The Two Faces of Mildred Pierce

 

Before I dive deep into the phenomenon that is Mommie Dearest, I want to discuss the adaptations of James M. Cain's novel Mildred Pierce. Now, I'm gonna say right off the bat that between these two adaptations, I definitely choose the Todd Haynes version. Now don't get me wrong, the original is one of  Joan Crawford's iconic films, but Kate Winslet really knocked this off the park for me. 

Let's talk about the novel first. Now although Mildred is a character you can empathize with, she's not exactly portrayed as sympathetic here. First, she seems to favor Veda after the death of her youngest daughter, Ray, She marries a man whom she doesn't exactly care for to please her snobby, elitist daughter, and she embezzles money from her business to please said daughter. So while adapting the 1945 film version, the filmmakers had to make some accommodations to appease the Hays Code.

So screenwriter Ranald MacDougall and director Michael Curtiz decided to take a film noir approach to the story and this is where I make the comparisons to the novel and 1945 version.

Here's the story: After separating from her husband, Bert, Mildred is to take care of her two daughters, Veda and Ray. In desperate need of financial stability, Mildred takes a job as a waitress, at the behest of Veda. But eventually, Mildred learns the ways of the restaurant business and owns a chain of her own. She soon attracts the attention of Monte Beragon, a lazy playboy who's living off his inheritance. Monte sweeps Mildred off her feet and the two begin a love affair. Unfortunately, Mildred's youngest daughter, Ray, dies of an illness, which leaves Mildred in a devastated state. From then on, Mildred grows attached to Veda who becomes increasingly vain and spoiled. Veda even goes so far as to blackmail a boy's family by pretending to be pregnant with his child to receive money from them and when Mildred forgives her after disowning her, Veda has an affair with her now-husband Monty! Talk about some heavy stuff! but I'll stop there.

The movie starts with the murder of Monte. Yes, the murder of Monte and that's one of the key differences from the book. Monte doesn't die in the book. In the end, he gets away scot-free, running off with Veda to New York, leaving a drunken and depressed Mildred and Bert to their own devices. Though judging by the Hays Code, this was unacceptable. If anything, Monte would be considered an immoral character since he does have an affair with his own stepdaughter and he has an overall unscrupulous nature when it comes to his relationship with Mildred. So the filmmakers decided to kill off Monte to shake up the plot and it actually makes the story more interesting that way. In the first few moments of the film, it becomes a murder mystery. It's made to look like Mildred shot Monte and is putting the blame on her business partner and friend Wally Fay (Burgan in the book). But the story goes deeper than that. During her interrogation, Mildred narrates her life, which starts the story proper. 

One of the most important elements of the film is the relationship between Mildred and Veda, not just in the story but in characterization as well. There is an archetypal character well-known within the film noir genre called the Femme Fatale. She represents the woman who might lead the male main character into danger. She is a woman of intrigue and mystery and you can never quite figure her out until the climax of the movie. But Mildred Pierce provides a more female perspective. In the opening moments of the film, at first, you would think that Mildred might be this type of character as it is made to look like she shot Monty and is on her way to frame Wally. But when Mildred begins her narration, we slowly figure out who the real Femme Fatale is, which turns out to be her own daughter, Veda. For those of you who haven't read the novel, Veda does have some shades of this in the original source material. It's sort of built up to how Veda became vain and manipulative and in a way just like the Femme Fatale, Veda does lead Mildred to her doom. 

On top of that, she gains fame as an opera singer but the Hays Code thinks that this is too dignified for her character and turns her into a chantese instead, which is a common occupation for the Femme Fatale character. Although singing at a nightclub would be out of character for the book version of Veda, it's totally in character for the movie version of Veda. At this point of the movie, Veda is blossoming into a young woman who becomes more stubborn and independent. And also, Veda might use this job as a way to attract possible wealthy suitors and potential managers to jumpstart her singing career. 

Just as Mildred and Veda start to reconnect again...Boom! Mildred catches Veda and Monty in a passionate kiss. Without any remorse, Veda confesses to Mildred that she and Monty have been in love all this time and they're having plans to run off and get married. Now this may be accurate in the novel, but not in the movie version. 

Monty rejects her on the spot and declares his love for Mildred, whether that may be true or not. When Mildred runs out of the house...Bang! Bang! Veda is the one who shot Monty.

Seeing her daughter for who she truly is, Mildred phones the police but her maternal instincts prevent her from doing so. To add more salt to the wound, Veda gaslights her by saying it was her fault for turning out the way she did. Holy cow!

So as Mildred finishes her story, the police take Veda into custody, and strangely she accepts her fate. After that, Mildred reunites with her ex-husband, Bert and that's where the movie ends. 

I like that they took the film noir angle that not only adds layers to the Veda character but also Mildred herself. Joan Crawford would usually star in movies where her character goes from rags to riches with a fierce determination to break out of their working-class life and into the world of the upper class. This was the perfect role for Joan Crawford and she eventually won an Oscar for her performance. Special shout out to Ann Blyth who really nails the role of Veda with viciousness and ferocity. It was a rarity that film noir was shown through a female perspective and that's what makes this an instant classic. 

But what I really, really want to talk about is the 2011 miniseries by Todd Haynes and oh boy is it great!

The miniseries goes by the same beats as the novel but in a different context. It's framed as a melodrama but it's actually a character study about a woman going above and beyond the constructs of the time while trying to maintain a relationship with her selfish, manipulative, narcissistic daughter and her lazy, prideful, self-indulgent boyfriend. 

Unlike the 1945 film, the setting takes place during the Depression. This was at a time when families were struggling to keep up heap. These boiling frustrations take a toll on Mildred and Bert's marriage, which also stems from his affair with one of their neighbors. So when Burt eventually leaves, Mildred has to go out hand and foot to look for a job, even one she considers degrading. I like how Todd Haynes portrays Mildred's struggles realistically. She literally goes hand and foot to find employment. It's not glamorous, it doesn't pass in a quick montage and Kate Winslet doesn't wear much makeup than usual. Todd Haynes really shows the realities of what people were going through during the Depression and he displayed that beautifully. 

