S06.E22: Chapter One Hundred and Seventeen: Night of the Comet

[AnimeMania]

(Season Finale)    

CROSSROADS — Archie (KJ Apa) and the gang band together to save Riverdale from the greatest threat the town has ever faced. 

Original Airdate: July 31, 2022   8:00-9:00 p.m.    CW

[madhacker]

And I’m done…..that last 4 minutes just finished me and shows that the writers are completely out of ideas. Hopefully they’ll say because of the time reversal means that some of cast will be spared from the insanity of this show and won’t be back (like Casey who’s basically been screwed over since season one playing Kevin in my opinion)

we’re honestly supposed to believe that the cast is back in high school? 

Edited August 1, 2022 by madhacker
Wasn’t finished

[thuganomics85]

Those "brilliant" bastards somehow found a way to work in a final musical number!  Amazing!  This show never ceases to amaze me... which I'm not sure is a good or bad thing anymore.

Knew we were in for a hilarious finale right off the bat with the way Jughead was casually talking about their dire situation in a "Funny story!" way, while everyone else was less "Oh, shit, we're so doomed!" and more "Fucking comets, man!  So annoying!" about the potential doomsday scenario.  Hell, maybe some of them were actually wanting the sweet release of death in order to get out of this damn town/show (I'm about 99% sure the cast wanted it.)  But, alas, everyone makes it out in one piece.

But what a way to do it!  First, Cheryl asks her ancestor, Abigail, for help and she agrees to after being promised to be freed.  Oh, and if Cheryl and Toni allow their bodies to be taken over by Abigail and Toni's ancestor's spirits, so they can then use those bodies for some good old-fashioned banging.  Yeah, nothing morally questionable about that at all!  It leads to Abigail giving them away to break the barrier to escape Riverdale: they just... need to untie a lot of knots on a rope?  I have no idea what was going on there.

But then Veronica comes in with the real solution!  Thanks to the power of the almighty flashback, she figures that she can absorb everyone's powers through blood and then give them to Cheryl via a kiss (of course), and then Cheryl can use all of that power to destroy the comet for good.  I love/hate that someone in the writer's room totally knew that they were going to be accused of queer baiting with that decision and their answer was to just have Veronica be "Nuh huh!  It's not queer baiting at all!  Totally needed to save the day!"  Yep, it was totally a necessary reason to have the characters make-out!  And not because, what I suspect, some creep has a chart with all of the various female characters/performers and who they made out with on this show and were like "Camila Mendes and Madelaine Petsch haven't locked lips, yet!  We must make this happen, people!"

So, I'm guessing the final twist makes everything else that happened character wise (Archie and Betty's engagement, Jughead and Tabitha seeing what their life would be like, Toni being Cheryl's true love, etc.) a moot point now.  Glad we spent so much time on it then!

Archie with the "I will bring down the barrier for our love!" moment which naturally ends with him just trying to whack it with a pole until his mom tells him to chill.  Love you, buddy, but you really can be a dim bulb at times.  His guilt is in character though.  He would blame himself for not stopping a demon from magically sending an entire comet to smoke out the entire town.

I really don't want to hate on the acting here, but Vanessa Morgan and Drew Ray Tanner looked like Emmy winners opposite of Baby Anthony's actor.  A lot of heavy lifting on their parts.

Did I mention they somehow found a way to work in another fucking musical performance here?!

In the end, the plan works, but thanks to all of the power and timey wimey stuff, not only has the gang been sent back to being in high school, before Jason's death (but now played by actors closer to their thirties!), but they are in... 1955 now?  I guess this is just a way for them to get to cosplay in the comic era outfits for the final season.  Who knows, at this point?

So, yeah, that was a season of Riverdale.  I'll still maintain that the initial "Rivervale" arc was actually pretty solid: crazy in a more unique way, had some decent horror elements, and the cast seemed to be having a ball.  But once the powers and Percival came in, it just got bad.  And not fun bad but bad bad.  Thankfully, it did get a little better for these last few episodes (around when Sabrina returned), but it's probably for the best that the next season is the final one, because they're clearly given up on trying to make any sense here.  I know there is no chance at it actually being good, but I hope they at least go all out with the batshit insanity for the last season.  Can't wait to see what they do!  My random prediction is going to be that they see how successful the 4th season of Stranger Things was and try to rip that one off!  It will have everything from Hiram in The Vecna role, to the gang winning the day by singing a cover of "Running up That Hill."  Only partially joking here: I wouldn't put anything past them!

Edited August 1, 2022 by thuganomics85
Wrong song title! Shame on me!

