Following her return to the pages of Archie Comics in The Cursed Library and Jinx: A Cursed Life (with her initial introduction occurring back in 1989 in Dilton's Strange Science), Danni Malloy will be front and center in the upcoming one-shot Chilling Adventures Presents... Strange Science, which will reveal that Danni is transgender as she travels through time to save her friend Dilton Doiley and the entire town of Riverdale!
Written by Magdalene Visaggio with artwork by Butch Mapa, Strange Science will be released on August 16th by Archie Comics, and we have a look at the cover art (including a variant cover by Skylar Patridge) and additional details for this essential release!
Also, in case you missed it, Daily Dead and Archie Comics have teamed up for "Archie's House of Horror," a recurring column written by Jamie L. Rotante, Senior Director of Editorial at Archie Comics! Go here to catch up on all of the previous installments of Archie's House of Horror (including the most recent edition centered on Jinx: A Cursed Life), and be sure to visit Archie Comics to keep up to date on all of their releases!
Press Release: With a string of top-selling comics establishing Jinx Holliday as the latest star of the Archie Horror imprint from Archie Comics, supporting character Danni Malloy will be next to take center stage. The duo embarks on a new terrifying adventure in CHILLING ADVENTURES PRESENTS... STRANGE SCIENCE, a one-shot comic book releasing in August.
Writer Magdalene Visaggio (Eternity Girl)—whose run on a modern update of the classic character Li'l Jinx began with the instant sell-out anthology JINX: GRIM FAIRY TALES last fall—teams with artist Butch Mapa (Star Wars) for this latest entry, a turn towards dark sci-fi. In a story about being true to yourself and what matters most to you, STRANGE SCIENCE will also reveal that Danni is transgender.
"I've been wanting to make this happen for a long time, and it's really cool to see it finally come to fruition," Visaggio said. "I never wanted Danni's trans identity to be gimmicky, or for her to feel like she was only created to be trans. So, I'd like to apologize for sneaking her over the line like this! I wanted you to have a chance to fall in love with her for who she is, not what she is. I'm honored I got to make it happen, and I'm grateful to Archie for never, not even once, pushing back on my insistence on making their books a little bit more queer. I hope Danni finds a good home at Archie with supportive writers and artists helping to keep her alive for years to come."
The new one-shot takes its title from the 1989 comic book series DILTON'S STRANGE SCIENCE, which introduced Danni, a science genius who rivaled tech expert Dilton Doiley's prodigious talent. In Visaggio's story, Danni has left that life behind to become an artist and musician, exposing her to criticism from Dilton as the teens try to save themselves from a bizarre time travel accident.
"STRANGE SCIENCE is one of, if not the, most important one-shots we've released to date. It also showcases how versatile horror can be, as it deftly blends sci-fi with horror and tells a beautiful, poignant tale about confronting the past," said Archie Comics Senior Director of Editorial Jamie L. Rotante. "That’s all thanks to writer Magdalene Visaggio, who had the idea to have Danni Malloy tell her own story about her transition. We just needed to figure out the best way to make it fit, and a callback to her character's classic origins mixed with the new horror surroundings she's been re-introduced in just made the most sense."
Mapa added, "Magdalene wrote a story that is vital and poignant and brilliant at the same time, while also being a fantastic piece of horror/sci-fi. Expect lots of weirdness, emotion, action, and character."
Danni's first appearance in the modern Archie Horror universe was THE CURSED LIBRARY, a one-shot released on Free Comic Book Day earlier this month, and she reappears alongside Jinx in their first full-length solo adventure this week in JINX: A CURSED LIFE, both with art by Craig Cermak (Red Team). The sequence subtly establishes linked continuity in Archie Horror for the first time with references to events in other titles, and serves as a starting point for all horror fans looking for a new storytelling universe to explore.
"I think it's clear to anyone reading this that there is a ton of passion and heart in this story, which was demonstrated on every script page," Rotante said. "I'm so proud of this book, but moreover, it's an honor to help bring this beautiful story to life, and I'm consistently awed by the amazing talent I have the opportunity to work with."
STRANGE SCIENCE, with an open-to-order variant cover by Skylar Patridge, colors by Ellie Wright, and lettering by Jack Morelli, releases August 16 in comic shops nationwide and will be available for pre-order in comics shops this Friday.
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ABOUT ARCHIE COMICS
Archie Comics is the leading mass market comic book publisher in the world and the home to a wide array of the most popular humor, action-adventure, and superhero characters in entertainment, including Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica, Reggie, Kevin Keller, Josie and the Pussycats, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Li’l Jinx, and many more. Archie Comics have sold over 2 billion comics worldwide and are published around the world in a number of languages. In addition to comics, the Archie Comics characters are spotlighted weekly on The CW’s Riverdale TV series, and have been featured in animation, television, film, and music throughout its 80+ year history.CHILLING ADVENTURES PRESENTS... STRANGE SCIENCE (ONE SHOT)
Danni Malloy is Jinx Holliday’s best friend, and where one goes, the other is sure to follow… even if that means through hell and back and forth through the depths of space and time. When Danni receives a mysterious message from former friend Dilton Doiley, Danni is horrified to learn that he’s built a time machine and it’s gone terribly wrong—and now the three of them have been transported to warped version of Riverdale, where nothing seems quite right. It’s up to Danni to set things right and bring them back to the present day, and the hometown they know and love… and she might have to explain a thing or two to Jinx about what’s going on, too! STRANGE SCIENCE explores Danni’s personal history, time travel, and the importance of being to be true to yourself and what matters most to you.
Script: Magdalene Visaggio
Art: Butch MapaColors: Ellie Wright
Letters: Jack Morelli
Main Cover: Butch Mapa, Ellie Wright
Variant Cover: Skylar Patridge
On Sale Date: 8/1632-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.
Cover by Butch Mapa and Ellie Wright:
Variant Cover by Skylar Patridge:
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
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