Hasta La Vista, Riverdale! Archie Faces the Terminator in Wild New Comic Crossover this October
Dynamite Entertainment, Archie Comics, and STUDIOCANAL have announced Archie vs. The Terminator, a five-issue comic book miniseries launching this October. The unlikely crossover will see a teenage John Connor enroll at Riverdale High, bringing Skynet's deadly future straight to Archie Andrews and his friends.
The crossover pairs two pop culture icons that few fans ever expected to meet. While Archie and the Riverdale gang have shared adventures with countless legendary characters throughout their 85-year history, this marks their first encounter with the relentless killing machine from The Terminator franchise.
Writer Rory McConville, who recently penned The Terminator: Metal, is steering the collision between the two worlds.
"Archie crossovers hold a very special place in comics, so I'm thrilled to be writing the gang's first (maybe last?!) encounter with The Terminator," said writer Rory McConville. "Enrolling John Connor at Riverdale High felt like the perfect way to bring these two iconic franchises together and I can't wait for readers to see what we have in store."
Bringing the action to life is the father-and-daughter art team of Steven and Lily Butler. Steven Butler is well known for his work on Spider-Man during the 1990s and for his extensive contributions to Archie Comics, including its long-running Sonic the Hedgehog series. In a full-circle moment, Lily Butler—whose birth was announced in the pages of that very comic in 1999—now joins her father as a frequent collaborator on the series.
Together, the duo will blend Archie's classic house style with the imposing metallic menace of the Terminator.
"When I got the invite to draw the Archie vs. The Terminator mini-series, I was deeply honored and excited at the same time," said artist Steven Butler. "I’ve always loved most the Archie stories that put the gang into some sort of overwhelming peril that they had to try to get themselves out of and now this mini-series gives us the opportunity to tell that kind of story I love so much! The icing on the cake is the fact that I get to work with my daughter Lily on this project — what more could a proud dad want?"
Lily Butler says the project is also a major milestone in her career.
"This story marks my first time working for Dynamite, and working on a full miniseries," added artist Lily Butler. "I’m super excited to be working on characters that I’m very familiar with like the Archie crew and other characters that are new to me. I think we’re working up a really cool project and I’m excited for everyone to see!"
Each issue of Archie vs. The Terminator will feature covers from an all-star lineup of artists, including Francesco Francavilla, Robert Hack, Björn Barends, and Bill Galvan. The debut issue will also be available in a mystery blind bag edition containing randomly selected limited-variant covers.
The new series follows the fan-favorite Archie x Army of Darkness crossover, continuing a growing partnership between Dynamite Entertainment and Archie Comics that promises even more unexpected mashups in the future.