Mildred meets up with Mrs. Forrester, a rather arrogant woman who's looking for a new housekeeper. Right off the bat, Mildred is getting bad vibes and declines the offer. Though Mrs. Forrester would become an important character later on in the story. 

As much as she tries to fight it, Mildred eventually takes a job as a waitress, however, this turns out to be a blessing in disguise. She starts off a little shaky but Mildred gets the hang of it and befriends a no-nonsense waitress named Ida, played by the very underrated Mare Winningham. Once Mildred sells her famous pies, it's legit. She is slowly climbing her way into being a legit businesswoman.

During this time, Mildred begins a relationship with Wally Burgan(played by an actor-I've-seen-in-every-movie James LeGross), who just happens to be Bert's lawyer and friend. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that they do indeed start a sexual relationship in the novel but I guess the Hays Code vetoed it and left it as a platonic relationship instead. The fling with Wally is more of a friends-with-benefits sort of thing and it's obvious that Mildred was sleeping with Wally to get back at Bert, however, at least she gets a new business proposition out of it. 

Although Mildred and Burt are separated, there is still love there. Unlike the 1945 film, Bert is very supportive of Mildred, lending her his car and even going so far as to finalize their divorce so she can jumpstart her business. The scene between Kate Winslet and Brian F. O'Byran where they agree to end their marriage is pure golden and shares that level of complexity that seems to be missing in the 1945 film. The scene is just pure golden.

Mildred's actual love interest is, of course, a debonair man-about-town named Monty Beragon played by the ever-so-handsome Guy Pearce. He arrives at the restaurant and Mildred is instantly smitten. When Monty invites her to his vacation home, things get steamy pretty quickly, showcasing how passionate their love affair is. But this newfound bliss doesn't last long, as Mildred gets a call that her youngest daughter Ray is very sick. As we all know, this doesn't end well...

The miniseries actually focuses on Mildred's grief from this, emphasizing the devastating blow she feels when the doctor informs her of Ray's death. Again, Kate Winslet's acting is phenomenal. The pain and the shock on her face without any dialogue are gripping to watch. Then when the scene ends, Mildred holds on to Veda as she breaks down crying, not to telegraph that Veda was her favorite but in the sense that she doesn't want to lose her too, therefore, her attachment to Veda is understandable.

So Mildred uses this tragedy to empower herself, honoring her late daughter's memory as a blessing to her newfound career as a restaraunter. As Mildred's business begins to boom, so does Veda's defiance. 

But beyond that, Mildred recognizes Veda's talent as a piano player, which wasn't expanded on in the 1945 film. Although Mildred sees the potential in Veda, her assigned piano teachers don't and it's up until Part 4 of the miniseries that Veda decides to do opera instead.

On one Christmas morning, Veda's ever-growing defiance takes a turn on Mildred when she doesn't give Veda the piano she wanted. Veda gets a little too big for her britches when she starts to smoke in front of her mother. When Mildred gives her a good slap on the face, Veda slaps her right back! May I reiterate this happens on freakin' Christmas of all days! Veda boastfully tells Mildred that Monty gossips to her behind Mildred's back. Yes, Veda is just shy of 14 at this point. Mildred is disgusted by this and after standing up to her vicious little brat of a daughter, she goes to confront Monty. The pair have been steady for a while, but Mildred realizes that it's beginning to be a take-and-no-give situation and whenever they do have an argument, Monty always finds a way to seduce her. But not this time. Mildred is not having it and asks him why he would even talk to her daughter about their relationship. And you know what his response is? He thinks Veda has the mind of an adult. What? Now as you all may know, Veda seems to have an infatuation with Monty and as she gets older, Monty seems to take notice of her too. You think about it, it's very weird and uncomfortable that he seems to think of her as an adult at a very young age. When Monty constantly jokes about being her gigolo, given that ever since she started her restaurant business, Monty has been a bit of a leech on her finances as his own inheritance has been drying up. So Mildred takes off in a heat of frustration leaving the relationship for good...or at least for now.

Some years have passed and Veda has grown up to be a stunning young woman played by Evan Rachel Wood. Now I'm going to say my piece about Evan Rachel Wood, she is okay in the miniseries. There are times when she is good and I do think she is a good actress, but there were times when she reminded too much of her character from True Blood, talking in an over-the-top posh tone. Anywho, let's continue the story. So Mildred's business has expanded, giving her best friend and neighbor Lucy Gessler (played by the ever-so-talented Melissa Leo) full ownership of a steak and fish restaurant.

After her piano teacher suddenly dies, Mildred goes in search of a new one in the form of Carlo Treviso, a renowned conductor. Right off the bat, he thinks Veda is a lousy piano player. Feeling detested, Veda quits and frets about her future, which eventually leads to her partying with her friends every night. She tells Mildred that she might get a casting call from a director who just so happens to be Mrs. Forrester's husband but little do Mildred know, Veda has something else up her sleeve. While opening up her restaurant, Mrs. Forrester pays her a visit with some troubling news. As we all know, of course, Veda is blackmailing Mrs. Forrester's son but being the good mother that she is, Mildred doesn't want to hear any of it and escorts Mrs. Forrester out of the restaurant. When Mildred confronts her about this, Veda pulls out the I'm Pregnant card, and Mildred, of course, falls for it. But as soon as she gets Wally on the case to have the boy put in jail or at least forced into a marriage with her daughter, Veda outright refuses and wants to take the money instead. Mildred is in utter shock and can't believe her daughter would stoop that low but Veda defiantly tells Mildred that she wants to use the money to get away from her. Appalled by her daughter's coldness, Mildred firmly tells Veda to leave...And a couple of months to a year pass. 

There's not a day that goes by where Mildred worries about Veda and begs Bert to tell her about her whereabouts. According to Bert, while she was away, Veda pursued a career in opera singing and is managed by Carlo Treviso, the same conductor who rejected her not long ago. Mildred hopes for a reunion but it just doesn't happen quite yet. However, Bert comes over to present Veda's very first radio appearance and when Mildred hears her song, she is moved to tears.

Determined to win back her daughter, she sees Carlo Treviso to discuss Veda's finances but Mr. Terviso knows better. He warns Mildred that Veda is like a Calcatta, a snake, it's nice to look at but you can't take them home with you. This might hint that Veda is a bit of a demanding diva that's difficult to work with. But Mildred's love for Veda withstands. 

