Episodes
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And so we close another chapter of Riverdale. The early episodes seem so long ago—that lovely tribute to Luke Perry, Julian the porcelain doll, Chad Michael Murray on a rocket—and, yet, there’s no denying the fact that season four wrapped things up a little too quickly. That being said, “Killing Mr. Honey” ends things on a satisfying note, bringing most of the principal cast together to take down their principal, the maybe-not-completely-wrong Holden Honey. As directed by Mädchen Amick, the episode offers up a fun take on the revenge fantasy while still leaving plenty of threads dangling in the mystery of the VHS voyeur (what’s a Riverdale season finale without a cliffhanger anyway?). As usual, Dial M For Maple recaps all of the madness, and ponders what lies ahead for our beloved show in these COVID-19-stricken times. Hosts Marah and Cameron share their elation with an overdue Nana Rose appearance, continue to stan Mrs. Bell, and wonder if Jughead has it in him to write something truly original. And, in our final Blue & Gold of the season, we evaluate Cole Sprouse’s quarantine facial hair and unpack the rumors of an early season six renewal.
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And, just like that, we’ve reached the home stretch of Riverdale’s fourth season! With the COVID-19 pandemic halting production across the board, the show’s planned final three episodes have been shunted off to TV purgatory, and we’ve found ourselves at this chapter’s penultimate offering. While “Lynchian” intriguingly ups the ante on the long-percolating mystery of the voyeuristic VHS tapes, one can’t help but wonder: Is there any way next week’s season finale can possibly give us a satisfying conclusion? Regardless, Dial M For Maple is on hand to unspool the latest clues in this videotape whodunnit and deliver our post mortem on the “Barchie” that nearly was. Hosts Marah and Cameron dig through the episode’s hat tips to its titular director and wonder if anyone knows what an A/V Club even is anymore (beyond this very website, The A.V. Club, that is). Then, in The Blue & Gold, we check in on Kevin Keller’s visit to Katy Keene, recap Jordan “Sweet Pea” Connor’s visit to Celebrity Drag Race, and preview Camila Mendes new Netflix thriller, Dangerous Lies.
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Missing episodes?
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Did you just say, “wig”? Well, someone in the Riverdale Hair & Makeup Department sure did, again and again and again! That’s right, it’s the most glorious time of the year: Riverdale’s spring musical episode, a tradition started back in season two with a bloody good take on Carrie: The Musical. And, in keeping with tradition, “Wicked Little Town”—the show’s ode to cult classic Hedwig And The Angry Inch—is another high point for the show, ratcheting up the interpersonal drama and giving our beloved Kevin Keller a true chance to shine. In this week’s Dial M For Maple, we unpack the “Wig In A Box” to highlight our favorite musical numbers and to toss out our theories about those eerie final moments. While hosts Marah and Cameron are no “Barchie” ‘shippers, they’re at least happy to see the show putting in the leg work to convince us that maybe these crazy kids really can’t keep their paws off one another. And, in The Blue & Gold, we catch up on the cast’s dispatches from quarantine.
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Since Riverdale put a bow on the mystery of Jughead’s faux murder and went on a mini-hiatus, the whole world has changed. And while the situation is dark (like, “Riverdale dark”—remember when the town went under quarantine?), it’s important to find moments of levity and happy distractions to keep your mind off the doom and gloom. That’s why there’s no better time to catch up on The CW’s other “Archie-verse” series, Katy Keene, a pure escapist delight. Now that it’s aired the first eight episode of its inaugural season, our podcast Dial M For Maple decided to check in with the “high-fashion fairytale” to see what its cast of big-dreaming characters has been up to. Hosts Marah and Cameron weigh in on what makes the series so special, from its colorful view of the world, to its queer-friendly stories, to its guest roles for icons like Bernadette Peters and Shangela. Truly, its a blast. And then, in the latest edition of “The Blue & Gold,” we ponder what kind of impact the coronavirus-related delays will have on the current seasons of Riverdale, Katy Keene, and beyond.
