Riverdale : Your complete guide to the retro town
Source:IMBD
A) The eye candy actors
The show producers have recruited a team of very good looking and integrated actors to play your favorite characters. Miss Grundy is young and even though she is dead in the second season, she is quite a treat. Cole Sprouse, the twin from Suite life of Zack and Cody is playing Jughead who is a more brooding version and a gangster (yes lanky Jughead is a gangster!), he does a pretty decent job narrating. There may be episodes that you may not love but the cast will keep you hooked.
Source:IMBD
B) The dark universe of Riverdale
The show version of Riverdale shot in Canada is a set in a dark but a rather retro world. The first season drama is basically a murder mystery which is picked up by Archie and the gang. It goes on to reveal a contentious Betty with an alternate ego or rather her with a black wig, pedophile teachers and incestuous relationships, yes I know! Like a teen Game of thrones!
The reason I call it retro is because of the theme of the costumes worn by the cast, the fact that they lurk around dusty libraries to solve their mystery instead of using the Apple laptop they are carrying around or the underlying the ‘Westside story’ they are portraying through the clash of the town with its Southside and yes there is a mix of the Latino mob families. It’s the package!
Source:IMBD
C) Jughead and Betty are dating
Yes this is one of the major deviations from the comic book. In the comic book Jughead abhors women and only Big Ethel could wrap him into her leash, but in this world he is in love with Betty and cares less about the bro code. They make quite a cute couple, even though I rooted for Archie and Betty in the comic book, this is a fresh change.
Source:IMBD
D) The shrilly Josie and the other grey characters
The character Josie is a pretty mean and her pussycats Valerie and Melody hardly have presence. Chuck is the Coach’s haughty son who is trying to redeem himself. Dilton Doiley is okay going for a gang fight. Cheryl though is introduced as a dicey, mean, untrustworthy character turns out to be fierce and stands for the good and so does Veronica for that matter. The characters are grey because they are portraying that one can be a victim of the circumstances or bad choices but that does not mean that they are inherently evil. They have covered a wide variety of social issues surrounding the mystery such as teen pregnancy and rape.
Source:IMBD
E) Music and background score
If not for anything, watch it for the collection of background music and songs that are covered. The music is a spunky mix of retro slow themes with new beats. Their music choice sets the tone for the scenes that follow. They have curated the scores from a talented array of musicians which will definitely make you want to listen to them again. My personal favorites include Window Blues by Lykke Li, You Belong to Me by Cat Pierce and the Milkshake cover by the Riverdale cast (Yes the cast goes Glee sometimes)