Archie Meets the Punisher, or The Punisher Meets Archie, (August 1994

1994 in comics

-Year overall:* Huge changes in the marketplace force many retailers and small publishers out of business...

) was a one-shot comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 intercompany crossover

Intercompany crossover

In comic books, an intercompany crossover is a comic or series of comics where characters published by one company meet those published by another...

 published under two separate covers by Marvel Comics

Marvel Comics

Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...

 and Archie Comics

Archie Comics

Archie Comics is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the Village of Mamaroneck, Town of Mamaroneck, New York, known for its many series featuring the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Reggie Mantle and Jughead Jones. The characters were created by...

, but with the same interior content. It featured the unlikely meeting of Marvel's murderous vigilante, the Punisher

Punisher

The Punisher is a fictional character, an anti-hero appearing in comic books based in the . Created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita, Sr., and Ross Andru, the character made its first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 .The Punisher is a vigilante who employs murder,...

, and Archie Comics' all-American teenager, Archie Andrews

Archie Andrews (comics)

Archie Andrews, created in 1941 by Vic Bloom and Bob Montana, is a fictional character in an American comic book series published by Archie Comics, as well as the long-running Archie Andrews radio series, a syndicated comic strip, The Archie Show, and Archie's Weird Mysteries.-Character and...

. The book was written by Batton Lash

Batton Lash

Batton Lash is a comic book creator. His art is inspired by Steve Ditko and Charlton Comics horror stories.Since 1979, he has been writing and drawing Wolff and Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre which first appeared as a weekly newspaper strip in The Brooklyn Paper and The National Law Journal, later...

, with artwork by John Buscema

John Buscema

John Buscema, born Giovanni Natale Buscema , was an American comic-book artist and one of the mainstays of Marvel Comics during its 1960s and 1970s ascendancy into an industry leader and its subsequent expansion to a major pop culture conglomerate...

 (drawing the Punisher characters) and Stan Goldberg

Stan Goldberg

Stan Goldberg is an American comic book artist best known for his work as a flagship artist of Archie Comics and as a Marvel Comics' 1960s colorist, who helped design the original color schemes of Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and other major characters.-Career:Stan Goldberg began work in the...

 (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

Riverdale (Archie Comics)

Riverdale is a fictional town somewhere in the United States that is the setting for most of the various characters that appear in Archie Comics...

. 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

Wolverine (comics)

Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...

 and Jughead

Jughead Jones

Jughead Jones is a fictional character in Archie Comics who first appeared in the comic in December 1941. He is the son of Forsythe II; although in one of the early Archie newspaper comic strips, he himself is identified as Forsythe Van Jones II...

.

Cameos

The comic is full of references to various teen comics and superhero comics published by both companies. Archie's Josie and the Pussycats

Josie and the Pussycats (comic)

Josie and the Pussycats is a teen-humor comic book about a fictional rock band, created by Dan DeCarlo and published by Archie Comics. It was published from 1963 until 1982; since then, a number of one-shot issues have appeared without regularity...

 and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

Sabrina the Teenage Witch is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a teenage fictional character named Sabrina Spellman. The character was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo. The comic's characters have also appeared in various other media...

, make brief appearances, as do Marvel and Archie romance characters Millie the Model

Millie the Model

Millie the Model was Marvel Comics' longest-running humor title, first published by the company's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and continuing through its 1950s forerunner, Atlas Comics, to 1970s Marvel.-Publication history:...

, Katy Keene

Katy Keene

Katy Keene, a character created by Bill Woggon, has appeared in several comic book series published by Archie Comics since 1945. She is a model/actress/singer known as America's Queen of Pin-Ups and Fashions....

, Hedy Wolfe, and Patsy Walker

Hellcat (comics)

Hellcat is a fictional character published by Marvel Comics. She premiered as the star of a teen romantic-comedy series and was later integrated into Marvel superhero franchises such as the Avengers and the Defenders....

. Some characters, such as That Wilkin Boy

That Wilkin Boy

This article is about a spinoff series of Archie Comics.That Wilkin Boy is a comic book series about a teenage boy, Bingo Wilkin, who lives in Midville, next door to his girlfriend, Samantha Smythe...

, 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

Doctor Strange

Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....

.

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