Story by Frank Tieri
Art by Pat and Time Kennedy
Colors by Matt Herms
Inks by Bob Smith and Jim AmashPublished by Archie Comics
Earlier this year, in it’s pretty successful attempt to re-brand itself as more contemporary, Archie Comics issued a series of one-shots with a horror theme. Under it’s Archie’s Madhouse imprint, Jughead: The Hunger was one of those titles. Editors promised that if any of those stand alones were a hit, they would return in a new monthly series. Well, The Hunger was a smash and the editorial staff have kept their promise.
The book begins a month after the events of the Jughead: the Hunger one-shot. Jughead Jones is on the lam from werewolf hunter Betty Cooper. He’s run away and taken a job at a circus, cleaning animal cages by day. By night, Jughead chains himself to his trailer until his animalistic urges pass. Meanwhile, Jughead’s last victim before fleeing Riverdale, Reggie Mantle is about to see life in a unexpectedly new way…
Books like Jughead: The Hunger and Afterlife with Archie are what I wish the CW’s take of the Archie Universe, Riverdale, was more like. In fact, when rumors swirled that the Afterlife with Archie storyline was going to be the focus of season 2, I bought the entire run. I would much rather watcha scary live-action version of Archie and the gang, than a 90210 murder mystery.
Thankfully, there’s books like Jughead: the Hunger to whet my appetite. Written by the amazing Frank Tieri (Gotham Underground), there’s so much creepiness in these 22 pages than in most horror movies in theatres now days. Plus, I really like this kick-ass Buffy the Vampire Slayer version of Betty. And I love how she man-handles a very wimpy Archie Andrews!
Jughead: the Hunger features art by The Death of Archie’s Pat and Tim Kennedy. The duo put a unique spin on the characters. It captures a classic image of these iconic characters while updating them for a modern day thriller. Add amazing inks by Bob Smith and Jim Amash with the eerie color palette of Matt Herms (Afterlife with Archie) and you’ve got a potential visual horror classic in the making here.
Some readers may hate this new take on a nearly 80-year old group of teenagers. But this series is an alternate take on the Archie gang. So put away your established biases and take a chance on Jughead: The Hunger. I promise you, after one issue, you’ll be rushing back to your LCS in November for seconds!
Issue #1 of Jughead: The Hunger debuts in stores on October 25th.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
If you've been keeping up with my blog for a while, you will know that I am a consummate bargain hunter. I don't like to pay full price for anything. I've been known to wait months- years to read something if I can't get it on discount.
Now there's a few exceptions to this rule. When it comes to Supergirl or Scooby-Doo Team-Up, I shell out the big bucks for a monthly fix. Holiday specials are the same. So when I saw this book at a local comic book store in Greensboro, NC, I had to do some quick math and weigh the pros with the cons.
I've been wanting a copy- any copy- of this series since I started collecting comics again 10 years ago. My father had a couple of copies of this along with some Jerry Lewis comic books that got passed along to me before they were stolen in the early 90s. I got myself a Jerry Lewis issue for only a buck some time back. So, I felt that balanced out shelling a few extra dollars towards making this comic a part of my collection. Plus, from the cover, I felt that the book could make for a fun read this Halloween season. So, into my shopping cart it went...
This issue of Bob Hope has the comedian as some sort of con man. This was a typical character that he played in a number of his films in the 40s and 50s. Along with his dog Harvard Harvard, III, Bob is casing a carnival when he spins his last dime on a fortune teller. The clairvoyant tells the main character to find a castle with five steps in order to obtain his financial rewards.
The only place Bob knows that there are castles is in England, so our hero and his dog embark on a cargo ship across the pond to Jolly Old England. There he finds a pretty girl that just happens to be going to a castle with five steps to claim her inheritance. Seeing dollar signs, Bob tags along only to discover that the castle is haunted and the spirits that inhabit it aren't very happy to see him there.
This was a very interesting look at DC Comics in 1964. I don't often get to read a book that old unless it's a collected reprint. So, I really enjoyed seeing all the great vintage ads and the smell of the comic- I don't need to take drugs. That old comic book smell is intoxicating enough!
One thing I thought was quite interesting was an interview with series artist Bob Oskner. In it, the artist states that he hopes his daughter becomes the first woman to break into comics. Excuse me, but what about Marie Severin (EC Comics) and Ramona Fradon (Metamorpho)? I'm pretty sure their roles on various titles beginning in the 1950s pre-dates Bob Oskner's little girl by almost 15 years!
The overall story was pretty funny. I laughed a few times. Though I have a feeling if I had read six of seven issues in a row, some of the gags would have gotten old pretty fast. Bob was portrayed in his typical smarmy and self-deprecating manner to a tee! And I really thought the new character of Harvard the Dog was a great addition. Too bad he didn't last more than about a dozen issues...
I did think it was quite funny in one segment when Bob Hope tells a policeman that he's an American. Very few people know that the US military's greatest supporter was actually born in London!
The scary aspect was about as scary as an old Abbott & Costello Meets (Insert Monster Here) film. A little spooky but nothing to keep you up at night. But it's a great read to conjure up a Halloween atmosphere.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.
