S01.E04: Chapter Four: The Last Picture Show

[Mabinogia]

On ‎2‎/‎17‎/‎2017 at 1:16 PM, MV007 said:

They wanted it to be sexy to have Archie screwing his hot teacher.

I don't think they were trying to make it sexy. I think they were trying to show that Archie thought it was sexy because he's a teenage boy getting liad, and Faux Grundy thought it was sexy because she has some serious development issues, but the show made it seem taudry and gross to me. Not once did I think they were hot together. I mean, they were sex scene's so they were people having sex, but it wasn't shot in any way that made me think the show was trying to turn them into Ezzzzria (Pretty Little Liars OTP pairing of a teacher and his student which the show tried to make cute and sweet and an epic romance, none of which, thankfully, was done here). I never once felt like the show wanted us to root for Grunchie haha.

[Splishy Splashy]

Once again I enjoyed the show. There was one thing in this episode that I thought was a bit weird is I thought they abruptly halted the whole Miss Grundy thing pretty quick when they could have dragged it out a little more with things getting a little more heated between Grundy and Archie. I definitely don't see this as the end of Miss Grundy or whoever she really is. The positives continue to shine to Lili Reinhart as Betty and also Cole Sprouse as Jughead in my opinion. I really liked what I saw with the little preview at the end of this episode for next week.

[Sulis]

I quite enjoyed this episode, whereas the first three had me rolling my eyes at some of the dialogue. It just seemed too try-hard, and as others have pointed out, really tonally inconsistent. This was better. I still think it's a bit weird how they're pushing a 50s vibe, but hey, I can try to overlook it.

 

Quote

I actually kinda liked the reaction of Archie's dad and Betty's mom.  It was very human especially Betty's mom.  She didn't particularly care if Grundy ruined Archie but used it as object lession for Betty.  "See Betty what I was saying about Archie."  She had a nuke in her hand and pressed the button and Betty did the same knowing her mother would relent when the families reputations was at stake.  

Honestly if it was my kid I am not sure I wouldn't just let the teacher leave if it saved my kid the awkwardness.  Just get them out and deal with it.  So I don't blame Archie's dad who might have been a bit in shock and more worried about protecting his son on two fronts. 

I agree with this. I thought it was quite well done overall, they made it fairly clear that the Grundy/Archie relationship was wrong even if Archie didn't believe it to be. I also agree that his dad probably thought it was better for him that she just leave town and not put his son through a big scandal. It was fairly obvious from the moment that Betty found the real ID that she would have some fleeing an abusive ex story, and I think there's room to say either she's lying or telling the truth about that. Nevertheless, it was clear at the end that she was eyeing up the other teenage boys (nice Lolita sunglasses!). Wonder if we'll see her again... 

Betty was a bit stupid though, taking the gun - why on earth would she do that? And she must know her mother's a nosy bitch by now, seeing as how she specifically called out her diary, so why is she still writing in it?

Liked the Jughead and his dad interaction, although I really wish we could call him something else. Jughead? Juggy? Ugh. Still, his dad is hot. Hello Skeet Ulrich!

[ketose]

9 hours ago, Splishy Splashy said:

Once again I enjoyed the show. There was one thing in this episode that I thought was a bit weird is I thought they abruptly halted the whole Miss Grundy thing pretty quick when they could have dragged it out a little more with things getting a little more heated between Grundy and Archie. I definitely don't see this as the end of Miss Grundy or whoever she really is. The positives continue to shine to Lili Reinhart as Betty and also Cole Sprouse as Jughead in my opinion. I really liked what I saw with the little preview at the end of this episode for next week.

What the What? Jughead is played by Cody from Zach and Cody?

 

11 hours ago, Oscirus said:

This is definitely the last time we're going to see Grundy. She served her purpose. If anything, that last scene was a way of showing us that Betty was right without bringing her back.

