Archie Comics First Looks: ARCHIE #605, BETTY & VERONICA DIGEST #201, JUGHEAD’S DOUBLE DIGEST #157 and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG ARCHIVES #12







ARCHIE #605
THE ARCHIE STORY OF THE CENTURY CONCLUDES WITH A VERY SPECIAL BIRTH!
"Archie Marries Betty: Happily Ever After": Now that you’ve witnessed the engagement and wedding of Archie and Betty, prepare for the next stage of married life: parenthood!  Of course, you haven’t really had a taste of parenthood until you’ve seen it done Archie-style!  Can Archie get through Lamaze class without causing a commotion?  Never mind that – can he make it through the actual birth without full scale panic?  Mixed in with the patented Archie humor is the heartwarming reaction among the new grandparents, friends and faculty.  And let’s just say there’s a big surprise in store for the happy couple!  But that’s not the only surprise in Riverdale – just wait until you see the job Archie gets, and who ends up with whom among Archie and Betty’s friends… not to mention yet another surprise wedding!  When it comes to Riverdale, the surprises never end!  With a script by famed movie producer Michael Uslan and art by legendary artist Stan Goldberg, this is sure to be one of the most talked-about Archie issues of all time.  Don’t miss this thrilling conclusion to the Archie saga of the century!
SCRIPT: Michael Uslan
ART: Stan Goldberg
Shipping Date: January 20th, 2010
On Sale at Comic Shops: January 27th, 2010
Newsstands: February 9th, 2010
32-page, full color comic
$2.50 US







BETTY & VERONICA DIGEST #201
"Green Machine": Veronica decides to "go green" – as long as it means she can spend "green" on new eco-accessories!  "Famous Name Game": The girls contemplate what it would be like to be pro athletes… except Veronica, who sees pro sports in a more monetary light!
SCRIPTS: Mike Pellowski
ART: Jeff Shultz
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!       
Shipping Date: January 20th, 2010
On Sale at Comic Shops: January 27th, 2010
Newsstands: February 9th, 2010
88-page, full color digest
$2.69 US






JUGHEAD’S DOUBLE DIGEST #157
"Ugly Dog Contest": Things are about to get ugly… really ugly… when an ugly dog contest hits Riverdale!
SCRIPT: George Gladir
ART: Pat Kennedy
"Cold Case": An ice skating outing gets a "chilly" reception from Jughead, who is freezing from crown to toes!
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski
ART: Tim Kennedy
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
Shipping Date: January 20th, 2010
On Sale at Comic Shops: January 27th, 2010
Newsstands: February 9th, 2010
176-page, full color digest
$3.99 US







SONIC THE HEDGEHOG ARCHIVES #12
The Sonic Archives series has emerged as one of Archie's best-selling trade paperbacks, as fans both new and old can relive the glory days of Sonic the Hedgehog in these high-quality, digitally-restored graphic novels, complete with all the classic Sonic stories from the 1990s! Now with Sonic Archives Volume 12, Sonic lovers can add issues 45-48 to their collections, stories which are almost impossible to come across now. And best of all, the colors are completely remastered to give the issues a brand new look! Stories include: "Guerilla Thriller":  Everyone’s favorite cave-bear, Mobie, returns… but he’s unsuspectingly making a home for himself in the middle of a Robotnik stronghold! Can the Freedom Fighters warn him before it’s too late?  "Countdown to Armageddon": a sabbatical in the woods to reflect on recent events goes from relaxing to taxing as friendships are strained and loyalties questioned, setting up the dramatic events yet to come in the "Endgame" storyline. Guest-starring Lupe and the Wolf Pack from the animated series!  "Endgame: Taking the Fall": The most talked-about Sonic saga ever unfolds as King Acorn vows to finish the war with Robotnik and regain the kingdom... but could he have predicted the enormous cost?  The "death of Princess Sally" sent shockwaves through Sonic fandom, and now you can relive the events leading up to this milestone event.  "Sonic the Fugitive": Not only has Sonic suffered a great loss in the passing of Princess Sally, he’s also been framed for her murder!  Now he must battle friend and foe alike as he seeks the real killer to clear his name!  PLUS: The "Knuckles’ Quest" saga continues, with the intrepid red echidna searching for answers to his origin and the mystery behind the Sword of Acorns.
SCRIPTS: Angelo DeCesare, Ken Penders, Kent Taylor
ART: Dave Manak, Art Mawhinney, Ken Penders, Nelson Ortega, Manny Galan
Cover art by Patrick "Spaz!" Spaziante     
Shipping Date: January 20th, 2010
On Sale at Comic Shops: January 27th, 2010
Newsstands: February 9th, 2010
112-page, full color paperback
$7.95 US

Jughead married Midge.

Jughead. Married Midge.

JUGHEAD.


What.

The.

Hell.

I second Jave's shock - that's such an unlikely pairing and makes ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE whatsoever!

I'm also wondering why there's *another* set of twins. Is it just to show us that any children Archie has will be a set of twins, one boy, one girl - the girl who will be the spitting image of her mom, and the boy, an mini-version of Archie? Is there some sort of significance to it? It seems like, for as long as there have been dream sequences where Betty or Veronica imagine being married to Archie, there's a set of twins.

I *really* hope there's some sort of explanation that accompanies that pairing, because it's just way too random.

Yeah, I can't wait until it's released!  I've been drawn to this storyline from issue 600!

Archie #600 is what got me back into reading Archie Comics - I wish I could say I was loving the storyline, but I'm not.  But it got me interested in reading Archie again.

At my local comic shop, I've seen quite a few people come in specifically looking for issues from the storyline, so I'm guessing there was a nice boost for Archie Comics (the company) in orders.  My store didn't even stock ANY Archie comics at all until this.  I don't know if the momentum can be kept after the storyline is over though...   

I'm having a hard time finding the 32-page books myself...only one store in my whole town seems to carry them!

I do like the Archie/Betty arc better than the Archie/Veronica arc though.

If you have a local comic store, they can order you any upcoming comics and any recently released ones from Diamond Distributors (where they order all their comics from), and most likely have a reserve system where they will set them aside for you each week.  Worth a shot!  They also come out much earlier at the comic store than at "the newsstand" (Walmart, grocery store, etc.).

I feel sorry for Moose too. Last week, in the last Archie & Friends they made a very cute story with Midge telling the girls why she loves Moose so much, and by the end all the girls are swooning over Moose. Reading that and then reading this feels kind of depressing.

You know, as weird as it is, I can take the fact that in a year two persons can change and fall in love with each other, even if it means a relationship appears out of thin air and destroys another one that's been going on for years. I can understand all that can happen in real life, which is cool.

But what I think is just wrong and awfully out of character is Jughead marrying in secret and not telling Archie until after it happened. I mean, come on. They've been reminding us they're best buds since PEP #22 and all of a sudden, the one thing you'd expect they will be there for each other, they aren't. Jughead was Archie's Best Man at HIS wedding, for crying out loud! And now he marries and doesn't tell him? No phone call, e-mail, nothing? SOME friend he is.

*spit coffee*

Jughead and Midge!!! 

you owed me a new shirt, archie comics!

how come this is not newsworthy? no MSNBC coverage or something? okay... i didn't see this coming. after the whole Archie with Valerie, it seems archie comics really spinning their wheel'o'love to see who ends up with whom in daily basis.

it seems they just kinda dump this story in our laps.

and it's weird that in a story about Archie/Betty pairing and the twins, we're more shock with Jughead and Midge. those pair are stealing A/B thunder! and then reggie/veronica steals J/M thunder too.