Archie Comics
Love Archie comics? Think life in Riverdale will always be peachy? Think again.
A new monthly magazine, Life With Archie: The Married Life, from the makers of the original Archie comics which have been around since 1941, imagines what the future holds for the whole gang. And things go, well, downhill for just about everyone after high school.
(More on TIME.com: See Kelly Bancroft’s video essay on Archie getting married)
With two parallel story lines–one called Archie Loves Betty, the other called Archie Loves Veronica–the comics explore where life will take the adored redhead after he marries his chosen dream girl. In one story line, Archie marries Betty Cooper and moves to New York to make it big in music. Except he finds that once he’s out of the familiar borders of Riverdale, he’s not quite so well-liked. The other story line imagines that Archie is married to the formidable and glamorous Veronica Lodge, but after she gets promoted above him at her father’s company, their relationship begins to disintegrate.
Ugh, how… realistic!
The other characters don’t fare much better in the new comics’ story. Moose and Midge’s relationship falls apart (she can’t handle his jealousy) and Reggie’s unwavering confidence (by far his best and most distinguishing quality) is all but a distant memory. Even Miss Grundy isn’t doing so hot–she has a terminal illness.
(More on TIME.com: 75 Years of DC Comics)
It’s certainly a far cry from the original series, where the biggest dilemmas the characters faced was scheduling dates and making sure the Jalopy was running smoothly. Luckily, for those of us who find pleasure in reading comics, the regular series is still available. (via Slate)