Season 5 of Riverdale still has nine episodes left, but that hasn't stopped The CW from looking towards the future. As the network announced on Tuesday, May 25, Riverdale Season 6 will premiere with a 5-episode special event. The catch? We don't know what that special event will entail, and Season 6 will likely go on a long hiatus after the five episodes air.

Riverdale's current production and broadcasting schedule were both derailed due to COVID-19, so the boundaries between Season 5 and 6 are a bit murky, but now that The CW has officially announced its Fall schedule and teased
Season 6, here's what the next six months or so will look like for Riverdale:

• August 11: Riverdale returns with 9 new episodes, wrapping up Season 5 on Oct. 6.
• Late October: Riverdale Season 6 premieres along with the rest of The CW's Fall 2021 slate with a special 5-episode "event."
• Late November/Early December: Season 6 goes on hiatus, likely not returning until 2022.

So, the good news is we should be getting 14 new episodes before the end of the year. The bad news is that this all sounds very confusing and also could be subject to change depending on the pandemic.

Now, you might be asking yourself, what does a Riverdale 5-episode event even mean? According to CW Chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz, that's TBD. "We're waiting for Roberto [Aguirre-Sacasa] to come back to us on how he plans to make those five episodes even more special than usual," he told Decider.

Given how much Riverdale loves its cliffhangers, I find it hard to believe that the show would end Season 5 only to pick up Season 6 two or so weeks later. It just doesn't track with Riverdale's M.O. And, if it's a 5-episode special event, then that suggests a change in usual storytelling. That terminology specifically is reminiscent more of The CW's DC Universe crossovers, and since Riverdale doesn't technically have any shows to cross-over with (RIP Katy Keene and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), there's only so much they can do. But I've got some suggestions.

A 'Riverdale' Flashback Roundup

Technically, we already know what Archie, Veronica, Betty, Jughead, Cheryl, and Toni were up to during the 7 year time jump, but what better time than now to go really in depth? Each episode can focus on one character — or group of characters (Toni and Cheryl can go together, for example) — and take us through something that happened in those 7 years. Maybe we can see Veronica and her husband's helicopter crash, Betty's introduction to the Trash Bag Killer, and Jughead's first book release (and that drunken voicemail to Betty).

A Bughead Mystery

I know that Jughead and Tabitha are this season's new crime-solving duo, but, let's face it, nothing will ever beat a good old fashioned Bughead detective story. Structured like a regular thriller, it could be really fun to see them take on a normal crime for once, like a non-serial killer murder, or the disappearance of the giant Pop's sign or something.

An Alternate Universe

Betty and Archie never really got a fair shot at being a couple. I'd love to see an alternate universe mini-season or something to see what they'd have been like together. This could be a fun way to experiment with other ships too, like Veronica and Betty.

A Little CAOS

I know I said CAOS was dead, but that doesn't mean that Riverdale can't go visit the magical world of Greendale. (Those Blossoms are definitely up to something witchy.) Or perhaps Ambrose and Prudence can hop over to Riverdale to see what the mortal life is all about?

What do you want to see in the 5-episode special event? Let us know in the comments!

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Image: Dean Buscher/The CW