Liam Hoofe reviews Riverdale season 2’s midseason finale…
It’s Christmas in Riverdale which means this week we were treated to the show’s Christmas special, which also doubled up as its midseason finale.
Gang violence, serial killers and illegal money activities are all stapes of a traditional Christmas, and Riverdale revelled in these this week with ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night.’ The episode’s key talking point was definitely the much-anticipated reveal of The Black Hood, who, after weeks of lurking in the shadows, was finally revealed this week as…. the janitor. Seriously? There is no way that Mr Svenson is the Black Hood – even for a show like Riverdale, it makes zero sense. Why would he chop off his own finger? How would he know about Betty’s childhood? Whatever happened to his green eyes?
The reveal felt like a cop-out, but I think it’s nothing more than a red herring. Like Jughead said in the final voice-over, ‘This isn’t over yet’. Betty toying with the idea of keeping the mask was a nice end to the episode, and I still maintain her long-lost brother, Chic, is definitely involved in this somehow. Jughead’s random reference to Psycho also seemed to be a precursor for things to come. Maybe Chic dresses up as Betty sometimes and has a split personality, it’s not like we haven’t seen Betty dabble in the dark side and a bit of dress up. This sounds ridiculous, I just can’t accept such an underwhelming climax.
Jughead’s quest to rid the Serpents of Penny Peabody took a violent turn this week as well. Having assembled the youth branch of the gang, Jughead proceeded to kidnap Penny and then potentially cut the serpents tattoo off her arm as a warning to stay away. This seemed like an extreme moment, and it will be one that, if he went through with it, will change Jughead as a character from here on in.
The other plot running through the episode was Veronica uncovering her dad’s questionable money practices. Hiram has been a great character so far in the show, and hopefully, we get to see more of him and his nefarious ways in the second half of the season. Veronica behavior can be incredibly naive at times, and it will be interesting watching her trying to play the game with the big dogs.
Of course, in this episode, there was also plenty of present giving. Needless to say, this is Riverdale, so their idea of present giving was not exactly a tenner in a card or a Lynx Africa gift set. No, the characters here all managed to find presents that were particularly poignant and sentimental. Jughead received a typewriter at the end of the episode from Betty, indicating that he and Betty could be back on, while Veronica and Archie gave each other personalised jewellery and then finished the episode with a kiss under the mistletoe. Reuniting the show’s main couples was an obvious end to a Christmas special but I liked the fact they added in a little mystery when we saw someone taking a photograph of Archie and Veronica.
Riverdale’s mid-season finale was, on the whole, an enjoyable watch. The Black Hood unravelling was the biggest anticlimax since we found out Hornswoggle was the anonymous Raw GM (sorry, wrestling reference) but I can’t help but feel we still haven’t seen the last of him yet. With 9 episodes gone and the whole second half of the season still to go, Riverdale still hasn’t plenty to sink its teeth into when it returns next month.
What did you think of ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night’? Let us know in the comments below, and let Liam know on Twitter @liamhoofe
