Riverdale isn’t a town you would want to be living in as it is full of criminals, gang rivalries and serial killers. However, there is one person who is determined to clean the town up and that is Archie Andrews. Known as Pureheart the Powerful to his friends, Archie is like a teenage Batman - attending school in the day but is a crime-fighting vigilante by night.
However, Archie should really clean his own act up as he also seems to stray from the morally-right path. Remember him protecting Hiram’s involvement in the Poutine murder? Or how he jumped to Grundy’s defense when their affair was exposed? That’s not exactly the epitome of a hero. Keep reading to discover the 10 most shameless things Archie has ever done.
Getting The Ghoulies Arrested
When it comes to each other, Archie and Jughead don’t always make the best decisions despite having the best intentions. In season 2, Archie and Jughead found themselves involved in a Drag Race after the writer challenged the Ghoulies to the race, with the winner taking control of the Southside.
If the Ghoulies won, the Serpents would have to forfeit all their property; if the Serpents won, the Ghoulies would have to stop their dealings. However, Archie ended up making the situation worse when he called the cops and got the Ghoulies arrested. He stood by his actions, telling Jughead that his plan to get the gang off the streets worked. Yet, he didn’t think of the repercussions this would have on Jughead.
The Grundy Saga
The Archie-Geraldine Grundy was one incident where Archie doesn’t seem to realize how wrong it was. Beginning and ending in season 1, Archie began an affair with his music teacher that began the summer Jason Blossom died. Despite Betty, Veronica, and Jughead all telling him how wrong it was, Archie did all he could to protect Grundy.
As much as Archie wants to do good by everyone, this shouldn’t have been one of those instances as Grundy belonged in prison for abusing the power of her position. Even if Archie said he knew what he was doing was wrong, he shouldn’t have agreed with Grundy skipping town as it was shown that she started another “relationship” with a student. To this day, Archie has shown no regrets over their romance.
Fighting With The Serpents
Archie took his vendetta with the Serpents too far when he and several other Bulldogs engaged in the Riverdale Rumble. This all came about after people began to suspect that The Black Hood was from the Southside, which led the divide between North and South widened.
Archie and the Bulldogs end up getting into a brawl with the Serpents, where the footballer was the first to instigate it. He only realizes how bad the situation was when Dilton ends up with a pocket knife in his leg. Despite this incident, Archie doesn’t end his vendetta with the Serpents.
Taking Jingle Jangle
Pureheart the Powerful also broke his own rules when he took the drug, Jingle Jangle. Considering that Archie is an athlete and preaches about cleaning up the town, he seems to forget that he has contradicted himself when engages with drugs. As fans can see in “Chapter Eighteen: When a Stranger Calls,” he and a few others engage in Jingle Jangle.
While he was reluctant to do so at first, Archie soon changes his mind when Veronica says she would participate. He didn’t even care what effects it could have had on his body or if there were any consequences. All sense of responsibility flew out the window.
Becoming Hiram’s Lackey
One of the things Archie wasn’t ashamed of at the time was becoming Hiram’s Capo. For the majority of season 2, Archie had a rivalry with Hiram, where the musician struggled between his righteous morals and his loyalty to Veronica. The latter won him over and Archie eventually became a right-hand man for Hiram.
Archie covered for Hiram when “F.B.I.” asked if he had something to do with Poppa Poutine’s death. Archie also created “The Dark Circle” to do Hiram’s bidding, where he and the other members blew up a car in an intimidation tactic. For someone meant to be so pure, he has broken quite a few laws himself.
Disrupting The Southside High Protest
Another aspect that was part of being Hiram’s lackey was when Archie disrupted the Southside High School protest. In season 2, Jughead and the Serpents went to war with Hiram after the crime boss planned to take control of the Southside. When Hiram’s plans to knock down the school reach Jughead’s ears, he organizes a peaceful protest.
As Jughead’s protest continued to disrupt Hiram’s plans, Archie and the wrestling team come to cut the chains off the Serpents and escort them off the premises. Archie knew how important this was to Jughead and yet, he supported Hiram because it suited his own agendas better.
Beating Up Nick St. Clair
In season 2, a rivalry between Nick and Archie was created after the music producer came to Riverdale to win the affections of Veronica. However, Nick made several enemies during his stay when he tried to force himself onto Veronica and later Cheryl (who he had drugged).
Archie ended up visiting him while he was recovering from his “skiing accident”, demanding payback for what he did to them. When Nick begins to push his buttons about Veronica, Archie becomes angry and beats him up. While no one could blame Archie for punching him, he didn’t think about the repercussions - such as if Nick getting him arrested for the assault or if he came back to get revenge. A reckless decision on his half.
His Prison Stint
When Archie decided to take the plea deal that saw him sent to prison, there were two reactions from the fans. Some were screaming at his stupidity and others that were rolling their eyes at his supposed altruism. All this because he wanted to stop the rivalry between him and Hiram.
Instead of talking to the crime boss about it, Archie decided to be overdramatic and accept a prison sentence (despite being innocent and knowing the true murderer). He didn’t even seem concerned that this would impact his future decisions, such as his college and job applications. Then he acts like this is the bravest thing he had done when it was the most stupid.
The Red Circle
Remember Archie’s first stint at becoming a vigilante? When he created the Red Circle back in season 2, intending to take down The Black Hood? This had to be one of the moments where Archie was close to reaching rock bottom.
After Fred was shot by the masked figure, Archie became overprotective (and a little overbearing). Blinded by fear, Archie and several other students formed the vigilante group after they believed Sheriff Keller’s methods weren’t enough. Archie even went as far as to trek into Serpent territory, vandalize their property and pull a gun on Sweet Pea and Fangs. Overall, it didn’t bring out the best in him.
His Vigilantism
Whatever Archie does, fans know that the musician always has the best of intentions in mind. He just goes about them in the wrong way. Archie wants to help get rid of the crime in Riverdale - good. Dressing up as someone that looks like the Black Hood and beating up criminals to do it - bad.
It’s obvious that Archie has a hero complex and it doesn’t look like it will be going anywhere anytime soon. However, Archie should try and think more with his head than his fists as the last time saw the community center held up by Dodger’s mother because of his rivalry with the gang member. Not to mention when his house was shot at. He doesn’t care about the consequences, just as long he sticks to his agenda.
