Warning: Spoilers for Riverdale ahead

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The Riverdale season one finale brought all the shocks and secrets it had promised, and then some. Right now, the town that seemed so perfectly quaint and strait-laced, is dark, brooding, and broken. At the heart of it all now lies a new mystery: Who shot Fred Andrews, and why?

Looking ahead to season two, the show is set to have some new things in store for fans. And while this season didn’t take the supernatural turn that the comic books did, it certainly took a darker route, leaving plenty of scope for things to come. Here’s an idea of what to expect:

Who Shot Fred Andrews?

Riverdale Fred Andrews

Let’s start with the most pressing and important storyline, and the cliffhanger we were left with at the end of season one. Fred Andrews (Luke Perry), who is the most steadfast and stalwart member of Riverdale’s community, was shot by an armed robber at Pop’s diner. While it initially looked as though it was a heroic intervention gone sadly wrong, Jughead Jones’ (Cole Sprouse) voiceover told us it was actually a targeted shooting.

That now brings a whole lot of suspects to the fore. Hiram Lodge has learned of Fred’s love affair with Hermione (Marisol Nichols), and his return to town is imminent. Could he have hired a hit-man? Was the shooter aiming for Archie, who has been meddling in the Blossom murder and drugs investigation, or is shooting his father supposed to serve as a warning? Does the shooter come from the disreputable Southside? Most importantly of all, will Fred Andrews survive?

An Actual Arc for Archie

Archie Andrews at school looking serious in Riverdale

Finally. KJ Apa has played a solid role all season, but Archie is supposed to be the center of Riverdale. As, essentially, the hero of the piece, he wasn’t given all that much material to work with in season one. The finale certainly elevated the character, though, when he rescued Cheryl from her suicide attempt and took his relationship with Veronica one step further.

Now, Archie has to deal with the fact that someone has shot his father, and whether or not Fred survives, that person was aiming to kill. Trying to deal with the implications of that will be huge for Archie, especially if Fred doesn’t survive. We could well see the return of Molly Ringwald as Mary, Archie’s mom. Showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa tells THR that this storyline will send the character on a season-long journey, which will no doubt mean he’ll learn a lot about himself along the way.

Added into all of this, will be his relationship with Veronica (Camila Mendes), which will be further complicated by the arrival of Hiram. Following Archie Comics canon, Sacasa has confirmed that Hiram will not like Archie from the off.

Hiram Lodge Arrives

We’ve been hearing about him all season long, and now Hiram Lodge is set to be released from jail and return to Riverdale just in time for season two. Played by Mark Consuelos, Hiram, we already know, is not averse to striking a deal or two, whether they’re legal or not. The finale of Riverdale season one saw Hermione Lodge proposing one such deal to Fred to buy him out of his construction business. Fred refused and was subsequently shot. The two events could or could not be linked, but this is Riverdale, so we make no assumptions.

Even so, Hiram’s arrival is set to cause unpleasantness for many. For a start, he hates Archie and Fred, and he also had ties to the drug trafficking that the Blossom family were involved in. His wife, Hermione, has already taken a darker turn. With her husband by her side, the pair will be the new power couple of Riverdale.

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Power Struggles Aplenty

Close up of Penelope Blossom from Riverdale looking angry.

First of all, there’s Hermione and Hiram. Sacasa tells THR that he’s “not interested in playing Hermione as cowering before Hiram, or being terrified of him.” That’s already evident in the way we’ve seen Hermione’s strength build throughout the season, so they’re going to be a force to be reckoned with. Will Veronica just sit idly by and watch this happen? Hardly likely. In fact, you can pretty much bet that - now she’s found a place she belongs - Veronica will fight hard to stop her parents from causing trouble in Riverdale.

Then there’s the Coopers. Alice (Machden Amick) has revealed her big secret to Betty, and the whole family also knows that Hal (Lochlyn Munro) tried to force Polly into an abortion because he knew Polly and Jason were related by blood. The power now firmly rests with Betty and Alice in that family, but will Hal try to wrestle it back?

Finally, of course, there’s the Blossom family, or what remains of it, anyway. Penelope Blossom (Nathalie Boltt) has been endlessly cruel to her daughter, and it’s hardly a surprise that Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) is unhinged. Again, the balance of power has shifted between the two, now that Cheryl has torched the family home.

Cheryl’s Recovery

Cheryl speaks at Jason's memorial on Riverdale

Petsch has played Cheryl brilliantly all season; you never quite now whether the character is being genuine or not, and then, just when she does something seemingly quite benevolent, she turns back into an ice queen. Still, her friends seem to genuinely care about her and were quick to save her life.

Maybe this is more a ‘what we would like to see,’ because there’s no guarantee that Cheryl will ever be quite stable, but it would be good to see the character moving past the harrowing events of season one. With the ball now firmly in her court, it’s anyone’s guess what Cheryl could do. Remember, she’s about to become an Aunt to her dead twin’s babies any day….

The Birth of the Blossom Babies

Polly and Jason talk in a Pop's booth in Riverdale.

It seems as though Polly has been pregnant forever, so surely the birth of her twins must come pretty near to the start of season two? While Tiera Skovbye isn’t confirmed to appear, given that she hadn’t left by the end of the season, it seems likely we will see the twins arrive, and hopefully learn that they are okay despite their parents being related.

Babies are like Band-Aids; they do a marvelous job of holding things together, so initially, the new Blossom twins could unite both the Cooper and Blossom families. However, Band-Aids come unstuck, and once the novelty of two cute new arrivals has worn off, there could well be a war between both factions as they vie to have the babies belong to each respective family. Really, the only person who can decide on that is Polly, but since when has Polly’s opinion been taken into account?

Big Brother Cooper

In the finale, we learned that Alice Cooper’s big secret was that she had to give a baby up for adoption. In scenes reminiscent of what Hal tried to do with his daughter, Alice revealed that when she fell pregnant in High School, she and Hal had disagreed on how to handle it. In the end, Alice was sent away to the Sisters of Mercy, where Polly was, only Alice actually gave birth there, and a quiet adoption was arranged. Betty (Lilli Reinhart) told this to Archie and Veronica, adding that her brother would be in his mid-twenties by now. We all know how this will unfold; he’ll be tracked down, no doubt by Betty, and then introduced to Riverdale.

Whether he will have taken after his biological mother or father, or whether he’ll be completely his own person, remains to be seen. What if he’s already in Riverdale, and part of the notorious Southside? That would give Alice a shock that won’t be entirely welcome.

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Jughead Joins the Southside Serpents

Riverdale, Betty Cooper and Jughead Jones

Oh Juggie, you were doing so well. All season, Jughead has struggled to find where he fits, only to be told exactly where he’s going to fit, thanks to a caseworker. Jughead has been fostered by a family on the South side of town, and that means he’ll be switching schools. F.P.’s refusal to implicate any of the South Side Serpents in the Blossom drug case, means that they’re now looking out for Jughead, which could be a good thing, but only if your name isn’t Betty.

She wasn’t happy when her boyfriend received his Serpents jacket at the end of the finale, and that could well lead to tension between the pair in season two, but after reassuring fans that they’re still very much together in season two, Sacasa hints that Jughead might finally find that sense of belonging that’s been eluding him for so long:

“At Riverdale High, Jughead always slipped through the cracks and is considered a problem student. At Southside High, everything is the opposite. Jughead is not lost in the system -- a teacher starts mentoring him, he discovers people who are a lot like him. He finds his tribe there, 100 percent.”

While it’s nice to think of Jughead doing well for himself, the idea of him belonging on the Southside alters the friendship dynamic between our core four, dramatically.

More Teenage Angst

Riverdale Archie and Veronica

Riverdale is, essentially, a teen drama, albeit a dark one. It follows, therefore, that there will be more angst, drama, and romance for its central characters during season two. Veronica and Archie seem very loved up, but Archie is also making eyes at Betty. As Jughead drifts more towards the South Side Serpents, could Betty have her head turned by her long-time crush? Then there’s Cheryl, who must return to Riverdale after her late father has been revealed as a drugs baron who murdered his own son.

She will need support and friendship, but will people be willing to give it to her? It could be that everyone will be too distracted. There’s a lot going on in each of the character’s respective lives, but the show will remain character driven. After all, it’s the characters that keep us all watching.

Civil War in Riverdale?

Finally, a huge element of the Riverdale finale focused on how divided the town had become; Sheriff Keller and the Mayor want F.P. to incriminate his South Side friends, but F.P. swears the Serpents don’t take part in big-time drug deals. And are we forgetting that the Sheriff’s son was involved with a Serpent? It’d be good to have Joaquin back.

With Jughead now living across town, that divide is too deep to be bridged by him, which could well mean we see him having to make a choice one way or another. How will the Serpents react to the shooting of Fred Andrews, who FP always champions as a good man, and who looked after Jughead for so long? We could well see the better side (North Side, West Side, East Side, who knows?) of Riverdale throwing accusations at the Serpents as they look for someone to blame.

As we head into Riverdale season two, one thing is for certain; there’s plenty of dramas, mysteries, and gripping plotlines to keep us all entertained. Now we just need Sabrina the Teenage Witch to arrive.

Riverdale season 2 is expected in 2018.

Source: THR

Next: Riverdale’s Season Finale Delivers SHOCKING Cliffhanger