…at least I think he is.
The Gargoyle King’s plot is getting thicker and thicker on Riverdale season 3, and fans are buzzing with theories about who the master of the Griffins & Gargoyles game could be.
What we once believed was just a Dungeons & Dragons game that some kids got way too caught up in has evolved into an entirely different gargoyle beast. A costumed (we think) Gargoyle King who keeps showing up, decades between deaths, and strange ties to the town of Riverdale have made this game far bigger and scarier than we first imagined it could be.
Some compelling cases for who the Gargoyle King could actually be have been made involving many Riverdale characters including Edgar Evernever and Warden Norton. Some less compelling cases have also been made for practically every other character on the show. However, the more I think about it, there’s really only one option for who the Gargoyle King could be.
It’s definitely (maybe) Hiram Lodge.
The seeds for this theory began being planted in Riverdaleseason 2, when Hiram returned and kicked off his reign of tyranny over the town of Riverdale. He assembled a group together at the Whyte Wyrm to talk about their future plans, which I believe were so much bigger than just the prison and Penelope’s brothel. I believe he was laying the foundation for the return of Griffins & Gargoyles.
It would be the perfect way to completely take over the town. To convince everyone that they want to play by his rules. By convincing them to follow a literal rule book of his making! Hiram has already proven that he’s legitimately evil, so nothing would be too diabolical for him, at this point.
When he was asked at the meeting in the Riverdale season 2 finale what he was going to do about his “daughter and her meddlesome friends,” he replied by saying, “steps have been taken to dissolve the very glue that holds them together.” Sure, this could just mean getting Archie arrested, but I think it’s likely that he has more up his sleeve than than.
Hiram was also one of the original people involved in the game when The Midnight Club was playing. We know far less about Hiram’s group of game players than we do about the actual Midnight Club, so they seem like more likely suspects. We know neither of the game masters invited everyone to the ascension party, but nobody questioned if Hiram could have set everything up. Although, it would make perfect sense for Hiram to loop Penelope in now, since she has so much experience with the game and her allegiance has obviously shifted.
Jughead’s definitely onto something when it comes to the depth of the game, but Betty also makes a good point when she says that they have nine very real suspects that they can investigate with regards to these deaths. Why would we jump to suspecting new characters like the elusive Edgar Evernever and in-your-face Warden Norton when the characters we already know were at the scene of the crime. Especially when one of these characters is a rich, evil mastermind intent on having his way with Riverdale.
The “rich” part is also key. Having control over so many things and people at once demands resources. Whether those resources be in the form of things, people, or even surveillance equipment. The things needed for “quests,” weird Gargoyle King costumes and the game itself, along with any surveillance equipment would obviously cost money, but we also know that people can be bought.
Hiram has more than enough money to buy the loyalty of anyone whose help he would need. Warden Norton, for example, although obviously his loyalty was procured through his actual ties to the game. Hiram was calling the shots for Warden Norton the entire time, as was the Gargoyle King. Why would we not assume that they’re just one and the same?
Another reason why I think Hiram is definitely (maybe) the Gargoyle King is that his plans for Riverdale season 3 have to be bigger than just torturing Archie to get revenge on Veronica. He can’t have gotten this far by being that petty. Most of the adults of Riverdale have been acting pretty childish lately, but Hiram takes the cake if his motives are actually that simple.
I’m sure more Gargoyle King suspects will be introduced as Riverdale season 3 progresses, but I think it’s obvious has the means, the motive, and the mystery surrounding him to pull this off. Keep him in mind for your future Riverdale theories!
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