Sixty-seven years have gone by.
It's the present day.
Since our last chapter, teenagers have become adults,
gotten married, raised children of their own.
Many have taken their last breaths.
This story tonight
is about saying goodbye to a town that was once lost in time.
But also goodbye to the people who once lived in that town.
It starts near the end.
With a woman named Elizabeth Cooper.
She's 86 years old now,
resting in a small room in her granddaughter's house.
She checks the obituaries every day.
You knew him in high school, didn't you, Grandma Betty?
Seems like he was an interesting person.
He was.
We all were.
We had such marvelous adventures.
You wouldn't have believed it, Alice.
Well, that's it.
That means I'm the last of them.
Alice, honey.
I want to go back.
To Riverdale. One last time.
Before it's too late.
I'm forgetting more and more every day,
and I want to go back before I forget everything.
Well, let's see how you're doing tomorrow.
If you're up for it, yes, we can take a drive to Riverdale.
Thank you, dear.
_
Hello?
I must have fallen asleep.
I was going through our yearbook.
Trying to remember...
Remember what?
Everything, I suppose.
I'm going back to Riverdale tomorrow.
My granddaughter's taking me.
Though going through these pictures,
I just wish I could go back
to how it was.
How we were.
You can, Betty.
You could pick a day, and I'll take you.
- Though it might be painful for you. - Why should it be painful?
Because you won't just be living that day, you'll be seeing yourself live it.
Still...
If you say we can, then...
I wanna go back to a day I missed.
The day everyone got their yearbooks, senior year.
I had the mumps, and I had to stay home and...
I never got my yearbook signed.
I've always regretted that.
Then we'll start in the morning.
You just have to walk through that door, and you'll have your day.
The day you missed.
Oh, my goodness, it's my room.
It's exactly like I remembered.
Hello, room.
Is that...?
Is that really what I looked like?
There were so many things I wanted to change about myself back then.
Why? I was perfect.
We were all perfect.
My window.
How many sunrises have I seen out this window?
How many moons? How many times...?
How many times have I looked out this window into Archie's?
In the thousands, at least.
Archie's about to have a big talk with his mom.
About what he's gonna do after graduation.
Hey, sweetie.
- Breakfast is ready. - Thanks, Mom.
Hey, Mom.
I don't want to be a pest,
but I gotta let Vic know by tomorrow if I'll be joining his crew on Monday.
It just doesn't make sense to me.
Driving around the country with some dusty road crew,
pouring concrete, digging ditches...
It's like President Eisenhower said on the news.
I'll be building the highways that help connect people and places
from coast to coast, all the way to California.
It'll give me something to write about.
But you've written so many wonderful poems in Riverdale.
Mom.
It's only gonna be three months,
and then I'll be back.
No, Archie.
No.
You'll get one look at the Pacific Ocean
and forget all about Riverdale.
Forget Riverdale?
Fat chance.
This will always be my home. Our home.
What?
You're just like your father.
He was full of wanderlust.
He always dreamt about settling in the West.
He never did, but...
maybe you will.
With my blessing.
Thank you.
I love you, Mom.
I love you too, Archie.
I don't remember. What happened to Mrs. Andrews?
She bought her dress shop.
And then one day, a woman named Brooke came in.
They started a conversation,
and a few weeks later, she moved into the Andrews house.
They stayed together until the very end.
Mrs. Andrews was always such a kind woman.
She once gave my mother hell for disowning me.
Oh, stop.
Is that...?
We can't have the baby shower outside in the middle of June.
- I'll melt! - Please, stop being so dramatic, Polly.
We'll get those cute little paper fans.
Mom!
Polly!
You're alive!
And you're so young. And you're talking again.
Elizabeth, what are you doing out of bed? You have the mumps, young lady.
No. No, I feel fine, I'm going to school.
Mom...
You did it. You divorced Dad. You became a stewardess.
Just like you dreamed.
Well, my dream was to see the world.
Not pass out peanuts on a puddle-jumper to Poughkeepsie.
But life goes on.
No, wait, don't rush off, Mom. Just... Can I...? Just look at me. Just...
Look at me.
For heaven's sake, I'm looking at you, Betty.
