River valley returns this week for its seventh and final season, and after six insane years of wild storylines including organ harvesting cults, multiverses, and the highs and lows of high school football, the series travels back through time to its heyday by Archie comics. When Bailey's Comet hit Riverdale at the end of Season 6, it sent Betty (lili Reinhart), Archie (KJ Grandpa), Jughead (Cole Sprouse), Veronica (Camilla Mendes), and all their friends back to 1955, with the twist that only Jughead can remember the true timeline. Series show runner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa recently explained that the writers wanted to do something really special with the final season, and it all came back in creating a love letter to the original comics.
The first three episodes of River valley Season 7 takes us to another Rivervale-esque parallel universe with city life picking up pep in 1955, almost as if the series' first six seasons never happened. While many of the campy River valley trademarks that made this show a huge success are certainly still there, the limitations of the time period - and the circumstances why the characters are trapped there - made for a rocky start to the final season.
River valley has always been a show that errs in the "so bad it's good" category and fans of the series get a kick out of the show's incredibly campy writing filled with the craziest one-liners you've ever heard, and that goes continues in Season 7 with added vernacular from the 1950s. Eagle-eyed comic book fans will no doubt find plenty to get excited about in upcoming episodes - including the introduction of Clay Walker (Karel Walcott), the return of Jughead's beloved Hotdog and a plethora of interesting relationship dynamics. However, the series may have sacrificed more than it can handle in pursuit of a retro aesthetic and a fresh start.
While River valley Surely could have ended with the episode "Graduation," which was initially intended to be the Season 4 finale, in the years since the series has managed to keep viewers coming back for more by recreating some of the comics' most bizarre storylines. explore, namely the multiverse. The past few seasons have seen several welcome changes to the series, including a time jump to mature the characters, finally getting Betty and Archie together, and the post-season 4 best addition, Tabitha Tate (Erinn Westbrook). Unfortunately, because these characters are stuck indefinitely in 1955, many of those great strides forward have been temporarily erased for the foreseeable future. Bringing the series back to high school, River valley repeats the same terrain they've covered several times, and instead of feeling fresh, we're stuck in a time loop.
River valley is well aware that the 1950s, while often packaged as 'the good old days', were not the best of times for many people, especially people of color and anyone who falls anywhere on the queer spectrum. Season 7 gets right to that point with the premiere episode centered around Betty, Tabitha, Toni (Vanessa Morgan) and Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) fighting to bring attention to Emmett Till's murder, despite resistance from some unreasonable adults. It's admirable that River valley tries to introduce these kinds of topics to an audience that might otherwise not get the information, especially with conservatives who are trying to banish teaching about America's racist history from the classroom. However, since the rest of the series is often not meant to be serious, when River valley delivers a very serious topic, it can come across as a bit shocking. To have River valley Season 7 explores issues of racism and homophobia in a 1950s setting, while also being a glaring reminder of how little progress has been made in the past 70 years.
Season 7 is a step back, with its oddball characters back in the closet and one of the show's few black characters effectively written out for an indefinite number of episodes. River valley also doubles down on old storylines we thought had long since settled down, like the Betty/Archie/Veronica love triangle and Veronica's painful relationship with her parents. Thankfully, we won't be spending the entire last performance in 1955, as Aquirre-Sacasa previously told Decider that they're "a long way from finishing writing the season."
River valleyThe blast from the past isn't a total drag, though; there are some delightful moments in these early episodes and some fantastic performances from the cast who have become seasoned actors over the course of the show's six-year run on The CW. The series honors the comic books in a way that goes beyond costumes and aesthetics, with Archie's relentless optimism, Betty's diaries, and a deeply comedic-inspired storyline at the heart of one of the season's great mysteries.
Apa in particular stands out for being able to completely lean into the wide-eyed innocence of the Archie of old. He also somehow delivers the most compelling 1950s performance among an ensemble cast that can't quite hide the fact that they all absolutely know what the Internet is. That's not to say that any of the cast does a bad job, in fact the anachronisms amplify the campiest qualities of the show for the better. Petsch is a real standout as always, and her performance as Cheryl Blossom is more nuanced than ever, while sacrificing none of the character's outrageousness. Reinhart's Betty Cooper has returned to her girl-next-door roots, allowing her to play into Betty's softer side a little more than she has for some time. Her performance is both delicate and daring, and it will make you long for Betty to get her happy ending once and for all.
The most unaltered character is hands down Morgan's Toni Topaz, and letting her be so sassy herself is definitely a breath of fresh air in the River valley from 1955. Toni is still very strange, she is still a member of the Serpents and she still only has eyes for Cheryl. Morgan has a captivating confidence in every scene, and her storylines are easily one of the best parts of the first three episodes of Season 7. Mendes finally gets some fresh material to work with in Veronica's new Hollywood roots, despite her storyline still is deeply rooted in her love-hate relationship with her parents. Parentdale also appears in the first three episodes, and while all of their storylines are a bit lacking, Madchen Amick, Molly RingwaldAnd Natalie Bolt all have fun with the goofiness of the 1955 versions of their characters and steal every scene they're in.
Aguirre-Sacasa recently talked about wanting to switch up the relationship dynamic for the show's final season, and with new couples teased in the Season 7 trailer, we're in for some interesting pairings, with Betty dating Kevin (Casey Cott), Archie and Cheryl hearing wedding bells, and even some potential Veronica/Jughead action in the books. While these combinations are certainly a bit frustrating for longtime viewers, especially at first glance, it's clear that none of them are really meant to last the entire season. River valley has had more than enough will-they-won't-they moments and love triangles, and while those elements are still present in Season 7, the endgame for these characters is pretty clear from the jump.
As a queer person, it's especially hard to watch Cheryl and Kevin get pushed back into the closet, both struggling with their identities in different ways and clinging to the safety of heteronormativity. However, Choni definitely exemplifies the soul mate trope, and it's my personal favorite part of Season 7 so far. Season 6 established that Cheryl and Toni's relationship transcends time and space, and now Season 7 expands that into the multiverse, and it's a real joy to watch them fall in love over and over again. Kevin also has romantic ambitions beyond his love affair with Betty, and the introduction of Wallcott's Clay Walker makes for a happy ending if they can find each other in the future - Clay Walker is Kevin's husband in Archie comics.
While River valley still working on its original love triangle to some degree, the endgame pairings for the core four also have a pretty strong foundation in these first installments. The most defined duo right now is definitely Barchie, complete with buzzing music cues and a real sense of inevitability. Betty and Archie are inescapably attracted to each other, and River valley seems to set these two up for the perfect "it was always you" moment. While Westbrook's Tabitha Tate is absent from the second and third episodes of Season 7, she and Jughead share a truly wonderful moment in the season premiere that forces them to find their way back to each other. Veronica's romantic future is the most uncertain, though Charles Melton's Reggie Mantle has yet to appear in Season 7, so it's possible when he does we'll get a similar "meant to be" vibe.
While River valley Season 7 is far from perfect television, the series never has been, and it has no intention of pretending to be in its eleventh hour. We love River Valley because it's ridiculous, campy, and absolutely hilarious in its excess. If you don't make the mistake of taking the show too seriously, you'll have fun on this last ride in the jalopy.
Judgement: B
River Valley returns for Season 7 on March 29 at 9pm ET, with the series finale on August 23.
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