan Parent piece. But there was a real chance that I could of deducted more points if Hearts, Flowers and Candies hadn't been as funny as they were. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie Christmas Spectacular 2023 #1( Family Comic Friday)

It took a few extra days, but the holiday comic book that I look forward to the most every year finally arrived! This year's Archie Christmas Spectacular introduces a trio of new characters to the Archie universe. Jangles and Sourplum are the antithesis of the good magical Christmas characters Jingles the Elf and Sugarplum the Fairy. When their boss Grumpus kidnaps the good sprites, he orders Jangles and Sourplum to destroy the Christmas festivities being organized by Archie and the gang at Riverdale High.

I'm actually friends on Facebook with the writer of this all-new holiday story, Tom DeFalco. I actually claim this friendship instead of marking it as just following a celebrity because in the past we've both gifted each prizes on Candy Crush. Recently he shared an early glimpse of the new characters on his FB page. I thought that Jingles and Sugarplum were being redesigned and I hated it. Once I realized that artist Holly G! was creating their polar opposites, I actually began to dig what the artist and DeFalco were attempting to pull off.

That opening story was just too short. At only 5 pages, it's just not enough room to really dive into the motivation of the Grumpus character. He claims to have a past beef with Archie and his pals and I recognize the villain's lair from previous Halloween stories. I feel like the story of the Grumpus is far from over. Sadly, I also feel like I'll have to wait a whole year for next year's Christmas annual for the conclusion.

The artwork was inconsistent if you ask me. The Archie's are drawn in their traditional style with dark thick lines. However, Jingles and Sugarplum are illustrated in very thin lines, lacking definition. Plus the new villains are really pointy to the point of being Gothic Manga and their poses are too stiff. I used to wonder why all the characters in a comic book were always crafted in a similar art style whereas in real life everyone is different. Well, thanks to this story, I understand now that an uneven art style just doesn't look right.

This spectacular has 2 additional stories. Two of them are classics starring Jingles, Sugarplum as well as Santa's only daughter, Noelle. Another tale has Jingles assisting a Riverdale youth with a reputation of being a jinx. The final adventure has Archie and Jughead getting into trouble when they take Jellybean and friends to the mall to see Santa. Not sure why that last story is devoid of one of those magical Christmas characters. It too makes the total read of this special a bit uneven.

For the past dozen or so years, these annuals have been priced at the bargain price of $2.99. Well apparently Scrooge is in charge of marketing and pricing with this edition now priced at $3.99. I understand inflation happens. But for that extra fee, I expect the all-new opener to be longer than it was or for there to be 2 new holiday romps instead of so many reprints. Especially since 2 of those older stories were just featured in the Archie's Christmas Wonderland treasury that dropped earlier this year.

I had a lot of fun with this annual. It just lacked consistency in the art and I was shocked by the new sticker price. Grumpus might be a cranky version of Krampus, but nowhere near as evil. This should be a Christmas present that all ages will enjoy. It just lacks some of the quality and charm of editions past.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie Halloween Spectacular 2023

I saved my favorite for as close to last as I could stand it. For about 5 years now, the comic book devoted to Halloween I look forward to most annually are the Archie specials. Same goes for the Christmas edition. I think it's because of how timeless they are. So full of nostalgia, humor and wonder. Plus they have moments of spookiness without being too scary. 

This year's offering is a love letter to the dark side of Archie Comics. I didn't realize this, but in the 1950s and 60s, Archie and his gang interacted with a bunch of classic monsters and aliens. While the stories might have been tongue in cheek, the artwork of the ghouls and goblins was pretty darn intimidating. In the all-new opening story, Tom DeFalco pens a tribute to those glorious looking frights.

Last year's Halloween annual introduced readers to Trick and Treat; a pair of Halloween imps who like to visit Riverdale every October 31st. While I wasn't as enthusiastic about their debut, these two have become fan favorites. So a return was almost inevitable. In DeFalco's tale, Veronica's father is allowing the students of Riverdale High to use one of his abandoned properties as the site for the annual Halloween party and haunted house. In the minds of Archie and Jughead, this place already is haunted. Trick is inspired by the old comics books that Treat has been reading and uses the creatures from them to scare Archie and Jughead.

At the end of the book is a gallery of all the old Archie Comics issues that inspired this debut story. There's also a great 2-page article about the history of Archie books and why horror has always been an element in them. Did you even know that the Archie sister imprint Red Circle had straight up horror anthology tales? I had always thought that more adult Archie books of terror was more of a modern invention. Gee, was I wrong.

There's 4 reprint stories included in this book. One looks like it's from the 80s. Starring Betty and Veronica, the girls spend the night presumably in this same abandoned mansion in hopes of proving ghosts exist. Then there's a more modern tale involving some newer characters including a goth girl and a young boy of Indian decent. That's got the gang cutting through a graveyard on Halloween night in order to get to a Halloween party quicker. Bad idea there. The last newer looking story has Sabrina having to think fast when a rival witch attacks her at Veronica's Halloween bash- in front of mortals!

