Rivervale is apparently no more.  We are back to Riverdale.  It is at the point we left off at of the season finale.  The bomb is ticking under Archie’s bed as he and Betty get ready to get intimate.  The only difference is that Betty gets a call from Rivervale about the bomb.  Oh no!  Time and space is changing which any science fiction show lover knows causes a rift in the outcomes of both dimensions.  What have they done? Will the Riverdale universe be altered?  Will Rivervale be no more?  Did Dilton escape the chaos he helped cause?  Let’s get comfortable because here we go again.

Just a reminder:  When the season ended, Riverdale has seen the end (apparently) of Hiram Lodge’s manipulations and dirty dealings.  As he drives out of town, he leaves a present for the one he sees as his nemesis, Archie Andrew.  Archie has also broken up with Veronica Lodge who apparently is moving on to Reggie.  Jughead is with Tabitha but that’s not where he is when action starts – he’s writing in Archie’s garage.  Cheryl has cursed Betty, Archie and Jughead.  Did I miss anything?  I ‘m sure I have but the real question is:  how does that phone call change things.

The Aftermath of the Season Finale

At Betty’s her mother wants a recap of what was happening.  Jughead was in the garage and Archie and Betty escaped.  All will be staying at Betty’s but Archie and Uncle Frank visit the house (which wasn’t destroyed (why was that?) while Alice takes Betty to the hospital.  Archie hears Vegas and starts to dig him out.  Betty has to stay overnight in the hospital for her ribs but she tells Archie that he shielded her and that saved her life.  Meanwhile, Jughead has told Pop and Tabitha only to discover he has been affected by the explosion.  Noises seem louder but then all hearing goes.  Okay, granted he was nearby but wouldn’t they have wanted to check him out also due to the nearness of the blast.  Oh, that’s right.  Archie, Betty and Jughead have super powers (more on Betty’s and Archie’s later).  Frank and Archie find Vegas who survived but with four broken legs.

Of course, everyone has to learn the story.  Toni, Fangs, and Kevin meet.  Kevin wants New York and Fangs and Toni are dating (but still bisexual).  Kevin’s dad calls with the news and he calls Veronica (who is with Reggie) while a student (Britta, I think) brings news to Cheryl.  Nana and Cheryl looks surprised but Cheryl looks at Nana and says it was the curse.  Nana’s not sure (of course it will play a role).  Great recap by the way writers.  Cheryl, by the way, blames Nana for everything that has happened. 

In the Aftermath, Rivervale Arrives

From here on, each get their own story told.  So spoilers folks (and I am sorry. 

Cheryl

First, Cheryl tries to reverse the curse and has voodoo dolls to assist with this.  Britta asks Cheryl if she believes in magic and curses and Cheryl seems to do so now (and we have the first hint of Rivervale).  When the candles blow out, she’s sure it was Nana but Nana denies that she did.  Cheryl sets a trap and finds out it is Britta doing it.  Somehow, during the comet’s visit (which happened in both cities), Abigail’s spirit entered Britta instead of Cheryl.  After Cheryl tells Nana and asks if they need to do an exorcism, Nana tells her no.  The only way to turn Britta normal is a transference of the spirit to Cheryl. 

Nana and Cheryl perform the spell and Abigail moves to Cheryl.  I honestly don’t think the spirit of Abigail will be as forgiving as in Rivervale.  Cheryl goes through a transformation becoming more positive and more self-assured.  I still suspect a visit from Sabrina will happen.

Betty

Remember the power I mentioned that Betty saw at the hospital.  Well, it seems the auras are red/orange and appear with anger and murder.  Betty’s new power will enable her to know who to question and capture.  (Oh, I’m getting a strange feeling that I’ve seen this before folks.  More on this at the end of this piece.)

The FBI has made catching Hiram a priority.  Betty takes control of an FBI meeting which sets her old boyfriend off.  Betty tells Glenn that she is with Archie.  She also sets an agent to looking into deaths at other hospitals.  There are similarities and she catches the killer with Archie’s help.  Glenn though is still a problem.  He comes to the office, drunk, and the red/orange aura appears.  He starts to grab her and she stops him.  That doesn’t stop Glenn from bragging to the “guys at the bar” but the other female agents tell Betty.  She gets the men transferred out of the office in Riverdale and Glenn is under investigation for improper actions toward Betty.  She shoos him out of the office.  (SPOILER ALERT:  Later at the diner, Glenn leaves.  When he gets in his car, it appears to be Pop who pops up from the back seat and starts to choke him over what he did to Betty.  Is Pop the trashcan killer or has the black masked killer returned. 

