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Midge: Use her more?

Started by Midge Klump, June 24, 2016, 03:57:41 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Midge Klump

#15
Quote from: irishmoxie on June 25, 2016, 01:58:26 AM
Let's face it. Characters like Ethel and Midge don't bring in new readers. Think of popular TV or movie characters. Are any of them gawky girls? Producers usually add non-white but still very attractive characters to attract certain demographics of viewers. Gangly girls traditionally don't want to watch other gangly girls being the butt of the joke, which let's face it, Ethel almost always is. They usually aspire to look like Betty and Veronica and will buy all kinds of makeup, creams, and potions to do so. And companies will be happy to market these products to them.


For example, Ellen Degeneres was the face of some makeup brand for awhile but that was short lived. And now we have "traditionally" pretty and young actresses hawking make up again.


Is anyone asking for a Moose Mason comic? Or Nancy Woods who has a very similar non-personality like Midge. I think if any of the side characters would get their own comic it would be someone like Pepper or Valerie and they would write them much more sarcastically and "edgy" in line with today's humor. They would probably be written more like bad girls.
I definitely not asking for Midge to have her own comic book series as I know she is a secondary character. All I am asking is she has been around Archie Comics for 70 years and they have not developed her much at all. They could have given her much more then they have. Now they have brought on characters like Sheila,Maria,Ginger, Toni, and Trevor and already they seem more developed then Midge. As for Midge being gawky I don't know where that is coming from at all. Midge has always caught the fancy of Reggie and other guys who have gotten beat downs by her boyfriend Moose.

Thrillho

They aren't developing characters of color at the expense of Midge.

The characters mentioned: Sheila, Ginger, Toni, Trev have all been introduced for a specific reason. Sheila is Veronica's fashion foil, Ginger was meant to replace Cheryl Blossom as Archie's third option, Toni is supposed to unsettle Jughead, and Trev is a love interest for Betty. Midge couldn't possibly fulfill those roles. They haven't done a great job with the influx of characters of color but I don't think the writers are purposefully relegating Midge to the background because as DeCarlo Rules said
Quote from: DeCarlo Rules on June 25, 2016, 03:01:13 AM

The problem is, Midge is kind of trapped in this one gag, where every setup has some guy who either talks to her or looks at her (or at least Moose so believes), followed by the same (literal) punchline -- a beating by Moose. Midge's potential character development is pretty much imprisoned in that gag situation for as long as it endures, and it's never really gone away.



Midge Klump

Quote from: Thrillho on June 25, 2016, 12:56:06 PM
They aren't developing characters of color at the expense of Midge.

The characters mentioned: Sheila, Ginger, Toni, Trev have all been introduced for a specific reason. Sheila is Veronica's fashion foil, Ginger was meant to replace Cheryl Blossom as Archie's third option, Toni is supposed to unsettle Jughead, and Trev is a love interest for Betty. Midge couldn't possibly fulfill those roles. They haven't done a great job with the influx of characters of color but I don't think the writers are purposefully relegating Midge to the background because as DeCarlo Rules said
Quote from: DeCarlo Rules on June 25, 2016, 03:01:13 AM

The problem is, Midge is kind of trapped in this one gag, where every setup has some guy who either talks to her or looks at her (or at least Moose so believes), followed by the same (literal) punchline -- a beating by Moose. Midge's potential character development is pretty much imprisoned in that gag situation for as long as it endures, and it's never really gone away.

I totally understand where you are coming from here. With Sheila Wu though doesn't Veronica already have a fashion outlet with her cousin Harper who they brought in to the picture twice mentioned she was involved with fashion and got her involved with Reggie than she hasn't been seen since? Same thing goes for Toni Topaz is she suppose to be like a Trula who I thought was a great character as someone who rattled Jughead and now seems to be replaced. As for Trevor will he ever replace Archie in Betty's eyes I highly doubt it so he is just going to be another character that will fall flat at some point. My point with Midge is they have had many decades to do much more with her but the creative minds decided not to and instead they decided to bring on other characters and develop them during those years such as Cheryl Blossom who I loved and now she seems to have fallen off quite a bit as well. Why couldn't Midge been the character who was the fashion icon or the one who rattles Jughead? I don't really know the answer to that. She is as DeCarlo Rules stated relegated to getting gazed at by Reggie and the guys and then pummeled by her boyfriend Moose.

