Pretty Little Liars

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Hanna and Caleb

2.15 A Hot Piece of "A" B+

The girls concocting a scheme to entrap "A" was probably the single smartest thing they've done since the series began. It was a hefty risk, but it paid off. "A" might have escaped with his/her secret identity still in tact, but the girls captured "A's" cellphone - not only a defining symbol of the "A" character, but the constant source of all the harassment they've received. Thus they walk away with a "piece of 'A'", so to speak. (Silly episode title, but strangely one of the few that actually makes sense.)

The question now is whether obtaining "A's" phone delivers on all the promised implications. Sure enough, the drama escalates immediately across the board. The girls are forced to bring someone into the loop, sort of. Caleb's hacking skills are a necessary asset to decrypting the cellphone's password and files, but Hanna is hesitant on getting someone whom she cares about so deeply involved with the whole thing. Part of the girls' success in the previous episode is that they have agreed to treat everyone as either a potential "A" suspect, or a potential "A" casualty - so everyone must either be distrusted, or kept in the dark and free of harm - and bringing Caleb into the loop to any degree immediately defies both sides of their pact.

Garrett and Jenna are in a tailspin because of the cellphone, and it's finally confirmed that they are not working alone. Here's where things get a little tricky. Based on the conversation Spencer overhears, it seems like the third party member is "A" himself. I say "him" because Garrett clearly refers to "A" as such. Does that mean "A" is really a male? Or is "A" actually a female, which has been hinted more times than not throughout the series, and Garrett is simply just like everyone else who has no idea who "A" truly is? I could certainly see that being the case - "A" almost working like an outside consultant for all the people who wanted vengeance for Alison's widespread tormenting.

Regardless, Spencer somehow jumps to the conclusion that "A" (both the person Garrett was talking about, and the person they encountered in the previous episode) is not actually "A", but rather "A's Helper". Where she got this idea, I simply don't know. But for some reason the writers run with it. To me it's a bit confusing and easily the most disappointing bit of information revealed in this episode.
As things unfold, they unleash the possibility that it is Lucas who is acting as "A's Helper". But why give him that title? Why not just call him "A"? What reason is there to assume there is a fourth party involved? I'm still not sure what the logistical reasons were, so I'm trying to overlook seemingly confusing plot points and just roll with what's presented on screen. All you need to know is: Lucas might be a bad guy who might want to kill Hanna.

Sideplots: I've already touched on most of these (above) but may have left out a few details. Hanna has the most material. In the midst of struggling with the decision to bring Caleb into the fold, she also struggles with the accusations that Lucas was "A's Helper" who attacked Emily in the previous episode. She wants to trust him, but deep down knows he was one of Ali's most tormented victims, so he's certainly got the motive to be acting in accordance with "A". Her suppressed suspicions are brought to the surface during their boat ride together as Lucas seems to be luring her into a trap.
Lucas' strange behavior could easily just be misconstrued (I mean, the possibility of this being a giant misunderstanding is being telegraphed as subtly as a hurricane, so I wouldn't be surprised). Instead of luring Hanna out into the middle of the lake on a boat to kill her, it's easily possible that he was luring her out there to admit to his true feelings for her. She never gave him the chance, knocking him overboard with a boat paddle, and now he's loose out there in the world. I think this is the start of a mini-arc where Lucas is either a psychopath on the loose, or a scorned lover afraid of returning, and the girls are going to jump to all sorts of radical conclusions.

Emily takes a community service job at a crisis hotline, and automatically you know a job with phones is eventually going to lead to a conversation with "A". She ends up speaking to Lucas, and this is what leads to his actions and the girls' accusations of him in this episode.

Spencer and Toby make up. Um... not much else...

Aria's still reeling from outing her and Ezra's inappropriate relationship to her parents. I really do like the parental reaction here. It's not pretty. Byron's going through the whole "raging father" cycle, and Ella's taking the more maternal and slightly open-minded approach, while not actually being a complete fool for a change. But no one is making light of the situation and the drama gets downright nasty at points. The ultimate resolution may be rather predictable (Aria being a trustworthy kid and Ezra earning the Montgomerys' blessing), but the route to getting there is not quite in sight. There are no easy solutions and no quick resolutions. That, I appreciate.
On the other hand, the writers cram a more age-appropriate love interest for Aria down our throats in the meantime. Jason is still MIA so we get Holden instead. They've already broadcasted their intentions with this character so blatantly that it's eye-rolling.

I think the biggest problem with this episode as a whole is that so many points are absurdly telegraphed: Lucas, possibly a bad guy, possibly a casualty of a huge misunderstanding... Emily set-up for a phone conversation with "A"... Aria and Holden...
Foreshadowing is one thing, but telegraphing is another. I much rather prefer the Aria/Ezra situation right now. Knowing the overall tone of this show and the characters involved, it's easy to assume things will work out well for them in the end, but the path of getting there is obscured from view. That's the kind of foreshadowing that works. Going from point A to point B, however, isn't exactly impressive.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Home alone...

2.16 Let the Water Hold Me Down B-

In my previous review I kind of forecasted the current plotline with Lucas to be a misstep for the season. As this two-episode mini-arc wraps up, I still stand by that view. Overall I think it was a really good idea to focus on Lucas - he's always been a very sympathetic character, a fan favorite, which would make his often-suspected darker side more tragic to everyone. So I'm glad they decided to make his strange behavior a central issue for a couple episodes. The only problem is that Lucas didn't actually do anything evil or malicious, so it doesn't really make sense for everyone to be jumping to conclusions about his involvement with "A". There's an apparent gap in the logic, which, in the end, is hard to overlook.
But aside from that, the storyline had some positives and negatives mixed in interchangeably. I enjoyed that Lucas' situation drove a wedge between Hanna and Caleb, rather than bringing them closer, so Lucas hasn't completely lost his place in the love triangle. And in the end, it's actually Caleb and Lucas who become closer when all is said and done, which was quite a surprise. I think the actual explanation of what Lucas has been up to was a complete cop-out, and the whole thing with losing Caleb's money was never at any point foreshadowed beforehand (to my knowledge), but the end result still soothed my expectations enough by at least bringing Caleb and Lucas closer as friends. And having Hanna view the situation from an outside perspective made her appreciate Lucas' good-guy status even more. He's truly a decent person when it counts, not just to her, but to everyone.
The writers had an opportunity to take some bolder moves, perhaps giving Lucas the chance to profess his love for Hanna, but they don't seize it. Instead they downplay the storyline and ultimately it comes across as a stutter step. It doesn't cater to audience expectations for the three characters involved, so no matter what amount of character development we are given, it still feels like there could have been more.

Elsewhere, Spencer follows a clue which leads her to the blind rehabilitation center that Jenna once attended. Jenna is getting a lot of focus since the winter premiere, but it's a strange thing because she hasn't even been on screen once. I'm not sure what the reasons are for that, but I feel like it would make more of an impact to have the girls' number-one enemy to at least be a visible presence. These past few episodes have made a deliberate effort to step up "A's" nastiness and the girls' willingness to expose "A", so withholding Jenna from view, for whatever reasons, seems like stalling some of the progress that's been made.