Ironically I think the biggest problem with the Archie-Grundy is something that's not being addressed. It's that we're supposed to dislike Grundy for sexualizing/ taking advantage of a teenage boy, yet the show does it repeatedly.  I guess that last ogling scene was supposed to be disgusting but what does one call all of these  shirtless Archie shots where the camera's basically showing off Archie and his "great abs," and yes, I get that the actor is of age but what's being presented to us is a 15/16 year old boy.  

Adults in their mid-30's shouldn't be deflowering teens, but I'm also not all that excited about teenagers sexing other teens and giving them sticky maples.

[peachmangosteen]

1 hour ago, ketose said:

What the What? Jughead is played by Cody from Zach and Cody?

Yep. There's a discussion about it in the thread for ep 3.

[Avatar19]

Sometimes I feel like the writers binge watched Pretty Little Liars right before writing this show. 

[Bort]

18 minutes ago, Avatar19 said:

Sometimes I feel like the writers binge watched Pretty Little Liars right before writing this show. 

Oh, I'm quite sure this show is hoping to pick up the Pretty Little Liar audience as that show is about to have its swan song. At least Riverdale has the sense to not romanticize the teacher/student pairing.

[Splishy Splashy]

Yep, Cole Sprouse is all grown up and is now Jughead and does a pretty good job in my opinion.

If Riverdale can capture the Pretty Little Liars audience I think they will be ecstatic as the show would then most definitely continue on.

[Mabinogia]

I just hope this show doesn't go as far off the rails as PLL did because, yeah, this is my new Pretty Little Liars, which I gave up on half way through last season.

My favorite this about PLL was always the friendship between the four girls. So far my favorite thing about this show is B&Vs growing friendship. I really dread Archie coming between them. I don't want them to be a romantic couple because it is really, really nice to see strong, platonic friendships between young women, rather than them attacking each other out of jealousy. Please, show, I know that the tringle is a HUGE part of the Archie legacy, but please don't let it ruin B&V's friendship.

[zumpie]

Point 1:  Skeet Ulrich was on the short-lived Law and Order: LA  (which I mourn) and he was soooooooooooooo fine.  Even prettier than he is here.  I fell in LOVE.

Point 2:  LOL at the poster freaking out over Grundy's age.... aka... my age.

Thank you to the posters who pointed out that we still REFUSE to EVER sympathize with Statutory Rapist Grundy!

I become more and more obsessed with Jughead every episode.  I am creeping out myself by being in love with Cole Sprouse but here I am.  (He's legal folks)

Like others ( @tennisgurl ) I thought it was really cool for Kevin to finally have a home life and a storyline.

He's the favorite character of both myself and my 16 year old daughter. Cole Sprouse plays him amazingly well (and Cole, himself, in real life, comes across as fabulously self-effacing and endearing). Again, Jug and Veronica remain my absolute faves---they just need to fall in love, now!

[Splishy Splashy]

31 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

I just hope this show doesn't go as far off the rails as PLL did because, yeah, this is my new Pretty Little Liars, which I gave up on half way through last season.

My favorite this about PLL was always the friendship between the four girls. So far my favorite thing about this show is B&Vs growing friendship. I really dread Archie coming between them. I don't want them to be a romantic couple because it is really, really nice to see strong, platonic friendships between young women, rather than them attacking each other out of jealousy. Please, show, I know that the tringle is a HUGE part of the Archie legacy, but please don't let it ruin B&V's friendship.

This is so true, I love the friendship that B & V are developing. I definitely want that to grow stronger, but like you said I feel eventually Archie will get his Big Red Head in the way somehow and they will start a cat fight with each other. As for B & V becoming a couple I definitely do not want that to happen at all. I have heard rumors that Veronica is Bi and the whole kiss after Cheerleading tryouts, but I think that would be taking it way over the top. Hell,making Miss Grundy very young and involved with Archie was very weird for me even though now she really wasn't Grundy at all.

[rmontro]

When I read that this episode was about Jughead trying to keep the drive in from being closed, I really thought that sounded dull.  But this was the best episode of the season, I thought.  One dramatic turn after another.  Betty was kind of dumb taking the gun and writing that secret stuff in her diary though.

