Review: Riverdale #1

Don’t worry. You’re not seeing things. Riverdale #1 came out over a month ago, and so did the original review, but that was for the one-shot (the prequel to the hit television show). This is the brand new Riverdale comic, with similar writers, only this series will be on-going. It features what happens in between the television series episodes, so the two go hand in hand, feeding into the obsession that is the newly crazed Riverdale frenzy. Archie Comics is smart to capitalize on this opportunity, taking its show’s success and bringing in their viewers back to its roots (the comics).

I was pleasantly pleased with the writing in this issue, that primarily features Archie and Betty’s storylines, and will be disappointed if future issues don’t feature other coveted characters like Kevin and Veronica (whose storylines seem to be lacking in the show). I feel like it’s too soon to say, but there is potential for many ways for this to go wrong, as the show is doing by excluding their diverse cast’s backgrounds and storylines. I’ll have to get back to you on whether or not the Archie Comics team is doing all they can do to maximize their storytelling mediums.

I’m not a big fan of the art, which I always feel bad saying because I know the hard work artists put into comics, but it just isn’t my style. I feel the faces are too vague and lack detail. I wanted more character and liveliness from it, as I felt the original comics have, and even some of the new reboots.

I will keep reading, and even recommend, but only if you’re a fan of the show.  Since the two are a pair, readers will have the maximum Riverdale experience by staying up-to-date with both, and hopefully a lot of the missing storylines will be revealed and questions will be answered in this comic.

Script: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Will Ewing, Michael Grassi
Art: Joe Eisma, Andre Szymanowicz, Janice Chiang, John Workman Cover: Alitha Martinez
Variant Covers: Elliott Fernandez, Francesco Francavilla, Peter Krause, Djibril Morissette-Phan, Ron Salas
Story: 8 Art: Eh Recommend: Buy Only if Watching Television Show

Archie Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review