Archie vs Kaiju in “Super Mecha Teens”

Is there anything Riverdale’s rugged teens not yet faced? How about giant robots and Kaiju monster? Now this new one shot Archie & Friends: All in action begins with a story by Daniel Kibbelsmith (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) titled “Super Mecha Teens” – and he stuffed it all evangelion to prepare!

Featuring illustrations by Ryan Jampole, colors by Glenn Whitmore, letters by Jack Morelli, and a cover by Jampole and Rosario “Tito” Peña, the comic will be out in April. Today, io9 has a little taste of the mecha action, starting with this summary: “A brand new story begins with this collection of tales of mecha monsters, heroic hijinks, and action-packed adventures! In Super Mecha Teens, a giant monster threatens to attack Riverdale, and only one teen (with a little robotic help) can save the day. Unfortunately, this teenager is Archie Andrews. But he doesn’t have to do it alone! But who does he choose? Betty with her rugged, homemade mech, or Veronica with her hi-tech, hi-end robotics? As all mechs are mauled by the monster, in this story Archie must decide that it is equal parts transformers and Pacific Rim.”

“I’ve been asking editors to write an Archie Mecha story for literally years, and I hope it won’t be our last. Hopefully anyone reading this will see how much world building we put into it and all the ways to hurl that Archie flow into those genre conventions,” Kibblesmith said in a statement to io9. “It’s crazy how perfectly these characters fit into this type of story, but as always, that malleability is the magic of.” Archie Comics. What’s left to say? Get in the robot, Archie.”

Kibblesmith also highly praised the artist. “Ryan’s love for this stuff shines through. It’s so passionate and informed that you really see the complete aesthetic of this world in such a quick glance.”

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Jampole was just as excited to work on the story as Kibblesmith. “In terms of design, I really wanted to pay tribute to the huge mecha manga (say that three times fast) and anime that I grew up with and still read/watch!” he said in a statement to io9. “There are some MazingerA pinch of evangelionA shot of GoLiona hint of Tetsujin 28. I think the story is written so well that it can be something for everyone, but if you’re a fan of the mecha genre, you’ll really enjoy it!”

As you can see, the artist is a big Fan of the inspiration of the new comic. “Anyone who knows me knows I love manga, and Archie has been really cool lately letting me flex those visual manga storytelling muscles and bring that sensibility to the classic Archie stories,” Jampole said. “And I think all of that led to this story, because it’s the comic I’ve been wanting to draw since I could pick up a pen – it helps that the script is fantastic too.” It really is one of my favorite stories to work on! When you love Archie– what you should! – and you love giant robots – which you should! – then you will love this story!”

Archie & Friends: All in action coming on 5.4.

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