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Archie and gang head to space as they cross paths with Flash Gordon in upcoming summer issue

The 48-page special will be written by Jeff Parker, who also wrote 'Flash Gordon' for Dynamite Entertainment

In what may come as a pleasant surprise for DC and Archie comics fans, the upcoming summer issue will see Archie teaming up with Flash Gordon, one of DC's iconic superheroes. The 48-page special will be written by Jeff Parker, who also wrote 'Flash Gordon' for Dynamite Entertainment. 

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dan Parent comes in as the artist for the issue titled 'Archie Meets Flash Gordon'. The plot revolves around Archie and co. discovering a crashed alien spaceship that sees them cross paths with Ming the Merciless and Flash Gordon. 

Talking about the comic, Parker in a statement spoke about how the Riverdale gang could be a perfect fit anywhere. "I’m now a pretty big believer that the Riverdale gang can fit with practically any other characters and genres, but it’s best when they get to really flex and go way outside their zone like say, the planet Mongo with Flash Gordon, King of the Impossible. This, of course, coincides with the sad passing of cinema great Max Von Sydow who was the most memorable Ming the Merciless, and wait until you see our take on the Emperor of Mongo. I wanted to write more Archie and more Flash Gordon, so this really clicked for me, and I tried to laser in on tailoring this to be a story Dan Parent would enjoy drawing. He hasn’t yelled at me yet, so fingers crossed!”

Archie comics President, Alex Segura, said "Flash Gordon is an iconic, sci-fi/pulp hero, and in the long tradition of great, off-the-wall Archie crossovers, this seemed like a perfect next step. When we were thinking of creative for this, Jeff Parker, who did a bang-up job on Archie Meets Batman ’66, was atop our list. And no one is better equipped to give this one-shot the classic, retro-but-modern vibe that it demands than Archie legend Dan Parent. This book will be fun, accessible, and just what people are looking for.”

The CW show, 'Riverdale' also used the superhero storylines in their current season. Their Halloween special episode saw Archie Andrews (KJ Apa) suit up as Pureheart the Powerful, his superhero alter-ego in the comics. Other characters who managed to grab attention in their costumes were Madelaine Petsch's Cheryl Blossom and Vanessa Morgan's Toni Topaz. The duo dressed up as DC characters — Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. 

'Archie Meets Flash Gordon' is set to be released on June 3.