The final moments of Riverdale's fifth season put Archie and Betty's lives on the line — all thanks to a newly exiled Hiram, who planted a bomb under Archie's bed and waited until he was just out of town to detonate it. We didn't see the bomb explode, but we did see the clock tick down on it and, moments later, smoke rising in the distance over what at least looks like Archie's house. It's enough to make anyone wonder: Is Archikens a goner?
I'm going to just throw it out there: No. Archie is not going to die on Riverdale. Sure, K.J. Apa just had a cute baby, and Riverdale is creeping up there in seasons, but killing off Archie on Riverdale — at least, without him first sacrificing himself to save the town, Veronica, or whatever random military friend he took in this week — is not going to happen.
Honestly, it's anyone's guess as what's going to happen on Riverdale, or, for the next five episodes, Rivervale. Is Archie really a goner? Here are some theories as to how it could all shake out if Archie doesn't escape that bomb.
Archie Almost Dies, But Ends Up In A Coma
The big theory is that the Season 6 special event will actually be a dream sequence of some kind, as in promos for the upcoming season, everyone calls Riverdale by a new-but-basically-the-same name: Rivervale. Maybe the next five episodes are what happens in Archie's comatose brain after he is wounded, but not killed, by the bomb blast. The Season 6 event series would therefore end once Archie gets better.
Archie Dies In The Hospital
As suspicious as I am that Archie will survive Hiram's latest attempt on his life, it's also very possible that Archie doesn't...at least, not ultimately. Perhaps Archie does go into a coma (cue up the whole Rivervale event) but sadly dies instead of waking up — or, even worse, dies shortly after waking up, in a very This Is Us-style twist. That would be heartbreaking, of course, but it would also give the town the drive to carry on Archie's legacy and save Riverdale once and for all.
Archie Dies In The Blast, But Betty Survives
If that bomb goes off, it's going to be pretty hard to explain how Archie, who was in the closest vicinity to the blast, survived. One way that feels fitting for Archie to die is if he did so saving someone he cared about — in this case, his new girlfriend (?!?) Betty. If Archie does die saving her life, it would give Betty a reason to help make Riverdale a better, safer place for everyone. Though would she really need extra motivation, given what happened to her sister?!
Archie Dies, But Is Brought Back By Cheryl & Sabrina
OK, hear me out: Sabrina has already brought back someone from the dead before, to questionable results. Is it possible that she'll do the same for Archie after the bomb, at the behest of her new witchy friend Cheryl? If so, we could be looking at a much, much different Riverdale for Season 6 — like, say, one that more closely resembles the world in Afterlife With Archie?
It's also possible that Sabrina only comes around to clean up Cheryl's magical mess. Sabrina is not slated to arrive in town until the fourth episode of Season 6, so perhaps Cheryl already casts that spell by the time Sabrina shows up to do damage control...and fix a zombiefied Archie in the process.