Riverdale Review: Chapter Forty-Eight: Requiem for a Welterweight (Season 3 Episode 13)

On Riverdale Season 3 Episode 13, “Chapter Forty-Eight: Requiem for a Welterweight,” Alice falls deeper under Edgar Evernever’s spell and Betty makes an upsetting discovery about the Farm. Meanwhile, Gladys Jones becomes the town’s resident HBIC.

Before we rave about everything Riverdale does right on “Chapter Forty-Eight: Requiem for a Welterweight,” let’s flush out the arguable low point: watching a shirtless Archie pursue a career in boxing. How is it that the central character — not just in the comics, but on the show — continues to be completely irrelevant?

Baby steps are being made to improve the situation. The chip on Archie’s shoulder has been removed, and he’s traded in the mobster’s daughter for the chanteuse. But even Josie can’t save Archie from himself. 

The core relationships fans enjoyed on Riverdale Seasons 1 and 2 have all taken a hit because anything resembling normalcy has been abandoned. No more student elections, pep rallies, school dances, plays, PTA meetings, talent shows, or movie night at the Bijou.

Maybe Riverdale‘s gone past the point of no return. But the show relies (or used to rely) on the juxtaposition between a place where the teen population’s collective favorite beverage is a milkshake — even if the diner where they knock them back is the scene of an attempted murder. 

All traces of innocence or idealism have been lost, and nobody personified those qualities more than Archie, the quintessential boy next door. 

But if we just want to embrace what Riverdale has evolved into, and the splintering storylines that keep the core four apart, there’s plenty to love.

Gina Gershon (Bound) is killing it as Gladys Jones. She is sexy, smart, fearless, and she’s written as a character who understands the absurdity of her circumstances. Even at his worst, it was hard to buy FP as a real bad guy.

Gladys possesses the brains and the brawn in the Jones household. She also poses a formidable threat to Hiram, and not in a laughably bad way, like the second-rate Sopranos wannabes who descended on the town in Season 2. 

Tangible villains are a refreshing change of pace since Riverdale continues to drag out the Gargoyle King storyline. It felt as if all the loose ends were being neatly tied up, but on Riverdale, things are constantly unraveling.

The Gargoyle King has come to represent anything shady in the small town. The image of the creature has been co-opted by anyone who has an insidious agenda. So everything we know about G&G and the King is true, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t more to the story. Evil in Riverdale is a living, breathing, growing thing.

Anyone who initially suspected a connection between the Farm and G&G had their suspicions confirmed on “Chapter Forty-Eight: Requiem for a Welterweight.” It’s no coincidence (or a highly improbably one) that the word “ascension” would be used by those playing the game and Evernever’s followers. 

The news that Chad Michael Murray (One Tree Hill) has been cast to play Edgar Evernever confirms he couldn’t have been the figure Alice encountered in the school hall all those years ago. Murray is a good 10 years younger than the members of the Midnight Club. This doesn’t exclude Evernever’s involvement; it just makes it more difficult to decipher. 

Another important clue on how the Farm and G&G and the Gargoyle King could be related is there are no male members of the Farm (Kevin could be the first). Every gathering of the “Farmies” consists strictly of women. Even those who escape bear a striking resemblance to refugees from polygamist sects.

Thanks to Claudius Blossom and his failure to adhere to EPA regulations when it comes to disposing of toxic chemicals, the teen girls — and only the girls — of Riverdale are subjected to seizures. It’s hard to ignore that estrogen connection. 

Why would Edgar not be present at Alice’s “baptism”? Is he another figment of his followers’ imaginations like the Gargoyle King? Just because the part has been cast doesn’t mean the character isn’t some incarnation of the great and powerful Oz. 

What is going on behind the curtain while everyone is so preoccupied about the man (Edgar) and the beast (Gargoyle King) who are both myth and mortal?

What did you think of this episode of Riverdale? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Riverdale airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW.

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