Line #45 Headscratchers/ArchieComics


1	[[WMG:ComicBook/ArchieComics]]
2	* How have Archie's parents not sued Veronica and Mr. Lodge or had them arrested and charged with assault and battery and assault with a deadly weapon by now? We've seen them punch, kick, and slap Archie over the stupidest and most minor of things. Any judge with the slightest inkling of competence would have both of them found guilty by the end of the day. And before you say that Mr. Lodge might have a complete powerhouse of a lawyer, there is a story where a poor person was able to sue a rich person and get every dime they had. If my son came home from a date with a girl that is known to have a short fuse and her father an even shorter one and he has multiple injuries, I would be on the phone with my lawyer faster than Wilson Kipsang on the 60m dash. So why haven't they done it yet?
3	** Even though most stories are slife-of-life style comics and lacking in the crazier gags, don't forget that it is a comic. The scenes of Archie (or anybody) getting abused are meant to be taken as slapstick comedy, not an accurate depiction of the abuse of a teenage boy. Note how often a character can be shown with missing teeth and black eyes, and the next scene they're perfectly alright. They get smacked around with no consequences because there are no consequences. Yes, some comics are more serious, but that doesn't mean every comic is a serious drama. They're still cartoon characters, and thus they're injured only for as long as the artist draws them that way.
4	* For that matter, how many ming vases and priceless artifacts is Archie going to have to break before Mr. Lodge gets it in his thick head that you probably shouldn't have a priceless centuries-old artifact unsecured top of a pedestal that isn't bolted to the floor out in the open as if it's a $5 vase for WalMart?
5	* Also, why does Archie keep dating Veronica if she's abused him dozens of times? After the third incident, any logical person would get a restraining order and Archie is clearly smart enough to know what a restraining order is so why doesn't he just give up on that abusive brunette, get a restraining order against her and settle down with Betty?
6	* Why don't both Betty and Veronica just tell that flip-flopping, two-timing, pseudo-cheating doofus to shove it?
7	** They enjoy being friendly rivals to one another. When something goes wrong, they don't blame each other, they blame him - so they have got sense enough to tell that he is being an idiot about it. Therefore, they must be sticking around for the fun of it.
8	** Phrased more concisely: fucking with Archie's head is all either of them want out of the relationship.
9	** They ''are'' friends, and each would rather lose Archie to the other than to anyone else--specifically, Cheryl Blossom.
10	** They are teenagers, a demographic known for poor relationship choices.
11	** Actually, they have tried. They once spent several minutes roasting Archie to a crisp, realizing that they should just dump him, then they both went "You first." Then they realized that whatever it is about Archie, they can't resist it.
12	** Because then they would lose their only excuse to {{Catfight}}.
13	** Betty and Veronica are both at that age when emotionalism and hormones trump wisdom and common sense (for that matter, so is Archie). Most of us have gone through the same thing -- it is just that most of us haven't had our four years of teenager silliness last for five plus ''decades'' in a comic book!
14	** Obligatory LesYay explanation here. What?
15	** Since the continuity of the series is rather shaky, exactly how much of a "flip-flopping, two-timing, pseudo-cheating doofus" Archie is in each instance. In general, he is a sweet, well-meaning guy who is respectful to the girls (even if he has trouble making up his mind about which one he prefers), and that all seems to appeal to both girls. There are several comics in which Veronica comments on how she likes that Archie is more modest and punctual than Reggie, so yeah.
16	** Those grids on the sides of his head emit hypnotic rays.
17	** The only other guy in town worth a damn is Jughead, and he is more interested in hamburgers than romance. If he ever alters his policy on dames, they might have someone to dump Archie ''for''.
18	** Once one of them dump him for being a two-timing idiot (seriously can anyone really be this stupid and have this many mistakes consisting going on dates with more then one girl at the same time by "accident") that would be an admittance by the company of this fact which considering their name is "Archie Comics" they don't really want to do that. It is basically WishFulfillment for teenage boys because, you know, all boys wish to cheat on hot and smart girls.
