In 'Riverdale' Episode 3, Archie Starts a Gang
The mystery of who Riverdale's masked gunman continues in Episode 3, "The Watcher in the Woods," and we also see the return of Stranger Things star Shannon Purser (#Justice4Barb!) as Ethel Muggs. Here's everything we learned from the latest episode:
1) "Never go into the woods alone..."
In his opening narration, Jughead warns that a person should never go into the woods alone, because they have no idea what they'll find. It makes sense that this episode, titled "The Watcher in the Woods," is all about Kevin Keller's romantic trysts, which take place in - you guessed it - the woods. Out for a jog, Kevin meets a man in the woods and they begin to make out. Then Kevin hears a gunshot, and Midge Klump runs toward him, screaming and asking for help.
2) Midge and Moose didn't die after last week's shooting.
The masked gunman shot Midge and Moose at what appeared to be close range in last week's episode, while they were doing drugs in their car. However, in this episode, we learn Moose shielded Midge from the gunshots. They're both alive and only Moose is in the hospital receiving treatment.
3) Veronica invites her "inner circle" to meet her parents.
Veronica invites Archie, Betty, Jughead, and Kevin over to watch the premiere of The Matchelorette and to officially meet her dad.
Jughead protests: "There's a shooter terrorizing the town. You really want us to watch a gross reality dating show?" But Veronica is intent on having a normal family life and ensuring her dad meets and knows her friends.
4) Betty disapproves of Kevin's "cruising" in the woods.
Betty quizzes Kevin about his "night jogs," and asks him, "Why can't you just use Grindr like every other gay guy online?" Kevin is tired of Betty's nagging and a rift forms in their relationship. It only worsens as the episode goes on...
5) Midge and Moose describe the shooter.
Archie, of course, quizzes Midge and Moose about the person that shot them, convinced it's the same guy who shot his dad. However, Moose thinks the person who shot them wasn't wearing a ski mask but a hood, and Midge compares him to Michael Myers from Halloween. She says he had the Devil's eyes and they were blank, not green as Archie remembers.
6) Toni Topaz is Jughead's mentor at Southside High.
Jughead starts at his new school and Toni is the first person he meets. She shows him around, and it's markedly different from Riverdale High. She gives him the cafeteria tour à la Mean Girls, except the groups at Southside High are way scarier than Regina George. And there's a lot of drug dealing going on.
7) Toni is a Serpent and assumes Jughead is too.
Because he's the son of the famous FP Jones, Toni assumes Jughead will want to hang out with the Serpents at school. However, Jug resists this classification, saying, "I self-identify as a loner. I'm not a pack animal." Toni advises Jughead to hang out with the Serpents for protection.
8) Archie tells his dad he wants to buy a gun.
Fred Andrews isn't pleased with this idea. However, as we found out last week, Archie already got a gun from Milton. He's currently hiding it in the garage, in a box with some The Red Circle comics. Stealthy.
9) Hiram Lodge tells the gang that "the police aren't always the solution."
Speaking from a place of experience, Veronica's dad tells her friends that the police aren't always the best option when trying to solve a crime - or get out of trouble. This is the exact opposite of the advice Fred gives Archie, and shows that Hiram has some questionable connections. Then, speaking to Jughead about FP, Hiram says, "He's a good man. He values family. I hope his return comes sooner rather than later." His connections with the Serpents evidently run deep.
Later, Hiram tells Archie that The Black Hood is "waging a war based on terror, and fear," and that the gang should use the same attributes to defend themselves and Riverdale.
10) Hermione tells her daughter not to invite Archie for dinner with the family.
Hermione warns Veronica not to push it with Hiram, and that her father will get to know her boyfriend in good time. However, Veronica is headstrong and intent on following through with her father's invitation. Is Hermione keen to keep Archie and Hiram apart because she was recently dating Archie's dad, Fred? Or is she concerned about something more sinister?
11) Archie starts a watch group called The Red Circle.
Archie convinces members of the football team to start a patrol to keep Riverdale safe and to inform the police of any leads. He tells them, "We're not vigilantes. We're watch dogs." Reggie is a little too excited about the idea and quickly becomes Archie's wingman.
12. Jughead convinces his English teacher to restart the school paper at Southside.
And luckily for him, Toni is a photographer, so the pair will be working together closely for the forseeable future. This could spell trouble for Bughead.
