Posted By Dan Greenfield on May 10, 2024 | 3 comments

EXCLUSIVE: Archie joins DC and Marvel in the game — with a bold first release…

We’re huge fans of the Facsimile Edition lines at both Marvel and DC and have long hoped that Archie Comics, the third great legacy comics publisher in America, would launch its own.

Well, the wait is over: Archie in August will be introducing a Facsimile Edition program and the first installment will be one of the most sought-after issues ever — 1968’s Betty and Me #16, featuring one of the all-time great double-entendre covers:

Dig the official solicitation info, which will be released by Archie later in May:

BETTY AND ME #16 FACSIMILE EDITION

It’s the cover that snuck past the Comics Code Authority and would go on to spawn a million memes! Archie Comics is proud to present this highly sought after issue of BETTY AND ME #16 faithfully reprinted in a full-facsimile edition!

Script: Various
Art: Various
Cover: Dan DeCarlo
On Sale Date: 8/7
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.

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A few thoughts:

— Sign me up, man. Plenty of other companies have published their own Facsimile Editions, but DC and Marvel are the only ones who do it on the regular, which makes sense given their rich histories. Archie, which dates back to 1939 when it was called MLJ Magazines, is the only other major comics publisher that belongs in that camp. The possibilities are endless — and we’ll get into that soon enough.

— For you Archie fans unfamiliar with Facsimile Editions: These are full-on reprints that include everything in the original mag — the letters, the ads, the special features, the whole bit. They’re mini time machines and they generally run only four or five bucks.

— Archie is sitting on a potential gold mine here. Facsimile Editions have become bona fide collectibles in their own right and these have a chance to cross over into fandoms that don’t always pick up Archie these days. Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, etc., fans are certain to keep their eyes peeled for classics from across the decades. Hell, I’m in for every one.

— And it’s great that editor-in-chief Mike Pellerito is doing this with a sense of humor. Archie’s history is loaded with innuendo covers like Betty and Me #16 and to start there is a bold way to enter this particular market. “How could you beat that cover as an attention-getting launch for the Facsimile line?” sez Mike.

— Obligatory Price Comparison: An unslabbed, midgrade original Betty and Me #16 recently sold on eBay for $300. I even saw someone on Facebook the other day celebrating that they had finally landed a copy. I myself had been considering tracking one down. Now I don’t have to!

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MORE

— 13 Risque ARCHIE COMICS Facsimile Editions We’d Like to See. Click here.

— 13 Historic ARCHIE COMICS Facsimile Editions We’d Like to See. Click here.