19	** They have already done stories like that. In a multi-part story called "The Big Breakup", Betty is disillusioned with Archie, breaks up with him, and starts acting as if she hates him. Veronica starts giving Archie the cold-shoulder treatment, under the reasoning that "If Betty doesn't want Archie anymore ... I'm not sure that I do". An increasingly desperate Archie tries to win over Betty again. He eventually saves her life from a school fire (which he had accidentally started in the first place), and his "heroism" convinces Betty to resume her relationship with him. Near the finale, Archie makes clear to her that he won over Veronica too with his action (two birds with one stone). Her reaction is an amused "Oh Archie! You're absolutely incorrigible! What Am I going to do with you?"
20	* I have never understood the whole Betty vs. Veronica debate to begin with. Okay, maybe the comic medium is obscuring the fact that Veronica is actually more beautiful, but then again, they have pointed out that Betty can sub for Ronnie in a pinch using just a wig. Aside from appearance, you have personality. Now, Archie's a good ol' boy who almost certainly is headed for eventual marriage and family. And if you take a good look at his choices, only one of the girls is going to make a loving wife and caring mother. Short of an act of God, Veronica couldn't possibly fulfill Archie's future needs, so why keep chasing her?
21	** Just to clarify the bad match: Veronica is always conscious of status, class, and money; Archie is never comfortable in any situation involving these qualities, and is always relieved to find a way out of the social engagements Veronica ropes him into. Barring some adolescent pranks, Archie is fairly bad at deception and manipulation, whereas Veronica is a consummate pro, frequently using her considerable resources to push Archie into a situation that suits her desires (sometimes in direct conflict with Archie's own desires). I could go on. Why would any man date a woman like that? This is what baffles me.
22	*** The answer is in your terminology. They are boys and girls, not men and women, ranging from 15 to 17, as I recall. They are going to be immature. The art from the '90s, at least, made them look like they were in their early to mid 20s, so this can be very easy to forget. Recent artwork has been slightly better for making them look like teenagers.
23	*** Besides that, you have to remember that it is a simplified art form we are seeing them through.
24	*** And I have it on good authority that Veronica sucks like a proverbial hoover.
25	*** If, when you say "sucks", you mean the kind of activity I think you mean, then the hoover isn't the slightest bit proverbial.
26	*** Well, let's not forget that Veronica is probably one of the most popular and damned hottest girl in the school... and Archie is lucky enough to have her come after him. He is still a guy, and even though Betty might be the better choice, he can't so easily ignore a hot piece of ass like Ronnie.
27	*** Veronica has class and style and a larger-than-life "starlette" quality to her like that of a young Jackie O or Lauren Bacall. Even Betty has admitted that Veronica leaves people in awe of her (the fact that Betty is NOT in awe of her is one of the things Veronica admires about Betty). Naturally, Archie is in awe of Veronica, but in his case, he even manages to get dates with her.
28	*** In the original comics, Archie was less in love with Veronica than he was in love with her money and status.
29	*** In some depictions (it was never known for consistency), Betty comes on very strong. This can be unsettling. Veronica appears relatively unobtainable, and looks more appealing for that reason.
30	*** As a former teenage boy, it is definitely the girl I got to date half a time then dropped I pined over for a year and her friend who would have gone out with me at the drop of a hat I hardly knew the existence of.
31	*** In one storyline, Archie ''does'' dump Veronica for Betty because of that. In the story, Betty is chosen to be a model in a shampoo commercial and Archie is very impressed. Veronica gets jealous and forces her dad to pull strings so that she can be the model instead. Instead of turning his attention to her, Archie points out that Veronica was already so rich and socially high that he was only just managing to keep pace to go out with her. Now that she was going to be a famous model, it was all too much and he felt he couldn't hold on to her anymore. Veronica ultimately ends up screaming at her father that she won't be the model, either out of a desire to be with Archie again, or jealousy that he will be with Betty.
