Who read "Archie" comic books?
As a little boy, I was baffled by the appeal of Archie comics about the not particularly entertaining lives of high school students Archie Andrews, Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper, and Veronica Lodge. Who read them?
Fifty years later, it finally dawned on me.
My best guess now is: little girls of, say, 8 to 11 who looked forward to themselves one day enjoying a sophisticated teenage social life of going to the prom and the like.
But why is Archie the main character rather than Veronica or Betty?
Because the target audience had big brothers in high school whom they idolized.
It's quite charming when you think about it.
In general, little girls are less sexist than little boys.
I read them ferociously when I was 8 or 9.
I am the eldest and don't buy your theory.
I'll tell you why I read them.
Sure Jughead was funny. Sure there was this dazzling Americana future to look forward to (I was a Soviet boy growing up in Australia).
But really: Veronica and Betty. Who wouldn't want Veronica and Betty fighting over you? I also knew then I was a Veronica kind of guy, and that archetype stuck for me as I grew up (brunettes, less earnest).
I loved them.
And you guessed it. I had two older brothers, one in middle school, and one in high school when I was In primary school. We spanned the Boom.