Archie Comics is pulling out all the stops this June with a high-powered one-shot comic book, The Best Archie Comic Ever #1! An anthology by some of the comics industry’s best talents, the special issue throws Archie and friends into bold new adventures across multiple action genres. 

Leading the rip-roaring release is an explosive new superhero story by writer Fred Van Lente and artist Tim Seeley starring Archie’s fan-favorite superpowered alter ego Pureheart the Powerful, who first appeared in Life With Archie #42 in 1965.

In a second tale reuniting the Savage Hearts creative team of writer Aubrey Sitterson and artist Jed Dougherty, an out-of-his-depth barbarian version of Jughead Jones wages reluctant war against a powerful wizard. And rounding out the issue is an espionage thriller starring super spy Betty Cooper and the world’s most dangerous woman, Veronica Lodge, written by Ruben Najera with art by Giorgia Sposito.

The Best Archie Comic Ever is part of a new wave of themed anthology one-shots from Archie featuring exciting stylistic interpretations of the iconic characters, published alongside titles with brand new stories drawn in the classic Archie style that’s been beloved by generations since the publisher’s debut in 1941. 

The comic releases June 15 in comic shops nationwide and features colors by Matt Herms and lettering by Jack Morelli. It boasts a cover by Tim Seeley and colorist Matt Herms with an open-to-order variant cover by Tom Whalen.

THE BLOCKBUSTER OF THE SUMMER IS HERE featuring Superheroes! Barbarians! Spies! All this plus Archie’s trademark mix of romance, humor, and adventure in an all-new anthology! In the first of three all-new stories, Pureheart the Powerful encounters a superhero that looks a lot like himself! Is this other hero an imposter, or is it a case of imposter syndrome? Next up, the reluctantly heroic barbarian Jughead Jones is scaling a tower, hell-bent on saving the day and waging war against a menacing wizard in a tale that action & adventure fans will love! Finally, intrigue and espionage take hold as the world’s most dangerous woman Veronica Lodge teams with spy extraordinaire Betty Cooper on a top-secret case!