And I'm seeing a girl who, if she doesn't have the mumps,
better hurry up so she's not late for school.
Right. Of course. School.
First...
I love you, Mom.
I love you, Polly.
I'm so, so happy to see both of you again.
What in...?
Was my mom a stewardess for very long?
On the contrary.
One night, her pilot had a steak,
three martinis, and a heart attack.
And your mom took control of the plane and flew it
from Riverdale to Poughkeepsie,
landing it safely.
That's right.
And one of the passengers on the plane
asked her to dinner out of gratitude for saving his life.
And a few months later, they got married.
He offered to show her the world,
and she wrote you postcards from everywhere they went.
Until one day, the postcards stopped coming.
What about Polly?
She had her twins, Juniper and Dagwood.
She was very fulfilled.
She led a happy life with her family,
but she never got back to performing as Polly Amorous.
I only ever saw Polly perform once. At the Babylonium.
But I can still picture her.
She was such a star.
Are you ready?
To go back to school one last time?
Is this real?
Or a dream?
It's more like something in between.
But this is really what happened on that day back in 1957.
Everyone is so young and beautiful and carefree.
And they have no idea, do they?
How special this time is, how quickly it goes by,
like the blink of an eye.
Bee?
You're not supposed to be here.
Or did you have some kind of miracle recovery?
Veronica!
Thank goodness!
This is too wonderful for words.
There's an ego boost I didn't know I needed.
You should get the mumps more often.
Well, come on then.
The day has barely begun and we're already behind.
There are about a million things to do before the last bell rings.
We're getting our yearbooks today, don't forget.
www.subtitulamos.tv
I can't believe it, Vee.
This is the last time we'll be walking into Riverdale High
ever in our lives.
Betty, we haven't even graduated yet.
It's too soon to be swamped with nostalgia.
That said, I'm feeling a little verklempt myself.
- I'll powder my nose. Catch you later? - Yes. Later.
_
Attention, Riverdale High students.
- Toni. - As your Senior Class President,
I'm reminding all students to pick up their yearbooks
in the Varsity Lounge today.
One per student.
Now...
on a more personal note,
as we seniors look forward to graduation,
it's only fitting that I share one final poem with you.
It's entitled "Dreams,"
by Langston Hughes.
"Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow."
Students of Riverdale High,
we dreamed of a better school for ourselves.
And with Principal Weatherbee's help,
we made it happen.
As some of us head out into the world, please remember that we,
each and every one of us,
have the power to make real and lasting change.
But we have to dream it first.
I remember these.
Articles about Rosa Parks and the Bus Boycott.
Toni always made sure that Riverdale High was in dialogue
with whatever greater issues were affecting the country.
It's true.
- And that would continue until... - Don't. Don't...
tell me what happened to Toni. Please.
I don't want to know yet.
All right.
I won't
Ew. Barf. What are you doing here?
The word from the bird is you have the mumps.
Back off, I don't want your lumpy cooties.
No. It's fine, Cheryl, that was a false alarm.
Can I please get my yearbook? And will you sign it for me?
Not right now, Betty. As you can see, I'm busy. Later.
- But what if I don't see you again? - You most certainly will.
As long as you're not germy.
I expect you at my and Toni's art show opening at the Dark Room tonight.
And afterwards, we're hosting a get-together at Thornhill.
- I'll be at both. - Of course you will.
Now move along, Betty. There's a line behind you.
Toodles.
- Thanks, Fangs. - No sweat, Betts.
Fangs is used to giving out autographs
now that he had a hit single on the charts.
Baby, come on.
- "Pixie Girl" only made it to Number 8. - That's a huge accomplishment.
And what finally got my parents to sing another tune about us getting married.
- And wait till you hear his next song, Betty. - Speaking of, we gotta motor.
I'm supposed to be at the studio in half an hour
to lay down some tracks before going on my summer tour.
Tour?
Six weeks on the road with an all-star lineup.
A different city every night.
They've booked us a super boss tour bus and everything.
Catch you later, Betty.
Bye.
It didn't work out like they'd hoped, did it?
No.
Four weeks into his tour,
Fangs' bus was heading over the Rocky Mountains
when one of its tires blew.
