Entertainment

'Riverdale' Unmasked One Black Hood, But We Still Have Theories About The Second One

by Dylan Kickham
CW

OK, y'all, I feel like we seriously need to debrief after that game-changing new episode of Riverdale. Ahead of next week's season finale, the teen mystery-drama is finally starting to provide answers to the questions that have been plaguing fans for the whole second season. And yes, that includes the big one: The Black Hood's identity was finally revealed! Or... at least, one Black Hood's identity was revealed. Fans are still wondering, who is the other Black Hood on Riverdale, and were the two killers working together or not? And is it just two Black Hoods, or could there be more!?

Spoiler alert: Definitely don't keep reading if you have not yet seen Riverdale Season 2 Episode 21 "Judgment Night." The Black Hood mystery on Riverdale is finally solved... kinda. The biggest moment from Wednesday night's new episode came when Hal Cooper staged the creepiest family home movie night ever and revealed to Alice and Betty that he is indeed the Black Hood. Apparently, Hal's dad (Betty's grandpa) was the Riverdale Reaper, the killer who murdered the Conway family back in the day, and serial killing is something of a Cooper family trait, according to how Hal tells it. He recounts how his mother instilled the belief that sinners must die at a young age, and admitted that he manipulated Joseph Conway (Mr. Svenson) into sentencing the wrong man to death in order to protect his father, and then manipulated him again into pretending to be the Black Hood.

CW

Honestly, Hal's motive does seem kinda shaky, but other than that, everything adds up. Fans have already been suspecting him for a while since he never seemed to be around when the Black Hood attacked and his close connection to Betty easily translated to the Black Hood's obsession with her. Even Betty put the pieces together before Hal came out and revealed the truth... but although Hal got thrown in jail in the episode, the Black Hood mystery is still going strong.

In his confession, Hal admitted that he is the man who shot Fred Andrews, strangled Miss Grundy, killed the Sugarman, and killed Midge Klemp, but he was not the only Black Hood that we have been seeing. When a masked man shot up the mayoral debate, Hal conceded that it was not him, which was clear by the fact that Betty was next to him when the attack happened. And just to drive the second Black Hood point home even more, while Hal is revealing all of this at the Cooper house, another Black Hood is fighting with Archie and Fred at the Andrews' house. When Betty later tells Archie that her dad was the Black Hood, he says that it isn't possible since he just saw the Black Hood at his place.

So now the question is, who is this other guy? All we really know about him is that he shot up the mayoral debate between Fred Andrews and Hermione Lodge, and that he appeared in the Andrews' home, attempting to shoot either Archie or Fred. Let's go over some theories, shall we:

  1. Claudius Blossom. We all know that the Blossom family is not above killing to get what they want, and we have barely seen Cheryl's mysterious uncle since he came into town out of nowhere. There's a theory that Claudius is actually Cliff Blossom in disguise — if Cheryl's dad really is secretly still alive, then he might very well want to get his revenge on the town. Also, Hal Cooper has been spending a lot of time at the Blossom mansion this season after starting a fling with Penelope Blossom... maybe he was there for business as well as pleasure.
  2. Charles Smith. Recently, we learned that the Chic who lurked around the Cooper house all season was actually not Alice Cooper's real son, but rather a fellow homeless youth who lived with the real Charles Smith for a while. Chic claimed that Charles (Alice and FP's son) is dead, but can we really believe him? He is a masterful liar, after all. What if Charles is actually still alive, and wants revenge on the family that cast him out.
  3. Hal Cooper's twin. And finally, another prevalent fan theory this season has been that Hal Cooper has a secret twin brother. Hal is genetically a Blossom after all, and twins run in the Blossom family. The second Black Hood may in fact be Hal's twin, whom he has been secretly coordinating with all along.

Hopefully, the Season 2 finale of Riverdale will give us an answer to this question when it airs on the CW on Wednesday, May 16.