I'm enjoying this show tremendously, I hope it gets renewed for another season.  Only four more episodes to go.

[Anna Yolei]

On 2/16/2017 at 10:46 PM, loki567 said:

What a delightful hot mess of a show. I'm definitely in long-term. And even if the writing's very scattershot, there seems to be going more under the surface than just standard teen drama. Helps that the parents are getting some decent material. They're doing a good job "building," the rest of the cast. Things aren't just centered around one love triangle. 

That's actually the one thing they've gotten resoundingly right. The Triangle(tm) will have to be addressed since it was a big part of the original comics, but I'm glad they've developed the girls' friendship first. That, and the parents' involvement.

3 hours ago, rmontro said:

I'm enjoying this show tremendously, I hope it gets renewed for another season.  Only four more episodes to go.

I thought it was 12 episodes?

still, I agree. It's been a fun ride regardless.

[ruby24]

I think it's 13 episodes.

[Splishy Splashy]

So do they decide the fate of the show after 12 or 13 episodes air or would they pull the plug even before that? I do hope it gets picked up for another season as I am loving the show.

[angora]

Oh my gosh, Jughead's homeless and nobody knows!  As soon as the biker guy started talking to him, I figured it was his dad, but the homeless twist got me.  I have so many questions.  Where's his sister/mom?  How long has this been going on (his "I always do" to his dad re:  finding a new place to sleep suggested it's been a while)?  Does he get his friends to buy his food at Pop's for him, or did the drive-in job pay well enough to accommodate his burger habit?  As one of the Serpents, was his dad complicit in the Lodges' plan to drive down the value of the land and consequently take away the roof over his head?  (After the reveal, one of my first thoughts was that, good food aside, one of the reasons he spends so much time at Pop's is because it's a warm, well-lit building that's open late into the night.)  How lacking is Archie in the best friend department that he presumably knows nothing about this?  Hopefully Betty finds out soon; she'd go to bat for Jughead and help him think of something (side note:  we didn't get much of it this week, but I still love their friendship.  More nicknames - he called her Bets! - and even though she wasn't paying any attention to the conversation, she STILL came up with the perfect movie for the drive-in's last show.  Now that's simpatico!)

I was really interested in the scene between Jughead and his dad.  Even though Jughead gives off that sort of world-weary self-sufficient vibe, I didn't get any sense that he's angry with or distant toward his dad.  I thought he actually seemed in relatively good spirits, if a little rueful.

Not cool with Alice hijacking the Miss Grundy storyline.  Don't get me wrong - I'm super glad she's out of Archie's life for the time being (both because she's a predator and because that storyline was really dragging Archie down,) but as soon as Alice got involved, it became more about stopping Alice on her out-of-control crusade than getting the predator away from the 15-year-old boy.  I hope there's some further talk about this in the next episode and Archie can get to a place where he understands how Miss Grundy was taking advantage of him.

Really liked Kevin with his dad, and I'm down for a little South Side Story.

[shapeshifter]

On February 17, 2017 at 9:37 AM, maxineofarc said:

They gave her the Lolita sunglasses! (Which was strange because Lolita was the victim, not the predator, but... never mind, it was a nice little nod.)

Not sure why Betty kept the gun.

I wondered about that too. Maybe so Grundy couldn't threaten or kill Archie with it?

 

On February 17, 2017 at 5:52 PM, NorthstarATL said:

. . . There IS a double standard, though, as far as gender, in that an adult male can overpower a teen girl, whereas teen boys start to outweigh and outsize adult females. The status of being a teacher is usually where the power differential is made up, but, in Archie's case, Grundy wasn't responsible for his grades. . . .