32	*** To expand on the whole idea of Archie being unable to resist Veronica's beauty, I remember one story I read in the late nineties (don't know if it was recycled or not) when they are at the beach and Dilton encourages Archie to make a pro/con list for the two of them. Betty trumps Veronica in every category and Archie, in a moment of clarity, realizes how stupid he has been the whole time. He runs up to Betty and is about to tell her what he has finally realized. Betty asks him what it is, and Veronica passes by right then in a sexy swimsuit, turning his head. He says "That Veronica is the girl for me."
33	** Occassionally the stories point out how similar the two girls are to each other. In one story, Betty is trapped in the Lodge residence during a major storm. Veronica convinces her to spend the night there, and lends Betty some of her nightclothes. Betty briefly adopts Veronica's hairstyle during her stay there. Both Hiram Lodge and Smithers (the Lodge's butler) mistake Betty for Veronica with blonde hair-dye. Hiram has to speak to her to realize that she is not his daughter. The next morning (under light rain), Betty returns home while wearing one of Veronica's raincoats. With her hair covered by the raincoat, Archie mistakes her for Veronica.
34	* What bugs me is that there is supposed to be this big rivalry between Betty and Veronica that has Archie agonizing over whom to date when it is obvious that Betty is barely a player. 90% of the time, Archie is dating Veronica, and half of the few times poor Betty manages to get him on a date, the joke turns out to be that Archie ditches her to go out with Veronica because the only reason he was dating Betty was that Veronica was unavailable. When is Betty going to realize she doesn't mean anything to Archie and just move on?
35	** Note that this isn't about who Archie ''should'' choose, but that the story is presented as if Archie actually has a choice. I have never seen anything that suggests Archie goes on more than a couple dates with Betty here and there. The rest of the time he uses her unrequited love to get free baked goods, help with his homework and free car repairs.
36	*** Maybe back in the 50s/60s, but more recently, Archie dates Betty just as often as he dates Veronica.
37	*** Well, in the earlier stories he dated Veronica just to get free Everything Else. Back in the day, Archie was more of a scheming slacker, Ronnie was more of a [[RichBitch snob]], and Betty was more of a StalkerWithACrush. That all three of them are essentially wonderful people at heart is a more recent development.
38	** There is a very rare dynamic in play in the Archie/Veronica/Betty relationship. It is so rare, that often, it goes unnoticed, as we try to morph it into a more familiar FMF gestalt. But, what is really playing out here is a typical "I'm in love with my best friend's girl" situation, only with the genders reversed. We are not accustomed to seeing a female in the "buddy with unrequited love" role, so most people morph it into "Archie is torn between two lovers"; this puts our focus back on the male, which is a cultural thing. Now, go back and reread these stories, but, in your mind, assume that the focus is on Betty as the "point" on the triangle, torn between loyalty to Veronica and her desire for Archie, and it will all become clear.
39	** Next week: I deconstruct the Moose/Midge/Reggie symbiosis, using Hegelian principles, and meaningful passages from Kierkkagard.
40	*** Just as long as you leave Jughead/Big Ethel/Dilton alone. Heidegger freaks me out.
41	** This troper ''has'' seen a number of times when Archie leaves Veronica for Betty, usually after he comes to some sort of realization that Veronica isn't worth the trouble.
42	* Spoiler Alert: A new issue of Archie has Archie proposing to [[spoiler: ''Veronica.'']]
43	** Spoiler: And a couple of issues later, [[spoiler: he will leave Veronica to marry Betty.]]
44	*** Actually [[spoiler:it isn't that he leaves her. It is more like he ends up going back down Memory Lane, back to the fork, and then takes the other road.]]
45	*** Either way [[spoiler:the story is setup so as the "wrong" choice (being with Veronica) is done first, and the the "right" choice (being with Betty) is done last. In these circumstances the last option depicted is always meant to be the right one.]]
46	*** Plus [[spoiler:while both marriages are separate whatifs, Archie experiences both in one long story, and when compared and contrasted it is the Betty marriage that is shown to be the "right" one for Archie.]]
47	*** Well "right" might not be the correct term. Easy seems more like it, the Veronica marriage seems to have more obstacles for them to go through. It will make the [[spoiler: nice house, twins, and happy family they have in the original miniseries all the more deserved.]]
