Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15 Review: Chapter Twenty-Eight: There Will Be Blood

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It's off to the (mayoral) races for one of Riverdale's notable parents on Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15.

No, the candidate didn't turn out to be the parent we expected, but it's a campaign nonetheless.

The Lodges are planning to take over the town and get what they want. Unfortunately for them, plans change on a dime.

The New Mayor - Riverdale

Fred would've been a great mayor for Riverdale. He's an honorable man who puts the feelings and needs of others above his own. It's no wonder that Hiram and Hermione saw potential in him to be their candidate.

Though, the Lodges completely blew it in their entire approach when it came to the mayoral race.

Firstly, the constant pushing was only going to push the Andrews family away. Archie isn't the type of character who deals well with pressure; he's one of the worst who reacts poorly, in fact. When Veronica created designs for Fred's campaign (VERY quickly, I might add), she only dug herself a deeper hole.

Archie, even though he loves Veronica, loves his dad more. He wasn't going to get his family involved in something if he didn't know the truth.

Secret Cover - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

Secondly, were they never going to tell Fred about their secret plan? How were they going to make sure he would be on board?

They rested a lot of hopes on him to blindly follow their advice and agree to the plan. Sure, Fred did agree at first to campaign for mayor; that much was proven when he accepted. However, all of the shadiness, lies, and deceit don't work with a man like Fred Andrews.

Did they really expect him to be OK with turning Riverdale into a prison town?

Fred LOVES Riverdale. He wasn't going to see half of the town be reconstructed into something worse.

By The Books - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

Speaking of the prison, we finally learned about the Lodge's secret plan to turn Southside High into a correctional facility. Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15's big, long-awaited reveal didn't have the same punch as Riverdale Season 1. In actuality, I was a tad let down by this.

After the purchase of all the properties, the blackmailing, and the nefarious dealings, the idea that all this would lead to a building feels lackluster in hindsight.

Besides money (oh, there is definitely money involved here!), what else could the Lodges be getting out of this? More power?

Hermione starting her mayoral campaign to take over the town and push this deal is far more interesting. However, I will keep further judgments until I hear more about the plans from the group. We only heard the sensational moments during Fred and Hiram's argument, so there definitely had to be more to the story.

Feeding Information - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

Note for everyone: No blood pacts. Ever!  Do not follow Archie and Hiram's lead from Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15, regardless if it's for honor and ritual.

Archie and Hiram were a tad over-dramatic with bleeding on the notebook of truth. Archie could've simply burned it as a show of faith to Hiram. The mob boss better have sterilized and cleaned the knife before the cutting.

Though, a gut feeling is saying that Archie is going to regret burning that book and throwing his cards in with the Lodges. His father had the right idea to walk away.

Related: Get Comic Con HQ via Amazon Channels to Stream Original Series, Past Comic-Con Panels & More!

Hiram, Hermione, and Veronica are going to do whatever it takes to complete their mission. They got a lucky break when Principal Weatherbee refused to publish Jughead's story and when Pop Tate warned them. But, now that they know Jughead was hot on their tails, he could be in danger.

At least we got the return of Smithers to cheer us up before Hiram starts taking over the town.

Secret Will - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

The reading of Clifford Blossom's will could've gone so wrong.

In most cases when this type of storyline is introduced, the will reveals an illegitimate heir or donated money. And, since this will came from Clifford Blossom, he wasn't the type of person to do anything without a catch. We would usually get a big surprise hiding away in that one document.

Who else expected some type of battle or unreasonable request? Just checking for Blossom DNA seemed easy by comparison.

A lot of people were going to benefit from that Maury Show-like reveal, especially the Cooper family. Betty, Polly, and Hal were going to get paid!

Luckily, Cheryl came out the real winner of the will. Without her brother around (RIP Jason Blossom!), she became the sole legitimate heir and the beneficiary of half his fortune.

After all the emotional pain she suffered at the hands of her parents, becoming a millionaire was perfect revenge. Cheryl can live her life while Penelope will rule a burnt plot of land.

Cheryl: As the one true Blossom heir, I feel it is my sacred duty to say a few words. The Blossoms have been bathing in blood since Great Grandpapi killed his brother. The original sinner of Riverdale. Well, I stand here before you today to say: No more. No more blood. No more madness. No more horror.

Barclay Hope has been sorely missed since his time on Riverdale Season 1. He had a presence about him as the Blossom businessman, and once his suicide was revealed, knowing that he would be leaving was a sad development for the series.

The Blossom twin twist was the perfect way for him to return.

Twins running in the Blossom family had been discussed before, so Clifford having a twin made a lot of sense. And having him drop by during the will reading was pure soap opera drama; even Cheryl fainting was a nice touch.

Related: Riverdale Round Table: The Kiss That Was A Miss

Cheryl needs to watch her back around Claudius and Penelope!

Her mother has been colluding with a legitimate Blossom heir. If they were to kill Nana Blossom and Cheryl, all the money would go to Claudius. How Penelope fits in (romantically and/or financial) is still up in the air for this master plan.

