Riverdale season 2 episode 2 review

Riverdale isn’t wasting any time delving into the dark undercurrent of this picture perfect small town in season 2.

The season premiere of Riverdale season 2 ended with the murder of Miss Grundy across the river in Greendale. But in the second episode, “Chapter Fifteen: Nighthawks” Arche and the gang are busy trying to manage the fallout from the shooting at Pop’s. They’re also trying to help FP avoid serving 20 years in jail.

Pop’s is deserted after the shooting and it looks like Pop’s is going to have to close. Rumor has it that an “anonymous buyer” wants to buy it. Veronica immediately suspected her father, who swore it wasn’t him.

Veronica’s been giving her dad a hard time since he was released from prison. But it turns out she was right to suspect him. And her mother, who is just as shady. When she confronts both her father and mother about the letter her father wrote her threatening her mother if Veronica didn’t testify for him her mother said she wrote the letter. That was a lie. These two are definitely going to be causing some problems in Riverdale with their scheming and lies.

Betty is determined to save Pop’s so she throws a “Retro Night” bash with Josie and The Pussycats playing  to try and bring people back to the diner. Hiram Lodge tells Veronica he made a charitable donation to Pop to help keep the diner going. But really he bought Pop’s, and plans to use it for his nefarious ends.

Jughead And The Snake Charmer

Jughead is upset when FP’s public defender brings him a plea deal that puts FP in prison for 20 years. So Jughead, trying to find him a better lawyer, is introduced to Penny Peabody. She’s a Serpent, and a lawyer. She tells Jughead that if he can get Cheryl Blossom or her mother to ask the court for leniency FP might get off with time served and parole.

But when FP hears that Jughead went to Penny he’s very upset and warns Jughead against having any involvement with her. Some sinister dealings from a Serpent? What a surprise…

Betty Buys Cheryl’s Testimony

Jughead and Betty go to see Cheryl and her mother to ask for their help with FP. Predictably, they are not interested in helping. So Betty goes to Cheryl and blackmails her to get her testimony. She threatens to make the video of Cheryl’s dad shooting Jason go viral unless Cheryl helps her. Despite being angry at having to help FP Cheryl can’t help but respect Betty’s ruthlessness. Does the end justify the means? Betty sure thinks so.

Cheryl delivers in court and manages to convince the judge that FP was only helping cover up the crime because her dad threatened to hurt Jughead if FP didn’t help him. It looks like FP will get that reduced sentence after all.

Archie Is A Mess

Archie is obsessed with the idea that the shooter is still out there. He’s not sleeping, and he’s losing it a little bit. Veronica suggests that Archie talk to the school counselor but he doesn’t like that idea. Instead he tries to score some drugs to help him stay awake around the clock to protect his dad.

When he finds out that Miss Grundy was killed with the cello bow that he got her he’s more convinced than ever that the killer is targeting people close to him. And at the end of the episode he has Doyle get him a gun. So now Archie is wired, on drugs, and has a gun. What could possibly go wrong?

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Drugs In Riverdale

Mrs. Cooper, always after a good story, sees several drug deals go down at Pop’s during Betty’s Retro Night gathering. She cheerfully informs Betty that Betty is now responsible for the Serpents being able to deal drugs out of Pop’s now that Hiram Lodge owns it.

But Riverdale’s drug problem isn’t just a South Side Serpents problem. There are plenty of drugs in Riverdale high including a student favorite called “jingle jangle”. At the very end of the episode two students who were in a car took some of this mysterious “jingle jangle” when the hooded gunman appeared and shot them both.

So it looks like whoever the man in the black hood is now he’s back in Riverdale and he’s not going to stop killing.