Good point! I hadn't thought about that. And I suppose that would also be true if she manages to land another HS gig. Now I'm as confused as Archie about Grundy taking advantage. We, the audience, know that is her intent, but what about Archie's intent? Regardless, the law says it's statutory rape because of his age.
Anyway, as much as I agree with those posters above who felt that as parents, they would rather she just leave town than to have their child make front page headlines as a victim (and social media would likely be even worse), I have also been schooled by Olivia Benson of L&O SVU, so I have to question the morality of letting a sexual predator ride off into the sunset in search of new prey—especially since we now know that she is/was "packing."

[WhosThatGirl]

Yeah, the ending scene of Miss Grudy was gross and I'm about 90% sure she might do this again. I'm sorry but a student/teacher affair is wrong. Even if the student is all "I'm totally okay with everything" it isn't okay. I'm also like the other poster who is happy that  this show didn't try to romanticize the situation ala Pretty Little Liars. 

[ban1o]

I might be the only one who doesn't dislike Grundy.  It's just a tv show PLL and Dawson's Creek did the same thing with the teacher student relationships. 

[jay741982]

3 hours ago, Anna Yolei said:

That's actually the one thing they've gotten resoundingly right. The Triangle(tm) will have to be addressed since it was a big part of the original comics, but I'm glad they've developed the girls' friendship first. That, and the parents' involvement.

I thought it was 12 episodes?

still, I agree. It's been a fun ride regardless.

I'm so wanting a second season as I'm loving this show. I'm hoping the fact that Greg Berlanti is behind this helps out getting another season as him creating 4 hit shows that are currently on CW can be a factor. This can be like LOT and get 13 to 16 episodes next season

[Misty79]

Lili Reinhart (the actress playing Betty) is really owning this show so far IMO. Everything Betty and everything B+V seems to be on a different level.

The greater focus on Archie this week was a challenge therefore, and I'm not sure that KJ Apa was quite up to it. I know comic book Archie is a dullard but I'd still like to see more energy from the actor. He was decent in the pilot though so I'm still hopeful. 

Jughead being homeless and fathered by Skeet was an unexpected twist. I haven't really been feeling him up until now, hopefully this opens up the character a bit. He comes across as a lot more neurotic than I recall from the comics. Which is fine of course, but I keep expecting him to be this ultra laid back character and it throws me for a loop. 

Edited February 20, 2017 by Misty79

[Anna Yolei]

2 hours ago, angora said:

How lacking is Archie in the best friend department that he presumably knows nothing about this? 

At the beginning of the show, it appeared their relationship had been estranged for a while. Archie blew off a trip with Jughead for Humberta Humberta on July 4, but maybe they drifted apart after Fred sacked Juggie's dad.

[shapeshifter]

27 minutes ago, Misty79 said:

. . . He [Jughead] comes across as a lot more neurotic than I recall from the comics. Which is fine of course, but I keep expecting him to be this ultra laid back character and it throws me for a loop. 

Maybe we should start referring to him as JINO (Jughead In Name Only)? Heh. J/k. Sort of.

[SeanC]

2 hours ago, Misty79 said:

The greater focus on Archie this week was a challenge therefore, and I'm not sure that KJ Apa was quite up to it. I know comic book Archie is a dullard but I'd still like to see more energy from the actor. He was decent in the pilot though so I'm still hopeful. 

I think Apa's a good actor, but Archie's not been written as a particularly dynamic character thus far.  His story has been very high on mopey angst.

[Misty79]

9 hours ago, SeanC said:

I think Apa's a good actor, but Archie's not been written as a particularly dynamic character thus far.  His story has been very high on mopey angst.

I think you're likely right, it's the writing. Hopefully with the Grundy story-line sidelined we see something more interesting from him. 

[starri]

I have to give Apa a lot of credit:  His American accent is really good.

[luna1122]

I'm loving this show and its "Veronica Mars meet Twin Peaks' vibe. (I was also deeply disappointed, since the shows loves it pop culture references) that Betty didn't say she'd learned to break into a car not from Nancy Drew but from VMars herself.

