The biggest mystery in Riverdale season 3 is what happened to Toni Topaz’s screen time.
When we were introduced to Toni Topaz in Riverdale season 2, we fell in love with her almost immediately. Things started off a little rocky when it looked like she might come between our beloved Bughead, but once we realized she had no intention of doing so, she became one of the best characters to watch.
Toni served a very important role in Riverdale season 2. When the season began, we still didn’t quite know what to think of the serpents. Characters like FP Jones and Joaquin had won us over, but the gang as a whole still carried an inherently negative connotation.
I don’t know if Jughead, alone, could’ve changed that perception for Riverdale fans. If he had joined the serpents without first meeting Toni, fans might’ve always seen that move as a dark turn for his character.
Toni helped us see that the serpents were kind, well-rounded individuals. Meeting her and her family let viewers in on who the serpents really were. Because of Toni, fans were able to fully get on board with Jughead joining the gang, and the two of them played a huge role in making it what it is today.
As a character, Toni Topaz is the perfect combination of fierce and kind. She’s beautifully strong and independent, she’s extremely loyal to her friends and fellow serpents, she’s smart, she’s funny, and on top of all that, she just happens to be drop dead gorgeous. She’s also a canon bisexual woman of color, so it was amazing to see her kicking ass, week after week, in Riverdale season 2.
Things only got better when Toni met Cheryl and the Choni love story began. The girls have an undeniable chemistry, and it was clear from the start that they balanced and supported one another. Fans couldn’t wait to see this extremely important relationship continue to blossom (no pun intended) and grow in Riverdale season 3.
With Bughead busy investigating the mysterious Griffins & Gargoyles game and Varchie separated by prison gates, the stage was perfectly set for Riverdale season 3 to be the Cheryl and Toni show. A huge part of Riverdale hinges around the show’s romantic relationships, so we’d expect that a fiery new couple on the rise would be getting tons of screen time. Especially since Cheryl has always been at the forefront of the show and her relationship with Toni only serves to make her more interesting.
Unfortunately, this has been far from the case in Riverdale season 3.
Things started off strong for Choni. Vanessa Morgan, the amazing actress who portrays Toni, was promoted to a series regular for the season, so fans were expecting to see even more great stuff from her than we got in season 2. In the season premiere, the ladies returned from an epic road trip adventure and threw a Labor Day party to kick things off. Fans were ready to receive more Choni than they could handle.
However, we’ve scarcely heard a peep from them since! We’ve heard nothing about the Chonie roadie, and we’ve gotten almost zero growth for their characters or relationship since. They appear together in the background of scenes, participate in games of Griffins & Gargoyles, or pop in for a line or two, and then *poof,* back to our regularly scheduled Bughead and Varchie programming.
Even when Choni is on screen, it’s usually to highlight Cheryl. She’ll show up to deliver either a perfectly aimed arrow or scathing remark, and Toni will simply be there. The same applies when Jughead’s serpent friends are around. They’ll add their two cents, every once in a while, but usually the focus is entirely on Jughead.
By sidelining Toni, Riverdale season 3 is missing out on developing one of the best, most unique, and most exciting characters on the show and on TV. Toni is an important character for fans to see on TV, and she has the potential to be incredibly nuanced and impactful, which we got glimpses of in season 2. Unfortunately, all of that potential is currently being wasted.
Riverdale season 3 has been packed with mystery, romance, abs, and general absurdity. Don’t get me wrong, I’m here for all of it, but I’m missing the awesome sweet, sassy, serpent girl the show introduced us to.
Maybe now that Archie and Jughead are on the lamb, we’ll stand a chance at getting more Toni Topaz and Choni in our lives. Either that, or the show will shift focus to the boys and we’ll be left even more desperate for our Topaz fix. *Sigh*
Hopefully the show’s creatives knew what they were doing when they promoted Vanessa Morgan to series regular and we will soon be seeing her “ascend” to the role of primary character once more!
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