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Comic Review: Archie in “Will You Marry Me?”

archie will u marry meTitle: Archie in “Will You Marry Me?”
Written by: Michael Uslan
Art by: Stan Goldberg
Published by: Archie Comics Publications
Release Date: March 31, 2010
Price: $14.95


I had been wanting to read this comic for years. I saw this issue around my comic shop after I got back into comics, but I never could afford it, so I just always said “one day.” But as luck would have it, this comic just happened to be the second book that came in my Archie Mystery Package!

This story includes two plot lines: one where Archie marries Veronica, the other where he marries Betty. I am more team Betty than Veronica, so I was initially worried that this comic would have Archie choose between the two.

Both follow the same plot: the gang graduates college, Archie proposes to the girl, everyone is a buzz about it, they get married very quickly, they move to New York for a job and stay out there for a year, but they can’t handle it and move back to Riverdale, Archie finds out his wife is pregnant, she has twins, and they live happily ever after.

The plots are interesting, but both stories felt very rushed.

Michael Uslan gave the readers no time to adjust the gang being young adults rather than teenagers, and on top of that there was no time to adjust to the proposal and all the emotions that came along with it. It was also very evident from these stories that the Ulsan favors Veronica over Betty, which made these stories less than enjoyable for me.

When Veronica is who Archie chooses, her story has the perfect ending. Her wedding is extravagant and their honeymoon is a dream! Everyone is ready to bend to make both of them happy, to the point where some of the characters were out of character.  The set-up to Archie’s proposal in this scenario was also very weird.  Archie seems to have no plan or motivation to get married, but when his parents give him a large sum in the form of the check, he immediately spends it on a ring for Veronica. Mr. Lodge, Veronica’s father, even gives Archie a job, and all seems perfect for the couple. But things weren’t so great for Betty in this comic, who gets a job in New York, then loses it. She also gets a boyfriend named Henry who looks just like Archie, but it doesn’t work out with him. Penniless, she still has the hope and drive to do better and is the maid of honor in Veronica’s wedding, later becoming the godmother to the couple’s twins.

When Betty is who Archie chooses, she gets a wedding at Pop Tate’s, and without Veronica’s financial help, she wouldn’t have even had a cake or a honeymoon. In general, Veronica faired much better than Betty in this scenerio. After Archie proposed to Betty, half of the conversations about the couple included things like “Why choose her when Veronica is rich?” and “Poor poor Veronica!” Betty loses her job in New York and they both end up becoming teachers back at Riverdale. When Betty has twins, Veronica is named the godmother of “Little Betty.” Veronica also ends up marrying Reggie, so she still is given a happy ending by the writer.

Why is there such a bias of Betty getting a not-as-good ending whereas Veronica gets a great one no matter what?

I would probably read this comic again for a quick read, but it’s fair to say that this is not my favorite Archie storyline.


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