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Riverdale’s modus operandi seems to be, “when one mystery closes, another mystery opens,” so it’s all-together shocking—and wholly satisfying—that its latest episode finally put a bow on the season-long mystery of Jughead’s fake death. “The Locked Room” not only tells us the great lengths Betty and company went to convince everyone (including Riverdale’s viewers) that Jughead was dead, but also lets our favorite sleuthing couple boast to Dupont and the Stonewall Preppies that they’ve uncovered the murderous secrets of the Quill And Skull. Just like that, most of season four’s big questions have been answered, save for a dangling thread or two (we’ll call it a Hanging Chic). Our podcast Dial M For Maple returns to unpack each new revelation, and to herald the long-awaited reappearance of everyone’s favorite money-grubbing mortician, Dr. Curdle, Jr.! Elsewhere in the episode, Marah recommends some other tantalizing whodunnit yarns and Cameron shares his thoughts on the new KJ Apa-starring biopic, I Still Believe.
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After a week away, Riverdale picks up right where it left off, the gang reeling from Jughead’s (apparent) demise (apparently) at the hands of his own girlfriend, Betty Cooper. But “How To Get Away With Murder” leaves little time to grieve their beanie’d pal, as Archie, Veronica, and Betty attempt to cross-reference their stories and cover their own tracks. It’s a lot to take in, so, with Marah out this week, Dial M For Maple had to call in the big guns for a guest host: None other than Cameron’s own mother, Andrea, joins the podcast to dish on the latest Riverdale. The pair shares their mutual distrust over Hermosa and tries to puzzle through some new fan theories about just who is in cahoots with who, exactly. And then, in The Blue & Gold, Cameron and Andrea break down the recent news of Skeet Ulrich and Marisol Nichols’ upcoming show departure, and gush over the cute new puppy in Lili Reinhart’s life.
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We never imagined we’d be walking away from Riverdale’s big “Quiz Show”wanting to talk about tickling fetish videos, but here we are! Though this week’s episode throws a few curveballs at the audience, none were quite as wild and unexpected as what Kevin Keller gets into on his “Grind’em” date. As Dial M For Maple grapples with whether or not this plot finally gives us #JusticeForKevin, hosts Marah and Cameron dive into a twisty plot that shakes things up for the Bughead ‘shippers and sees Veronica and Cheryl’s maple rum business make some questionable choices. Elsewhere in the podcast, we break down Riverdale’s exciting Hedwig And The Angry Inch musical news, contemplate crossovers with Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina, and Cameron explains why the creepy documentary Tickled portends bad things for Kevin’s current situation.
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It’s January, and football season is over for most high schools, but not Riverdale, which kicks off 2020 with “the big game” against the Stonewall Stallions. The rivalry brings season four back into focus after the holiday break, and thankfully lets the teens again worry about typical high school things, like college applications, frustrating coaches, and bringing down your father’s rum empire by creating a new rum brand of your own. Yeah, just normal teen stuff! Dial M For Maple is back with its game face on, recapping “Varsity Blues,” and punting some new theories about Principal Honey and shifty Uncle Frank. Hosts Marah and Cameron discuss their favorite school sports movies and ponder why cheerleading seems to be the hot new trend in television this year. And, in “The Blue & Gold,” we review Charles Melton’s appearance in Bad Boys For Life, and we share our excitement for the Riverdale-verse’s upcoming Katy Keene series.
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In its final episode of 2019—and the decade, for that matter—Riverdale forgoes another seasonally-appropriate holiday episode and instead delivers a midseason finale largely concerned with moving on. The big theme of “Tangerine” seems to be setting the past on fire (quite literally) in order to push forward, with Betty laying Dark Betty to rest, Jughead accepting his fate with the Quill And Skull society, and Cheryl finally letting go of her beloved twin’s corpse. Dial M For Maple logs on—albeit a little later than usual—to recap another ambitious episode and to try to make sense of Evelyn Evernever’s deranged hypnotism scheme. Elsewhere, hosts Marah and Cameron introduce a new theory that makes Principal Honey seem even shadier, and the two cast their doubts on the arrival of Archie’s apparently forgotten uncle. Plus, we try to sum up Varsity Blues, and a Cole Sprouse-Adam Sandler reunion sends us on a trip down memory lane.
