Ask your mom who is the comic book world’s most famous female duo, and she’ll probably say Archie Comics’ good girls Betty and Veronica. Ask someone under 40, and they are likely to say DC Comics’ bad girls Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. Regardless of where you see the two pair of ladies hold court in the “comics’ biggest female duos” ranking, the four women are going to finally meet up in the crossover comic book event of the year.
DC Entertainment and Archie Comics have officially announced Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica #1. This story is being brought to us by Harley’s co-creator Paul Dini, along with writer Marc Andreyko (Wonder Woman ’77), with art by Laura Braga (DC Bombshells). It all starts this October as these teams of best gal pals cross between Gotham City and Riverdale.
In a statement, Paul Dini said “It’s the sort of offer you scream out ‘YES!’ to before your eyes reach the middle of the email. I’ve always wanted the chance to play in Riverdale, and to help Harley and Ivy invade it is a dream come true. Marc’s a great talent and a good friend. Writing this series with him has been like sitting on the lawn during summer vacation and reading a big pile of DC and Archie comics. Except we have to stay indoors and type a lot.”
“It’s going to be a blast to bring these amazing ladies together in this once-in-a-lifetime crossover,” said artist Laura Braga. “Each character is different and special. While Harley is one of my favorite characters ever, Betty and Veronica are giving her a run for her money! I love all these ladies, and this book is going to be non-stop fun. ”
According to co-writer Marc Andreyko, “When I got the call for this, I was in disbelief! Getting to co-write with Paul on a series bringing four of the most iconic ladies in comics together under one roof for the first time? This must be what winning the lottery feels like! I cannot wait for readers to see what mischief Paul, Laura, and I have dreamed up!”
The storyline for Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica begins in Riverdale, where there’s a plan brewing for free college tuition for all Riverdale residents. The downside is that Riverdale has to build a new campus by draining the local wetlands that lie between Riverdale and Gotham City. (Who knew these two cities were spitting distance from each other)?
Of course, “draining wetlands” means “killing plant life” and we know Gotham’s environmental radical Poison Ivy feels about all that noise. So Ivy calls upon her BFF Harley Quinn to kidnap both Veronica Lodge, daughter of Riverdale’s most important citizen, and her friend Betty. And from there on out, as they say, hilarity will ensue.
With Riverdale a huge success, and Suicide Squad a huge (commercial) success, millions more people now know who Betty, Veronica, and Harley are than ever before. And when Gotham City Sirens hits theaters, this will no doubt be true of Poison Ivy as well. There really was no better time for this crossover to happen.
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Hopefully, we get many more DC/Archie crossovers in the not too distant future. Hopefully we’ll see an Elseworlds where we learn what would have happened in Kal-El rocket landed in Riverdale and not Smallville, or even better, Jughead joining the Green Lantern Corps. (Look, the Punisher once came to Riverdale looking for a drug deal; anything is possible!)
Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica #1 is on sale October 4, 2017, with a Cover by Amanda Conner, and an as-yet unrevealed variant cover from Adam Hughes.
Are you as excited as we are for this meeting of comics’ greatest female duos? Let us know down below in the comments.
Images: DC Comics / Archie Comics
