Riverdale, Season 1 Episode 7 Review

I may have talked in a previous review about how I enjoy some of Riverdale’s trashier aspects. I mean, if you’re going to write a soapy teenage drama for the CW, then sweet Christmas it better be good and frothy! And there is no shortage of bubbles here - I mean, these writers only started with murder; now they’ve gone on beyond statutory rape and into secret babies and burning cars and trailer trash, oh my!

What I absolutely did not see coming was the possibility of becoming genuinely emotionally entangled with these characters. I’m digging pretty much everything that Archie Comics puts their hand to these days, and yet there are some books (and characters) I like more than others. For instance, the new Reggie Mantle is a giant douchebag in ways that I’m not really comfortable with. The CW Reggie, however, has actually been dialed back into a believable jock instead of a cartoon bad guy. Between his competition with Archie to be captain of the football team and his willingness to help Veronica piss off her mom, he’s almost actually a decent dude again. 

My biggest props from last night, however, are reserved completely and unashamedly for Jughead Jones. I hadn’t realized quite how invested I’d become in this character. but I know what it was like to grow up as poor white trash. I remember having to put on the “I’m fine” face to hide how bad things were getting at home. And I know what it’s like to want to believe someone’s lies so much, like poor Juggie does with his dad. My heart just broke for him when he saw his dad at the police station. He’s a smart kid who’s been dealt a really crummy hand in life, but it seems like he’s gonna get by with a little help from his friends. (And speaking of that, I’m positively adoring the chemistry between Cole Sprouse and Lili Reinhart as Jughead and Betty. It’s not all fireworks and sparks; instead it’s the sort of giddy nervousness that leaves your belly swooping around like a sugar glider on crack. Love it!)

I’m also really glad that the writers have taken the “awful parents” idea and really run with it. The Blossoms are rich-people-on-TV crazy, and the Coopers are more of a bougie, keeping-up-appearances kind of crazy. They’re actually scarier, because more of us have real-life experience with their brand of awful. And between the lot of them, poor Polly and her baby Blossom bump are in a world of hurt. I was actually surprised to see Cheryl trying to help Polly in her twisted, mean-girl sort of way. 

We’re three weeks away from a new episode (damn you, college basketball!) and it looks like things are only going to get crazier from here on in. I’m hoping they can top the dream sequence from tonight’s episode that featured the 4 main leads in retro ‘50s outfits. I also hope that Riverdale doesn’t suffer in its newly-announced second season the same way that Twin Peaks did. Once the crazy is gone, there still need to be characters around for audiences to care about. So far that seems not be a problem. I hope it stays that way.