Riverdale: 20 most important characters on the show

Riverdale — “Chapter Eleven: To Riverdale and Back Again” — Image Number: RVD111a_0181.jpg — Pictured (L-R): Luke Perry as Fred Andrews and Molly Ringwald as Mary Andrews — Photo: Katie Yu/The CW — © 2017 The CW Network. All Rights Reserved

20. Mary Andrews

It’s fair to say that Mary Andrews probably isn’t the most popular choice for Riverdale‘s most important characters, but even as a minor recurring character, she plays a vital role in Archie’s life.

Molly Ringwald guest stars as Archie’s lawyer mother who lives in Chicago. Mary happens to be one of the few purely good people in his life. When you live in a town overrun by corruption, death and other horrors, you need all the good people you can get.

Ringwald first appeared as Mary in the first season and has dropped by the series multiple times in each proceeding season. While her commitment to parenting Archie could come into question, since she lives in a different city, you could say that she’s one of the few people smart enough to leave Riverdale.

But distance aside, she’s proven her love and support of Archie, including fighting for him when he was wrongfully on trial for murder.

Without Mary Andrews, the series would lose a necessary bright light within the group of parents. It would take a longer list to compile everything illegal the parents have done to permanently done to scar their children for life (i.e. serial killing), but Archie hit the jackpot with Fred and Mary.

Now, who’s to say would the future holds for Mary. For now, she’s a character we can trust to do no harm. And more than anything, it’s Molly Ringwald. She’s an icon, period.