There were no survivors.
Poor Fangs.
He was the first one of us to...
pass away.
But...
that's his gold record over there.
It'll hang in this room for as long as there's a Riverdale High.
What about Midge?
Well, thanks to Fangs' songs,
Midge and their daughter were taken care of for the rest of their lives.
I remember.
I'm remembering more and more.
Hey, Betty, what are you doing for lunch?
It's a beautiful day.
Clay and I are gonna eat outside, if you wanna join us.
Kevin.
It is a beautiful day. I would love to join you and Clay.
Gosh. I can't believe this is the last time
we'll ever have lunch together at school, Betty. Can you?
I know.
Everything is going so fast, Kev.
And, Clay, I feel as if I barely got to know you.
That'll change.
Clay and I are gonna be roommates next year.
With me going to Columbia to study literature
and Kevin going to NYU to study musical theater writing,
it just made sense for us to get an apartment together.
That's what we told our folks.
Well, my mom and Clay's dad,
they were swell about it.
Just asked us to be careful, like they always do.
And we always are.
What happens to them?
Nothing awful, I hope.
No.
They lived a very spirited life in the heart of Harlem.
Yes. I remember visiting them.
All they had to do was open a window,
and an entire universe of music and art would pour in.
Clay became a tenured professor at Columbia University,
and Kevin started an off-Broadway theater company.
They saw and survived so much from that apartment.
Kevin was 82 when he went to sleep and never woke up.
Clay passed away a few weeks later.
He went out to enjoy some sun in Central Park,
sat on a bench to feed some pigeons,
and that was that.
Hey, Betty? Are you okay?
Yeah.
Yeah. I was just thinking about you and Clay, and how...
you two are soul mates.
Sorry. I know I'm being silly.
Well, speaking about soul mates,
what about you guys?
Have the four of you figured out what you're gonna do yet?
The four of us? What do you mean?
Betty. It's us. Clay and I, we know the truth.
But if you want, even though it's the last day of school,
we're happy to keep up the ruse that you're only dating Archie
and not the others.
The others?
Come on. Don't tell me you've suddenly forgotten
that you, Archie, Veronica, and Jughead
have been in a quad this entire last year.
A quad?
What are you so happy about, Little Miss Mumps?
Oh. I'm just...
remembering where I was
a year ago.
Feeling boxed in by my mother's expectations
and society's rules.
Fighting to have my voice heard.
Yes, yes, we all read The Teenage Mystique.
And now?
And now, I'm remembering...
It's been a really fun year.
Thank you for signing my yearbook, Reggie.
Anything for the gal who helped me fix up Bella.
Gotta say though,
you and me could've had one hell of a senior year
taking Bella up to Lovers Lane,
if only you'd chosen me over Chowderhead Andrews.
I didn't choose Archie over you, Reggie.
Or over Jughead, for that matter.
Can you keep a secret?
One that only a handful of people know?
Yeah.
Turns out, after Angel Tabitha's last visit,
I remembered what it was like being with Jughead.
And being with Archie.
And Archie and Veronica remembered what it was like being with each other.
But Veronica and Jughead had just starting a thing.
And remembering all of that
sort of just took the pressure off of us having to make a single choice.
So the four of us realized that we could,
and maybe should, just be...
together.
At the same time.
Are you saying that for the past year,
the four of you have been dating?
Each other?
It started innocently enough with the four of us going on double dates,
me and Archie, Jughead and Veronica.
And then it kind of naturally evolved from there.
Some nights, Archie would sneak into my bedroom,
and Veronica would go home with Jughead.
Other nights, Archie would spend the night at The Pembrooke,
and I'd go over to Jughead's.
And sometimes, more often than you'd imagine,
I would find my way to Veronica's.
Okay. But...
you guys never thought about bringing me into the mix?
Veronica and I talked about it, of course.
A flutter bum like you?
But you were always so focused on basketball.
Trust me, I would've made the time, Goldilocks.
But speaking of that...
I'd better get back to it.
I'm so glad I got to know you, Reggie.
This you.
And I think you're destined for greatness.
You too, Cooper.
Did Reggie go professional?
Yes.
The following year, he played for Kansas State.
