RIVERDALE: “Chapter Forty-Nine: Fire Walk With Me” (S3E14): Self Discovery In The Face Of Adversity

So far this season, Hiram’s (Mark Consuelos) claim of separating the quartet, stated at the end of season 2, has come to pass – as well as maintained. With their own focus in life, they have each exhibited weakness as an individual, an inability to push back against the forces that are unrelenting. It has been difficult watching the struggle, yet after “Fire Walk With Me”, they may not have only found strength, but each other.

The House always wins…

Owing one debt always spells trouble, never mind two. Veronica (Camila Mendes) dove blindly into her family’s affairs midseason, attempting to stop the false legality that surrounded them, over-confident in her ability to not only take control but to maintain it. Struggling to stay above water the last couple of weeks, as the consequences of her actions have come crashing down on her, Veronica finally came to a crossroad – a moment that could permanently change her standing or drown her.

Utilizing the La Bonne Nuit, Hiram and Gladys (Gina Gershon) each stronghold Veronica, citing the debt she owes them to allow free range and service whenever they wish, though the need to service a debt does not always deliver respect in return. As the La Bonne Nuit and Veronica falters under the pressure, a new opportunity presents itself in more ways than one, solidifying the future for not only Veronica, but the Pretty Poisons as well. Riverdale may have a new Queen in town.

Cult Calling

Betty’s (Lili Reinhart) personal stake in the slow invasion of the Cult has been one-upped as they set their eyes on inducting Kevin (Casey Cott) into the fold. While the fear that may have sinked their claws into him was introduced last week, it was solidified through the questionable rituals The Farmies have him partaking in. Rebirth through fire replaced Alice’s (Mädchen Amick) intense ritual of water this week, and Kevin was at the forefront.

While Betty does all she can to gather Intel and protect Kevin from the influence of The Farm, she finds herself losing the battle at home as well. After Alice’s rebirth after nearly drowning last week, she has resolved herself to have found her destiny, selling her home and giving away many of the items inside. It is time to part with the material items of the world and give herself completely to the The Farm, uniting her family in the one place she feels safe. While Kevin is by no means at the same extreme as Alice, he is reaching this point rapidly. From thought to action, The Farm preys on those who are weak, alone and lost, rushing them through their culture before they have the opportunity to wise up.

While viewers may begin to fear for the safety and emotional stability of both Kevin and Alice, it is Betty who was the true victor and victim of tonight’s episode. In a moment of her own weakness, giving into her curiosity and darker side (one that has made her weak in the past, leading her to questionable decisions), Betty began to follow the rituals of The Farm, holding her hand over the flame for just a moment. Betty doesn’t seem like one that would fall victim to The Farm, yet could there be a side of Betty we do not know about – could she have finally had enough being the stronger one? While this question will roll around in your head, even as the credits run, her final actions in the episode prove she has not fully given up yet.

New Leader, New Face

The Serpents have been struggling for quite some time to find their own identity, as well as recover from their devastating defeat last season during Riot Night. With their numbers decreasing, the Serpents are faced with extinction or finding a new means of drawing members, as well as a new path to venture on. In last week’s episode, Gladys encouraged Jughead (Cole Sprouse) to bring the remaining leaderless members of the Gargoyles into the pack. While Jughead had thought this a brilliant idea in the beginning, he was adamantly against it after witnessing the extent the game of G & G had on their mental stability. Gladys, claiming Riverdale for her own one piece at a time, went behind Jughead, bringing them in anyways.

Though not without adding turmoil to an already lost group of Serpents. As Jughead tried to wrangle the gargoyles into Serpent behavior, they begin to pose a new threat to the gang both outside and from within, forcing Jug to reexamine what it means to be a Serpent and a Serpent King. Through stress and desperation, Jughead finds the inspiration to carry the Serpents into a new generation, giving them not only an identity, but one of his own.

Sacrifice of the Red Paladin

Yep, that’s right ladies and gentlemen, we are far from done with Gryphons and Gargoyles – and Archie’s (KJ Apa) journey is far from over. With a few bumps in the road along the way, Archie has been making a strive for absolution and to find himself once again. As hard as he might try, though, the writers of Riverdale have placed him in a deadly game, one which viewers and creator will not let him forget.

Branded earlier this season with a mark for sacrifice, Archie’s time as The Red Paladin is far from over, his vital role in the game of G & G that looms over the town returning in full force. The question still stands, who is behind the game, who is the ultimate game master, the crafter of this adventure that has claimed so many lives? If there is one thing we know, the devout members playing has escalated, those wanting to be allowed to join utilized to carry out quests before they can officially join. Archie, having not been sacrificed by Joaquin while in Juvenile detention, is back on the docket of quests that are outstanding.

Conclusion

In a heartbreaking moment of the episode, Archie’s father, the late Luke Perry as Fred Andrews, comes home to find his son in distress, rushing to his side to help him. Always the valiant, courageous and reliable father, it was sad knowing the days we will see Fred Andrews are numbered, and the man behind him is lost. The touching tribute at the end only solidified the emotional punch this final scene delivered.

I’m not crying, you’re crying.

Beyond the episode’s touching moment, there is a feeling of a unity. Most definitely the feeling of unity from a cast rallying together for support during a time of loss. Yet, also through the characters they are depicting. All season, as mentioned earlier, they have been separated from one another much to Hiram’s plan and initial delight. Yet, with Archie’s life in peril and the unknown overshadowing every aspect of Riverdale, they have begun to find one another, rediscover their strength as a team.

While Veronica still seems an outlier, as she did at the beginning of the season before it spread to all, it is appropriate, as if in times of distress the clocks turn backward, reuniting all. Though it is important to understand that as they reunite, they are different than they were in the beginning. They have each been, and are still going, through their own trauma and distress. Yet, as they are once again finding each other, they do so having found themselves.