But in case you haven't been paying attention lately. The comic books aren't your 1950s Archie either any more. Archie, Jughead and the rest of the gang have been updated and dropped into the "real" world both in the comics and now on television.
I was never much of an Archie fan, leaning more towards the superhero and horror genres when I was younger, but I was aware of Archie on the periphery of my comic book reading habits. Occasionally I'd read a book or two but they never struck me as something I wanted to read regularly. So when this series was announced I went in with a little bias and actually didn't want to like it. I had too many shows competing for my time as it was. But I decided to give it a shot. I wanted to see what this updated, teen drama Archie had to offer.
Immediately, with the murder mystery I started getting a Rob Thomas Veronica Mars vibe from it and that is not a bad thing. Riverdale was suddenly layered and mysterious, yet still filled with characters you knew from Archie and Betty, to Pops and the Pussycats. These were people you could identify with with actual personalities beyond the pulp four color comic book world you remember them from. And they were eyeball deep in a mystery that had real consequences. And we got to learn about not just the "gang", but also their parents and some periphery characters that were rarely touched on in the comics. And best of all, the goofy sidekick Jughead is a much more interesting character and the narrator of the series showing him to be an intelligent person far beyond the hamburger munching cartoon of a character he is in the books.
I have just finished the season finale and look forward to the next season. It far exceeded my expectations.
I was never much of an Archie fan, leaning more towards the superhero and horror genres when I was younger, but I was aware of Archie on the periphery of my comic book reading habits. Occasionally I'd read a book or two but they never struck me as something I wanted to read regularly. So when this series was announced I went in with a little bias and actually didn't want to like it. I had too many shows competing for my time as it was. But I decided to give it a shot. I wanted to see what this updated, teen drama Archie had to offer.
Immediately, with the murder mystery I started getting a Rob Thomas Veronica Mars vibe from it and that is not a bad thing. Riverdale was suddenly layered and mysterious, yet still filled with characters you knew from Archie and Betty, to Pops and the Pussycats. These were people you could identify with with actual personalities beyond the pulp four color comic book world you remember them from. And they were eyeball deep in a mystery that had real consequences. And we got to learn about not just the "gang", but also their parents and some periphery characters that were rarely touched on in the comics. And best of all, the goofy sidekick Jughead is a much more interesting character and the narrator of the series showing him to be an intelligent person far beyond the hamburger munching cartoon of a character he is in the books.
I have just finished the season finale and look forward to the next season. It far exceeded my expectations.