Life with Archie #23

Life with Archie #23 brings Riverdale's grown-up drama front and center, with a cover by Fernando Ruiz and Bob Smith that packs in a crowd of familiar faces — a beaming Veronica dominates the foreground, while Archie strums a blue electric guitar at her side, a soldier in full military gear looms large in the background beneath a sky crossed by aircraft, and Betty appears in the lower portion alongside a romantic couple off to the right. It's a vivid snapshot of the multiple storylines threading through this era of the series, where love, service, and music all seem to be pulling Riverdale's residents in different directions. Part Five of "Just Like Starting Over!" promises some long-awaited resolutions, and with Paul Kupperberg writing and the Ruiz/Bob Smith art team delivering, fans of this mature take on the Archie universe will find plenty to dig into.