5 Questions Raised by ‘Riverdale’ Midseason Finale

Riverdale‘s midseason finale just finished airing, and while it may have answered one big question, there’s still a lot more to mull over.

Spoilers for tonight’s midseason finale of Riverdale, “Silent Night, Deadly Night”, below!

Tonight’s episode saw the town of Riverdale gearing up for the holiday season, while uncovering some major revelations along the way. Veronica (Camila Mendes) leveled the playing field with her parents, Jughead (Cole Sprouse) may have changed the game for the Southside Serpents, and Betty (Lili Reinhart) and Archie (KJ Apa) went on a surprising encounter to unmask the Black Hood.

So, what’s next for Riverdale? We have a few questions.

What does Veronica know?

During tonight’s episode, Veronica finally began to uncover the truth about her parents’ business dealings. Conveniently, those of us in the audience didn’t get to actually hear what they were talking about, just that Veronica was willing to participate in any non-illegal activities.

So, what could she have found out? Does it have to do with the never-ending business stuff between the Lodges and Fred? Could that be the ulterior motive for Veronica finally saying “I love you” back to Archie?

Who is taking pictures of Archie and Veronica?

On a related note, when Archie and Veronica rekindle their romance on the porch, it’s quickly revealed that they aren’t alone. Someone is in the bushes, snapping photos of them.

On the surface, photos of “Varchie” kissing probably wouldn’t be too scandalous. But with a love triangle seeming to bloom between Archie, Betty, and Veronica, there’s a chance that these photos could be used nefariously.

So, who is the culprit? Could it be Hiram and/or Hermione? Could it be someone attempting to blackmail her father? Or could it be someone more nefarious?

Is Nana Rose telling the truth?

Speaking of, tonight saw the return of Nana Rose Blossom, a character whose fate was sort of left up in the air after the Blossom family fire. Nana Rose ended up becoming a crucial part of the episode, after Betty and Archie realized that she was involved with the fallout of the Conway family murder.

As she told Archie and Betty, she wasn’t allowed to participate in the killing of the suspected Riverdale Reaper, because the men wanted her to stay at home. She then revealed how and where the men killed the man, leading Betty and Archie on the case.

While she might have been right about the location – could there be more going on that she isn’t revealing? After all, Nana Rose had a few lapses in sanity last season, including mistaking Betty for Polly. There’s a chance that she could’ve messed up some of the information, or could know way more than she’s letting on.

What did Jughead do to Penny?

Another one of tonight’s subplots centered around Jughead and the Serpents kidnapping Penny Peabody (Brit Morgan), in an attempt to get her to leave the Serpents alone.

They took her to Greendale (a locale that is soon to have a larger role in the Riverdale-verse) and threatened that she shouldn’t return to Riverdale again. After she laughed that off, Jughead pulled out a knife, and went to cut off her Serpent tattoo, just before the camera cut away.

Did Jughead actually cut off her Serpent tattoo? Did he just start to do so as a way to threaten her? Did things take an even darker turn? After all, Jughead’s initial plan was to kill Penny.

What’s next for the Black Hood?

And finally, perhaps the biggest question of all… is the Black Hood mystery really finished?

Things certainly seemed that way in the episode’s third act, as Mr. Svenson was shot and unmasked by Sheriff Keller. But as was hinted in the episode’s last scene, the story isn’t over yet, and Betty knows that.

So, could there be a second Black Hood? Could Svenson really have just been a patsy all along, while the real Black Hood looms in the shadows? And how long will it take for this new menace to strike?

Riverdale returns from midseason hiatus on Wednesday, January 17, 2018.