Riverdale is no stranger to weird plotlines, but season 3’s midseason finale, “Outbreak,” has left us with more unanswered questions than ever. The major ongoing mystery is that of the Gargoyle King, a terrifying apparition that has been lurking in the town, and the role-playing game Griffins and Gargoyles, which draws players in like a drug and is somehow linked to all of Riverdale’s darkest goings-on.
On a more down-to-earth note, Hiram Lodge has been slowly plotting his takeover of the town - something that is now easier than ever with Hermione Lodge installed as town mayor. Hiram’s pawn in the police department, Sheriff Minetta, has been murdered after his role in the criminal conspiracy was exposed, but that simply leaves with Riverdale with no sheriff at all, and more lawless than ever before. After students collapsed and started having seizures en masse, Hiram used his pull with the Governor to put the entire town of Riverdale under quarantine - with no one allowed in or out.
Meanwhile, Archie himself is still on the run, and Betty’s stint at the Sisters of Quiet Mercy offered up fresh clues about the origins of Griffins and Gargoyles. Here are the biggest unanswered questions at Riverdale season 3’s halfway point.
- This Page: Griffins & Gargoyles and The Gargoyle King Page 2: The Quarantine, Hiram Lodge’s Plan, and More
Who Is The Gargoyle King?
Yes, halfway through the season, we still don’t know for sure who is behind the terrifying mask of the Gargoyle King. Betty has worked out that some of the apparitions of the Gargoyle King (those witnessed by the “patients” at the Sisters of Quiet Mercy) were hallucinations induced by a combination of Fizzle Rocks, an ugly statue, and suggestions by the sisters. However, there’s also another Gargoyle King that the gang have seen while not under the influence of drugs at all, and someone is pulling the strings on the mass role-playing game in Riverdale. Hiram Lodge certainly seems like the most obvious suspect, but the end of the episode showed him raising a glass in salute to the Gargoyle King. Are the two of them working together, is the Gargoyle King one of Hiram’s lackeys dressed up, or is Hiram himself one of the Gargoyle King’s pawns?
Who Created Griffins and Gargoyles?
The question of who created Griffins and Gargoyles was actually (sort of) answered in “Outbreak.” After the Sisters of Quiet Mercy began using the gargoyle statue to frighten patients into obedience, some of those patients came up with the game and started playing it. Since it seemed to be therapeutic, it was encouraged, but Griffins and Gargoyles took on a life of its own and somehow made its way out into the world. The game is said to be so evil because it was a product of madness, but who exactly was it who came up with it, and then unleashed it? Was it really a collective effort by all the patients, or will we learn that one of Riverdale’s adult characters was housed with the sisters in their youth, and was personally responsible for bringing this abomination into the world?
What’s Causing The Seizures?
Since Betty first saw Polly’s twin babies float in the air over a fire, and collapsed to the floor, seizures have been plaguing the town of Riverdale - most recently affecting the entire cheerleading team (except for Cheryl). The obvious assumption is that the seizures are caused by Fizzle Rocks, but if that’s the case then we have to ask how Betty and Veronica - who aren’t exactly known for indulging in drug abuse - fell victim to the seizures. Has someone been secretly drugging all the kids in Riverdale, and Penelope Blossom as well?
Is The Farm Connected To The Gargoyle King?
One plot thread that has gone noticeable underdeveloped throughout season 3 is that of The Farm, the hippie commune run by the mysterious Edgar Evernever, which has already drawn Betty’s mother and sister into its ranks. The Farm definitely has some sinister, cult-like overtones, and Edgar’s daughter, Evelyn, has been suspiciously present when several of the seizures happened. Is The Farm somehow linked to the Gargoyle King, or is it an entirely different brand of strange?
Page 2: The Quarantine, Hiram Lodge’s Plan, and More
Does the CDC Know About Riverdale’s Quarantine?
Things in Riverdale are never exactly realistic, but a lot of eyebrows were raised by the midseason finale’s closing twist, when Hiram Lodge used his influence with the Governor to put the entire town of Riverdale under quarantine. Now, it’s pretty unlikely that a Governor would even have the authority to do something like that without intervention by the CDC (who, Hiram claimed, considered the mass seizures to be too low priority for them to deal with). Even in a universe as utterly ridiculous as Riverdale’s, you can’t shut down an entire town and stop anyone from entering or leaving (with police officers stationed at roadblocks with shotguns!) without attracting some attention from the outside world. How long can Hiram keep this up before higher authorities start demanding to know what’s going on?
What is Hiram Lodge’s Plan?
We more or less know the outline of Hiram Lodge’s intentions for Riverdale: to buy up all the real estate, establish a massive drug operation, get the youth hooked on Fizzle Rocks, and work together with allies like Penelope Blossom to pave the way for other vices such as prostitution. What’s unclear is how exactly putting the entire town under quarantine is going to aid in this plan - aside from temporarily allowing Riverdale to revel in its lawlessness, and keeping out the interfering presence of Jughead and Archie. Moreover, through Archie and Jughead’s travels on the road we’ve already seen Hiram’s influence spreading to destroy surrounding towns. Just how far is Hiram planning to extend his Fizzle Rocks operation?
Is Penny Peabody Dead?
When last we saw Penny Peabody, she was about to subjected to some serious torture by Jughead’s mother, Gladys Jones. Penny doesn’t appear again in “Outbreak,” but we do see Gladys cleaning a considerable amount of blood on her hands and looking shaken. Did Penny Peabody manage to slink away from yet another encounter with the Jones family, or did Gladys take the torture too far and accidentally end up killing the Snake Charmer?
What Happened To Chic Cooper?
We know that Betty’s “brother,” Chic Cooper, is set to return in Riverdale season 3, but he’s yet to make an appearance. This sinister character played a prominent role in season 2, and was revealed to actually be a murderous impostor, rather than Betty’s true long-lost brother. When last we saw Chic, Betty had sicced the Black Hood on him and he was supposedly about to be murdered himself… but we never saw the murder itself or the body. Could Chic somehow be involved with Griffins and Gargoyles, or perhaps even be the Gargoyle King himself?
