Comic book icon Archie to be shot saving gay friend [Poll]

Should comic books mirror reality and portray adult themes? That’s what the soon to be released installment of the Archie comic book series will be portraying.

Archie Andrews, the star of the series, whose antics with Betty, Veronica, Reggie, Moose, and Jughead were well chronicled, will meet his demise saving the life of a gay friend who was recently introduced into the “Life with Archie” series a few years ago.

I was just a little surprised when I found out that Archie would die. Getting the Archie comic book always made going to the Stride Rite store back when I was a kid worth it. And I always just assumed that a character like Archie would live into perpetuity.

In 2014 - not so much.

According to Archie Comics Publisher and CEO:

"The way in which Archie dies is everything that you would expect of Archie," said Jon Goldwater, Archie Comics publisher and co-CEO. "He dies heroically. He dies selflessly. He dies in the manner that epitomizes not only the best of Riverdale but the best of all of us. It's what Archie has come to represent over the past almost 75 years."

"We wanted to do something that was impactful that would really resonate with the world and bring home just how important Archie is to everyone," said Goldwater.

"That's how we came up with the storyline of saving Kevin (the openly gay character.) He could have saved Betty. He could have saved Veronica. We get that, but metaphorically, by saving Kevin, a new Riverdale is born."

"Archie is not a superhero like all the rest of the comic book characters," said Goldwater. "He's human. He's a person. When you wound him, he bleeds. He knows that.

If anything, I think his death is more impactful because of that. We hope by showing how something so violent can happen to Archie, that we can - in some way - learn from him."

Maybe it's me and I'm getting the feeling that a part of my youth is gone.

But there’s a time and place for everything. Learning something from a “comic” book takes away the meaning of the “comic” book in the first place. Isn’t that what schools should be teaching?

Comic books aren’t necessarily teaching tools. While the idea may be laudable – not so much in this venue.

Should comic books meant for children have serious themes?