The press release follows:
Media Release -- Publisher and pop culture powerhouse Archie Comics expands into new genres and media every year, and it will round out 2024 with a giant leap in an explosive new superhero series, ARCHIE IS MR. JUSTICE! The comic, launching in November, reimagines flagship character Archie Andrews as a hero who has left his mark on Riverdale and gone away, leaving his friends to remember his selfless and incredible exploits.
"This isn't just another superhero story," said Archie Comics Senior Director of Editorial Jamie L. Rotante. "This is a story about hope in a world that feels increasingly hopeless. And in this timeline, Archie is our beacon of hope."
The four-issue limited series begins with a story by writer Tim Seeley (Local Man) and artist Mike Norton (Battlepug), told from the perspective of Archie's best friend Jughead in an emotional recollection of how the pair discovered Archie's hidden talents, designed his costume, and set off to save Riverdale —and the world.
"MR. JUSTICE plays with the absolute sincerity of the Archie cast of characters, through the filter of a much more cynical superhero world," Seeley said. "I think, understandably, we've spent years being jaded by the idea that someone with power would be good, but that's totally who Archie Andrews is. However, his world is full of people who care a lot more about money and power than he does."
That expansive cast populating Archie stories for over 80 years is the heart of the series, which will spotlight different POV characters in following issues as Riverdale looks back on the impact of Mr. Justice, for good or for ill. Each issue will feature a new creative team, as well, including Amanda Diebert, Blake Howard, Kenny Porter, Maria Laura Sanapo, and Brent Schoonover.
Longtime Archie fans may recognize Mr. Justice as a familiar figure from the "Mighty Crusaders" superhero line, dating back to the Golden Age of comics when the publisher was still known as MLJ Comics. This is a nod to Archie's long history; in an interesting bit of meta play, these MLJ-era comics exist within the fictional universe of ARCHIE IS MR. JUSTICE and inspire Archie and Jughead to act when discovering Archie's powers.
Archie Comics has introduced several new superhero concepts in recent years, including revivals of DARKLING, THE JAGUAR, and BOB PHANTOM in fun new adventure tales. ARCHIE IS MR. JUSTICE starts in a similar place but with a brand-new hero and a tonal turn into more elegiac and reflective storytelling.
As Norton explained, "This is a much more modern take on the 'Archie as a superhero' idea. It's an examination of an incorruptible soul in a corrupt world. Archie is the perfect character to put in that environment because he's the original 'good guy.' It's been fun to read and even more fun to draw!"
ARCHIE IS MR. JUSTICE #1 releases November 20 in comic shops nationwide, with colors by Glenn Whitmore, lettering by Jack Morelli, and three open-to-order covers by Reiko Murakami, Francesco Francavilla, and Matt Talbot. It will be available for pre-order on August 23.
ABOUT ARCHIE COMICS
Archie Comics is the leading mass market comic book publisher in the world and the home to a wide array of the most popular humor, action-adventure, and superhero characters in entertainment, including Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica, Kevin Keller, Josie and the Pussycats, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Li'l Jinx, and many more. Archie comics are published around the world in a number of languages with over 2 billion sold and counting. The iconic Archie Comics characters have also appeared on The CW's Riverdale TV series, the Netflix streaming series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and have been featured in animation, television, film, and music throughout Archie's 80+ year history.