While taking a drive in the city, she suddenly sees Monty and before you know it, they start reconnecting again. Their love affair is more passionate than before, to the point where Monty asks Mildred's hand in marriage. Mildred says yes...which is the beginning of the end.

During Mildred's wedding party, here comes Veda, back to her good graces again. So mother and daughter have a heartfelt reunion as Veda becomes the life of the party. She seems to have switched managers at this time and even gets offered a lucrative deal in New York but the new manager blocks her chance of doing so, to which again, Veda is boiling a plan in her head.

On the night of Veda's grand opening, she captivates the audience with her powerful singing, with one final song dedicated to her mother. Mildred cries tears of joy and for a second there it's pretty sweet. But you all know what happens.

So Mildred has been a financial hiccup because of her being distracted by Veda's singing career and also her new married life to Monty. So she has a meeting with Wally and the shareholder concerning her restaurant business when she gets the devastating news that her friend Ida has taken over her duties. She turns to Bert over her concerns about her dealings with Wally and fretting over her daughter's newfound success, which could help her out financially. It's at this point, that Bert becomes very supportive of Mildred as their relationship didn't get much development in the 1945 film. But as Mildred goes to search for Veda, she gets the shock of her life...

Mildred runs into Monty at their mansion and, he seems to be blocking their bedroom door. Put off by his strange behavior, Mildred pushes him out of the way and...

Lo and behold is Veda. And no, Mildred does not catch her in a loving embrace with Monty like in the original. Oh no, no, no, no. Veda is stark naked without a care in the world as if she's glad that her mother caught them in the act. All this time Mildred was worried that something had happened to Veda and something had happened to her alright, and Monty was the cause of it. Veda even smokes a cigarette to imply that yes, the sex was good. The complete nerve of this girl!  Monty goes on a rant about how Mildred used him to win back Veda. This is a true statement from the book,  this doesn't seem to be the case at all in the miniseries. Mildred seems to genuinely love Monty and it isn't like she was out looking for him, she just so happens to pop into her life again and, therefore, the passion in their relationship to pop into their life again. It seems to me that he was using Mildred to reel in Veda himself.

I just want to give my roses to Kate Winslet here. She absolutely owns this scene and the key to her amazing acting prowess is how she emotes without dialogue. The pain, the devastation, the repulsion, the anguish, the hurt, the betrayal. It's all detailed in her emotions. Kate Winslet, with all her hard work and talent, definitely deserved her Emmy award. 

Now Mildred doesn't go softly. She full-on attacks Veda (and rightfully so), choking her until her singing voice goes out.  Oh well, Veda, you should've never treated her mother like that.  but her knight in shining armor Monty comes to the rescue. Of course, he would defend the younger (at least young enough for him) Pierce woman. 

But this all transitions into the finale of the miniseries. 

Several months have passed by and Mildred gets a warm welcoming party from her friends after a long trip to Nevada with Bert. Ida feels guilty about taking Mildred's position and wants her to get back in the game again, signifying that there is hope for Mildred after all. But then, Mildred gets an unexpected visitor...

Veda comes to reconcile with her mother but seeing how manipulative and calculating her daughter is, Mildred is not buying it. Now let's dig deep into the main source a bit. The book kind of has a downer ending. Again, Veda uses the reconciliation with Mildred as a marketing ploy and uses her damaged voice to switch to a much more lucrative singing contract. As Veda leaves Mildred broken-hearted, Bert encourages her to say, "To hell with Veda," as they spend the rest of the day drunk and miserable.

However, the miniseries play this out much differently. Once Mildred catches onto Veda's plan, she chews her the fuck out and screams at her to never come back again. It's such a cathartic moment, which was very much well-deserved given what Mildred went through to win back the love of a daughter, who's incapable of receiving it. 

When Bert encourages her to say "to hell with Veda" and "let's get stinko", it's more celebratory and less tragic. This dialogue translates as to hell with all the hurt, pain, and betrayal that Veda has caused and now that we're finally done with her, let's give a toast to a new beginning. The ending is very poignant and although tragic, it's good that Mildred is around people who support and care for her, which leaves things on a bittersweet yet positive outlook. 

I just absolutely love this miniseries. Todd Haynes is a genius at his craft. The miniseries has the makings of a juicy melodrama, however, Todd Haynes peels into the layers of the characters and situations, adapting the psychological feel of the novel, which he does brilliantly. The cast is phenomenal with some heavy supporting players but the real star of the miniseries is Kate Winslet. She really gives it her all and, again, I give her my roses. I can't imagine any other actress playing this role but her. She got the Emmy and Golden Globe! Definitely, definitely deserved. 

So there you have it. Two completely different adaptations but with the same level of complexity.  Both are equally measured as classics of their time and go above and beyond the source material's popularity. But the true core of the story is about how far you go for the person you love, even the ones that don't deserve it. 

The Anatomy of Riverdale: Season 2

 

Okay, we have now entered the second season of Riverdale and there is a lot to unpack. The show's directing style this time around is more avant-garde, usually when the characters have these abstract dream sequences. Sure, there were scenes like this in the first season but it's more prominent to where the show leans further into the surreal that escalates through the third season. This sort of directing style would make the show interesting if it focused more on the character aspect. By all means, Riverdale is more of a plot-based show and much of the character development isn't really handled well in my opinion. I can see some of the writers trying to add layers to the main characters but it doesn't go anywhere. 

For the most part, I thought this season was...okay. Not bad but not great either. But I will say this, I think, in this season, the show finally found its identity...well, somewhat. It tries to go for that neo-noir mystery style with a healthy dose of teen melodrama. There are its good points and its bad points. The plotting was okay. I did find the whole storyline with the Black Hood intriguing and it turned out to be a compelling story arc. And furthermore, I think the actors did a good job with what they were given. Not all of the actors were great but most of the performances are passable at best. Now here comes the bad points: The writing and execution are very poor and the character development is all over the place. And don't get me started on the dialogue. It seems that the show forces the characters to make hasty decisions for the plot's sake. It makes them look flaky and impulsive at best. This wasn't a TERRIBLE season. Sure, it has its cringy moments here and there but I think this is the season where the show finds its footing and at least gets you somewhat interested. 

