Less reboot or even reimagining and more business as usual, the new Oni Press incarnation of everyone’s favourite red-headed teenager debuted this month with Archie #1. If you were worrying that this new series would miss the mark of what the character has always embodied – especially in the wake of Archie Comics winding down so much of their publishing output over the last few years – your concerns were unfounded. This is an Archie comic that embraces everything that made the character so iconic in the first place.
Cover by Stuart Immonen
Whether this stays the same remains to be seen of course but Archie #1 presents two complete stories in the vein of the periodical Archie fare of yesteryear, and with the kind of spark that you would have expected from the sadly recently discontinued old school digests. Writer Ben H. Winters gives us two stories. The first acts as an intro to our protagonist for the newbies and the second is a longer tale that, in the same vein, cleverly re-establishes his supporting cast.
In the former Archie’s running late for school yet again and the usual fun and games ensue as he attempts to make up the time. In the second Archie, Veronica, Betty and the rest of the gang are competing against each other to make the best student film, all working in very different genres. They’re complete stories building up to the usual Archie-style punchline with the traditional likeable humour and careful comedy pacing. Archie’s pal Jughead also gets in on the act with his own back-up story.
It’s Fabio Moon’s art that may come as the revelation here though. It’s beautiful in composition, as is to be expected, but the vibe that has been gone for here is very much to capture the essence of the original visual characterisation of the assorted players. Only perhaps with page layouts that are somewhat more experimental and adventurous than you might have expected in the past. Jason Wordie’s vibrant colouring is completely on point for the tone here while the lettering from AndWorld always matches the energy of the various assorted characters and their interactions.
If you were at all apprehensive about the direction of the new Archie books this first instalment should allay those fears. This is a triumph in terms of balancing accessibility with nostalgia, and a debut that should have the widest possible popular appeal.
Ben H. Winters (W), Fabio Moon (A), Jason Wordie (C), Andworld Design Lettering Studio (L) • Oni Press, $4.99
Review by Andy Oliver
