Saturday, January 5, 2019

Betty and Veronica #1 Review





As the Archie Forever line continues, the reboot of Betty and Veronica reboots written by Jamie Lee Rotante and pencils by Sandra  Lanz.  To recap, this Archie Forever line kicked off with Archie 700 and is continuing the foundation laid by Mark Waid when they rebooted Archie in 2015 with a more realistic storyline.

The first Betty and Veronica reboot only lasted the issues and disappeared because of massive shipping delays from the Adam Hughes creative team.  This new relaunch is scheduled as a 5 issue 5 series and hopefully can stay on a regular schedule.

This issue kicks off at the end of the summer as Betty and Veronica reflect on all their happenings away from the Riverdale Gang this summer.  There were trips to the big city and social projects as each girl helps complete the other.





My first reaction to this was, I really wish Archie comics would make the step to put Betty and Veronica together as a couple.  They are best friends, yes... but who says you cannot date your best friend?  On top of that, maybe they are better for one another than Reggie or Archie is.  Just my thought...

But there is the teenage heartbreak and reflection as the girls move into their senior year at Riverdale High School.  The girls, not wanting their magical summer to end, make a pinky pact to attend the same college as one another.  AND that neither one would pursue a romantic relationship with Archie moving forward.



The book is light and fun, as Archie books should be; however this is an interesting period to focus on Betty and Veronica.  Each looking into adulthood and dealing with issues that many high school seniors deal with: Where should I go to college? How can I afford college?  What will I study?  This is on top of the academic pressures students face, as well as the pressure parents put on their children about their future.  I think this is a rich and interesting spot for this book to live in( even only for a bit).  The ladies do visit a local college in Riverdale and attend a mixer and even though they are supposed to stay together, they get separated and Betty drunk texts Archie for help!



I do not want to spoil too much here but our book ends on a cliffhanger where our two main protagonist are each wondering what is going to happen next.

I truly enjoyed this book and I always enjoy when the focus is taken off Archie.  Plus, this book avoids something that Archie #700 did which is try to make a connection between the Archie comics and the Riverdale TV show.  In my world, the only connection between the two are the names of the characters and they should not be crossed over.

Betty and Veronica is a great book and a great jump on point for new readers to the Archieverse.  I highly recommend this book!!

The Producer

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