The 4th story was from the 50s, I think. Or the very early 60s. It's a classic that I've read before in which Dracula tries to trap Archie and Jughead. Only the two teens are completely oblivious that they're in near mortal danger. Every time the Count tries to prove to the fellas that he's a monster, one of the boys dismisses it as being lame. It was drawn to be very spooky. But it was so funny.

I thought the all-new story was just too short. But I really appreciated the nods to the past. I also don't quite get all the love for imps Trick and Treat. For one thing, Treat has a noose around their neck and I'm very surprised nobody has cried fowl on it and the implications of lynching. Besides, I'm more of a Jingles the Elf fan. Though I would love to see a Trick and Treat meets Jingles crossover! Maybe we could see these two worlds collide in a Thanksgiving Day special. If you ask me, an Archie look at Turkey Day has been sorely missing from my annual holiday comic book reads. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Life With Archie #118

I bought this issue in August at a used book store. I knew that this 1972 comic wasn't a Halloween themed book. But with it's creepy cover, I thought it would make a good read for the month of October.

There are only 2 stories in this issue. The first story is from which the cover image was taken. It shows a terrifying monster standing in front of a set of miniature coffins, each bearing the name of one of the Archie gang. The reason Archie and his friends are faced with such a situation is because the Archies have been summoned to the home of a promoter who wants the garage band to perform at a popular disco. The house the Archies arrive at is all dilapidated and the promoter is nowhere to be found. As the teens look for someone, anyone, they run into those coffins. If that's not scary enough, that menacing ghoul appears and threatens them with death!

Pretty tough stuff for an all-ages comic from the 70s. The ending was typical Archie, especially as the gang all seemed okay with what was behind all the scares. But then there's the eerie finale that made for this to be a great autumn tale that would be appropriate for a round of camp fire ghost stories. 

The back-up featured wasn't scary. Instead, it was a comedic yarn that proved that Archie Comics could successfully navigate the choppy waters of the generation gap. Mr. Andrews thinks the outfit Archie is wearing is straight up ridiculous. Archie just thinks his old man is being an old fuddy-duddy, where in reality, Grandpa Andrews probably thought Mr. Andrews dressed like a clown when he was Archie's age. Archie later meets up with Betty, ranting about how out of touch an old man his pop is, only to have a couple of kids to almost knock Betty on her butt. Archie stops the kids and berates them for being rude. In return, the kids call Archie old. The story ends with a gag about how Archie needed to get his foot out of his mouth. 

This was all-around classic Archie. There's a dramatic story that gets the heart racing. It's got a ludicrous ending that you'd only find in a family sitcom with a great twist ending. The second story was predictable, but such a fun read to experience getting to the closing gag. For less than $2 and spent using trade credit, I felt like it was money well spent.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie Meets Riverdale #1

I think I write some of my reviews in my sleep. I know for a fact that I read this 2022 one-shot crossover the week it debuted in stores. I enjoyed the Hell out of it. And I could have sworn that I drafted up my praises. Yet, this book was still in my to-review pile with no proof of a post about Archie Meets Riverdale anywhere on this blog. 

In the original Archie Comics universe, teenage egghead Dilton Doiley is working on another one of his experiments which naturally malfunctions. Only this time around, the device latches on to a parallel universe plucking the Riverdale Archie Andrews from his drama heavy universe into the overly cheery world of Riverdale, USA that us readers have been devotees of for over 80 years! As Dilton tinkers with his machine in hopes of fixing it, random teens from both universes pop in and out of their realities. Before you know it, all of your classic Archie characters will be on the PG-13 side of the spectrum and those brooding teens from Riverdale will be existing in a saccharine reality otherwise thought unimaginable.

You know, the only way to fix this might be a joint prom between both Riverdale High student bodies!

I've never seen an episode of Riverdale. But I Wiki-read about it a lot. I HAVE read quite a few Archie team-up books. Archie Meets Riverdale is among the creme de la creme of them! I know that at least in one of my dream reviews in the past, I wished for this crossover to happen. Well, the wish was granted, albeit in my head, and it was a marvelous wish fulfilled. 

I loved that Pat & Tim Kennedy decided to draw the classic Archie gang in a more nostalgic look from the 1940s and 50s. If Archie Comics had gone with Dan Parent's version which is based a lot more on Dan DeCarlo's look established as the playbook for presenting the world's oldest teenagers, the differences between the two universes wouldn't be as striking. I love the Dan Parent/Dan DeCarlo model. It's the definitive look for Archie and the gang. It just would not have been as effective if that version was used for this crossover. 

Good Call, Archie Editors!

A fun ride for Archie and Riverdale fans. Though I think the more established a classic Archie fan you are, the more you'll get out of this book. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.