S01.E02: It's All Her Fault

[jjj]

Thank you, Meander.  It is clear that cleaning the kitchen while trying to watch this show is not going to work. 

 

Is anyone loving this show?  I can't decide whether to go back and really try to understand it.  And was the very last scene with Wes and the girl next door a flashforward?  Was the cell phone under the floor boards supposed to be a mystery, or do we know what it is? 

[Primetimer]

This week's creepy client outshone the directionless cast of How To Get Away With Murder regulars.

Read the story

[izabella]

Yeah, I wound up disappointed with the character with this episode. I couldn't believe he was going out on such a limb for that girl. Then I wondered why the others agreed to it -- even with the coin toss. No way I'm getting into this kind of mess just because that one guy, however sweet he may appear on the surface to be, has a crush on his neighbor. Puh-leeze. Maybe she did it in self-defense, but, again, puh-leeze. Now when they all go to trial, their case of self-defense will be harder to prove because they tampered with everything!!!

 

I'm having a hard time believing all of the other students are helping to cover up some kind of crime and are trying to destroy a dead body.  Unless they had something to do with their teacher's dead husband, this group of law students would seem to be the last group of people to do that for anyone.  Why would they?  they don't even like each other, much less care about someone one of them has the hots for.

I HATE the flash-forward-back-sideways crap.

[mbutterfly]

I'm really enjoying this show so far.

 

I don't understand what everyone is talking about re: the flashback/forward/sideways though. They are only doing flashfowards as far as I can tell. Always to the same time frame of that one night, always adding a little bit more each time. Am I missing something?

 

The only thing I'm having a hard time with is Annalise. Like many have said, her personality is all over the place, I can't get a real sense of the character.

I agree about the flash forward. That, plus Davis, is the intriguing factor with this trashy-fun show. And I enjoy the combination of that with the COTW. I don't care how improbable. I do think Walsh came back because the IT guy was sweet and cute and wasn't be manipulative at that point. 

[Empress1]

I always notice bad wigs, and while obviously there are many issues among black women and "good hair", I think it's more of a wig thing in general. I just think they are distracting, like Julianna Margulies's or the girl from The Black List, or Kim Zolziak. Especially in daylight scenes, it just always takes me out of the moment, like, "Why is no one asking The Good Wife why she has a wig on?"

Totally agree. I'm black and wear my hair natural but the issue isn't that Viola Davis is wearing a wig, it's that it's a BAD wig. A cheap-looking wig that wasn't even on straight. The actress's natural hair is beautiful, but she's also worn much better wigs than this. Surely Shonda has more than $14.99 in the fake hair budget? I remember a flashback episode of Private Practice and they had Kate Walsh in a $9.99 wig from CVS.

Annalise's boyfriend appears on Sons of Anarchy too. He is CUT.

I have to pay attention to this show because the timeline is all over the place, but I'm enjoying it. I am HERE for Viola Davis. I love her.

[Chicago Redshirt]

Curious.  Was he tried under Swiss law?  Would double indemnity even apply?  

 

The case happened in Switzerland, and so presumably he was tried there. Double jeopardy applies:

 

http://www.admin.ch/ch/e/rs/312_0/a11.html

 

1 No person who has been convicted or acquitted in Switzerland by a final legally binding judgment may be prosecuted again for the same offence.

2 The foregoing paragraph does not apply to proceedings that have been waived or abandoned and to the review of a case.

 

DOTW presumably could not be tried for the same crime in Pennsylvania or wherever else in the U.S. because there would be no jurisdiction.

[reggiejax]

Curious.  Was he tried under Swiss law?  Would double indemnity even apply?

 

 

That would depend on what type of insurance policy, if any, Steven Weber took out on the first wife. ;)

 

In all seriousness, I believe Annalise told the court that he was acquitted by the Swiss court, and double jeopardy would still apply.

 

Then again, I am not sure if we can trust her word when it comes to the law. For all the talk about how she is a brilliant defense attorney, we have yet to be shown any evidence of said brilliance. As has been mentioned, it's her indentured servant students who seem to be coming up with the ideas that get her clients off.