I too feel old that the parents are all played by heartthrobs from my past (who are actually younger than me, by a little). Skeet Ulrich was always just a Johnny Depp light to me before but OMG has he aged well. Also, it makes me feel Ms Grundy levels of squicky to be crushing on the kid who played Ross's son Ben. Ack. Oh well. He's legal, unlike Archie. I adore Jughead and all his cinematic Tarantino love and his dark, broody voiceovers.

[Splishy Splashy]

I think Apa is a good actor but he certainly is no Freddie Highmore. Hopefully with added and more interesting story lines we will see an even better Apa as Archie.

[Mabinogia]

14 hours ago, Misty79 said:

The greater focus on Archie this week was a challenge therefore, and I'm not sure that KJ Apa was quite up to it. I know comic book Archie is a dullard but I'd still like to see more energy from the actor. He was decent in the pilot though so I'm still hopeful. 

I hope now that the Grundy story is at the least on hold, he will be given a storyline that gives him something better to work with. Hopefully they will focus on Archie and Jughead rebuilding their friendship because I thought the two actors worked well off each other and that might bring Archie's character a bit more life.

46 minutes ago, luna1122 said:

I was also deeply disappointed, since the shows loves it pop culture references) that Betty didn't say she'd learned to break into a car not from Nancy Drew but from VMars herself

Ha, these kids aren't allowed to reference anything that took place before the 60s apparently. Seriously, it would have made perfect sense for someone Betty's age to have learned made B+E skills from V-Mars. But no, we get Nancy Drew. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I LOVED Nancy Drew as a kid.

[rmontro]

19 hours ago, ruby24 said:

I think it's 13 episodes.

I Googled this, and it appears it's 13 episodes.  I swore they said something like "Only four more episodes" during the commercial though.  Maybe they were talking about a different show.  Oh well, I'll happily watch more.

[Last Time Lord]

1 hour ago, rmontro said:

I Googled this, and it appears it's 13 episodes.  I swore they said something like "Only four more episodes" during the commercial though.  Maybe they were talking about a different show.  Oh well, I'll happily watch more.

I think it's Reign that is in its final few episodes

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

Riverdale Presents: The Gun In Betty Coop's Handbag

Okay, it wasn't in her handbag, it was in her dresser drawer. Still, Betty's sleuthing gets Miss Grundy (or whatever her real name is) in some hot water. Meanwhile, Jughead loves movies.

[itainttippithebird]

I know others have already nodded at this general theme and it's very, very logically unlikely, but Betty's plotline is still giving me serious My Sweet Audrina vibes. (If you don't know this classic VC Andrews garbage gothic, basically Audrina grows up on under the shadow of her now deceased sister, who her parents tell her was a perfect angel from heaven until she was "ruined" by a gang rape in the woods; Audrina has all kinds of weird, dissociative problems and everyone's all around creepy - in the end, she discovers she IS the big sister - her parents brainwashed her into thinking she was a brand new daughter to hide their shame over her defilement.)

Like I said, I doubt they would go there, but moments like when Betty asks her mom, "What's my name?" I let out a little gasp, like her mom was about to reveal she's the (heretofore strangely unseen and secretly shamed) Polly!

[Splishy Splashy]

20 minutes ago, itainttippithebird said:

I know others have already nodded at this general theme and it's very, very logically unlikely, but Betty's plotline is still giving me serious My Sweet Audrina vibes. (If you don't know this classic VC Andrews garbage gothic, basically Audrina grows up on under the shadow of her now deceased sister, who her parents tell her was a perfect angel from heaven until she was "ruined" by a gang rape in the woods; Audrina has all kinds of weird, dissociative problems and everyone's all around creepy - in the end, she discovers she IS the big sister - her parents brainwashed her into thinking she was a brand new daughter to hide their shame over her defilement.)

Like I said, I doubt they would go there, but moments like when Betty asks her mom, "What's my name?" I let out a little gasp, like her mom was about to reveal she's the (heretofore strangely unseen and secretly shamed) Polly!

