The town of Riverdale has seen many things over a span of five going on six seasons. There have been serial killers, a cult, multiple gang wars, and a few murder mysteries along the way, but Season 6's first story arc, titled “Rivervale,” might be its craziest to date.
The arc so far, which will premiere its fourth of five total episodes next week, has dealt with demons such as La Llorona, Archie’s death, and the devil himself, but what fans have been eagerly awaiting with this storyline is Kiernan Shipka’s return as Sabrina the Teenage Witch. The upcoming “Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Witching Hour(s)” will finally see this long-awaited crossover. However, with the news of Sabrina’s appearance in Riverdale, what many have been wondering is whether the episode will address the character’s death in the finale of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Well, fans can rest easier knowing that Riverdale will not ignore that fact and will seemingly answer the lingering questions left by the short-lived Netflix series.
In an interview with The Wrap, series creator for both Riverdale and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa said, “The end of Sabrina is definitely alluded to and referenced." He would continue by stating, "and I will say, no, Sabrina is not appearing just because we’re in Rivervale."
This is particularly good to hear since there has been some confusion over how this arc will affect the main continuity, if at all, once “Rivervale” is over and Riverdale goes back to normal. Well, normal for Riverdale standards. Aguirre-Sacasa goes on to say:
"It started with everyone wanted [a crossover]. At the same time, The CW was excited by the possibility, Netflix was excited about the possibility, Warner Bros. has always been excited about the possibility. And you want to make these events special. And in terms of the most special thing that could have happened, the most meaningful appearance of a character, or the most meaningful crossover, in the most meaningful overlapping storyline, is Sabrina. It’s not a question. Of anyone you could bring back or bring to, there’s no one. We brought Josie and the Pussycats back. But what everyone has always asked is, when is Sabrina coming to ‘Riverdale’? So it felt like OK, if we want to really make this an event and kind of make sure that it’s special, that’s the one thing, if we can figure out how to do it, that’s the one thing we should really try to do. And by the way, Kiernan was such a trooper. She was doing a million other things. But it was great and it’s kind of perfect. She makes so much sense. It was pretty cool."
How “Rivervale” and Sabrina connect to Riverdale is still foggy, but given that Sabrina is technically dead and Riverdale itself is in a dire state currently, this entire supernatural heavy story arc could be one big near-death fever dream for the whole town. Stranger things have happened on Riverdale. However, the one thing we do know about the upcoming episode is that Sabrina is helping Madelaine Petsch’s Cheryl Blossom with a problem that involves multiple timelines and generations of her family.
Also, for fans wondering if this will be a one-time appearance for Sabrina, Aguirre-Sacasa said, “Without saying or spoiling anything I can say, yes, there is a chance we will see Kiernan as Sabrina later on in Riverdale. Yes, there’s a chance.”
However the show tries to explain away all our complex questions, it will just be great to see Shipka’s Sabrina back after almost a year away from the character. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina premiered in 2018 and ran for 4 seasons on Netflix before its abrupt cancellation in late 2020. The death of Sabrina at the end of the series left many fans unsatisfied and hopefully, this special crossover with Riverdale will give our favorite witch the second life she deserves. With the creator teasing the possibility of more Sabrina in the future, there is a sense of promise for the character for the first time since her show ended. The next episode of Riverdale premieres on December 7 at 9/8c on The CW.