Riverdale Midseason Finale Trailer is Darkly Festive

[SPOILERS for those not caught up on Riverdale ahead.]

A showdown with the Black Hood awaits in the trailer for the Riverdale midseason finale, 'Chapter Twenty-Two: Silent Night, Deadly Night'. The mysterious killer known as the Black Hood made their grand entrance during the show's season 1 finale and has been terrorizing The Town With Pep ever since then. Riverdale's four core heroes (Archie, Betty, Jughead, and Veronica) have made efforts to uncover the mystery man's true identity over the course of season 2, with Betty even outright accusing Sheriff Keller (Martin Cummins) at one point. However, according to the series' own stars, the truth about the Black Hood is about to be revealed at last.

Meanwhile, when they haven't been trying to catch a killer, Riverdale's teens have been caught up in plenty of drama of their own making. With Christmas right around the corner, both Archie (K.J. Apa) and Veronica (Camila Mendes) as well as Betty (Lili Reinhart) and Jughead (Cole Sprouse) are in a rough patch, when it comes to their relationships with one another. Tensions between Jughead and his dad FP (Skeet Ulrich) are running high at the moment too, now that FP has learned the truth about Jughead's dealings with Penny Peabody (Brit Morgan) while he was in jail. On top of all that, it looks like Veronica will be having some parental issues of her own next week.

The trailer for 'Silent Night, Deadly Night', which you can watch in the space above, shows Veronica confronting both Hermione (Marisol Nichols) and Hiram (Mark Consuelos) and demanding to know the truth about their illicit activities of late. The CW has also released an official synopsis for the episode, teasing that Betty and Archie will attempt to take down the Black Hood once and for all, even with all the other drama in their lives right now. You can read the full plot summary below:

A SHOWDOWN WITH THE BLACK HOOD — After snooping around for Christmas gifts, Veronica uncovers a major secret Hiram has been keeping from her. Fallout from Jughead's encounter with Penny Peabody creates tension between him and FP. Meanwhile, a defiant Cheryl takes matters into her own hands after Penelope tells her they cannot afford Christmas this year. Finally, Betty and Archie's vow to take down the Black Hood once and for all leads to a dangerous showdown.

'Silent Night, Deadly Night', as was written by Shepard Boucher and directed by Rob Seidenglanz, gets its title from the 1984 cult slasher thriller of the same name. The movie Silent Night, Deadly Night revolves around a teenager who goes on a killing spree, after his parents are murdered and he is abused by the head of the orphanage that takes him in. Could this be a hint that the Black Hood is really Chic Cooper (Hart Denton), Betty's long-lost brother whom Alice (Mädchen Amick) gave up for adoption all those years ago? That would explain why the Black Hood is so obsessed with Betty and has suggested that the pair are connected in more ways than one.

While the theory about Chic being the Black Hood is plausible, it doesn't really fit with the clues that Riverdale has provided thus far. The character appears to be a man approaching or just past middle-age, based on what little has been revealed of his face so far. That makes someone like Betty's dad Hal (Lochlyn Munro) or even Sheriff Keller a stronger candidate than Chic. Riverdale High's janitor Mr. Svenson (Cameron McDonald) and his dark past make him a suspect as well, despite Archie's insistence in this week's episode that he has different eyes than the Black Hood.

Fortunately, Riverdale fans shouldn't have to wait much longer to find out the truth. With 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' being the midseason finale, it would be the perfect time for the viewers at home (if not also the characters on the show) to find out exactly who is under that black mask anyway.

MORE: The CW Announces 2018 Midseason Premiere Dates

Riverdale continues Wednesday, December 13 with 'Chapter Twenty-Two: Silent Night, Deadly Night' on The CW.

Source: The CW