S01.E01: Chapter One: The River's Edge

[absnow54]

39 minutes ago, Sakura12 said:

Plus Pacey's teacher was more shocking because she didn't look like she just graduated from college

And I know Dawson's Creek gets dinged for looking too old for high school, but Pacey came off as a kid in that storyline, not an irresistible sex god. I hate teacher/student affairs because they always seem to avoid repercussions, and it's usually played as sexy and not a crime, but I think the Pacey/Tamara affair had actual nuance about getting old and insecurities. Archie seems too dumb to have motivations. 

I'll probably keep watching, but I felt like this show lacked charm. The characters were mostly dull and lifeless with the exception of Betty and Veronica. They should run away together to some place more interesting. 

[AzureOwl]

The show is interesting enough to continue giving it a chance. And I do agree that Betty and Veronica have more charisma and chemistry with each other than they do with Archie.

Since I never read any of the Archie comics and don’t know anything about the characters beyond their pop culture standing, I think I will be able to judge the show on its own merits better.

One detail that’s bothering though, is how big the town is supposed to be. The population count was conveniently absent from the town sign and the town is small enough to only have one high school and for everyone to know everyone else. But it’s also big enough to have an apartment building with a doorman downtown? Which apparently has been there since Veronica’s mother was a kid? Admittedly, my knowledge of small towns in the US is limited, but how big does a town need to be before starting to support a building like that? And it also has enough new construction going on to support a company's like the one Archie's dad has.

Edited January 27, 2017 by AzureOwl

[Bort]

7 hours ago, Lord Kira said:

I know the love triangle is a staple of the Archie franchise, but I can't see what makes Archie so amazing on this show.

I never understood it in the comics either, to be honest. I actually don't have any problems with Archie as portrayed/written because that's pretty much the way he was in the comics. Teenage boy who hasn't decided who he is yet and what he wants.

[Sakura12]

31 minutes ago, AzureOwl said:

One detail that’s bothering though, is how big the town is supposed to be. The population count was conveniently absent from the town sign and the town is small enough to only have one high school and for everyone to know everyone else. But it’s also big enough to have an apartment building with a doorman downtown? Which apparently has been there since Veronica’s mother was a kid? Admittedly, my knowledge of small towns in the US is limited, but how big does a town need to be before starting to support a building like that? And it also has enough new construction going on to support a company's like the one Archie's dad has.

Small towns in the US vary. I don't live in a small town, but the town next to us has only 4000 people and shared our our grade, middle and high school. The town is mostly businesses and apartments with some neighborhoods. 

In the comics Riverdale's town size was never mentioned but the Lodges lived in a huge mansion in the town. 

[cardigirl]

52 minutes ago, ZoloftBlob said:

Also - NONE of them look young enough to be in high school.

This bugged me most of all.  Everyone kept emphasizing that they were sophomores in high school and I was like "sure, sure they are." It kind of ruined the story line.  I get that it's the CW and fantasy to boot, but gah, so many sophomores in high school are gonna be devastated that they don't look anywhere near that grownup.  Aren't sophomores 15?  Not even driving yet.

[flyingdi]

Archiekins is much stupider when you hear it aloud than when you just read it.

[Sakura12]

I've given up on 20-30 year olds playing High schoolers, that's happened since the beginning of thr teen dramas in the states. I just ignore it now. Also because I wouldn't want to watch actual teens engaging in the the pretend sexual activity shown on these shows. 

[starri]

KJ Apa is 19. 

[galax-arena]

This show is so trashy and melodramatic, and the dialogue is horrible.

Excellent. I'm in! 

[kirkola]

1 hour ago, AzureOwl said:

One detail that’s bothering though, is how big the town is supposed to be. The population count was conveniently absent from the town sign and the town is small enough to only have one high school and for everyone to know everyone else. But it’s also big enough to have an apartment building with a doorman downtown? Which apparently has been there since Veronica’s mother was a kid? Admittedly, my knowledge of small towns in the US is limited, but how big does a town need to be before starting to support a building like that? And it also has enough new construction going on to support a company's like the one Archie's dad has.

