Bughead

"Hey there, Juliette"

- Jughead

Bughead is the het ship between Jughead Jones and Betty Cooper on CW mystery teen drama Riverdale.

Canon
Like Archie, Jughead has known Betty since they were little, though they don't exactly know each other well or seem to socialise a lot. This changes after the murder of Jason Blossom, when Betty revives the Blue & Gold school newspaper and asks Jughead to work with her in uncovering what really happened and who's responsible. This quest inevitable includes Betty getting closer to the truth of what really happened with her sister, Polly, and as she uncovers the extent of her parents' betrayal, Jughead is there for support and comfort.

The two end up sharing a kiss and start being together, although their shared quiet natures have them take things as they come, and stay focused on uncovering the mysteries of Riverdale. Their romance is soon noticed by everyone and Veronica is the first to actually call Jughead Betty's boyfriend, though neither object.

Fanon

 * Although Jughead is a canon aro/ace confirmed in Jughead comic #4 they decided to straight wash him for tv. They take the one of only ace/aro representation and make him straight. Why leave Jughead how he is so you can portray ace/aro people as broken? Bughead doesn't mix well because Betty will always have feelings for Archie whether she admits it or not. Also Jughead just doesn't like people like that –Linnea929
 * Lili Reinhart (Betty Cooper) on the pairing:
 * Lili notes that Betty and Juggy, as she calls him, “balance each other very well. Betty has such a soft exterior, and he has such a harsh one. They’re kind of opposites in that sense. But I think internally, they’re both very emotionally complex characters and they’re both really passionate. Jughead is such a passionate writer and Betty is such a passionate journalist, and they’re kind of like this little crime-fighting duo taking on this mystery together and I think that helps bring them closer.”

Fandom
AO3

FANFICTION
 * bughead
 * Bugheads
 * Blue&Gold

TUMBLR

Trivia

 * In recent Archie comics, Jughead was identified as ace (asexual), which has yet to be seen on Riverdale and has been criticised for LGBTQIA-erasure and irresponsible portrayals. Some hope that Jughead's discovery of his sexuality can feature as the series progresses, or that the character could also be portrayed as aromantic, which leaves room for a romantic relationship, albeit not a sexual one.
 * I think it’s also worth highlighting the differences between “asexual” and “aromantic” as identities. Although I’m neither myself, I do know that it’s something that’s important to differentiate, and it’s not something that we yet know about Jughead–since no writer has specified whether he is aromantic in addition to being asexual – THE MARY SUE
 * Series creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa has said this in response:
 * I think all of the kids are discovering themselves, and a big part of that is discovering their sexuality, their sexual selves. Rather than have everything fully formed — for instance, we're not going to start with Archie's band or Jughead's asexuality or any of the things that have become canon — those are all stops on the way to the journey


 * Cole Sprouse (Jughead Jones), who has previously advocated for an accurate portrayal of Jughead, on the Bughead:
 * “While I think that representation is needed, this Jughead is not that Jughead. This Jughead is not Zdarsky’s Jughead and this Jughead is not the aromantic Jughead,” he said. “This Jughead is a person who is looking for a kind of deeper companionship with a person like Betty and Betty ends up being this super nurturing, caring, care-taking person that with Jughead’s screwed-up past they end up diving into each other and it ends up being a beautiful thing”