Concussions and revelations.
Creative Staff:
Story: Mark Waid
Art: Veronica Fish
Colors: Andre Szymanowicz with Jen Vaughn
Letters: Jack Morelli
What They Say:
The biggest comic series of the year continues into 2016! Archie and Jughead are on the outs with each other, and now Archie has no one to help him against the fury that is Hiram Lodge! Not even Veronica wants to go up against her own father! Rising star comics artist Veronica Fish (Howard the Duck, the RIVERDALE CW promo image) joins the legendary Mark Waid for another brand new issue of the hit series!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Poor lonely Archie. He’s taking some “time off” from Jughead and Betty because of their attempt to break up his relationship with Veronica. One would assume he would just spend more time with Veronica, but her father is in town, and Archie does his best to avoid Mr. Lodge out of fear the old man will discover it was he who destroyed his mansion. All of these worries become academic when a softball (hit by Betty) whizzes out of the park and knocks Archie out cold.
While everyone’s favorite teen recovers from a concussion, Riverdale’s oiliest teen, Reggie Mantle, does his very best to seduce Veronica and more or less weasel his way into the Lodge’s good graces. ‘Ronnie and her father are no fools, and see right through Reggie’s blatant sycophantic attempts, prompting Reggie to make a rather desperate move that will spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E for Archie.
Mark Waid does a great job of making Reggie both a sympathetic character and someone you want to punch in the teeth. The glimpse we get into his home life and the backhanded way both Veronica and her father dismantle the boy make you feel for Reggie, leading you to think that he’s not such a bad kid—he just needs care and attention. But then he goes and does something like rat Archie out to Mr. Lodge and you’re back to wanting to punch him in the face. That’s the key to making a sympathetic villain: you don’t condone his actions, but you understand why he does them.
Veronica Fish turns in another fine issue. Her faces and body language, in particular are quite good—which is necessary for this type of story. It’s paramount for the emotion of the character to come through, and Fish does that with style and ease.
In Summary:
Archie #6 is another solid issue in this highly enjoyable reboot. The writing and art are both top-notch and the comic is full of humor and heart. Dr. Josh gives this an….
Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Archie Comics
Release Date: February 17th, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