However, we know she hates Cheryl and likes to be wealthy. Cheryl could be in a lot of trouble. We need to protect the queen and Nana Blossom.

Claudius: The Lodges. How often I’ve dreamt of getting my revenge on them...
Penelope: Now, now, Claudius. First things first: Nana, then Cheryl.
Claudius: Of course, Penelope. Our house must be put in order.
[Cheryl overhears behind a wall]

Hal wanted a quick divorce? Out of the goodness of his heart?! The lies never end.

Mr. Cooper was up to something, and I'm glad that Alice called him out on his shadiness. Now she'll be able to get her fair share of the Blossom inheritance that belongs to her if Hal wants that divorce.

She'll get the money. And we were treated her epic interruption scene during the will reading. The speech was a win-win for all of us.

Alice: I knew it!
Hal: Alice, what the hell are you doing here?
Alice: Accusing you publically! You only wanted a divorce so that you could cheat me out of your big fancy Blossom payday.
Hal: It’s not just my payday, the girls share Blossom blood too.
Alice: My attorney is going to rip you apart! Isn’t that right, attorney McCoy?!
[Alice cuts off Sierra McCoy]
Alice: I will be taking half of whatever blood money you get from this inbred sesspool of a family. Yeah, that’s right, I said inbred.
[The crowd whispers]
Penelope: Would you please just leave?
Alice: Shut your face, you half-melted ten cent Trollope.
Toni: This is riveting.
Cheryl: I can’t breathe.

Penelope hates Toni for no reason. She barely met the girl and regarded Toni as someone lower than her shoe. If we had seen the pair interact beforehand, her hatred would've have made more sense.

Her mother's reaction to Toni didn't seem like it stemmed from the same situation as Heather. She would've reacted the same way if Josie or Veronica was the friend asked to attend the will reading. We could look at this just Penelope being Penelope.

Anyone who could be considered a friend of Cheryl was going to be regarded as nothing.

Coopers Vs. Chic - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

Polly came back! We've missed the eldest Cooper daughter.

Before Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15, Polly never had the chance to interact with her older brother, so seeing their dynamic together was interesting. She fitted into the same camp as Betty, which made a lot of sense. Both have great intuitions and can spot trouble.

Polly knew something was off about her brother; it was great to see her pick up on Chic's creepy stares. He definitely has mastered the art of the emotionless look at this point.

Related: Riverdale Season 2 Episode 14 Review: Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Hills Have Eyes

Even though Chic was exceptionally creepy with Polly around, he wasn't going to harm her babies. Regardless of what the editing teased for drama.

His problems seemed to lie with Polly herself and Hal. And, even if he was evil, he wasn't going to ruin his relationship with Alice by getting rid of the babies.

On the other hand, Polly was making the right decision to move the kids to San Francisco. Riverdale is dangerous for her, and Chic has no qualms about going after her. She needs to run until all this brotherly drama is sorted out.

Reality Hits - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

Kevin and Chic NEED to meet in person. Kevin sees the softer side of Chic, and Chic needs a good guy in his life. (Somewhere out there a ship has sailed.)

The odds of this friendship working out are slim now because of Betty. Her reasoning for why she used Kevin to cam with Chic made some sense; however, the desired results seemed a bit of a stretch.

Did she truly think her brother would spill his guts to a cute stranger on a webcam?

They got some information, but the facts were nothing major that would help them. All she did was manipulate her emotionally-distant brother into trusting someone and being open for the first time in a long time.

Chic: What is this?
Betty: When you wouldn’t submit to the DNA test, I found some of your dental floss and sent it to the lab. Those are the results.
[He stares at the folder]
Betty: You’re not who you say you are, Chic. So, who are you?

Chic's DNA test proved that he's not exactly who he claimed to be. What do you think this meant?

The DNA revealed the facts about the mysterious Cooper boy. The testing must've had something specifically to do with tracking Blossom lineage.

I'm still leaning toward the fan theory of FP being Chic's father; it would explain why Chic isn't related to the Blossoms. Share your theories below!

Snitch - Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15

What did you think of "Chapter Twenty-Eight: There Will Be Blood"? Will Penelope and Claudius kill Nana Blossom? Is this the last we've seen of Polly? Will Jughead release his expose?

If you missed the latest episode of Riverdale, you can watch Riverdale online via TV Fanatic. Come back here and let us know what you think of the episode.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: There Will Be Blood Review

Editor Rating: 4.1 / 5.0
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Rating: 4.9 / 5.0 (27 Votes)

Justin Carreiro was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.

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Riverdale Season 2 Episode 15 Quotes

Claudius: The Lodges. How often I’ve dreamt of getting my revenge on them...
Penelope: Now, now, Claudius. First things first: Nana, then Cheryl.
Claudius: Of course, Penelope. Our house must be put in order.
[Cheryl overhears behind a wall]

Chic: What is this?
Betty: When you wouldn’t submit to the DNA test, I found some of your dental floss and sent it to the lab. Those are the results.
[He stares at the folder]
Betty: You’re not who you say you are, Chic. So, who are you?