Far from its usual vibe, Riverdale Season 4 Premier broke the heart of many with its first episode.

"In Memoriam" is solely dedicated to paying tribute to its late actor, Luke Perry.

Perry, who played by the name of Fred Andrews for three seasons in the CW drama, suffered from a massive ischemic stroke and died on March 2019. The episode created a way for the characters of Riverdale to inform their fans that Fred Andrews and Luke Perry "will always be a part of Riverdale."

As he departed while they are still filming through Season 3, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa -- the creator and showrunner of the series -- and his team decided to permit the previous season to go as planned and celebrate both Perry and Andrews' lives at the beginning of Season 4.

The whole production team has fulfilled the promise during Wednesday's premiere, which focused on remembering the actor while uncovering Fred Andrews' passing.

Riverdale is usually full of complicated scenes. It may sometimes struggle to sustain its focus from time to time, but this lone premiere is different and excused.

In the interview conducted by The New York Post, Aguirre-Sacasa mentioned that they planned the remaining episodes of Season 3 and the first episode of Season 4 to be reverential to both Luke Perry and his character, Fred Andrews.

The lost enabled the Riverdale's team to think of a more moving episode for the late actor and the fans. Just like how the creator described it, the premiere showed how valuable Luke is to the cast and crews, much like how Fred is admired in the town of Riverdale.

There is a scene in the first episode where Archie's friends take turns in honoring his father. But the most heartfelt commemoration came when Archie conveyed a eulogy for his dad, which the viewers believe to be the same eulogy they created for the late actor.

Archie talked about how great Andrews was, both as a man and a father, then ended it by saying Fred Andrews will always be a part of Riverdale. The camera zooms out and the screen fades to black after showing an old photo of Archie and Fred.

According to Skeet Ulrich, Perry's co-star, shooting the episode was greatly saddening that it was almost impossible to utter the lines. He then tagged the beginning episode of the season as the hardest experience he had to do on a film, as they needed to finally give Perry a proper tribute and send-off.

Aguirre-Sacasa also told the Post that the effort they put on to prepare the primary episode was worth it. The episode is also dedicated to the fans, most especially to Perry's. They hope that the supporters of the actor and the show will see the love and efforts they poured while creating the emotional scene.

Overall, "In Memoriam" was a beautiful way to give recognition to both Luke Perry and Fred Andrews. No wonder why the new season has received positive reviews since its opening.

Tags
Riverdale, Luke Perry