The town I grew up in is about as small town as you can get...and it has nearly 16,000 residents.  We had one high school that covers not just my home town but two other smaller towns nearby.  So our high school was quite large, but we all knew each other.  We also had plenty of apartments, but no doorman on them, probably because it was always a blue collar town and no one in an apartment could afford to pay someone to hold doors.  If Riverdale had been a thriving community that fell into blue collar, it's entirely possible that there had been a doorman and Ms. Lodge continued to pay his salary when she bought the building.

[marketdoctor]

Quote

One detail that’s bothering though, is how big the town is supposed to be.

This is also a carry-over from the comics, where most of the time, Riverdale is exactly as big or small as it needs to be.  Some of that *almost* works if you believe Riverdale is a small town, but kind of in the center of other small towns, so it would have things it might otherwise be too small to support (like apartments and the construction company.)

ETA:  I liked it, but I'm judging it by a pilot, where I'm watching more for the acting and expect too much exposition.  Veronica might have the problem that Felicity Smoak has on Arrow, where she has chemistry with lots of people.  OTOH, like other posters, I saw more connection between her and Betty than I did between Archie and anyone. 

I didn't like the Miss Grundy/Archie sub-plot, but I did like that they were uncharacteristically aware that this could be a disaster.

Edited January 27, 2017 by marketdoctor

[Danny Franks]

So I've never read an Archie comic, and never intend to. But I know the basics just by... cultural osmosis, I guess. This seems like it's a far cry from its roots. Not necessarily a bad thing, and this show seems deliberately to be as campy and cheesy as hell. Which is fine.

Archie himself is kind of a Ferris Bueller character. Loved by the girls and the jocks and the arty types (and the sluts, bloods, wastoids, dweebies and dickheads). Obviously loved by his teacher(s) most of all. And he's a singer, songwriter, football player, heartthrob. Bit daft, really. But somehow he's also incredibly bland and forgettable, which Ferris wasn't.

I always find the trope of 'guy completely doesn't notice his smoking hot girl best friend who is secretly pining for him' kind of ridiculous. Because guys know when a girl is hot, trust me. It's not something that escapes our notice, even if they're childhood besties. We might not realise that the girl is into us, because we can also be kind of dumb. So I guess them making it clear Archie knows how she feels but doesn't feel the same way because 'drama reasons' is an improvement.

But I'm not getting where this 'I'm not good enough for her' idea is coming from. The handsome, smart, athletic, gifted kid who everyone loves has a hidden inferiority complex that prevents him from wanting to be with the girl he has on a pedestal? Eh

I did like that Betty and the gay dude were fairly upfront with Veronica about her liking Archie. The two girls choosing to be friends instead of fighting over the guy feels like a relatively fresh take on the dreaded love triangle. Except they kind of ruined that before the end of the episode. I imagine that there will be a large section of the audience hoping that the two of them just forget about Archie and hook up with each other.

Really, this show just feels like a whole bunch of storylines I've seen before, jammed into one big, pretty mess. It's a fever dream of an American high school. Absolutely bonkers.

[Ms Blue Jay]

An article about the Asian actor playing Reggie.  I didn't realize he was Reggie.  That's pretty cool.

http://www.refinery29.com/2017/01/136906/riverdale-reggie-mantle-ross-butler-interview

[I-Kare]

I guess I'll be a standout in that I loved it: the characters, the actors, the dialogue, the initial storyline, the costumes, the small town vibe (my home town has a population of 150, and we were bussed to a town of 3000 for high school), the changes in the characters from the original, the stuff they kept, etc. 

I'm 47 years old and was a fan of the 70s/80s era Archie comics. I also watched Twin Peaks when it aired. So I love the combination...it works for me. 

My only problem is I'm so used to streaming that I'm going to find it hard waiting a week for the new episodes. 

Edited January 27, 2017 by I-Kare

[MV007]

I really liked it.  I thought the Betty/Veronica friendship was really nicely played.  And I'm interested in seeing what happened between Archie and Jughead.  And I want to see Betty continue her downward spiral from perfection to normalcy.  