Aria uses nice-guy Holden in an attempt to hide a secret rendezvous with Ezra from her parents. Naturally, it doesn't work according to plan. I'm glad Ezra is playing the situation smartly and purposefully avoiding Aria. No reasonably intelligent man would continue to sneak around with an underage girl immediately after being threatened by her parents, so props for that. Even if the separation isn't going to last, it's at least believable for now and not resorting to overly simplistic solutions to deeper conflicts. I don't necessarily have gripes that Aria is acting like a high school girl for a change, not grasping the full scope of the dangerous situation Ezra is in - in fact, I appreciate how her "I wanna be with you" attitude and his "We need to stay away" attitude are highlighting the age gap - but if the writers let her continue on this route for too long, it's going to chip away at her relatability. Aria's really improved as a likeable character this season, so I'd hate to see any backward retread.

Lastly, Emily has Maya back in the picture again, but things aren't quite perfectly in tune for them. After Maya spills a secret that she hooked up with someone else during their time apart, Emily is quick to forgive. Her quick forgiveness implies some unstated self-serving undertones too, a means of moving past her own 2 hook-ups versus Maya's 1. So right when all seems peachy, Maya spills that her random hook-up was a guy, and we're left with Emily's reaction to that unexpected development.

Overall, it's the Lucas plotline that's been holding back these past two episodes. He's still a great character, one of the best, and his involvement with Hanna and Caleb is still top notch, but the writers did not do him any justice in this loosely thrown-together story. The delivery was not a reflection of his potential. If the ultimate goal was to tease us with the possibility that Lucas is a bad guy, but then to ultimately reveal he's a great guy - then both sides of that equation were downplayed because the writers failed to do something more bold with Lucas' own dark and light sides.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Three-quarter pact

2.17 The Blonde Leading the Blind A

Since the girls took the upperhand for a brief moment against "A", he/she has made some obvious attempts at retaliation. "A" steps up the usual methods of tormenting - targeting the girls' loved ones, giving false leads, attempting to pit the girls against each other - while also using one particular technique that has been suggested in the past, but never quite shown to us as clearly as now. It was brought up in the Halloween episode, and I like that it was referenced again here. "A" is building an army, of sorts, composed mostly of the nastier members of the NAT Club, but now it seems that Toby is on the path to becoming the newest potential member.

I've always liked one thing about Toby, and that's the fact that he is so important to both Emily and Spencer. A lot of these side characters are allocated strictly to one girl's story and there's not a lot of crossover, but Toby was always interesting enough for having a wider range of influence, regardless of however else you felt about him. Having Spencer and Emily both lying to him makes his crossover to the dark side more believable and acceptable from a storytelling perspective - so whether he takes that plunge or not, the possibility does make him more interesting.
Overall it seems like the problematic use of the side characters has started creeping up on the writers lately, and many of these individuals are becoming more and more important, even getting their own scenes together. Caleb in particular has a ton of potential as the girls (Hanna excluded) are bringing him in on the secret. I think it would be cool to have a fifth member of their little gang, and a guy at that. But what's scarier is that it puts him in a position to be a major casualty in all this. While an outsider like Toby may suffer a nasty fall and a broken arm just because "A" wants to play games, imagine just how much more violent "A" could get with Caleb if he becomes an insider. "A" would need to strike the girls hard eventually to maintain credibility as the primary antagonist, and outside of physically harming any of the four main girls, Caleb seems like the perfect candidate to be a victim. I'm not saying it's gonna happen, but it's an interesting way to look at things. The only question is whether the writers would be that bold to kill off a character who has always gotten a great fan response.

Sideplots: Emily and Spencer's stories go hand-in-hand as they both resort to lying to protect Toby, while simultaneously not fully aware of the harm those lies are doing. And Hanna adamantly disapproves of Caleb's involvement in their "A" problem. The other three girls don't see it that way and even agree to keep Caleb's involvement a secret from Hanna - naturally that can't and won't end well.

I guess one thing about Aria's sideplot is that we always knew how it was going to end - with Ezra and her somehow back together. For a very short while it was great, as Ezra seemed to smartly distance himself from her, and she got to be a high schooler for a change. To me their short separation highlighted their age difference and even some of their individual flaws that have always been present, so for a while there was a promise of some character growth before they eventually reunited. I guess I was just hoping the writers would maintain that promise a bit longer than what we got. Instead, the two are back in the same boat of sneaking around behind her parents' backs. Now don't get me wrong, I saw it coming. It was bound to happen. The only problem I have is that there is no major change involved. They didn't learn anything by being apart, they didn't gain any outside support, they didn't even come up with a clever new way to keep their affairs a secret... if there's one thing that peeves me about break-up stories, it's when characters don't change at all during their time apart.
I will say I do like Aria's chemistry with Holden, even if it's just on a platonic level. I wasn't expecting to take a liking to a character who was so blatantly wedged into Aria's story, but I think he's an all-around decent guy so far.

Overall not a bad move for the series to have an episode that focused on so many side characters. Even Mona has her own little mini-arc going on in the background. It's almost like the writers are arranging these characters like chess pieces - if they are not "A's" loyal knights, then they are pawns on the verge of sacrifice. The big story next week will certainly be how Aria, Emily, and Spencer handle lying to Hanna about Caleb's involvement. And I'm sorry but I just can't ignore it... worst episode title ever - totally made no sense here.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Co-conspirators

2.18 A Kiss Before Lying A

The consequences of bringing Caleb into the fold are immediately brought to the stage. Hanna has always known the risks of any of their loved ones, like Caleb, learning about "A's" existence and harassment. Whether it's talking about "A" or asking others for help, if the girls play by any other rules than what "A" has deemed fitting, then "A" perceives it as a challenge and a threat. But the other girls also know the invaluable asset that Caleb has become. His hacking skills are essential to decrypting the files on the phone they stole from "A".
For the most part we see the aftermath of Caleb and the other girls lying to Hanna, keeping their activities and investigation a secret from her. She, of course, is not an idiot and quickly catches onto the ruse, and is immediately hurt by the lies. To add another layer to everything, "A" begins threatening Ashley (Hanna's mom) which is probably a very smart move on "A's" part. Threatening Caleb directly doesn't have the same immediate danger as threatening an innocent outsider. In fact, Caleb seems to hold is own against Garrett's taunts - by the way, how epic would an end-of-season showdown between these two be? Ironically, in the end, Hanna concedes to Caleb's participation. Removing him from the equation is out of the picture now, so instead she fills him in on the details, letting him know exactly who he is up against.
Like I stated before, Caleb seems to be creeping toward a life-threatening situation with each passing moment, and he is certainly a plausible casualty that we may see this season. He simply knows too much and "A" doesn't have the same type of psychological control over him that he/she has over the girls. Despite the fact that Tyler Blackburn picked up credit as a series regular on the show, I wouldn't be surprised if Caleb is the first to die as "A" creeps toward more violent measures. (I also wouldn't be surprised if he survives, but I like that his fate is unclear either way.)

