Writers: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Art: Francesco Francavilla
Colors: Francesco Francavilla
Letters: Jack Morelli
Publisher: Archie
Price: $2.99
Release Date: 10/9/13
Reviewer: Soycornholio
Escape from Riverdale:
The main gist of Archie has been the same since the early 1940s (41 to be exact). Archie and his pals living like the typical American teenagers in the (insert the decade). Diving into Afterlife w/ Archie #1 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa flips the Archie premise on its head. In its place, is zombies, murder, and dark magic (hi Sabrina!). Since the Spooky Season is upon us, let’s dive into a creepy story!
*Spoilers to Follow*
The Set-Up:
This comic starts in a dark place. No seriously, it starts at Sabrina Spellman’s mortuary (this is not the Melissa Joan Hart version of the witch; check out the series on Netflix if you want to be truly scared). Jughead has a problem that he thinks can be solved by magic. Unfortunately, the magic needed to resurrect his dead best friend is dark magic that not even the Aunties (Hilda and Zelda) are willing to do. Later that evening, Sabrina performs the forbidden magic and it leads to a major disaster.
Buffy meets Archie?
Besides the Sabrina slice of Archie Comics, Archie is normal compared to most comics. Going into this comic, I was expecting the pals and gals to act the same way as they always have. In Afterlife w/ Archie #1 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Jughead becomes a zombie and decides to eat Mr. Weatherbee (and seemingly Ms. Grundy). This is not his normal Pop Tate special! The entire issue gave me strong Buffy the Vampire Slayer vibes. Even though the characters were still having light and cheerful conversations (Betty and Veronica duking it out over Archie at the Halloween Dance), there is still an impending doom that hovers around Riverdale.
Final Thoughts:
Why did it take me so long to read Afterlife w/ Archie #1 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa? Simple: I did not know it existed! This issue has everything from monsters, classic characters, and even a shocking death (that kind of weirdly hit me). If you are a fan of the classic Archie series and art style, be warned that this is NOT the same. For starters, it is for teenage readers, and two, the art work has a hauntingly beautiful quality to it. I would recommend reading this issue via any online publication you have (especially if you are a fan of the CW series Riverdale or Archie in general)! I picked my copy up at my LCS for $8 and that is a little steep (in my opinion) for this recent of a comic.
Happy Reading!