With that said, I hate the teacher/student thing on high school shows.  It's just wrong.

My other complaint would have to do with the love triangle.  I know next to nothing about the original comics but I expected the love triangle to be pretty evenly matched.  Having watched way too much TV and teen soaps, it seems obvious that its going to play in favor of Veronica.  Having a guy say he has never felt those kinds of feelings for someone that looks like Betty tells me he's never really going to get there.  

[Chaos Theory]

3 hours ago, cardigirl said:

This bugged me most of all.  Everyone kept emphasizing that they were sophomores in high school and I was like "sure, sure they are." It kind of ruined the story line.  I get that it's the CW and fantasy to boot, but gah, so many sophomores in high school are gonna be devastated that they don't look anywhere near that grownup.  Aren't sophomores 15?  Not even driving yet.

 

2 hours ago, Sakura12 said:

I've given up on 20-30 year olds playing High schoolers, that's happened since the beginning of thr teen dramas in the states. I just ignore it now. Also because I wouldn't want to watch actual teens engaging in the the pretend sexual activity shown on these shows. 

Legally minors can't work more then a few hours a day. Plus you have to deal with their parents.  Then there is the matter of not being able to guarantee that a fifteen year old will want to act a year from now or will grow into their looks/tallent  and not out of them.   It's just better business to employ "older" actors.   Honestly it doesn't bother me as much as it does some.  If I had to guess I'd say the actors playing Archie, Betty and Veronica are in their late teens/early twenties which isn't that bad.

And yeah more then likely all three are going to have tv sex and other grown up activities that you don't want to watch actual 15 year olds do.  Even if you know it's pretend. 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Chaos Theory

[MarkHB]

2 hours ago, marketdoctor said:

This is also a carry-over from the comics, where most of the time, Riverdale is exactly as big or small as it needs to be.  Some of that *almost* works if you believe Riverdale is a small town, but kind of in the center of other small towns, so it would have things it might otherwise be too small to support (like apartments and the construction company.)

At one point they mentioned Rockland County.  I don't know if that's supposed to be Rockland County, NY, or not, but "one of the rural-esque suburbs heading up the Hudson" might be what they're aiming for.  I wouldn't be a bit surprised if it adjoins Ghost Whisperer's Grandview.

2 hours ago, flyingdi said:

Archiekins is much stupider when you hear it aloud than when you just read it.

I caught that and "Ronnie".  In the old cartoons, Veronica typically had a Southern-esque flirty sing-song to her voice when she said it (which was usually when she wanted something).

[SimoneS]

33 minutes ago, MV007 said:

My other complaint would have to do with the love triangle.  I know next to nothing about the original comics but I expected the love triangle to be pretty evenly matched.  Having watched way too much TV and teen soaps, it seems obvious that its going to play in favor of Veronica.  Having a guy say he has never felt those kinds of feelings for someone that looks like Betty tells me he's never really going to get there.  

You figured out the triangle from the early comics exactly as it occurs. 

[Danny Franks]

39 minutes ago, MV007 said:

 

My other complaint would have to do with the love triangle.  I know next to nothing about the original comics but I expected the love triangle to be pretty evenly matched.  Having watched way too much TV and teen soaps, it seems obvious that its going to play in favor of Veronica.  Having a guy say he has never felt those kinds of feelings for someone that looks like Betty tells me he's never really going to get there.  

Oh, I'm sure he'll get there just in time for Betty to start dating another guy, so Archie can pine manfully for her for a while. I can't think of a show that has passed up on an opportunity to run through that tired old trope when it arose. And this show looks like it's going to hit all of its tropes at lightspeed. 

[cardigirl]

19 minutes ago, Chaos Theory said:

 

Legally minors can't work more then a few hours a day. Plus you have to deal with their parents.  Then there is the matter of not being able to guarantee that a fifteen year old will want to act a year from now or will grow into their looks/tallent  and not out of them.   It's just better business to employ "older" actors.   Honestly it doesn't bother me as much as it does some.  If I had to guess I'd say the actors playing Archie, Betty and Veronica are in their late teens/early twenties which isn't that bad.

