Afterlife With Archie promo art, Archie Comics.
I haven't read any recent Archie comics, but I'm always fascinated by how many risks the publisher is willing to take. They've skirted controversy with good humor and grace, creating comics with prominent gay characters (without making those characters sexualized, which is a much bigger deal than most people consider) and addressing hot button topics like Occupy Wall Street. More than ever before in the company's history, they seem to really want to prove their own relevancy, with all-ages titles that respect the past while looking toward the future.
Maybe now is the time for me to get interested - Archie has announced Afterlife With Archie, an all-new monthly on-going series that sees the Riverdale gang immersed in an apocalyptic zombie nightmare. The series is from screenwriter Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, whose credits include the upcoming Carrie remake as well as Big Love and Glee. Aguirre-Sacasa told Comic Book Resources, "What if the Archie characters found themselves in a Stephen King novel like The Stand or a Sam Raimi movie like The Evil Dead? Could we pull that off, tonally? We’re really going for it."
I know there are people who probably think this sounds like a terrible idea, but I'm not one of them. I have no idea what a long-form horror version of Archie's world would look like, and that's exciting to me. Sure, they may be hoping to gain some attention from The Walking Dead's massive audience, but Robert Kirkman doesn't have a monopoly on zombie gut-munching. Are you in?