The season opener begins after the cliffhanger with Archie in a rush to get his dad to the hospital. While Fred is recovering, most of the characters are dealing with the aftereffects of the last season, which causes the quartet of Archie, Jughead, Betty, and Veronica to change drastically. 

You have Archie as a vigilante and later working for the mob, Jughead as the leader of a biker gang, Betty, who might be related to a serial killer, and Veronica, a mob princess. The characters are so unrecognizable to the point where you forget that they're based on the Archie comics. 

Let's start with Archie Andrews. His arc starts off as promising as he's traumatized by the events of the cliffhanger. It shows how paranoid he is, constantly guarding the door while his dad is recovering. But then, Archie goes slightly overboard after hearing the news about the murder of Ms. Grundy, his former lover and music teacher.

He first purchases a gun from Dilton Doiley of all people and when Moose and Midge are attacked by the Black Hood, he rallies up Reggie and the rest of the school's football team to form a vigilante group. By the way, Archie's idea of forming a vigilante group comes from the basis of a comic book...okay. But it doesn't stop there.

In the midst of it all, Archie gets caught up in some intrigue, mainly with Veronica's dad, Hiram. It all starts after Plot A where Archie gets into a bit of entanglement with an FBI agent who wants to crack down on Hiram's mob dealings. And so, Archie is put to the test becoming a mole for the FBI. But this turns out to be a ploy from Hermonie, of all people, as a way to test Archie's loyalty. This was all too confusing and it was a good plot wasted. And trust me, I'll get to Hermonie later. 

So with the continuation of Archie's storyline, he basically becomes Hiram's right-hand man. Even to the point where he favors him over his father, which I thought was pointless drama. But to no one's surprise, Hiram betrays Archie and sends him to jail in the season's cliffhanger. 

Okay, I would say that Archie is more of a pro-active character this time around, however, the decisions he makes comes off as irrational and impulsive, which is far from Archie's character. He sort of just thrust into situations he's not in control of and it's in favor of someone else's storyline. Archie continues to bounce off plot after plot until he gets caught in Hiram's web. Speaking of, what is his deal with Hiram? At first, it seems that he's trying to impress Hiram through Veronica. This is pretty accurate to the comics but it gets much deeper than that. Archie begins to have some weird obligation to him to the point he gets involved with the mob.

Archie can be best described as a reactionary character. Whenever something happens, he reacts. But at least he's not a supporting character in his own show, however, it's hard for me to find Archie engaging as the main character. 

Like I said the last time, KJ Apa isn't a bad actor. I mean he does have more to work with and he isn't as bland as he was in the last season but the poor dialogue and flimsy scriptwriting sort of falters whatever potential he has. 

Now let's talk about Betty Copper, and oh boy, Betty has a lot of baggage. From where we left off, Alice has revealed to Betty that she may have had an older brother. In true Betty fashion, she puts on her Nancy Drew cap on, follows her nose wherever she goes, and lo and behold...

Betty's long-lost brother Chic. He seems to be some type of Rent boy, performing as a gay cam model. Chic seems innocent enough but, from a blind's eye, he starts to become a rather shady character later on. Let me get this out first and say that Chic's acting isn't the best and the actor isn't all the convincing in the role. Even though I find Chic to be quite annoying at times, his addition to Betty's story arc does bring a flow to the narrative. The most meat he gets from his storyline is when Betty finds Alice cleaning up the blood of Chic's drug dealer. After they dispose the body with the help of Jughead and F.P., Betty begins to suspect that Chic may be an imposter. This gets a little confusing the next season, so I'll just leave it at that. 

Speaking of siblings, Betty's sister Polly is taking a back seat this season. She shows up briefly in episode five but then decides to ship off with the twins when she becomes the target of the Black Hood. She stays at a retreat called "The Farm", which would be explained more in the third season.

What I really want to discuss is the writing of Betty's character and do things get dark. One of the first offenses is when Betty blackmails Cheryl Blossom into testifying on F.P.'s behalf. Cheryl is a bit stubborn about this and still can't get over the fact that F.P. cleaned up her brother's crime scene, but Betty figures out a way to knock her down a peg. She makes a threat to Chery that if she doesn't testify, she'll show the image of her father killing her brother in front of the whole school. Woah. Seeing how mentally fragile Cheryl is, this was a little extreme on Betty's part. I mean how far is too far.

Betty soon becomes involved with the Black Hood, who wants to bring out more of Betty's ruthless side. In season 1, when she made this speech about how the town is corrupt and there needs to be a change, Betty has been under the Black Hood's radar ever since. I never really understood why the Black Hood was so obsessed with Betty but then I realized it's much deeper than that. You see, there might be some speculation that Betty might be related to the Black Hood. This includes being related to the Blossoms who have their share of mental issues on top of having a killer in the family as well. So there is a lot that Betty has to fight with internally and the show did have enough potential to make Betty a three-dimensional character. But the show does a poor job of tackling the subject of mental illness. Betty's mental illness could've been explored more but the showrunners decided to use this as a minor subplot instead.

This leads us to Betty's alter ego, Dark Betty. Betty is at a crossroads with her sexuality, so she dons a black wig and creates a split personality where she can express herself freely. At first, the show treated this subplot seriously but somehow, in this season, they turned this into a one-off joke. The first instance of this is when Chic gets her into the webcamming lifestyle. Once Betty and Chic have a falling out, Chic reveals to Alice about Betty's secret rendezvouses, Alice comes off more annoyed than concerned. But then she breaks down about Betty losing her virginity. The tonal whiplash is all too confusing.

Then there's the episode with Archie and the gang shacking up at Veronica's cabin retreat, and when Betty is alone with Jughead, she puts on her black wig for some kinky fun. It's just so baffling how Riverdale handles the Dark Betty subplot, which is yet another missed opportunity.