Then he got drafted by the Lakers.
During the off-season, he would work at his family farm
until his folks passed away, then he had to sell the land.
At which point, he started coaching here at Riverdale High.
He was buried in Duck Creek,
next to his wife and his parents.
He had two sons,
who still run the used-car dealership, Mantle Motors.
We go to the Babylonium next.
- How's that absinthe, Betty? - It's delicious.
It's just a bit early in the day for me.
Well, I want to prepare you, because...
I have news.
That I haven't yet shared with the boys.
The final pieces fell into place yesterday, but...
I'm moving back to the City of Angels.
Los Angeles?
Why? How?
Josie McCoy's words about taking over Hollywood
have been ringing in my ears since her visit.
So I finally called my good friend Peter Roth,
and asked about getting a job working for him in La La Land.
I've done the small-town thing.
I've done the theater-owner thing.
And I now know what I wanna do next.
- And what is that, Miss Lodge? - I wanna produce movies.
And run a studio someday,
just like you.
I can't tell you how excited I am
to begin this next chapter, Betty.
To get in on the ground floor,
learn the ropes,
work my way up to being a studio executive.
One of the gatekeepers.
Sounds like...
an opportunity of a lifetime.
It is.
But I'm detecting something, Betty.
I'm so proud of you.
Of all the things you've done, of all the businesses that you've started,
this move feels...
the most right.
I agree.
Like it was my destiny.
To be in the movies.
The only thing is, California's so far away.
Betty...
It doesn't matter how far away we are...
we will always be in each other's lives.
I promise.
I always loved this theater.
It had a good run.
Lots of kids made out here.
Lots of gum under these seats.
And Veronica?
The summer after graduation,
Veronica started as an assistant at Silver Shield Studios.
But within a few years, she was running the place.
She became known for her impeccable taste
and for taking risks on young, raw talent.
- She won two Oscars - _
and produced some of the most iconic movies of our time.
Vee was buried in the Hollywood Forever cemetery.
I visited her grave once.
And went to some of her premieres before that.
She was such a force.
I wish...
I wish I had kept in better touch with her.
With everyone. All of us. We were so close.
Inseparable.
And then we just...
That's what today is all about.
Remembering.
And getting one more chance.
And no regrets.
Thank you for coming tonight.
This is the culmination of a year-long collaboration
between myself and my partner in all things,
Toni Topaz.
Our relationship is the most thrilling thing I could've ever imagined.
We're always creating.
There's no separation between our art and our love.
So please, mingle,
enjoy the work,
and feel free to buy a piece, or two.
Also, I'll be sitting at that table over there
selling a collected edition
of the first six issues of Black Athena,
Riverdale High's acclaimed literary magazine.
It's sure to be a collector's item.
Thank you.
These paintings are incredible. I should try to buy one.
In case you were wondering,
Cheryl had an incredible career as a painter.
Her work was shown in galleries and museums across the country.
Even a couple in Europe.
What about Toni?
Toni and Cheryl stayed together.
Moved out West together.
They settled in the Oakland hills, in a Craftsman house,
where they lived as artists and activists,
and they had a son,
Dale, named after Riverdale, of course.
And how did they pass away?
Peacefully.
After living full, gorgeous,
sexy lives.
What about Julian?
Bit of a lost soul.
After graduation, he enlisted, served, and died in Vietnam.
He was 28.
Nana Rose?
Reincarnated.
Multiple times.
The Bee and Mrs. T got married.
Oh, them.
Frank Andrews and Tom Keller were murdered.
By who?
A hustler they picked up one rainy night
named Chic.
What's happening over there?
Veronica has just told us about her plans to go out West.
And we are not taking it well.
I wasn't there for that conversation.
No.
You should be.
Might help cushion the blow.
What's the tale, Nightingales? Why the long faces?
Ronnie just dropped an atomic bomb on us.
I told them my Los Angeles news.
Ain't that just the pits?
Come on, boys.
I know we haven't been talking about it lately,
but we all knew we'd be going our separate ways after graduation.
- Yeah, but now it just feels so real. - And...
final.
Hey. Do we really wanna spend what could be our last night together
acting like a bunch of wet blankets?
