Fernando Ruiz talks about the new students at Riverdale High
Archie: How much time and effort goes into the creation of one of you new characters before the reader sees them?
Fernando Ruiz: It can vary. Sometimes a character is created just out of the need of a specific story. Other times, we'll sit down a deliberately set out to create a particular character that we hope to get a lot of use out of. Archie: Raj is by far the most popular of the new characters, how did he come about?
Fernando Ruiz: My editor, Victor Gorelick, asked me to come up with characters that would add some diversity to the Archie cast and therefore make Archie's friends more reflective of the youth of today. He suggested that I come up with an Indian character. I came up with Raj being a wacky aspiring filmmaker who carries a camera around with him everywhere he goes and often drives his serious, proper father crazy with the off-the-wall antics that can go into making your own movies. Archie: Raj was in development for a long time before the fans saw him. What was involved?
Fernando Ruiz: Once Victor gave me the assignment, I had to of course do some research to properly and genuinely portray Raj's background and culture. Then I had to come up with character sketches for Raj and his family and write a description of each character. Of course, everything has to get approved by Victor and Archie Comics' publisher, Michael Silberkleit. There were a few changes along the way especially with Raj's look, but eventually we settled on the character that we introduced in Tales From Riverdale #21. Archie: How did the name change come about? Fernando Ruiz: Ah! The name change! Originally, when I proposed Raj I had named him "Kiran Singh." I called Raj's sister "Priti" and I forget the names I'd picked out for Raj's parents. Apparently though in Indian culture certain first names aren't compatible with certain last names, so after I submitted the character descriptions to Victor, he consulted with folks in India who suggested the names we ended up using. Archie: Wendy Weatherbee is another new character, is Wendy as detailed a character as Raj? Fernando Ruiz: Very much so. I really love Wendy. I hope to get the opportunity to use her as often as I can. Archie: The main point with Wendy is no one wants to date the Principals niece. What else makes Wendy unique?
Fernando Ruiz: I like Wendy's creativity. She's almost like a female Jughead in that she has interests and a style that are all her own and she doesn't care if she stands out as being different. She's into comics and art and lets me do things with her that would be out of character for Betty or Veronica. Archie: Regina is Reggie's cousin, what is the purpose of a female Reggie in Riverdale?
Fernando Ruiz: There needs to be a female Reggie. First, if you have Reggie playing pranks on Betty and Veronica, it can come off seeming a little mean sometimes. It's just a bit more acceptable when you have a girl playing a joke on another girl. Plus, Regina can tease and manipulate Archie and Jughead in ways that that say Veronica wouldn't. You always have to put a limit on just how bad you can make Veronica because essentially, she's still a good girl, but with Regina, you can make her a little nastier. I really like the dynamic between her and Jughead. Archie: Who is the girl with the little mole on her chin that keeps showing up in the comics? Fernando Ruiz: You know it amazes me how often I get asked that. My students, fans I meet at conventions and even other artists at Archie Comics have asked me the identity of Mole Girl. I didn't think anyone ever noticed her. Isn't that interesting?
Archie: I noticed Tales From Riverdale Digest 24 featured a new Cuban character in Riverdale named Fernando and his girlfriend Carrie. Fernando also shows up in Jughead and Friends Digest 23. Are there any more plans for Fernando and Carrie? Fernando Ruiz: Hopefully, they will both be around Riverdale for years to come! Archie: Are there any more new characters on the horizon? Fernando Ruiz: As long as we're doing new stories, there will always be more new characters. Coming up in Tales From Riverdale #27, we get to meet Wendy Weatherbee's father, Tony, who turns out to be very different from what you might think Mr. Weatherbee's brother would be like. It's a real fun story entitled "HAIR APPARENT!"