And yeah more then likely all three are going to have tv sex and other grown up activities that you don't want to watch actual 15 year olds do.  Even if you know it's pretend. 

It's less about that, and more about believing them to be 15.  I would have had less of a problem if they had said they were seniors.  It's a minor point, but it did distract from my being able to buy into the show's universe.  

[AzureOwl]

1 hour ago, Danny Franks said:

I always find the trope of 'guy completely doesn't notice his smoking hot girl best friend who is secretly pining for him' kind of ridiculous. Because guys know when a girl is hot, trust me. It's not something that escapes our notice, even if they're childhood besties. We might not realise that the girl is into us, because we can also be kind of dumb. So I guess them making it clear Archie knows how she feels but doesn't feel the same way because 'drama reasons' is an improvement.

But I'm not getting where this 'I'm not good enough for her' idea is coming from. The handsome, smart, athletic, gifted kid who everyone loves has a hidden inferiority complex that prevents him from wanting to be with the girl he has on a pedestal? Eh

If we take what the characters say at face value, Archie's hotness is a very recent development (as they constantly remind us) and Betty used to be too fat to be a cheerleader (although we might take that one with a grain of salt.

1 hour ago, nosleepforme said:

And by the way, wasn't it convenient how every major character is by the lake at the end of the episode when the body is being taken away? Apparently, they all live near by the lake? Or they all get up before the other people in the city? Or they're just that curious? 

I don't think it's a lake. It's a river, the one that probably gives the town its name. It wouldn't be too far fetched that the bulk of the town's residential area is built near the river. It's the sort of picturesque crap realtors love to play up. 

[Chaos Theory]

14 minutes ago, cardigirl said:

It's less about that, and more about believing them to be 15.  I would have had less of a problem if they had said they were seniors.  It's a minor point, but it did distract from my being able to buy into the show's universe.  

The show probably wants to keep them in high school for a bit.  Making them seniors drastically cuts the amount of time unless they want to make every season a month but then you run into other problem.  Making them sophomores buys them at least a year.  

Not that it matters I am probably done with the show.  The love triangle turns me off especially since it veers heavily in Veronica's direction and unless the show is planning something more then playing up "Poor Betty" in love with a boy who will never love her back then I am out.   

[Danny Franks]

13 minutes ago, AzureOwl said:

If we take what the characters say at face value, Archie's hotness is a very recent development (as they constantly remind us) and Betty used to be too fat to be a cheerleader (although we might take that one with a grain of salt.

He must have been attractive enough before the summer for Betty to be in love with him and his teacher to be hooking up with him. Just not as muscular. As for Betty, I didn't hear the dialogue for all of that bit, but I assumed that the bitchy girl calling her fat meant that she might have been just an ounce or two above what shallow people find 'acceptable'.

But like I say, this is a kid who seemingly everyone adores and reinforces. The fucking football players were complimenting him on his physique and acting like he was already the star QB. They'll need to come up with a convincing reason for him to believe he's not good enough for Betty.

Edited January 27, 2017 by Danny Franks

[grandemocha]

I liked it enough to watch a few more episodes. I think mainly I'm just exhausted by all the supernatural (vampires/magic/demons) shows and I'm beyond tired of the endless superhero stuff on the CW so I'm willing to give this show a chance. I feel for poor Betty and I liked Veronica too, but Archie reminds me a little of Lucas from OTH..which is not a good thing. 

One thing I really disliked was the narrator. I don't remember which Sprouse twin is on this show, but something about the way he speaks/ does the narration is annoying to me.

[flyingdi]

Aren't 15 year olds, especially these jaded 15 year olds, a tad old to be playing Spin The Bottle?

