When Archie and Veronica’s attempt to negotiate with Percival doesn’t go as planned, the forces of good and evil finally face off, leading to some unexpected revelations. This episode was written by Danielle Iman & Evan Kyle and was directed by Cierra Glaude. Also, this episode was broadcast on July 24th 2022 by The CW. SPOILERS FOR THE FOLLOWING EPISODE AND SHOW AHEAD…
The Final… Battle?
I was fully expecting Riverdale to let me down in this episode, but it didn’t, which makes me extremely worried about the finale. This season, for the most part, has been really strong, but I’m worried that they’re going to botch it right at the last minute. By the end of this episode, Percival is no longer a threat, but a much bigger threat has been revealed, meaning next week could be the end of Riverdale as we know it.
With Bailey’s Comet on the way, Percival’s plan is coming to fruition, meaning the gang needs to act fast to stop him from progressing. Firstly, Cheryl, Tabitha and Heather attempt to control the Hellmouth that Pop’s Diner used to cover. Secondly, Reggie ransacks Percival’s shop, and then Cheryl burns it to the ground. Both of those things attempt to stop or slow down Percival’s plans, but he’s always one step ahead of them. Elsewhere, Betty, Kevin and Archie are dealing with the brutal deaths of their loved ones, and none of them seems to be coping well with it. Honestly, I really wasn’t expecting Percival to kill the three people that he’s relied on for his conquest of Riverdale, but I guess it proves that he is not playing around! In fact, it was time for the gang to make their first move against Percival, and it involved Veronica and Archie. Tabitha briefed them on what happened in one of the scenarios, and it involved them making a deal with Percival and Veronica shooting Percival. Honestly, I knew it wouldn’t be successful, but it was entertaining for them to try. A few interesting things to make note of were Percival has enslaved the town to become part of the Ghoulies, with Dr Curdle Jr, Principal Weatherbee, and Janet Weiss amongst their ranks. Twyla Twyst made a return as well, although she’s nothing more than a footman to Percival. Veronica’s assassination attempt fails, but Percival still gives the bodies of the dead back to them, albeit without their heads, so they can’t be resurrected. Honestly, this guy is a DICKHEAD!
The next chunk of the episode was absolutely wild, and I think it showcased how great Riverdale can be when it’s written well. It may not be everyone’s favourite, but this section was far more entertaining than I thought it would be. As Percival casts a spell over some familiar-looking dolls, Betty, Archie, Cheryl and Veronica experience attacks from people around them. Betty was attacked by the reanimated, stitched-together corpse of Glen, which was really unsettling. He attacked her with an electric meat carver, and she ran to the garage to grab a chainsaw, mutilating his body and cutting it into pieces. The shot of the body parts twitching in the garage was definitely one of my favourites in this episode because it was so gory and disgusting. Cheryl was attacked by Jason, and she ended up having to burn him alive. Heather took an arrow to the chest, but aside from that was fine. I guess Jason is now dead again, although Cheryl could have just knocked him out rather than killing him. That seemed a little bit extreme. Veronica was attacked by her Abuela, who accused her of murdering Hiram and Heraldo, and Abuela hunted Veronica around the Pembrooke with a shotgun. Fortunately, Veronica coated the lock on a door with her paralytic toxin, and Abuela was broken from the curse before any real damage was done. It was nice to see Abuela again, even if she was off her rocker. Finally, Reggie attacked Archie with one of Percival’s knives, stabbing Archie over and over again before Reggie was choked out. It was incredibly shocking and brutal to see Archie getting stabbed repeatedly, but it was very cool at the same time.
