Betty & Veronica #2
Posted on November 27, 2016 by Nina Perez in Betty & Veronica // 5 Comments
Previously in Betty & Veronica #1
Story and Art by: Adam Hughes | Coloring by: José Villarrubia | Lettering by: Jack Morelli
The battle for Pop’s, and by extension, the soul of Riverdale is getting nasty. While Betty drives herself crazy trying to raise the necessary funds, Veronica throws her considerable funds into winning the hearts and minds of Riverdale’s residents.
I was initially drawn to this series because of the witty dialogue and the refreshing reveal that Betty and Veronica would not be fighting over Archie. Betty doesn’t want to see her hometown change, especially when college is on the horizon. There are so many uncontrollable changes coming up it makes sense that Betty would cling to something she feels she can control. If the globe-trotting Veronica felt she didn’t truly fit in Riverdale, of course she’d use her influence to turn Riverdale into a city more to her privileged liking. Sadly, this is only a guess at her motivations because the second issue provided very little in the way of an explanation.
The fresh and funny narration from by Jughead’s pooch, J. Farnsworth Wigglebottom III, is still on point; he even lets slip that this rivalry will get pretty heated in issue #3. But I do wonder if his perspective is responsible for the lack of insight into Veronica. Last issue made it clear they were great friends, so Veronica’s cold and vicious behavior is particularly confusing. When an exasperated Betty asks her why, the answer boils down to because Veronica wants to and because she can. Though Farnsworth did say in issue #1 that he cannot get a bead on Veronica or what makes her tick, a deeper dive into her motivations is needed. Otherwise, it feels super petty and makes it hard to imagine these two girls were ever friends to begin with.
I’m hoping this is fleshed out more sooner rather than later – especially now that Veronica is playing super dirty. She’s brought in hipsters.
Betty & Veronica #2 = 7.7/10
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Plot – 7/107/10
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Dialogue – 8/108/10
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Art – 8/108/10
Nice review. The whole new Archie line has been terrific.
Thanks! I’m really enjoying this and the new Archie. I’m going to look into a few other in the new line.
if you like those two, then you should definitely try out Jughead and Josie and the Pussycats. They’re a whole lot of fun, and in my opinion, better than most of the stuff Marvel and DC is cranking out these days.
Not to bump in the convo, but the first five issues of “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” are free if you have Amazon Prime. It’s a totally different take on the character.
Haven’t tried Sabrina yet but I’ve heard a lot of good things about it. I don’t have Amazon Prime, but I intend to pick up in trade paperback. (And feel free to bump in the conversation any time. I’m always interested in getting recommendations for new comics.)