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After one month of hiatus, Riverdale returned with its musical episode, “Wicked Little Town.” And after what feels like a lifetime, Barchie stans finally got the moment they’ve been waiting for. While the Riverdale High students sang their hearts out to tunes from Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Betty (Lili Reinhart) and Archie (KJ Apa) shared a kiss that sent fans into a frenzy. 

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Riverdale season 4, episode 17.]

KJ Apa and Lili Reinhart in Riverdale
KJ Apa as Archie and Lili Reinhart as Betty | Diyah Pera/The CW

What happened between Archie and Betty on the Riverdale’ musical episode?

From the beginning, Riverdale has teased an unaddressed romantic tension between Betty and Archie. In the first season, the two looked like they were well on their way to becoming a couple. Until of course, Veronica (Camila Mendes) came to town and threw a wrench into their potential relationship. 

Archie fell for Veronica right away. And eventually, Betty and Jughead’s (Cole Sprouse) feelings for each other turned into an epic romance. However, Betty and Archie are still close friends, and they’re always there to support each other in the worst of times.

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In episode 15, while the crew was trying to convince the Stonewall Prep students that Jughead was dead, Betty and Archie pretended to start dating. With Veronica on board, they would kiss just to make it look like Jughead was gone. But to viewers, it felt like they were developing a romantic spark.   

Then in the musical episode, Betty gets into an argument with Jughead about school and how he’s not taking graduation seriously. At the same time, Veronica gets mad at Archie for not telling her about Hiram’s health situation. 

Betty and Archie eventually come to the music room to sing a song from the musical. And as a montage of their sweetest memories plays, they sing “The Origin of Love” to each other. Then as the song ends, the two embrace and share a passionate kiss. 

Later, after they reconcile with Veronica and Jughead, Archie and Betty act as if nothing happened. And they keep all the juicy details of their makeout session to themselves. 

Barchie stans are over the moon

In the Archie comic books, Riverdale is based on, Betty, Archie, and Veronica have always been part of a love triangle. But the show never really dug deep into that part of their story. However, now that the two are exploring their chemistry, fans are finally getting the Barchie part of the triangle they were hoping for. 

“S1 was just such a great setup for the series,” one fan wrote on Twitter. “As much as I enjoyed Jug/Betty, I kind of knew it would circle back to Archie and Betty…you just don’t ever lose the kind of connection they have had w/o falling in love or not.”

The montage showed memories of Archie and Betty as kids, and fans were thrilled to see their relationship grow. “I am excited to see Betty and Archie’s friendship as kids,” a fan tweeted. “I’ve always wanted to see their dynamic. I hope they also show the other characters as kids too. At the very least, Betty and Archie are finally going to address and possibly resolve their feelings.”

The ‘Riverdale episode’ 18 trailer teases more Barchie to come 

In the trailer for episode 18, “Lynchian,” Betty and Archie are laying in bed next to each other, questioning their choices. “Archie, why are we here?” Betty nervously asks. “I don’t know, but it feels nice right?” Archie says, as he gently holds her hand.

It will be interesting to see how far Archie and Betty will go before they come clean to Veronica and Jughead. The next episode of Riverdale will air April 29 on The CW. 

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