Jughead #8 Review

Jughead #8

Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Derek Charm
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Publisher: Archie Comics

Review by Insha Fitzpatrick

Oh man… I love Jughead so much guys. So much.

In Jughead #8 the boys have to deal with a bear in the woods, some friendship delays, and Mr. Weatherbee being an utter badass woodsman. Yeah, Mr. Weatherbee is boss AF.

The issue start right where Jughead #7 leaves off. The boys are lost in the woods and trying desperately to get back to there cabin. They end up getting into a little fight which muffles their friendship and their ability to stick together, but when they encounter a bear in the woods, things go from bad to awesome. Mr. Weatherbee, the Principal of Riverdale High, saves the boys just in time. The boys and Mr. Weatherbee then have to try and get themselves back to the camping grounds. This doesn’t come easy when some mysterious traps are set for the gang and they try to figure out who is setting them.

I enjoyed this issue for multiple reasons, but the biggest one is the conflict between Archie and Jughead’s friendship. Jughead has always had to deal with Archie being in this love triangle between Betty and Veronica. He’s had to deal with his friend and his hormonal instincts. He’s always commented on it, but never stood in the way of it. When Archie made a comment about how “normal” he is compared to Jughead (when he comes to sexuality), the panel of Jughead’s face afterwards KILLS me. If anything, Archie should understand who Jughead is as his best friend, but then it’s a very low blow.

Jughead never fails to make me happy with Chip’s writing and Derek’s art. Chip writes with humor and understanding what teenagers are going through at this age. Especially the writing of Jughead and his asexuality in comparison to Archie’s lust for anything with boobs that moves. Derek Charm’s characters and artwork are a dream. Sadly, this is Chip’s last issue writing Jughead, and as much as it sucks, the new writer of Jughead will be Ryan North of Squirrel Girl! Another exciting announcement is that Sabrina (yes, the teenage witch herself) comes into the story line, which is pretty damn exciting!

The Verdict
Buy it! This issue dives into some issues that can happen between friends and show that principals can be awesome AF. This is Chip’s last hurrah as the writer for Jughead so it definitely needs to be read. Chip took us into a new story line with the Jughead series and we’ll be forever grateful for it. It feels so sudden and so soon, but hopefully he comes back in guest spots to provide us with more writing awesomeness. However, here’s to Ryan North as well. Oh… by the way, Ramona Weatherbee totally needs to be apart of the new Riverdale. Please make that happen.