Afterlife with Archie

Afterlife with Archie is a comic book published by Archie Comics beginning in 2013, depicting a zombie apocalypse that begins in the town of Riverdale in an alternative reality. It is written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa,^[1] with art by Francesco Francavilla,^[2] and is inspired by a zombie-themed variant cover which Francavilla did for an issue of Life with Archie.^[3]

The comic is Archie Comics' first title to be sold only on the direct market (that is, in comic shops), as opposed to on newsstands;^[4] it is also the company's first title not to be aimed at children and is rated "TEEN+",^[5] as it includes content and subject matter never explored in any other title they published before, including extensive realistic violence, some gore, necrotic themes, disturbing scenes, and moderate language. The comic was conceived not long after Archie Comics officially dropped the Comics Code Authority standard from their entire line-up in 2011.

Issue #8 was the first to feature the company's Archie Horror logo. The Archie Horror imprint also publishes a companion series titled Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. The two titles share several characters, but they are not directly related to each other.

Story arcs

Volume 1: Escape From Riverdale (Issues 1 - 5)

After a car driven by Reggie kills Hot Dog, Jughead asks Sabrina to bring his beloved pet back to life. She does, but with terrible consequences: Hot Dog becomes a zombie, and kills Jughead, who himself rises as a zombie and spreads the contagion.

Volume 2: Betty: R.I.P. (Issues 6 - 12)

Weeks after Archie and his friends left Riverdale, they are now following along the deserted highways of America trying to stay one step ahead of the growing horde of zombies that were once their friends and family.

List of characters

• Archie Andrews is Fred and Mary's son and the fiancé of Betty Cooper. He is the main protagonist of the series.
• Mary Andrews is the mother of Archie and the wife of the late Fred Andrews.
• Jughead Jones is Archie's best friend and Patient Zero of the zombie outbreak. After being bitten by the zombified Hot Dog, he hid his infection until it was too late and ultimately became the leader of the hordes of Riverdale zombies. His spirit, separated from his body after succumbing, is left to wander until he finds Archie's group, ultimately decides to travel with them and is constantly shocked by how much the group dynamic has changed since the outbreak.
• Hiram Lodge is the father of Veronica and the second protagonist of the series. He is at odds with Archie throughout the series as the two do not hold the same views concerning the zombie outbreak.
• Veronica Lodge is the daughter of Hiram and the late Hermione Lodge. She was once caught up in a romantic love triangle with Archie and Betty though she has ultimately been rejected due to the engagement of the two.
• Hubert Smithers is the former butler of the Lodge Mansion who still remains loyal to the Lodge family despite the circumstances they face now.
• Betty Cooper is the daughter of the late Hal and Alice Cooper and the fiancée to Archie Andrews. She has a turbulent relationship with an older sister named Polly. Polly's whereabouts are currently unknown.
• Reggie Mantle is the son to the late Ricky and Vicky Mantle and the catalyst for the zombie outbreak. After being beaten up by Moose Mason, Reggie runs over Jughead Jones' dog, Hot Dog, who after being brought back to life starts the zombie apocalypse. He slowly begins to go mad due to the overwhelming guilt he feels and becomes desperate to set things right by any means necessary.
• Kevin Keller is the openly-gay classmate of Archie and the gang. He is a skilled archer and has received military training from his late father.
• Chuck Clayton is the son of the late Coach Clayton, the former gym teacher of Riverdale High. He is in a relationship with Nancy Woods though he is oblivious to the fact the she is in a secret relationship with Ginger Lopez.
• Dilton Doiley is the smartest of the survivors and has a vast knowledge of horror movies.
• Nancy Woods is the girlfriend of Chuck Clayton who is also in a secret relationship with Ginger Lopez. She is scared to come out as being gay, having doubts that everyone will not accept her.
• Ginger Lopez is a feisty Latina who is in a secret romance with Nancy Woods. She is shown to be a skilled archer just like Kevin Keller.
• Cheryl "Blaze" Blossom is the twin sister of the late Jason Blossom and the daughter of wealthy businessman Clifford Blossom and his wife Penelope. It is unknown if she did kill her brother though it is suspected that she did. She is almost kicked out of the group due to these suspicions but is allowed to stay after Archie chooses for her to stay after breaking a split vote. It is alluded to throughout the series that she and her twin brother are engaged in an incestuous relationship.
• Sabrina Spellman is a witch and the niece of the Witches of Greendale. She helps Jughead bring Hot Dog back to life and because of these actions she is banished to the Nether-Realm. In issue 6, it is later shown that she has been taken to an institute. After figuring out the true meanings behind the institute she is tied up as a sacrifice and offered to Cthulhu as his bride. Additionally, Sabrina's aunts Hilda and Zelda, her cat Salem, and boyfriend Harvey Kinkle have all appeared in the series.

Some of the characters who are either deceased or part of the zombie horde include Hot Dog, Jughead Jones (classified as Patient Zero), Principal Weatherbee, Ms. Grundy, Ethel Muggs, Terry “Pop” Tate, Coach Kleates, Fred Andrews, Archie's dog Vegas, Mayor Martinez, Forsythe and Gladys Jones, Moose Mason, Midge Klump and Jason Blossom. In issue #8 it was revealed that the souls of the dead citizens of Riverdale still roam the Earth as ghosts while their bodies are zombified, implying some greater force is controlling their corpses.

Some other characters who have died before the events of the series include Hermione Lodge, Jellybean Jones, Cheryl's dog Sugar, and General Keller.

Josie and the Pussycats made a cameo appearance in issue #7 while #10 dealt with their origin story all the way up to the beginning of the series.

Reception

The first eight issues sold out.^[6] Fangoria compared Afterlife with Archie to "the kind of horror found in a vintage EC comic",^[1] stating that it was one of the "best horror comics (...) in a very long time,"^[1] while the Plain Dealer described it as "brilliant", and "fascinating and wonderful",^[7] NPR called it "terrific", "a masterpiece", and "actually scary",^[5] and Salon said that on "a list of the best comics of (2013)", Afterlife with Archie would probably be "at the top".^[8]

Archie Comics CEO Jon Goldwater has said that his father, the late John L. Goldwater, would have been "shocked by Afterlife (...) but shocked in a great way".^[9]

Collected editions

The series has so far been assembled into the following collection:

Trade paperbacks

References