Riverdale VS Archie Comics
It is a wonderful realization in these days when comic book super heroes dominate the airwaves, to find that the newest, most successful issuance from Filmland's dream factory should be a series dedicated to a group whose greatest super power is Human normalcy.
When the greatest powers exhibited are the writing, acting, directing and general production of the series is evident in every episode, it gives hope to the sanity possible in Hollywood.
The creators of Riverdale have managed to take a fondly remembered childhood icon such as Archie Comics, and added just enough camp and texture to it to make it palatable to a brand new generation of viewers / comic aficionados.
Those parents among us whose children are just now discovering the beauty and depth of the Riverdale series certainly can direct spare time which might have been utilized online to the art and irony of the original comics.
Archie: Archie Andrews is for ever remembered as the quintessential teen, with his red hair, jock jacket, "not quite" girlfriends Betty and Veronica, and his fascination with football, the prom and all things teen. The Series "Riverdale" has imbued Archie with an interest in music which though absent in the earlier comics, has overshadowed most of the average teen interests. Of course, in the series, his musical interest might have been jump started by his loss of innocence to his music teacher Ms, Grundy, (who the series has managed to drop about 30 years from her comic book persona).
Betty: Betty Cooper is the blonde, cheerleader type whose addition to the comic book troupe was never quite defined, other than the fact that she might at some point prove to be more than just Archie's teen fascination. She is pure, loving and trusting. In Riverdale, she is also a hyper active child for whom a prescription of Aderol is always on hand. Betty writes for the school newspaper although she has been invited to submit articles for the local newspaper owned by her mother and father.
Betty has the curiosity of an investigative writer, while not quite being able to accept the worst in the people she loves. When she sees the result of this worsening of people, she always seem to be able to justify the ends.
Veronica: Veronica Lodge was always used in the comics as a foil for Betty. Perhaps a little naughty, but always faithful to her family and friends. Her home life in the comics is serene, financially stable, and welcoming to all of the friends with whom she associates. There is none of the parental judgment that so dominates the Riverdale (the series)landscape.
Veronica in the series Riverdale is the product of a broken family, (broken by the fact that her father is in jail for embezzlement) and there is only a slight taste of the angst that is felt from a parent trying to deal with a difficult situation. It is a good thing that the authors are able to resist the temptation to dwell more on this than they have so far. Of course the actors play a great part in not digging to deeply into the emo-well to create these characters.
Jughead: The character of Jughead in the comics was always one of comic relief, from his crown of many patches to the squared nose depicted by the artists. Balancing out the main characters in the "plots" seemed to be his only reason for existence.
In the series Riverdale, Jughead is given a depth that is a welcome breath of fresh air. He is an objective observer of all things Riverdale, and selectively blogs about it all. He is given a broken home scenario, which he is always in the midst of repairing. His father is a drunken, abusive and resentful person, whose flaws are the hurdles that must be navigated by Jughead. In the series, he has what may blossom into a deep relationship with Betty, where in the comics, his relationship was that of the familiarity of person thrown together every day of their lives. The deepening of their relationship is reflective of the development from adolescence to adult hood which is occurring throughout the cast membership.
Reggie: Reggie Mantle in the earlier comics was always represented as a mischievous, cranking yet loving character. In other words, the common teen. He hasn't really got a vile bone in his body, except for the way in which his dark hair, perfectly tailored clothes, and attitude toward strangers are depicted. This changes in the Riverdale series when he is presented a bully, jock, and general Archie (and Co.) hater.
Although in the comics Reg is a complementary vehicle for the story lines, in the television series, he is proved to be a vile, and hurtful person in general. Reggie is a Homophobe. In the episode in which Archie is injured on the field, it is evident that Reggie is beginning to harbour feelings of respect for Archie, but certainly would never let his team mates know. These feelings begin to grow, when Archie backs off of the competition for captaincy of the football team because he sees that Reg wants it more and can give it what it needs.
Mr Weatherbee: A Black Highschool principal during a time when only 1 in 10 Principals would be black, only serves to take the series out of the "time warp" of the comic book realm of the 60's and give it a place it in the present. As far as we can see, Mr Weatherbee serves no purpose except to be the puppet for the influence of the Blossom family over the school system. Can he be more than this? Only time and imagination will tell.