[MV007]

It helps me to think to myself sophomores instead of 15 yr olds.  The number clicks in my brain and forces me to realize the ridiculousness of it all.  But I want a teen soap so I do what I can not to think about it.  And as the previous poster said, this is all about getting another year out of high school should the show go on for a couple years.

[NorthstarATL]

1 hour ago, Danny Franks said:

He must have been attractive enough before the summer for Betty to be in love with him and his teacher to be hooking up with him. Just not as muscular.

Lots of people fall for the guy/girl next door because age and location make them more or less first contact. And Archie refers to Betty as a "best friend" (which I thought would be Jughead, based on the books, but apparently they had a falling out), so Betty being in love with him was based on more than looks. It just didn't hurt that he filled out over the summer. THAT happens as well.

  We saw the teacher pull up to him on the road in the flashback, which happened over the summer as well. I am assuming since everyone knew her that she knew once he leaned into the car that he went to the school, so that was probably not a good idea. Not going to judge. I dated my high school math teacher, BUT we met over the summer, and I was bartending, so he had no reason to think I went to high school, and I had just moved there, so I wouldn't recognize him as a teacher. We lasted for several years. No problems.

[zxy556575]

23 hours ago, nosleepforme said:

And by the way, wasn't it convenient how every major character is by the lake at the end of the episode when the body is being taken away?

Speaking of that, why were the Twincests going rowing and Archie/Miss Grundy having a makeout session by the river at just after dawn/6:30 am? I can be bothered to wonder why Cheryl was wearing a dress, heels and gloves.

Edited January 28, 2017 by Lord Donia

[TiffanyNichelle]

I kind of enjoyed this even if it is so much like Dawson's Creek with a brunette for Jen and a blonde for Joey. I can't root for Betty to be helplessly in love with Archie when I never saw him as sending signals to her that he likes her like that. He was practically salivating over Veronica as soon as she walked in the door. Then telling Veronica in the closet that  he didn't have feelings for Betty in that way and he never will. I could have done without the "you're too good for me" bullshit speech at the end. But I just need her to not pine over a guy who's not into her or sending mixed signals (which I didn't get until that stupid speech).

I was not feeling Veronica at all in the first half. Big city snob comes in mocking the small town and the cringy "you're gay, be my accessory BFF" line. But the speech defending Betty to the widow/twin sister was so good.

Jughead's voiceovers were hilariously dramatic. I'm hoping they cut that device and merge him further into the show.

[TresGatos]

I read a lot of Archie comics in the '60s and '70s and, I have to say, I enjoyed this mainly because of Archie's Dad Had a Beard? Archie's Dad is Greg Brady? No, wait, Archie's Dad is Luke Perry! Betty is on Adderall? Ms. Grundy is molesting Archie and manipulating his mind!!!????!!!! All of that I enjoyed and I also enjoyed Josie and the Pussycats. I didn't enjoy the kiss between Betty and Veronica. It make Veronica look stupid and profoundly uncool, especially when Cheryl called her out on it which made it even more unbelievable that Veronica could just high hat her way past Cheryl so both she and Betty made the cheerleading squad. I also didn't like Moose. Not only wasn't he blond and big enough, his closeted meathead character reminded me a lot of the closeted meathead character that was on Glee. Also, whenever Archie started to sing I couldn't help but burst out with Sugar...ah, honey, Honey. My family did not have a lot of music around while I was growing up but I did have a copy of The Archie's Sugar Sugar cut from the back of a box of Super Sugar Crisp. That and The Sonny Side of Cher. I'll give it another chance next week even though my spouse said it's too 90201-ish for his taste.

[MarkHB]

26 minutes ago, TresGatos said:

lso, whenever Archie started to sing I couldn't help but burst out with Sugar...ah, honey, Honey. My family did not have a lot of music around while I was growing up but I did have a copy of The Archie's Sugar Sugar cut from the back of a box of Super Sugar Crisp.

I could never get those to work; they'd never be flat enough for the needle to stay on them.  Alas.

True fact: I contemplated starting a podcast of my own to cover this show, but never got past wondering how to get someone to do a Twin Peaks-esque arrangement of "Sugar Sugar" to use as the theme song.