Even when she isn't wearing the black wig, there is still an essence of Dark Betty in her. This is evident in the show's most notorious scene. When Betty does a striptease for the Southside Serpents( who are men half her age. Betty is supposed to be 15 or 16 in the least), Alice is shocked by this and doesn't have the power to stop her. F.P., on the other hand, is impressed, giving her a round of applause. For further explanation, the striptease is supposed to be an initiation for a Southside Seperent's girlfriend to join in the pack. Betty does this for her devotion to Jughead, who is fully immersed in the biker lifestyle. This scene was just creepy and uncomfortable to watch. Maybe the show was trying to do this for shock value, I don't know, but it just came out of nowhere. 

There was a lot to unpack with Betty in this season, but unfortunately, none of the plot points build up into a satisfying conclusion. The show could've focused on the many facets of her character, expanding upon what she struggled with in the first season. However, the writers instead, wanted to make Betty's hidden dark side into a gimmick.

Lili Reinhart really carries the show even with the stupid subplots and bad writing. She is one of those actresses that is way more capable than she gives credit for.

And now we have moved on to Jughead Jones, who is now an official member of the Southside Serpents. Jughead's story arc begins when he gets involved with a woman named Penny Peabody, a Southside lawyer who advises him to ask the Blossoms to testify on behalf of F.P., who's facing 20 years in prison for Accessory to Murder.

Through Betty's help in blackmailing Cheryl, F.P. is scot-free. But this comes at a cost. Penny Peabody wants her end of the deal, too, and thus, Jughead becomes Penny's airing boy. This is when the show goes into "I want to be Twin Peaks" mode where Jughead meets up with some odd characters, including Candyman himself, Tony Todd.

Their encounter is pretty funny. The show goes out of his way to make him all scary and sinister, at first, but once they stop at a pit stop to grab a bite to eat, Tony Todd refuses to pay for the meal on time. I thought this scene was so comical because the Tony Todd character is never seen or heard from again. 

Anywho, Jughead is wrapped around Penny's finger to the point where F.P. decides to stay in the Serpent lifestyle for Jughead's safety. 

Tired of being Penny's whipping boy, Jughead rallies up the younger serpents to kidnap and torture Penny by cutting off her serpent's tattoo. Again, Archie and the gang are becoming a little more ruthless this season. I mean I would never suspect Jughead, of all people, to pull off something like this. 

So up until now, Jughead is following in his dad's footsteps. This happens when Jughead transfers into a new school, which caters to kids who are on the wrong side of the tracks. He even writes for the school newspaper just like he did in Riverdale High. Jughead eventually becomes heavily involved with the Southside Serpents, forming a new gang: Toni, Sweet Pea, and Fangs. When Mayor McCoy cracks down on the Southside school's illegal activities, Jughead and his biker gang are forced to conform in Riverdale by wearing silly school uniforms. Similar to his girlfriend's situation, Jughead is at a crossroads of who's side he's on and it sort of becomes this Preppies Vs. Greasers' situation. 

But finishing F.P.'s unfinished business eventually catches up to Jughead and a rival gang, The Ghoulies, is on his trail. Penny Peabody uses this as revenge by kidnapping Toni to lure Jughead in. Before you know it, Jughead gets attacked by the Ghoulies and F.P. carries his lifeless body as the episode comes to a close. 

But his story doesn't end there...

 Jughead survives his injuries and is crowned as the new king of the Southside Serpents. Let's make sure you heard me correctly. Jughead is now the official king of the Southside Serpents. It's sort of like an allegory of a snake shedding his skin, making this version of Jughead a totally different character from what he was in the last season. 

And that's the thing I really want to discuss. Jughead has that weird juxtaposition between quirky, nerdy best friend and brooding bad boy. It's confusing. One minute, he's making movie references and the next minute, he's roughhousing with biker dudes. Though, Jughead is not the only inconsistent character. We'll get to Cheryl later. But Jughead's character arc falls in between the loops as the show delves into the concept of finding one's own identity. This would've been a great opportunity to look into Jughead's psyche and see the gravity of his situation. But the show cuts it short out of any weight it could've had. This side of Jughead just doesn't work for me. I mean, Jughead the biker dude? Really? There's no way I can take that seriously. 

Cole Sprouse tries with what he's given. I mean, he does have more of a range this time but he's still just okay. Nothing else. 

Now let's get to the one and only Veronica Lodge. Just like the rest of the gang, Veronica is caught between two worlds: her past and her present. Her story arc begins when her dad arrives from jail. Let's just say that Veronica is not happy about her dad's arrival.

Most of Veronica's struggles is dealing with her family's shady business deals. But it isn't until an old friend reminds her of the past she wants to escape.

Nick St. Clair comes into the picture and wreaks havoc, coaxing her into the dark side. Nick is a little bit of a creeper and whips his privilege around like a shield. 

This doesn't sit well with Veronica and she basically puts out a hit with a help of her parents. Now it's official, Veronica is a mob princess. Though her biggest concern is how her boyfriend Archie gets involved.

She doesn't particularly agree with her dad manipulating Archie into his schemes. And that's the main gist of her storyline...it's her somewhat dysfunctional relationship with her dad, but also her mom as well. Yes, there's a lot to talk about in Hermonie's case. 

During the final moments of the show, she actually makes a business deal with her dad to trade-off Pop's for a bar. Yes, that right. Veronica, at 16 years old, owns a bar. In what world does that happen? Sure, Chuck from Gossip Girl owned a hotel at one point and even back then that was ludicrous. I don't know...It's just weird how the teenagers on this show don't act like real teenagers.

  Camilla Mendes does her best to power through the show's weak writing with her impressive range, but unfortunately, Veronica has the worst dialogue. On top of that, the show's handling of Veronica is a bit mixed. She was actually progressing into a complex character with a good heart but there's never any attempt to make her more nuanced than the rest of the characters. 

In every story, a protagonist always has an antagonist. This is where our main four have to face the personification of their flaws, where each of them has its own villainous counterparts. 

First, we have Hiram Lodge played by the very handsome and incredibly fit Mark Consuelos. Hiram is sort of like the Chessmaster of the show, the man behind the curtain. Although he's only a landowner, the show goes out of its way to make him extremely powerful. I'm talkin' Lex Luthor level. He even comes close to being the show's Big Bad right next to the Black Hood, though he's more of an unscrupulous businessman who pulls the strings. Mark Consuelos actually does a good job in the role and plays it ironically. Since he's known for starring in daytime soaps, Mark is naturally organic in his portrayal.

