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Why Betty Probably Knows The ‘Riverdale’ Black Hood Better Than She Thinks

Bettina Strauss/The CW

An eerie letter and a chilling phone call in "The Town That Dreaded Sundown" revealed that the Riverdale killer is more connected to Betty Cooper than Archie Andrews. Does Betty know the Black Hood on Riverdale? What we still don't know is whether or not this link between them goes beyond inspiration. That information is key to cracking the case and stopping this Zodiac nonsense on the CW series.

Who is this guy, and what does he want with Betty? He could just be a local onlooker, but he could also be someone related to the girl next door, or someone she grew up with in town. Or is the call literally coming from inside the Cooper household?

Betty is being pretty cautious so far, and kept this information close until the very last possible moment, which is unfortunate. If she inspired the Black Hood, she could be the one to uncover the identity of the Black Hood and stop the spree of morality killings. It would be helpful if Betty at least made a list of potential suspects based on who heard the speech that galvanized the killer. Who could she possibly have influenced? Who fits the general profile? Sure, Betty didn't want anybody to know that she had anything to do with the origin story of this deadly vigilante, but a "murder board" would be helpful in this scenario.

As far as whether or not Betty actually knows this person — the answer is almost certainly yes. Here's why.

The Black Hood Knows Betty

His letter said that he has been targeting people in town thanks to her speech at the Town Hall Jubilee. Was he in the room when it happened? Are we absolutely sure that nobody filmed that speech and put it on YouTube, or wrote about it in one of Riverdale's many color-coded print publications? Either way, if he didn't know Betty before, he does now — and chances are that she knows him too.

"Girl Detective"

The killer also knows about Betty's affection for Nancy Drew. That indicates that either he's much better at research than he is at pointing and shooting — seriously, for a serial killer he hasn't actually managed many kills — or that he knew Betty when she was growing up. Creepy, but signs point to Betty and the Black Hood having met before.

The Victims Are Not Connected

So far the Black Hood has attacked Fred Andrews, Miss Grundy, Midge, and Moose. None of those people, or their dark secrets, are directly connected to Betty Cooper. This guy might be more likely to know about the sketchy stuff going on in town with these particular characters if he and Betty knew one another. It's not hard evidence, but not everyone knows what's going down at music lessons even in a town that small.

In fact, the sins and secrets that the Black Hood does not seem to know could be a major clue. Why hasn't he gone after any of the Blossoms, for example? If Betty does know him, she might not know him as well as he thinks.

It's A Small World

After all, everybody knows everybody in Riverdale. The only plausible theory that suggests Betty doesn't know the Black Hood is the one that predicts the killer is Betty's brother. Even then, she knows of him. She just hasn't met him.

It's strange enough that the Black Hood is doing all of these terrible things in Betty's honor and as a tribute to her. Somehow, it would be even stranger if he was a stranger to her as well — and not just because that would mean someone was just passing through Riverdale on the night of the Jubilee and decided to check out the Town Hall. Whatever the connection between the Black Hood and Betty Cooper is on Riverdale, hopefully this modern Nancy Drew is on the case.