Riverdale Review: Chapter Fifty: American Dreams (Season 3 Episode 15)
On Riverdale Season 3 Episode 15, “American Dreams,” Jughead learns happy endings come at a steep cost. Cheryl and Toni reevaluate their relationship.
Here’s a question you’ll be asking yourself during “American Dreams”: “When exactly did FP completely shed his Serpent skin and officially become the ‘World’s Greatest Dad?'” This is the same guy who ran the most fearsome gang in Riverdale and was an unapologetic drunk whose son preferred homelessness to living under the same roof with him.
FP disposed of not just one, but two bodies over the course of the first two seasons, and now he’s a law-abiding sheriff lauded by all. Most of the characters on Riverdale are constantly in a free fall from grace, but FP, no matter how outrageous the means, has managed to find redemption.
But in Riverdale, nothing gold can stay. From Lady Macbeth to countless femme fatales on both the big screen and small, it just takes the love (or hate) of the wrong woman to destroy the best of men. FP’s downfall promises to be Gladys despite Jughead’s best efforts to shield his father from his manipulative wife.
Why is Jughead able to forgive the sins of his father but not his mother? Why does he value saving the soul of one over the other? Because women are supposed to be the nurturers, and Gladys is using the ruse of loving wife and mother to further an entirely different agenda.
It’s an ongoing theme on Riverdale that women in pursuit of power come to pay a price for their ambitions. On “American Dreams,” Toni must decide between running the Pretty Poisons or catering to Cheryl’s every whim. Reggie throws down the gauntlet, demanding that Veronica make him an equal partner or lose his loyalty.
Both Veronica and Toni choose to do what they believe to be in their best self-interests, and we have yet to see if it will pay off, or if they will suffer some punishment as a result.
On Riverdale, the American dream –the belief that access to opportunities for a better life are equal for everyone — is constantly twisted and perverted. Penelope improves her situation by prostitution, Sierra with bribery, Hermione by extortion and murder, Hiram with shady business ventures, and Gladys by dealing drugs.
Perhaps, the last offense is the least forgivable because of the wide-ranging consequences. The drug trade is unsavory with Hiram or Clifford Blossom at the helm, but it becomes more distressing and disconcerting when taken over by Hermione and Gladys.
No matter how heinous Penelope’s past crimes, she borders on becoming an empathetic character because her motivation is often fueled by maternal instinct. Peddling poison to youngsters is conduct unbecoming any woman.
Jughead is in for even more of a shock when he discovers Jellybean’s moral compass is set in the same direction as her mother’s. JB isn’t a damsel in distress, waiting to be rescued by her big brother.
JB is the next generation of Serpent. She sees marks instead of men and is learning the American dream is only accessible to some by using shortcuts.
Whatever Jughead has planned for Gladys, will he be merciless enough to banish Gladys from his life forever? No matter how many horrible things Hiram does to Veronica, her friends, and her mother, Vee’s priority remains family loyalty.
Things are looking up for Betty since it’s very likely she’ll be back in her bedroom on Elm Street by Riverdale Season 4.
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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Jennifer Lind-Westbrook
Jennifer has been working as a freelance writer for six years, contributing to BuddyTV, Screen Rant, TVRage, Hidden Remote, Gossip On This, and PopMatters. She prefers binge-watching old episodes of The Office (British and American versions) to long walks on the beach. She's still holding out hope that Happy Endings will get a revival.