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Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?

Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?

His nerdy new comic and the Bite-Sized Archie graphic novel explain why you should.

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Kid versions of Archie, Jughead, Veronica and Betty as designed by Erin Hunting.
Image: Archie Comics

The Riverdale incarnation of Archie Comics is so popular, it can be tough sometimes to remember that the original Archie rarely if ever dealt with serial killers, ritual sacrifice, and whatever the hell this was. This means there’s a good chance that you—like me—have been sleeping on the adventures of the even more kid-friendly Archie comics. That needs to stop now, and I’ve got proof.

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First off, there’s the Bite-Sized Archie webcomic, whose first year of strips are being collected in a graphic novel coming this May. We have a sample set of six, and I absolutely adore them all. But Bite-Sized Archie is not to be confused with Little Archie, who’s getting a one-shot comic special in April. It’s titled Fun With Little Archie & Friends Special, and features the Riverdale rugrats getting thrown into a cavalcade of game parodies courtesy of Sabrina the Teenage Witch—and we’ve got a preview of that, too. Enjoy!

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2 / 14

“The Wrong Message”

“The Wrong Message”

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

First up, the Bite-Sized Archie comics, in which we discover Archie has a bean dad.

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3 / 14

“Hash It Out”

“Hash It Out”

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

Jughead, hamburger enthusiast and social media manager.

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4 / 14

“A True Juggernaut”

“A True Juggernaut”

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

Everything about this is wonderful, but I particularly enjoy that Pop’s puts a picture with a hamburger crossed out on its door to indicate the diner is closed.

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5 / 14

“Cabin Fever”

“Cabin Fever”

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Image: Archie Comics

As far as I’m concerned, every Archie comic should end with a picture of Archie paralyzed with terror and sweating profusely.

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6 / 14

“Fanning the Flames”

“Fanning the Flames”

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Image: Archie Comics

This wouldn’t even crack the top 20 of bananas things Cheryl has done on Riverdale.

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7 / 14

“The Boy Next Door”

“The Boy Next Door”

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

Again, this is great, but imagine if it ended with the same panel of Cheryl smiling in front of a house on fire.

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8 / 14

Fun With Little Archie & Friends Special

Fun With Little Archie & Friends Special

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

Here’s the cover to the one-shot special by Erin Hunting. Look how bored Sabrina’s cat is! Here’s the official synopsis:

“Get ready for high-octane fun and adventure with LITTLE ARCHIE and his friends from Riverdale! When Little Sabrina meets up with Little Archie, Little Jughead, and Little Betty and Veronica, all kinds of chaos breaks loose and the gang find themselves transported into new, fantastical game world inspired by their favorite hobbies! Watch as they brave the mystical and mysterious realm of Gryphons and Gargoyles, form a big-wheel gang, and attempt to relax in an unexpectedly exciting animal farming video game!”

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9 / 14

Gryphons & Gargoyles

Gryphons & Gargoyles

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

In this (momentarily uncolored) interior page, Little Archie and his equally little friends play the infamous role-playing game Gryphons & Gargoyles. While it’s clearly a parody of Dungeons & Dragons, it was also the centerpiece of a murderous cult in Riverdale, which won’t be the case here... presumably.

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10 / 14

Archie Crossing

Archie Crossing

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Image: Archie Comics

Here are a few of Erin Hunting’s character designs from the comic’s Animal Crossing parody, and I would absolutely play this game.

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11 / 14

Fun With Little Archie & Friends Variant Cover

Fun With Little Archie & Friends Variant Cover

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Image: Archie Comics

Check out the special’s variant cover, courtesy of artist Brittney Williams.

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12 / 14

Little Archies by Adrian Ropp

Little Archies by Adrian Ropp

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Image: Archie Comics

And here are a few of the regular Little Archie characters from a couple of the various artists contributing stories to the comic, starting with Adrian Ropp.

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13 / 14

Little Archie and Friends by Agnes Garbowska

Little Archie and Friends by Agnes Garbowska

Image for article titled Have You Welcomed Little Archie Into Your Heart?
Image: Archie Comics

The Fun With Little Archie & Friends one-shot special includes work from writers Shannon Watters, J. Torres, and Jamie L. Rotante, along with artists Adrian Ropp, Agnes Garbowska, Matt Herms, and Jack Morelli. It hits comic stands on April 27. The Bite-Sized Archie Vol. 1 collection, written by Ron Cacace and drawn by Vincent Lovallo, arrives on May 17.

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