We learn some interesting tidbits about Alison in this episode, like the fact that she was flittering about town before her death using the alias "Vivian Darkbloom". Somehow her alternate identity ties in to her obsession with "Lolita", which is a controversial novel about a sexually active young girl and an older man. How does this tie into her death? And more curiously, how does this tie into present day? Something tells me we will find out before the season is over...

Sideplots: Aside from suffering the biggest blunt of Hanna's anger and disappointment, Spencer has some side material with Kate, Hanna's new-in-town step-sister. She quickly recognizes her from somewhere and pieces together the memories that they once met at a summer camp, where her older sister Melissa was a counselor. Spencer figures out that pristine, snooty Kate was once the subject of ridicule, so Spencer uses that as leverage to keep her in line. But Kate unintentionally suggests that she and Melissa have some sort of history that runs much deeper than childish mockery. It's kind of a weird and obscure character connection to bring up this late in the season, but we'll see how it plays out.

Emily's mother Pam is back in town, and it's good to see that Pam has become more open-minded about Emily's sexuality during their time apart. Maya doesn't help ease her into it, however, as she blurts out all sorts of crazy and inappropriate things at dinner. That was a pretty funny scene, particularly because Emily didn't even have any lines, but her horrified expressions at Maya's comments were priceless. By the end, Emily and Maya clear the air about whatever is bothering them individually, and things actually get pretty... spicy... in the bedroom.

Lastly, Aria and Holden continue their ploy of secretly dating to throw off their parents' suspicions, but accidentally end up on a real date with each other instead. I like Aria and Holden together. He's charming enough, and she lets loose a bit in his presence and actually has some age-appropriate fun for a change. Their chemistry is natural on screen, but the idea of a romantic relationship would be complicated enough and not easily predictable, so it keeps things interesting all around. Plus he's got his own intriguing secret tucked away.
Elsewhere, Byron gets a little nasty with Ezra, looking for a way to drive him out of Rosewood. Whether his plan works is yet to be seen.

I get the impression tension is ramping up as the season finale draws closer. I don't think the second half of the season has been as cohesive as the first half, but it's still quite compelling. I'm curious to see if the writers will begin tying the two halves of the season together before the end, such as having Jason or Dr. Sullivan return to the mix, or explaining the "Alison is still alive" thing. It seems like a necessary task.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

The creepiest couple in Rosewood

2.19 The Naked Truth A-

One thing that's been hot on the agenda lately is bringing the show's large population of B-characters into the spotlight. Several episodes have been making it a priority and this felt like the culmination of that build-up. About 90% of the characters are thrown together at the high school in an event called "Truth-up Day" which is meant to put a stop to all the bullying that has plagued Rosewood High. I've always appreciated this on-going theme throughout the series, and it's always great when multiple characters get together and express their feelings at being a victim of bullying, or conversely find a chance to be one of those bullies. Everyone gets divided up into different groups, and it's a great chance for characters who don't normally interact with each other to be put in the same room.

Group 1: Aria, Caleb, Veronica, Jenna, and Jason
Easily the best outcome of pitting these characters together was seeing the exchange between Caleb and Jenna. He calls her out on her hypocrisy, where she masks her own nastiness behind a veil of vulnerability. I love that Caleb has become such a huge threat to her, but things are looking increasingly worse and worse for him. He's holding his ground and taking a stand against the bullying, even better than the girls have done, but as a result the opposing forces are mounting against him. He's digging himself into a massive hole and I truly have no idea how, or if, he can fight his way back out when the time comes.
Elsewhere, Aria breaks away from the group long enough to learn more about what Holden has been up to in his spare time. When I saw the bruises and pain meds I thought "Is he in some sort of underground fight club?" I laughed at the idea, but turns out I wasn't too far off.

Group 2: Emily, Mona, Vice Principal Tamborelli, Ashley
Part of me feels like the writers had to force a way for Emily to interact with some other characters, and that's especially clear by the introduction of Tamborelli. He kind of comes out of nowhere as a nasty authority figure who has a special grudge against Emily. Despite a new character appearing suddenly, at least Emily's story wasn't dull. She gets a chance to interact with Mona, who basically manipulates her into fighting back against Tamborelli using some dirty methods.

Group 3: Hanna, Kate, Noel, and Ella
After the previous episode, Hanna is basically labelled as the biggest bully in school, and if Truth-up Day was meant for any individual in particular, it's her. She sticks up for herself, claiming she wasn't the one who spread nude pics of Kate across the school, and with a little help from her friends, she proves her case. Turns out Kate sent the pics herself, framing Hanna while simultaneously boosting her own popularity. That was a quick and interesting little way to wrap up things with Kate, and the fun part was definitely seeing Hanna stand up for herself, especially against Noel's accusations. There's another very well done scene where Hanna almost confides in her mother about being victimized by "A" and it's a whole awesome mix of Hanna's vulnerability, wanting to go to her mother for support... and Hanna's determination, her decision to protect Ashley by keeping her in the dark. Both choices are expressed in the scene, and more impressively: expressed without words. Just the look on her face keeps you guessing on which approach she is going to take with Ashley.

Spencer is somehow drifting around the school on her own during Truth-up Day (not sure why or how) so we don't see her in any group. Instead she corners Jason and works out an interesting fact about him. His return wasn't hallmarked with any grand entrance, like I thought it would be, but there's a significant twist with him by the end. Jason is... wait for it... her half-brother. Turns out Spencer's father took a special interest in Jason for more than just helping him with the family's money. And apparently Jason and Melissa had a fling in high school, which brings a whole new level of wrong to the situation.

We learn a few more things about Alison and her Vivian Darkbloom alias, but it's still hard to even decipher where this is going. Why was Alison using this alias, and what was she doing? These are both pressing questions that keep us guessing. I'm intrigued, so I really hope the answers are as compelling as the mystery.

There's an amazing build-up of suspense in this episode and for a few captivating minutes I was on the edge of my seat. There's so much going on in this episode with all the various characters and all of the sudden they're each converging together at full force. It's like a giant spinning whirlpool - and a confrontation with "A" is the deadly center. You're not quite sure who is going to be the unlucky individual who gets sucked in first, and then suddenly that fate falls on Aria. Easily one of the most interesting, and creepiest scenes of the episode is when she walks in on Jenna and Noel conspiring together. Apparently there's a wall in the school where someone - or several people - have written their most shameful secrets in invisible ink, including a confession to knowing what happened to Alison DiLaurentis. The use of the UV light was incredibly eerie and probably one of the best scenes to ever capture the spooky, thriller vibe that PLL does a lot. So everything is going along great, really piling on the tension and suspense, and suddenly...
Holden comes out of nowhere and rescues Aria with a Chuck Norris-style roundhouse kick. Jesus dude, are you serious? It was so comical I couldn't contain my laughter and it absolutely killed the scene. Not just killing what was going on with Aria, but the whole suspenseful build-up with every character included in that string of scenes. So yeah, I definitely thought that was one of the cheesier, inadvertently comical moments of the series and probably the only thing holding back my overall excitement with the episode.

So overall, an episode concept that is decent at best, but the writers skillfully made it work with great use of characters, interesting bits of information revealed, and some excellent build-up of suspense... but ultimately a stumbling resolution to it all.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

In a "hot spot"

2.20 CTRL:A A

As the season progresses, the odds stacked against the characters quite often seem insurmountable, and this episode was a prime example of that. Every character finds themselves in some sort of hole, either dug by "A" or dug by their own deteriorating relationships, and there's truly no easy escape for anyone. I love episodes like this where the conflict is so tangibly thick that you can't begin to imagine how things will work out well for anyone, so the fact there there actually is a happy ending for anyone comes as a striking surprise.

Caleb's bad-assitude carries a lot of screen time as he gets framed for Mona's hack in the previous episode. Now that we openly know that "A" and Garrett are working on the same page, it makes Garrett's credibility as a villain more believable. Rather than being a constant nuisance to the girls like he used to be, now he seems like a legitimate rival for someone like Caleb, and seeing them square off isn't an easily dismissible sideplot. Caleb's really carrying his weight as a central character now, and in some ways he's bridging the gap between "A" and the girls. The girls have the drive to search out "A's" identity now, but they don't always have the skills to hold their own ground - and that's where Caleb proves his value.

Hanna comes to Caleb's aid as he finds himself face to face with the cops, but she also has her own little run-in with the law. A few months after the girls made this same discovery, the cops finally realize someone has stolen a critical page from Alison's autopsy report. When security photos show Hanna and the others at the hospital from months earlier, they becomes persons of interest once again. Why Hanna was the only one brought in for questioning, I don't know. But aside from that, it still maintains a steady course in the narrative that has always existed: no matter how much of the mystery the girls unravel, the police will always be at odds with them. "A" has always made sure the cops are at least 10 steps behind in their investigation, or tragically misdirected on a course that paints the girls in a negative light.

Emily comes to an unpleasant realization as Maya's rebellious side continues to surface. Somehow they've always worked as a couple, but I guess you can only appreciate the constant dissimilarities between you for so long before the odds stack up out of your favor. One little scene also had me thinking... is Jason the guy Maya hooked up while she was away?

Aria struggles with continuing to lie for Holden as new information comes to light. His heart condition makes his martial arts activities life-threatening, and covering for his daredevil activities becomes increasingly more unethical.
More interestingly, however, "A" targets Aria and arranges for Byron to walk in on one of her and Ezra's secret dates. Now this is something we don't usually see. If you ask me, Aria's illicit romantic situation has always made her the easiest target for "A's" schemes - and in my opinion, if "A" wanted to ruin any of the girls, he/she could rip apart Aria's personal life in a heartbeat. Yet the writers have always avoided that, never daring to place Ezra in the direct line of fire very often. To me it's always been a fundamental mistake with Aria's character arc in general, because it requires us to suspend our disbelief. "A" is meant to be on a quest to ruin the girls' lives, yet for some reason the easiest target never gets hit. For me this was the only easy "out" in the episode, and it was yet again another instance in which the writers foil "A's" plans for Aria not because of anything smart she has done, nor because of any mistake "A" has made, but rather because they're simply not bold enough to take Aria's personal life down more complicated routes.


Still trying to make sense of it all

Aside from Caleb, Spencer probably carries the most weight. She and Jason are still coming to terms with learning about their common parentage, and Spencer confronts her father for the lies he told. Usually in any series, when two characters discover they are long lost relatives, it's not something that truly excites me, mostly because writers don't realize it's a three-party narrative choice. They focus on the two characters making the discovery, naturally, but they typically leave out the third character who unites them - like the common parent. In this case, Peter is the third party, and bringing him into more light isn't really all that exciting. But the reason this sudden discovery between Spencer and Jason works so well within the context of the PLL saga is not because of Peter's involvement, but Alison's. She's not only a far more interesting character from the audience's perspective, but she's also a character who has always been more critically important to both Spencer and Jason than Peter has been. The fact that she had kept her knowledge of Spencer and Jason's relation a secret kind of makes her a surrogate third-party member in this plotline, filling the gap where Peter should be standing. As apparent as Spencer and Jason's emotional coping with Peter might be, it's really their emotional coping with Alison that will unite them as family.

Hand in hand with that comes the truth of Alison's Vivian Darkbloom alias. I kind of suspected it, but was never sure - she was using the alias while conducting her own investigation of "A". I like that Alison's secret search for the identity of "A" is mirroring the girls' own present-day search more and more. Alison was far more cunning and careful about her investigation, keeping her moves hidden from everyone, but somewhere along the line she possibly made a mistake that cost her her life, or simply got too close to the truth and couldn't face it alone. It's obvious the other girls don't quite possess the same secretive nature that allowed Alison to get so close to "A", but they do have one advantage she never had: each other. If they can unite on the same page, they can surely succeed where Alison failed.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

A well-placed chess piece

2.21 Breaking the Code A-

With the promise that the season finale will finally reveal "A's" identity, there's a definite change in the air. "A's" endgame has been clear for a long time now, but there's no longer a sense that the writers are simply stalling in order to keep "A's" identity a secret. "A's" harassment feels more... unpredictable and complicated. The majority of "A's" schemes throughout the series has come across as petty, but spiteful bullying - and that's where the sense of stalling has always taken place. But all too often "A" sneaks in a real wicked, thought-out, plan-within-a-plan that makes "A" seem like a deranged chess master - and lately that's the awesome quality we're getting. It's no longer just the four girls who are being used as chess pieces, because now almost everyone has a place on the board.
This is a hard episode to review without spoiling too much, but let's just say that "A's" "use" of Mona in this episode is fairly ingenious. Whatever action Mona takes, it's going to be a win-win situation for "A" - whether it's Mona taking a stab at Hanna by harming Ashley, or the inverse of Mona honoring her friendship with Hanna and saving Ashley - but the actual result is probably the better outcome he/she could hope for. Mona honors Hanna's friendship, thus Mona is brought into the girls' inner circle. Why is that important to "A"? Well I'll leave the speculation lingering there...

I think part of "A's" unravelling or ultimate success (it could go either way) will be his/her recent moves of letting more and more people become aware of his/her existence. It started off small, focusing solely on Alison, then spread to the four girls, but now all sorts of people are catching on. Aside from Mona (overlooking this development for particular reasons), the people who are becoming more and more aware are the parents, namely Ashley, Ella, and Byron. They've always suspected their children have been the victims of some sort of bullying, but the clues have really been piling on. I think their gradual discovery up until this point brings more gravitas to the endgame. Other people's knowledge has always been a threat to "A", thus making them more likely casualties and/or chess pieces. Knowing the four girls will physically survive any confrontation is almost always a sure bet, so what makes "A" credible as a villain is that he/she can still target people whose fates are not so secure - and much to my enjoyment that list of names is growing longer with each passing episode. Many more characters seem relevant now, thus more characters can either contribute to the girls' victory over "A", or be used as pawns in "A's" victory over the girls - it can go either way.


Spencer and Melissa Hastings

The big "revelation" in this episode is Melissa's membership in the NAT Club. I say revelation somewhat cynically because I thought we already knew this information... ? It was clear early in the season that she was going to great lengths to protect Ian while he was in hiding, or at least that's what she thought she was doing from her perspective. I just assumed that her going to Jason for assistance meant she had an association with them on some covert level. I guess technically, yes, this is the first time the girls are stumbling upon this information, but their initial reaction seemed miscalculated to me. They kind of bypass confusion and go straight to suspecting her as a murderer. I guess I'm just having a hard time applying Melissa to a big-picture involvement in the mystery - unexpectedly, the on-going Vivian Darkbloom investigation points straight back at Melissa, which is not the character I would have pegged. But this could very well just be a two-episode mini-arc, which they have been doing with a number of plotlines this season. Dealing with Melissa could be a brief trial for the girls, sparring with a "minion" of sorts, until they reach one of the bigger bosses of the NAT Club in the finale.

I wouldn't say Aria and Hanna have a lot to do in this episode, but they're strategically used to facilitate bringing Mona, Ashley, and the Montgomery parents into the "A" mystery. Aria's got some typical back-and-forth complications with Ezra (the usual) - and there's a really exhausting "ugh who cares anymore" moment where they almost break up again - but I'd say for once Ella is actually the least objectionable character involved, which is good for her.

On the relationship front, the writers are all about bringing back old love interests for Spencer and Emily to fill the void. I've never really seen the purpose of bringing back Wren, narratively speaking, because it seems his only value anymore is his witty charm. He was a good wedge between Spencer and Melissa early on in the series, but now he's not exactly relevant in that role. Plus I've always hated how they overlook this statutorily illegal relationship between a minor and an adult (same with Jenna and Garrett) but they make such a HUGE deal about Aria and Ezra's relationship all the time. Not that I want three of the same plotlines going at once! But it just doesn't seem fair. Especially when Ezra seems like a complete gentleman compared to Wren, who lets his gal get all drunk and frisky.
Emily gets some time with Paige once again. It seems overly quick bringing her back in only one episode after Maya flitters off screen, but I won't complain. I always liked Paige's volatile side and things did seem unfinished between her and Emily the first time around. This should produce some good material for Emily to work with. (Plus I always like seeing Lindsey Shaw on TV.)

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Spencer and Peter

2.22 Father Knows Best B+

It's time for Rosewood's Father-Daughter Dance, so what better chance than now to showcase everyone's daddy issues? At first it seems like a minor distraction from everything happening this season, but it all ties in rather nicely. It might not be on par with the amount of tension and suspense we have been getting lately in preparation for the season finale, but it's a nice way to dial things back a bit while still keeping things interesting.

As Spencer tries to make sense of Melissa's involvement with the other NAT members, Melissa deftly shifts Spencer's suspicions toward their father instead. It's always been clear to me that Peter is a relatively honorable man, despite his past mistakes and penchant for lying, because he's always done everything out of a desire to protect his family. Spencer was bound to figure that out at some point. So the fact that he went to such great lengths to keep Melissa's name out of the Alison DiLaurentis criminal case is not so much a surprise as it is a confirmation of just how devious Melissa can be. Even when she and Spencer are seemingly getting along, it's clear that she's breathing lies with every word. My guess is that, probably aside from Jenna, Melissa was "A's" earliest recruit. Even with these few vague brushstrokes, I think I can wrap my head around Melissa's involvement in the big picture now.

Since Hanna's father is virtually absent from her life, Ashley fills the dual parent role. She actually lays down some discipline for a change, but that is mostly because she is growing increasingly more concerned about "A". She has an immediate understanding of the pain "A" is causing Hanna and the other girls, but it's also very clear that she doesn't comprehend the danger that is posed to her personally. There's not a lot of dissection to be made here regarding Ashley's new importance to the story, simply an observation - I've always liked the character, so it's great to see her more involved.
Now that Mona is included in their merry inner circle, she gets to contribute her voice to the situation. She comes up with the idea to use a well-placed lie to throw off Ashley's suspicions, but it's quite telling that she doesn't take on the task herself, rather throwing it toward Aria. Ashley is smart enough to see through the ruse, so who is likely to suffer the fallout? Aria. Well played, Mona.

I never thought I'd say it, but I'm actually starting to appreciate Detective Wilden. For the longest time he was this over-zealous, obsessed, rarely present, mostly incompetent authority figure on a witch hunt, but lately he has become a more key player in a large aspect of the story. It's always been the case that part of the girls' reluctance to simply turn to the police for help is because "A" has always made sure that the law will always be against them. Whether it's evidence being pointed against them, or Garrett sabotaging investigations from the inside, the police will always see the four girls as the primary persons of interest in Alison's death, and Wilden has always been the face attached to that opposing force. But lately as Ashley brings more information to light, he's starting to catch onto an outside party acting against the girls. He's still far from joining their side, but there's the slightest trace of a crack in his rock-hard disposition. He kind of reminds me of Sheriff Valenti from the show "Roswell" who started off as the main characters' biggest enemy, only later to become their sole protector. Who knows if Wilden has the capacity to be that awesome though...


Emily and Wayne

Emily's father Wayne pops in for a visit. He's always been a nice character, ever since he appeared so open-minded to Emily's sexuality in season one, so again he comes across with the one father-daughter relationship you can really root for in this episode. He helps Emily make sense of Maya's disappearance, they bond, it's sweet - and then he sadly delivers the bad news that he's deploying once more overseas. Til next time, Wayne.

Aria and Byron have easily butted heads the most this season, and it's actually pretty surprising he doesn't show up in this episode for the first half-hour. I figured they'd get the largest chunk of the story considering the overall theme, but I guess it's quality over quantity. He and Aria don't exactly come to terms - in fact, I'd say they're worse off now that Aria is so openly truthful about her disappointment in him - but it breaks Byron down on some level. After everything he goes through, the troubling fallout with Aria and the rather revelatory conversation with Mike, I'd say things will start to look up for him fairly soon, simply because they can't get much worse for him. I kinda feel bad for the guy. Now that he's garnered some sympathy, he's likely on a path to becoming more open-minded regarding Aria and Ezra's relationship (assuming they're not broken up again by the next episode).

