Welcome back to Riverdale, the town filled with controlling parents, pop-culture referencing teens and just a handful of secrets. Last week on Riverdale, Jason finally received his memorial with Cheryl standing up to her parents; Archie and Valerie started to grow closer; Betty and Jughead became detectives and learned Jason and Polly were engaged; and we discover Mr Cooper stole the case files for murder investigation.
This week’s episode opens with a young Betty and Polly flashback, and let’s commend the casting department for finding actors who resemble their older character’s very well. Betty invites Jughead over for breakfast and they’re joined by Mrs Cooper, but Jughead is just a diversion so Betty can go through her mother’s cheque book to get some answers.
Archie is trying out for the upcoming talent show, but his nerves get the better of him and Valerie comforts him afterwards. Valerie’s increase in screen-time last week was jarring, but her performance was good. However, this week her dialogue seemed to be slightly blunt, which may have just been the writing, but luckily it became better over the episode. Veronica also offers her singing services to Archie for the talent show so she can be the “Bey to his Jay”.
Speaking of the Lodge women, Hermione is now working for Archie’s dad and she raises some concerns about his struggling business. Fred is aiming to gain the construction contract by talking to Mayor McCoy, but little does he know Hermione is the owner of the land. While in the tiny office, the two share a passionate kiss, which Veronica happens to see and angers her.
Josie is pushing the Pussycats hard for their upcoming performance at the talent show and when Valerie accidentally says she’s working with Archie too, Josie becomes mad and Valerie quits. After Josie chats with her mother who reminds her that anyone is replaceable except for herself and to make sure she maintains the girl groups image. Josie then ends up accepting Veronica as the new Pussycat as she’s mad at her mother as well as Archie for picking Valerie over her.
The trouble continues in the Lodge family as Hermione wants to give the contract to Fred, but she needs two signatures to sign it over. After Mr Lodge went to prison, they made Veronica an officer of Lodge Industries. Surprise! Just what every teenage girl wants! But Veronica won’t sign because of her mother’s new relationship with Fred, so Hermione forges her signature.
Betty and Jughead arrive at the home for troubled teens, and Betty is reunited with her sister, her pregnant sister. Polly tells of her and Jason’s grand escape planned for the July 4th weekend, but just before her departure, she was taken away by orderlies. After Polly asks several questions about Jason, Betty has to reveal that Jason is dead, which causes her to lose it. The home alerted Mrs Cooper about Betty’s visit and she turns up to take her away. All the Cooper girls are upset and furious, so the storm continues to brew for the Cooper family.
Back at the Cooper household, Betty questions her father’s involvement in stealing the case files and if he is the one who is responsible for killing Jason. This causes Mrs Cooper to become hysterical with a blend of amusement, anger and sadness as Mr Cooper could never hurt anyone and she wishes she was the one to kill Jason for what he did. Talk about dramatic!
Archie and Valerie continue to grow closer this episode, especially as they sing together while staring at one another. Valerie continues to talk about the Pussycats and looks at them longingly so Archie comes to reason and tells her to ask Josie if she can join the girl group again.
Meanwhile, Jughead climbs up a ladder to Betty’s second-storey window. Did he bring the ladder with him? How did her parents not notice? Tell me I’m not the only one who found this strange? She’s having a mini-meltdown and worrying she’s turning into her mother, but Jughead reassured her they are not their parents and then… he kisses her! The two decide they need to validate Polly’s story, so she doesn’t seem crazy. They find the car Jason stashed by the old Blossom maple sign, which is filled with their belongings… and drugs.
Josie lets Valerie back into the Pussycats, but Veronica still sings with the girls and they kill it. While it may not be the best song lyrically, it sounded brilliant. Unfortunately Josie’s father doesn’t agree and leaves before the song is over, which upsets Josie immensely. Next up is Archie. He manages to find his courage, which sounds much better than his other little moments he’s had in the show so far. After a huge round of applause, Archie is on a high and he ends up kissing Valerie. A rushed relationship? Yes. But then again, it is high school. Veronica later meets up with her mother and Fred happens to be there. He lets it slip that he got the contract and since Veronica has the brains, she works out what her mother has done and storms off.
The episode ends on yet another mystery as when the Sheriff arrives to the hidden car, it’s on fire and Betty discovers Polly has escaped from the home.
Overall the episode was okay, but not great. While it did progress the plot for Jason and Polly, it left a few questions left unanswered such as Cheryl, for example. After standing up to her parents last week, her mother announced she would be going to boarding school, but there was not one mention about Cheryl this episode. Surely Veronica would have said something, or Cheryl could have been at school clearing out her locker. Whether it was cut from the show or perhaps they had budget limitations, surely something could have been said?
Also, did you know Riverdale is sponsored by Covergirl? You may or may not have been able to tell by the not-so subtle product placements in the show. Seems as though every girl in Riverdale uses Covergirl. Does anyone ever watch a show and think ‘I want that’. All I care for is the show and the music typically. Other than these minor missteps, the show continues at a steady pace. Whilst it’s not a show I would rave about, it is still a decent show but more so one that allows you to pass some time or have it playing in the background.
Riverdale returns next week with ‘Chapter 7: In a Lonely Place’.
What did you think of the episode? Let us know in the comments below!
