Review: ‘Riverdale’ Season 2 overhyped but still worth watching

October 27, 2017 — by Elizabeth Lee
riverdale

Reporter reviews Season 2 of Riverdale, an extremely popular and upcoming TV show.

After breaking previous record ratings with its Season 2  premiere by accumulating over 2.3 million viewers, the hit CW show, “Riverdale,” returned on Oct. 11 with its new season. Thankfully, it seemed to live up to the hype that it has gained over the past five months following the finale of its premiere season.

Anyone close enough with me would know that “Riverdale” is my all-time favorite show (I’ve rewatched the 13 episodes of Season 1 at least 20 times). So a couple of months ago, when I heard that Season 2 was happening, I began to count down the days until I would be able to see my favorite characters again.

Since I don’t have the CW channel at home, junior Esha Lakhotia, another hardcore Riverdale fan, and I met up at her house, and we were excited to watch it together.

The show, based on the characters from Archie Comics, revolves around the small town of Riverdale and the mysteries, such as murders, that come about. The main characters of the show are Betty, played by Lili Reinhart; Jughead, played by Cole Sprouse; Veronica, played by Camila Mendes; Archie, played by KJ Apa; and Cheryl, played by Madelaine Petsch.

The first season mainly involves the five main characters working to solve the mystery regarding the death of Jason Blossom, Cheryl’s twin brother, while smaller conflicts regarding character relationships between each other as well as their parents emerge.

The Season 1 finale ends on a mournful note after Archie’s father is shot by a mysterious shooter, so when the first episode of Season 2 begins with Archie speeding over to the hospital with his bloody father, I was excited to find out whether he would survive.

The first season set high expectations for me, maybe even too high; I was eager to see how things would turn out regarding my favorite TV couple, Jughead and Betty, as well as my favorite character, Cheryl, the head cheerleader and “mean girl” of the school.

The episode begins with an intense scene where Archie speeds over to the hospital with his father, played by Luke Perry, who had just been shot at a diner. As soon as Veronica, Betty and Jughead hear about the news, they head over to the hospital to accompany Archie during this dark time.

Though the whole situation is tragic, the episode comes across as corny. Keep in mind, I am a hardcore fan of the actors in real life as well, so the fact that I thought it was cringe-worthy acting and script writing, especially from Veronica and Archie, conveys the extent to how mediocre the actors’ attempts to portray these scenes were.

As Esha and I laughed over the acting and awkward lines, we looked forward to the many more events that would unfold later in the episode and in the season.

Meanwhile, Cheryl continues to slay her fierce role as the show’s mean girl. With her iconic outfits and red hair, she fits her role exceptionally well compared to the other characters, probably because she doesn’t have to act i multiple sad and cringey scenes like the others.

The second episode continues with the characters trying to solve the murder of Archie’s dad and their attempt to save the town’s diner from closing. The episode ends with the death of two more characters from a mysterious shooter, further adding to the season’s mystery regarding the multiple deaths.

While I enjoyed the idea of having more suspense and mystery in the show, I was confused as to why random characters were starting to be killed off, since it seemed like they weren’t involved in anything that would lead to their deaths.

Besides the script and acting being admittedly cringe-worthy at times, my obsession with “Riverdale” still lives and Wednesday nights will continue to be the highlight of my week. I can’t waste all the hours I spent rewatching Season 1 and online stalking of these celebrities for nothing.

 
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