The second episode of The CW’s new drama, Riverdale, finds the town reeling after the revelation that the death of Jason Blossom was in fact a murder. Archie struggles with telling the truth even if it means losing the woman he cares about and Betty tries to figure out who in her life is actually worth her trust and friendship. Here is what went down in “Chapter Two: A Touch of Evil” written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and directed by Lee Toland Krieger.
GINGER CONFLICTED | Archie (K.J. Apa) can’t sleep with all the thoughts swirling around his mind about Grundy (Sarah Habel), the gunshot, and his strained relationship with Betty (Lili Reinhart). To clear his head, he goes on a run…straight to Ms. Grundy’s house. He wants to go to the police with what they know but she convinces him to keep quiet in order to keep their summer fling a secret. At school, Archie is still not feeling right about it and both Jughead (Cole Sprouse) and Principal Weatherbee (Peter Bryant) pick up on it. Weatherbee tries to get him to come clean about what’s bothering him but Grundy’s warning is still on his mind so he deflects. He immediately goes to Grundy to try once again to get her to agree to telling the truth but she once again uses the thought of them never being able to see each other again to keep him quiet. Jughead happens to be walking by at that exact moment and sees the two of them way too close together to be appropriate. That night, Archie returns home to find Jughead waiting for him with the news that he knows about Archie’s little secret. Archie tells him about hearing the gunshot and why they can’t come forward but Jughead reminds him the old Archie would do the right thing, even if it was hard. When he confides in his father (Luke Perry) about it in the most cryptic way imaginable so as not to give anything away, his father agrees with Jughead. Archie, now resolved to tell the truth, gives Grundy a heads up about his decision at the pep rally. The next morning, he goes to see Weatherbee but before he can, the principal and Sheriff Keller (Martin Cummins) march past him on their way to make their first arrest.
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JUST FRIENDS | Feeling betrayed by those closest to her, Betty agrees when her mother (Mädchen Amick) suggests she cut all ties with the lot of them. However, she immediately goes to Archie to reconcile. She would rather be just friends than nothing at all and understands that he never meant to hurt her. At school, Betty and Kevin (Casey Cott) go to the front office where a giant bouquet of yellow roses and an apology note from Veronica (Camila Mendes) have been delivered for her. Veronica arrives with cupcakes flown in from New York and hers and hers mani pedis for them. She begs Betty’s forgiveness and for another chance and to her and Kevin’s surprise, Betty agrees. Betty is convinced that this is just easier and in no time Veronica will have forgotten all about her. At lunch, they listen to Archie play one of his songs (a love song) and it brings back all those hurt feelings in Betty. At Vixen practice, Betty gives Veronica the cold shoulder and Veronica picks up on it almost immediately. Veronica tries to talk to her about it but Betty isn’t having it. Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) senses tension and comes running over like she’s been told Christmas came early. Betty uses this opportunity to get back at Veronica by inviting Cheryl to the mani pedi appointment Veronica had originally intended for them. Veronica goes to visit her mother (Marisol Nichols) at Pop’s where she has started her new job as a waitress. Veronica is sulking when Archie comes in for takeout but before she can make a quick exit, her mother suggests Archie walk her home. On their walk they both talk about how much each of their relationships with Betty mean to them and how they can’t imagine their lives without her. Elsewhere, Betty’s friend date with Cheryl takes a sour turn when she realizes the only reason Cheryl is being nice to her is because she is convinced Betty’s sister Polly is the murderer and wants information to prove it. The next morning at school, Betty and Veronica reconcile but it is still tense between them. During the pep rally, Cheryl is hit with the reality that her brother really is gone and she breaks down. Veronica finds her in the locker room and comforts her while Betty watches from the door. After the rally, Betty finds Veronica and asks her to milkshakes where they make a vow to never let a boy come between them again.
PUZZLE PIECES | The entire town is reeling from the revelation that Jason’s death was actually a murder and everyone has their theories. Cheryl vows not to rest until her brother’s death is avenged and her current suspect is Polly Cooper, Betty’s institutionalized sister and former girlfriend of Jason. Betty’s mother pays the coroner for information and one thing that stands out is the fact that Jason has ligature marks on his wrists, indicating her was bound at some point. Reggie (Ross Butler) casts suspicion on Jughead for no reason other than that Jughead is recluse and not like the rest of them. Archie steps in to defend him leading to Archie and Reggie grappling on the floor. When it hits Cheryl that Jason is really gone and breaks down in Veronica’s arms, she says, “He was supposed to come back,” which doesn’t fit with Cheryl’s original story of Jason’s drowning. The next morning, when Weatherbee and Sheriff Keller arrive in biology class to make an arrest, Cheryl stands up, already knowing that they are here for her because of what they found in the autopsy. It revealed that Jason didn’t die on The Fourth like everyone thought but rather over a week later.
OTHER THOUGHTS:
• If someone flew me in special apology cupcakes from New York, I am struggling to think of something that wouldn’t be enough to forgive over.
• I went to a public high school. What kind of public school has a student lounge like that and why couldn’t I have gone there?
• I hope Josie (Ashleigh Murray) and The Pussycats perform in every single episode for the entire season because they are truly spectacular.
So what did you think? What did Cheryl mean by, “He was supposed to come back?” If Jason didn’t die on The Fourth, what was the gunshot Archie heard? Let us know your theories in the comments below!
Riverdale airs Thursdays at 9/8c on The CW!