Albany Times Union (Sunday)

Beyond the ‘Vale’: Teens back in ‘Riverdale’ following supernatur­al foray

- By Dana Simpson

It’s time to turn the page and begin a new frame of Archie Andrews (K.J. Apa, “Songbird,” 2020) and friends, because the second half of “Riverdale” Season 6 begins Sunday, March 20, on CW.

Series fans everywhere have been waiting for the dark high school drama to air Part 2 of Season

6 since it aired its 100th episode on CW in December of last year. Titled “Chapter One Hundred: The Jughead Paradox,” the final episode before the break saw Jughead (Cole Sprouse, “Five Feet Apart,” 2019) reach his breaking point and take off on a quest to solve the mysteries plaguing his hometown of Riverdale.

Of course (and spoilers ahead for those not yet caught up), “Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Witching Hour(s)” also featured a very special guest: Sabrina Spellman (Keirnan Shipka) from “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.” As diehard fans of the Archie Comics universe will know, Sabrina, while vastly different in lifestyle, hails from the same world as Archie and friends.This time, however, fans of the TV series adaptation­s finally got to see a crossover event that will be talked about for seasons to come.

Before “Riverdale” celebrated its 100-episode milestone (a milestone that, in the industry, allows the show to enter syndicated reruns), plenty had occurred in Season 6. During what is often referred to as Season 6’s “five-episode special event” that takes place in the related universe of Rivervale, viewers discover that

Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch, “Polaroid,” 2019) unleashed a curse on Riverdale as revenge for its involvemen­t in past atrocities. Tied up in Riverdale’s history of witch hunts and trials, Cheryl’s anger paved the way for Sabrina’s introducti­on into the series and the injection of further supernatur­al elements into the show’s storylines.

One of these haunting developmen­ts is tied to Jughead and

Tabitha’s (Erinn Westbrook, “Insatiable”) apartment. Now that the couple — who finally proclaimed their love for one another — have discovered their home is possessed by the spirits of dead couple Sam and Diane, fans are interested to see how that plot point progresses and whether the sinister fate of the dead couple could foreshadow inevitable disaster for Riverdale’s newest sweetheart­s.

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