[NeenerNeener]

It was ok. Kind of reminded me of Twisted from a few years back on ABC Family. I'll probably keep watching as long as nobody else launches into a rant about "building a brand" in future episodes. 

[bettername2come]

I thought it was okay. I almost didn't recognize brunette Cole Sprouse. He sounds different than he did a few years back. I think he could be my favorite if he actually gets to do stuff. Not a huge Archie fan - I think I had one issue of Double Digest as a kid, but I have an inexplicable love for the Josie and the Pussycats movie and loved Sabrina the Teenage Witch tv series, so I'm hoping we actually get to meet a dark, twisted version of Sabrina eventually and that the Pussycats eventually get something to do.

[Affogato]

20 hours ago, kariyaki said:

 

Archie looks uncannily like Stefan from Vampire Diaries. It was kind of freaking me out.

It's the weird bushy eyebrows, giving him that werewolf crazy look. The weird bushy dyed eyebrows :-)

[yourmomiseasy]

10 hours ago, AzureOwl said:

The show is interesting enough to continue giving it a chance. And I do agree that Betty and Veronica have more charisma and chemistry with each other than they do with Archie.

Since I never read any of the Archie comics and don’t know anything about the characters beyond their pop culture standing, I think I will be able to judge the show on its own merits better.

One detail that’s bothering though, is how big the town is supposed to be. The population count was conveniently absent from the town sign and the town is small enough to only have one high school and for everyone to know everyone else. But it’s also big enough to have an apartment building with a doorman downtown? Which apparently has been there since Veronica’s mother was a kid? Admittedly, my knowledge of small towns in the US is limited, but how big does a town need to be before starting to support a building like that? And it also has enough new construction going on to support a company's like the one Archie's dad has.

My hometown wasn't tiny, but it wasn't huge.  I think the population was about 60k back then.  We only had one high school and one continuation school for our town and all the surrounding smaller towns and unincorporated areas.  My graduating class was ~1000 kids by the time we graduated (it was a few hundred larger when we were sophomores).  Everyone didn't know everyone, but you at least knew of most people -- we all came from only 3 junior highs so if you didn't know someone you probably had a friend that came from their junior high that did.   We had plenty of apartment buildings, but I don't think even the really nice ones had door men -- all the rich people had big houses over by the country club.  We had a mall (small and not great stores), a crappy movie theater, an amphitheater, a library, a couple museums, a university, a hospital, a skating rink, an amusement park, a farmers market, etc.  We didn't have a ton of big box stores, but anything we didn't have the big town 10 minutes away had and the richer big town 20 minutes away probably also had it but nicer.  They opened up a second high school shortly after I graduated and a new movie theater was built around then.  Now I think there are 4 high schools and they just opened a huge new shopping complex with a bunch of shops, restaurants, and movie theater.  I think the population has grown to ~70k.   

[Affogato]

9 hours ago, Sakura12 said:

Small towns in the US vary. I don't live in a small town, but the town next to us has only 4000 people and shared our our grade, middle and high school. The town is mostly businesses and apartments with some neighborhoods. 

In the comics Riverdale's town size was never mentioned but the Lodges lived in a huge mansion in the town. 

A long time ago I spent some time in a small town in Iowa. There aren't many lakes in Iowa and this town wasn't particularly huge but there were a lot of mansions and luxury cabins around the lake. There was a country club, too.

[Affogato]

I kept on hoping for zombies and witches, maybe a sarcastic cat? It doesn't seem to have much humor or its own personality.

[Bill1978]

Totally forgot this started this week, but then I saw the story on the front page and rushed over to Netflix to watch (that's where us folks Down Under get to watch it). I'm more of a casual fan of the Archie brand. I have memories of ready a weekly strip in a newspaper (but not sure if that actually happened) and have memories of watching a cartoon show. So basically I'm not invested in the history of the characters as a true fan, so approached this more as a new TV show with characters who I would recognise when the name was said eg Reggie. I appreciate the writer going out of the way to drop character names in the pilot unlike the writer from Versailles.