Shuester

...Bringing this back because I had something to say a while ago, and just now am getting around to it.

When the Archie New Look comics came out a few years ago, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of attention Midge got in them. In Bad Boy Trouble, which is a Betty & Veronica story (but told from Betty's perspective), Midge is definitely one of the most important characters. She is present in all four chapters, if I recall correctly, and she is seen as being one of Betty's best friends. And of course, most notably, Midge and Moose receive their own New Look story, Breakup Blues, which really centers in on them. Out of the three New Look stories I read, I actually disliked this one the most. I thought that the Midge in BB was too aggressive and immature, and she really seemed to be Betty's best friend here, well over Veronica. It seemed a bit out of character. But then, what do we really know about Midge? From the classic comics, I know that she is sporty, a cheerleader, pretty, both flattered by and frustrated by Moose, strong, and loves dancing. We know she can be assertive because Moose does listen to her, and we also know she can be sweet. So maybe Midge in BB wasn't that out of character after all, and we just don't know her well enough.

BettyReggie


Midge is in a few pages of Reggie & Me #1 & those 2 covers.
5535569-reggie#35599804-reggie#4loprestivar

DeCarlo Rules

#20
Quote from: Shuester on January 05, 2017, 07:04:15 AM
...Bringing this back because I had something to say a while ago, and just now am getting around to it.

When the Archie New Look comics came out a few years ago, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of attention Midge got in them. In Bad Boy Trouble, which is a Betty & Veronica story (but told from Betty's perspective), Midge is definitely one of the most important characters. She is present in all four chapters, if I recall correctly, and she is seen as being one of Betty's best friends. And of course, most notably, Midge and Moose receive their own New Look story, Breakup Blues, which really centers in on them. Out of the three New Look stories I read, I actually disliked this one the most. I thought that the Midge in BB was too aggressive and immature, and she really seemed to be Betty's best friend here, well over Veronica. It seemed a bit out of character. But then, what do we really know about Midge? From the classic comics, I know that she is sporty, a cheerleader, pretty, both flattered by and frustrated by Moose, strong, and loves dancing. We know she can be assertive because Moose does listen to her, and we also know she can be sweet. So maybe Midge in BB wasn't that out of character after all, and we just don't know her well enough.

I felt that Breakup Blues was the best of all the New Look stories, for exactly this reason: it takes two rather vague and underutilized characters and attempts what I felt was a rather credible explanation of some seemingly contradictory things about their relationship. Midge is pretty and popular, but she isn't Betty Cooper. She IS a little superficial, and she DOES enjoy having male attention, but doesn't want to feel smothered or shackled at her age. If she doesn't feel she's getting both enough attention and enough fun out of being Moose's steady girl, she's restless and looks elsewhere for it. Yes, she's an immature teenager who hasn't really lived yet, and isn't necessarily ready or committed to a long-term relationship yet. She craves love and security, yet also the freedom to be and do what she wants. I can see where she could be completely bowled over by Moose's unwavering and single-minded devotion to her, and yet also bristle a little against being confined, and sometimes she feels the need to put her foot down and assert her authority over herself, that she's her own person. She's still a nice girl, but subject to changing her mind now and then. Whether she'll stick it out with Moose and eventually marry him, or even if she does, whether it will last... is not yet definite for her. That interpretation completely works for me, and violates nothing of what little has been established about her as far as I can see. Although the story tries to end on a positive, upbeat note, that things are all patched up between her and Moose, I was left with the feeling that by no means did it preclude the possibility that Midge might at some time in the future become bored and restless, yearning for some excitement again. And this is where Reggie would come in, because it seems that the old 'forbidden fruit' metaphor works in more than one direction -- depending on Midge's mood that day.

Bluto

Quote from: DeCarlo Rules on January 05, 2017, 09:59:46 AM
Quote from: Shuester on January 05, 2017, 07:04:15 AM
...Bringing this back because I had something to say a while ago, and just now am getting around to it.