[Noneofyourbusiness]

30 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

to the gang winning the day by singing a cover of "Running up the Hill."  Only partially joking here: I wouldn't put anything past them!

Impossible. But singing the actual song "Running Up That Hill" might work. ;)

[magicdog]

2 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

I hope they at least go all out with the batshit insanity for the last season.

They seem to have already done that in this episode!  Better to let it go as is, I don't think there's anything they can do after sending them to 1955.  More 30 year old HS students?

[Artsda]

Back to highschool? Really?

[ruby24]

Really, RAS? Your crazy idea that you just came up with for the entire last season that you were hinting (and threw out all of your pre-written plans before that) was to send them back to high school but in the 50s? We're going to spend the entire last season in the 50's?

Is this so you can do comics accurate costumes and comics accurate themes, like the A/B/V love triangle? 

This is something I can see for maybe 4 episodes max. Please don't let this be the whole final season.

But on the other hand, what the hell do we go back to if we get them out of this? I really wanted the character stuff this season to somehow be erased, but not in order to place them back in high school in a brand NEW setting. 

I really was hoping the show would end on some kind of familiar note to what it was before this season. It's not like it wasn't crazy before, but it also was never a show that changed itself completely every single season, there was ongoing stuff here before. Now I really have no idea what's going on.

ETA: Ok, never mind, I just read a RAS interview with EW, and he said yeah we're spending the rest of the show in the 1950's. Wow! I have to admit that's a bold move. And also it kinda sounded like they regretted ever time jumping the first place, because he thinks the best years were the high school years. You know, there was never a rule that the show HAD to keep going past the high school years, was there? If he really wanted it to end after the teen years, couldn't they have done that?

And everything is going to be new and he wants to start all the relationships over. In which case, why does Jughead remember the other life at all? 

Also...in the segregated 1950's aren't we going to run into issues given half the characters are LGBT and POC? Or is this going to be some sort of color blind alt universe 50's?

Edited August 1, 2022 by ruby24

[Daltrey]

9 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

I really don't want to hate on the acting here, but Vanessa Morgan and Drew Ray Tanner looked like Emmy winners opposite of Baby Anthony's actor.  A lot of heavy lifting on their parts.

I disagree... It occurred to me while watching the scene that starts the musical number (because of course!🤣🤣🤣), Anthony is a baby in a grown man's body. He has been aged up physically but has never had any of the life experiences that would allow him to grow mentally and emotionally and the actor is playing him as such. I therefore submit that he is the greatest actor that Riverdale has ever showcased!😏

[Dobian]

This season finale had it all - two hot girl-girl scenes, a musical number, soul-swapping, time travel, age travel, comet-melting, and franchising!  See you all next season for the final chapter of the wackiest show this side of Gotham!

[Affogato]

On 8/1/2022 at 3:43 AM, ruby24 said:

Really, RAS? Your crazy idea that you just came up with for the entire last season that you were hinting (and threw out all of your pre-written plans before that) was to send them back to high school but in the 50s? We're going to spend the entire last season in the 50's?

Is this so you can do comics accurate costumes and comics accurate themes, like the A/B/V love triangle? 

This is something I can see for maybe 4 episodes max. Please don't let this be the whole final season.

But on the other hand, what the hell do we go back to if we get them out of this? I really wanted the character stuff this season to somehow be erased, but not in order to place them back in high school in a brand NEW setting. 

I really was hoping the show would end on some kind of familiar note to what it was before this season. It's not like it wasn't crazy before, but it also was never a show that changed itself completely every single season, there was ongoing stuff here before. Now I really have no idea what's going on.

ETA: Ok, never mind, I just read a RAS interview with EW, and he said yeah we're spending the rest of the show in the 1950's. Wow! I have to admit that's a bold move. And also it kinda sounded like they regretted ever time jumping the first place, because he thinks the best years were the high school years. You know, there was never a rule that the show HAD to keep going past the high school years, was there? If he really wanted it to end after the teen years, couldn't they have done that?

And everything is going to be new and he wants to start all the relationships over. In which case, why does Jughead remember the other life at all? 

Also...in the segregated 1950's aren't we going to run into issues given half the characters are LGBT and POC? Or is this going to be some sort of color blind alt universe 50's?

I like the idea of doing it in the fifties for maybe an episode or two, and arc, but frankly (as stupid as all of this has been) I would prefer they time jumped forward again, maybe to the time when our group have high school kids, in some weird 1950s Jetson future. Archie is the new Fred, Jughead's kid competitively eats hamburgers, lord knows what BA is doing....Just me, right? But I pretty much think they covered the high school stuff already--all that is left is set and costume design and really digging into the love triangles and eating binges.