Wow, now that would be a plot twist for sure. One that wasn't even thinking of. The only thing is that will make it not come to be is they have already cast an actress to play Polly Cooper. That story line would definitely be shocking though.

[itainttippithebird]

Quote

The only thing is that will make it not come to be is they have already cast an actress to play Polly Cooper. That story line would definitely be shocking though.

Yeah, that AND the credibility straining workaround they'd have to create to explain why everyone in this entire town is willing to pretend that Polly and Betty were different people, given that they've all known Betty since elementary school, but still. That would be some REAL Dark Archie shit...

[maxineofarc]

2 hours ago, Splishy Splashy said:

Wow, now that would be a plot twist for sure. One that wasn't even thinking of. The only thing is that will make it not come to be is they have already cast an actress to play Polly Cooper. That story line would definitely be shocking though.

I did think of that initially, but it seems that there's a lot of third parties corroborating Polly's existence (up to the notes in the football book, where I believe Jason was marked off points for her because of "feelings")- and if Archie has known her since they were children, that would make this twist tough to pull off. I'm wondering, though, if maybe Polly didn't have a breakdown; she got pregnant. I can't see Alice letting her stay in the house if that happened.

[Mabinogia]

2 minutes ago, maxineofarc said:

I'm wondering, though, if maybe Polly didn't have a breakdown; she got pregnant. I can't see Alice letting her stay in the house if that happened.

That would certainly fit in with the retro feel of the show, since that's what families did with their knocked up teenagers back in the day. It would also better explain, to me, Alice absolute hatred of Jason, who "ruined" her daughter, and her desperation to keep Betty away from Archie lest he ruin her too.

[MarkHB]

I liked that the real Geraldine Grundy actually looked like the comics character, and I also believe that the "abusive husband" story is utter horseshit on Fake Grundy's part.  She is leaving a trail of damaged boys behind her.

[questionfear]

On 2/18/2017 at 2:57 AM, CletusMusashi said:

Who the hell keeps their real, secret ID in their car, instead like under their bedroom carpet or something?

The same type of people who stick a stolen gun in a dresser drawer?

On 2/19/2017 at 7:15 PM, angora said:

Oh my gosh, Jughead's homeless and nobody knows!  As soon as the biker guy started talking to him, I figured it was his dad, but the homeless twist got me.  I have so many questions.  Where's his sister/mom?  How long has this been going on (his "I always do" to his dad re:  finding a new place to sleep suggested it's been a while)?  Does he get his friends to buy his food at Pop's for him, or did the drive-in job pay well enough to accommodate his burger habit?  As one of the Serpents, was his dad complicit in the Lodges' plan to drive down the value of the land and consequently take away the roof over his head?  (After the reveal, one of my first thoughts was that, good food aside, one of the reasons he spends so much time at Pop's is because it's a warm, well-lit building that's open late into the night.)  How lacking is Archie in the best friend department that he presumably knows nothing about this?  Hopefully Betty finds out soon; she'd go to bat for Jughead and help him think of something (side note:  we didn't get much of it this week, but I still love their friendship.  More nicknames - he called her Bets! - and even though she wasn't paying any attention to the conversation, she STILL came up with the perfect movie for the drive-in's last show.  Now that's simpatico!)

I was really interested in the scene between Jughead and his dad.  Even though Jughead gives off that sort of world-weary self-sufficient vibe, I didn't get any sense that he's angry with or distant toward his dad.  I thought he actually seemed in relatively good spirits, if a little rueful.

My speculation on Jughead is that he could be living with his father (and maybe his father is his legal address) but he disapproves of his father's gang activities and/or feels unsafe, and that's why he moved out. As far as food, he could conceivably be getting two meals a day at school, and his drive in salary paid for dinner/weekend food. My hope is that Jellybean moved away with his mother, and maybe he stayed in Riverdale out of loyalty...his story got a lot more interesting with this reveal. 

[Bort]

7 minutes ago, questionfear said:

As far as food, he could conceivably be getting two meals a day at school, and his drive in salary paid for dinner/weekend food.

