Veronica distracts Archie from his suspicions about a werewolf causing the recent nighttime incidents in Riverdale with the offer of a date — only for Betty to turn up and reveal that he has a date with her for the same evening. But Archie's romantic woes are hardly the worst thing brewing in town. The teen's suspicions about a werewolf are all too accurate, and soon he'll find himself squaring off against the ferocious creature to protect others.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- Alternate Identity Amnesia: The sheriff doesn't have a clue that he has been behind the werewolf's rampage.
- Alone with the Psycho: An accidental version; the sheriff arrests Reggie on suspicion of being behind the werewolf incidents after he scares Archie, Betty and Veronica with a werewolf disguise. Unfortunately, Reggie doesn't have werewolf-ism, but the sheriff does. By the time Archie realizes the werewolf's identity, the sheriff has fully transformed with only the cell bars keeping him from attacking the terrified Reggie.
- Chekhov's Gun: Veronica's silver necklace. She gives it to Archie, and he later gets it onto the werewolf, making it transform back into the sheriff and keeping him from transforming again.
- Dirty Coward: When Archie and Jughead arrive, Reggie tells the werewolf to eat them.
- Engineered Heroics: To help get back in the girls' good graces, Archie asks Jughead to appear as the "werewolf" so he can "protect" them. It turns real when the actual werewolf turns up.
- "Eureka!" Moment: Combined with Oh, Crap! as well. When Jughead asks what a pentagram is, Archie answers in horrified realization that it's "a five-pointed star"...just as the scene changes to a police badge and the policeman bandaging a cut on his hand.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Reggie dresses as a werewolf to scare Archie and the girls. The result is that the sheriff (the real werewolf) takes Reggie into custody for the attacks around Riverdale.
- Our Werewolves Are Different: Turning into a werewolf requires a wolf bite, the full moon, and possession of a pentagram (which is only defined as a "five-pointed star", so a sheriff's badge works just fine). Putting something silver on the werewolf will turn it back and prevent further changes. The interesting thing about the wolf bite is that it does not seem that a full wolf is needed, as a wolfdog that is mostly dog will do.
- Shout-Out: The wolf-breeder Archie goes to for advice about werewolves is called Old Man Cheney.
- Terror at Make-Out Point: Invoked by Veronica as a way of flirting with Archie. Archie has suspicions about a werewolf causing the recent strange events. Veronica suggests they could go out together and bait the werewolf into coming after them. She clearly doesn't expect that anything will happen, however.
- Wham Shot: After Archie exclaims in horror that a pentagram is a five-pointed star, it cuts to a police offer's badge and said officer is bandaging his hand.