13) The murderer calls himself the Black Hood.
He sends an anonymous letter to Betty's mom, Alice, who is a journalist. The shooter claims to have shot Fred, Moose, and Midge, and murdered Ms. Grundy. They know the letter is real because he includes Ms. Grundy's Lolita sunglasses and Fred Andrews's wallet.
The Black Hood also reveals why he attempted to murder these specific residents of Riverdale: Ms. Grundy was a child predator, Moose and Midge are addicted to drugs and, allegedly, sex, and Fred is an adulterer (surely referring to his relationship with Veronica's mom while Hiram Lodge was in prison).
The mayor and police chief demand a media blackout on the letter, but Alice has already sent it to the printers for the front page of the next edition of the paper.
14) Pregnant Polly freaks out.
Hearing that The Black Hood is going after sinners, Polly fears that she will be next, saying, "I am an unwed mother carrying my cousin's babies. I am the poster child for sin." She flees to stay at the farm her and Jason were planning on living at, until she gives birth to the babies.
15) Moose flirts with Kevin.
Kevin visits Moose in hospital, where Moose thanks him for his help in the woods following the shooting. But then things get flirtatious. Moose tells Kevin, "I like Midge... a lot. Sometimes I'm not sure we're that good a match... Guys like us, in a town like Riverdale... we don't have a lot of options."
Moose also implores Kevin to "come back whenever," and clearly doesn't want him to leave so soon. Is this the start of the important romance that actor Casey Cott hinted at in an interview with Teen Vogue in October?
16) Toni and Betty have an awkward first meeting.
Toni walks in on Betty and Jughead making out in the office for the school paper at Southside High (Betty is visiting Jug after hours). And in very telling dialogue, Toni tells Betty that she's not at all what she had expected Jughead's girlfriend to be like. She was anticipating "Emily Strange, Winona Ryder from Beetlejuice."
In another awkward moment, it turns out that both Toni and Betty have bought coffee makers for the paper. Already, the tension hints at a future Jughead and Toni romance.
17. Ethel is followed by a man in a van.
Walking home at night, Ethel Muggs (played by Shannon Purser, famous for playing Barb from Stranger Things) is pursued by a man in a van. She manages to hide and calls Archie, who is out on patrol with the new Reggie. The pair manage to locate her, and scare off the creep in the van, but it's a terrifying reminder that no-one is safe in Riverdale. Especially not Barb.
18. Cheryl and Betty confront Kevin in the woods.
Wanting to create chaos, Cheryl tells Betty that she saw Kevin jogging into the woods. They confront him, and Kevin is mad as hell that they've followed him, telling Betty that she's selfish for not supporting him. He explains that in Riverdale, as a gay man, his options feel limited, and he can't explore his dark side the way she can (and according to Kevin, Dark Betty is into BDSM).
19) Jughead gets beaten up by the Ghoulies at Southside High.
After working late at the paper, Jug gets jumped in the hall. Jughead lies to Betty, though, and tells her that he fell off his motorcycle.
20) Hiram has a private chat with Archie.
After the family dinner, Hiram invites Archie into his office for some rum, and then he lays down the law. He says, "No more sneaking into my daughter's bedroom. Ever. And never, ever hurt Veronica." Will this cause a rift between Veronica and Archie?
21) Kevin gets scared by a stranger in the woods.
Approaching a parked car, Kevin asks the driver if he's waiting for him. Kevin then has a premonition, in which he sees himself getting stabbed. Snapping back to reality, Kevin decides against getting in the car. The driver is angered by this and demands, "Get in the damn car, you little tease!" Gross. Kevin runs home.
22) Sheriff Keller finds out what Kevin has been doing, and asks him to stop.
Kevin's dad is understandably concerned for his son's safety, and asks that he not meet strangers in the woods while there's a killer on the loose. However, there's also a pretty solid theory going around that Sheriff Keller is the Black Hood, and his tearful request could hint at his own emotional connection to the killing spree in Riverdale.
23) Archie sends a message to the Black Hood.
Archie records a video, speaking directly to the killer. Behind him, members of his gang The Red Circle wear red hoods. He declares that they will hunt the Black Hood and stop him. Hiram sees the video and smiles to himself. It seems as though a major war is starting in Riverdale.
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