Again, the episode is not a huge component in the final stages of the season, but it made sense to shift the focus for a while and zero in on the character drama. Spencer's plotline kept the Alison/Melissa situation in the picture, while Hanna/Ashley kept the focus on "A" - so with those two things especially it never felt like a wasted episode.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Back in town

2.23 Eye of the Beholder A-

Jenna and Toby arriving back on the scene brought an awesomely sinister vibe to the whole episode. The writers/directors strive for this kind of vibe with Jenna all the time, but for some reason it only translates exceptionally well to the screen on rare occasions. I think I know why now. Jenna is only at her best when she has a follower. Most of the time she maintains a solo presence on screen and it doesn't come across as very threatening to the four main characters. But when she's got Garrett doing her bidding, or Noel creeping around on her behalf, it works. And it never works as well as when she's got Toby on her side. His descent to the darkside a few episodes ago was one of the best turns for the character yet, and having him cling so loyally to Jenna only made things seem that much more serious. Not only has he fled the light because of Spencer and Emily's lies and sought refuge with the person he hates most, but now he's Jenna's most loyal defender.
What happens next was completely unexpected. Immediately after setting these two up as - in my opinion - the best evil alliance all season, they're quickly broken down to nothing. "A" is burning his/her allies - some could even say quite literally. This is a twist I wasn't expecting, but it makes perfect sense. In light of practically everyone across the board learning more about "A's" identity, it's time to mop up some of the mess. He/she does that by weeding out those who are closest - the NAT members. Jenna is the first target, and we can presume that "A" leaving Garrett's badge at the scene of the fire is an attempt to pin the blame on him. This is awesome set-up for the finale. Tearing down Jenna and Toby when they are at their strongest point all season only escalates "A's" status as the primary villain.

In light of all the evil machinations behind the scenes, goodness is still shining through and breaking people like Jenna and Toby. Their off-screen affiliation with "A" has brought nothing but turmoil and betrayal, and the collective goodness of Aria, Hanna, Emily, and Spencer is challenging all the negative emotions that have been festering with Jenna and Toby. Hanna doesn't have a lot to do, but she's critical in Jenna and Toby's ultimate epiphany toward the end. For one she saves Jenna's life in the fire, which couldn't be more shocking to Jenna herself, thus paving the way for her questioning her years-long hatred for all the girls. And secondly, she plants the seeds that have Toby questioning his own recent distaste for Spencer.

Elsewhere, things come to a surprisingly uplifting resolution of everything that's been happening with the Hastings Family lately. The combined drama of Jason's connection to the family, Peter's lies, Veronica's emotional shutdown, and Melissa's involvement in Alison's disappearance are far from completely resolved, but there's an idea now that curing some of the personal conflicts between the various members can bring forth longterm resolutions in the future. Everything revolves around Spencer's willingness to open up to everyone - to get people talking to each other - because she's always known the underlying problem with her family. The fact that no one can open a dialogue is the sole reason for all their issues. And there's a small moment, albeit quite uplifting, toward the end where Jason slides over to Veronica in the hospital and the two spark up a conversation. It's a small but meaningful sign of progress.


Aria and Duncan

Aria follows up on another "Vivian" clue, leading her to a boy named Duncan who had a romantic connection to Alison before her death. There's not a significant amount of new information to take away from this development, but it's likely to play into the finale: Alison was doing something important in Rosewood mere moments before her death. The clues suggest she was having a face-to-face meeting with "A". I've run it through my head a few times and I've come up with one particular scenario in which I can imagine Alison would want to have a face-to-face meeting with "A". I won't spill it, for sake of ruining a fun twist, but I'm very curious to know if I am right. Aside from all that, as interesting as the Vivian plotline has been lately, I wish they'd actually show more of it in flashbacks. It's been incredibly expositiony but I don't get why - isn't Sasha Pieterse a series regular? Use her more please. Why not show Alison in flashbacks?

Ezra gets some scenes. I really do not get why he's being so confident and assertive with Byron. He has no leverage whatsoever against him, so he's certainly being a bit cocky in calling the shots. No doubt he's a believer that his love for Aria will trump all other conflicts that come his way - sad thing is he might be right. I want the writers to defy my expectations, I really do - don't give Ezra an easy escape from this problem! A guy can wish, I guess. All I can say is I'm actually on Byron's side for a change.

Lastly, Emily gets word of Maya's whereabouts and she spends the episode debating whether to tell Maya's parents what have become of her. It was a very minor sideplot but I liked the beats of how it played out. You could clearly identify each moment that led to Emily's ultimate decision to do what's right, and how each moment impacted her through her non-verbal responses. Nice writing, nice acting.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

A late-night visit

2.24 If These Dolls Could Talk A

If anything, I'd say season two has been a prolonged waiting game, constantly building toward an episode like this. The form of cloak and dagger intrigue presented here is exactly what I've been waiting for for a long time. The writers have been promising it for a while, especially since the mid-season premiere episode where the girls clearly committed to unearthing "A's" identity, but there's been a lot of extraneous plotpoints to handle in the meantime. Nearly every episode since then has been a clear step, albeit an interesting way, to sidetrack them from their goal of finding "A". They can't always go off in search of their anonymous nemesis because of their personal lives spiralling out of control around them, or the significant twists along the way that require them to rework their original plans. So even though the writers couldn't deliver on their promise right away, it's not like the past half-season was a waste of time by any means. They eventually delivered, and they kept the journey interesting along the way.

As the girls overcome each individual obstacle that blocks their path toward "A", it's only an issue of time - and Spencer's late-night visit from Alison - that puts them back on track. It's been a long time since they've played the "Alison is still alive" angle, but that's probably best. While the girls laying detailed traps to ensnare "A" is something I wanted to see more of this season, I think the seldom appearance of the "living Alison" element has been used just right. It's a difficult concept to sell as a reality, so unless to writers fully commit to delivering an answer quickly, it works better as a mystery. The less we see, the less we know, and our theories on the truth can't possibly commit to one side over the other.
Anyway, it makes sense that Alison - whether alive or in a vision - would visit Spencer of all people, the gang's de facto lead detective. It's always her role in the story to coordinate the group effort of finding answers, and it's clear that everything is advancing forward at an unstoppable speed. But it's also clear that right now Spencer is the one holding them back. Her emotional connection to Melissa is keeping her from executing the necessary task of finally pinpointing Melissa's exact role in the mystery. Spencer is pulling her punches, so to speak.

After some debate, Spencer, Hanna, Emily, Caleb, and Mona organize a detailed con which will finally shed some light on Melissa. It's a great move, and it all plays out well enough... but there's a significant twist. "A" has had the upper hand in this con from the beginning. You see, "A" made a play a few episodes ago that cemented his/her advantage in the game, and the girls are totally unaware of it. In fact, so is a chunk of the audience. It really comes down to the fundamental question: Do you know who "A" is? Even if you're only about 60% sure, you can see why the con failed. Otherwise you might be scratching your head. It's really a hard thing to analyze and critique because it implies you have learned information about the show from outside sources and assumed it as canonical fact. It's something that's been plaguing me about season two for ages. Who's really enjoying the season the most? The people who think they know who "A" is, so they think they know why seemingly random outcomes are actually the result of complex plans? Or the people who are patiently waiting for the on-screen reveal and in the meantime are left puzzled and ponderous? I guess we shall see in just a few short days...


