ARCHIE MEETS JAY & SILENT BOB
ARCHIE COMIC PUBLICATIONS, INC.
STORY: Kevin Smith
PENCILS: Fernando Ruiz
INKS: Rich Koslowski
COLORS: Matt Herms
LETTERS: Jack Morelli
EDITORS: Jamie Lee Rotante; Vincent Lovallo; Stephen Oswald
EiC: Mike Pellerito
COVER: Fernando Ruiz and Rich Koslowski with Rosario “Tito” Peña
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Francesco Francavilla; Phil Hester; Dan Parent; Ty Templeton; Dan Panosian; Michael Allred; Fernando Ruiz and Rich Koslowski with Rosario “Tito” Peña
48pp, Color, $7.99 U.S. (regular covers), $11.99 (foil variants) (September 2025); on sale in comic book shops July 9, 2025
Rating: Teen+/Mature
Eternal high school student and teenage boy, Archie Andrews, and his friends made their debut in M.L.J. Magazines' Pep Comics #22 (cover dated: December 1941), and before long, Archie was the publisher's headliner character. In 1946, the company changed its named to Archie Comic Publications, also known as “Archie Comics.”
“Archie Meets” is a series of mostly one-shot comic books which features the cast of the Archie comic book franchise meeting other fictional pop culture characters or real-life figures. The first was Archie Meets the Punisher from Archie Comics and The Punisher Meets Archie from Marvel Comics. The latest is Archie Meets Jay and Silent Bob. Film fans know that the characters, “Jay and Silent Bob,” appear in some of the films from writer-director Kevin Smith. Jay, played by actor Jason Mewes, and Silent Bob, played by Kevin Smith, himself, first appeared in the film, Clerks (1994), and went on to appear in several of Smith's film, including their own Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001).
Archie Meets Jay and Silent Bob is written by Kevin Smith, drawn by Fernando Ruiz (pencils) and Rich Koslowski (inks); colored by Matt Herms; and lettered by the great Jack Morelli. In this new one-shot, a summer job turns into so much more when Archie meets Jay and Silent Bob.
Archie Comics & Secret Stash Press Present “Jay & Silent Bob: Chasing Archie”:
“Jay & Silent Bob: Chasing Archie” opens at “Quick Stop Groceries” where Randal Graves is thinking about the recent passing of his friend, Dante Hicks (as seen in 2022's Clerks III). He also thinks that he and his coworker, Elias Grover, should not work as hard as they are, although Randal doesn't really work hard. Enter Archie Andrews – out of Riverdale and in New Jersey looking for a job.
Our All-American boy has entered the world of profanity, scatological conversation, and weed, but there is even more. Before long, Archie has met Jay & Silent Bob and has entered “RST THC” (formerly “RST Video”), their small business, a legal marijuana dispensary. Archie's new Jersey acquaintances all think he is square. Then, they learn that he is in a rock 'n' roll band, “The Archies.”
As luck would have it, The Archies are opening for “Josie and the Pussycats” on the power trio's Riverdale stop of their current concert series, “The Ersatz Tour,” at the “Riverdale Arena.” Jay's daughter, Millennium “Milley” Faulken,” loves Josie and the Pussycats. So, now, Randal, Jay & Silent Bob, Millie, Elias, and tag-along Blockchain are heading to Riverdale for the concert. But when one of the visitors decides to crash one of the bands' set, who knows just how crazy it will get.
THE LOWDOWN: For several years, Archie's marketing department has been sending me PDF copies of some of their titles for review. One of the most recent is Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.
Right from the start, I have to say that I love Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob, and I do mean love. As for as celebrity-written Archie comics one-shots go, Kevin Smith's turn here works out much better than October 2024's mildly disappointing and slightly over-hyped Archie: The Decision, written by DC Comics superstar writer, Tom King.
Kevin Smith makes Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob read like genuine Archie Comics, even with all the profanity (the F-bomb, among them), sexual innuendo, and drug references. In fact, the adult, or at least, older-teen elements don't seem all that out of place simply because this comic book is such a fun read. The happy ending makes me think that Kevin Smith, Jay & Silent Bob, and the “View Askewniverse” should make regular visits to Riverdale and vice versa.
The pencil art by Fernando Ruiz is classic Archie Comics storytelling and conveys a sense of spry, slightly edgy comedy that Kevin Smith brings to this and that frequently yields surprises – some of them shameless. Rich Koslowski, a frequent Archie Comics contributor, uses his solid inking on Ruiz's pencil art to sharpen the storytelling's focus. The colors by Matt Herms and the letters by the great Jack Morelli put the finishing touches that make Kevin Smith's characters and situations feel right at home in the world of Archie.
Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob is really a big deal. It is a classic-style Archie Comics comic book, so I automatically love it. However, dear readers, Kevin Smith and the creative team so completely pull off this crossover slash mashup that I think anyone who has ever enjoyed an Archie comic book will certainly enjoy Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of classic-style Archie Comics and of Kevin Smith will want to find a copy of Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.
A
★★★★ out of 4 stars
EXTRAS:
-- This comic book includes a “Special Feature, an essay by Fernando Ruiz entitled, “Notes from New Jersey … and Riverdale!.” in which Ruiz writes about his collaboration on this comic book with writer Kevin Smith. This piece also includes preliminary art and a color sketch.]
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The Kindle edition of ARCHIE MEETS JAY & SILENT BOB is available at Amazon.
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