Thanks to the kindness of Archie Comic, AIPT is able to share the design and commentary for Archie is Mr Justice. The comic, with its first issue on sale November 20th, follows the iconic character Archie Andrews as he leaves his mark on Riverdale and reminds his friends of his incredible and selfless deeds. He is being reconsidered as a hero.
Check out the commentary and art by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton below.
“The task of designing the initial concept for Mr. Justice was a bit of kismet,” said writer Tim Seeley. “I teach a cartoon class, and one of the designs I teach as an example of a great cartoon is Archie. It’s instantly recognizable, timeless, and serves its function amazingly well. I was teaching that lesson the same day we talked about wanting to do a superhero design, and we tried to apply those instantly recognizable elements and colors to a superhero concept. He decided to use the stylized Scales of Justice as his superhero emblem and kept many of the classic elements.
Archie Comics art director Vincent Roballo said of the design:
“We explored modern aesthetics when it came to character design, especially the costumes. We worked closely with author Tim Seeley, who is also an accomplished artist, to develop the design of Archie as Mr. Justice. I created a few pieces, which helped lay the groundwork for Mike Norton, who continued to work on the extended cast design.”
Jamie L. Rotante, Archie Comics Senior Director of Editorial Department, added: JUSTICE is one of our boldest initiatives to date. This isn’t the Archie superhero story you’d expect, it’s a completely new take on the classic character in ways we haven’t yet explored, and Archie takes on the role of an already introduced hero. Masu. Exists among Archie’s vast library of characters. ”
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