[wanderingstar]

Finally realized what the structure of this show reminds me of: ABC’s late, very much lamented (at least by me) high-concept show The Nine. That show also had regular flashforwards to events the audience had to piece together and an ensemble cast that featured HTGAWM’s own Tom Verica! Major difference is that was a much, much better show!

 

 

The case of the week is unnecessary (though I enjoyed seeing Steven Weber) since the audience already has to keep track of TWO ongoing murder cases.

 

 

Laurel is super boring to me. Same with Asher.

 

 

Loved the hell out of all of Annalise’s scenes, especially with Nate and her husband, Sam. And Nate articulated what I was thinking during this ep: it must be hard for Annalise not to be suspicious of everyone given her line of work.

 

Right now all the scooby gang are basically one note characterizations because the show won't slow down enough to give any of these characters actual development.

 

 

Since this show comes from Shondaland, I’m not holding out much hope that character development will ever happen.

Edited October 3, 2014 by Gillian Rosh

[helenamonster]

At first I thought Wes and Eloise would actually make a cute couple. But then I realized I didn't want The Puppy (love!) in a relationship with a murderer. Though that wish looks like it's already proving to be pointless if Rebecca did murder Sam.

 

Loved the bit with the coin toss. At first I was annoyed because we'd just seen this dialogue last week and I was wondering how stupid the showrunners thought we were, but then they added in that little detail and I loved it.

 

I'm probably in the minority, but I find myself liking Laurel. Though I'm preparing to be disappointed in her when she starts boning Frank.

[jjj]

I loved "The Nine" and had no problem distinguishing between past and future scenes.  (Bummer that all the episodes did not air, and I stopped watching mystery serials after that plug was pulled.)  But this seems much more confusing.  Is it the lighting?  Is it the commotion? 

[Xazeal]

Again, I feel like I shouldn't like this, but I'm hooked. It's probably my favorite new show this season. 

 

I'm not bothered by the flashforwards, but I do think they're unnecessary. They don't really contribute to anything. All they've really told us is that the husband ends up dead (who cares), Rebecca becomes important (which... duh) and Wes is maybe slightly more interesting than we think, which I guess is something. I really think that time could've been spent to further develop the students, though. 

 

I like Connor. I don't really know why, so it's probably because I find him attractive and I'm shallow. The gratuitous sex scenes definitely help, and I won't be complaining if that becomes a weekly thing. I also like Bonnie, because in the first episode I literally thought "she looks nice" and figured she would be the human one, and she just smashed that perception into pieces with a single scene. Loved it.

[dr pepper]

Is Steven Weber saving up for a yacht? I'm not complaining, mind you, i've been a fan since Wings. But he's been a regular supporting character in two shows this year, (one in which he was a charter jet pilot!), and now this. I hope he doesn't end up taking a long break from acting after this.

[briochetwist]

 

I'm not bothered by the flashforwards, but I do think they're unnecessary. They don't really contribute to anything. All they've really told us is that the husband ends up dead (who cares), Rebecca becomes important (which... duh) and Wes is maybe slightly more interesting than we think, which I guess is something. I really think that time could've been spent to further develop the students, though. 

 

I have clearly missed something, where did everyone figure out that it was the husband that gets killed?  I missed that...

[Stinger97]

I have clearly missed something, where did everyone figure out that it was the husband that gets killed?  I missed that...

 

The first episode revealed that Mr. Keating was the body the kids were burning.

[FormerMod-a1]

It was at the very end, you could see his face in the rug after they lit it.  (or maybe it was just before they lit it? regardless it was at the end).

[briochetwist]

Ohhh.... thanks.  Everyone has better eyesight than me I guess, it was so dark I couldn't see anything!

[jjj]

These questions are making feel so much better about sitting in front of the program going, "huh?".  And I figured out the end of the first season of "Damages" long before anyone else on TWoP, so it's not like I can't fathom non-linear structure.   

