Archie Comics #18
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeArchie Comics #18 (cover-dated February 1946) holds a precise and verifiable place in comics history: it is the final issue of the title to be published under the MLJ imprint, the corporate brand under which the Archie franchise was born. Starting with issue #19, the publisher formally operated as Archie Comic Publications, making #18 the closing chapter of the MLJ era and a tangible artifact of one of the medium's most consequential corporate transitions. The issue also captures the full ensemble of Riverdale regulars — Archie, Betty, Veronica, Jughead, Reggie, Pop Tate, Mr. Weatherbee, Miss Grundy, and both sets of parents — in a single mid-Golden Age package, documenting the moment when the cast that would define American teen humor comics for decades was already fully assembled and operating at creative stride.
In "The Frog Catcher," Archie finds himself unexpectedly nominated for class president during a school assembly after Betty’s outburst. Trying to dodge the role, he pleads with his classmates not to vote for him—only to learn from his psychology teacher that such a plea might backfire. With a mouth full of candy that makes him sound like Mr. Weatherbee, Archie delivers a speech that accidentally wins him the election. Art by Bob Montana and Bill Vigoda, with cover by Al Fagaly, this 1946 issue captures the charm and humor of early Archie Comics.
Archie’s latest scheme to win a frog-jumping contest takes a messy turn when he traps some amphibians in a casserole dish. When Mrs. Andrews sees the dish, she mistakes it for a meal and serves it to Judge Morrow during his visit—unaware of the wriggling surprise inside.
In this 1946 humor tale from Archie Comics #18, Archie and Jughead build a dummy version of Archie to stand in for him during a school play’s murder scene—only to find their prank spirals into chaos when the schoolmates start treating the dummy as the real thing. The mix-up leads to a series of hilarious misunderstandings, all centered around who’s really behind the mask.
In this 1946 humor tale from Archie Comics #18, Betty and Veronica try to salvage their cooking class fiasco by baking a cake to practice their skills—only to find their sweet experiment spirals into a mess far worse than the original disaster.
In a lighthearted 1946 tale from Archie Comics #18, Archie finds himself unexpectedly nominated for class president after Betty’s outburst at an assembly. Trying to dodge the role, he pleads with his classmates not to vote for him—only to learn from his psychology teacher that such a request might backfire. With a mouth full of candy that muddles his words, Archie ends up sounding like Mr. Weatherbee, accidentally winning the election in a way no one saw coming.
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By early 1946, creator Bob Montana had returned from wartime military service but was immediately occupied launching the Archie newspaper strip, leaving interior comic duties almost entirely to the studio bullpen. Bill Vigoda carried the bulk of the art load for the self-titled series, with Al Fagaly providing covers and Bill Woggon contributing backup strips. The editorial pressure to fill a bi-monthly, 52-page anthology on a tight schedule led to at least one notable shortcut in this issue: the story 'Negative Psychology' is a reworked version of an early Montana Archie story originally printed in Pep Comics #27 (May 1942), with Vigoda updating faces and adjusting dialogue while retaining much of Montana's original art and script. John L. Goldwater served as editor-in-chief, with Harry Shorten as managing editor, overseeing the brand transition that would officially take effect the following issue.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Archie Comics #18 is confirmed by the Grand Comics Database as the last issue of the series published under the MLJ imprint; issue #19 was the first to carry the new Archie Comic Publications brand.
- The cover, depicting Archie and Veronica carving a jack-o'-lantern in a Halloween scene, was penciled and inked by Al Fagaly and features an early cover appearance by Miss Grundy.
- The issue was published in February 1946 (cover-dated to that period), per copyright entry records cited by the GCD.
- Primary interior art was handled by Bill Vigoda, with additional contributions from Bill Woggon (the Dotty & Ditto backup) and Al McLean; Bob Montana contributed recycled panel art to one story.
- The story 'Negative Psychology' — featuring Archie accidentally winning a class-president election — reuses the storyline, and largely the art and script, from an early Bob Montana story in Pep Comics #27 (May 1942), with Vigoda revising character faces and some dialogue.
- The full ensemble of core Riverdale characters appears across the issue's stories: Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Jughead Jones, Reggie Mantle, Pop Tate, Mr. Weatherbee, Miss Grundy, Fred Andrews, Mrs. Andrews, Mr. Cooper, and Mrs. Cooper.
- Reggie Mantle, listed in this issue's cast, made his actual first appearance in Jackpot Comics #5 (Spring 1942), created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater — his appearance here is a subsequent early-era appearance, not a debut.
- This issue was later collected in Archie Archives Vol. 5 (Dark Horse Comics), which reprints Pep Comics #54–56 alongside Archie Comics #15–18, making the stories accessible in hardcover for modern readers.
Cast · 12 characters
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Archie 1000 Page Comics Jam #[nn] (2015), Archie (Jumbo Comics) Double Digest #263 (2015), Archie #7 (2016), Archie Milestones Jumbo Comics Digest #15 (2022), Archie Archives #5
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