Archie's Rival Reggie
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Reginald "Reggie" Mantle is a fictional teenager in stories published by
Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc. (often referred to simply as Archie Comics) is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the village of Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jug ...
; he is introduced by writer-artist
Bob Montana Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip '' Archie''. Early life He was born in Stoc ...
and
John L. Goldwater John Leonard Goldwater (born Max Leonard Goldwasser,Saunders, David ''Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists''. Accessed Oct. 22, 2018. February 14, 1916 – February 26, 1999) co-founded (with Maurice Coyne and Louis Silberkleit) MLJ Comics ...
in ''Jackpot Comics'' #5 (
cover-date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...
d Spring 1942). He also appears in CW's '' Riverdale''. He is the
frenemy ''Frenemy'' is a portmanteau of the words ''friend'' and ''enemy'' that refers to "a person with whom one is friendly, despite a fundamental dislike or rivalry" or "a person who combines the characteristics of a friend and an enemy". The term ...
of
Archie Andrews Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom,
, as well as the bassist of
The Archies The Archies are an American fictional rock band featured in media produced by, and related to, Archie Comics. They are best remembered for their appearance in the animated TV series '' The Archie Show''. In the context of the series, the band ...
. The live-action version of Reggie is portrayed by Ross Butler and
Charles Melton Charles Michael Melton (born January 4, 1991) is an American actor. After working as a fashion model, Melton ventured to acting with guest roles on the television series ''Glee'' (2014) and '' American Horror Story: Hotel'' (20152016). His bre ...
in '' Riverdale'' and
Vedang Raina Vedang Raina (born 2 June 2000) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. He made his acting debut as Reggie Mantle in Zoya Akhtar's musical teen film ''The Archies'' (2023), and has since starred in the action thriller ''Jigra'' (2024). He ...
in ''
The Archies The Archies are an American fictional rock band featured in media produced by, and related to, Archie Comics. They are best remembered for their appearance in the animated TV series '' The Archie Show''. In the context of the series, the band ...
.''


Publication history

Reggie Mantle debuted in ''Jackpot Comics'' #5 (
cover-date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...
d Spring 1942). An enduring character, he appears across the
Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc. (often referred to simply as Archie Comics) is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the village of Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jug ...
line and headlined the series ''Archie's Rival Reggie'' (14 issues, 1949 n.d. – Aug. 1954), which returned a decade later as ''Reggie'' for the sporadically published issues #15-18 (Sept. 1963 – Nov. 1965). The series was renamed ''Reggie and Me'' for issues #19 – #126 (Aug. 1966 – Sept. 1980). Other series include ''Reggie's Wise Guy Jokes'' (55 issues, Aug. 1968 – Sept. 1980), and the three-issue miniseries ''Reggie's Revenge'' (Spring 1994 – Spring 1995). Reggie appears as a main character in the 2015 ''Archie'' and ''Jughead'' titles that launched the
New Riverdale New Riverdale is the title used to refer to the relaunch of the core Archie Comics titles that began in July 2015. In December 2014, Archie Comics announced that its flagship series Archie would relaunch with a new first issue in July 2015. The n ...
reboot. On 20 September 2016, it was announced that a five-issue miniseries titled ''Reggie and Me'' would be published as part of the launch. It was written by
Tom DeFalco Tom DeFalco (born June 26, 1950) is an American comic book writer and editor well known for his association with Marvel Comics, with long runs on ''Amazing Spider-Man'', ''Thor (comic book), Thor'', ''Fantastic Four (comic book), Fantastic Four'' ...
with art by Sandy Jarrell.


