Archie vs. Predator (1 of 4)
Script by Alex de Campi
Pencils by Fernando Ruiz
Inks by Rich Koslowski
Colors by Jason Millet
Letters by John Workman
Standard Cover by Ruiz Koslowski Miller
Variant Cover A by Eric Powell
Variant Cover B by Francesco Francavilla
Published by Dark Horse Comics
April 15, 2015
Beach games
Party games
THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME!
HE’S IN RIVERDALE WITH A FEW DAYS TO KILL!
America’s favorite teen meets the galaxy’s fiercest hunter! Archie and friends hit Costa Rica for Spring Break, where party games and beach games are soon replaced by the Most Dangerous Game! What mysterious attraction does the gang hold for the trophy-collecting Predator, and will the kids even realize they’re in danger before it claims them all?
Gef Fox's Review
As a kid, I used to love reading through whatever random Archie Digest I could get my hands on. Sometimes a cousin had one, or there was one in the school library, or one might show up under the Christmas tree. Archie was one of if not my very first experiences with comics. I don't remember reading one after I turned 12-years-old, though. Well, if someone was going to lure me back to Riverdale, it was bound to be Alex de Campi and Archie Vs. Predator.
The whole gang's there. Archie, Jughead, Betty, Veronica, Reggie, even Moose too. Two characters I can't recall from yesteryear are Cheryl and Jason, a couple of spoiled rotten snobs. I don't know if they're a couple, siblings, or what. Doesn't matter really as their introduction all but guarantees a suitably grizzly demise in the first act.
You see, after Cheryl and Jason brag to Archie and the gang that they're jetting off to the Caribbean for spring break, Jughead flukes himself into winning a trip for the whole gang to a luxury beach vacation in—you guess it—the Caribbean. It's fun and sun and the usually Archie hijinks when they arrive, but they're not the only visitors to the island. Enter Predator.
The setup for this encounter is equal parts absurd and awesome. I mean, a Predator crash landed on a tropical island and, given a rather beggars can't be choosers range of prey to hunt, targets unarmed, oblivious teens. A far cry from going toe-to-toe with Arnold, that's for sure. But deep down, aren't we all kind of hoping that the Predator rips out Reggie's spinal column and Betty goes all Rambo on his ass? No? Just me? Fine.
With Fernando Ruiz, Rich Koslowski, Jason Millet, and John Workman handling the penciling, ink, color, and lettering respectively, the look and feel of this issue is right on par with the Archie comics in my memory. And the tone of the comic feels very much in keeping with what I remember as a kid. But it doesn't take too long before Archie and company skirt the edges of the wonderfully warped imagination of Alex de Campi, a writer capable of writing blood-soaked grindhouse fare as she is with a My Little Pony adventure. Here, we get the best of both worlds.
I missed out on Archie meeting The Punisher, or Archie dying, or Archie surrounded by zombies, so this is my first chance to see the Riverdale gang taken to some far out territory. As it stands, I'm kinda glad to get my toes wet with this. It's not earth-shattering yet, but it's just the first issue and the stakes are only being set thus far before the real mayhem begins. I mean, the most intense scene comes from a scuffle between Betty and Veronica during an impromptu fashion show—don't ask, just go with it.
What's fun about the book is the tease of their cozy little world being intruded upon by a remorseless killing machine. One particular scene with Moose in the background, towards the end of the comic, really offers a foreboding sense that the plucky gang of friends are about to have their lives upended. It has a ways to go before the real fireworks begin, but the setup is effective and you're going to be chomping at the bit to read the second issue to see how much better it gets.
4 stars
Pamela K. Kinney's Review
Jughead wins a prize he gets from his bag of chips and Archie and friends all take a trip to a Caribbean beach. The first night they are there a falling star is seen falling into the jungle nearby. It is the ship of a Predator. Yes, a Predator, like from the movies of the alien warriors that hunt other predators, like man. Except this time there is no Arnold Schwarzenegger or Danny Glover to save the teens of Riverdale High School on their spring break.
This was mind-blowing to me, who grew up reading Archie comics and even owned the records like “Sugar, Sugar” sung by the Archies. I mean Archie comics were light, comic stories about America’s most lovable teenager while the Predator is dark, bloody science fiction horror that had four films about it—two that included aliens that Ellen Ripley fought in outer space (where no one can hear you scream). I wondered how this would mix together. But the dark and light are mixed. And now, I want to read the other three issues to see how the story continues and ends.
An extra treat to this first of four episodes of this comic is “Sabrina Meets Hellboy,” where Sabrina the teenage witch is an eight-year-old girl. There is also apparently more to this story, too. More that will be in the next issues of “AVP.”
5 sheep
The colors are so Archie comics, with blood and alien monster thrown in. Honestly, this was a fun series to read and one of the best mashups ever. If you don’t want to watch your favorites from the Archie comics get it, then I would suggest not to read this. But if you enjoy the Predator movies and grew up on Archie, be set for fun and blood. 