48	** In the [[spoiler:Archie Marries Betty/Archie Marries Veronica AlternateUniverse, the girl Archie does not pick ends up with Reggie]]. While this sort of makes sense with Veronica, why would Betty actually pick him over her other LoveInterest, Adam?
49	*** Settling, perhaps?
50	* And how come Veronica never picked Reggie? Maybe because he usually goes after Midge and picks on Mouse?
51	** Because Reggie is vain and self-centered enough to annoy ''her''. As goofy and poor as Archie is, there are times when it is apparent that Veronica appreciates his modesty and sincerity, which Reggie rarely displays.
52	** Going by the above mentioned {{What If}} and the later ''Married Life'' story, Reggie marries Veronica in case Archie marries Betty.
53	* How long have they been in high school?
54	** Over sixty years, specifically since December 22, 1941. Next question.
55	** But wha-
56	** NEXT!
57	** One story explores a great WhatIf and actually shows that Archie is extremely compatible with Ethel! They find several things they have in common, have a very wonderful night out, and he even thinks about how, "Ethel is just so nice, hardly demanding on me like Betty and Veronica."
58	* Also, notice: nearly all of the questions dealt here are about BettyAndVeronica. Does that actually mean anything, or I'm just reading too much into it?
59	** I dunno - I'm half-convinced that ''Betty and Veronica'' are practically the actual main characters of this comic and Archie is just a DecoyProtagonist. Note that the two of them have starred in their stories and series over the decades, have their own supporting characters, and often receive much more character development than Archie.
60	* I know, they changed it now it sucks, mileage varying and all that...but why is so much of the artwork now so BAD? Sabrina anime especially.
61	** They're ending the "edgy realistic" style they use after one last issue, and as far as I can remember the cheap "anime" remixes are flops that are all getting canned.
62	* Why doesn't Betty just leave Archie for Jughead. I do remember one comic where she confided in him about how Archie would never pick her, and he got very upset over it.
63	** P.S. They would make an awesome couple, with Betty's love of cooking food and Jughead's...well...love of food.
64	*** Wouldn't surprise me, considering there was a comic where Jughead proposed to Veronica just so he could have access to her extensive kitchen.
65	*** The only issue is that usually Jughead is depicted as being rather asexual, with his only love being for food. He usually considers girlfriends more trouble than they're worth.
66	*** Just because Jughead considers girls to be more trouble than they're worth doesn't mean that he's asexual. After years of dealing with the drama and hassles of relationships, this heterosexual male has given up on girls for the time being. It could also be that Jughead is trying to live life to the fullest before becoming tied down (no offense to female tropers).
67	*** I'll go along with Jughead being asexual, but heterosexual? Not so much. His unrequited love is definitely for Archie. Why else is he always so dismissive of Archie's woman problems? He's just waiting for Archie to see the light.
68	*** Jughead gay? Never gone along with that thought. He's unmotivated and the only girl he's compatible with has a crush on his best friend. I take it as he doesn't do anything because he wants Betty to naturally realize Archie x Veronica is going to happen and can't be stopped. He doesn't want to cause a rift between himself and Archie or have her still pining over him. Fits into that 'Betty is the main character' thing quite well too.
69	*** Canonically, he's straight. He has a childhood female friend from the town he was in before he moved to Riverdale--and points out to Archie [[ContinuityNod that's why he was in a bad mood when they met]]--and dated her for a while when she moved to Riverdale. He also claims he secretly like's Ethel, and was absolutely stunned by how hot she became in the "Return to Riverdale" movie. And he had a son, though he was divorced. That childhood friend, Joani, moved to Riverdale, with Juggie also having feelings for another girl, Debbie. He also liked Janurary [=McAndrews=], Archie's descendant.
70	*** And it has been canonically confirmed in the reboot that Jughead is asexual!
71	** I think he's one of those straight men who just think women aren't worth the effort.
72	** Whether or not the story portrays him as straight or asexual, what remains consistent through all of them (possibly barring a few stories DependingOnTheWriter and all that) Jughead just isn't interested in Betty romantically. Over the years he has learned to appreciate her as a friend, but that's as far as it goes.