Fictional character biography

Reggie Mantle is arrogant and selfish, and frequently in conflict with Archie, despite their apparent friendship. He is usually depicted as athletic, and is seen as attractive and desirable by girls. He says in one story that he was born in Texas. Reggie's family is upper class, although nowhere near the level of
Veronica Lodge Veronica Cecilia Lodge is one of the main characters in the Archie Comics franchise, and is the keyboardist and one of the three vocalists of rock band The Archies. She is from New York but currently resides in the town of Riverdale, with her p ...
; the latter often uses Reggie to make Archie jealous when she is upset with Archie for some reason, which Reggie relishes. In Reggie's debut story, Archie refers to him as, 'that snooty Reggie Mantle', indicating his upper-class background. Compared to the families of the other main characters, Reggie's family members have made very few appearances in the comics through the decades. His father, Ricky Mantle, owns a newspaper-publishing company, one of his publications is ''The Riverdale Gazette''. (Reggie seems to show journalistic aspirations himself, often working as the editor of the high school paper, Blue and Gold. He is quick to use the term "freedom of the press" to defend controversial or inflammatory articles.) Little is known of his mother, though her name was eventually revealed to be Vicky Mantle. Reggie has a brother, Oliver Mantle, who has appeared in ''Life With Archie'' issue #26. His cousin May is often mistaken for a pre-teen. After a makeover, she attracts attention at a school dance, but chooses to dance with Dilton (a short, nerdy boy). Another cousin, Regina, displays Reggie's cruel humor and bullying tendencies, but after a date with Jughead she appears to have enjoyed herself. Reggie also has a number of relatives whom he often uses to get favors. Reggie has been known to boast that his family is the only one in Riverdale that has its own coat of arms.


Interests and personality

Reggie Mantle's chief characteristics are his love of sarcasm and practical jokes, his vanity, his athletic abilities, and his interest in dating multiple women. Reggie is a naturally gifted and talented athlete who excels at nearly every major sport, including
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
,
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
, and
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
, along with more obscure sports such as
cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...
and
Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...
. He often works as a surfing or skiing instructor. Sometimes, if his skills are not enough to secure victory, Reggie cheats, and he often shows little team spirit. Once in a while, Reggie tries to win competitions on a technicality by pulling out a rulebook. The most common accessories associated with Reggie are the mirror and the comb. A lot of jokes in the comics are about his vanity, earning him the nickname "Reggie 'I-Love-Me' Mantle". Somewhat of a fashion plate, Reggie is the character who most frequently experiments with his hairstyle to match current trends. These looks have lasted months (rather than been contained within a single story) and have included several incarnations of sideburns, pomaded, short, shaggy, and even a
ponytail A ponytail is a hairstyle in which some, most, or all of the hair on the head is pulled away from the face, gathered and secured at the back of the head with a hair tie, clip, or other similar accessory and allowed to hang freely from that po ...
in the early 1990s. Reggie is one of the founding members of the band
The Archies The Archies are an American fictional rock band featured in media produced by, and related to, Archie Comics. They are best remembered for their appearance in the animated TV series '' The Archie Show''. In the context of the series, the band ...
, serving primarily as their
bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...
and occasionally as lead guitarist. He views himself as the most important and talented member of the group—and has gone to great lengths to prove it, such as hiring
groupie A groupie is a fan of a particular musical group who follows the band around while they are on tour or who attends as many of their public appearances as possible, with the hope of meeting them. The term is used mostly describing young women, a ...
s to scream his name during concerts. Reggie has also demonstrated skill in singing, acting, and piano. Reggie is Riverdale High's resident prankster. It is not unusual for Reggie's practical jokes to backfire. His pranks are usually meant to embarrass his victims rather than physically hurt them. Reggie's sharp, quick wit has also led him to work part-time as a stand-up comedian at a Riverdale comedy club; he has expressed interest in pursuing a professional comedy career. In spite of his evident upper-middle class status, he is remarkably cheap, and the first time his schoolmates remember him inviting them to a party, he had filled the room with vending machines from which to obtain the party food. Reggie likes to chase girls, delighting in the pursuit, but is not usually interested in having a serious relationship with one girl. Reggie likes to play the field, and openly describes himself as "a true practitioner of the art". He has expressed horror at the idea of being tied down to one solitary female, saying that, "having one girl is like having one peanut, one potato chip." Reggie is
Archie Andrews Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom,
's rival, and has a perennial crush on Veronica Lodge. The fact that she loves Archie makes Reggie jealous, so he spends most of his time trying to outwit Archie, and playing practical jokes on him. Despite the rivalry, he and Archie are generally amicable, and often spend time together pursuing dates or practicing athletics. In ''Archie's Double Digest'' #201, during the possibility of Archie moving, he eventually admits he would miss Archie, whom he calls his best friend. In certain older Archie Comics stories, Reggie and Archie team up to play pranks on
Jughead Jones Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III is one of the fictional characters created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Archie Comics who first appeared in the first Archie story, from '' Pep Comics'' #22 (December 1941). He is the drummer ...
; however, their schemes usually backfire as Jughead outwits them. Other than Veronica, Reggie is romantically interested in
Midge Klump Midge Klump is a fictional character appearing in Archie Comics. She frequently appears as the girlfriend of Moose Mason and the unrequited crush of Reggie Mantle. The live-action version of Midge was portrayed by Emilija Baranac in the televisio ...
, the girlfriend of brawny but dimwitted athlete
Moose Mason Marmaduke "Moose" Mason (often referred to as Big Moose) is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe. He attends Riverdale High School where he is typically depicted as the best athlete but the poorest student. His difficulties with sc ...
. A
running gag A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling. Though they are similar, catchphrases are no ...
in the series features Reggie attempting to spend time with Midge without attracting Moose's anger and jealousy. He occasionally seeks to date other women, including
Betty Cooper Elizabeth "Betty" Cooper is one of the main characters appearing in American comic books published by Archie Comics. She is the lead guitarist, percussionist and one of the three singers of The Archies. The character was created by Bob Montan ...
. Reggie and Betty frequently join forces to try and break up Archie and Veronica. In some stories, Reggie and Betty are shown to be a couple, even though their respective interests still lie with Veronica and Archie; for example, the ''Life with Archie'' series portrays a future in which Archie marries Veronica and Betty and Reggie are a loving couple. In other storylines, Reggie has occasionally been known to date
Cheryl Blossom Cheryl Marjorie Blossom is a fictional character of the Archie Comics universe. She is a wealthy and powerful teenage girl, the privileged daughter of a businessman. She is portrayed by Madelaine Petsch in ''Riverdale (American TV series), Riverd ...
. The two have very similar personalities and, at one point, before she dates a boy named George, try going out together. Like Betty and Veronica, however, Cheryl mainly uses Reggie as an alternative to Archie. Another arc features Reggie falling in love with Veronica's cousin Harper and developing a long-distance relationship with her. Reggie is insanely jealous of anyone else but him being in the spotlight, and will sometimes deliberately cause them trouble to get what he wants. On certain occasions, Reggie shows a kinder side where he will come to the aid of his friends or total strangers, although he prefers to keep these good deeds secret. In one comic, he has a close childhood friendship with an elderly woman named Mrs. Finklehoff. Due to Reggie's reputation for arrogance and scheming, his peers often distrust his motives even when he is genuinely intending to help someone.