The unveiling

Moving on, one important aspect of this season is the backstage alliance between the NAT members. It's amazing how much of a story has been told here without it ever appearing on screen. Relationships have formed and broken, and the drama is almost worthy of its own spinoff show. That would be an interesting idea - to see the same saga we're seeing now, only from the "bad guys'" perspective. Lately the backstage drama has been about "A" stabbing each of his/her allies in the back. As expected, Garrett was the next member on the hit list. But more interestingly, Jenna has taken a defensive stance. Not only did she physically survive "A's" sabotage in the previous episode, but she's committed herself to a deep-seeded lie that will keep her protected. It was fairly guessable that she was lying and that she had regained her vision, but it makes perfect sense that she's obscuring the truth for some actual benefit. If anything it brings more credibility to Jenna as the intelligent, manipulative individual she is described to be. I'm actually predicting a major role for her in the finale, or possibly season three, something that is a totally new direction for her in the future. Despite the fact that she is escalating her lies, part of me believes she was sincere about her apology to the girls. If Jenna is truly committed to moving past her hateful relationship with them, could she possibly even become their friend? It's hypothetical at this point, but worth thinking over.

Lastly, Aria carries the majority of the B-plot. Truth be told I'm liking this unexpectedly dark turn for Aria's character. As her parents consider shipping her away to boarding school, she fights back using some awfully disturbing and vengeful threats. It's wholly unexpected, but in a good way. If anything, Aria could stand to use some new material to work with. When it's not her and Ezra's back and forth tango, then it's her finding ways to combat her parents' opposition to her independence. Pushing Aria to her breaking point could actually open a whole new set of doors for her.

[Blake (HDLYR)]

Tonight is the night

2.25 unmAsked A

MAJOR SPOILERS! This review mentions the identity of "A" by name - you've been warned

I guess I'll start with one thing that really surprised me about this finale, and that's how Spencer-centric this episode ended up being. She has this bad ass moment of determination right from the start, and it's a full-on sprint from there. Executive producer and writer of this episode, I. Marlene King, has made it no secret that she has a special fondness for Spencer, so I can't say that I'm surprised Spencer dominated this episode. Normally I will never, ever complain about more screentime for Spencer, because she's my favorite character too. But you could easily say King went overboard with the character preference, and even argue that it was a rather selfish writing choice. Frankly I'm disappointed and slightly embarrassed an executive producer would ever go that route. I honestly feel like she trumped her own writing team, ignoring the slew of other characters both major and minor, and failing to find an appropriate resolution to a number of lesser plotlines set up this season.
I don't know what kind of democratic or dictatorial writing team King runs, but it's beyond clear that she had too much of a hand in this single episode. But that's not to say King is a bad writer herself. This episode was a monumental task, delivering on a months-long promise that the most essential mystery of the series would finally be brought to light: the identity of "A". Revealing the identity of the girls' anonymous foe would be the single biggest gamechanger to date, but more importantly, King at least had enough foresight to lay the groundwork for the next step in the saga. If you're going to wipe the slate clean, so to speak, you have to introduce something equally compelling to take its place. It's early to tell what exactly season 3 will have in store, but it's clear there's something planned already and it's not a case of blind writers leading a blind audience. "A's" identity may be revealed, and that very resolution has the potential to rush the series into a premature finish, but to me it feels like the overall tone of the series is still in tact and ready for more. Mysterious, anonymous individuals are still manipulating events behind the scenes, and all the subsequent tragedy falls exclusively on Aria, Hanna, Emily, and Spencer. "A" may no longer be solely responsible for what happens next - but clearly someone is still overly fixated with the girls, to an unhealthy degree.

Now onto the major development. "A" is... Mona. Who didn't see it coming? Raise your hand. I for one, cannot, because I did see it coming. Let me tell you a little something about my deduction of "A's" identity. It started at the pilot episode. After seeing ONE episode of the series, I took an educated guess as to who might be "A" and my guess was Mona. The pilot made the fundamental flaw of defining Alison as an unrelenting bully, while only actually showing Alison bullying one person outside of the four girls, and that was Mona. Clearly Aria, Hanna, Emily, and Spencer did not murder Alison - so who's the only one left? Mona. Jenna never seemed like a possibility until episode 2. As season 1 progressed, the writers threw in some red herrings, tossing out different suspects as to who might have killed Alison, focusing heavily on obvious suspects like Jenna, all while continuing to ignore Mona as a possibility. Mona and Mona alone was the only side character who was never implicated. Simply by omission it grew more and more obvious that Mona was the spot-on guess, and by the end of the season I was about 80% sure I had it all figured out. Sometime between season 1 and 2, Lucy Hale herself confirmed my suspicions! In a radio interview she purposefully spilled the beans that, in the books, "A" was Mona, but she wasn't clear if the television series would faithfully follow that narrative. After that, I never second-guessed it.
But the real question is did you know? There are so many sources out there (wikipedia, books, interviews) that have widely dispersed the identity of "A" to the general public, and I'm relatively sure the writers of the series were well aware of that. It's almost like they began catering episodes to a knowing audience deliberately, using information dispersed about the show through external sources within the context of the show itself. If your audience already knows the answer to the mystery, then don't rely on the mystery. I always stuck to the opinion that revealing "A's" identity was ultimately going to be a letdown for anyone who had figured out the answer, so the writers would have to focus on something else in the narrative as a placeholder to satisfy us. And that's exactly the feeling I got throughout season 2. Revealing "A's" identity was mostly a book-end plotline - introduced at mid-season as the girls commit to investigating "A's" identity, and then only seldom making progress in the investigation until the season finale, when all is revealed. Everything in the middle told its own separate story. I've always felt a single episode of PLL covers more ground and tells more actual quantitative story than entire seasons of some shows, and I haven't praised it enough for that accomplishment. Even though the girls trying to track down "A" seemed like it should have taken center stage, because it seemed like the more weighty plotline, the writers consistently did a wonderful job of making every episode count in other regards. Whether it was expanding the mystery to levels beyond "A's" identity, developing credible season arcs and relationships for the main characters, or keeping the mob of minor characters interesting - nearly every task set forth by the writers seemed like a committed and compelling effort. That's high praise for season 2 in my eyes.


Mona and Spencer

If you're expecting the reveal of "A" to be the most intriguing thing in this episode, there's a chance you'll be disappointed. The reveal has its moments, such as seeing Mona go down like every other criminal mastermind in history: slipping up on the most minor of details. There's always one overlooked element that gets them busted. Her subsequent psychotic breakdown and journey toward pitiful defeat was pretty entertaining. In the end, it's almost hard not to feel some shred of sympathy for her, and that's probably the most unexpectedly human emotion "A" could ever hope to solicit from her actions. All she ever wanted was the be on par, to be noticed and popular, and in some sick fashion she got it.
On the contrary, just to be critical, there's a few stylistic choices that don't necessarily work that well for the big reveal. For one, no one is ever in any immediate danger aside from Spencer. Already you know she's not going to die, being one of the "core four". It cripples a lot of the suspense, and I have to point the finger at King again for the same thing I mentioned before. She ignored so many developments earlier in the season that positioned various characters as potential casualties in the game: Caleb, Ashley, the fellow NAT members. Clearly "A" was becoming more and more volatile and violent, and someone was going to bite the dust. But did that happen? Sort of, with Maya, one person who was not set up as a casualty. It felt slightly unwarranted that she's the unlucky victim, but what's worse is that it's not even truly clear if "A" was the one who killed her. If anything, I had hoped "A" would have at least gone out with a more significant bang. It's unfortunate the writers didn't take the bolder move of killing off a more significant character. I had always hoped they would (maybe that's sadistic of me), but I'm also not surprised they avoided that route.

