Original subtitles

♪ One, two, three o'clock Four o'clock, rock ♪

♪ Five, six, seven o'clock Eight o'clock, rock ♪

♪ Nine, ten, eleven o'clock Twelve o'clock, rock ♪

♪ We're gonna rock around the clock tonight ♪

♪ Put your glad rags on And join me, hon ♪

♪ We'll have some fun When the clock strikes one ♪

♪ We're gonna rock Around the clock tonight ♪

♪ We're gonna rock, rock, rock Till broad daylight ♪

♪ We're gonna rock, gonna rock Around the clock tonight ♪

♪ When the clock strikes two Three and four ♪

The year is 1955.

Number one on the Billboard charts is "Rock Around The Clock,"

an earworm if I've ever heard one.

Now, some random fun facts.

In 1955, a hamburger with a side of fries

set you back 30 cents.

A comic book, a dime. A pulp novel, a quarter.

It's been two days since Bailey's Comet almost decimated us,

and we were somehow zapped back to the 1950s.

I'm not sure how that happened exactly.

I'm not sure if we're merely in the past,

or in the past of an alternate universe.

But things are different here in Riverdale.

For starters, I live in an abandoned train car with Hot Dog,

which actually tracks.

And at Riverdale High, we're all juniors again.

Betty and Kevin aren't merely friends,

they're dating.

Cheryl's twin brother is alive, but he's not Jason.

He's Julian.

No sign of a Reggie yet.

But Archie exists, and he's still pretty much a teen Charles Atlas.

None of them remember our lives

from before we became teenagers again,

and I haven't tried to remind them yet.

I've been waiting to reconnect with the one person

who might be able to shed light on our predicament,

because she was both chronokinetic

and the town's guardian angel, my girlfriend, Tabitha Tate.

Bus from Mississippi's pulling in.

Wonder if it was as bad down there

as they're saying on the radio.

I already knew what Pop would soon find out.

It was much, much worse.

Tabitha, Toni and some of Riverdale High's other students of color

were in Mississippi for the trial

of the two men who murdered Black teenager Emmett Till,

for supposedly whistling at a white woman.

The jury deliberated for all of 67 minutes

and then acquitted the killers.

It was one of the single most shameful

and appalling events of this or any era.

Uh, Tabitha?

Uh, they

announced the verdict on... on the radio.

It made me sick in my stomach.

- If you need anything... - That's what we're trying to figure out now,

what our next move should be... but I appreciate the offer.

It's Jughead, right?

Uh, yeah. Yes.

I'll let you know.

It's overwhelming.

Heartbreaking.

Whichever genius said that the '50s

were the greatest decade of all time

should seriously have their head examined.

Archie? Can I speak to you for a minute?

What's wrong, Mom?

They printed more pictures from James Dean's car accident.

Oh, I can't even show them to you.

You shouldn't look at that stuff, Mom,

- it upsets you. - No, what upsets me

- is the idea of you on the road being reckless. - Oh.

And that's why I...

I'm going to need your keys, Archie.

You're not going to drive that hot rod anymore.

Mom. Whoa! Now, Mom, I'm a safe driver.

It's not a hot rod.

It's barely a cut above a jalopy...

It's got fire painted on its doors.

- Mom. - Keys. Now.

♪ Well, that's All right, Mama ♪

♪ That's all right for you ♪

♪ That's all right, mama Just anyway you do ♪

♪ That's all right That's all right ♪

♪ That's all right now, Mama Anyway you do ♪

♪ Well, Mama she done told me ♪

♪ Papa done told me too ♪

♪ Son, that gal Your foolin' with ♪

♪ She ain't no good for you ♪

♪ But that's all right That's all right ♪

What do you think, Betty?

Toni, your writing is remarkable.

This is the most important piece of reporting that I've read in my two years

as editor-in-chief at the Blue and Gold.

But we've tried covering Emmett Till before.

Both times Principal Featherhead has vetoed the stories.

Betty, I heard Mamie Till give the most incredible, inspiring speech

after the verdict was delivered.

And I got a chance to interview people

that knew Emmett personally,

his friends, his neighbors.

And I made them a promise I would help tell his story.

I agree wholeheartedly.

I'll make an appointment for us with Featherhead.

This is a squirrel mill.

A mill is a hot rod or souped-up jalopy which was once just a car.

Well, it should happen to all...

Mrs. Thornton, I'm sorry to interrupt your class,

but I did want to personally introduce a new student to our Riverdale High family.

She's just moved here from sunny Los Angeles.

Damn.

Even in 1955, Veronica Lodge knew

how to make an entrance.

Enchante, I'm sure.

Thank you, Principal Featherhead.

Now, before you ask,

yes, I am that Veronica Lodge,

the daughter of Hiram and Hermione Lodge,

the married stars of America's number-one rated television program, Oh Mija!

For the foreseeable future,

I will be staying with my auntie and uncle

at the Pembrooke in downtown Riverdale.

Why? Well,

you may have heard about MGM's upcoming film adaptation of Our Town.

Though I can't confirm that the lead role of innocent ingenue Emily Webb

has already been cast

with a certain raven-haired starlet, namely moi,

I did feel it was an opportune time

to take a sabbatical from Hollywood

and get a feel for small-town life.

But please, I beg of you treat me as one of your own,

not as a scion of Tinseltown royalty.

Thank you.

Mind if I join you?

- Actually... - Yeah, sure.

I believe I caught on your names

in Mrs. Thornton's class.

Archie. Betty.

Kevin. Julian.

Hmm.

Remind me, what's yours again?

- Cheryl. - That's right, Cheryl.

So, what are we dishing about?

- Clue me in. - James Dean's untimely passing, of course.