[Neurochick]

I love this show.  I don't have a problem with the flash forward and flash back scenes; the thing is, you have to be paying attention while you're watching.  I usually watch this show "on demand" the day after it airs.  The thing with the flash forward scenes is that repeating them from different perspectives.  Last week we saw the coin toss, but this week we realized Wes lied; last week we saw the others wait for Wes, while he was in the convenience store; this week we saw him buy the burner phone to call Rebecca.  

 

I think the problem with Viola's wigs on the show is that they look like wigs, and if your wig looks like a wig, no bueno, also, I think the show is trying to give the illusion that that's her real hair.  When Anna was having sex with her husband, I kept thinking, "I can't imagine a woman keeping her wig on during sex."

 

I don't know how to feel about Wes.  Sometimes he comes off bright, but I don't get why he's suddenly become "Captain save a ho" where his neighbor his concerned, if that's the case then Wes is a douche, the type of guy who seeks out a damsel in distress, because a woman who can save herself is just too much work for him.   Ugh.

 

As for the show being unrealistic, well it is but it doesn't bother me.  I live in NYC and have sat through countless movie and TV shows where the Statue of Liberty is right across the river from the Empire State Building.  Also in the many years that Law and Order was on, they NEVER, EVER, EVER got the Grand Jury correct.  I mean the entire thing was wrong, every single time and that would make me laugh because someone could have easily done their research.  But, as for this show, I'm watching for the drama and suspense.

Edited October 4, 2014 by Neurochick

[jjj]

Neurochick, you just helped me a lot, because in my kitchen-cleaning watching, I had not realized these are different perspectives in the flashforwards!  And I did not see Wes buy the burner phone, so had no idea what that phone was at the end! 

Edited October 4, 2014 by jjj

[XtremeOne1]

Maybe it's because over in a Bones thread people were trashing Cam's new hair but I'm a little tired of all this "hair" talk. This is Viola Freakin' Davis. She can wear a mullet wig for all I care. She entralls me in every scene she's in, the definition of a captivating actress.

[Ms Blue Jay]

I like the case of the week.  That's the whole thing drawing me to shows like this.  When it comes to my other favourite law shows, The Good Wife, and SVU, I only like the case of the week.  Whenever the show delves into the long term storylines regarding the personal lives of the characters I really couldn't give a shit.  (Although, with Annalise, I really really do care.  It's way too interesting so far.)

 

I like how Annalise is so "flawed".  What people do we know who aren't "super-flawed" once you get to know them (I say this with love, and I include myself in this)?  I love how 'real' she seems and that she shows every range of emotion.  I recommend the Entertainment Weekly article.  Actually Viola Davis did not want to do TV, she really had to be convinced, and what convinced her is that she wanted to play a real human woman with a lot of different flaws and facets to her personality.

 

I don't know how to feel about Wes.  Sometimes he comes off bright, but I don't get why he's suddenly become "Captain save a ho" where his neighbor his concerned,

 

I love you so hard for this reference.

Edited October 4, 2014 by Ms Blue Jay

[theatremouse]

I am hoping Wes' entire identity turns out to be false, and he's every bit the conniving mastermind the coin flip makes seem possible. Not some started-all-all-wide-eyed-innocent and changed over the three months they're flashing back and forth between kind of thing, like...he always was evil and we just have to wait to find out how/why. That's where I hope this is going.

[wanderingstar]

Maybe it's because over in a Bones thread people were trashing Cam's new hair but I'm a little tired of all this "hair" talk. This is Viola Freakin' Davis. She can wear a mullet wig for all I care. She entralls me in every scene she's in, the definition of a captivating actress.

 

 

YES!

[helenamonster]

Oh, I forgot to mention I was really confused by the phone at the end. I thought when he looked in his cabinet he was going to find that pink makeup bag and it was going to be full of drugs (like Rebecca had stashed them there in case the police showed up). So what was the phone about?

[theatremouse]

Guessing it's water tank girl's phone and therefore incriminating evidence.