Senior year was amazing.
And incredibly fulfilling.
Not just physically, emotionally too.
Seriously, how lucky were we to have been brought together?
Given the opportunity to know and love each other
across not one, but two lifetimes?
We should be celebrating that, not mourning it. Not yet, at least.
Betty's right.
The future can wait.
Tonight is about appreciating everything we've been through.
And let me tell you, we have been through a hell of a lot.
You know, I gotta say, if I had to live through high school twice,
which we did...
I'm glad it was with you three yahoos.
I love you all so much.
Meeting you was...
the best thing that could've possibly happened to me.
Heartbreaks and all.
And I'm so glad to be here to say that to you tonight.
Hey.
Should we all take one last ride in my hot rod together,
to Cheryl's after-party?
Where are the others?
Already inside.
- Why aren't you there? - I can't.
I can't go in.
- How come? - Because I know, and you know,
that this is the last time that all of us will be together, ever.
- Betty... - I don't want to say goodbye.
I just... don't.
It will be too painful, too much to bear, like you said.
It was a mistake to come back here. I should be at home with the mumps.
I should not be saying goodbye. It's...
That's life, Betty.
You say hello.
You walk alongside someone for a while.
And then you say goodbye.
That's the arc of a life,
isn't it?
Every minute counts.
Okay.
As some of you may know,
I'm kind of a big-time poet now.
We know, Andrews. You won't stop talking about it.
In any case, I wrote something to commemorate our time together.
Aw. Are you gonna make us get the weeps, Archie?
"This is an ode to my best friends.
And every good thing that must come to an end.
Tomorrow we won't see each other in study hall,
so here's a few memories for us to recall.
And no, I won't be mentioning the epic highs and lows Of high school football
I grew up next door to Betty Cooper
who everyone thinks is super-duper
Just don't mutter the word "Tangerine"
'cause it sets off her serial killer gene.
Veronica Lodge, always in pearls,
there isn't a business you haven't given a whirl.
Funny to think you were never Prom Queen,
then again, you were once-upon-a-time a human dialysis machine
I specifically asked Angel Tabitha not to let anyone remember that.
Cheryl Blossom, you're as rich as a Rockefeller.
You also kept your beloved Jason Down in a cellar.
But I'm glad to see you and the Serpent Queen back together.
Only thing, Toni, Southside's one word,
so whoever designed your jacket is a terrible speller.
Jughead Jones needs no intro.
He made his teacher jump out a window.
He thinks himself a private eye
chained himself to Southside High.
Do me next.
Kevin's voice is so beautiful he belongs in a chorus,
but he spends most of his time cruising Fox Forest.
Fangs,
look at you now.
You're a rockstar greaser
A long way from a cult member who stole organs to put in a freezer
Yeah.
Last but not least, Mantle the Magnificent
Pound for pound you're my closest equivalent.
But there's that other Reggie so how do we know you're even legitimate?
I'm gonna need to see some kind of birth certificate.
Not cool, Andrews. You know I'm sensitive about that.
These are just some of our wild endeavors.
But now we've come to the end of our time together.
It's truly one of my life's greatest pleasures...
to call you all my best friends...
Forever and ever."
You weren't planning on leaving without saying goodbye, were you?
I'm afraid it's time for me to go.
Okay.
Well...
Tonight isn't goodbye, anyway.
I know we'll see each other again.
Maybe...
Maybe we'll even end up together.
I've always felt...
that it would be you and me at the end of the road.
I mean, it started with us, didn't it?
A boy and a girl next door to each other.
That's a lovely sentiment, Archie.
But that's not what happens in the future.
No?
No.
Your mom was right.
You make it to California and you don't look back.
Then you meet a sweet, strong girl who makes you laugh.
And you settle down in Modesto.
Then you have a beautiful family.
You're a professional construction worker and an amateur writer,
and you are so, so content
and happy.
And when you die...
you ask to be buried here
in Riverdale...
next to your father.
Glad you went in?
I am.
But it reminded me...
there's one last person I want to visit before we leave.
If we have time.
We do.
I just wanna get some flowers first.
It was right after the beginning of senior year that he...
Yes.
It was a terrible blow to the town.
