Riverdale season 3, episode 21 review: The Dark Secret of Harvest House

In a gripping episode, Riverdale reveals The Farm’s horrific secret agenda and the seemingly “impossible” identity of the Gargoyle King.

On Riverdale, Betty continues her crusade against The Farm from the inside and discovers the organization’s true purpose. Meanwhile, Veronica comes up with a ploy to make Hiram incriminate himself and turns to Archie and Reggie for help.

Jughead runs into Ethel, aka The Princess, who’s been serving the Gargoyle King as a guardian for The Lost Boys, aka Dilton’s old boy scout troop. Ethel is hesitant to betray the King but also worried the King will kill her since she was apparently involved in the failed plot to kill Betty on prom night. Here’s a look at what went down in “The Dark Secret of Harvest House.”

Credit The CW

Who is the Gargoyle King?

Well, let’s just say maybe Cheryl hasn’t been hallucinating, after all… at least not entirely. While we have yet to see his face, the Gargoyle King is… (DUN DUN DUN) Jason Blossom.

After Jughead helps Ethel and The Lost Boys escape The Black Hood, who’s roaming around town in broad daylight now, Ethel decides Jug has earned her trust. So, despite being in “love” with the King, she betrays him and reveals his identity to Jug.

But, wait, Jason is dead, right??? Jug thinks so, too, and digs up Jason’s grave for confirmation —only to find that his coffin is empty. Guess we’ll have to wait and see how someone whose body washed ashore at the end Riverdale‘s pilot is alive again or never actually died. Or could there be a long-lost Blossom triplet?

So The Farm is… an actual farm

But, no, not that kind of farm. As the episode’s title suggests, it’s actually an organ (plus, blood and who knows what else) harvesting farm. It turns out Evelyn has been sickly since childhood and is using Farmies’ stolen organs, etc. to keep herself alive. And whatever she doesn’t need, Edgar has been selling on the black market.

Betty uncovers the sinister plot after figuring out how Edgar’s manipulation works: sound and suggestion. After first talking to Dark Betty, she wears earplugs for her second therapy session to block out Newton’s cradle (that swinging ball thing on Edgar’s desk) and realizes that who she is actually talking to is not herself but Polly (!) pretending to be her.

All the psychological manipulation has just been a way to get Farmies to voluntarily consent to medical procedures, which they think will relieve their suffering. According to them, Edgar helps them transform their emotional pain into physical pain, which can then be “removed” in these procedures.

Betty manages to snap Cheryl out of her Farmie trance by showing her a cooler containing a human heart on ice. Cheryl races off to the operating room to save Toni, and they eventually find find a way out.

With guards on their heels, though, Cheryl closes the window behind Toni to give her the best possible chance of escaping. Toni does successfully make it past the perimeter, while Cheryl fights the guards but ultimately gets captured.

Meanwhile, when Betty tries to loop in Kevin and Fangs, they not only don’t believe her but also attack her when she tries to walk away. Betty wakes up handcuffed to an operating table and is soon knocked out once more so Edgar can perform her procedure. So, in summary, Betty really can’t catch a break, as per usual.

Varchie vs. Hiram

Determined to take her father down once and for all, Veronica comes up with a clever idea. Why not force Hiram to take the fall for all the “shady” stuff (underage drinking, illegal gambling, cooking the books) that’s been going on at La Bonne Nuit since he’s the real owner?

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. She has to catch him in the act of committing a crime. Enter Plan B: Archie challenges Hiram to an illegal boxing match, and Veronica gets Hiram to insist she take bets at La Bonne Nuit. The FBI raids the club, and FP arrests Hiram — just as Hiram is about to literally kill Archie, a minor, in the ring in front of hundreds of witnesses.

So, he probably would’ve gone to jail either way, but this way Archie gets live. And, as for Hiram, his entire “empire” is now being seized by the government. But has he been defeated for good?

Veggie vs. Varchie

After the match, Archie goes over to Veronica’s penthouse to tell her he wants to get back together, only to learn that Reggie beat him to the punch. Feeling badly for Archie, Veronica awkwardly suggests the three of them hang out together, but Archie doesn’t want to be a third wheel.

Could Varchie still be endgame? The odds of them reuniting this season aren’t looking good. But a lot can happen in one episode, especially on Riverdale.

Riverdale Randomness

• I’m still waiting for Riverdale to clear up the OG mystery about Jason — how is he both Cheryl’s twin and the same age as Polly?
• Will Cheryl and Betty work together to take down The Farm from the inside? Will Toni and Jughead team up on the outside?
• Will Alice finally denounce The Farm? Does she know the truth? Does Polly?
• How is The Farm connected to the Gargoyle King and the Black Hood?

Riverdale will return for its season finale on Wednesday, May 15 at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW.