Midge Klump Is The Hero ‘Riverdale’ Never Deserved

Cody Kearsley as Moose and Emilija Baranac as Midge Klump

Midge Klump (Emilija Baranac) is the hero Riverdale never deserved. She’s been a loyal girlfriend, a voice of reason, a shooting victim, and finally, as of “Chapter Thirty-One: A Night To Remember“… Well, spoilers past this point.

At the end of the epic “Carrie: The Musical” episode, Midge, who had been cast as Carrie, was found dead. Seemingly a victim of serial killer The Black Hood, Midge was essentially crucified on stage at Riverdale High, scissors jammed into her body. Behind her, in blood was a message from the Black Hood: he was back from the dead, and ready to take out anyone he missed the first time.

And man, what a bummer.

Yes, the ending was a shocker… Even though we had seen messages from the Black Hood throughout the episode seemingly trying to control the casting of a high school musical, there didn’t seem to be any reason to take Midge out. So seeing her murdered was a jaw-dropping end to the episode, and will have repercussions for the rest of the season.

But Midge is one of those Archie characters who is a great recurring presence, and was vastly underused on Riverdale. She was Moose’s (Cody Kearsley) girlfriend, and had a growing friendship with Kevin Keller (Casey Cott). In the comics, she was always secretly in love with Reggie Mantle (Charles Melton) — another vastly underused character on the show.

If anything, it felt like there was a lot more to do with Midge. Having Moose hide his bisexuality from Midge, and maybe even entering a polyamorous with Kevin was prime dramatic fodder for the show. Instead, she’s been impaled during the school musical.

Even Baranac was a little bummed about the twist. In an interview with Teen Vogue, she said:

“I read that scene and honestly, I was like wow, that’s juicy,” she remembers. “And then it took me a second to realize wait, that’s me. I’m gonna go through that. It definitely took me by surprise. The way that I go, is quite the way to go.””

So who killed Midge Klump?

This is going to be the big question going forward, in addition to the identity of the new Black Hood. It’s entirely possible they’re two different people. But assuming they’re not, the prime suspects right now are:

Chic Cooper: He returned pretty conveniently this episode, and as we noted on our Riverdale podcast, there was a pretty clear line underscoring he’s not a nice guy when he entered.

Ethel Muggs: No Barb, no! Personally, I don’t think Shannon Purser’s Ethel did it — she objected too quickly and evenly when Jughead (Cole Sprouse) discovered she had been chopping up magazines. But given she wanted the lead role very badly, and she’s been known to go off the deep end before, it’s possible.

Moose: Something was going on with Fangs and Ethel before the show started, and Moose looked pretty pissed off when Jughead passed by him. What if Moose discovered Ethel was cheating on him and lost his mind?

Whoever it is, we’re not getting Midge Klump back, and that’s a real shame.

Be sure to check our our Riverdale podcast, Riverdale After Dark, which updates right after every episode airs!

Riverdale After Dark
Riverdale After Dark
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An after-show for The CW's Riverdale, hosted by Comic Book Club!

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