At least it happened in his sleep.
What do you think happens to us...
when we die?
I can't speak for everyone, but for a man like Pop Tate,
I have a feeling he's probably still doing what he loved best,
flipping burgers and mixing shakes,
and making people smile.
For the rest of eternity, I bet.
Strange to say, but I read your obituary.
- _ - In the paper.
_
It was lovely, Jughead.
Yours was a life well-lived.
As we used to say back in the day...
it was swell.
I put all my eggs in one basket.
Jughead's Madhouse magazine.
It became an institution.
It was juvenile satire at best.
Just mocking all of the Sacred Cows.
People loved it.
And they still love it 70 years later.
It's mostly teens and kids who read it,
but I'm not gonna lie,
as far as legacies go, I could've done a heck of a lot worse.
Do you think about that a lot? Legacy?
No.
Not too much.
Well, you should.
First it was The Teenage Mystique.
A self-published best-seller.
Then it was your advice column, "Betty's Diary."
All I remember from those days were the never-ending deadlines.
Then it was New York.
Freelancing and protesting.
There was so much to be angry about back then.
- Still is. - The same fights.
But other people are fighting them now.
The younger generation.
Who grew up reading the magazine you started.
She Says magazine.
The go-to source
for feminist and progressive causes,
exposing hard truths.
Still being published today, I might add.
As far as professional legacies go,
I could've done a heck of a lot worse.
Do you have any regrets about not getting married?
None.
But I'm so happy I adopted my daughter, Carla.
I loved being a mother.
And a grandmother.
That's my true legacy.
My family.
What about you? Any regrets about not getting circled?
Sometimes.
I know it's impossible, but...
I wish that we could stay in Riverdale forever.
With all of our friends.
As we were.
Young and beautiful.
Full of hope.
Bursting with love for each other.
I know it's not possible.
No.
It's not.
In fact, it's time to get you back.
I know.
I'm ready.
To face whatever comes next.
Oh, Grandma, look. We're nearly there.
Goodbye, town sign.
Goodbye, Sweetwater River and all its mysteries...
And Fox Forest and its haunted trees.
Goodbye, Red Door, and the secrets behind it.
Goodbye, room. Goodbye, window,
and Archie's room.
Goodbye, Pembrooke,
with your crackling fires
and sexy sleepovers.
Goodbye to cups of coffee and late nights of writing,
and to maple syrup mornings
and spin-the-bottle parties.
Goodbye to buttered popcorn,
and double-features, and double-dates.
Goodbye to music and poetry and art.
Goodbye, Riverdale High.
Goodbye to basketball games and pep rallies
and dances at the gym.
Goodbye, lockers. Goodbye, Blue & Gold.
Goodbye, chalk dust, and bobby-pins,
and whoopee caps, and whoopee cushions.
Goodbye to friends, and feeling scared,
and Fourth of July camping trips,
and time capsules,
and time.
I wish... I wish there were more of it.
Goodbye, Riverdale.
It was wonderful getting to grow up here.
Grandma Betty, we're here.
Look, honey, she's asleep.
I don't think she's asleep, honey.
? You're mine ?
? And we belong together ?
? Yes, we belong together ?
? For eternity ?
? You're mine ?
? Your lips belong to me ?
? Yes, they belong to only me ?
? For eternity ?
? You're my, my baby ?
? And you'll always be ?
? I swear by everything I own ?
? You'll always, always be mine ?
? You're mine ?
? And we belong together... ?
Perfect timing, Betty.
We got you a shake. Your favorite, strawberry.
Thank you.
? For eternity ?
We'll leave them here, I think.
Where they're forever juniors...
forever 17.
Always grabbing a burger or a shake.
Always going to or coming from some dance.
Talking about school, the big game,
who's dating who,
homework,
whatever movie is playing at the Babylonium.
You know, the moments that make up a life.
That's where they've...
Where we've...
always been.
In this diner, in this town...
in the Sweet Hereafter.
So if you happen to see that neon sign some lonely night,
at the end of that long journey,
the journey that every one of us is on,
pull over, come on in, take a seat,
and know that you'll always be among friends.
And that Riverdale will always be your home.
Until then...
Have a good night.
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