It’s been two weeks since the last Riverdale episode. Can someone please explain to me why networks enjoy punishing their viewers so?

But episode eight is a gentle glide back into the swing of things. We get to see Polly’s baby shower and Fred Andrews struggle with his business. And while babies and construction sites generally have nothing in common, these two do: The Blossoms.

Polly, who is staying with the Lodges, is questioned by Sheriff Keller. She tells him that the drugs in the car was a one-time deal so Jason could get the money the couple needed to get out of town.

To cheer Polly up about her super messed up situation, Betty and Veronica decide to throw a baby shower for her. But there’s always the trickiness of whether or not anyone would actually show up.

But after being convinced by Hermione, Alice agrees to go to the shower, probably because there’s a large chance that she’ll be out shined by the Blossoms, who also show up for the party. Which, by the way my husband and I are currently re-watching Twin Peaks and my life now feels like The Mädchen Amick Show. Can she be in everything, please?

The baby shower goes as well as you’d expect anything to go in Riverdale. Cheryl brings in a pram fit for an Addams. The moms get into a fight with each other. The Blossom’s usurp Alice’s new good will with an offer to stay with them.

But at the end of the party, Polly argues with her mom, and reveals that her dad had set her up with an “appointment” with a doctor (and her dad was “willing to pay”). The news is actually shocking to Alice, who goes home and tells her husband to get out of the house if he doesn’t want to support both Polly AND the baby. That he’s just doing to Polly exactly what he did to her. He’s obviously a man with not much confidence in women.

Though despite Betty’s pleas, Polly makes the decision to stay with her would-have-been in-laws at Thorn Hill.

Fred is beginning to start construction on the old drive-in site when his foreman comes in and tells him the workers are off on a two-year job with Cliff Blossom. The head of the Blossom house seemingly bought out every construction crew in the area. When Fred confronts Cliff, he says it’s because the land being developed should belong to the Blossom family, but were outbid by the “mysterious buyer” (the Lodges).

Archie, being the swell kid he is, brings his a few of his friends to help his dad on the site until a proper crew can be found. But after they finish their day’s work, Moose is beat up by a pair of thugs who were tampering with the site’s equipment. Sheriff Keller refuses to help considering Moose isn’t able to identify his attackers, and they can’t pin the attack on anyone.

But Archie decides to take things into his own hands. He’s convinced that the Soutside Snakes were hired by Cliff Blossom to stop the construction. He gathers of his friends to go to the Snake’s favourite bar. But Jughead refuses to tag along with them. Archie, of course, gets himself into trouble at the bar by starting a fight with a guy named Mustang, but is saved by FP.

FP’s secret of being the leader of the Snakes is revealed to the Andrews, who have already decided not to trust him. Archie is angry that Jughead never told him about his dad being a gang leader, but the two eventually forgive each other as they both consider each other a brother (aw).

Jughead and Betty go to confront FP about the Snakes’ history of drug dealing, and their possible connection to Jason’s death. But FP denies anything beyond supplying the drugs to Jason to help him out. But after the young ones leave, FP is seen putting Jason’s letterman’s jacket into a duffel bag, instructing Kevin’s new boyfriend to store it someplace safe.

Though FP’s character continues to be contradictory as ever. The next day, despite being insulted by the Andrews family the night before, FP and the Southside Snakes are waiting for Fred on his construction site, willing to be the new crew. But that’s not the most surprising thing he has to share. He pulls Hermione to the side with information on the pair who attacked Moose.

He tells her that while the men weren’t Snakes, one of his guys knew them. It turns out that Hermione’s dear husband has learned of her blossoming romance with Fred. But while that’s not great, Hermione needs to learn one important thing: who the hell ratted her out?

Chapter Eight wasn’t a particularly gripping episode, but it certainly solved some of the on-going questions. The perpetual selfishness of many of the characters has been creating a rather delightful mess of things. The Polly subplots are getting a little bit boring now that we actually know she exists (and isn’t a figment of Betty’s imagination), but I have a feeling we won’t be seeing much of her in the future…

But wouldn’t in be great to see what the hell it’s like living at creepy Thorn Hill?

Archie comics have been releasing some one-shot comics. One is a prequel to Riverdale, which I have been holding onto now for about a month now. They also published a horror comic in which Jughead is a werewolf. But (hopefully) more on those later this week.