“I’m now a pretty big believer that the Riverdale gang can fit with practically any other characters and genres, but it’s best when they get to really flex and go way outside their zone like say, the planet Mongo with Flash Gordon, King of the Impossible,” Parker said in a statement. “This of course coincides with the sad passing of cinema great Max Von Sydow who was the most memorable Ming the Merciless, and wait until you see our take on the Emperor of Mongo. I wanted to write more Archie and more Flash Gordon, so this really clicked for me, and I tried to laser in on tailoring this to be a story Dan Parent would enjoy drawing. He hasn’t yelled at me yet, so fingers crossed!”
The comic continues the partnership between Archie and King Features Syndicate, the owners of “Flash Gordon,” which was created by Alex Raymond as a newspaper strip in 1934. The most recent comics starring the character were published by Dynamite, and included an acclaimed run by Parker and Evan “Doc” Shaner. Archie Andrews was created in 1941 by Archie (then MLJ Comics) co-founder John L. Goldwater, artist Bob Montana, and writer Vic Bloom.
“Archie Meets Flash Gordon” will be released June 3. For more from Parker, Archie Comics co-president Alex Segura, and King Features Syndicate editorial director Tea Fougner, head to the Reporter.
