Riverdale (4×03) Dog Day Afternoon Review

For our review of last episode, click here.

“Dog Day Afternoon“starts off with Archie being confronted by Mad Dog. He wants his brother to stop hanging out at places with dealers and asks them to finally open their community centre. Meanwhile, Jughead moves into his dorm where everything is feeling a bit surreal including his goodbye to Betty. As he settles in, Jughead learns that his new roommate is Marmaduke AKA Moose from Riverdale High. He needed a new start and wants no one to know of his past.

Archie gets a meeting to try and set up the community centre, but his mom is concerned about all the yellow tape surrounding his idea. Veronica tries to set up a sudsy car wash to make money, but they only make $400 leaving them dumbfounded over how to make the money. As Archie is training at the gym, Mad Dog comes by asking for help to teach a man Dodger and his gang a lesson after they beat up on his brother. Veronica returns home to find Hiram is there as he can come and go as he pleases from his own prison. He is upset that Veronica is changing her last name and explains how he also changed his name.

Archie also deals with some issues at home as he mom tries to coerce him into moving back to Chicago with her. She believes Riverdale is not worth saving, but Archie wants to prove her wrong. He decides to go down to the arcade teach Dodger a lesson. With the odds against him, Archie decides to fight them regardless. Meanwhile, Veronica stops by the house and tries to give money to Mrs. Andrews so they can set up the community centre. She doesn’t want them to feel indebted to the Lodges, but she says it isn’t for that, but for her belief in Archie.

The next morning, Mad Dog finds the injured Archie and the money he stole from Dodger. Mad Dog knows the money needs to be cleaned and asks if Veronica can help. With the community centre running, Mrs. Andrews comes and offers some help to Archie and says she will be staying there to be with him. Veronica goes to the prison to tell her dad that she changed her name back to his original family name, Luna.

Charles proves that Kevin’s intel was correct, but upon trying to get more information his undercover agent is killed. Edgar picks up the wire and tells Charles to be more cunning if he wants to best him. Betty receives a call from her mom, but it’s actually Edgar who discovered her true purpose there. He gives her a list of demands and if she does not comply, Edgar will kill Alice. He calls back asking if they will give him what he wants, but they need something in return. They need a hostage. Edgar complies by having already released a hostage. Suddenly, Polly arrives at their location with a bomb strapped to her.

Betty takes charge and ends up diffusing the bomb by putting a bobby pin into the dead man’s switch. Polly pleads with Betty to take matters into her own hands and do what Edgar wants to save Alice. She goes to Veronica in the hope of getting some money from her. She offers it in the form of glamerge eggs. All she needs now are some fake passports from Toni and a stolen school bus. She arrives at Edgar’s compound to do their swap. However, Evelyn sneaks up behind her and knocks Betty out.

She wakes up in a hotel room, tied up beside her mother. Turns out his plan is to use the Farmies as a distraction and drive them off a cliff while he takes off in a home-made rocket. Betty realizes how crazy that is and decides they need to act. Evelyn comes looking for them when they manage to knock her out and take her gun. They load everyone onto the bus, including Fangs and Principal Weatherbee, but Edgar notices them. Alice decides to confront him in his rocket. He monologues to her about his vision as he tries to get in a good position to draw his concealed pistol. Betty races upstairs to the sound of gunshots, but thankfully Alice pulled the trigger first and Edgar ascended.

At Cheryl’s, Nana has a vision in the fire of three triplets while referring to her granddaughter as Penelope. Cheryl seems concerned, but not enough to follow up on the triplets bit. The next day, Cheryl is introduced to Darius the night nurse whom Toni has brought on to help take care of nana and the twins. She just has one rule: do not enter the basement. When she goes to visit Jason, she notices he has moved a bit and causes her to become concerned. Darius asks for a skeleton key because the house has rats, but Cheryl believes he is the rat and fires him. She goes to see Jason where a rat bursts from his stomach. She kills it and starts to sew up his body when Toni comes down and finds out the truth.

During reading circle, Jughead criticizes Bret’s short story causing him to fight back by attacking Jughead’s life and character. He quickly wants to resort to violence, but Mr. Chipping ends their dispute. Getting back to his room, Jughead finds his classmate Donna with Marmaduke who also warns him of Bret. Mr. Chipping decides that the next day each of them will write the ending to a story and they will vote on which is the best. While they write, Bret decides to get under Jughead’s skin, but he turns the tables and makes Bret essentially shit his own pants. In the end, Donna’s story places first while Jughead and Bret’s are last. Things get worse when Marmaduke’s past is exposed to the entire school and he is forced to leave. As Betty and Jughead catch up, the doorbell rings. The episode ends with a VHS tape being left to them with the title Famous Last Words.

What did you think of “Dog Day Afternoon”? Let me know in the comments below!

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Dylan Phillips