Book Review: Riverdale (one-shot)

Book: Riverdale (one-shot) stories by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and cover by Adam Gorham

Edition: Single Print Issue

Description:

A must-have one-shot! The perfect primer for the CW Riverdale series! Learn the secrets and hidden tales from the summer before the eternal love-triangle begins in this special issue, which features four short stories focusing on the major players and events in the Riverdale series: Spend some time at Archie's summer construction job and learn how it leads him to a fateful encounter with the alluring music teacher, Ms. Grundy.

Discover the truth about Betty's Los Angeles romance. Find out more about Veronica's mysterious life in New York, before the shocking event that would send her family scrambling. And meanwhile, there's Jughead, on the fringes of Riverdale, a witness to the terrible event that sets everything in motion: A tragedy that befalls Jason Blossom.

You dare not miss this special commemorative issue in advance of the upcoming ongoing Riverdale series, written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and the writers of the CW Riverdale series with stunning art by Alitha Martinez!




Rating: 4 stars

Review:

This Riverdale one-shot includes four separate stories that takes place during the summer and focus on the main characters in the CW TV series: Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge and Jughead Jones.
 

Story #1: Archie in Sweetwater by Brian E. Paterson, illustrations by Elliot Fernandez, color by Thomas Chu and letters by John Workman

In this story, Archie described his summer which included working for his father's construction company, his ill advised and ill fated "romance" with his teacher Ms. Grundy, his new found interest in writing poems, playing the guitar, his waning friendship with Jughead and the death of Jason Blossom.

This was a very dull story and it felt like nothing more than a rehash of the flashback scenes in the first two episodes. The Riverdale version of Archie has zero personality and it's even worse in book form.



Story #2: Betty in Summer Nights by Britta Lundin, illustrations by Jim Towe, color by Glenn Whitmore and letters by Janice Chiang

Betty's story was one of my favorites, she wrote in her journal how she spent her summer in Los Angeles for an internship. She was finally getting a chance to be on her own (well sort of, she was staying with her aunt) and gained a bit of independence.

But being away from Riverdale didn't keep her from finding out that her sister Polly had been "put away" nor about Jason's death. And adding to that her mother wanted her stay in Los Angeles which sort of put a damper on her enjoyment. I like that Betty still did a great job with her internship but you could tell that near the end she was ready to go home but home didn't feel the same anymore. It wasn't only that her experience changed her but that Riverdale had changed as well.

I could have read an entire issue on Betty's story or at least a half of the issue since there was another story that I really enjoyed as well. 



Story #3: Veronica in Fall From Grace by James Dewille, illustrations by Thomas Pitilli, color by Andre Szymanowicz and letters by John Workman

Veronica's story was okay and as the title states she took a fall from grace. She described how she was living a fabulous life until it all came crashing down following the arrest of her father and nearly all of their assets were seized. As a way to regroup, Veronica and her mother were going to move to Riverdale, the small town where her parents grew up.

There is nothing really new about this story, it's the typical riches to rags trope. However, there was something I found interesting. There is a small indication from a phone call Veronica had with her father that Mr. Lodge maybe innocent of the crime he is accused of. He made a point of saying it's all lies. I hope it all turns out to be a set-up because I'm not a fan of what the TV series chose to do with Mr. Lodge and the Lodge family in general. He always tried to teach her the value of a dollar, hard work and honesty even if he spoiled her from time to time. The Lodge family didn't need a scandal nor to lose all their money as a way for Veronica to end up in Riverdale.



Story #4: Jughead in It Was A Dark And Storm Night by Will Ewing, illustrations by Alitha Martinez, inks by Bob Smith, color by Andre Szymanowicz with Thomas Chu and letters by Janice Chiang

This last story was my second favorite, it incorporated the mystery element of the show. As Jughead was sitting in Pop's trying to find something that would inspire him to write, the events of the summer sort of brought a story to him. He spends his nights working at the drive-in, it's a fun job but it doesn't stop him from thinking about the demise of his friendship with Archie.

This story overlaps a bit with Archie's story where both show Jug in an attempt to renew their friendship invites Archie to join him in traveling to Centerville to watch the fireworks on the 4th of July. With Jughead's side of the story you get to see how he found out about Jason's death and how Archie's disappearance piqued his suspicions. Unfortunately, Jug inadvertently got himself tied into Archie's lies involving "their" 4th of July plans.


The four stars rating for this one-shot is mostly for Betty and Jughead's stories because they were the only ones that added something interesting to the book. Truth be told, this book was not worth the $4.99 price tag especially not with only two stories being a good read. Something that stood out was the artwork for all four stories, the different styles seemed to work for each story.