Veronica and Hiram

While this doesn’t really have any apparent Rivervale connection, I do think we need to attribute it to Rivervale.  Veronica has promised Betty information and called her sister for it.  On getting the information, she does pass it on to Betty but keeps a copy for herself.  Ronnie tells Reggie she plans to take out a contract on her father and secretly does so.  Ronnie does have second thoughts though after learning of Reggie dad’s heart attack.  When she tries to stop it, she finds that the contract has been fulfilled.  She does lie to Reggie when he returns home telling her that his dad is okay yet her dad’s death is done.  Hemarosa calls and asks why Ron put the contract out on daddy dearest.  Sis has now marked Ronnie with a contract for blood and she’s not the target. 

Archie’s Newfound Power

At the gym, Archie is doing weights.  When he gets on the scale, he finds he has gained weight but it doesn’t appear on his frame.  Meanwhile, Mary has arrived and realizes that Archie could have died.  When Archie gives a quick explanation, Mary tells him that his father, Fred, protected him.  Later as they clean, Percival Pickens arrives and wants to buy Archie’s home.  Now the house has holes in it and missing roofs and he offers to pay a substantial sum.   (I’m very suspicious about this.  Is Percival the Satan we saw in Rivervale?)  Archie turns him down but he gives Mary his card.  (I’m not sure but it looks like Archie  pays a visit to Percival and I’m not sure why.)

Toni and Fangs

Toni and Fangs meet with the members of the Ghoulies to find out what their part in the bombing of Archie’s house was.  It seems Carla is more than happy to spill that they do work of Hiram who gave them two jobs:  destroy Riverdale and kill Archie Andrews.  Toni does tell Archie so he can watch his back but Archie has other plans.  He asks where they are located and goes for a visit.  He, of course, is attacked and fights back.  When he arrives home, he’s covered in blood which worries Betty.  Archie then has to reveal his power over death to Betty (which is why he can stop the hospital killer).  This leads to echoes to Toni’s story about lost children.  She gets a call from, this I’m not sure about because it surprised me, Trula Twyst (in the comics Jughead’s foe).  She is with the Ghoulies and informs Fangs and Toni about what has happened.  She swears vengeance and threatens their baby.

Jughead’s Hearing

Tabitha has figured out that Jughead has a hearing problem.  She goes to the doctor’s with him where they learned that his hearing in both ears has been severely damaged.  Good news though is that he is writing.  (Wonder if his writing goes through to Rivervale?)

Final views

Archie has sent his mom home to Chicago after getting the mortgage put in his name.  Betty and Archie talk about the changes that have happened to them.  He wants her to leave but she doesn’t think he will hurt her.  He then agrees to let her stay as long as she doesn’t mind being with an unemployed man with a mortgage (wonder how long that will last).  As they talk, Archie gets a call from the vet.  Bingo (I thought it was Vegas) has recovered with no signs left of broken legs.  Say what?

Next episode:

Hiram’s body found.

Trash can killer or the black masked killer is back.

Funeral service.

Why does the black masked killer come to see Archie.

Okay anyone else having problems with the following:  the house is still standing; no one died; Bingo is well; and Jughead has hearing problems?  Either the time/space continuum has been affected, the dimensions have shifted and merged, or I’m seeing a rebirth of the show “Heroes” which I loved.  I never would have thought of Archie as the “cheerleader” character, but he is the cheerleader of Riverdale. 

So my question is:  where does all this lead?  Does Archie live on (as he hinted in Rivervale) forever.  Does Betty get a talent that allows her to catch serial killers.  What is Jughead’s power since he’s lost his hearing.  Will Toni relive her Rivervale story?  And more importantly of all, will Cheryl be a good or bad witch that calls Sabrina to Riverdale.   Let’s sit back and watch!  This will be an interesting second part of the season.