From Friendly Ghosts To Gamma Rays, No.190
Hello, and welcome back to our all-ages comics column, From Friendly Ghosts To Gamma Rays! Maybe Halloween week has had you over loaded, and you need something of a different flavor? Maybe those Attack on Titan live action films got you down this month, being some of the worst comics-to-film adaptations ever created, and you need something to forget about them? Perhaps you just saw the title of the column and clicked. I dunno, it doesn’t matter, but what matters is you’re here and I’m going to tell you a little bit about Archie Comics’ all-new Jughead!
Jughead #1
Publisher: Archie Comics
Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Art: Erica Henderson
It’s no secret that a little while back I gave the all-new Archie reboot a bad review. I was in the 10% that thought it was a stinker (and I still do). So when the all-new Jughead showed up for me to review, I was slightly hesitant, but I must admit upon reading it that I was whole-heartedly over joyous to discover the Zdarsky and Henderson team delivered a solid reboot of this classic character, carefully crafting a crazy set-up and knocking it out of the park, filled with the off-beat vibe you’d expect out of a Jughead title, while being true to the character’s roots.
The plot sounds straight out of the Archie universe playbook for old Juggie. A new principal moves in and changes the lunch menu. Suddenly the days of hamburgers or taco Tuesdays are gone, now replaced with a nutrient gruel every day! Jughead, enraged over this travesty of culinary delights, slips into a dream, and in his fantasy world (a clever Game of Thrones parody) discovers a way to beat the system for the students, even if the new principal doesn’t like it.
Zdarsky feels at home writing the eccentric. From penning Howard the Duck at Marvel, to here on Jughead, the fellow doesn’t miss a beat for fan legions dedicated to slightly quirky titles. Zdarsky delivers a book that is well paced, and most importantly for Jughead: funny! On the art side, Henderson does some great transitions in her layouts that are wonderful eye candy. The comic’s style fits that of the new Archie-reboot-verse, and despite not everyone being thrilled with the universe’s new look, Henderson does a great job, delivering some still very cartoon-like comical moments, yet still ingrained with this mostly realistic approach to our Riverdale Gang.
Jughead #1 is out now in print and digital.
Drew McCabe
drew@comicattack.net