Fortunately, there wasn’t too much fallout from Percival’s latest incantation because Archie’s wounds were healed by Bingo’s saliva. I forgot that Bingo got healing powers from the explosion, so I guess this was a nice reminder that power existed. Just as I think everything is going back to normal, Toni arrives to explain her INSANE plan. Essentially, and I’m going to explain it as it played out in the actual show, Tabitha ages Baby Anthony up to an adult, or at least a teenager, as he’s the only person that could actually fight Percival. I thought this was strange until I remembered that Anthony is immortal, just like Percival. Anyway, the Serpents and Anthony barged into the Babylonium, and they began to subdue the “Ghoulies”. Twyla was brutally injured as she received some shurikens to the face by Toni. Anthony and Kevin head upstairs, where Kevin is shot by Percival, and Anthony attempts to stab Percival with his own dagger. I don’t think I was expecting Percival to disappear into thin air and turn up naked outside the Babylonium. He sealed everyone inside and went off to face the rest of the gang at Pop’s diner. I have to say that this section was very entertaining, and it had a few twists and turns. When Kevin was shot, I yelped, as I wasn’t expecting that, but he appears to be alright in the long run. Who’s ready for the final battle?
Percival arrived at Pop’s, and Archie was waiting to fight him. The pair get into an underwhelming fight that results in Archie on the floor, but as Percival notices Archie’s friends disappear from the window, Archie lamps him. Then, Betty, Cheryl and Veronica arrived, and they took it in turns to beat the shit out of him. Interestingly, Percival just laughed it off, muttered an incantation, and turned everyone’s powers on them. Veronica began to die of poison, Betty was blinded, Cheryl turned to ice, and Archie became an iron statue. It was a really dramatic conclusion to the battle, but there was still one more person left to fight. Tabitha was apparently nowhere to be seen, and she didn’t even try to put him in a time loop, which seems like a cool scene that wasn’t included. Anyway, Jughead is Percival’s final opponent, and Jughead challenges them to delve deep into the other person’s brain and attempt to destroy them from within. It’s a very complicated method, but Jughead tricks Percival into entering his mind so that his body is vulnerable in the real world. I forgot to mention earlier that Tabitha had worked out a loophole and decided to search the future of Rivervale to see if they could win. Their odds were better, and once they’re out of Jughead’s mind, Jughead explains everything. Tabitha had convinced their friends from Rivervale to stab Percival, and when Percival entered Pop’s Diner, he travelled to Rivervale, which explains why he was able to be killed. I have to admit, that was a pretty ingenious plan, and I didn’t see it coming, so props to the characters for coming up with that!
Percival was babbling on about not being able to die because he’s immortal, so Tabitha took him back in time to when he wasn’t immortal. Mr Cypher turns up to claim Percival’s soul, but Cypher reveals the technicality that is the contract Percival signs. It means that Cypher is able to claim his soul when he dies before or after the agreement was made so Percival is taken straight to hell. Before he goes, Percival claims that no one can have Riverdale and mutters an incantation, which is later revealed to have devastating consequences for Riverdale. Earlier in the episode, Heather had noticed something strange about Bailey’s comet, and it turns out the comet is heading straight for Riverdale, which could result in a cataclysmic extinction level explosion. Not only have the gang saved the town from Percival, but they now need to save it from a MASSIVE COMET! How on EARTH is that going to happen? I genuinely don’t know, but I think the next episode could actually be really interesting. Also, it was revealed that the bleak future that Tabitha saw wasn’t to do with the fallout from Percival’s war, but it was instead the fallout from the comet. I guess there’s still time for Jughead to die because he was so confused about how he survived that final battle… Also, is anyone else a little gutted that they didn’t get to see Riverdale conquered by Percival and the entire town turned into a totalitarian state? I think that could have been really cool.
MVP of the Episode
- I think Jughead and Tabitha deserve the award because they were the ones that ultimately came up with the plan to entrap Percival, kill him and send him straight to hell with Mr Cypher. I’m glad Percival is gone, but I wonder if this outcome is the one we’re looking for.
Quote of the Episode
Reggie: Man, even in hyperspeed, moving blows.
Verdict
I thought this episode was thoroughly entertaining from beginning to end. It had dramatic moments and shocking twists and turns, but at the end of the day, our gang triumphed and defeated Percival. It felt so satisfying to watch the villain get dragged to hell, and I think this might be the most satisfying villain death we’ve had so far. Hiram’s exit was boring and was made even worse by his “assassination” at the beginning of the season. Regardless, the comet could actually make this ending the best in Riverdale’s history, or it could turn out to be really terrible. I have faith, but I hope it’s good…
MyEnragedRants 