Entertainment

Dean Buscher/The CW

'Riverdale' Season 3 Can't Come To Netflix Soon Enough

by Chrissy Bobic

Like both seasons before it, Riverdale Season 3 started off with an epic new mystery which snowballed into more surprises along the way and left our core four scrambling to pick up the pieces throughout the season. They still aren’t out of the woods yet, however, and since you are going to need to watch it all over again, you might be wondering when Riverdale Season 3 premieres on Netflix. The good news is, you won't have to wait long. The not so good news is that Season 3 probably won't be any less confusing the second time around. But who knows? Maybe you’ll catch clues about the Gargoyle King that you didn't see before that make the big reveal a little easier to understand.

The CW has a deal in place with Netflix that gives the streaming platform the rights to premiere each season of a network series eight days after its finale airs on TV. So since the Riverdale Season 3 finale airs on the CW tonight, Season 3 will likely be on Netflix no later than next Thursday, May 23. Maybe you missed a few episodes here or there or you just need to re-watch the entire season. Either way, Netflix has you covered.

To be honest, this season felt more like two seasons rolled into one. It’s hard to believe that Archie went to trial and then jail, trained to be a boxer, and fought Hiram in the ring all in the same season. And while Alice somehow went from being FP’s right-hand woman to being a total Farmie, Betty was hunted by not only the Black Hood but by the Gargoyle King, Jughead’s family increased by two and then his mom left again, and Hiram was carted off to prison. It was a lot to take in and the wild storylines just kept coming. I don't know how all of that and more was fit into one season, but Riverdale has become known for jam-packing seasons and tying it all up with a bow at the end.

Luckily, Season 3 of Riverdale will be on Netflix soon enough, but there is still so much to unpack about the season overall and where Season 4 will pick up with everything that has already gone down. I don't see Edgar Evernever going anywhere or at least staying away now that he is in full-blown villain form and I am waiting with bated breath for Betty to pull a Nathan Scott, a la One Tree Hill, and finally get emancipated from her Alice. There are already so many places Season 4 could go, but before it premieres next fall, you are probably going to want a refresher with all of the outrageous storylines from Season 3.

I expect most of the big storylines from this season to wind down in tonight's Season 3 finale. The Griffins and Gargoyles arc has gone on more than long enough and it's time to get a new big bad in town. Maybe the Farm can be front and center next season, complete with Edgar's organ harvesting scam. If Betty is going to continue as Riverdale’s resident Nancy Drew wannabe, there will likely be another big mystery to uncover and make viewers’ heads hurt from all of its impending layers. Thankfully, I don't see the Black Hood reappearing yet again next season. As interesting as that storyline is every time it's regurgitated, it has been done so much that it's starting to grow a little stale.

There never seems to be a shortage of storylines on Riverdale, though, and I expect Season 4 to be just as bananas as Season 3 was. Until the show comes back in the fall, you will soon be able to re-watch Riverdale Season 3 in its entirety on Netflix.