Archie Comics #2
Archie Comics #2 (1943) is one of only a handful of surviving issues from the opening run of the flagship series that transformed MLJ Magazines from a superhero publisher into the home of American teen humor. Published during World War II — its "Pancakes In a Blackout" story nods directly to the wartime home-front — the issue builds on the love-triangle engine introduced in the debut: Archie accidentally double-books Betty and Veronica for the prom in the lead story 'Prom Pranks,' cementing that romantic-comedy formula as the series' structural backbone for the next eight decades. As one of only two issues collected in volume one of Dark Horse's Archie Archives hardcover series, it occupies a foundational place in the documented history of the Riverdale universe.
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The series launched with a Winter 1942 cover date and this second issue followed in 1943, with art credited to Bob Montana and Joe Edwards — Montana being the co-creator and original visual architect of the Archie characters alongside publisher John L. Goldwater and writer Vic Bloom. The anthology format typical of Golden Age comics gave the issue backup strips (Cubby the Bear, Bumbie the Bee, Squoimy the Woim) alongside the Archie material, reflecting the era's standard practice of padding page counts with filler features. The same year this issue appeared, the Archie Andrews radio program debuted on the NBC Blue Network (May 31, 1943), signaling how rapidly the property was expanding beyond comics.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published in 1943 by Archie Publications (then still operating under the MLJ/Archie banner), cover art by Bob Montana, interior art by Bob Montana and Joe Edwards.
- Lead story 'Prom Pranks' depicts Archie accidentally inviting both Betty and Veronica to the school prom after Jughead mails a letter Archie only intended to fantasize about — an early, explicit dramatization of the franchise's defining love-triangle plot device.
- Includes 'Pancakes In a Blackout,' a wartime home-front gag strip that reflects the real-world WWII context in which the series was born.
- Features backup humor strips starring Cubby the Bear ('That Old Oaken Bucket'), Bumbie the Bee ('Crime Wave In Bugland'), and Squoimy the Woim ('Roses Are Red') — typical Golden Age anthology filler that ran alongside the Archie features in early issues.
- One retail source identifies this issue as containing the first appearance of Mrs. Andrews (Mary Andrews, Archie's mother) within the Archie Comics title.
- Characters listed in the issue include Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Jughead Jones, Veronica Lodge, Fred Andrews, Mrs. Andrews, Miss Grundy, Mr. Weatherbee, Cubby, and Reggie Mantle — representing nearly the full classic Riverdale cast assembled very early in the series' run.
- Archie Comics #1 and #2 were collected together in Archie Archives Vol. 1, published by Dark Horse Comics in hardcover, preserving these earliest issues alongside contemporaneous Pep Comics and Jackpot Comics stories.
- The Archie Andrews radio program launched on the NBC Blue Network on May 31, 1943 — the same calendar year this issue was published — demonstrating how quickly the comics property was expanding into other media.
Cast · 10 characters
Full credits
Full plot ⚠ may contain spoilers
▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
Archie decides to join the rifle club but Betty thinks he's signing up for track. So, Archie goes to the track meet while Jughead goes to the rifle club meeting. It turns out that Jughead has excellent aim, but because he is posing as Archie, it is believed that Archie is the one with good aim.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).