Archie Comics Announces Development Deal With Warner Bros // PLUS: My Favorite Five Archie Comics Television Spin-Off Ideas!!

Archie Comics announced yesterday that the company has signed an exclusive deal with Warner Bros. Television to develop new television projects, now that "Riverdale" is nearly halfway through its first season run. This deal could include the traditional Archie Comics characters (i.e., Archie & the Riverdale Gang, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and Josie & the Pussycats), but it could also include lesser known characters from the publisher's archives.

Which got me thinking about potential media projects that I would to see come out of this development deal so...

Welcome to Jon's Blog's Favorite Five Archie Comics Television Spin-Off Ideas!!:

5. Sam Hill: Sam Hill is a private detective who appeared in his own comic book back in 1950 and 1951. He appears to have been inspired by those old private detective shows, such as "Sam Spade" and "Let George Do It."

Sam Hill is an interesting mix of contradictions. He's an Ivy League college graduate who lives the gritty life of a private dick. He's not above seducing (or slugging) an attractive woman, but refrains from any drink with more kick than a glass of whole milk. He punches villains. He gets into gunfights with the police. And he's a lot of fun!

He disappeared for many years after starring in his own comic book. Then he appeared in the "Night at the Comic Book Shop" storyline in ARCHIE & FRIENDS, followed by an appearance in LIFE WITH ARCHIE back in 2013. He had his straight-to-digital one-shot comic book that's also pretty good.

There's nothing new about Sam Hill, but everyone loves a good murder mystery show. A private eye show starring a compelling character actor starring as Sam Hill could really be great. They could run this as a vintage show set back in the 1950s or update the character with some modern adventures. Either way, I would love to see a program featuring Sam Hill!

4. Hangman: Archie Comics has several superheroes that they like to update every so often. I have one favorite and he is the Hangman! He has no powers. He just strangles people really quickly with the different ropes that he carries! His most recent adventures in the Dark Circle imprint have largely stalled, but the character was essentially made into an agent of the Devil or something like that. A flawed character seeking to redeem his soul by hanging countless other villains and sending them to Hell. I'm actually not as big a fan with this modern take on the character. But I do enjoy the simplicity of the Hangman and his weapon.

I would love to see the Hangman show up in some adventure stories featuring heroes and villains. Maybe the other Mighty Crusaders could show up from time to time to help out -- or cause trouble. But it would be great if Hangman (the human Hangman, not the avenging spirit Hangman) ran around fighting back against villains -- both powered and non-powered!

3. Jinx: Archie Comics revamped one of it's classic kid characters a few years back and it was a really great experiment that never really took off. I'm talking about the time that they took Li'l Jinx and revamped her and her friends as high school freshmen. They ended up publishing two graphic novels featuring Jinx before everything faded away. But they were so very good!

As you know, I'm a huge fan of anything "Degrassi!" When I think of Jinx, I think of "Degrassi." And yes, it goes there! High school crushes! Strained friendships! Former tomboys trying to figure out how to stay true to their roots while embracing their feminine side! Lesbian parents! And so much more!

2. New Crusaders: I was a big fan of the New Crusaders. These were the children and trainees of the Mighty Crusaders, who managed to defeat all of their videos and settle down into lives of simple suburbia. Then one day, their greatest enemy, the Brain Emperor, returned and killed all of the Mighty Crusaders except for the first hero. The Shield gathered the teens and helped activate all of their new powers. These kids became the New Crusaders: Comet, Fireball, Fly-Girl, Jaguar, Steel Sterling, and the Web. They were assisted in their adventures by a space monkey named Dusty.

Here is what I would do: I would create an animated series featuring the New Crusaders. I would pattern the artwork on properties like "Teen Titans" or something similar. Personally, I would get rid of the Shield and focus on Dusty and the teen heroes, whom I affectionately refer to as the New Cru! And I would go big on the villains. Brain Emperor! Eraser! Lodestone! Dragonfly! Brontosaurus! Elasto! Roxr, Ruler of the Vegetable Planet! Need I go on?? Animated New Cru!!

1. Sabrina: I actually wrote about this idea last year. Revamped 90s sitcoms like "Full House" and "Boy Meets World" were new hits and Melissa Joan Hart hinted that she was open to returning to an updated series based off her 90s sitcom of "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." Which resulted in huge cheers from the audience of the minor talk show that she was appearing on!

Here is my show concept again: Sabrina will be a single mom with 2-3 witchy kids. Each kid will have his/her unique quirks. Salem will be the household's manny, as well as the perpetual chaos-maker of the family. Sabrina will be torn romantically between her old high school flame Harvey and some handsome warlock. Sabrina's two aunts will make periodic appearance, as will her gay cousin Ambrose.

I can't wait to binge-watch this updated sitcom featuring Sabrina on Netflix!

How about you? Which of Archie Comics' properties would you like to see on TV?