There’s a lot of weird things going on at Archie Comics these days.
The complete reboot of the entire concept coming up later this year written by Mark Waid, the scribe of DC Comics’ Kingdom Come. Riverdale, a planned hour-long drama that may appear on the FOX TV network. The hugely popular Afterlife With Archie pitting the whole gang versus zombies. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, a much more macabre take on the teenaged witch.
And now: Archie vs. Predator.
I remember reading Archie Meets the Punisher back when it came out in 1994 (on which I wrote my very first comic review for my college newspaper). The biggest trick they pulled was managing to keep to the spirit of both books. A perfect blend of Archie’s apple-pie goodness and the Punisher’s grim and violent world.
So far Archie vs. Predator feels the same way.
It’s Spring Break, and Archie and the Gang win a free trip to a luxury beach in Costa Rica, courtesy of a bag of Jughead’s ‘Tayto-Chips.’ Of course the vacation is full of the normal Riverdale shenanigans–the Archie-Betty-Veronica love triangle, a popularity contest around the yearbook, Jughead eating, Reggie conniving. Even Cheryl Blossom is there, sowing discord everywhere.
Out in the jungle, though, it’s a different matter. Something has come down from the sky and whatever it is looks to be stalking the kids. (Spoiler: I think it’s a Predator!)
With a full four issues in this mini-series, this first one is very much the teaser of what’s to come. The blood is minimal (although way more than ever seen in regular Archie comics), people go missing, and the kids are blissfully ignorant at what’s going on around them.
I’m eagerly awaiting the next issue now, because I honestly can’t tell which way it’s going to go. Will it be entirely without deaths of the main characters, like Archie Meets the Punisher, or will they start to rack up the body count, like Afterlife With Archie? Personally, I’m hoping for the latter, and that Reggie gets it. I hate that guy.
Written by Alex de Campi (Grindhouse, My Little Pony) and art by Archie veterans Fernando Ruiz and Rich Koslowski, Archie VS. Predator is available for pre-purchase from Dark Horse Comics, and will be in stores on April 15, 2015.
Disclaimer: An advance copy was provided by Dark Horse for review purposes.
