I've been there, but I just felt so alienated by Francesca's characterization as this dream girl that I couldn't get into the vibe.

Confession: I thought Dev/Francesca was SO bad that now, weeks later, I still haven't finished watching the finale, even though I'd been happily bingeing the season before ep 9… I just… don't care.

Ohh, yes. I particularly thought something like that—regarding that sweet female naïvete that just strikes me as a big male fantasy—in her next episode, when (spoiler?) Dev basically explains her feelings to her… and then she asks what lukewarm means and he smiles because it's, idk, cute or whatever. Reaaaally not my…

Rachel felt real, while Francesca was such a fantasy. "Aw, she's hot (but of course she's only had sex with one person—we must keep her pure)! Aww, she doesn't know what dating apps are (she's above the superficialities of the world)! Awww, cute accent! Spontaneous midnight dance parties! So fun!!!" It was seriously…

It's honestly bizarre how there didn't seem to be any effort put into making her an actual character instead of whatever we ended up with. It was kind of like a lesson on how to not write love interests.

When I compare the warmth and emotion of Denise's episode with the romance of the following one… man, that was pretty terrible. The writing for Francesca almost seemed like a parody at times.

I don't think it's ever been published in my (South American) country! And I don't remember the cartoons airing either… For most of my life, my familiarity with anything Archie started and ended with Melissa Joan Hart's Sabrina.

Do people, like… actually want this triangle? All my friends who watch Riverdale seem to have a pretty anti-Betty/Archie reaction, at least (and I don't think I've seen much love for them here either…?). I really don't think "this love triangle must exist because it's what people expect from an Archie series" is good…

Gotta say that Betty looking at Jughead—who's obviously feeling very defeated by this point—and deciding that no, she's not done with the case did something to my heart. And then she DID find something and he kiiind of smiled!

Yeah, it means Jason and Polly share (two of sixteen) great-great-grandparents. I'm unable to see how that's a dramatic reveal, tbh. I don't even know my great-great-grandparents' names.

Third cousins? THIRD cousins? This is so boring, guys. Am I really supposed to have an OMG reaction to it? I expected better from you, Riverdale!

Going by the promo stills from the Kids in America scene, I thought that was gonna be the case. But, honestly, in context it didn't really feel that way to me. Fortunately!

He immediately realizes that someone actually wanting to read (and, oh, engage with) Jughead's writing can't be sincere. Archie can be smart, really.

From one of the writers' Tumblr (Britta Lundin): "Thanks! The scene where Jughead opens FP’s present was cut because the present revealed… a thing… that we decided to reveal a different way in a later episode. So I can’t tell you what it is without spoiling it! I hope that’s a vague yet tantalizing answer." So…

Agreed on Jughead. I thought they'd handled his sadness much, much better in episode 7, without having him literally telling us (more than once!) that he's weird/not normal/a loner.

If You See My Boyfriend by Donora. Those lalalas were very satisfying. You go, Valerie!

Is this performance art?

What the fuck.

No , it's definitely a romantic comedy.

It's kind of hard to tell a story without tropes…