Reggie Mantle Is Still A Jerk In Archie #29

Reggie Mantle is still a jerk. Despite his run-in with the police after the car accident that left Riverdale sweetheart Betty Cooper in a wheelchair, he’s still looking to piss everyone off.  While in the slammer, Reggie met the real biological father of Cheryl and Jason Blossom, a convict named Eddie Sheers. He’s got a big secret and he can’t wait to spread it out far and wide to cause the most damage. Meanwhile, everyone else prepares for the Spring Dance, including Archie who needs to find his guitar if he’s going to perform there.

Archie’s quest to find his guitar is as ridiculous as it is hilarious. This lovable klutz is just so fun to watch, especially when some of his problems are brought on by his own faults, like not listening when his father told him something. His search for his guitar brings him all over town and bring about some of the funniest moments of Archie #29. It’s a nice palette cleanser from Reggie’s story of cynicism.
One of the strengths of the Archie series is how writers Mark Waid and Ian Flynn can drop a gag so quickly and efficiently that it gets a huge laugh and can continue on without missing a beat. There’s no moment of mugging for the camera or anything like that. It’s just a pure and simple panel of a teenage boy trying to look through a deep fryer for his lost guitar. That insane moment of desperation mixed with sheer stupidity always puts a smile on my face.

Artist Audrey Mok’s depiction of Archie matches up to this perfectly. Yes, he’s hopelessly clumsy and he’s sure to mess up everything he touches, including this upcoming performance at the Spring Dance, but you can’t help but love him. He means well. His heart is in the right place.
Contrast this with Reggie’s black heart. Just seeing his cocky smirk makes me want to take a shower. His presence evokes this visceral reaction of revulsion that has only built up more and more over the course of the series. It’s reached an apex in the most recent issues and this one continues to show that he’s a total jerk. I wonder if he’ll ever have a redeeming moment.  You’d think he’d have one after the accident, but that only seemed to fuel his anger at the world.

One could argue that the Blossoms aren’t the best people either and they may deserve what they’re getting. They represent an upper echelon of an exclusive wealthy class and they know it. Reggie wants to knock them down a peg and he’s happy to make the biggest splash possible with it.
My favorite part of Archie #29 has to be when Archie heads to Dilton’s house to find his guitar and discovers the brainy kid teaching Moose how to dance…with a mannequin. It’s such a perfect, innocent scene of this big lug trying to learn to dance so he can impress Midge only to get embarrassed and angry that someone else saw him doing it. I mean, he does look a little silly, especially since the mannequin doesn’t have any legs. He looks so pure and he’s clearly trying rather hard.

The scene nearly comes to fisticuffs but a quick understanding is struck. It closes out with a beautiful panel that is equal parts silly and heartwarming. It’s stuff like this that sets Archie apart from the other comics on the stands. This is what makes it a preeminent slice-of-life story that anyone of any age can enjoy.
Archie #29 is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.