[PrairieDogBaby]

On 8/1/2022 at 3:43 AM, ruby24 said:

Ok, never mind, I just read a RAS interview with EW, and he said yeah we're spending the rest of the show in the 1950's. Wow! I have to admit that's a bold move.

I really can't see it being set in the 50s for too long next season.  How would they address Fred Andrews?  For a few episodes, sure - the scripts can just say he's at work.  But the whole season? 

And what about Jughead's dad and Veronica's parents?  (All three actors chose wisely when they left this train wreck).  Will Betty's serial killing dad be back?  I just don't see how it could work. 

I don't mean to be too negative about this show.  It's my guilty pleasure.  I grew up with Archie comics.  I have boxes of them in the attic.  But the show has became more guilty than pleasure for me. 

I also thought this episode was quite boring. 

On 8/1/2022 at 3:43 AM, ruby24 said:

Also...in the segregated 1950's aren't we going to run into issues given half the characters are LGBT and POC? Or is this going to be some sort of color blind alt universe 50's?

I'll be here for the final season - the 50s setting actually has me a bit intrigued.  Also, 30 year olds playing high school students would be the least bizarre thing this show has done.  But you bring up a very good point.  I guess we'll have to wait and see how they handle this. 

[the-grey-lady]

On 7/31/2022 at 7:00 PM, thuganomics85 said:

So, I'm guessing the final twist makes everything else that happened character wise (Archie and Betty's engagement, Jughead and Tabitha seeing what their life would be like, Toni being Cheryl's true love, etc.) a moot point now.  Glad we spent so much time on it then!

Right? That totally felt like they were cramming Happily Ever Afters in at the very end, checking points off a list, perhaps never to be seen again.

And have you seen any of RAS's recent interviews? He basically admits they did the 50s thing on a whim, and they have no idea what they'll be doing with it next season. Out of ideas, indeed.

[the-grey-lady]

On 8/1/2022 at 12:43 AM, ruby24 said:

Really, RAS? Your crazy idea that you just came up with for the entire last season that you were hinting (and threw out all of your pre-written plans before that) was to send them back to high school but in the 50s? We're going to spend the entire last season in the 50's?

Is this so you can do comics accurate costumes and comics accurate themes, like the A/B/V love triangle? 

Your whole post, but especially this. He says we get to see first kisses, falling in love, and high school shenanigans! Bud, we already saw all that, for four seasons! Why would we want to do it again?

And the triangle, set in the 50s? Where Archie chooses Veronica but keeps Betty on the hook just in case, and she begs for scraps of his attention? Why does he think anyone wants to see that? And why does he want to do it?

Of course he also admits in some of his interviews that he has no idea how long they'll be in the 50s, nor what they'll do when they get there. That writers' room must be a clown show.

[rmontro]

1 hour ago, PrairieDogBaby said:

I really can't see it being set in the 50s for too long next season.  How would they address Fred Andrews?  For a few episodes, sure - the scripts can just say he's at work.  But the whole season? 

I agree, I don't think they'll do the 50s thing too long either, mainly because I don't see them dressing up in those goofy comic book costumes all season.  That's never been what the show has been about.  As for the LGBTQ stuff and POCs, I could very easily see this being an alternative version of the '50s where that would be more accepted.  That, or they're going to hit us over the head with how awful the '50s were because of lack of diversity and tolerance. 

[Dobian]

On 8/1/2022 at 12:43 AM, ruby24 said:

Also...in the segregated 1950's aren't we going to run into issues given half the characters are LGBT and POC? Or is this going to be some sort of color blind alt universe 50's?

Well they are in New York so there would be blacks at the high school.  I will bet money that one of the plots will be Jughead falling in love with Tabitha and both of them facing a lot of antagonism from various students and others.

[tennisgurl]

Even knowing how this show has weirdly become a full on musical, Toni suddenly bursting into song while talking to her grown up baby still caught me totally off guard. Oh show, you just had to get last random musical number in there didn't you? So we defeat the comet by combining all of our powers, Captain Planet style, so that Cheryl can destroy the comet, and...that means its the 50s now? And the gang is in high school again? Despite our cast looking more adult than ever? Even by this shows standards that seems pretty ridiculous, especially if they actually plan on staying that way all season. If they just plan on going full reset, what was even the point of any of this? I admit I am at least intrigued the by 50s setting and the gang being back in an alternate high school, but I hope its only for a few episodes and we don't spend all season making the cast cosplay in their traditional Archie clothes. We all know that this show is mostly just an excuse to get the actors in sexy and/or weird outfits, but a whole season? I cant even really be mad though, this season has fully committed to the crazy, so why not add another season of bugfuck craziness and alternate universes where the show can go full Archie Comics? Now will the gang meet the Punisher like in that wild crossover comic? Jughead talking about taking Riverdale back to its pre Jason murder "innocence" is hilarious given all we know about Riverdale now, it seems like its been a cesspool of evil since literally day one, the comet could only have come as an improvement. 