This episode tried its hand at two horror-thriller tropes with a PLL twist: the haunted hotel and the spooky masquerade ball. The hotel was a good enough setting for the reveal of "A" but stylistically I think it detracted a bit from the episode to distance the characters from Rosewood at such a pivotal point in the journey. It's almost like introducing a last-minute, external answer to the mystery as if the girls never had a chance of finding the answers they needed in Rosewood itself. Like I said, it's a stylistic choice, and a minor complaint.
While Spencer had her hands full with Mona, everything with Aria, Hanna, and Emily at the masquerade ball left things a lot more open-ended. I'm not sure exactly what was accomplished here. I feel like we were given many clues as to what's going to happen next, but I'm still scratching my head over them. What was Jenna up to? Was she doing something sinister at the ball, or did she facilitate the reunion between Ezra and Aria as a sign of good faith that she has moved on with her life? Was that Ezra she met at the undisclosed location? None of that was ever very clear. And why was Lucas seemingly in cahoots with her and the Tall Woman? The Tall Woman looked like Melissa minus the prego-belly, but was that actually her? So many questions to which the answers never fell on the audience or Aria, Hanna, and Emily.
And finally... who is the "A-behind-the-A"? Clearly puppet-master Mona has had someone else pulling her own strings, but who? The flashback scene with her and Alison, all black and white except for Alison's red trench coat, clearly suggests that the person visiting Mona in the asylum at the end may very well be Alison herself, donning her signifying red trench coat. Til next time...

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Overall I'd give season 2 some hefty praise for being a lot more cohesive than season 1. The writers learned from past mistakes and drove forward in excellent fashion. In closing, I'll just give some stray thoughts on different things I enjoyed, questioned, or maybe even frowned upon in season 2. No doubt in my mind, however, that I'll stick around for season 3.


Romeo and Juliet

Anne Sullivan: she was a great addition to part 1 and an awesome new character. She left rather quickly, with a lot of unfinished business, albeit it was the appropriate time for her to go for the sake of keeping the girls from having too influential of an ally at their side. I'm glad they brought her back for the finale, even if her role here did seem relatively minor.

Jason: he really tossed up things for Aria in part 1 and the Aria-Ezra-Jason love triangle was top notch while it lasted. Unfortunately I felt like Jason's inclusion into the season got retconned in part 2. The half-sibling connection with Spencer was always in the works, but the love interest with Aria went completely out the window and never got brought up again (maybe because they threw that role toward Holden instead?). In the end I hate to say that Jason was criminally underused after being such a heavy player early on.

Aria's love drama: clearly things got a bit stale between Aria and Ezra. Jason changed things up a bit in part 1, and Holden in part 2. It was a good sign for a while when Aria and Ezra outed their relationship to the Montgomery parents, so drama was significantly stirred up across the board. But when their brief separation didn't take, as we all predicted it would, Aria and Ezra suffered from A LOT of back and forth repetitiveness. The problem here is that any time these two characters "break up", which is waaay too often and impossible to count, there's no significant change in either of them. They simply stumble back into each other's arms, neither having changed for the better (or worse) and thus the foundations of their relationship are on the same exact grounds as before. The writers clearly need to introduce new stimuli to these two to keep them interesting, because when a plotline relies on these two characters alone, they stumble hard and often.

Lucas: it was great to see some focus thrown his way for a couple episodes, but unfortunately it was during one of the biggest writing mistakes of the season. Lucas has been so awesome because he's such a decent, nice guy but he's also got this wounded, victimized, vengeful side that pops out from time to time. I feel like the writers wanted to focus on that for a change, but they did so in a cheaply conceived and resolved story arc. Plus he disappeared for the remainder of the season afterwards. Maybe his brief, silent appearance in the finale hints that we have not seen the last of Lucas' darker side.

"A" targets Emily: Emily was the most underused main character this season, with her various plot threads spread out a bit thinner than the other girls. She had a really awesome string of episodes where "A" was specifically targeting her, using her apparent weaknesses to do some real damage. It was the nastiest "A" had ever been, in my opinion, and seeing Emily overcome the attacks was pretty great on her part. The only down side is that I don't recall Emily ever being the most centric character even in those episodes (except maybe one) when she was clearly geting the best material and deserved more screen time.


Pregnant ladies be crazy, nah mean?

Caleb, side characters, and NAT members: I kind of mentioned this before, but I feel like the finale single-handedly let down a lot of development here. "A" needed to pull off a credible hit on an important character to keep the tension high. I was almost convinced Caleb wouldn't survive til the end, but he never really took the stage again after his little showdown with Garrett (which ended up being smaller in scale than I had pictured). Overall the writers used a ton of characters much better than they had in the past, it was simply the resolution that fizzled out. My last review talked about the inner drama with the NAT members, so I won't go into that. I will say I had no idea Melissa would be such an awesome villain, but she turned out to be wickedly fun.

Alison (aka Vivian Darkbloom): the Alison-centric Halloween episode is still my favorite to date, and it was an awesome mythos-heavy installment for the series. It expounded on the possibility that Alison may still be alive somewhere out there, which is totally insane if you think about, but somehow it makes perfect sense. Just the minimal amount of time this plotline ever appeared was exactly the right touch. Never too much, never too little. Any time Alison took the stage this season, it was a hit. The idea that she may still be out there is exponentially more exciting, or else the most epic tease ever.

If you stuck with my reviews, or more importantly this exhausting novel in particular, then kudos to you! More importantly, I hope you stuck with this season of Pretty Little Liars and enjoyed it as much as I have!

Overall Season Average: A-

[Barrett]

People watch PLL here? Sweet. I've never had anyone to discuss it with because I don't know anyone that watches it. I haven't read all of the episode reviews posted here, but I'll keep up with them once the show returns next month. I'm kinda surprised at how much I like the show, since it's pretty different from what I normally watch, but what may have started as a guilty pleasure quickly became a legit good show that I always look forward to.

I was a bit disappointed in the S2 finale, but not in the way that most people were. I was disappointed because it really all seemed abrupt and out of the blue (for lack of a better term). Things didn't build to a conclusion the way I would've expected them to, especially given the clues provided in the episodes which preceded it. Rather, it seemed more like an abrupt, "Aw crap. We said we'd reveal who A was this season. Let's throw this together." Just seemed like it was interrupting all the cool, creepy stuff that had led up to it. But I look forward to finding out more about the A Team, Vivian Darkbloom, and whoever was dressed in red at the end of the episode.