[KaveDweller]

Oh, I forgot to mention I was really confused by the phone at the end. I thought when he looked in his cabinet he was going to find that pink makeup bag and it was going to be full of drugs (like Rebecca had stashed them there in case the police showed up). So what was the phone about?

 

I thought he was going to find drugs too.  The phone thing confused me because if it's the dead girl's phone, why not just throw it in a lake right after she's killed?

 

I am hoping Wes' entire identity turns out to be false, and he's every bit the conniving mastermind the coin flip makes seem possible.

 

I feel like that's what is being hinted at, and it's not just him going all bad boy because of Rebecca.  It's much more interesting.

[ToukieSmith]

 

I like how Annalise is so "flawed".  What people do we know who aren't "super-flawed" once you get to know them (I say this with love, and I include myself in this)?  I love how 'real' she seems and that she shows every range of emotion.  I recommend the Entertainment Weekly article.  Actually Viola Davis did not want to do TV, she really had to be convinced, and what convinced her is that she wanted to play a real human woman with a lot of different flaws and facets to her personality.

 

I think the issue is that she is unraveling, not just flawed.  How does she make the leap that her husband is a murderer?  Why is she stalking her boyfriend?  IMO, she ran to her boyfriend with the story about her husband because she wanted to have a reason to talk with him.  She could not manipulate Nate's sympathies so she goes home and has sex with the husband she thinks murdered someone.

 

From what I have seen, she is a terrible lawyer.  Maybe she was great once upon a time, but she seems to be a legend in her own mind now.

 

ABC does not do mental illness shows well, see Blackbox.  I like Viola, but I don't know if I want to be entertained by her nervous breakdown.

[fakeempress]

I'm not bothered by the flashforwards, but I do think they're unnecessary. They don't really contribute to anything. All they've really told us is that the husband ends up dead (who cares), Rebecca becomes important (which... duh) and Wes is maybe slightly more interesting than we think, which I guess is something. I really think that time could've been spent to further develop the students, though. 

 

I like Connor. I don't really know why, so it's probably because I find him attractive and I'm shallow. The gratuitous sex scenes definitely help, and I won't be complaining if that becomes a weekly thing. I also like Bonnie, because in the first episode I literally thought "she looks nice" and figured she would be the human one, and she just smashed that perception into pieces with a single scene. Loved it.

I agree about the flash-forwards. I also find them very annoying with everyone freaking out all over the place (though understandable) and scenes being repeated..

 

Two episodes in and I can barely stand Wes. The actor is so stiff and has two facial expressions, I counted. Much prefer Laurel, and the gay and straight assholes. Basically it's Viola's show and I'm happy to watch her, the premise is over the top but I don't mind at all. It's like Revenge, you know what you sign up for.

 

Re the case of the week, how come Weber didn't suggest the hunter defense himself while demonstrating the murder, seems like a logical remark he shoud've made when "stabbing" Connor on the bed.

 

Lisa Weil is scary thin, and that's with the 10 TV pounds on.

Edited October 4, 2014 by fakeempress

[J-Man]

I agree about not being able to remember all of the students' names (other than Wes), but I think I will take a cue from Frank and always refer to that one guy as "Douche Face."

[maryis1]

After watching the first episode on my TV, I chose to watch this one on my laptop. It was a lot easier to follow when I could see all the nuances close up. Lots of wig talk here and last week Viola's hair wasn't distracting to me but when watching it on my laptop, it really is a distraction.

 

What is interesting about that is I watched an interview with S. Epatha a while back and she talked about how she decided that her character was going to wear a "businesslike" wig for the show. And I think that Viola being a woman and a lawyer, her character (especially one of her age) would have come up through the ranks wearing the businesslike wig. I'm figuring that somewhere along the line she is going to remove it for effect in a scene and may go without it more often. I think it might be a plot twist or a 'shocker' like we are supposed to believe that is her real hair.

 

Enough wig talk. Steven Weber's character was very creepy and his daughter well, I'm not sure about that part and whether they will be back again on the show. The old "I'll deal with her and make her pay" attitude of Weber's character is that "wait til your father comes home" kind of open ended veiled threat and left that way so the audience can take it upon themselves to guess at just what he meant.

 

Last week all the jumping around with the plot line was much harder to follow than this week when I watched it on my laptop via the abc.com website. Also, Viola has the most luscious lips.... I'm jealous! Love the way they do her eyeliner as well. I've not watched any other of Shonda's shows so this is all new to me, her style and method (even though she is the producer I understand that it is recognizably her milieu when it comes to formula.

[shapeshifter]

She's an amazing actress who can convey anything -- so why are they writing Annalise as though she's appearing in panels of a comic? In fact, the whole thing plays that way. I can see the "stills" in my mind: Wes' wide-eyed surprise at something in the center of a panel focusing on the courtroom observers, insecure Laurel shrinking into the shadows of one early panel, then winner Laurel coming to the forefront in a later one. The focus on Annalise's face as she questions a witness in one panel, her tear streaked panic face in another as she rats out her husband. BOOM! AH! NO! WHYYY??

And the flash-forwards. It's almost like they are planning to follow it up with a video game or animated version.

I was somewhat confused by the case of the week. How does the fact that the defendant knew how to murder someone humanely prove that he didn't murder this victim inhumanely? Just because I know how to do something one way doesn't mean I could never do it another way. I didn't quite get the logic....

I found it difficult to believe a jury would acquit based on the hunter theory alone when the defendant admitted to another murder on the witness stand.

Student of Law & Order here. They just had to create "reasonable doubt." I got the impression at the end that the father and daughter did it together. He even mentioned something about estate money.

I am hoping Wes' entire identity turns out to be false, and he's every bit the conniving mastermind the coin flip makes seem possible. Not some started-all-all-wide-eyed-innocent and changed over the three months they're flashing back and forth between kind of thing, like...he always was evil and we just have to wait to find out how/why. That's where I hope this is going.

I hadn't though of that, but it does make sense.

It seems clear that he and Rosie from The Killing never met before he moved into the neighboring apartment. I suppose he could have moved there on purpose. Maybe his law school tuition is being paid by someone who needs him as a pawn.

...I think that Viola being a woman and a lawyer, her character (especially one of her age) would have come up through the ranks wearing the businesslike wig. I'm figuring that somewhere along the line she is going to remove it for effect in a scene and may go without it more often. I think it might be a plot twist or a 'shocker' like we are supposed to believe that is her real hair..

Based on comments here, many have noticed the wig, so I do agree that its appearance likely serves a purpose. I was just thinking something metaphorical--like her smooth exterior covers her wild or rough or whatever inside (personalities can't be curly, but maybe twisted?). But maybe the wig will just serve as some sort of fiber clue at some point. They are burning off contact DNA from her husband's body, but, IDK, would the chemical components of a wig remain?

In addition to the wig, her husband doesn't seem to fit either. It's not a race thing, it's just that she seems to visually fit with a stronger looking man. I wonder if that casting was on purpose too.

Heh. "Too?" Yes, I realize I just made it sound like the wig is a cast member.

Edited October 4, 2014 by shapeshifter

[helenamonster]

I got a sense of the father considering that he and the daughter were "even." Like, he killed her mom and she killed his wife. He'll probably still punish her (maybe by cutting her off financially) but there seemed to be a sense of understanding there. Man, that kooky family must have one hell of a Thanksgiving dinner.

[Mrs OldManBalls]

These questions are making feel so much better about sitting in front of the program going, "huh?".  And I figured out the end of the first season of "Damages" long before anyone else on TWoP, so it's not like I can't fathom non-linear structure.   

Throw a "Holy shit!" on the end of your "huh?" and you are in my living room. This show takes time to process.

 

Maybe it's because over in a Bones thread people were trashing Cam's new hair but I'm a little tired of all this "hair" talk. This is Viola Freakin' Davis. She can wear a mullet wig for all I care. She entralls me in every scene she's in, the definition of a captivating actress.

