Leading ginger and in-house musician, vigilante, and eye candy, Archie Andrews of Riverdale, has found a home in the hearts of many fans of the show. Played to perfection by KJ Apa, the leading man is definitely not the regular jock as he was portrayed in the comics.
In fact, Archie Andrews does so many other things apart from just attending Riverdale High that he sometimes leaves audiences a little baffled. Plot holes, absurd actions and a constantly changing personality are not a rarity with the teenager, and some of them make zero sense.
His Personality
Archie Andrews starts off as a jock with soul: he wants to play music instead of football and struggles with it every day. After chasing the music dream, he gives it up and joins leagues with criminals, then starts boxing professionally, and ends up running a gym that cares for vulnerable individuals. He changes directions so often it makes the audience's necks hurt.
He is regularly portrayed as being pure of heart and the moral compass of the show, but he works with Hiram, investigates murders, and takes the law into his own hands often, and violently. It seems as if the showrunners want him to be good, but can't resist weird plot twists.
Why He Isn't Dating Betty
The fact that Archie isn't dating Betty grates on a lot of fans' nerves. He and Betty share a childhood full of memories and special moments, but unlike the comics, none of those seem to matter to Archie (or so he says). He still gets jealous about Bughead and throws longing stares towards his bestie, whom he friend-zoned.
The level of love he has for a new girl who walks into school (Veronica), while knowing about her criminal ties, is pretty off-brand and doesn't make any sense. Fans got a fleeting look at Barchie in season 4, which was the only thing that made sense in Riverdale in a long time, and that was snuffed out within two episodes.
Relationship With Hiram
Archie is so committed to Veronica that he wants to prove it to her criminal mafia father. It sounds absurd even to say it out loud. He leaves his morals behind and becomes a "capo" for Hiram and they spend many an episode embroiled in a criminal bromance, sometimes turning against his own wonderful father.
When things go sour, Hiram frames him for murder. Archie's dedication to him makes no sense.
Affair With Ms. Grundy
Granted that the teens in Riverdale are edgier than regular teens, Archie's affair with his teacher was completely out of the blue. It seemed to have existed just to shock viewers. It was also too steamy to be normal, which is what Archie is supposed to be.
Archie never showed an interest in older women or teachers at any other point in the series, which is why it is so weird that he forgot all about his beliefs and common sense and had sex with his teacher and tried to pursue a romantic relationship with her, too!
He Is Not Betty's Neighbor
Perhaps one of the biggest plot holes in the whole show, Archie, who has been Betty's next-door neighbor since childhood, lives in a house that is not next to hers. Confused? So is everybody else.
The conversations and peeking at each other through facing windows should actually never have happened because it's impossible. Archie's home is not next to Betty's in the show by a long shot. Maybe their window sill interactions are dreams.
Pled Guilty To A Murder He Didn't Commit
When Hiram tries to frame Archie, he goes the whole hog and does it for murder. He makes it look like Archie is the one who killed local goon, Cassidy Bullock, when the four were attacked during a relaxing weekend in the Lodges' family cabin at Shadow Lake.
Fans were shocked and confused when Archie tried to be noble and changes his plea to guilty for a murder he didn't commit. In his mind, he's avoiding a costly retrial for his parents but ... a criminal record for a teenager who intends to go to college is much worse than some money being spent in trying to prove his innocence.
The Bear Attack
Following the guilty plea, Archie is arrested in juvie. The whole story of Archie in juvie makes little sense, as he is forced to take part in illegal fighting rings, amongst other things, but after a miraculous and convoluted escape from jail, he runs off to Canada.
Archie decides that he's going to exile himself in the woods, far away from his parents and friends to keep them safe. In these woods, he is brutally attacked by an adult-sized bear. Most fans were convinced that the writers had decided to kill off the character, but Archie somehow survived a bear attack.
Jughead Is His Best Friend
The show is dead set on the fact that Archie and Jughead are best friends, but they rarely have any friendly moments on screen. In fact, Archie is so involved in his nightly vigilante activities, and Jughead so involved in his literary pursuits and gangs, that they hardly ever spend any time together. They're too different to even be friends.
Adding to that, Jughead starts dating Betty, who is always going to be extra special for Archie, and none of this looks like best friendship to audiences.
The Vigilantism
The resident redhead starts a vigilante group called The Red Circle, which is quite absurd in itself, but it consists of high school teenagers who openly challenge the notorious serial killer, Black Hood. This is a serial killer who is too difficult to catch by law enforcement, but Archie thinks he can do it.
Then he starts going out alone and poorly disguised and beats up criminals who carry guns. Real smart, Archie.
Music Room Romances
Archie seems to only romance people in music rooms. Whether it's Ms. Grundy (ew), Josie, Valerie, Veronica, and even the long awaited Betty romance, Archie loves to do it in the music room.
Whether this is related to his deep connection with music or just a weird fetish, it doesn't make much sense because no one else is really getting it on in the music room of Riverdale High.