“I can tell you that it will be centered around a major Archie character,” teases Aguirre-Sacasa. “She has appeared in one of our books before. And [the book] will be in a genre we have not explored or even hinted at in Sabrina—in Afterlife, we’ve only hinted at in a tiny, tiny bit. And it will be set in the present.”Which caused everyone to think about supporting characters like Josie and the Pussycats or Cheryl Blossom or even Two-Fisted Toni Topaz! Even those characters seemed like stretches because she (the character) was supposed to have only appeared in one of Archie Comics' titles. Obviously, everyone appears everywhere in these books.
But it seems that we were thinking too broadly with our guesses. What if we weren't looking for an Archie Horror take on an existing character, but instead looking for an Archie Horror title about a previous one-off take on a classic Archie Comics character.
I'm talking about Vampironica, a vampiric version of Veronica Lodge who previously appeared in BETTY & VERONICA #261 and 262! Plus, she was "hinted at (in) a tiny, tiny bit" in AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE #1. Veronica was dressed in a Vampironica costume at the school dance in that issue.
The talk picture was shown to Archie Comics fans at this past weekend's San Diego Comic Con. The image by Francesco Francavilla also began circulating this weekend on Twitter. It was strongly implied, according to an online acquaintance who attended the SDCC Archie Panel, that the Vampironica image was the source of Archie Horror's third title.
So, it's looking like Archie Horror's new third title will be a vampire-themed book. Unless they're just tossing a curve-ball at us!