Oni Press has announced three titles so far in their rebooted Archie Comics line. And while Archie #1 is a surprisingly (and pleasantly) retrograde gag strip with some updated art and Sabrina The Teenage Witch #1 expertly bridges the gap between the classic comics and more modern horror reinvention, Archie in Hell — written by Patrick Horvath and Tyler Crook — is likely the most anticipated title in the launch, shrouded in secrecy but hyped up thanks to Horvath’s ascendance due to IDW’s best-selling Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees.
That’s a lot of wind-up for a review, but what’s most surprising about Archie in Hell #1 is how Old Archie it feels: this is the sort of title that would have slotted nicely on the shelf next to Afterlife with Archie and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. While there doesn’t seem to be a strict continuity between these three new titles, coming hot on the heels of Ben H. Winters and Fábio Moon setting up their vision of Riverdale, and Corinna Bechko and Kano establishing Greendale, Archie in Hell depends on knowing the Archie Comics characters in advance, and watching slow burn horror bubble in the background.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, by the way. While the first issue spends a fair amount of real estate with Archie Andrews doing Archie Andrews things (traveling around Riverdale in his broken down car, juggling his teen tasks with two back-to-back dates with Betty and Veronica), and Sabrina doing Sabrina Spellman things (doing spells, battling cultists, lying to her Aunts), once the horror creeps in, Crook effectively paces it out. The first bloody reveal in the book is shocking and gruesome. And a climactic fight manages to balance humor and horror in equal measure.
But — and I won’t spoil it here — there’s a bit of a trick to this book that isn’t revealed until the final page, which makes this first issue all feel like prelude. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t; it’s hard to tell without reading subsequent issues of the series. But because of that last second twist, it’s a little more difficult to look at how successful this is (or isn’t) as a premiere than the relatively done-in-one, status quo resets of Archie #1 and Sabrina the Teenage Witch #1.
It’s still lovely to look at, and artistically different from the two aforementioned series. Crook’s style is adjacent to Robert Hack and Francesco Francavilla (who tackled Chilling Adventures and Afterlife, respectively), while feeling a little brighter thanks to cleaner lines and Francesco Segala’s nuanced colors. There’s also plenty of nightmare fuel there (see the man crawling out of another man’s mouth in the above page, or the grimly hilarious decapitated Mr. Weatherbee). And while I’m still on the fence with the Archie redesign that makes him a little chubbier, a little more All-American as seen in Archie #1, the rest of the characters look great, and extrapolate off the ones we’ve seen in the other two Oni series.
Look, I’m very into Archie Horror, personally. And like I noted, it’s clear this book is going in some surprising, unpredictable directions by the end of the issue. But there’s a lot of hype for this Oni Press line, and even more hype for this title in particular. It’s a solid first at bat, and well worth the pick-up. But whether this is a hellacious good time or not will definitely depend on how this serialized story continues… And hopefully, unlike the iconic horror titles mentioned above? Actually finishes.
Archie In Hell #1 hits stores on November 4, 2026 from Oni Press.
Archie In Hell #1 Rating:
Archie In Hell #1 Official Synopsis:
They say that every small town has a secret. Well, in the case of Riverdale, it’s one heck of a humdinger: An ancient order of cultists has infiltrated its townspeople, bent on using human sacrifice to usher a demon lord into our mortal plane. And they’ve finally identified the final target they need to bring a century’s worth of planning to fruition: hometown football champion and all-around good guy Archie Andrews. But this secret cabal never dreamed that actual witches walk Riverdale’s streets . . . and when cult and coven clash in the final stages of Archie’s secret ritual sacrifice, the consequences will be cosmic . . . and young Archie Andrews will find himself damned to something far worse than Hell’s inner circle.
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