Jughead: The Hunger #9 Review

Writer: Frank Tieri
Artist: Joe Eisma
Colorist: Matt Herms
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Publisher: Archie Comics

Jughead: The Hunger has been non-stop fun horror for me since it’s beginning. The series has played with so many different styles and tones and they totally all work. I feel as if this ninth issue takes the story in a little bit of a different direction from the previous eight: not in a way that is too different that it disrupts it's flow, but still different.

This issue slows things down quite a bit and may be the most mellow of the series so far. Thankfully, this tone actually comes at a perfect time. The first seven issues were action-packed and the eighth issue was a little bit of cool down. But now we are starting a new arc and this is a perfect issue to introduce it to us.

One of the things that is quite different about this issue is how dialogue-heavy it is. A lot has happened in this series and it has taken a toll on the entire town of Riverdale and it’s residents. It has also taken a very heavy toll on Jughead, Archie, and Betty. They are carrying the burden of keeping secrets about who killed several citizens of Riverdale and what Jughead really is. Jughead in particular has the heaviest load to bear due to the fact that he cannot control his transformations into a werewolf.

This arc’s beginning wraps up all of the crazy stuff that has happened so far and allows us to see the aftermath the city is dealing with. It also allows us to step back and really take in everything that has happened and what the city is like now. The first seven issues were very intense and this breather is nice.

Frank Tieri has been a great writer for this series because he has tackled so many genres and emotions and made every single bit of it amazing. This issue is an example of him writing a great emotional issue. The drama is always good in this series and as usual it is great here.

This issue also gives us a little more of the badass werewolf hunting Betty, but not in the ways we’ve seen. Before, she was cold and determined to find Jughead and kill him, claiming she had no ties to any of her “friends.” Obviously there was something there that connected them and we see this new badass Betty be a friend to Jughead and this version of Betty as a friend is still pretty vicious.

Joe Eisma does all of the art for this issue and unsurprisingly I loved every page of it. Tieri is able to write stories with amazing drama and horror and Eisma is able to perfectly illustrate those things for him.

This ninth issue serves as a fantastic introduction to this new arc of Jughead: The Hunger by serving us a nice plate of drama and an exciting and scary cliffhanger. The writing is good as always and the art is haunting and beautiful which makes this issue another success for this team. Jughead: The Hunger remains one of the best horror series of the last couple of years and seems to have no plans on stopping.