By Patrick Kho, Year 10
WARNING: MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD
So far, the first couple of episodes of Riverdale have been great (if you haven’t seen any of the episodes yet, don’t worry, you haven’t missed much and there’s plenty of time to binge-watch the first few episodes that are currently available). In contrast to the Archie Comics which it is based on, the show itself revolves around the drama of Riverdale High School and town, along with the mysterious death of Jason Blossom. In a nutshell, Riverdale is a great show for teenagers and adults alike to enjoy, a combination of Pretty Little Liars’ mystery and the prodigious, layered drama of House of Cards.
Alongside its heavy plot, Riverdale also includes a very diverse set of characters. A few of them include: Kevin Keller, a gay teenager, the son of a war veteran and sheriff; Reggie Mantle, whom, I can happily say as an Asian person myself, is one of the first Asian ‘jocks’ to ever be seen on a popular television series; and Josie McCoy, a black frontwoman of the band “Josie and the Pussycats” and the daughter of Riverdale’s mayor. It’s not difficult to find someone you can relate to among the diverse set of characters. The show is a testament to how far showbiz has come in terms of representation among minorities in America and around the world.
Given the very diverse cast, the writers of the show have clearly chosen to raise awareness about certain critical social issues that society faces today, one being racism. Being a woman of colour, Josie and her family received a lot of hate mail from strangers when her mother first took the position of Riverdale’s mayor. Owing to the rise of racial tension that followed with the recent American transfers of power, it makes sense for writers to acknowledge the sad – but realistic – outcome of a woman of colour taking on a leadership position. Having experienced marginalisation and discrimination throughout most of her life, Josie is rather defensive and quick to reject anything that could possibly threaten her and her band’s success. When Archie, the handsome white boy-next-door talks about writing songs for the Pussycats, Josie is quick to defend her position as a diva of colour and sassily rejects the idea. The scriptwriters reveal the shocking and unfortunate outcomes of a black woman achieving success in the current American social situation – hateful remarks and harassment from strangers – and that perhaps, society has not progressed yet until the point where people of different skin colours can live in harmony.
Apart from Riverdale’s prejudiced community, high school doesn’t really seem to treat women well either. The American footballers of Riverdale have a habit of befriending or flirting with girls on one day, then slut-shaming them on social media the next. Sadly, no one really knows the bare truth that these girls didn’t have anything to do with these boys. Students at Riverdale think that if the popular jocks say something, it must be true. It has become such a habit for them that they include a book filled with records on whom they have flirted with, disrespected and incorrectly labelled as promiscuous. One of their victims, Ethel Muggs, was shamed simply for not having a skinny figure. Despite being of a normal weight, the footballers of Riverdale did not hesitate to reduce her to a “big girl” simply because of her lack of physical conformity. Thankfully, we see Betty and Veronica, our two main heroines, fight against the disrespectful behavior of the Riverdale jocks. Although being extreme in the method (handcuffing him to a hot tub and boiling him, while pouring syrup on his head), Betty and Veronica were able to expose the truth about the behavior of a number of the football players, as a result, many of the members were kicked from the team. Hopefully, as a result of the writers and directors of the show displaying that women are able to stand up for themselves, many high school and college students can fight against their harassers. If Betty and Veronica can do it, so can the young women of this generation. They have the ability to fight against the current social system and can in fact achieve an environment that truly allows them to thrive. In addition to this, the show has highlighted the real problems of slut-shaming and harassment that is present today, in schools and in our lives.
Apart from being extremely entertaining to watch with the mysterious themes and countless plot twists, Riverdale addresses current pressing social issues. It exposes the current prejudiced environment and tells young and powerful women that they have the ability to stand up for themselves and fight against the sexism and harassment that is prevalent in schools around the world. The representation of many distinct groups of people allows the characters in this show to be relatable, and exposes many viewers today to a more diverse community, promoting tolerance and acceptance in our lives. As a show, Riverdale intends to inspire many people to stand up for their rights and to accept others no matter how different.
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