Sabrina the Teenage Witch Manga Ends

Sabrina the Teenage Witch #100

Yesterday’s Previews catalog calls Sabrina the Teenage Witch #100 “the exciting conclusion to the Sabrina manga series!”

This doesn’t surprise me, to see Archie ending the manga approach. They didn’t capitalize on it sufficiently to capture a manga fan audience; they should have done more than just one slim reprint collection. They also never seemed quite comfortable with either the idea of manga or doing something so different for them.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch #100

Ultimately, though, it was likely about sales; Sabrina was one of their lower-selling titles. And that can be attributed to a mismatch between audience and sales outlets. Their big sellers are digests, and the manga-styled stories didn’t make it into those. Manga readers, meanwhile, buy online or in bookstores, and Archie doesn’t have much of a sales presence in either place, sticking with comic shops and grocery stores.

Now that the company is emphasizing nostalgia in their approach, I won’t be surprised to see a big relaunch in the new year with a more traditional look, perhaps even bring Sabrina back into interaction with Archie and the other Riverdale kids.

Issue #100 is due in comic shops on February 18. I previously interviewed writer/artist Tania del Rio about her plans.



4 comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *