Hanging in "The Dale": Thoughts on seasons 1-3 of Riverdale

Courtesy of Screenrant

I made it a 2022 goal to watch Riverdale and I am already done with the first three seasons! I wanted to share my thoughts so far. The first half of the post will be general and then there will be spoilers later on. (You will have time to back out before seeing those.) I've been calling it "The Dale" because my husband gave it that nickname and it just stuck. :)

General thoughts:

Riverdale is a combination of many different shows: Beverly Hills 90210 (Luke Perry is even in it), Desperate Housewives, Scooby Doo, Glee, Stranger Things, Dawson's Creek, Degrassi: The Next Generation, etc. If we want to talk books, there are some Sweet Valley High aspects. It also uses elements from some well-known movies. 

I read Archie comics as a teenager and I will never be able to do so again after watching this show. The characters have a dark side that you don't see in the comic books. 

I will also never be able to watch Big Daddy after this because after seeing Cole Sprouse as Jughead, I can't even imagine watching him as a little kid again. Also the fact that Jughead is my main crush from the show makes me feel like a cougar and this was when he was in his twenties. Either that, or I just pretend his twin brother was playing Julian the whole time, as well as Ben on Friends. 

Courtesy of New American Jackets

It is so easy to hate some characters one moment and love them the next. Cheryl Blossom is the biggest example of this. It also extends to Alice Cooper (I still laugh about that name). Then there are others I will always hate, like Hiram Lodge. 

I like that the casting is more diverse and that there are LGBTQ characters. 

I love the musical theater element. Not only have they already done two musical episodes using songs from the musicals they were featuring, but they also sang "Out Tonight" from Rent in one of the episodes. There have been some Cabaret and Anything Goes songs too. I haven't seen the musical version of Carrie, but now I can't stop listening to the cast recording. Of course, I'm picturing the characters from Riverdale each time. I've seen the Heathers episode before, but this time it made more sense in the context of season three and I actually cried from "Seventeen." I can't wait to see future musical episodes! 

They include a lot of pop culture in the show too. There was an episode where they went to see Love, Simon. They make other pop culture name drops, as well. 

There is a lot of horror involved, but I'm enjoying it anyway. There's always a murder mystery to solve and teenagers are the ones to do it (hence the Scooby Doo comment). This video says it all. With the horror, there are a lot of conspiracies and other wild situations that could only happen in the town of Riverdale.

There's a V.C. Andrews element to the story that gets introduced in season one. And it's not what you think either... Also, Cheryl's grandma looks like she's straight out of a V.C. Andrews novel.

There are a lot of 80s and 90s actors on the show: Luke Perry, Molly Ringwald, Skeet Ulrich, Lochlyn Munro, Mädchen Amick, Anthony Michael Hall (in one episode), Robin Givens, and Gina Gershon....just to name a few.

Have I enticed you to watch yet? If not, check out this trailer. I'll be sharing my thoughts with spoilers below, so don't go any further than that if you're new to all things Riverdale.

Thoughts on seasons 1-3 with SPOILERS:

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I still find it weird that Hal revealed himself to be the Black Hood killer when the guy had green eyes and Hal clearly did not. Was he wearing colored contacts to disguise himself? 

There seems to be a black hole for some characters, like they just disappear and no one seems to think about them anymore. The two Pussycats and Chuck definitely ended up there. I thought Ethel did too, but she's back now. 

I thought Cheryl's closeness with Jason was going to be the V.C. Andrews element, but it turns out that Jason and Polly were cousins. I also found out (from starting on season four), that Archie's grandma's name is Virginia Andrews. That is V.C.'s first name. Hmmm...

If Betty's half-brother is supposedly dead, how did he end up being an FBI agent? Unless the death story was a cover up? And if that was the case, why did Chic even bother coming into their lives? Did he know the Coopers were looking for him? 

Is Gryphons and Gargoyles connected to The Farm in any way, or are they two separate problems in a really intense and twisted season? Both talk about ascension though. Speaking of that, where did the farmers go when they left Kevin behind? That seems so bizarre. 

Hiram Lodge is the absolute worst! I hate him so much! He's never going to stop being a complete piece of sh*t, even from prison. Who doesn't he have doing his bidding at this point? 

Other characters I hate right now: Penny Peabody, Elio (the guy arranging the boxing matches), Penelope Blossom, Edgar and Evelyn Evernever. I'm also really mad at Kevin and Fangs right now for not listening to Betty and Cheryl and I hope at least Kevin will be able to redeem himself, if Fangs has truly ascended with the farmers. 

Characters I love besides the main four: Josie, Toni, F.P. Jones, Fred Andrews, Pops, and I'm still on the fence with Cheryl as she did come through for the main four at the end of season three. I'm also on the fence with Reggie. He does have a lot of good moments, even though he can be a bully sometimes.

I love Betty and Jughead together. They make such a sweet couple. I also am glad Veronica and Archie are still endgame for now...

If you're a Riverdale fan, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the first three seasons!

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