It's pretty obvious from the get-go that Penny Peabody is an untrustworthy person. The way she exaggerates her eyes is an indication that she might have some tricks up her sleeve. Her character becomes more prominent in the third season, but it's hard to tell which direction that would take her. My guess is it's probably going to be stupid. 

Then there's Nick St. Clair, Veronica's old friend from New York. Nick tries to lure Veronica back into the lifestyle she wants to escape, to drown in a sea of excess, debauchery, and typical rich kid shenanigans. But he really crosses the line when he drugs and almost sexually assaults Cheryl. Josie runs off to catch Veronica once she catches him in the act. 

And that's when the girls rally up with the Pussycats to kick Nick's ass and this was actually one of my favorite scenes in this season. This leaves Nick with not only a bruised face but a bruised ego. So like most petty rich kids, Nick uses his family money to dodge the charges filed against him by Cheryl. He is certain that he might get away with his misdeeds. But Veronica is not having it. So of course, Veronica and her mafia family put a hit on Nick and his family by causing a car accident. 

Though Nick is not quite dead and he isn't finished yet. But at this point, Nick started to get annoying rather quickly. He's just a dime-store version of Chuck Bass in my opinion. A generic rich cad.

Okay, let's get this over with. After Archie puts him down a peg, Nick retaliates by abducting him and luring Veronica with ransom money. Veronica plays along until she eventually drugs him. So after that, Veronica and Archie turn the tables and hold Nick for ransom instead. Again, why can't they just turn him in at the police station is my guess, but oh well.  This should be the last of Nick St. Clair, though I have a feeling he might become a recurring character in the next season. Who knows.

Last but not least, we have the Black Hood, who has an unhealthy attachment to Betty. It's pretty obvious who the Black Hood is but I rather leave that for the last segment. Instead, we'll focus on the victims.

First, we have Ms. Grundy, whose death is shockingly graphic. Though her death didn't really effect me at all. Let's not forget that she's a high school teacher who has sex with her students. And in the same episode, she is still having sex with students at another school. So no, this woman is an out-and-out predator. No effect at all. But Ms. Grundy's death is what drives Archie to vigilantism, which makes her death meaningful to him in a way, but then again, it makes no sense. Archie was just a conquest, nothing more. It would've been impossible for the show to make Ms. Grundy a relevant character because, in my opinion, killing her off was a good thing. 

Next up we have The Sugarman, this mythical drug dealer who turns out to be Southside English teacher, Mr. Phillips. The Black Hood targets sinners and Mr. Phillips had just been exposed for sinful things. But this is where things get a little confusing. 

How on earth did the Black Hood break into the police station to kill Mr. Phillips in his jail cell? Wouldn't there be a police officer to survey the premises? Oh well, let's move on.

Then there's Mr. Svenson, the school janitor. Everyone treats him like the town weirdo and it's later revealed that he was a survivor of a family massacre, making him the prime suspect. Betty and Archie soon catch up with him, prompting Sheriff Keller to shoot him down. But as it turns out, Mr. Svenson was framed and the real killer is still out there.

This leads us to Midge. There's not much focus on her as she is mostly an extension of Moose and kind of pops up when it's convenient to the plot. How I would describe Midge is "the perky nice girl with a wild side," as demonstrated in the episode where she and Moose have a drug-fueled makeout session in their car. They're hooked on jingle-jangle by the way. More on that later. But then suddenly, they're attacked by the Black Hood. Midge comes out unscathed while Moose is badly wounded. Not that the show would've had room to focus on Midge's trauma, but developing Midge's character could've been a solid way for us to care about her as a character. 

In the infamous "Carrie The Musical" episode, Midge's body is discovered, having been impaled by knives, similar to Margret White's death in the 1976 movie. Midge's death is a reminder that the Black Hood is still at large. 

Our last victim on this list is Dr. Masters, who shows up in the first episode when Fred is shot. Dr. Masters is one of those characters that pop up here and there, and not much is known about him. His death occurs during a massive riot where one of the Southside Serpents, Fangs, is accused of Midge's murder.

Okay, now that we got that out of the way, let's focus on the supporting characters. 

First, we have Kevin who basically becomes the show's breakout character. Though most of his plots involve his romantic entanglements. The most prominent storyline he gets this season is when goes out cruising for guys after Joaquin's departure. For some reason, Cheryl is all up in Kevin's grill and forces her way into the situation, telling Betty about his rendezvous. I don't know why Cheryl has to weasel her way into Kevin's problems but I guess it's to suggest Cheryl's own struggles with her sexuality. Since there is a killer on the loose, Betty is worried about Kevin's well-being, and when she confronts him, he goes into a rant about how he's not accepted in his small town. But wait a minute? Wasn't he always making out with Joaquin in public? And also it seems like his dad, the sheriff of the town, is very accepting of Kevin. So I don't know where this even came from? It just shows that the writers have a very clunky way of tackling issues. Why wasn't this addressed in the first season? Anyway, it's not like Betty is judging his cruising lifestyle, she's just worried that he might end up getting murdered by the Black Hood, and quite frankly, Kevin comes off like a whiny idiot.

Soon enough, Kevin cuts out the late-night cruising and resumes his role as Betty's sidekick. There's a possible hint he might get back with Moose but he seems to have his eye on Fangs, which escalates in the third season. It's strange how he keeps falling for guys who were involved with Midge, given that the girl was just murdered.

Kevin does have much more to do this season but it's not enough to make him an interesting side character.

Our next supporting character is Toni Topaz, a new addition to the cast. Toni is more of a satellite character, she's only around when other characters are around and doesn't get much screen time on her own. The only storyline she does have involves her grandfather but that's only treated as a subplot. It's a shame because I think Vanessa Morgan is a decent actress. But unfortunately, she's not given much to do unless it involves the main cast. 

The only interesting thing about Toni is her budding romance with Cheryl. Yes, it's sweet, but after that, Toni becomes an extension of Cheryl and nothing else. The actress actually made a complaint against the show about the lack of screentime her character gets and how most black characters on these types of shows are always sidelined. And since I've watched these shows growing up, I do realize that. It's unfortunate because Toni is one of the few characters I liked. However, there are some inconsistencies with her as well. Just how does a sixteen-year-old have a bartending license?  But oh well, I guess it's part of the show's weirdness.