I used to work in a movie theater, there was always left over food at the end of the day. Jughead was probably even able to mooch dinner and weekend meals there. And his dad may give him money for that as well. 

[itainttippithebird]

Quote

I'm wondering, though, if maybe Polly didn't have a breakdown; she got pregnant. I can't see Alice letting her stay in the house if that happened.

I'm almost certain this is the actual "twist." Such a letdown by comparison!

[itainttippithebird]

Also it wasn't mentioned in the recaps and I haven't seen it here either, but DOES EVERYONE ELSE GIGGLE HYSTERICALLY EVERY TIME THEY CALL BETTY'S MOM "ALICE COOPER"?!?!

 

[Bill1978]

This show is getting better and better with each episode. This episode was thoroughly enjoyable, not really sure why. Maybe because I felt every teenage character actually behaved like they were 15 this week.

This is the first tie that I actually engaged in Archie's storyline. And man am I grateful the Miss Grundy plot is done with (hopefully). I didn't believe her battered wife story for a minute and her final scene confirmed that she was just manipulating Archie with the story IMO. KJ acted really well this week, really felt for Archie even if I didn't understand the whole new bow thing.

I liked that Kevin got more to do than just be the sidekick of a female. I found his relationship with his Dad to be refreshingly fresh. Nice that we aren't be given the stereotypical parent is uncomfortable with their gay child even though they are accepting of it. And I like how his encounter helps link the Serpents to the main plot for the foreseeable future. While I don't think the writing is super stellar, I am giving the writers credits for appearing to have mapped out events etc to keep everything linked. They don't seem to be making things up the week before shooting starts. Let's just hope the solution to the mystery makes sense.

Even though not much was assigned to the Jason mystery there were enough little nuggets to keep one guessing and trying to solve the mystery. I feel there is some nugget hidden in the fact that Miss Grundy tutored Jason the previous year.

I texted a friend after watching his episode saying that I think I have finally found a replacement for Dawson's Creek. There hasn't been a teen drama that I have obsessed about since Dawson. All the ones after Dawson, felt to out of touch for me or unrealistic. Not saying this show is realistic, but its nice not to be following super rich teenagers living angsty life cause they are rich. Apart from looking too old, at least I find these teenagers relatable. I'm also enjoying the clash of eras. Obviously you can't do a teen show with the internet and mobile phones, but I chuckle every time I see all the old cars in Riverdale.

And is there a difference to mentioning Google and showing the Google logo? Cause Veronica mentioned googling Miss Grundy after Betty used Sluethster to find information. Or is Sluethster an actual site?

After this episode I'm ruling out Alice Cooper as the shooter. She is too obviously crazy to actually be the culprit. She might as well walk around shouting Red Herring Red Herring!!!!

[North of Eden]

I am barely hanging in there.

This show would be 100% better with 50% less BETTY.

I can't think of a clearer case that some producer high up is infatuated with this character and the entire show seems to revolove around her and everyone else is just a supporting player.

Worse yet we have things like Reggie Mantle is a bit player and Kevin...a late comer to the comics is a main characters...as much as a main character can be when it is "The Betty Show".

Meanwhile the character assinations are off the charts. Good guy Chuck Clayton is slime ball, Grundy a pedophile, Hiram Lodge a convicted felon, Josie an angry blackwoman stereotype and Dilton Doiley a survivalist. And poor Midge can't even get a walk on because Moose is now closeted.

The only thing that could save this show is if Cisco vibes into this universe from THE FLASH to liven things up.,

[Splishy Splashy]

23 minutes ago, North of Eden said:

I am barely hanging in there.

This show would be 100% better with 50% less BETTY.

I can't think of a clearer case that some producer high up is infatuated with this character and the entire show seems to revolove around her and everyone else is just a supporting player.

Worse yet we have things like Reggie Mantle is a bit player and Kevin...a late comer to the comics is a main characters...as much as a main character can be when it is "The Betty Show".