Alternate versions

In ''
Afterlife with Archie ''Afterlife with Archie'' is a comic book published by Archie Comics beginning in 2013, depicting a zombie apocalypse that begins in the town of Riverdale in an alternative reality. It is written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, ...
'', Reggie Mantle caused the zombie apocalypse. Midge asks him for money so she can pay for an abortion. This frustrates and angers him to the point that when he sees
Hot Dog A hot dog is a grilled, steamed, or boiled sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term ''hot dog'' can also refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener ( Vienna sausage) or a frankfurter ( Frankfurter Würs ...
on the side of the road he swerves to hit him. He immediately regrets his actions and tries to carry Hot Dog to a vet, failing that, he takes him to Jughead's lawn so that he can die at home. Hot Dog's subsequent reanimation results in him infecting Jughead and starting the zombie apocalypse. Reggie survives with the others on the road, growing increasingly bitter towards Archie for becoming a natural leader and thriving while he is continually wracked with guilt for starting all this horror. Archie remains oblivious to this, intending to make Reggie the best man at his wedding to Betty. Reggie eventually goes out hunting with
Kevin Kevin is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; ; ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicised from , an Irish diminutive form.''A Dictiona ...
and tells him how he caused the apocalypse, how he killed Hot Dog, how he fears he might be a sociopath and how he thinks the only way to end the zombie plague is by offering himself up to the horde so they can have their revenge and hopefully stop their rampage. He wanders off alone into the woods. Kevin tells the others his story, and Archie wants to go after him but Veronica and Betty convince him otherwise. Reggie walks into the horde, expecting to be torn limb from limb, but instead they part for him until he reaches the zombified Jughead. The zombified Hot Dog walks forward, and Reggie kneels before it, expecting it to kill him and accepting his fate. But, at that moment a vision of
Sabrina Spellman Sabrina Victoria Spellman (Sabrina the Teenage Witch) is the eponymous character of the Archie Comics series ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch''. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo, and she first appeared in ''Archie's M ...
appears before him. She tells him that they will make the zombified Midge whole once again and make her do whatever Reggie wants if Reggie returns to his friend and kills Betty Cooper. Reggie's resolve to redeem himself crumbles upon being offered Midge and he responds with "Kill Betty Cooper... sure, why not?"


