Comic Bits Online Q&A Paul Kupperberg:

 I was checking old documents in my email folders and came across some from Archie Comics that I did in the early 200s. They were posted on the old site that vanished in 2011 so I thought why lose them forever!

To be honest I have done so many interviews that a few I found I could not even remember!!

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.Attribution: Luigi Novi

Paul Kupperberg, a long time DC editor, has put on his freelancer hat and headed to Riverdale to spend time with Archie & Friends. In between assignments Paul had time for an international chat with his UK fans at Comic Bits Online.

Comic Bits Online: I have to ask, do you prefer Betty or Veronica?

Paul Kupperberg: Betty. Veronica reminds me too much of my first wife.

Comic Bits Online: What's it like helping Archie live with that choice?

Paul Kupperberg: It’s great! It’s been a long time since I wrote an extended melodrama like this... really, the last time I had this much emotional intensity writing a character was during my run on Vigilante for DC in the mid-1980s... I have gotten choked up writing certain scenes. Being involved with these guys at this level—especially seeing as I’ve been reading them for almost half a century—there’s a real emotional involvement that develops. Vigilante was a lot more intense for different reasons, obviously. I mean, there’s hardly any gunfire in the LIFE WITH ARCHIE series. Anyway, I really enjoy getting this deep into the characters and their lives.

Comic Bits Online: Ultimately, do you think this series shows that either Betty or Veronica would have been a good choice for Archie, or does it show that either way Archie would face struggles and challenges?

Paul Kupperberg: It shows both, really. Ultimately, they really ARE a love triangle because the feelings are genuine all around. Archie does love both of them, depending on which one he happens to be with, and Betty and Veronica are able to stay friends in spite of the competition over Archie because they truly are BFFs. And every couple faces challenges and struggles, even the ones who are perfectly matched. Relationships are complicated and I’m trying to show that, but the very loose themes I’ve been keeping in mind writing these series are, for the Veronica story line, “Money can’t buy happiness,” and for Betty’s, “Love conquers all.” I guess they’re really the same thing, when you get right down to it, just approached from different directions.

Comic Bits Online: You are following Michael Uslan on the series; what were you told you had to do with the characters?

Paul Kupperberg: Only in a broad-strokes kind of way, in that Michael laid out the overall stories of Archie’s marriages in the miniseries. He also wrote an overview for the first six-issue story arcs, which he launched in the first issue of LIFE WITH ARCHIE. But it was left to me to break down the overview and work out the HOW and WHY of the actions. Michael left me a remarkably rich source of ideas to springboard off of, and I hope I’ve been able to keep faithful to those ideas while running with them in my own way.

Comic Bits Online: What were you told you couldn't do?

Paul Kupperberg: There were no restrictions placed on me. So far, Victor and everyone have been pretty pleased with everything I’ve thrown their way.

Comic Bits Online: What do you think it is that has made Archie so popular for 70 years?

Paul Kupperberg: Because for all the goofiness, Archie and the gang are based in reality. For all the outlandishness, readers have always been able to relate to them—I was 13 or so in the 1960s when I went through a really intense period of reading and collecting Archie comics. Aside from them always being well written and drawn, I think I read Archie because he was an inspirational character...just a few years older than me, but a cool kid among the cool kids in high school, where I was soon going to be. Girls read Archie because they wanted to be Veronica or Betty. Not that we’re conscious of any of this at the time, but Archie always stayed true to that point of view.

Comic Bits Online: How do you capture that magic and make it fresh and exciting for a new audience?

Paul Kupperberg: Fortunately, I’m working on a project that’s a fresh take on the old magic, so it starts off exciting. I mean, just the idea that THE QUESTION you asked me right at the top of the interview, “Betty or Veronica?”, is finally answered, even if the answer is “Both!” You actually get to see what life WILL be like for them when they get married...whichever one he marries! And, unless I’m mistaken, this is also the first time in Archie’s history that a title has ever been continuity driven. Plus, there’s the magazine format... and Norm Breyfogle’s art! Look, you know his straight superhero stuff, but he has so nailed the Archie look without losing his own very distinctive style. He’s a superhero artist! He’s cartoonish! Fortunately, he’s both. Yeah, the more I think about it, the more there is to be excited about!

Comic Bits Online: LIFE WITH ARCHIE is in Magazine format instead of comic size; does this attract a different age group?

Paul Kupperberg: Man, I hope so! I understand LIFE WITH ARCHIE is going to be available in a lot of different outlets, over and above the usual comic shops... places like Toys R Us and Walmart, where they’ll be accessible to readers who don’t frequent comic shops.

Comic Bits Online: As a result, do you adjust your storytelling?

Paul Kupperberg: No, not too much. On the one hand, I try to keep the vocabulary relatively simple, but on the other, I’m telling the stories I’m telling. I think there’s plenty enough depth there to keep the older readers interested, but nothing that interferes with an adolescent’s understanding of the story.

Comic Bits Online: Archie has been the perennial teenager, giving generations a look at what the perfect High School experience would look like. What does the twenty-something Archie show his readers?

Paul Kupperberg: Twenty-something Archie shows his readers that everybody has to grow up sooner or later, but it’s all going to be okay with a little help from your friends.