The Black Hood’s identity is revealed – Riverdale
What happened: Leading up to Riverdale’s shocking reveal, the show dragged us through an entire season and a half of suspense and plot twists. When the town’s serial killer was finally revealed as Betty’s dad, not the janitor he tried to pin it on, we were experiencing a bit of narrative fatigue.
Why it’s important: It may feel mildly anticlimactic, looking back, but for fans of the time, it was the culmination of many episodes of investment. We really had to put our patience pants on as they gave us decoy after decoy, teased us with a big reveal every episode, and made us watch as Betty whacked him with a shovel, only for things to finally play out in the Cooper family living room and reveal that for Hal, being a serial killer’s just keeping things in the family.
But all this nonsense brought Riverdale closer to the edgier writing and plot twists we get today. Hal is one degree closer to a main character, and it was a (sort of) bold to have them make him the killer.
How to watch: Netflix is showing the first two seasons of Riverdale, and the episode in question is number 21, “Judgment Night.” The third season currently airs on The CW.