‘Riverdale’ Chapter Fifty-Two Recap: The Return of Jason Blossom…Sorta

Sheriff FP (Skeet Ulrich) returns home and reveals that he found the family trailer, which Jughead (Cole Sprouse) burned to a crisp in Chapter Fifty-One. When FP leaves the room with Jellybean (Trinity Likins), Gladys (Gina Gershon) threatens Jughead, saying she’ll make his life a living hell if he outs her drug-related activities.

Although Jughead promises to run her out of town, Gladys doesn’t seem fazed. “Here’s a tip. Don’t cross me again,” she says.

In an attempt to make Riverdale “a very unwelcome place for Gladys Jones,” Jughead enlists the Serpents to infiltrate her drug dealers. He appears to be doing a pretty good job. That is until he accidentally ruins one of FP’s busts, driving a wedge between the Jones family.

“I swear, I’ll throw your asses in jail,” FP says.

At the Lodge home, Veronica (Camila Mendes) finds Hermione (Marisol Nichols) in an angry rage. Not only is Hiram (Mark Consuelos) moving forward with opening the prison, but he’s also refusing to invite Hermione (aka the Mayor of Riverdale) to the opening.

The problem? It’s only a matter of time before people find out about the divorce, meaning she’s no longer under Hiram’s protection.

That night, Veronica confronts her parents and demands they go to marriage counseling. Unfortunately, they’re not buying it.

“You raised me to believe that family is everything in the world, and I stupidly believed it,” Veronica says.

The next day, Hermione returns home to find a package filled with dead fish. We’re not entirely sure what it means, but one message is clear: Someone wants her dead.

So, Veronica turns to her dad and demands he protect Hermione. Although he seems skeptical at first, Hiram agrees to look out for her.

When Evelyn approaches Betty (Lili Reinhart) about a welcome interview with The Farm, she jumps at the opportunity to see “inside” the cult. The introduction consists of a tour of the premises by Kevin (Casey Cott) and an interrogation by Evelyn, who asks a series of irrelevant questions before saying, “We’ll call you.”

In the meantime, Betty enlists Cheryl (Madelaine Petsch) to go undercover. Cheryl devises a plan in which Evelyn finds her crying in the school bathroom, forcing an invite to The Farm…and it works.

Cheryl’s interview is seen through the eyes of Betty, who stole obtained the audio tapes. Although Cheryl’s questioning starts off ordinary, things take an interesting turn when Edgar enters the room and demands to speak with Cheryl.

When he asks about her late brother Jason (Trevor Stines), who was killed in season one, Cheryl clams up.

“Memories are often painful, but they don’t have to be,” Edgar says. “They can be a path to revival, and I believe The Farm can help you see that.”

When he tells her to follow him, he leads her to a broom closet just as the tapes screech to an end.

At school, Betty tracks down Cheryl and demands to know what Edgar showed her. Cheryl plays coy, refusing to reveal any further details except for the fact that she’s becoming an official member of The Farm. Dun dun dun.

Meanwhile, Archie receives a call from the juvenile detention center. It’s Mad Dog (Eli Goree), and he needs help. It turns out he’s being transferred to a brand-new prison, which—you guessed it—is being run by Hiram. To top it off, the guards are trying to revive the inmate fight club.

So, Archie goes to Veronica, who goes to Governor Dooley and threatens to go national if he doesn’t put an end to the fight club.

Cut to Mad Dog sitting at Pops Diner with Archie, raving about his freedom. When Archie introduces him to his new hobby (aka boxing), they’re interrupted by Elio (Julian Haig), who offers to help them get scouted.

Although Archie brushes it off, Mad Dog later takes the offer behind Archie’s back.

The episode concludes with several important events. Here are the key takeaways:

• Archie and Jughead raid the Gargoyles’ drug headquarters, and it’s a total flop.
• Hiram and Hermione’s marriage is officially annulled.
• Veronica sent the dead fish to her mom in an attempt to get her parents back together.
• Cheryl says the reason she’s joining The Farm is because they showed her Jason.
• Betty discovers that Alice (Mädchen Amick) also sees Chic (Hart Denton) when she visits The Farm.
• When Betty asks to meet Edgar, she tells him to “start from the beginning.”

The episode concludes with FP stumbling upon what appears to be a Gargoyle ritual gone awry.

Who are the dead bodies? And what are they implying? Guess we’ll have to wait until Riverdale returns to The CW on Wednesday, April 17, at 8 p.m.