In other media


Television


Animation

* Reggie appeared in ''
The Archie Show ''The Archie Show'' (also known as ''The Archies)'' is an American musical animated sitcom television series produced by Filmation for CBS. Based on the Archie Comics, created by Bob Montana in 1941, ''The Archie Show'' aired Saturday morning ...
'', a 1968 animated series produced by
Filmation Filmation Associates was an American production company founded by Lou Scheimer, Hal Sutherland and Norm Prescott in 1962, before closing by Group W Productions on February 3, 1989. Located in Reseda, California, Filmation produced animated ...
. He also appeared in the various spin-offs '' The Archie Comedy Hour'', '' Archie's Funhouse'', ''
Archie's TV Funnies ''Archie's TV Funnies'' is a Saturday morning cartoon animated series produced by Filmation which appeared on CBS from September 11, 1971, to September 1, 1973. The series starred Bob Montana's Archie characters, including Archie Andrews, Be ...
'', '' The U.S. of Archie'' and ''
The New Archie and Sabrina Hour ''The New Archie and Sabrina Hour'' (advertised as ''The Archie-Sabrina Show'') is the seventh and final animated series featuring Archie Comics characters under the Filmation banner. The series premiered on NBC in September 1977, rebroadcasting ...
'' produced in the same format. He was voiced by
John Erwin John Lee Erwin (December 5, 1936 – December 20, 2024) was an American voice actor best known for voicing He-Man, Reggie Mantle, and Morris the Cat. Career Erwin was the voice of He-Man in the Filmation productions ''He-Man and the Masters ...
. * Reggie appeared in ''
The New Archies ''The New Archies'' is an American animated sitcom produced by DIC Entertainment, DIC Animation City, based upon the characters by Archie Comics. The series, originally produced for NBC's Saturday-morning cartoon, Saturday morning schedule and br ...
'', a 1987 re-imagining of Archie and the gang. Reggie was portrayed as a pre-teen in junior high. He was voiced by Sunny Besen Thrasher. * Reggie appeared in ''
Archie's Weird Mysteries ''Archie's Weird Mysteries'' ( French: ''Archie, mystères et compagnie'') is an animated television series based on the characters by Archie Comics. The series premise revolves around a Riverdale High physics lab gone awry, making the town of ...
'' voiced by Paul Sosso. He also appeared in ''The Archies in Jugman'' as the main antagonist.


Live action

* Reggie appears in the TV movie '' Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again'' portrayed by
Gary Kroeger Gary Kroeger (born April 13, 1957) is an American businessman, politician, writer, comedian and actor best known for his work as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1982 to 1985, and his work on various game shows. He ran in the Democra ...
, where he still lives in Riverdale and owns a gym. He acts as the co-antagonist of the film, working with
Hiram Lodge Hiram P. Lodge is a fictional character in the Archie Comics series. He is a father to the series' protagonist, Veronica Lodge and a husband to her mother, Hermione Lodge. He is the owner and CEO of his own multi-billion dollar conglomerate, ...
to tear down Pop Tate's Chock'lit Shoppe and expand his gym, but at the end, he sees the error of his ways and rekindles his old friendships. * Reggie appears in '' Riverdale'', a drama series for
The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...
, portrayed by
Charles Melton Charles Michael Melton (born January 4, 1991) is an American actor. After working as a fashion model, Melton ventured to acting with guest roles on the television series ''Glee'' (2014) and '' American Horror Story: Hotel'' (20152016). His bre ...
. The character was originally portrayed by Ross Butler in the first season but left due to scheduling conflicts with ''
13 Reasons Why ''13 Reasons Why'' (also stylized as ''TH1RTEEN R3ASONS WHY'') is an American teen drama television series based on the 2007 novel '' Thirteen Reasons Why'' by author Jay Asher. Developed for Netflix by Brian Yorkey and with Selena Gomez ser ...
''. Butler did return as Reggie in the show's 100th episode where he interacted with Melton.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mantle, Reggie Archie Comics characters Comics characters introduced in 1942 Comic strip villains Fictional baseball players Fictional players of American football Fictional basketball players Fictional bankers Fictional pranksters Fictional businesspeople Fictional models Fictional people in fashion Fictional victims of child abuse Male characters in animation Male characters in comics Male characters in television Fictional rock musicians Fictional bassists Animated human characters Fictional school bullies Teenage characters in comics Teenage characters in television Characters created by John L. Goldwater Characters created by Bob Montana