Review: Riverdale Vol. 3

Quick Summary

Pros: There are a few interesting and funny moments here and there.

Cons: The stories told here are very generic. The entire volume does little to expand on the Riverdale universe or the characters within it. The artwork is lackluster at best.

Overall: This volume is the least memorable and most disappointing in the entire series. It fails to offer anything significantly unique and instead focuses on rehashing old high school tropes. The positives here come from some humorous interactions and some very brief moments of character development, but these positives are few and far between. Those desperate for more stories in the Riverdale universe might find some joy here.

Story

The final volume of the Riverdale comic series, unfortunately, ends up offering far less than its predecessors. Previous volumes of the Riverdale series offered something unique by digging into the backstories and personalities of Riverdale citizens, especially those who typically fly under the radar. Riverdale Vol. 3 changes this trend by focusing on generic storytelling and lackluster humor. Character development is almost absent here and there are few memorable interactions. All in all, this volume offers little more than a few brief moments of interest and some cheap laughs.

(spoilers start here)

Riverdale Vol. 2 (Review) offered a lot when it came to expanding on the mythos of the Riverdale universe. It told local ghost stories, started Reggie and Josie’s flirtatious relationship, and gave minor characters, like Dilton and Keven, some additional backstory. In this way, the previous volume defined itself by offering something unique.

Instead of continuing to provide unique offerings, Riverdale Vol. 3 spends most of its time focusing on the show’s main characters. Reggie and Ethel are the only minor characters that receive some spotlight here, yet even their brief moment in the limelight does little when it comes to developing their characters. In this way, the volume feels less unique and far less interesting, as its soul defining factor is now the individual stories presented within.

Even this wouldn’t be that big of a problem if these individual stories were worthwhile on their own. Unfortunately, they all end up being generic attempts at teen drama. Each story here feels like an afterschool special that was recast with the characters from Riverdale. In some places this is slightly amusing, as it presents a slightly different side of a familiar character. However these moments are rare. Instead, the entire endeavor is underwhelming and makes this one of the worst volumes in this comic series.

(spoilers end here)

Art

The artwork in Riverdale Vol. 3 is lackluster at best. The depictions throughout the volume are lighthearted and stylized in a way that works well with the book’s more humorous tone. However, the quality level is very low, as the entire volume lacks detail and consistency. There are more than a few pages where characters do not even resemble their television counterparts and I had to rely on narration to confirm which character I was even looking at. Overall, this is not a good looking book, which does little to enhance the book as a whole.

Continuity

Riverdale Vol. 3 continues elements from Riverdale Vol. 2 (Review) and elements from season two of the Riverdale television show.

The Riverdale comic series ends with this volume. However, the characters here continue to appear in the Riverdale television show.