Speaking of less screentime, we have Josie McCoy, who also has the potential to lead her own storylines. The ingredients are there: she has an overwhelming stage mom, an emotionally distant dad, and goes through ups and downs with her band, The Pussycats. This all could've been explored in this season but she only gets a segment in the episode Twenty Tales From The Darkside.

Another missed opportunity is her budding relationship with Chuck Clayton. It would've build up to something but it doesn't go anywhere.

I heard somewhere between the third and fourth season that Josie was shipped off to another spin-off show Katy Keene...as a supporting character. I felt that if they were going to transfer Josie to another show, she would most likely be the lead. And now that the show is canceled, the showrunners have to find a way to fit Josie back into the narrative but unfortunately, she's already faded into the background.

Chuck Clayton is having a bit of a redemption arc after his unfortunate portrayal of being the Jerk Jock. The writers are going back to basics by making him a comic book artist, very much like his comic book counterpart, but there's nothing genuine about it. I think this would benefit Chuck more if he was one of the main characters and maybe have a story arc of his own. I think it was just a bad choice to make him so antagonistic in his first appearance. It was jarring, to be honest, and furthermore, I don't find his redemption arc to be that believable. We don't really explore his growth in any way, other than having a crush on Josie. 

Reggie is now a drug dealer. Yes, I said it. In his first scene, he's selling Jingle-Jangle (silly name for a drug I know) to Moose and Midge and it's wild! But other than that, at least Reggie has more to do and there might a hint of romantic tension between him and Veronica. They might not like each other now, but the next season might show a slight attraction between the two. Like most prime-time soaps, Reggie is now played by a different actor, the very handsome Charles Melton. In terms of his looks and mannerisms, I think he's well fit for the role.

Last but certainly not least, we have Cheryl, who is probably one of the most inconsistent characters on the show. Just like Veronica, she has her chances of becoming a more nuanced character but is constantly wasted on outlandish storylines.

The center of Cheryl's story arc is the dysfunctional relationship she has with her mother. There are times where she does stand up to Penelope and gains the upper hand but Penelope always finds a way to beat her to the punch, turning into a battle of wits. They have a very weird dynamic. You never understand why Penelope has such hatred towards Cheryl. Is it because she's homophobic to her lifestyle? Or maybe she took attention away from her now-dead husband? But even Cheryl didn't have the best relationship with her father either. So, it's never explained why Penelope has an intense animosity towards her daughter beyond her sexuality. 

Out of all the characters' storylines, Cheryl gets the silliest ones. For instance, we get another cliched soap opera trope: The Long Lost Twin. Clifford just so happens to have a long-lost twin brother who plans to take over the family business. The funny thing about this is there's not a sense of irony at all. There's also this really strange subplot involving her stalking Josie. In the episode, Twenty Tales from the Darkside, Josie is receiving weird notes and soon discovers a pig's heart in her locker. It turns out that Cheryl has been the one sending them and...Josie just instantly forgives her. It just comes out of nowhere and it's never mentioned again. It's one of those surreal WTF moments of the show that never really adds to anything.

What bugs me the most is how Cheryl is portrayed.

A lot of traumatic things happen to her. On top of her father killing her brother, she almost gets date-raped, gets locked away in a bedlam house, and is struggling with her sexuality. But she never grows from her experiences, which makes it hard to be emotionally invested in the character.

I think Madelaine Petsch is an okay actress. There are times where she does a good job of handling Cheryl's vulnerability but the show resorts Cheryl back into her usual over-the-top catty persona which does a major disservice to Madelaine's acting. It's like the showrunners are propping Cheryl to be this campy character yet she's always put through the wringer. It's always a back and forth with no middle ground. And in the end, this makes Cheryl one of the least relatable characters on the show.

Now let's move on to the parents. They have much a bigger role this season and, strangely, some of their personalities have changed drastically. Hermonie and Alice, in particular, seem to have switched places somehow. 

But let's focus on the most normal parents on the show, Fred and Mary Andrews. After Mayor McCoy resigns, The Lodges manipulate Fred into running for Mayor. Their plan is to turn the former Southside high school into a private prison and the housing Fred is building will be for the employees of the prison. Once Fred gets wind of this, he refuses to have anything to do with them. But here's the problem, Archie is wrapped around Hiram's finger, which causes a rift between Fred and Archie. Mary is only there to tell Archie, "Hey, don't forget where you came from" and "Know who your father is" and all that. Yeah, that's pretty much all she does this season. 

The purpose of Fred getting involved with the Lodges is because of an 86,000 hospital bill. Now I don't know how a medical bill can be that expensive but I digress. So, Veronica finds a way to pay it off and that's where the cycle between The Lodges and The Andrews begins. Though all is eventually well between Archie and Fred and until then, Archie severs his ties with Hiram. But Hiram isn't finished yet...

Luke Perry once again gives an earnest performance as Fred and is probably the most sympathetic out of all the parents. Molly Ringwald has a little more to do this time around but she still stuck in the "guest star" mold. 

After almost being sent to prison for accessory to murder, F.P. struggles with his atonement as the leader of the serpents. And now that Jughead is involved with the gang's activities, F.P. finds himself getting caught in the crossfire. That's pretty much the gist of F.P.'s storyline, which focuses on the complicated relationship between him and Jughead. 

If  I show the same love to Luke Perry, I'll give my roses to Skeet Ulrich. He deserves much better than this show and it might take a while for the show to throw him off for a nonsensical dumb story that would make the character less engaging but we'll see. 

Alice is probably one of the most well-written out of all the parents and developed a positive change in character growth. At first, she was a spiteful, controlling woman who held an iron grip on her daughters, to the point of becoming an antagonist. Though as the first season comes to an end, Alice starts to develop a softer side. Now at the start of season 2, She's has reasons for being overprotective over her daughters. She, too, was a Southside Serpent because of her romance with F.P. It seems now that Alice's past is coming back to haunt her since Betty is involved with Jughead, F.P.'s son and the main conflict of her story is that she doesn't want Betty to make the same mistakes that she did. Okay, that's fine and all but I wished the showrunners could've made Alice less severe in the first season. It's like they went out of their way to make her almost a villain. And yet besides the point, this is the best character writing the show has (shocker!). Though I know in the back of my mind, that this will soon lose its momentum as the seasons progress. 