Meanwhile the character assinations are off the charts. Good guy Chuck Clayton is slime ball, Grundy a pedophile, Hiram Lodge a convicted felon, Josie an angry blackwoman stereotype and Dilton Doiley a survivalist. And poor Midge can't even get a walk on because Moose is now closeted.

The only thing that could save this show is if Cisco vibes into this universe from THE FLASH to liven things up.,

First off right off the bat the producers and writers of this show said that it was not going to be like the comic book characters. Only really by name and that is really what we are seeing. As for Betty dominating the story line it is what it is right now because she is involved in so much of the story. First she is involved in the Jason Blossom plot because her sister dated him and Cheryl started attacking her. Then the whole Archie and Her being more than friends as anyone would have expected that would have been brought up. Then the relationship with the new girl Veronica as well. She is involved in a lot of he plot so she is going to be on the screen a lot. As for Reggie not being in the middle of everything I am really glad because I think he is a horrible choice for the part and even though all the actors look older than 15 he looks more like he is pushing 30.

[jay741982]

I adore Betty but I don't see her dominating the screen time. But she is second billing after KJ Apa. She's gonna get screen time. She's not in this weeks episode description so maybe that means she's not a huge part of the goings on. But then I don't mind her screen time cause she's a fav but I love Veronica and Jughead as well Liked getting some more of Kevin and looking forward to more Cheryl. 

[TheNewJanBrady]

I love that they are using the nicknames from the comic books--Juggy, Archiekins--but I do think it's too early in their relationship for Arch to be calling Veronica Ronnie already. #tinynitpick

I also just about died every time Archie called Ms. Grundy Ms. Grundy to her face and not Geraldine...or Jennifer...or anything more personal/romantic than Ms. Grundy.

[itainttippithebird]

Quote

I also just about died every time Archie called Ms. Grundy Ms. Grundy to her face and not Geraldine...or Jennifer...or anything more personal/romantic than Ms. Grundy.

AGREED! How creepy is that?! Really draws attention to the intense wrongness of it all.

For all their faults in glorifying a teacher/teen romance, at least on Pretty Little Liars they all stopped calling Ezra "Mr. Fitz" almost immediately.

[imakicola]

On 2/19/2017 at 1:03 AM, Sulis said:

I quite enjoyed this episode, whereas the first three had me rolling my eyes at some of the dialogue. It just seemed too try-hard, and as others have pointed out, really tonally inconsistent. This was better. I still think it's a bit weird how they're pushing a 50s vibe, but hey, I can try to overlook it.

 

I agree with this. I thought it was quite well done overall, they made it fairly clear that the Grundy/Archie relationship was wrong even if Archie didn't believe it to be. I also agree that his dad probably thought it was better for him that she just leave town and not put his son through a big scandal. It was fairly obvious from the moment that Betty found the real ID that she would have some fleeing an abusive ex story, and I think there's room to say either she's lying or telling the truth about that. Nevertheless, it was clear at the end that she was eyeing up the other teenage boys (nice Lolita sunglasses!). Wonder if we'll see her again... 

Betty was a bit stupid though, taking the gun - why on earth would she do that? And she must know her mother's a nosy bitch by now, seeing as how she specifically called out her diary, so why is she still writing in it?

Liked the Jughead and his dad interaction, although I really wish we could call him something else. Jughead? Juggy? Ugh. Still, his dad is hot. Hello Skeet Ulrich!

Jughead and his father are both named Forsythe according to the comics, and jellybean is Forsythia. 

[imakicola]

On 2/19/2017 at 11:23 AM, rmontro said:

When I read that this episode was about Jughead trying to keep the drive in from being closed, I really thought that sounded dull.  But this was the best episode of the season, I thought.  One dramatic turn after another.  Betty was kind of dumb taking the gun and writing that secret stuff in her diary though.

I'm enjoying this show tremendously, I hope it gets renewed for another season.  Only four more episodes to go.

What do you mean only four more to go? There are nine left