Writer: Ryan North

Artist: Derek Charm

Letterer: Jack Morelli

Editor: Mike Pellerito

 

Heavy is the head that wears the crown… but maybe Reggie’s head is big enough to support all that weight. Reggie is king for a month, and it turns out he just wants to have friends. Oh, and have them be in a band with him. Of course, Jughead finds a way to make the whole thing go nuclear but hey! that’s Jugs for ya.

This issue is funny! It contains a lot of fourth wall breaking humor within the dialogue that North adds with his signature bottom of page commentary. The humor is almost entirely contained within the dialogue and it kind of reminds me of a Kevin Smith comedy; it’s a lot of talking. The action falls into classic teen hijinks in the 21^st century territory so it relies a lot on the dialogue for its tone.

My critique is that it doesn’t take full advantage of its visual format or the Archie family’s love of physical humor. It also means big word bubbles equals less room for the art. That being said, I believe that Charm does a very serviceable job in blending the new Archie style with some old Archie style sensibilities. I confess a preference for the more outlandish style of the series original artist, Erica Henderson, but I believe that comes down to more personal taste then actual artistic ability.

Overall, I would say that North and Charm are giving us the light-hearted fun Juggy I need to balance out the dark brooding Forsythe in Riverdale.

4 viral videos out of 5.