There was a lot of eye rolling "really?" moments, like Veronica and Cheryl having to kiss to save the town which totally isn't queerbaiting if its for the greater good, Toni and Cheryl having sex because the ghost of Cheryl's ancestor wants to have sex with her dead girlfriend, which is questionable for several reasons, and Veronica kissing her dads picture with her kiss venom, because her one true love will always be her father. I know I joke about this show being Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa's fanfic that he somehow got the CW to film, but I'm not even really joking anymore, that's just how I think he comes up with ideas. 

There were some nice moments, I enjoyed Jughead getting emotional over Titanic followed by him and Tabby imagining their future, Tabby thinking that she really should have stayed in Chicago, the random Alexandra cameo, Archie, lovable himbo that he is, trying to get everyone out of town by literally hitting the town limit, but it mostly felt like a let down after last week. Not that last week was exactly amazing, but it did at least feel more dramatic than everyone just sitting around talking with vague interest about their impending doom. Of course Riverdale will be saved, even the characters don't seem that worried, although even they probably didn't see this whole "now we're in high school in the 50s" thing coming.

This season has been totally crazy, but weirdly that has made it one of the better ones. I thought Rivervale was unironically a lot of fun, the cast seemed to get some life back in them, the show became more interestingly stylized, and the wildness seemed to fit the macabre tone, the show is clearly at its best when its doing horror and it shows, and while the show lost its charm again when we left Rivervale, the last few episodes have been better, or at least a fun sort of ridiculous and not an annoying ridiculous. This show is still televisions biggest clusterfuck, but I know I'll be back next season. Maybe that's the shows super power? Bringing us back time and time again despite us knowing better? 

[ruby24]

13 hours ago, Dobian said:

Well they are in New York so there would be blacks at the high school.  I will bet money that one of the plots will be Jughead falling in love with Tabitha and both of them facing a lot of antagonism from various students and others.

I cannot believe that we are going to end this show with Jughead and Tabitha together. Really? I mean, REALLY?

[the-grey-lady]

32 minutes ago, ruby24 said:

cannot believe that we are going to end this show with Jughead and Tabitha together. Really? I mean, REALLY?

That seems really unlikely to me. Will he and Tabitha be together some next season? Maybe, but I doubt it lasts long.

[SourK]

Sometimes I get complacent, and I'm like, "This is as weird and dumb as the story can be -- it can't get weirder or dumber than this," and then Riverdale surprises me.

On 7/31/2022 at 9:16 PM, madhacker said:

And I’m done…..that last 4 minutes just finished me and shows that the writers are completely out of ideas. Hopefully they’ll say because of the time reversal means that some of cast will be spared from the insanity of this show and won’t be back (like Casey who’s basically been screwed over since season one playing Kevin in my opinion)

At first, when they said that Cheryl burning the comet would randomly make side characters disappear, I thought that was their way of writing people off the show. Very surprised none of the secondaries got a heroic send-off where they died to save the town.

On 7/31/2022 at 10:00 PM, thuganomics85 said:

 It leads to Abigail giving them away to break the barrier to escape Riverdale: they just... need to untie a lot of knots on a rope?  I have no idea what was going on there.

See, I would have thought that the A-plan would be to get everyone together to try to untie the rope, and then jump through a portal when it was ready. Like, yes, do the comet plan if you can't untie the rope on time, but try the rope first. The rope doesn't make people die.

I was shocked that it was apparently just Nana Rose and Heather, and the only reason they untied it was so Cheryl could fight the comet.

On 7/31/2022 at 10:00 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Archie with the "I will bring down the barrier for our love!" moment which naturally ends with him just trying to whack it with a pole until his mom tells him to chill.  Love you, buddy, but you really can be a dim bulb at times. 

I think the writers think he's manly or something, but literally all he ever does is hit stuff out of frustration. Nothing will ever beat the time he hit himself to try to get smart, but randomly hitting the magic barrier because that's his "plan" is pretty close.

On 8/3/2022 at 5:32 PM, tennisgurl said:

And the gang is in high school again? Despite our cast looking more adult than ever? Even by this shows standards that seems pretty ridiculous, especially if they actually plan on staying that way all season.