73	** In the early 1990's storylines, Jughead ended with four or five different love interests (all girls). Archie and Reggie complained in a few stories that Jughead had more of a love life than either of them.
74	* This troper only noticed recently that ''none'' of the sentences in these comics ever end in just one period, but either '...', '?' or '!'
75	** A lot of comics are like this, only using end-of-bubble punctuation when it is expressive. Dunno why.
76	*** Something to do with them being easier to make out and see on the page than a simple full stop when the comic is printed. At least that was the idea originally, these days it probably doesn't matter and it is more a holdover from an earlier time.
77	*** With old printing technology, a period or dot could be mistaken for an error and cleaned-up by editors. Using an exclamation mark or question mark solved that problem.
78	** [[WildMassGuessing You're supposed to read the comics in William Shatner's voice]]
79	* Moose and Midge. Barring RuleOfFunny.
80	** How is Moose even in high school? Several comics have shown that he still has trouble doing basic arithmetic!
81	*** [[Main/TruthInTelevision He is an athlete.]] The teachers let him slide so their team can win.
82	** Why is he not in jail, either? He's clearly been guilty of countless cases of assault and battery.
83	*** Read the answer above: He is. An. Athlete.
84	*** Being an athlete might get him through school, but not above the law.
85	*** Oh how I wish that was true in real life...
86	*** Well, it would probably be a juvenile facility of some sort and not a jail (as Moose is under 18), but yes, it seems odd he is allowed to get away with being a thug, on top of treating his girlfriend like property. Especially these days, with more attention paid toward bullying, violence at schools, social media, etc. An example of ValuesDissonance?
87	** Midge herself has got to be the least faithful girlfriend in the series. Any time Moose is out of town, she instantly decides to date other guys. And even after an argument or supposed break-up, she still goes crawling back to Moose.
88	*** She gets off on seeing her man beat the crap out of other guys, and he loves the testosterone rush of fighting for his girl, combine these two and you get one awesome sex life.
89	*** [[FridgeBrilliance Warning bells for an abusive relationship if these two should ever become married or even live-in partners, much?]]
90	** Older stories with them were even worse. Moose beat up other people for speaking to Midge, acting friendly to Midge, or having any interaction with her. In one story, Midge has to walk her way home late at night, and asks Reggie to escort her home for safety reasons. They don't have any romantic interaction. The next morning, Moose is hunting down a scared Reggie, because he was seen with "his" girl. In another story, Midge shows concern for a slightly injured Jughead, because she sees him as a close friend. Moose stops trying to beat up Reggie, and beats Judgead instead, because he was the one she cared for. In yet another story, Moose goes on a Hulk-like rampage, because Midge wanted to break up with him. Note that Midge has been depicted as having a violent temper as well. In one story, she gets the impression that Moose is leaving her for Betty Cooper. The next panel depicts a punched-out Moose, muttering "The Sputnik has landed" because Midge had punched him off-panel. Later in the same story, Moose does try to claim Betty for himself. Casually telling a horrified Betty, that if Archie dares to come near her, he will bash Archie's skull in. How is that comedy again?
91	*** Repeating an answer I gave above, comics like that are meant to be taken as slapstick comedy. A lesser version of how Yosemite Sam can have an anvil drop on his head and be completely fine the next scene. Archie comics can shift from serious drama to lighthearted comedy, and many earlier comics went for a slapstick style where any injury done by fists and feet are quite minor. Even if teeth are broken and eyes are blackened. I suspect there's a bit of whiplash considering how many stories are not nearly that zany, which results in the assumption that those stories show a brute with serious anger control issues seriously injuring people, instead of a big dumb guy who mistakes things and people are minorly inconvenienced by it.
92	* Mr. Weatherbee is entirely too powerful, and too petty, for a school principal. Public high school principals don't have the power to expel students. How many times have I seen Archie stumble over his feet and cause a huge calamitous mess and get "expelled" for it? Too many to count.
93	** When has Mr. Weatherbee ever expelled Archie? He has sent him to detention more times than there is even hours in a high school curriculum, but not once have I ever seen him actually expel, or even threaten to expel Archie. The closest was once asking Archie to transfer to another school, and that was more of a joke.
