Archie's Superteens vs. Crusaders #1 (of 2)

   Certainly one of the more... unusual... takes on Archie and his friends is the Superteens, which was a short-lived-and-rarely-revisited stint from the '60s where the gang somehow became superheroes (with vaguely-defined powers). 

   But hey, superheroes are hot right not (at least at the movies), and Archie Comics has a bunch of Golden, Silver and Modern Age characters just gathering dust (the Mighty Crusaders, for example), so why not trot them out and take a shot?

   Happily, this issue puts the focus on fun, as an evil substitute teacher at Riverdale High School hatches a strange scheme, which draws the attention of the Crusaders and the Superteens (natch, since it's their home turf).

   So Archie becomes Pureheart, Betty becomes Superteen (is the group named after her?), Veronica (who didn't have a hero incarnation in the original stories) becomes Miss Vanity, and Jughead becomes Captain Hero.

   It's all fast and breezy and fun - a nifty burst of nostalgia for geezers like me, and it should be fun for new readers, too.

Grade: B+

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The Mighty Crusaders #4

   I'm not sure what to make of the Mighty Crusaders series.

   One on hand, it seems like a solid, updated version of the classic '60s team of heroes. It builds on past continuities (and even references, if in passing, several different incarnations of the original heroes, including the Shield, Fly-Man, Fly-Girl, the Web, the Comet and the Jaguar (among others).

   Judging by the style of the art by Kelsey Shannon (clean lines, clear storytelling, no graphic violence) and the story by Ian Flynn (straightforward action with some nice character moments) it seems like an all-ages story - but then, on page 6, the Comet calls one of the bad guys a "bastard." (Maybe I'm just a geezer to find such language offensive.)

   So maybe it's intended for an older audience - or maybe I'm just being too sensitive.

   At any rate, it's a promising series, and it's certainly great to see these characters back again (there's a splash page at the end that provides some nifty nostalgia for long-time fans), and it lays the groundwork for future adventures.

   Fun!

Grade: B

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