Show Snob
Fansided

Riverdale Season Two Premiere Recap: “A Kiss Before Dying”

By Kelly Shanaphy

facebooktwitterreddit

Welcome back to Riverdale, the most dangerous small town since Twin Peaks! “A Kiss Before Dying,” picks up immediately where last year’s finale left off with the shooting of Fred Andrews.

Despite Betty’s speech about their town doing better, it seems like things have only gotten worse. With the battle lines between the North and South side beginning to be drawn, who is going to be safe this season?

Everyone gets to play catch up the morning after the Jubilee. Betty and her mom have a funny scene over her relationship with Jughead, while Veronica continues to rebel against her own mother. Sadly a call from Betty gets the three kids racing to the hospital to comfort Archie, who’s just managed to get Fred to the doctors. Everyone in town tries their best to put on a brave face, while Archie has to keep recounting the events. Alice is the first (but not the only) to suggest that the Serpents could be involved, while Veronica has her own theories. Nonetheless, it sends the group their own way as they all try their best to help their friend.

Veronica admits early on that comforting a grieving boyfriend isn’t exactly her strong suit, but she still tries her best to stick around for Archie. The two get to have the promised steamy shower scene, but the mood quickly sours after that. When she tries to help out by organizing Fred’s things from the robbery, her boyfriend realizes that a wallet is missing. Archie starts lashing out and attempts to kick her out while stewing in his own anger.

Luckily, Veronica isn’t about to back down that easily and “A Kiss Before Dying,” cements their relationship as more than just a fling. Their bond is only strengthened when she confronts her mother at the church hospital with the accusation that the Lodge matriarch might have been the mastermind behind the attack. Hermione immediately changes from the caring mother seen in the beginning of Season One, to the conniving and manipulative woman in the finale.

Jughead seems to be embracing the serpent lifestyle in “A Kiss Before Dying,” going so far as to ride his dad’s old motorcycle. While he doesn’t believe the gang could be responsible for Fred’s fate, he still goes and asks them to dig up any information. They agree, and Jughead is sent on his way to crack a new mystery alongside Betty. After Veronica asks the two detectives if they can head back to the diner and search for Fred’s missing wallet. When they get there, Pop is still cleaning up the blood and he recounts his viewpoint.

More from Show Snob

There’s no wallet, but also no cash missing from the register which all but confirms Jughead’s theory that this was a hit. With that terrifying realization out-of-the-way, the two lovebirds sit down for a burger and discuss where their relationship stands after he put on the serpent’s jacket. While the two make up by the end of the episode, things definitely look rocky for the fan-favorite couple this season.

While all of the town has gathered at the hospital for Fred, Cheryl is there to stay with her mother. In the season finale, the red-haired vixen set fire to her mansion as a way to “cleanse” the family but she has a different story in “A Kiss Before Dying”. She’s claiming her mother rushed into the burning house to save her sleeping daughter, however, Cheryl reveals the story to be false relatively quickly.

Cheryl threatens her mother’s life is she ever tries to tell the truth, and that she will no have the control in their once abusive relationship. No word on Grandma Rose though, but it looks like Cheryl has only gotten crazier overnight. Of course, her “Kiss of Life,” bestowed on Fred Andrews seems to work because he wakes up only moments after. Could she be the way Sabrina is introduced this season? It definitely seems possible.

“A Kiss Before Dying,” is an excellent premiere for the sophomore season of Riverdale, because every single part of the episode works. The actors are all at the top of their game, but the entire premiere hinges on KJ Apa’s performance and he more than delivers. Not to mention, the writers seem to have gotten a better feel for what works and adapted it well for this season. When it looks like the episode ends with Archie sitting guard in his house, intending to keep his father safe, it turns out they have another surprise for viewers.

Next: New “Motive Trailer” Promises A Darker Season 2 For Riverdale

Ms. Grundy is only across the lake in Greendale, where she is continuing to prey on teenage boys. After a music lesson with a young blonde boy, she is choked to death by the cello spring Archie gave her last season by an unknown assailant. How does Grundy tie into all of this and will the students of Riverdale make it out of this season unscathed? Hit the comments below with your thoughts on the premiere!

Home/Recap