The Clues That Chic Cooper Is 'Riverdale's Black Hood Just Keep Piling Up

An early Riverdale (series music: Sherri Chung) fan theory about the Black Hood killer is that the masked villain obsessed with Betty Cooper was her brother, Chic. Now that the sibling has come out of the woodwork and made his first official appearance on the CW series, those rumors are resurfacing even though Betty and Archie allegedly caught this vigilante and Sheriff Keller shot the suspect down. Let's examine the clues that Chic is the Black Hood on Riverdale and see whether or not they hold any weight.

Charles, who goes by Chic — and who will inevitable earn the nickname "Chaz" from either Veronica or Cheryl by the end of the season — didn't get Betty and Polly's wholesome upbringing. He was never adopted by a family, raised in a group home, and kicked out when he turned 18. Chic literally lives in "Last Resort Hostel." That's on the nose, even for this show.

"Betty had no sooner vanquished one monster," Jughead says in his ominous closing narration, "than she perhaps let another one into her family's lives." Something is definitely up with Chic. Even if he's not the real Black Hood, or another Black Hood, we should be suspicious.

There's nothing in Chic's room that stands out like a blue paw print. He has a chess board, a red duffle bag, some camera equipment, and a hanging plant. None of those things seem like clues that connect him to the killer. He's also a lot younger and slighter than the Black Hood initially appeared to be. However, there were some potential clues in the episodes. Here's why fans still think this theory could come true.

Archie Is Suspicious

Let's not get into how it only took a man in a suit flashing an FBI badge at Archie Andrews for him to spill all of his secrets and start threatening Manhattan's elite. That's an issue in and of itself, but one of the important things we learned from those conversations is that much like Meryl Streep in Doubt (executive producer: Celia D. Costas), Archie is having such doubts, and wonders if they got the wrong man. Speaking of Meryl in that habit...

Sisters Of Quiet Mercy

Both Chic and Svenson, the confessed "hood," were raised in this convent/home for troubled youths. Could they have conspired? Polly was there too. Maybe they know each other. Maybe the nuns have a few dark secrets of their own — there was a religious element to the Hood's credo, after all. Honestly, why wasn't Jughead ever sent there? The child protective services in Riverdale are not exactly consistent. He could have been their spy on the inside.

He Knows Where They Live

Chic up and said that he had been to the Cooper house. He knows who they are and where they are. Did he just visit the one time and peer through the window like a sad Peter Pan? Did he ever go inside?

"Fantasy Fulfillment"

Chic alludes to making money as a sex worker; which is not to be disparaged, and apparently a healthy market in Riverdale and the surrounding town. That said, his choice of words is interesting. The Black Hood wanted Betty to give in to her dark side, in a way fulfilling a fantasy. Doesn't going on a killing spree fulfill Riverdale's chaste and virtuous fantasy?

Someone To Watch Over Me

Finally, the way Chic snuck into Betty's room and leaned over her while she was sleeping was not only extremely creepy but exactly what the Black Hood would do.

At the same time, Chic didn't seek out Betty and Alice. He didn't ask for them to find him, or for Betty to take him in when he was hurt. Unless he and Polly have planned some masterful manipulation, this was all Betty's idea. If Chic was the Black Hood, he would have some kind of next move planned instead of going about his day taking "clients" in a seedy hostel.

It's not like Chic had black hood hanging on his laundry line in the Last Resort Hostel, but that final scene was so chilling that we still have to consider the possibility.