Last week’s episode ended on a cliffhanger with Jughead presumed dead in his dad’s arms and this week was so stressful. Plus, it’s the season finale which is insane. I cannot believe season 2 is over!
The season 2 finale kicks off with Jughead opening his eyes at the hospital, where FP is waiting and he updates him on the Ghoulies-Serpents showdown. Basically, the Ghoulies won. Now, most Serpents have either joined the Ghoulies, were arrested, are in hiding, or left town. FP also says that Fangs is alive and that while everything was happening, Betty learned that her father was a serial killer. Betty goes to see Jughead and they cuddle before she decides that she’s not going to run for student council anymore and neither is he.
Veronica is also now fully on Team Andrews and she is planning out Fred’s mayoral campaign. She also decides to pull out of the student body race as conspiring against her parents is a full-time job. Archie decides to go to the sheriff’s station to identify Hal as the Black Hood but tells Sheriff Minetta that there is a second Black Hood out there, and if the cops won’t look into it, he will. This probably wasn’t the best idea, but it’s Archie.
While this is happening, Cheryl is across town making Nana Blossom her legal guardian. She goes to the barn where Penelope and Claudius are staying in order to deliver the news, but instead she sees them meeting with Hiram Lodge. Honestly, were we surprised?
After Betty heads home to check on her mother, who is screaming at everyone on the front lawn, she apologises to Fred and asks him if he’s angry at her family. She is upset that she couldn’t see what was right in front of her.
We then move to Moose and Kevin. Moose is breaking down in the bathroom because Midge’s locker was trashed in the riot. Kevin is there to comfort him which ends with them kissing in the bathroom at school, which was very cute but many of us are still rooting for Fangs and Kevin. Also, at school, Reggie and Josie withdraw from the student body race, which makes the race Archie versus Ethel.
While Jughead is dealing with the fact that Principal Weatherbee wants to kick all of the former Southside students out of the school, Veronica confronts her father about his secret meetings with the Blossoms and accuses him of paying Claudius to act as the second Black Hood, putting Hermione in danger at the debate. There is no proof but Hermione realises that it is possible that her husband would put her in harm’s way and she gives Veronica a tip that Hiram plans to buy the White Wyrm. If Veronica can buy it before him, Hiram’s plan will be stopped. Veronica hires Mrs McCoy and requests that Hiram returns the $1 million she made ransoming Nick St. Clair, and if he agrees, she won’t spill his secrets. Hiram ends up agreeing.
Before anyone can buy the Wyrm, Jughead needs to get all of the homeless Serpents out. He goes to FP to make a plan, but FP is done with this town. He was just fired from Pop’s and he decides that it is time for him and Jughead to move to Toledo. Then they learn about Tall Boy. According to Sheriff Minetta, the police got an anonymous tip about the second Black Hood, and when the cops found him, he engaged them in a firefight that ended in his death. The Black Hood was Tall Boy,, which is not that surprising as this is a perfect ending for Hiram. Jughead is reeling from the information when Cheryl shows up at his trailer and says that the cops are raiding the Whyte Wyrm tonight and they need to get the remaining Serpents out.
Together, Archie and Jughead lead the Serpents away from the Wyrm and all the way to the Andrews house, where Fred cooks breakfast for everyone and Archie gets an idea that isn’t so terrible. He borrows as many Serpent jackets as he can and the Riverdale High students all put them on. They tell Principal Weatherbee that he either lets the Southside students stay or they all walk out and it works!
Veronica pulls Jughead aside with a plan of her own and it leads to her meeting her father at the White Wyrm, informing him that she owns it but she’s willing to sell it in exchange for Pop’s. Hiram makes it clear that if they do this, this will be the last thing Veronica ever gets from him, plus she will sign over her third of Lodge Industries. She agrees, which is a little surprising.
Back at Betty’s, she’s babysitting the twins and she’s worried that evil can be passed on through blood, but Jughead assures her that that’s not the case. Polly wants them to visit Hal but Betty didn’t want to up until this point where she goes to visit him. Betty then tells him that all the darkness and evil ends with her. It’s very dramatic and honestly one of my favourite scenes from the episode. Betty leaves him and the school’s election results are in: Archie Andrews is the new student body president.
Across town, FP is hosting a Serpent gathering and he announces that he is retiring and officially hands the Serpents over to Jughead. Fangs is there and he looks great (how?). Jughead’s first official duty is giving Cheryl her Serpent jacket which is red of course!
Meanwhile, Hermione wins the election and comes to Fred’s house to make peace with her opponent. Archie is not pleased and heads to the Lodge’s with a knife to call out Hiram for everything he did. Archie thinks he can scare Hiram, which he can’t and stabs the desk with the knife before leaving, thinking he’s won.
Veronica meets Jughead, Archie and Betty at Pop’s where she says she wants to turn the basement of Pop’s back into the speakeasy it once was. Hiram is currently holding the first official meeting of the new South Side with all the villains of the town. He says that Claudius, Penny and the Ghoulies are going to run drugs through the new prison and he will give Penelope a brothel soon. Hiram says that steps have been taken to tear the core four apart and step one takes place at the high school right after Jughead asks Betty to join the Serpents while they share a king size hotel bed. On a side note, Polly is going to bring someone from the farm to Riverdale so they can help Alice heal which sounds very cult-y. Right before Archie is sworn in as school president, Hiram watches Sheriff Minetta arrests Archie for the murder of the Shadow Lake resident.
Final Thoughts?
This week’s episode wasn’t as exciting as last week’s, but it was still great. Also, Archie should not have been so dumb to confront Hiram about everything as now he’s in jail. All I can say is that we need season 3. Now.