94	** There was one comic where Mr. Weatherbee expelled Archie. Archie left the school wondering what he was going to tell his parents. After a little while, Mr. Weatherbee felt guilty and went to find Archie. He found him playing video games in an arcade, and he was so angry that he marched in there and told Archie to report back to school immediately. One of my favorites.
95	* Why is Archie not in jail!? He has broken HOW MUCH of Mr. Lodge's shit now? That SHIT IS PRICELESS!
96	** Because Mr Lodge knows that his little girl will never forgive him if he sends Archie to jail.
97	** It is also probably heavily insured.
98	** You can't arrest someone for being terminally clumsy/careless.
99	*** (Outside of negligent homicide. Which would be a little dark for these comics.)
100	** The funny thing is that he isn't really clumsy. He once showed he was an excellent juggler, much to Ronnie and Lodge's surprise. [[HilarityEnsues Then he tripped on the way out...]]
101	** Because for every dollar Archie has cost Mr. Lodge in destroyed valuables, he has probably saved Mr. Lodge an equivalent amount by thwarting the various thieves, blackmailers and corporate rivals that try to rob him blind. Mr. Lodge being targeted for his wealth and being saved by Archie and the gang is one of the series' stock plots, after all.
102	** Some of the "pranks" played by Archie are actually illegal, even if played for laughs. One story has Veronica host a sleepover party for girls at the Lodge residence. Late at night, while the Lodges and their staff are sleeping, the girls are scared by spooky noises within the house. At the end of the story, the readers (but not the girls) learn that Archie, Jughead, and Reggie have broken into the mansion, and are trying to spook the girls while stealing all the food in the mansion's kitchen. Sounds like a home-invasion. Another story has Hiram Lodge notice a shadowy figure stalking Veronica while she is busy with her new part-time job. Hiram goes on Papa Wolf mode, but discovers that the figure is Archie, trying to find out whether Veronica was cheating on him. Hiram apparently finds nothing creepy in that and lets Archie go.
103	* When does the series take place? Instead of keeping it in the 40s like most comics, it appears to be in the 21th century with no signs of a retcon.
104	** It has always been set in present day. It is just that since it is a long runner, that sort of makes earlier comics look not-so-present day. Because of the lack of any actual story lines, the time period doesn't ever really matter because it would just be the same characters and jokes just with different outfits.
105	** It is always "present day". "Present day" changes all the time. In the 70s it took place in the 70s, now it takes place in the 2010s.
106	** The fashions, the technology, and the social conditions depicted in 70 years of publication history keep changing, but the characters and their core personalities stay the same. Periodic updates on their skill set aside, nothing much changes about them.
107	* How exactly is it that '''every''' time the characters go on vacation, and many times otherwise, they get entagled in some criminal affair? With the number of criminals they have apprehended, why don't they all have medals of honor?
108	** That is what happens when you combine long runners, NegativeContinuity, and throw in the occasional Wacky Adventure. The series doesn't have much of a real timeline, ya just gotta take it like it is.
109	** In some cases, they are actively looking for trouble. In a subseries of "Betty Cooper, Super Sleuther" stories, Betty is a teenaged amateur detective investigating burglaries, kidnappings, etc. On occassion using Veronica's contacts to have access to private events, because supposedly Veronica could never say no to Betty's "blue eyes". In some of Veronica's globe-trotting adventures from the 1980's and 1990's, she intentionally faced corporate spies, smugglers, and art thieves. Jughead has been depicted as a time police agent, going after time-traveling villains. Sassy Thrasher (a short-lived supporting character for Jughead) was depicted as a teenaged security agent for a corporation. And so on.
110	* Why is there a contest? Archie obviously prefers Veronica. Granted it is for the wrong reasons, but ''still''! He almost always picks her over Betty, gladly does anything she says, and is more than happy to blow of Betty for Veronica. Why doesn't he just go out with Veronica? I mean, I know he likes Betty, too, but he likes Veronica ''more''.