When the Archie New Look comics came out a few years ago, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of attention Midge got in them. In Bad Boy Trouble, which is a Betty & Veronica story (but told from Betty's perspective), Midge is definitely one of the most important characters. She is present in all four chapters, if I recall correctly, and she is seen as being one of Betty's best friends. And of course, most notably, Midge and Moose receive their own New Look story, Breakup Blues, which really centers in on them. Out of the three New Look stories I read, I actually disliked this one the most. I thought that the Midge in BB was too aggressive and immature, and she really seemed to be Betty's best friend here, well over Veronica. It seemed a bit out of character. But then, what do we really know about Midge? From the classic comics, I know that she is sporty, a cheerleader, pretty, both flattered by and frustrated by Moose, strong, and loves dancing. We know she can be assertive because Moose does listen to her, and we also know she can be sweet. So maybe Midge in BB wasn't that out of character after all, and we just don't know her well enough.

I felt that Breakup Blues was the best of all the New Look stories, for exactly this reason: it takes two rather vague and underutilized characters and attempts what I felt was a rather credible explanation of some seemingly contradictory things about their relationship. Midge is pretty and popular, but she isn't Betty Cooper. She IS a little superficial, and she DOES enjoy having male attention, but doesn't want to feel smothered or shackled at her age. If she doesn't feel she's getting both enough attention and enough fun out of being Moose's steady girl, she's restless and looks elsewhere for it. Yes, she's an immature teenager who hasn't really lived yet, and isn't necessarily ready or committed to a long-term relationship yet. She craves love and security, yet also the freedom to be and do what she wants. I can see where she could be completely bowled over by Moose's unwavering and single-minded devotion to her, and yet also bristle a little against being confined, and sometimes she feels the need to put her foot down and assert her authority over herself, that she's her own person. She's still a nice girl, but subject to changing her mind now and then. Whether she'll stick it out with Moose and eventually marry him, or even if she does, whether it will last... is not yet definite for her. That interpretation completely works for me, and violates nothing of what little has been established about her as far as I can see. Although the story tries to end on a positive, upbeat note, that things are all patched up between her and Moose, I was left with the feeling that by no means did it preclude the possibility that Midge might at some time in the future become bored and restless, yearning for some excitement again. And this is where Reggie would come in, because it seems that the old 'forbidden fruit' metaphor works in more than one direction -- depending on Midge's mood that day.
Indeed, DeCarlo Rules! In many of the stories I have from the '60s and early '70s, Midge loved Reggie's attention, didn't mind when Moose was out of the way for awhile, and would sometimes even encourage Reggie to find a way to get her alone.

Smurf

Perhaps they could have developed Midge into something more than someone who was sought after by Reggie and some other boys who were eventually beaten down by her boyfriend Moose, but they already had two major strong Female Characters in Betty and Veronica and also brought in the likes of bombshell vixen Cheryl Blossom later on. Now it has even gone further with other female characters being developed as Midge remains one dimensional. At least her one dimension is pretty fun when it pops up in a story now and then.

BettyReggie

#23
She is in those Reggie & Me issues & The Moose One Shot covers.

Smurf

Quote from: BettyReggie on February 18, 2017, 07:26:17 PM
She is in those Reggie & Me issues & The Moose One Shot covers.
I would imagine she would be on the Moose One Shot covers because her character pretty much revolves around Moose.

beatman10

Quote from: BettyReggie on June 24, 2016, 05:42:32 PMIn Life With Archie Midge was very important character. She married Jughead & had his baby. And she kinda evil in Archie Marries Veronica side. She hated that Jughead wouldn't marry her. He cared more about the restaurant
Kudos to Michael Uslan and Paul Kupperberg for bringing Midge out as a main character in this story. At least that's true on the "Betty" side where she had a much happier story. For Jughead, she became the perfect wife and business partner. Marriage and commitment are important to her. I wouldn't say she was evil on the Veronica side. Granted, Midge got nasty with Jughead, but that's because she felt used and rejected. And given Jughead's snarky comments about marriage being "stupid" and "why does someone always have to get caught", she was correct. Another bummer was after their breakup, Midge was practically dropped from the storyline. She didn't attend Veronica's Halloween party or Kevin Keller's wedding. No one checked up on her, not even Betty. It's hard to believe the writers couldn't keep her in the story until the very end. But I guess that's the way Midge has been written over the decades mostly because she is just seen as "Moose's gurl" Jeez, I find myself talking about these characters as if they're real!! ;D

DeCarlo Rules


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