What an egregious oversight; I don’t have anything about one of the biggest shake-ups in Archie history–Life with Archie. Anyway, I’m aiming to fix some of this error by talking about it, or, at least, what I know about it.
From what I have gathered, the biggest news is not the soap-operatic style (the Ms. Grundy sickness storyline, Jugehead and Midge?! Moose running for office?!) nor the fact that we’re seeing both sides of what Archie’s life would be like if he choose Veronica or Betty (with Veronica, he’s rich, but under Hiram’s Gordon Gekko-esque business stylings, he risks alienating this friends; with Betty, he’s a struggling musician who’s all but ready to throw in the towel and find a real job). The biggest twist is that Dilton, now a famous scientist, has figured out that the Veronica/Archie-Betty/Archie universes are only two in the vast amount of Archie universes that are happening simultaneously. Basically, it’s M- theory–the idea that the universe is made up of multiple dimensions–used as an explanation for why Archie can be married to Veronica and Betty at the same time with different consequences. Dilton’s findings not only examine the duality of Archie’s life, but all of the outside-of-canon events, such as the New Look series, as well as the different eras of Archie Comics, going all the way back to the ’40s.
At first, when I saw the comic book pages that included Dilton’s discovery, I was a bit shocked. I applauded Archie Comics for having the guts to say that every issue of Archie Comics is part of but one universe in a multitude of universes, but still, the idea was unsettling. I was used to the idea of there being one loosely-shown universe where some things were canon and other things could happen without truly affecting the gang for the long-term. But as I thought about it, Dilton’s discovery is a very legitimate way to go about handling the process of juggling what’s canon and what’s not in the overall Archieverse, especially since D.C. does this regularly, sometimes to bad and confusing effect.
Overall, the Life with Archie series is proven to be one of the most exciting Archie series on the market right now. I’d suggest buying this (or like I did, read it online); it’s well worth your attention. And you don’t have to take my word for it; check out what Comics Alliance has to say.
