Riverdale dropped a new promo yesterday titled “Desperate Times” that makes the next, 22-episode season look like an intense and bloody crime thriller. There’s blood, a declaration of war, a figure some are identifying as the comics character Black Hood, and Archie ominously carrying a gun. Varchie fans were thrilled to see the two in a steamy scene, with few other ships getting much attention in the clip. But how reflective is this going to be of the actual season?
Now, Riverdale’s always been an interesting mix of genres and tones. The mixture of teen drama, horror tropes, and seriousness makes it such an unpredictable show that’s confusing at times, but also builds an incredible amount of intrigue. In some ways, that combination makes it difficult to muster any real predictions based on a teaser. Remember the first trailer for Riverdale season 1? It was all mysterious murder sexiness that built on the “Twin Peaks meets Archie” comparisons, with almost none of the teen drama and humor that dominated the majority of the later episodes. That gross subplot with Grundy took up so much of the first trailer, but unless she reappears in season 2 (please, no), that was mostly the show giving us a false lead on what to expect.
Still, I had an immediately uncomfortable reaction to seeing Archie with a gun. Read the room, Riverdale.
Of course, we were told that Riverdale would go darker in the new season…and maybe even monstrous (see below)? Is the Sugar Man going to be a Scooby-Doo-type villain or are they finally going to go supernatural? Will Sabrina appear and finally make true all the devilish allusion of season 1? (Seriously, does everyone who moves to Riverdale have to read a Gothic literature syllabus to enter?)
Lock your doors, #Riverdale, the Sugar Man is coming… pic.twitter.com/WkPSHQnt6N
— RobertoAguirreSacasa (@WriterRAS) August 16, 2017
Roberto Aguirre Sacases has also been teasing episode titles on his Twitter, with titles like “Death Proof,” “When a Stranger Calls,” “A Kiss Before Dying,” and “The Town That Dreaded Sundown,” just to name a few. Those are some heavy allusions, but as we saw in season 1 which boasted titles like “Heart of Darkness” and “Faster Pussycats! Kill! Kill!” these seem to be fun references more often than promises.
Little of the promotional material so far is too telling, and I honestly don’t mind it at all. If anything, it just makes me more intrigued to see where the small glimpses we’re getting will fit into the full puzzle. What did you think about the promo?
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