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Long before there was The Bachelor, before there were reality shows, before all of that, there was a love triangle that captivated people’s imaginations. Finally, after sixty years, a decision has been made.  Hold on to your seats: Archie Andrews is choosing a girl.

Yes, that lovable redhead is finally settling down and getting hitched, that crazy kid. I must’ve been living under a rock because I thought the Riverdale High gang was still in high school. Apparently Miss Grundy got tired of their hijnks and told Mr. Weatherbee: “It’s time they graduated from high school, man.”   Now they graduated from college, and it’s time for Archie to choose between Betty and Veronica.  

When I first heard the news, I thought, that is so wrong.  Why end a good thing? It’s like Lucy not taking away the football, or the kids on the Family Circus growing up. I know I wasn’t the only one to feel this way. Here’s a couple of Red Room Authors who weighed in on this controversial issue:

 Did Archie go on The Bachelor?  Will he pull a bachelor after he picks one or the other, switching to Veronica or Betty after picking Betty or Veronica?

To be truthful, I don't care.  Archie is kind of a jerk, and I really think the marriage will fail, even after such a long courtship.  I never liked him.  Jughead was always much more interesting to me. 

–Jessica Barksdale Inclán, author of the upcoming romance The Beautiful Being.

Archie and Elizabeth Andrews
Windy Hills Trailer Park, Unit 14
Riverdale, CA 92033

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Andrews,

As Ms. Veronica Lodge's legal representation, I am writing to inform you that Ms. Lodge has filed a formal restraining order with the county sheriff.

While she regrets the necessity of such an action, she feels that, having captured you both on film in the act of trespass while going through the Lodge estate's trash, no other course is left to her. While she cannot at this time prove that either or both of you were responsible for the vandalism of her Mercedes, or for the piles of dog feces left just outside her property, the restraining order requires you both to remain at a remove of no less than 1000 feet from the Lodge estate, and from Ms. Lodge personally.

Ms. Lodge understands your resentment at your reduced circumstances. She feels, however, that your choice to drop out of school and wed was your own decision. Additionally, she states that the consequences of Mrs. Andrews' decision to take fertility drugs, and the subsequent birth of your septuplets, are neither her fault nor her responsibility.

In closing, I am asked by Lodge Realty to remind you those payments on your double-wide are four months in arrears. As your landlord, Ms. Lodge hopes to see a payment within seven days, to avoid eviction.

Sincerely,

Horvath Bletherley
Attorney at Law

–Deborah Grabien, author of theJ.P. Kinkaid,  mysteries and the novel Dark’s Tale. 

Archie proposed to Betty?  I didn't know about this!  Why wasn't it in my local newspaper!  And aren't they sorta young?  I thought they were still in high school!

In my opinion, he asked the wrong girl. I think Veronica is probably more sexually experienced than Archie knows, and that Betty's not only a virgin, but she's probably taken that Christian oath, whatever it's called.  In fact, Veronica, being the more wordly of the two, is probably at least an agnostic and a humanist, and while I would hope that Betty at least attends a liberal Christian church on Sundays, it's quite possible that she's a right-wing Christian whose family (Is she old enough to vote?) voted yes on Proposition 8, the anti-same sex marriage initiative.

Of course, we don't know much about Archie's politics either, do we, and there's a big chance that he's pretty conservative, so maybe he and Betty are the perfect match.

–Trina Robbins, author of Wild Irish Roses and Wonder Woman, the Once and Future Story.

On Thursday the decision was announced on Marvel’s website. I won’t spoil it, but it will be talked for years to come. Oh, Archie, let’s hope you made the right decision. A lonely nation turns its eyes to you.

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