It’s hard to say which Archie Comics character is most popular in the public’s mind. Everybody knows Archie, but Sabrina Spellman might have the lock on public interest. It’s no surprise, then, that when Archie Comics decided to outsource their next incarnation to Oni Press, Sabrina the Teenage Witch would be a key book. Not the flagship–that’s Archie arriving in September.
The Riverdale Universe will get progressively darker. After Archie #1, Sabrina the Teenage Witch arrives in time for Halloween. It may be light-hearted (maybe), but Archie in Hell follows in November, and does not sound like a laugh riot. But maybe.
Writer Corinna Bechko and artist Kona look to be combining light horror and playfulness. This gives off the energy that it could be this generation’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as Buffy succeeded Sabrina some 25 years or so ago. At least Salem looks like he’s not taking too much seriously.
Cover A by Kano
From Oni Press:
THIS OCTOBER, YOUR LOCAL TEENAGE WITCH IS CONJURING UP SOME MISCHIEF! Oni Press – the multiple Eisner and Harvey Award-winning publisher of groundbreaking comics and graphic novels since 1997 – and the world-renowned Archie Comic Publications, Inc. are proud to unveil the first look inside the pages for SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH #1, the latest in a stunning and fun-fueled new line of Archie comics from Oni Press beginning this fall! This October – just in time for Halloween – join Hugo Award-nominated writer Corinna Bechko (Green Lantern: Earth One, EC’s Blood Type) and Eisner Award-nominated artist Kano (Daredevil, EC’s Cruel Universe) to summon a new spell of magic and mischief in a brand-new ongoing series hell-bent on launching comics’ most iconic sorceress-in-training into a spectacular new era for Archie Comics!
“I couldn’t have conjured a project I’d be more excited to write than SABRINA!” said writer Corinna Bechko. “Thank goodness I couldn’t do magic as a teen because the results would have certainly been dire. Fortunately, Sabrina can rely not only on her two witchy aunts and her mortal friends but on her trusty if acerbic feline familiar as well. They all help keep her grounded, not an easy thing to achieve when you’re a teenaged witch!”
Who’d ever want to be ordinary when you could be a teenage witch instead? Still reeling from the surprise revelation of her secret birthright and with Halloween just around the corner, high schooler Sabrina Spellman is honing her craft one hex at a time and figuring out how to balance her magical new life with the crushing responsibilities of being 16 years old. But when her feline familiar Salem drops a mythical trickster on Sabrina’s literal doorstep, she might not be able to keep her two worlds from smashing together like two busted pumpkins on All Hallow’s Eve. No time for fate. No time for destiny. No time for homework. Being a teenager is far from magical . . . even when you’re a witch!
“I love Sabrina—both for her fun, spellbinding exploits but also for all the things that make her particularly human,” said editor Megan Brown. “What costume should she wear to the upcoming Halloween party? Does Harvey have a crush on the new girl? What will happen if anyone in school finds out she can do magic?! Digging into Sabrina’s world has reminded me that you don’t have to be less to be yourself—and that you should always feel a bit magical.”
A new era is summoned forth this October, only in SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH #1 by Hugo Award nominee Corinna Bechko and Eisner Award nominee Kano —featuring a covers by spellbinding cast of talents including Kano, Marguerite Sauvage (Action Comics), Naomi Franq (Tales from Harrow County: Death’s Choir), Caroline Cash (PeePee PooPoo), Dan Parent (Life with Kevin), Erica Henderson (The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl), and Mahmud Asrar (Conan the Barbarian)!
But the milestone comics publishing event of 2026 doesn’t stop there!
This September, a new day is dawning in Riverdale as New York Times bestselling writer, Edgar Award and Philip K. Dick Award winner, and Eisner Award nominee Ben H. Winters (The Last PolicemanTrilogy, Benjamin) joins multiple Eisner Award–winning artist Fábio Moon (Daytripper, Casanova) and multiple Joe Shuster Award-winning cover artist Stuart Immonen (All-New X-Men, New Avengers) to reintroduce America’s favorite teenager! For his entire life, 17-year-old Archie Andrews has had it all: adoring friends, football glory, and a natural charm that always seems to make him the center of attention. Now, through his eyes, experience the warmth and wonder of Riverdale and its near-infinite roster of residents—the popular kids, the endearing oddballs, and everyone in between—as Archie embarks on a whirlwind, all-star adventure through his town’s past, present, and future . . . beginning with a local film festival that’s about to turn everything upside down! And, at the center of it all, lies an enigmatic paradox that only Archie’s pal Jughead Jones can possibly unravel . . . Plus: Puzzles! Pin-ups! And a veritable sweet shop of surprises that all link to the same inextricable mystery . . . Finally, your antidote for postmodern malaise has arrived. Welcome to the all-new ARCHIE #1 this September!
Then, in November, the inferno begins in ARCHIE IN HELL #1! In another time, in another Riverdale, Archie Andrews’ radiant life is about to turn pitch black. Separated from his friends and bound by a terrible curse, there’s only one way to save Archie: to damn him. But he won’t be alone for long . . . The next smash hit in Archie’s wildly successful horror line is ARCHIE IN HELL! Join multiple Eisner Award winner Patrick Horvath (Beneath the Trees where Nobody Sees) and Eisner Award nominee Tyler Crook (Out of Alcatraz, Harrow County) as they forge a brand-new legend of Archie horror, leaving a blood-stained trail from 1690 to the present day.
Of course, Archie Comics Publications did have success going darker in the 2010s with Afterlife with Archie (still rumored to be in development for Disney+), The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Vampironica, and other “Archie’s Madhouse” titles. But once mastermind Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa landed Riverdale on the CW, the already spotty publication of those books went to, well, hell. Recently, the company had good cross-overs: Archie vs. Minor Threatsand Archie vs. Army of Darkness. The latter trade will be available in October as well.
But again, those bumps are goosed by just how ridiculous the cross-overs sound. Archie needed the Evil Dead more than the Evil Dead needed Archie. I have no idea what Archie Comics Publications own plans are; they may just be trying life as an IP holding company. Watch this space for yet another attempt to revive The Mighty Crusaders.
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In addition to running Fanboy Planet, Derek has contributed stories to Arcana Comics (The Greatest American Hero) and Monsterverse Comics (Bela Lugosi's Tales from the Grave). He has performed with ComedySportz, City Lights Theater Company and Silicon Valley Shakespeare, though relocated to Hollywood to... work in an office? If you ever played Eric's Ultimate Solitaire on the Macintosh, it was Derek's voice as The Weasel that urged you to play longer. You can buy his book "I Was Flesh Gordon" on the Amazon link at the right. Email him at [email protected].
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“I couldn’t have conjured a project I’d be more excited to write than SABRINA!” said writer Corinna Bechko. “Thank goodness I couldn’t do magic as a teen because the results would have certainly been dire. Fortunately, Sabrina can rely not only on her two witchy aunts and her mortal friends but on her trusty if acerbic feline familiar as well. They all help keep her grounded, not an easy thing to achieve when you’re a teenaged witch!”
