'Riverdale' Season 4: Charles Melton's Reggie Mantle finally sorts out his family issues and he has Archie to thank for it
This article contains spoilers for 'Riverdale' Season 4 Episode 2: 'Fast Times at Riverdale High'
Charles Melton's Reggie Mantle didn't really have a great time in season three. The usually confident, jacked, debonair-looking teen seldom looks like he's in doldrums, except that he was, until this episode.
By the end of the previous season, he had lost Veronica, he was literally socked in the eye by his dad and then there was the issue of dealing with some roughnecks at the La Bonne Nuit.
When Archie (KJ Apa) gets Mad Dog (Eli Goree) enrolled at Riverdale High and drafts him in the football team, Reggie is downright offended for having an outsider join the Bulldogs.
He has a scrimmage with Mad Dog who appears to be a better player. Watching Reggie fail also ticks off his dad who pummels the poor teen when he's back home.
Coming to his rescue this time is Archie as the duo bond after Cheryl's Thistle House party gets raided by the cops and called off. While talking, Reggie opens up about his dad's violent behavior and admits his jealousy for Archie and his relationship with Fred Andrews.
"I have no idea what that feels like." He also adds that Fred supported Archie no matter what and he never shared quite the same kind of relationship with his father.
When Archie asks him to reconcile, he does so in typical Mantle style — By grabbing a baseball bat and smashing the windshield of his dad's favorite sports car.
This rebellious act somehow seems to have sparked off some heart-to-heart between the father and son. Guess this also patches up that rivalry with Mad Dog then.
It is also heartening to see Reggie get some of his story told given how the focus is on the four popular teens always. At the moment, it is still unclear how his love life will pan out after that brief rebound fling with Ronnie, but then this is Riverdale. Anything can happen.
What are your thoughts on Reggie's storyline in the episodes to come? 'Riverdale' airs on Wednesdays at 8 pm on The CW.