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If this week’s Riverdale seems familiar to longtime listeners of Dial M For Maple, that may be because we pitched an episode just like this on our podcast last season. After nearly four years of serial killers, diabolical family members, cults, and bear attacks, the teens of Riverdale have some serious trauma to unpack. Thankfully, help comes in the form of guest actor Gina Torres—a.k.a. school counselor Mrs. Burble—whose straight talk and thoughtful insights provide the series with a much-needed center of gravity. Hosts Marah and Cameron break down each of Burble’s “cases” and discuss if they feel her advice to the teens is constructive (it is), and whether or not they take the advice to heart (they don’t). We also dive into the candy bowl of delicious fake brand names, and discuss the news that a future episode will see Veronica heading to New York City to officially introduce us to Katy Keene.
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Is Riverdale becoming one of those shows where its holiday episodes are its best? After a spooky Halloween outing this season, the series serves up another winner with its Thanksgiving cornucopia, “The Ice Storm.” Our podcast Dial M For Maple pulls a seat up to the dinner table to dig into a feast of plot, one that won’t leave any Riverdale ‘shippers hungry—Bughead, Varchie, Choni, and even Falice have their own stories this week! Hosts Marah and Cameron are on hand to recap the madness and ask the important questions like: What’s really behind Julian’s glass eyes? Does Mary Andrews have too much fresh produce? And how old is Dodger supposed to be anyway? Elsewhere, we check in on the ascent of Lili Reinhart: Movie Star and Cameron shares why he used to always hate when people called it “Turkey Day.”
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Our Riverdale podcast Dial M For Maple returns from its bye week to discuss the rapidly escalating drama of the show’s latest outing, “Hereditary.” Hosts Marah and Cameron recap an episode that once again spreads its heroes to the wind, leaving each to fend for themselves against shady long-lost brothers, shady long-lost sisters, and porcelain dolls that may or may not be housing the soul of an unborn triplet (yes, there’s a lot of bad blood amongst the siblings of Riverdale right now). We also recount our night at the The People’s Choice Awards, which brought us mere inches away from KJ Apa, and lead us to conclude that poor KJ Apa probably doesn’t like red carpets all that much. And, in “The Blue And Gold,” Cameron wonders whether or not Marisol Nichols knows how to do an Instagram Takeover.
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Despite the past three seasons of costumed killers and eerie unwanted phone calls, “Halloween” marks Riverdale’s first proper episode tied to the titular holiday. To celebrate, the show divides up its main cast and forces most of the teens to live through their own personal hell; it’s a proper goodie bag of “fun size” horror plots! This week, Dial M For Maple tunes in to recap the scariest (Veronica’s run in with the “Family Man Killer”) and weirdest (Mr. Honey’s fascination with Reggie and Kevin) moments of the night, and sits down for a seance with Nana Rose to figure out what’s really going on at Thistle House. Hosts Marah and Cameron debate the logistics of the VHS surveillance plot, and share their confusion over Charles Cooper’s true motives—if that’s even his real name. Plus, Cameron attempts to update us on the Riverdale cast’s TikTok presence, but ends up confused by the app all over again
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Betty’s quest to free her mom from the clutches of The Farm leads to an especially loopy episode of Riverdale, one that has Dial M For Maple wondering if Edgar Evernever ever had a plan in the first place. Hosts Marah and Cameron are on hand to recap the madcap “Dog Day Afternoon,” and the pair attempts to sniff out which of the shows shady new characters is the shadiest of them all. Marah also ponders the logistics of Betty’s passport procurement plan, while Cameron is just happy to see beloved social worker Miss Weiss again. Plus, a listener points out that we should take a closer look at Donna Sweet, a Stonewall Prep student with a name suspiciously similar to Donna Tartt, whose debut novel may hint at where the season is headed.
