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acrickettofillthesilence's review against another edition
4.0
After reading Archie Marries..., I was ready to stop reading Archie comics. I have a nostalgic love for Archie still, but that series felt flat and cliche. Betty was superhuman and the image of mercy. Jughead could only ever think about food. Veronica was...Veronica.
[Sigh]
Boy am I glad I picked up the reboot.
Fiona Staples does an excellent job telling the story through her panels. Not only the visual gags, which feel so much like the original, but in characterizing everyone through their looks and actions. The writing is also impressive in both catching the feel of the original gang while tweaking the backstory (and sometimes just plain adding more depth, TBH). I had a couple of issues with the plot points, but Betty feels less superhuman, Jughead gets the intelligent piece of his personality back, and Veronica is...Veronica, but slightly better(?).
If you were ever a fan of Archie comics, you have to read this. Seriously.
[Sigh]
Boy am I glad I picked up the reboot.
Fiona Staples does an excellent job telling the story through her panels. Not only the visual gags, which feel so much like the original, but in characterizing everyone through their looks and actions. The writing is also impressive in both catching the feel of the original gang while tweaking the backstory (and sometimes just plain adding more depth, TBH). I had a couple of issues with the plot points, but Betty feels less superhuman, Jughead gets the intelligent piece of his personality back, and Veronica is...Veronica, but slightly better(?).
If you were ever a fan of Archie comics, you have to read this. Seriously.
trin's review against another edition
4.0
Fiona Staples makes everything sexy.
I was initially disturbed when I saw her beautiful cover for the updated Archie; I have never read a single issue of the original comics that I can recall, but I am aware of the characters through cultural osmosis and this character who looked like he could easily be a cousin of Richie Rich or Alfred E. Neuman should not be hot. But I was still jonesing after reading the latest [b:Saga|28862528|Saga, Volume 6|Brian K. Vaughan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1455727676s/28862528.jpg|48637040] and I wanted to look at some pretty pictures, so I thought I'd give this a try.
Much to my surprise -- and delight -- the new Archie is more than just a pretty face! Mark Waid's reworking of Riverdale is vibrant and inviting, and the stories in this volume are fun and playful but deeper than I anticipated. I loved the hints of Jughead's tragic past (there's a sentence I never thought I'd type) and Betty and Archie's relationship and breakup were so well-handled -- both subtle and sophisticated. (More unexpected adjectives!) Yet Archie is still silly and wholesome enough that I imagine it would be recognizable to the original series' fans.
I was sad that Staples only did the art for three issues, although the other artists are above average themselves. Staples is simply singular. Even though thanks to her -- here comes another one -- I now want to do dirty, dirty things to Jughead beneath the bleachers.
I was initially disturbed when I saw her beautiful cover for the updated Archie; I have never read a single issue of the original comics that I can recall, but I am aware of the characters through cultural osmosis and this character who looked like he could easily be a cousin of Richie Rich or Alfred E. Neuman should not be hot. But I was still jonesing after reading the latest [b:Saga|28862528|Saga, Volume 6|Brian K. Vaughan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1455727676s/28862528.jpg|48637040] and I wanted to look at some pretty pictures, so I thought I'd give this a try.
Much to my surprise -- and delight -- the new Archie is more than just a pretty face! Mark Waid's reworking of Riverdale is vibrant and inviting, and the stories in this volume are fun and playful but deeper than I anticipated. I loved the hints of Jughead's tragic past (there's a sentence I never thought I'd type) and Betty and Archie's relationship and breakup were so well-handled -- both subtle and sophisticated. (More unexpected adjectives!) Yet Archie is still silly and wholesome enough that I imagine it would be recognizable to the original series' fans.
I was sad that Staples only did the art for three issues, although the other artists are above average themselves. Staples is simply singular. Even though thanks to her -- here comes another one -- I now want to do dirty, dirty things to Jughead beneath the bleachers.
phoebe_the_titan_of_prophecy's review against another edition
4.0
ahhhhh, the NOSTALGIA . it hits so hard.
team betty forever!
team betty forever!
lilli_w12's review against another edition
3.0
3.5. Taking a break from the intergalactic space opera with some good old-fashioned teen drama (with a love triangle I can actually stand!).
This was really charming, and the characters are lovable. Archie comics have so much nostalgia for me, so it was nice seeing such a careful reinterpretation. The art is also excellent.
“Teach a man to fish and he’ll bring home fish, which are gross. Teach a man to make burgers and he’ll be the hero Gotham deserves! Or something” -Jughead
This was really charming, and the characters are lovable. Archie comics have so much nostalgia for me, so it was nice seeing such a careful reinterpretation. The art is also excellent.
“Teach a man to fish and he’ll bring home fish, which are gross. Teach a man to make burgers and he’ll be the hero Gotham deserves! Or something” -Jughead
kkaste's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
gnome_7's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lilyaulait's review against another edition
4.0
pretty good. i love the art. the story is good too, though it gets a little weaker towards the end.
cultneophyte7's review against another edition
4.0
So someone told this random girl that I was the go to guy for comics. She came up to me and we started talking comics when she asked me to read this. Its been quite some time since then and I had almost forgotten about this when today another guy directed me to this when we were talking comics.
I used to love Archie like 7-8 years ago, and I did want to relive that old feeling. Also, when I realized that this had been done by the awesome Mark Waid of the Kingdom Come and Flash acclaim, I wasted no time.
I really liked this reboot of the character. Sure brought back some childhood memories when I used to bug my mom, asking her to get me more of these. The story was nice and refreshing, especially the first four issues. The art is amazing too. And Betty looks hotter than ever <3
Here's to the good old days!
I used to love Archie like 7-8 years ago, and I did want to relive that old feeling. Also, when I realized that this had been done by the awesome Mark Waid of the Kingdom Come and Flash acclaim, I wasted no time.
I really liked this reboot of the character. Sure brought back some childhood memories when I used to bug my mom, asking her to get me more of these. The story was nice and refreshing, especially the first four issues. The art is amazing too. And Betty looks hotter than ever <3
Here's to the good old days!
maida's review against another edition
4.0
everything about this was great, with the exception of the lipstick (not-like-other-girls) incident.