The rag & bone shop of the heart

THE CHARACTER
Character Name: Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III
Series: Riverdale
Canon Point: Post 1x13
Character Age: Sixteen
Background: Riverdale series synopsis | Jughead at the Riverdale wiki

Personality: Jughead Jones has been an outsider his whole life, but instead of finding it a point of resentment, he embraces it, molding it into his identity. He doesn't want to be part of any crowd, he wants to be "weird" (as he puts it), and he likes being weird (see: crochet crown). He believes this outsider status endows him with the ability to see beyond the decent, safe community that the normal citizens of Riverdale see, and observe it from an objective point of view. Which, of course, puts him in a place to expose its more dark, sordid insides. The catalyst for Jughead's interest in journalism is the murder of a famous high school football player from Riverdale, Jason Blossom. As a consequence, Jughead begins transcribing the events that would forever impact Riverdale afterward.

A dramatic, philosophical soul, Jughead is more sensitive than he portrays himself, cutting off anyone who wants to talk about "emotions" and replacing the would-be conversations with his brand of sardonic wit. Thus, he has a tendency to hoard his feelings and sit on them until a catalyst causes him to explode. Case and point: after a particularly stressful birthday party, he impulsively punches a football player in the face after the guy drags on his childhood friend and current girlfriend. Most of his emotions are layered beneath his dark sense of humor and try-hard apathy, never once spoken aloud. He wouldn't have it another way. This doesn't leave much for anyone guage him on but his theatrics. He's a person of extremes: he either goes out like a soggy washrag, or he goes out like an explosion of fireworks—there's no in between.

While his passions can cause some outbursts and other potential explosive behaviors, it also makes him driven about the few things that he does like. He has a love of film (which is appropriate for someone so theatrical) and has a tendency to hang on to everything and anything that he has an attachment to with both hands. When the Twilight Drive-In is slated to close, Jughead's faith in humanity takes a nosedive when he realizes no one in Riverdale cares enough to save it. So, after an impassioned rant to his friends, he heads straight to the Mayor to appeal the decision to demolish it. When he realizes his efforts are for nothing, he sets up a showing of Rebel Without a Cause as a final hurrah to see it off. He feels like he had roots in that drive-in, not only was it his home (his actual, honest-to-goodness home), but it's full of fond memories for him. These memories are part of his life prior, and he doesn't want to let them go. This happens several times with his father, his family, his friendship with Archie and the drive-in itself as a display of his tenacity.

While Archie manages to maintain a love triangle with the two main girls of the show, Jughead is more introverted. Being the oddball means painting a bullseye on his back for bullies. With his crochet crown and troubled family background, it's more than enough for the popular kids and star football players to take easy shots at him. With a name like "Jughead," it's not hard. While Jughead does not make friends easily, nor does he want to make many friends, he keeps the close few he has to his chest, protecting them at all costs. He would do anything for Archie, his best friend, even after a falling out due to Archie's thoughtlessness. When his father, the leader of a local gang named the Southside Serpents, confesses to the murder of Jason Blossom, Jughead still defends him. He's faithful to those who he considers "close," not wanting to be open with anyone else but the ones he trusts completely. It's one of his methods of self-preservation after being juggled from foster homes and juvenile detention facilities. When someone crosses him, he holds a grudge, letting the hints that he remembers slide here and there as a debt and stark reminder. He's used it to his advantage more than once.

While he will directly defend those that he considers friends, he also has no qualms keeping secrets from them. He is ashamed and protective of his family affairs, keeping the details from those he cares about while juggling the consequences. His living situation, which is basically a nook beneath a staircase at his high school, is kept implicit from both his girlfriend and his best friend. When Archie finally finds out, Jughead insists that he "not tell Betty."

His pursual of journalism leads him straight into the center of Jason Blossom's murder, rather than just narrating it from the outside. He heads up the investigation where the police would not, finding clues to connect the dots, at first by himself, and then with his childhood friend-turned-girlfriend, Betty Cooper. He's got both intelligence and deductive skills, his logic clouded, on occasion, by his emotions. Reasoning comes as easily as writing does for him, and he'll go further than he believes to uncover the truth of a situation when he's driven toward it. Resourceful enough to head up both the murder investigation while being tossed around from makeshift home to makeshift home, Jughead is adaptable.

All and all he's a good kid in a tough situation. While he may not have the greatest love for Riverdale and its occupants, he loves his friends and there's a spot in his heart for the town that he grew up in. His focus and borderline obsession is on Riverdale, both an outsider and an unwilling participant, the tragic best friend of Archie Andrews.

Powers/Abilities:

• Purple prose (aka journalism): Jughead has a knack for being able to describe the events going on around him.
  
• Intellect & wit: Investigation, reasoning and problem solving skills are all on his side. As a philosopher, he's great at critical thinking, and tends to get to the nut of the issue.

Power Nerfs (if applicable): None; he's a regular ol' guy.

Inventory:

• Southside Serpents' Jacket
  
• The clothes he arrived with (including his stylish crochet crown)

Incentives: While Jughead will still be suspicious, his main incentive would be the safety of his sister, Jellybean. After that, the safety of his friends and family: His father, Archie, Betty, and Veronica. An offer of giving his father a new chance would also be high on the list as far as incentives go. Jughead is a fairly adaptable person, and while he will be both existentially traumatized and dubious of intentions, he will also realize when he's out of his element. Beware for some snippy comments and dark humor, though.