We’re smack-dab in the middle of Riverdale‘s fifth season, and it already has introduced a huge number of new plotlines and reveals. As the web surrounding the series’ events continues to grow more complicated, fans are curious to see exactly where things are going next — and now, a new preview provides a chilling look at what that will entail. The CW has released a preview for “Chapter Eighty-Five: Destroyer”, the ninth episode of Riverdale‘s fifth season. The promo, surprisingly, focuses entirely on Betty Cooper (Lili Reinhart) and her potential quest for vengeance and justice, after learning that (spoiler alert!) her sister, Polly Cooper (Tiera Skovbye) might have been kidnapped and murdered.
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It’s anyone’s guess as to exactly how that will spiral out of control, especially when the season’s central mystery (potentially involving aliens dubbed the “Mothmen”) seems to be tied to Polly’s disappearance. While that whole move has undeniably been unexpected, it signifies one of the many ways the show is reinventing itself this season.
“One of the hallmarks of Riverdale has been that it isn’t a procedural. Every episode is its own genre and it’s constantly reinvent[ing] itself and it felt like if we had stayed in high school, we might run the risk of playing the same beats and the same stories over and over again,” showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa explained to Entertainment Tonight earlier this season. “So I think the idea was that it would sort of be a creative boost for the writers, a creative boost for the actors and after four years of very gonzo, intricate, incestuous plotting, it was like, “Oh!” Well, we can just drop everyone into new storylines that feel organic to the characters, but allow us to feel like we can move a little more nimbly. Without the burden of, you know, Bughead dating or the burden of Archie still wrestling with the immediate death of his father. It felt like a way to freshen everything up and I feel like that was the big goal.”
You can check out the synopsis for “Chapter Eighty-Five: Destroyer” below!
“SCHOOL SPIRIT — After the Bulldogs lose several football games, Archie (KJ Apa) and Veronica (Camila Mendes) come up with a plan to boost school spirit. Jughead (Cole Sprouse) turns his attention to a student who he thinks might need his help. Betty (Lili Reinhart) seeks guidance from Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) after being faced with a difficult decision to make. Finally, Kevin (Casey Cott) is forced to face a dark moment from his past. Mädchen Amick, Mark Consuelos, Charles Melton, Erinn Westbrook and Drew Ray Tanner also star. Rob Seidenglanz directed the episode written by Ace Hasan.”
Riverdale airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW. “Chapter Eighty-Five: Destroyer” will air on March 24th.
