Josie, Valerie and Melody return to the Archie Comics lineup in a brand new series that brings them back to square one. Read on for our spoiler free review of “Josie and the Pussycats” #1.
Written by Marguerite Bennett and Cameron Deordio
Illustrated by Audrey Mok and Andre SzymanowiczGRAB THE LATEST, SUREFIRE TOP-OF-THE-CHARTS NEW RIVERDALE SERIES!
Friends, countrymen, lend me your long tails and ears for hats—the Pussycats are back! In this series kick-off, Josie’s getting the band together to help achieve her dreams of musical stardom. But for the group to last, it needs a strong foundation of friendship and trust. Can the girls get going, or will Alexandra’s plotting put a stop to the whole thing? Don’t miss comics’ supreme songstresses’ return to the limelight in this exciting first issue!
With Archie Comics relaunching it’s core universe, it was just a matter of time before we got the greatest band in comic books starring in a brand new series. With “Archie” and “Jughead” being successes, it was about time that Archie began putting out more women centric series with women creating the books. “Josie and the Pussycats” #1 is all origin but it’s cute, fun and easy to jump into.
“Josie and the Pussycats” #1 introduces us to Josie, Melody and Valerie, three young women who aren’t quite the best friends we know them to be. In this first issue, they become a band, deal with their first gig and figure out their dynamics a bit. It’s all very easy and that works in it’s favor but does hurt it a little bit. Bennett and Deordio approach this story in a very basic way and it gets the origin stuff out of the way very quickly, which will work for them in the longrun. You get the who, what, where, when and why’s right off the bat and it makes the decision to keep reading the series easy to make in either direction. This is either completely your thing or it’s not. Thankfully, this is completely my kind of thing.
The dialogue is really funny at times and the development of the core characters’ personalities are well executed. Josie, Melody and Valerie all have very distinct personalities that compliment each other. In fact, there’s a bit of the movie (that’s hated for all the wrong reasons) in this. Melody for example, is very Tara Reid-esque in her bubbly personality and slightly ditzy ways. It’s a cute book and it wears that proudly, which is exactly what we need for it to fit in with the rest of the core Archie Comics line. It doesn’t feel like a relic of the past but instead feels perfect for teens and young adults.
However, “Josie and the Pussycats” #1 is easy. It’s not doing anything huge and it doesn’t swerve us in a meaningful way. My biggest complaint with the new Archie books have been their lack of risk taking. Legacies are great and meaningful but when you decide to relaunch, there should be something ambitious about the actual stories.
One of the hardest things this series has to do is create musical moments. This is incredibly tough to do without sound or actual movement. To do this, the writing and the art has to be in perfect sync and needs to be ambitious. “Jem and the Holograms” has been very good at pulling this off but even with that series, it doesn’t always work out perfectly. Audrey Mok does a really nice job at giving this trio enough believable stage presence. They’re still rookies so she doesn’t give them big, rock star moves or personalities but they do have confidence and a sense of showmanship. Mok is able to convey dance and excitement without losing a sense of fun or the rock and roll vibe the Pussycats are known for. These musical moments are made even better by good lyrics that are very “girl power” and once again, perfect for this kind of story. My biggest issue with the singing is that there isn’t anything extra done with the lettering. It’s here that the lettering should change a bit to bring in a little added energy.
Continued belowAs for the rest of the book, Mok’s art is really beautiful and the perfect style for this book. It’s a good blend of the classic “Archie” style and the style we’re seeing in the books now. Mok’s work is cartoony to a small extent and really cares about fashion and styling. These women look modern but not in the over glamorized way we’re used to seeing. Their styling feels natural and almost effortless. What I’m excited for is when Mok brings their band looks together. Andre Szymanowicz’s colors really bring everything together through his use of a really bright palette. Szymanowicz’s use of vibrant colors gives “Josie and the Pussycats” #1 the right energy but I do wish he had gone even bigger when the band is in action. This could enhance the musical elements a bit more. Szymanowicz does a really nice job with the clothing and changes in scenery as he’s able to play with shadow in a meaningful way. He also dabbles in neons in certain places but again, I wish he’d go even bigger.
“Josie and the Pussycats” #1 is a really solid debut but it’s safe. The writing is playful, the art is very pretty but it doesn’t try and do too much just yet.
Final Verdict: 7.5 – Fun and perfect for anyone enjoying what Archie Comics is doing right now.