I'm liking the tone of this show. For me, I admit I got flashbacks of Dawson's Creek with the triangle and the hip soundtrack, but it didn't bother me as much as The O.C. bothered me with its Dawson's Creek-ness. I could have done without the teacher-student relationship because that has really become very cliché in teen dramas. I guess the upshot to that plot point is that the teacher and student knew each other. Usually there is the big reveal when the student enrols at school, or the teacher arrives to work for the first day. While I hope the plot gets squashed quickly, it won't cause it is clear the two will need to reveal the affair to help solve the mystery. I had to google what age a sophomore was to find out just how icky the relationship is because the actors look and act like they are actually in their final year of high school

I am glad the show is called Riverdale and not Archie, which allows us to spend time with more characters in depth. And also allows the show to continue if the actor playing Archie wants to leave.

I admit I had to Wikipedia Kevin and Cheryl just to see if they were original characters or made for the TV show. I really enjoyed Kevin, he seems like a lot of fun. And while Moose being closed gay is a cliché, I have a feeling that they are going to go a different path. More like he is just worried about getting caught being gay but he is comfortable being gay (except for kissing LOL) when alone. So he isn't really all angsty about it. And Cheryl is that bitch you love to hate and enjoy other characters putting her back in her place. Glad others got a twincest vibe with Cheryl and Jason. I was beginning to think Game of Thrones had warped my view on how I see things.

I really enjoy this interpretation of Veronica. I've never been a fan of the character, but I feel this show is going to make me sympathise with her. I'm glad she is feeling some remorse over the closet incident. And is Betty's reliance on Adderall is that bad or shocking? I googled it as I had no idea what it was, and found it is used for narcolepsy and ADHD. Is this something that should make me think less of Betty?

In the comics Archie and Jughead are besties right? So, another question that will need to be answered is what happened between the two? Probably something boring like Archie became cool.

I'm thinking Archie's Dad, Betty's mum and Veronica's mum were the original Riverdale love triangle. They got too much character development in the pilot for them not to be connected.

While I'm sure Cheryl will be the first arrested I doubt she killed her brother. She is far far too obvious. Hopefully the show has plans in place for if they get a second season.

The only thing that bothered me was Archie's hair colour. It seemed unnatural. Is it a dye job? Oh and Josie's attitude. I don't recall Josie ever being so damn rude and conceited.

Edited January 28, 2017 by Bill1978

[txhorns79]

Quote

I am glad the show is called Riverdale and not Archie, which allows us to spend time with more characters in depth. And also allows the show to continue if the actor playing Archie wants to leave.

It would have to be a pretty popular show for them to want to continue it without the main focus of the comic series.  I may be wrong, but I would guess that all the actors are locked in for at least five seasons.  I think that's generally how it is for a normal tv show contract.   

Quote

 

I didn't like the Miss Grundy/Archie sub-plot, but I did like that they were uncharacteristically aware that this could be a disaster.

 

I wasn't thrilled with this development either.  It felt very unnecessary. 

Overall, I enjoyed it.  It's very cheesy, but in a way that could be fun. 

[memememe76]

I think what the show did a pretty good job was to showcase the different relationships. Betty and Veronica is the most obvious example, but I also bought the friendship  (or lack thereof) of Archie and Jughead, the friendship of Betty and Kevin, the rivalry of Cheryl and Veronica/Betty. The romantic relationship are less defined, but for the show to last, it's always the friendships that matter.

And Luke Perry's ex wife has to be either Shannon or Jennie or Rebecca. Maybe Tiffani?

Edited January 28, 2017 by memememe76

[grandemocha]

I also really wish that student/teacher "relationships" would stop being glorified on TV and stop being portrayed as sexy or romantic. Its not cute, its not okay, and I don't give a damn if the actor playing Archie looks like an adult..on the show he is supposed to be 15 years old and the teacher committed a crime by screwing him.

I had the same issue with the mess on Pretty Little Liars for Ezra/Aria. Ezra's creepy ass should have been hauled off to prison for years for what he did.