I am the president of his fan club here at Riverdale High.

Your parents' show is hilarious.

We tune in every week.

You and everyone else,

if Mr. Nielsen is to be believed.

Where in Los Angeles did you live?

Bel Air.

In a ghastly old mansion Vincent Price used to own.

Is that close to where James Dean lived?

Wait, you didn't know James Dean, did you?

Kevin, don't be so provincial.

James Dean was a movie star.

He was friends with Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson.

Actually, Jimmy and I were quite friendly.

We went skinny-dipping in the pool at the Chateau Marmaduke.

- You went skinny-dipping? - With James Dean?

Once or was it a regular thing?

I suppose next you'll be saying you and Jimmy dated.

No, but he did enjoy playing both sides of the net.

Girls and boys.

Wait. Hang on! Are you suggesting that James Dean was...

What? I mean, he seemed like

such a regular guy. Like a cowboy, almost.

How dare you besmirch his memory like that?

Don't you be so provincial.

I don't know why I'm so surprised to hear such filthy lies

coming out of the mouth of some wild child

who grew up surrounded by perverts

going to sex parties and orgies!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have lost my appetite.

What about Sal Mineo?

Remember, the astronomy club is meeting after school today.

We will be bringing something ideas to fundraise

so we can purchase new telescope

before Bailey's Comet arrives.

B-Bailey's Comet is coming again?

Guys!

When?

Oh, not for two years, Mr. Jones.

But it's an extremely expensive telescope,

and this will be the only opportunity

we'll have to see the comet in our lifetime.

We mustn't miss it.

Hey, Veronica, can I walk you home?

Walk?

Do I look like the kind of girl who walks home?

Ready, Ronnie?

Thanks for the offer, Archie,

but as you can see, I've already secured an escort home.

Um, excuse me.

And how do you expect me to get home, dear brother?

You got two feet, don't you?

Use them or lose them.

I'm sorry.

Miss Topaz, Miss Cooper,

but I gave your article to Dr. Werthers for review,

and we both agree,

it's not suitable for publication.

Toni's reporting is, it's thorough, insightful, balanced.

Be that as it may, as a child psychologist,

it's my expert opinion that the details of the Emmett Till case

are far too violent and disturbing

for young, impressionable minds.

People, your students, need to understand

the gravity of what happens so it doesn't happen again...

here.

These sorts of things don't happen in Riverdale.

And may I remind you that we were

one of the first high schools in the country to integrate.

- Isn't that enough? - Hardly.

We don't have any Black teachers.

We don't study or learn about Black authors.

Change doesn't happen overnight, Miss Topaz.

Your article's very well-written.

Surely you can find some satisfaction in that.

Mom, Dad, you haven't said anything.

Did you read the article my friend Toni wrote?

Yes, we did, honey.

And?

And it was very well-written.

- Extremely well-written. - Mm-hmm.

So you'll read it on the air, Dad?

Jeez, hon, we only get 15 minutes of airtime a night.

Do we really need to spend one minute on a story that...

well, has nothing to do with us?

Dad, everyone watches your nightly broadcast.

Imagine the impact it would have

if you, the face of RIVW, talked about Emmett Till.

Elizabeth, it's not that simple, honey.

I mean, you know very well that we have to run

every single one of our stories

past our sponsors for approval.

And I'm sorry, this is just not in their bailiwick.

Your sponsors, you're talking about

The Blossoms, Blossom Maple Syrup.

But if we lose their support,

RIVW won't be able to expand its programming.

Hmm. You won't be able to give yourself a raise, you mean.

Betty. Darling, why is this so important to you?

Because what happened to Emmett Till was a complete injustice.

A crime emblematic of everything

that's wrong with this country.

And nobody except my friend Toni

and her friends seem to care about it.

You know, this might sound crazy, Jug.

The first time that I saw her,

I felt like I was hit by a thunderbolt or something.

Shazam!

But how is a guy like me going to get anywhere

with a girl like Veronica Lodge if I'm riding a damn bicycle?

That's why I'm sneaking this baby out tonight.

I admit, while Archie poured his heart out to me,

I was racking my brains.

If Bailey's Comet was what sent us all to the past,

Bailey's Comet might be able to send us back to the future.

But I needed help.

But with my friends unaware of their former lives,

how can I make them remember?

It would take some kind of tangible proof to jolt them awake, but what?

Jug, have you seen my dad's hammer? I need to smack this dent out.

Your dad's hammer?

Did everyone bring an item?

Putting in a guitar pick and a hammer from my dad's toolbox.

It was a long shot.

But could that time capsule we buried

graduation weekend, possibly have survived

whatever cosmic event sent us back to 1955?

The items in that capsule might trigger their memories.

Do you have a shovel that I could borrow?

Thank God!

Well, well, well.

Color me curious.

The all-American boy is secretly a hot-rodder.

I was hoping I could maybe give you a ride home today.

Consider it a date.

Archie. Veronica.

I'm holding an emergency meeting in the music room. Hurry!

Who is that person again?

What is all this junk, Jughead?

These headlines are like Dr. Seuss.

Just take a moment. Look at what you're holding.

Do you remember anything? Do you... Do you feel anything?

I mean, I like the jacket, but I've never seen this before in my life.

I've been to a lot of movie sets,

so I know a good prop when I see one, and these are okay.

- They're not props. - Hedwig and the Angry Inch.

I don't get it. An "inch" of what?

When did you even get a chance

to bury my dad's hammer in a cooler?

I didn't. You did.

We all buried something of emotional significance

in that time capsule 67 years ago.

- But in the future. - The future?

Yeah. Yes.

This is gonna sound nuts, okay?

Just hear me out.

Thanks to a cataclys