Riverdale: The Black Hood Identity Mystery Deepens

This Riverdale article contains spoilers.

Well, duh.

Tonight’s episode of Riverdale revealed that, yep, Hal Cooper was indeed the Black Hood. His reasoning? Evil flows through his family like maple syrup in the town’s trees, and he planned on putting a stop to his family’s dark tendencies by killing Alice, Betty and himself. (Of course, this ignores the fact that Polly and her twins are wandering around the San Francisco area, so, um, okay). His final body count? Ms. Grundy, Robert Phillips (AKA the “Sugar Man”), Midge Klump, Dr. Masters.

But have we now and truly seen the last of the Black Hood? In a word, NOPE.

The season finale of Riverdale will be upon us on Wednesday, May 16th, and there’s still some loose ends to tie up. The most obvious being who is the copycat Hood running around who shot up the mayoral debate and who tried to kill Fred Andrews. The answers to who this mystery person is will likely be revealed next week.

Ever since this season began we have been obsessing over the Black Hood. And for good reason, the masked murderer has been this year’s primary antagonist — well, him and Hiram — but as much of a jerk that Hiram is at least he isn’t a cold-blooded killer driven by a weird and wildly inconsistent sense of justice. (Just see the Hood’s ramshackle murder of Dr. Masters, a man who isn’t a “sinner” but rather a person who had the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time). Thus, the obsession with the Black Hood has grown. Previously we explored his ties to Archie Comics, and even chatted with the show’s cast about the Hood’s identity.

So we know that Hal is the Black Hood, but who might the other Hood or Hoods be. Let’s take a look:

Claudius Blossom

Claudius was introduced a few weeks back…and hasn’t really done too much. His plans of taking over the Blossom fortune have been carried out with all the skill of a Police Academy movie, resulting in him being bested by Cheryl. He hasn’t been seen in a while, so could he somehow be the Fake Hood? If so why? Claudius isn’t the likeliest of suspects, but he is a wildcard, and there’s still the matter of Cheryl’s emancipation to be dealt with. Since we don’t know much about him, maybe the prospect of imminent homelessness could have caused him to snap and throw on a Hood. Stranger things have happened…

Tall Boy

Like Penny Peabody, Tall Boy (Scott McNeill) is a once loyal, now disgraced Serpent who wants to bring drugs to the Southside. Since we now know that Hiram Lodge has paid Penny and the Ghoulies to wreak havoc, it makes a certain degree of sense that the now-MIA Tall Boy would be somehow involved in this plans too. So perhaps he was behind the mask when the Hood shot up Riverdale Town Hall or took another pop at Fred Andrews in the most recent episode.

Chic

When last we saw Chic, he was on the run from the Black Hood. (Betty showed him a bit of mercy and gave him a head start). But notice that during Hal’s confession in the latest episode that Chic was not counted among his victims. A theory: Hal knew that he planned on killing himself, Alice, and Betty. Realizing that Chic was a bit of a sociopath himself, he convinced the grifter to continue his work, either by shooting up the debate or by trying to kill Fred Andrews. Then there’s a third, even more chilling possibility, Hal sent Chic to California to kill Polly and her twins — convincing Chic that the only way he could survive is by carrying out his orders.

Hiram Lodge

When the Fake Hood attacked Fred in the latest episode, he didn’t appear to have the same physical bulk as the real deal. Instead, he had a build that seemed more Hiram Lodge-esque. And given how Hiram would do anything to ensure that his takeover of Riverdale would succeed, it is more than understandable that he would pose as the town’s serial killer and murder the only man standing between him and the mayor’s office. Plus, the leather jacket he was sporting was very similiar to the one the Fake Hood was wearing. Hiram definitely is involved with the antics of the Fake Hood, but to the extent of actually covering his own face and getting shit done himself? Yeah, I wouldn’t put it past him.

How do you think the saga of the Black Hood will end? Let us know in the comments!