'Riverdale' Season 4 Episode 11: Brown Hood, tickle porn and Betty's downward spiral sums up the 'Quiz Show'
This review contains spoilers for 'Riverdale' Season 4 Episode 11: 'Quiz Show'
If anyone's taken a major shellacking this season, it's Betty Cooper (Lili Reinhart). Lies, deceit, controversy...you name it, the golden-haired child's been through it. 'Quiz Show' deals another cruel hand and this episode might just be the start of the story that explains the ominous spring break and Jughead's death (Cole Sprouse). And this time, Betty's knocked off by a betrayal punch— Not from anyone in her family, but Jug. The Brown Hood saga as the plot for the next Baxter Brothers novel was a perfectly bad idea and no amount of sweet-talking and smooches or some great sex will soothe her hurt feelings.
However, it turns out to be a classic case of all's well that ends well. Cliched? Obviously. But it's how they did it. The teen drama actually sees them talk it through that also introduces a layer of maturity in both characters and it ends with them cracking the whip down on Bret (Sean Depner). The episode closes with Jug challenging Bret for a duel after he accuses him of framing Betty for cheating during the quiz and that might actually be a major tease for fans about Jug's supposedly-impending death.
As far as the flash-forward goes, Betty breaks down in front of Archie (KJ Apa) saying she is "waiting for Jughead to come back" except he doesn't. Call it cryptic, but there's no real explanation. Has Jug left her for Yale? Or has she struggled to come to terms with his death? Anyway, it is a pity that Stonewall is 2-0 up after schooling Riverdale High in football and the quiz.
Bringing the Kellers in was a great addition. While Kevin Keller (Casey Cott) had a bit of a fling, or should we say a $5000-paying tickle porn session, his dad Tom Keller (Martin Cummins), now an employee at Andrews construction is seen as a dutiful man who hopes to carry Fred Andrews' legacy forward. If that meant having a bit of a beef with Frank Andrews (Ryan Robbins), then so be it.
Speaking of Frank, the unc is still mysterious. He has his ways and as Archie rightly calls him, he is a mixed bag. Not that it mattered one bit to Tom when he accuses the military man of stealing money. A bit of a scrimmage and for all the heavy blows Frank lands, Tom still subdues him with a slick jiu-jitsu move. And after all this, we still have one question. How in the blue blazes did Cheryl Blossom (Madelaine Petsch) and Ronnie (Camila Mendes) get to be on the quiz team? Between fending off a sly Hiram Lodge (Mark Consuelos) and patenting that Maple-heavy rum and the occasional verbal boxing against Mr. Honey, it's surprising they had time to study for it.
Barring these typical, Riverdale-ism-typish flaws, 'Quiz Show' was pretty deep and a good watch. If anything, it is the final few minutes that promise an intriguing end. The question is, will it?
'Riverdale' airs Wednesdays 8 pm on The CW.
