Even though we’re living in a new golden age for flashy cape comic books and shared cinematic universes, Archie Comics has managed to carve out interesting footholds for itself with modern spins on romance and horror comics and a cheesy teen soap opera that has no business being as good as it is. But as fun as the Archie crew (in its many forms) is, the powers that be at Archie Comics want to try their hand at the superhero game once again.
Image: Archie Comics
The publisher is getting back into the swing of things with a revival of The Mighty Crusaders, a series featuring a number of the publisher’s Silver Age capes. Originally dreamt up by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel in 1965, The Mighty Crusaders took a ragtag group of heroes such as the Comet, the Fly and the Black Hood and turned them into your traditional team of capes, albeit with a decidedly campy flair to them.
Over the years, the Crusaders (as individuals) have popped up here and there under a number of DC and Archie Comics imprints, but this December, Archie is bringing the team back together as a unit in a new ongoing series. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Archie comics head Jon Goldwater described it as having all of the action and wonder of a more well-known series without the need to do a ton of background research to get in on the fun. The goal, Goldwater said, was to “create a book that’s accessible, not mired in a million crossovers and part of a bigger, unfolding story”.
Goldwater continued:
You don’t need a PhD in comics to hop onboard. Everything is explained in the first issue. These are beloved, iconic characters and it’s time we dust them off and let them shine for what they are — amazing superhero properties that deserve a bigger spotlight.
Written by Ian Flynn and illustrated by Kelsey Shannon, Mighty Crusaders will act as the “lynchpin” for Archie Comics’ Dark Circle imprint that’s been the home to classic members of the Crusaders such as the Black Hood and Hangman for some time now. How this new series will manage to make the Mighty Crusaders feel fresh for modern audiences remains to be seen, but we’ll find out what Archie Comics has cooking up when Mighty Crusaders #1 hits stores later this year.
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