‘Riverdale’: 8 Teases For “Chapter Forty-Eight: Requiem for a Welterweight”

Remember a few episodes back when Archie decided to metaphorically kill all the parts of him that make dumb decisions? Guess what? While training as a boxer with the completely shredded Tom Keller (Martin Cummins) in order to repair his fractured psyche, Riverdale’s teen prodigy makes a few rash choices that — as usual — throw him into a situation where he is in way over his head.

Luckily, Josie is there with an amazing cover song to help him get through it. He also seems to be sporting more aggressive scar makeup than he did in previous episodes, but maybe I just didn’t notice it before, I dunknow.

Speaking of Archie and Josie, things heat up for the new couple. They continue to be completely adorable in the episode, and are supportive of each other’s careers; even when said careers involving being a professional dumb dumbo. Also, to answer one frequently asked question: no, they’re not sneaking around. Josie and Archie are properly a couple this episode, openly dating and about town; even though their storyline is segmented away from most of the rest of the cast this week.

While things are heating up with Josie and Archie, things are also heating up with Alice and her true love: The Farm. I’m kidding, of course. Sort of. But this is a big episode not just for Alice’s future with the cult, but for info on how, exactly, it ties into the overall tapestry of the season. By the end of it all, the Cooper family is headed towards some huge, heartbreaking changes that may well alter them all for good.

Stuck in the middle of her mama’s drama is Betty, who is trying desperately to find out more info about The Farm before Alice makes a decision she can’t come back from. Before you worry she’s ditched Jughead, far from it. The two have a requisite check-in scene towards the top of the episode, but Betty’s man is very much busy with his own problems this week.

Also just wanted to point out Betty’s running form. Tuck in your elbows, Betty!

You won’t find out much more about the individual members of the Pretty Poisons this week (sorry, curious Peaches ‘n Cream fans!), but you will quickly get a sense how Choni’s gang is already radically changing the power structure in Riverdale. You’ll also get a sense of how much you desperately want your own Pretty Poisons jacket, which is: a lot.

Remember how Choni fans wanted more screentime for their favorite couple? Remember how I wrote a ridiculously long essay about it at the beginning of the season, trying to make a logic based case for why they deserved to be front and center? Well guess what, the first finger of the monkey’s paw has officially curled downwards. After last episode’s banner showing for the show’s premiere LGBTQ+ couple that also included their first fight, things are still not quite rosy in the land of Cheryl Blossom and Toni Topaz.

The upside is that you’ll get to see a kiss from the couple in full daylight, without Veronica standing in front of them in the frame or something. The downside is… The angst is coming, and it is real, my friends.

Also of note, the Choni storyline is confined the first part of the episode, and mostly there to establish the Pretty Poisons and kick off a major storyline for Jughead. But… Well, I’ll just relink this piece about which couples will make it out of Season 3 alive here, and leave it at that. Don’t grab your pitchforks yet, folks. But perhaps invest in some farm equipment, just in case.

Speaking of ol’ jugs for heads, the leader of the Serpents is dealing with demands from his family, and demands from his gang at the same time, which puts stress on the poor boy. And the more he tries to extend olive branches, the more he finds dead doves handed back to him in paper bags (though honestly, I don’t know what he expected).

That leads him to find out about some surprising shifts in the Riverdale power structure, and a journey into the heart of darkness that includes a new character with one of the most ridiculously on-the-nose character names in the history of the show. And for a show that included a character named Benjamin Button (wait, really?) that’s saying something.

Suffice to say if you’re looking to kill time before the episode airs, I recommend watching Apocalypse Now, and Rocky.

We met Gladys briefly last year, and were reintroduced to her last episode once she returned home. But this week, we get to see the full power of Mrs. Jones unleashed. Where Hiram Lodge is all calculation, the gamesmaster ruling over all of Riverdale and two steps ahead of everyone, Gladys is that, but with an extra dash of chaos. A lot of that is due to Gershon’s loose, engaging performance: she walks into a scene and just casually owns every shot she’s in, and it shows.

Pity poor Veronica, who has to deal with her demands now that she’s massively in debt to the woman. Veronica may be a young Hiram in training, but she’s not even close to operating on Gladys’s level. Yet.

Where to stream Riverdale