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After last week’s moving “very special episode,” Riverdale jumps ahead to the start of the school year and, refreshingly, takes things back to basics. That’s right: At least for a little while, that gang’s biggest concerns are boring summer reading assignments, football practice, and throwing raging parties. Normal teen stuff! But it’s in the small details that the show starts to hint at the inevitable rollercoaster of a season it has ahead, and that’s where Dial M For Maple’s gears start turning. Beyond the elephant (Jason Blossom’s body) in the room, hosts Marah and Cameron ponder the ulterior motives of Riverdale High’s new principal, Mr. Honey (Dawson’s Creek’s Kerr Smith), and theorize who might be behind the gossip on the perfectly named Rumordale.com. Plus, we share our confusion over the show’s steamiest scene yet, and theorize what a new supporting character’s name could signify about the shady Stonewall Prep.
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No matter how zany the last season of Riverdale got, it was always under the somber shadow of the sudden and untimely passing of Luke Perry. Perry’s performance as Fred Andrews was like a constant warm hug, which made him the true beating heart of Riverdale. Respectfully, the show proceeded as planned with season three, taking its time to craft a proper goodbye to the actor who felt like a father to the entire cast. Which brings us to “In Memoriam,’ Riverdale’s fourth season premiere that doubles as a loving ode to Luke Perry, written by showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. As is tradition, our podcast Dial M For Maple returns with the season to recap the moving episode and to say goodbye to Perry. Plus, hosts Marah and Cameron piece together clues from the summer about what’s in store for the gang this year, and Cameron shares a story about his momentary brush with Lili Reinhart.
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Riverdale's on hiatus, and the (Mad) Dog Days Of Summer have come early for Dial M For Maple since we had a chance to sit down with Mad Dog himself, Eli Goree. The actor's been busy promoting his work on Pearson — USA's new Suits spin-off — but he took some time to sit down with host Cameron Scheetz to talk about his Sesame Street days, the possibility of following in Meghan Markle's royal footsteps, and getting ripped for Riverdale. As for season four, he was a little coy about his involvement, but we have a hunch we'll be seeing more of him soon.
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School's out for summer on Riverdale, but Dial M For Maple returns to the halls fo Riverdale High for one final look at the show's wildest season yet. Hosts Marah and Cameron revisit the season's highs and lows—including that insane speech about "the epic highs and lows of high school football"—and hand out superlatives for "Funniest Scene," "Most Improved Character," "Worst Archie Decision," and more. Plus, we turn our attention to our listeners, answering a few fan questions and dialing in the podcast's biggest fan: Cameron's mom, Andrea.
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Who saw that one coming? In its season three finale, Riverdale finally unveils the true identity of its Gargoyle King, the puppet master behind two years worth of serial killers, addictive role-playing games, and intergenerational family trauma. Was it obvious? Sure, but it's also wholly satisfying, and it clears the table for the season ahead. Dial M For Maple re-examines the trials and tribulations of The Core Four in "Survive The Night," and celebrate the return of icon Nana Rose. Plus, hosts Marah and Cameron name their MVPs of the season.
And that’s a wrap on Dial M For Maple for the season! We know that all of Riverdale’s third season will drop on Netflix on May 23, so, if you’ve got friends catching up, please encourage them to follow along with Dial M For Maple, too. We’ll be taking a bit of a hiatus for now, but we hope to return when Riverdale—and maybe even Katy Keene—starts back up in the fall. In the meantime, we've got big plans for a special episode coming in June, and don't forget to follow us on Twitter at @DialMForMaple for all of the latest Riverdale-related news and updates. On behalf of Cameron and Marah, thank you to everyone for tuning in! We love talking about Riverdale, but it’s really hearing from our listeners that makes Dial M For Maple worth it. - Show more