Yeah... if this were a comic book it would kind of make sense, because you could just draw the characters young, and everyone would forget about the disconnect pretty quickly. But I feel like, in the year 2022, it's kind of weird to ask 30-year-old actors to play characters frozen at 16... especially when I suspect, based on previous experience with this show, that it will involve posing them in unnecessary sexual tableaus.

On 8/3/2022 at 5:32 PM, tennisgurl said:

I thought Rivervale was unironically a lot of fun, the cast seemed to get some life back in them, the show became more interestingly stylized, and the wildness seemed to fit the macabre tone, the show is clearly at its best when its doing horror and it shows, and while the show lost its charm again when we left Rivervale, the last few episodes have been better, or at least a fun sort of ridiculous and not an annoying ridiculous.

I agree that Rivervale was good -- IMO, maybe some of the best episodes this show has had. I didn't care for the super powers stuff as much, but I at least found it interesting.

[Affogato]

I was sorry that Veronica kept on rejecting Reggie, they seem well suited. Chemistry, yes, and Reggie is a minion and Veronica likes to be on top.

Disappointed in Betty, actually. But, okay.

I've been over Cheryl for a long time. I guess Jason will be back.

I'm the only person, I guess, who likes Jughead and Tabitha together. They talked like adults, more or less, they shared problems, they supported each other, there wasn't a massive amount of drama.

It is possible they will make Jughead ACE for this last round, since no one has mentioned it. It is in the comics and I remember Sprouse saying he was up for it, back at the beginning.

I really am a lot more interested in any of the adult relationships than I am with what they will bring together back in high school. I hope it turns out to be another dream. But the twin peaks actors were all pretty old to play teenagers by the time the show came out. 24 year olds don't look like 16 year olds, either.

[ruby24]

The way the show decided to drop Betty and Jughead is VERY strange to me. Just because they were like, together for the first FOUR SEASONS- that's a long-ass time! They were a fan favorite pairing, which is I assume why they put them together in the first place...then they broke up in a really odd, vague way, then the time jump.

And that's it? Really? Now he's meant to be with Tabitha and Betty with Archie? 

I have to admit, this is not familiar to me in my history of watching TV dramas/soaps. Unless an actor leaves the show or there were problems behind the scenes, they don't usually completely drop a main/fan fave pairing like that. And given how I've watched what they've refused to do with Reggie and Veronica...I honestly believe this has something, if not everything, to do with all those actors breaking up in real life.

I didn't used to think this kind of thing really affected shows like this (because on teen dramas especially, I often start watching, then look up the cast and find out half of them are dating each other) but the timing is too coincidental here. This also happened recently on a show I once liked (Mr. Robot). The main actor was dating the main actress in real life, they were building a really slow burn, will they/won't they on the show...and then the actors broke up in real life, not amicably, and they literally killed off the main actress's character in the final season so they didn't have to share scenes together. I was SO pissed I couldn't finish the series.

So now I'm always suspicious. And with what's happening here, it just seems very bizarre how abruptly they've done this. WIth Betty and Jughead, and also the weird way they kinda did Reggie and Veronica this season but refused, for seemingly NO reason, to ever really give them a chance as a couple, despite the fact that neither of them had other love interests this season.

If this really is all because of the real life stuff, MAN is that horse shit.

Edited August 8, 2022 by ruby24

[LadyChaos]

Okay...the explosion can't be the origin event for bringing magic into Riverdale, because Nana Rose manipulated Cheryl into casting the spell to release Abigail (and it worked) before the explosion....Did the writers just forget that they did that?

And actually Alice is a bad mother, not only that but Percival's mind control didn't make her say those awful things to Betty and doesn't get rid of her aura showing her intent to do harm.

Why do I feel like Hiram might end up being the new Dorian Grey after I saw what happened to his painting.

At this point, I would think that Reggie knows she produces toxins....so....why would be ask her to pick up their 'relationship'....cause it seems like she hasn't gotten total control over that yet.

Love Heather telling Cheryl that Toni and Fangs are together 'Only for now' ..... because I don't think its really healthy for Cheryl to sit around waiting for her best friends marriage to fail or Fangs to die or for her to get in her head to start meddling again because she now knows that she and Toni are fated to be together...just like Tabitha telling Veronica there is a 50/50 chance that Archie ends up with her instead of Betty... I'm just hoping that knowing that Archie proposed helps Veronica move on and doesn't give her the idea to meddle.

....I don't know that I care for them being back in High School....hopefully that only lasts an ep or two.

Edited August 17, 2022 by LadyChaos