111	** Some stories try to explain why he likes spending time with both of them. Enjoying sports and outdoor activities with Betty, and a more "glamorous" nightlife with Veronica.
112	* Why does Kevin have blue eyes? It is jarring when everyone else has colorless, black eyes.
113	** Clearly [[Literature/ThePendragonAdventure Riverdale is the eleventh territory, and Kevin is Saint Dane.]]
114	*** Okay, okay, a Pendragon reference in an Archie Comics trope? ''Man,'' you're awesome!
115	** DependingOnTheArtist mostly when it comes to eye coloration. Betty Cooper and Cheryl Blossom have at times been depicted with blue eyes, and various minor and supporting characters have been depicted with Blue Eyes, Green Eyes, etc in stories with more detailed artwork. But the generic "colorless, black eyes" turn up more often because they are easier to depict and print.
116	* Why doesn't Archie just talk it out with the two ladies, and [[MarryThemAll go out with them]] ''[[MarryThemAll both]]''? They're both interested in him, he is interested in them both, why not? ...''Besides'' the obvious "defiant of societal norms"... or "being stupid".
117	** Because Archie knows he is on to a good thing. He fears if he actually had the conversation with them, they would make him choose and he would lose one of them. Whereas if things stay as they are, he has got it made.
118	** The girls have also been shown to be competitive when it comes to dating him. Highly doubt they would settle for what would essentially be a tie between the two of them.
119	** Depends on the story mostly. In one story, Veronica has been dating someone else and Betty (the protagonist of the story) is bored because their rivalry is inactive and she does not like this guy enough to try to woo him. When she learns that Veronica broke up with him and that their rivalry over Archie is back on, Betty couldn't be happier. The implication is that the rivalry gets her excited, not the boy that they are supposedly after.
120	* How many of these questions could be answered with, "Because then Archie Comics would no longer have stories to tell and would go out of business"?
121	** They always have Sonic, Sabrina, maybe Josie, and Mega Man to back them up if Archie ended soon.
122	** They also have the "Dark Circle" (formerly Red Circle) line of characters available.
123	** Not really. Besides romantic comedy (and occassional romantic drama) stories and storylines, most members of the regular cast have had stories involving school life (like trying to get a passing grade in a class they have trouble with), friendships, family relationships, sports activities, jobs, career opportunities, or trying to resolve someone else's problems. They make the characters a bit more rounded by focusing on other aspects of them.
124	** Going by the reboot, you can indeed tell stories with the gang even when Archie's either actively going steady with Veronica or even dating Sabrina. Mind you, both Veronica and Betty find Archie to be really important to them (Betty knowing him since they were little kids for one) even when he's broken up with both of them.
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126	* Why do Archie Comics let Riverdale influence their comics so much? We havent had a proper ongoing Archie or Betty and Veronica series in years, just a bunch of half hearted minis with varying ugly art styles. Whatever happened to the decarol style archie ongoings?
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128	* How come the comics never put focus on the more ahem ''biological'' aspects of teenage life? It's all well and good that it focuses primarily on dating, high school, getting a job, a car, and all the good and bad that come with those, but there's no mention of having to deal with B.O., pimples, growing hair in odd places, males having to deal with uneven facial hair, random boners and having to hide them, Betty & Veronica getting "monthly visits" which would actually account for their hostile attitudes in certain strips, having to shave, etc. I am aware that certain examples listed would not be appropriate unless they were in a version of the comics targeted at actual teenagers, but B.O., pimples, and having to shave lend themselves to a whole host of comedic situations and outcomes (for example, Archie accidentally spraying his armpits with Icy Hot instead of spray-on deodorant or Veronica freaking out about a few hairs sprouting from her chin). Plus, they don't have to explicitly state Veronica is menstruating, they just have to say it's "her time of the month".
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130	* How has there never been a live-action Archie sitcom? The books have numerous loony wacky stunts and stories that could easily be replicated on the small-screen. I get that Archie isn't ''always'' wacky goofy shenanigans, but with over ''80 years'' worth of comics, there are literally TONS of stories they could turn into decent sit-com episodes.
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Context Headscratchers / ArchieComics