When Riverdale first premiered in 2017 it introduced itself as the next teen drama in line to tackle the loss of a high school-aged resident, following in the immediate footsteps of the nearly finished Pretty Little Liars.
Throughout its first season, Riverdale was able to make a name for itself with its mystery and characters. While Archie, Jughead, Betty, Veronica, and Cheryl certainly have gotten themselves into some serious messes, pulling off their questionable acts, their parents are not innocent themselves. From the start of the series to the season three finale and no doubt in the future, the parents of Riverdale are no strangers to bad decisions and creating chaos. Here are the 10 worst they made, ranked.
HAL AND ALICE COOPER SENT POLLY AWAY
The Coopers and the Blossoms were not in a good place when the series started. Betty’s grandfather had been killed by Cheryl’s grandfather, which lead to the two families being at odds. However, that did not stop Jason Blossom and Polly Cooper from entering a romantic relationship.
While it had been Hal’s idea to send his daughter away to The Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Alice had gone along with it. She even told Betty the reason for Polly’s departure was that Polly was mentally ill. Hal eventually explains that the two families actually shared one bloodline and that the Coopers were also Blossoms, making Jason and Polly relatives.
GLADYS JONES RETURNING TO RIVERDALE
Gladys returns to the small town under the pretense of deciding that the time has come for her and Jellybean to reunite with Jughead and FP, bringing their family back together. This is not her only agenda though.
While she may think them all being together is nice, she is there to involve herself in Riverdale’s growing drug problem. She makes Veronica promise her not to tell Jughead about her involvement or she will break their deal and is happy to use the teenage gang members as a way to sell her products.
HAL COOPER MANIPULATES BETTY
With the Black Hood’s identity a secret and his presence terrifying, Betty is horrified when she receives phone calls from the Black Hood himself, who is interested in her. Betty is determinedly against everything he stands for but he continues pushing her, trying to pull out her dark side. He wants her to help him take down those in the town who live in a way he does not approve of.
He forces Betty out to a cabin to stare herself down in a mirror to look at the darkest parts of herself and asks her to deliver someone to him. She eventually gives in, bringing him Chip, a liar who had tried to convince everyone that he was her brother, to the Black Hood for him to do what he wanted.
HERMIONE LODGE ASKS FP JONES TO KILL HIRAM
With Hiram going further and further to achieve his own goals, Hermione knows that he has crossed a line, and comes up with an attempt to stop him. FP Jones is more than willing to help Hermione’s cause and agrees to take a shot at killing Hiram.
The bullet makes contact but the attempt does not succeed, leaving Hiram in a hospital bed. While Hermione may want Hiram out of the way because of his nature, determination, and its results on her family, murder is not the way to achieve anything.
PENELOPE BLOSSOM CONTROLLED THE GARGOYLE KING
The Gargoyle King was the lead antagonist of the third season, known to terrorize the residents of Riverdale. The character comes from a board game, Griffins and Gargoyles. The game was immersive and addicting to the extent that the players were willing to kill themselves to “ascend.”
At the end of season three, Penelope reveals that she has been behind the attacks and that the Gargoyle King had been a costume worn by Chip. This was her act of vengeance to force the original members of the Midnight Club to understand and to fear the possibility of knowing what it would feel like to lose a child, just as she had.
HAL COOPER IS THE BLACK HOOD
While Hal Cooper had tendencies of not having the best parental track record, such as sending Polly away, there was nothing about him that seemed overly dangerous. His perspective on how to handle things may have been disagreeable but on the outside, he seemed like a man who cared about his daughters.
However, unknown to everyone, there was darkness raging inside of him that would be unleashed in the form of the Black Hood. His reasons for attacking people did not make much sense to anyone other than himself, and his actions did not just spread fear across the town but also sent Archie Andrews down a dark path.
HIRAM LODGE ATTEMPTS TO GET RID OF ARCHIE AND JUGHEAD
Hiram Lodge is willing to do nearly anything to get his way. A master of manipulation and his experience as a mob boss allows him an authority presence and way of getting things done that are unmatched by any other character. His determination is also a drawback as he is not only willing to take down his adult enemies but his teenage ones.
Hiram does not flinch as he arranges Archie to be arrested for murder, forcing him into a trial and later, jail. He is not beyond physical harm either, when he hires the Ghoulies to beat Jughead, leaving him bloody and nearly dead at the end.
HIRAM LODGE’S PLAN FOR RIVERDALE
From the moment Hiram joined his wife and daughter in the small town, he had big plans for Riverdale. Slowly, Hiram builds his presence in the town, filling the position of Sheriff with one of his men and having his wife run for and win the position of the town mayor, making himself near untouchable.
In addition to this, he buys multiple properties around including South Side High, the Wyte Wyrm, and Pop’s Diner. While the main scheme of his appeared to be turning South Side High into a prison, this was not the end of his plan. It would also be the marked location of Hiram’s continuing drug endeavors.
PENELOPE BLOSSOM SENDS CHERYL TO GAY CONVERSION THERAPY
Penelope had always been cruel to Cheryl, talking down to her on various occasions. While the list is long of ways that she had wronged her daughter, one stands out quite a bit.
In an act of torture, Penelope sends Cheryl away to The Sisters of Quiet Mercy. While she informs others that Cheryl had simply left without a goodbye, in truth Penelope had set up Cheryl to undergo gay conversion therapy.
This is a dark and dangerous road to go down and it was not handled properly within the series. While the portrayal of the act is problematic in itself, Penelope’s role is downright monstrous.
CLIFFORD BLOSSOM KILLED HIS SON
There were many cruel and vicious acts throughout the series, but this one is viler than any other. At the end of season one, it is revealed that Clifford Blossom took a gun, aimed it at his son’s head, and pulled the trigger.
This is the only time in the series that a parent takes a life of one of their own. There is never any true justice for his actions either. By the time Betty, Jughead, and the others get their hands on the tape that incriminates Clifford and the police are called, he is already dead.
