A comiXologist Recommends:
Harris Smith recommends Afterlife With Archie #5
Afterlife With Archie isn’t just good for what it is, a comic about the Riverdale gang facing off (and, at times, turning into) zombies, it’s one of the best comics out there right now. The brilliance (and I don’t think it’s hyperbole to call this series brilliant) of creators Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Francesco Francavilla (francavillarts) is that they take a high-concept idea, one that easily could have degenerated into an in-jokey zombie parody, and play it totally straight. Rather than play off the familiar, superficial traits of the well-established Archie pantheon (Jughead likes food, Moose is dumb, Reggie’s a jerk), Aguirre-Sacasa and Francavilla delve deep into the inner lives of Archie and the gang, not just placing these characters out of a comedy context and into the horror genre, but giving vivid, thoughtful depictions of their emotional responses to seeing their friends and loved ones turned into shambling ghouls.
Many of the characters here (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, for instance) have never been portrayed with such depth before (though the dramatic Life With Archie often comes close) and it is a credit to Aguirre-Sacasa as a writer that he manages to do so with great knowledge and affection for the established characteristics of Archie and company. There’s an air of gothic horror here, and also a touch of Stephen King in the rich characterizations and small-town ambiance (Augirre-Sacasa previously adapted King’s The Stand).
Francavilla’s (again, without hyperbole, I’m going to call him one of the best artists working in comics today) artwork perfectly compliments the moodiness of Aguirre-Saca’s writing. Making excellent use of shadow and color, his work recalls the eerieness of Bernie Wrightson’s Swamp Thing, with a touch of the atmosphere of Frank Miller and Klaus Janson’s noirish early 80s run on Daredevil.
[Pick up Afterlife With Archie #5here!]
For fans of: zombies, horror, parody
Harris Smith is a Brooklyn-based comics and media professional. In addition to his role as a Senior Production Coordinator at comiXology, he edits several comics anthologies, including Jeans and Felony Comics, under the banner of Negative Pleasure Publications. He’s also the host of the weekly radio show Negative Pleasure on Newtown Radio.