Madchen Amick did a good job of portraying Alice in a more sympathetic light, opening up a vulnerability that brings out layers that this character needed. 

Hermonie has suddenly switched gears and is far and away from how she was portrayed in Season One. Now she has become the quintessential Mobster Wife, gloating at the camera with a wicked snare. Even though she has a subplot surrounding her election as mayor, Hermonie gets less screentime than normal.

At the beginning of episode one, there is a glimmer of her old personality but once Veronica tells Hermonie off, that's when she suddenly turns cold. And after that, Hermonie has become repetitive ever since. 

Sierra McCoy also known as Mayor McCoy is getting a lot more screen time than her daughter. Throughout the season, she would usually get into business schemes with the Lodges but her meatiest storyline is her affair with Sheriff Keller. Speaking of, let's get into Tom Keller.

During the Black Hood arc, Betty suspects that Sheriff Keller may be in on the killings...for some reason.

When Betty finds out why Sheriff Keller is acting so evasive, and soon enough, that's when his affair with Mayor McCoy is revealed. Unfortunately, this subplot doesn't go anywhere. Most importantly, we don't see how this impacts Josie and Kevin, which could've possibly given them more screentime. I get the feeling that the writers added on this storyline for kicks. And after that, it's never really mentioned or talk about again...

Penelope Blossom is probably the weirdest of the bunch. We never really know what her damage is and why she has a hatred towards Cheryl. There's not much to know about Penelope except for that one strange episode where she becomes the town prostitute. It's implied that Penelope does this to spite Cheryl, but she seems to get a kick out of it. This just comes out of nowhere and it doesn't add to anything. It's just one of those bizarre Blossom family moments that becomes more non-sensical as the show moves on. 

At the mid-point of the season, Penelope begins an affair with Hal Cooper. This may be a big deal but it's not. It's a small subplot with little thought put into it. It's just something that happens and nothing more. So that's all I have to say about Penelope. From then on out, she becomes a typical hammy villain without any dimension to work with.

Now the time has come to unveil the mystery surrounding this whole season...Who Is The Black Hood? Well, it's none other than...

Hal Cooper

It's pretty obvious from the get-go that something was off about Hal. In the first season, he came off like a typical henpecked husband but the cracks begin to show when it's revealed that he was the one who sent Polly away and unjustly fired his own wife from The Paper for merely kicking him out because of that. There were tiny layers of his manipulative side that would seep over into this season, so the reveal wasn't all that shocking to me. But let's get into Hal's motive.

He is deep-set on targeting sinners but, as it turns out, he's a sinner himself. Okay, let's see here. Hiding secrets from your family. Yeah, that's a sin. And not to mention him having an affair with Penelope Blossom, who, around this stage, is a prostitute. Sure, Alice and Hal are separated at this time, but he is still technically married. 

So in the episode, Judgement Night, Hal makes this speech about how the world is corrupted and needs to be cleaned out and all that. But then we see the root of Hal's evil...He's actually the son of the killer who murdered Mr. Svenson's family, with Hal claiming Mr. Svenson as the last victim. I found this kind of interesting and if the show did a better job of handling mental illness, I would probably give the show a good grade for effort. 

Does Hal make an interesting villain? I guess...in a way. I'm sort of in the middle because, bottom line, Hal would be less convincing as the show's main antagonist and is best fit for this season and only this season. But I could at least acknowledge some thought put into this idea. 

Before I get to the writing and directing, I want to fill in my thoughts on the worst-reviewed episode, A Night To Remember. Now I'm not totally against musical episodes. Once With a Feeling is one of my favorite Buffy episodes. But the thing about Once With a Feeling is that it actually has a plot and it fits with the tone of the show. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for A Night To Remember. From what I can tell, Riverdale is supposed to be this ultra-serious neo-noir, and adding a musical episode flips the tone off completely to the point where it becomes unintentionally (or intentionally?) campy. Not to mention the really bad auto-tune used for the actors. At least, Glee had a cast of actors who were actual singers. This was just a terrible idea that adds nothing to the story. Furthermore, it tries to do this thing where the main plot has parallels to the broadway musical and goes nowhere. At the end of the day, it's just a filler episode. Period.

Let's talk about the directing. It's probably one of the few positive things about the show. I like the contrast of the reddish-blue visuals and the wide cinematic shots. Though, there are some misses to this as well. 

I get the feeling that Riverdale tries so hard to be like other CW shows. Particularly of their more popular DC superhero shows such as Arrow and The Flash, with Archie as a hood-wearing vigilante and this incredibly cheesy scene where all the antagonists are having a Villains' roundtable discussion. Riverdale can be its own thing if it wanted to, but no, it's just not. It's just a carbon copy of other popular shows. However, at least, the visuals are better to be expected. 

Now let's talk about the dialogue. Oh boy, the dialogue. Sometimes I would sit back and wonder, do teenagers really talk like this? Do they speak in special codes such as wokeisms and internet-speak? I don't know. Half of it consists of pop culture and movie references, which are totally non-sensical, undeniably corny, and incredibly forced. Again, it makes me wonder what goes on in these writers' heads.

The writing is no better either. And I know I keep repeating myself but it's true. It all goes down to execution. The blueprint for a better season is there but it's all jumbled into an inconsistent mess, specifically in matters of the tone the show is trying to emulate. In one take, it's a serious teen soap melodrama, and in the next take, it's a self-aware parody. 

In my final words, it's a season with some potential but ends in a messy conclusion. I feel like the biggest flaw this show has is the writing and I have a feeling that it's going to get worse in the next season. So wish me luck!

Whew! This was a long one, you guys. As you can tell it took me a couple of months to write this but I finally got this finished. YES! it's such a relief. This season was a lot to digest and I'm glad to be rid of it. So I might wait till next year to do the third season. 

Without further ado, I will continue on with Scream 2.