Twitter bids an emotional goodbye to Luke Perry during his final episode of Riverdale

Tonight, Riverdale turned a corner with the airing of the last episode Luke Perry filmed before passing away unexpectedly early last month due to complications from a stroke at the age of 52.

Perry, perhaps best known as the ultra-cool Dylan McKay on the '90s super-hit Beverly Hills 90210, played Fred Andrews on Riverdale, the father to K.J. Apa's Archie. Following news of Perry's death, the show briefly shut down production, and the executive producers released a statement calling him "a father figure and mentor to the show’s young cast."

While tonight's episode was filled with the usual high-stakes teen drama, it will be remembered as Perry's final episode. Even though he didn't get a big, dramatic monologue as he walked off into a proverbial sunset, he did get a touching father-and-son moment that highlighted his role as a stern, caring patriarch.

To commemorate the occasion, fans took to Twitter to remember the actor and the mark he left on the Archie Comics-inspired teen drama.

All in all, the experience could be summed up with the following sentiment.

Given that Riverdale is currently in its third season, it will be interesting to see how the show will adapt to Perry's conspicuous absence. 

A former teen heartthrob himself thanks to 90210, Perry's role as Archie's dad on The CW drama was a kind of passing of the torch. As far as genre goes, Perry also voiced Rick Jones in the animated Incredible Hulk series, as well as Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm.

In addition to Riverdale, Perry will appear posthumously in Quentin Tarantino's Manson-era epic Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, marking his final role.

What did you think of Luke Perry's final episode of Riverdale? Let us know in the comments.