[MarkHB]

1 hour ago, memememe76 said:

And Luke Perry's ex wife has to be either Shannon or Jennie or Rebecca. Maybe Tiffani?

I will say that the actress has been cast; if you go looking and want to discuss the casting, please do so in the spoiler thread.  Thanks!

[Cthulhudrew]

21 hours ago, Racj82 said:

Why do teens shows have to so often be formulaic?

Because they're written by people who grew up watching formulaic teen shows, would be my guess. Wash, rinse, repeat.

(Or watch, in this case.)

Most sitcoms have the same problem. Actually, I think the latter has had the problem for far longer.

But yeah, I think that's the worst part about this. From plot to dialogue, so much here just feels like it was cribbed from other- occasionally even better- shows. It wasn't awful, per se, just uninspired.

15 hours ago, ZoloftBlob said:

Also - NONE of them look young enough to be in high school.

Much less high school sophomores. Seniors would have been closer to the mark, but even that would be pushing it severely.

I agree with other posters that Veronica was the best part of the show. The actress has presence and brings a much-needed energy to every scene she's in (and the show as a whole). Everyone else ranges from drab to monotone. Particularly the titular star, Archie (and his unnatural hair color). It is just a shame they decided to go down the well of having Veronica make out with Archie after otherwise presenting her as the most likeable character. At least give it a couple of episodes.

I was disappointed with Madchen Amick here, as well. I'm sure its partly due to the writing for her character, but her acting choices felt more like caricature; not the kind of performance level from her that I am familiar with.

[Athena5217]

Veronica was my favorite character in the comics so it's no surprise that she is already my favorite character in the show.  I was worried I was too old for the show, but then my hubby, who is seven years older, said he liked it. However, I would be happy if all teacher-student affair plots were dropped from high school dramas. That is statutory rape, and it should be treated as such. I do realize it is har to remember that when the actor playing the male high school student is usually in his twenties. 

Spoiler

 

[ZoloftBlob]

Quote

Much less high school sophomores. Seniors would have been closer to the mark, but even that would be pushing it severely.

I think I'd be less off put by it if they weren't constantly grinding home how everyone is a sophomore - there at least two references to how Archie had done got himself a growth spurt and turned into a man over summer. Meanwhile NO ONE in the high school looked under 20 - there were no teeny freshmen at the "JV" football practice where at a small school like this, you'd expect to see a few kids in that gawky14-15 year old range.

I mean, I really don't expect realism but don't harp on how everyone is so freshfaced and innocent, entering their sophomore year after spending the summer growing up and changing from caterpillars into butterflies when everyone is clearly old enough to just be carded for form's sake.

[Minneapple]

16 hours ago, galax-arena said:

This show is so trashy and melodramatic, and the dialogue is horrible.

Excellent. I'm in! 

It's so terrible. I love it. Forget quality dramas, this high school tropefest is it for me.

[WhosThatGirl]

I cosign Veronica and Betty ditching Archie and getting together. He's kind of a dud. 

[starri]

22 minutes ago, Bill1978 said:

In the comics Archie and Jughead are besties right? So, another question that will need to be answered is what happened between the two? Probably something boring like Archie became cool.

When they rebooted the comic series, we enter Riverdale as Archie and Betty have just broken up (BV: Before Veronica) over something referred to only as the Lipstick Incident.  It took a few months before we found out what exactly that was.

I'm expecting something similar here.

25 minutes ago, Bill1978 said:

I admit I had to Wikipedia Kevin and Cheryl just to see if they were original characters or made for the TV show.

I think pretty much everyone here is a comics character.  

[Tiger]

KJ Apa was good in A Dog's Purpose, but awful in this.  Maybe it's the hair dye? 

[Sakura12]

They are using all the names from the comics, that's about it. 

20-30 years olds have been playing teens for years, this show is just following the same formula, along with following all the other formulas. I'm another that wishes they stop glorifying the teen/teacher relationships. It's not sexy, it's gross.