Archie Meets the Punisher

Archie Meets the Punisher
Cover to Archie Meets the Punisher (Archie Comics version). Art by Stan Goldberg and Henry Scarpelli.
Publication information
Publisher	Archie Comics Marvel Comics
Format	One-shot
Genre	Humor/comedy, superhero
Publication date	August 1994
Number of issues	1 (two covers)

Archie Meets the Punisher, or The Punisher Meets Archie, (August 1994) was a one-shot comic book intercompany crossover published under two separate covers by Marvel Comics and Archie Comics, but with the same interior content. It featured the unlikely meeting of Marvel's murderous vigilante, the Punisher, and Archie Comics' all-American teenager, Archie Andrews. The book was written by Batton Lash, with artwork by John Buscema (drawing the Punisher characters) and Stan Goldberg (drawing the Archie characters).

Plot

The Punisher has made a deal with the government to hunt down a notorious drug dealer named "Red" who is hiding in Riverdale. The deal requires him to forgo his normally lethal methods and apprehend the suspect instead of killing him. This is fortunate, because Red looks exactly like Archie (though, perhaps for the benefit of the reader, Red is drawn as somewhat more muscular). Archie is mistaken for Red by the Punisher, who is undercover as a Phys-Ed. teacher at Riverdale High, while Red is sometimes mistaken for Archie by his friends. All parties remain completely in character throughout the issue, although Riverdale's inherent innocence compels the Punisher to allow his true quarry to live, for once. The comic ends with the joking suggestion that the next crossover will be between Wolverine and Jughead.

Cameos

The comic is full of references to various teen comics and superhero comics published by both companies. Archie's Josie and the Pussycats and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, make brief appearances, as do Marvel and Archie romance characters Millie the Model, Katy Keene, Hedy Wolfe, and Patsy Walker. Some characters, such as That Wilkin Boy, are mentioned, but not seen. Sabrina comments, "So I asked the Doctor if the Hosts of Hoggoth were really hoary," implying that she has met Marvel's Doctor Strange.

External links

• Nystrom, Andy E. (August 19, 1998). "Archie Meets the Punisher Annotations". Andy's Comic Book Site (fan site). Archived from the original on 2010-12-24. http://www.webcitation.org/5vEBUu7X6. 
• MacQuarrie, Jim (August 20, 2007). "Archie Meets the Punisher". Oddball Comics. Archived from the original on 2007-10-13. http://web.archive.org/web/20071013154222/oddballcomics.com/article.php?story=2007-08-20&mode=print.