Refresh Your Memory On All Things 'Riverdale' Now That Season 4 Is Here
Another totally twisted and wildly unpredictable season of Riverdale is finally here, so it is time for fans to finally get some answers to all the questions that have been plaguing them for months. But before fans dive into Season 4, you should really refresh your memory on everything that went down in Season 3. After all, it's been five months since the Season 3 finale aired and it was packed with about a million important plot details. So, if you're asking yourself how Riverdale Season 3 ended, then look no further than this handy refresher to get you primed for Season 4.
The major storylines of Riverdale Season 3 centered on two main mysteries. First, there was the enigmatic Gargoyle King, who carried out a series of ritualistic murders with the help of the drugged-up Gryphons and Gargoyles tabletop game. Then, of course, many of the characters succumbed to Edgar Evernever's strange cult that was The Farm. And while all this was happening, there were a handful of other plot points that were introduced in the season's final moments. To fully remind viewers of where everything left off in the clearest way possible, let's break down the big Season 3 finale moments into sections.
1. The Gargoyle King
The Season 3 finale finally revealed the identity of the latest big bad. The Gargoyle King was unmasked as Chic, the imposter who used to pretend to be Betty's brother and was assumed dead after she delivered him to the Black Hood in Season 2. Instead of killing Chic, though, the Black Hood (who fans now know is Betty's father Hal) actually took Chic in as his protégé.
At the very end of the season, Hal Cooper was killed and Chic was arrested, but the real baddie is actually still on the loose. That's because the finale also revealed that Penelope Blossom was actually the mastermind behind both the Gargoyle King and the Black Hood. Penelope escaped into the woods after revealing her dark secret, so fans should be on the lookout for her villainous return in the future.
2. The Farm
The other shady operation in town, The Farm, finally revealed its true purpose in the Season 3 finale as well. As it turned out, leader Edgar Evernever had been hypnotizing his members into seeing dead loved ones to keep them indoctrinated, and the cult was actually a front for an organ-harvesting scheme all along.
Although Betty was able to figure out the horrible truth about The Farm, Edgar got his whole cult to leave town before she could expose them. That means Alice Cooper, Polly Cooper, and Fangs Fogarty are all M.I.A. with Edgar. Luckily, Kevin got left behind to deliver the message that The Farm had "ascended."
3. Charles Smith
But Edgar was not the only one in The Farm keeping a secret. The finale episode also revealed that Alice Cooper had actually joined the cult as part of an undercover mission with the FBI. She was really working with her long-lost son Charles Smith the whole time. Charles finally revealed himself to his half-siblings Betty and Jughead in the finale, telling them he is an FBI agent who has been tracking The Farm.
Since Betty has been searching for Charles for quite some time now, fans can bet she will be interacting with her newfound brother in some way in the new season.
4. The Jughead Flash-Forward
The most alarming moment of the Season 3 finale — and the moment that most clearly set up Season 4 — was a last-minute flash-forward to spring break during the group's senior year. The brief scene showed Archie, Veronica, and Betty gathered around a fire in the woods at night, all in their underwear and covered in blood. The already grim scene took a macabre turn as Betty threw Jughead's iconic beanie into the fire and instructed her friends not to speak of what happened. The implication is that Jughead was somehow killed or otherwise in a life-changing situation, but it looks like fans won't find out what is really going on in that scene for a while.
5. Cheryl & Jason
While those are the biggest reveals from the Season 3 finale, there are some other moments that fans should keep in mind as they begin Season 4. For one, Cheryl Blossom ended the previous season by body-snatching her brother Jason's corpse and propping it up in her mansion, speaking to it as if her brother was still alive.
6. The Lodge Family
On the mafia side of things, Veronica was able to put her dad Hiram behind bars at long last... except they are bars that he himself owns. Being locked up in his own prison means Hiram is still a threat, as he proved by having Hermione arrested for her attempt to murder him. That leaves Veronica alone with both her parents in jail, and Hiram promising to enact his revenge on her.
Got all that? Good — then you are officially prepared to dive into Riverdale Season 4, which airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on the CW.