I'm picturing her in a courtroom scene with Joe Dirt's mullet! 

[Neurochick]

I think the issue is that she is unraveling, not just flawed.  How does she make the leap that her husband is a murderer?  Why is she stalking her boyfriend?  IMO, she ran to her boyfriend with the story about her husband because she wanted to have a reason to talk with him.  She could not manipulate Nate's sympathies so she goes home and has sex with the husband she thinks murdered someone.

 

 

I saw this differently.  

 

It was brought up in this episode that Anna's husband had an affair with one of his students before, Anna said something like, "you said that the last time," or something like that.  So she looked in her husband's phone and saw a few messages with the dead girl; the one message she saw was pretty innocent, but before Anna could check out some more, he came out of the shower.  Then when he went down to the cellar to get a bottle of wine, she checked again and found all of their texts deleted.  Red flag for Anna.

 

Anna ran to her boyfriend and begged him to help her out, but he blew her off, understandably.  I think she went back and made love with her husband because she wants to believe that he's innocent, she doesn't want him to be a killer, even though her instincts are telling her he is.

 

Other little things I noticed:

 

I think Wes is supposed to be us, the audience.  The coin toss in episode one morphed into the bicycle he was riding to school; also it's through Wes, that the audience learned about the other characters, including Anna's husband.  So Wes is like our eyes and ears, he finds out stuff the same time we do.

 

Anna's boyfriend told her to be careful, that the police doesn't like what she does, how she embarrasses them.  I wonder if that will play a part in a future episode, will the police set her up for something?  Will the DA try to railroad her?

 

Someone made a comment about Wes maybe being Anna's secret son, but that was shot down as being racist; I have to say, I thought that too.  Maybe she had a child with her husband, before they were married, that she put up for adoption.  Maybe she wasn't trying to get intimate with him, maybe she was trying to see, "can this be him?"  Who knows.

 

I just hope ABC and Time Warner get their shit together and keep bringing this show 'on demand" ON TIME.  

[stonehaven]

This show is so stupid and pointless yet I will keep watching..i haven't had a true guilty pleasure in a long time..plus I love Viola Davis..and I have a thing for Tom Verica..and see Verica play a cheater or slightly bad guy is worth it to me..

[jjj]

the one message she saw was pretty innocent, but before Anna could check out some more, he came out of the shower.  Then when he went down to the cellar to get a bottle of wine, she checked again and found all of their texts deleted.

Again, thank you, Neurochick, for clarifying what happened there.  I knew why she was looking for messages, but had not realized she had seen messages on his phone previously.  I thought she was looking at a second phone in the shower scene.

 

I thought she went home and had sex to show her husband there was no problem between them, heeding the ex-boyfriend's advice to "be careful".  If here suspicions are right, he is a murderer, so she would not want to be ticking him off. 

[Mabinogia]

I had the same impression jjj, that she was just trying to keep her husband from thinking she suspected him/anything was wrong. Anna looked like she did NOT want to be doing that but felt it was better than not doing it. Nice marriage they've got there. lol

 

I still can't quite tell if Blonde partner/lawyer lady, is it Bonnie? For some reason I'm thinking Bonnie? is sleeping with the husband or just wants to sleep with the husband. He doesn't seem to have all that much reaction to her, and a lot of ass on the side, so I'm not sure he'd bother with her but she is clearly stuck on him.

 

Of the students, so far I only like Main one (it's only because of this board that I know he's Wes), gay one (can't remember his name or the other white guys name) and I liked bitchy one until she became whiney one this ep's flashforward. Bland girl doesn't have any personality for me right now and I just don't like the jerky one. I do like the neighbor Rebecca. I would prefer it if Jock guy was her brother or something rather than a hook up because I could see her covering for her brother but not for some boyfriend who was seeing another girl. I'm sadly not paying quite enough attention to know if they've addressed her connection with the Jock.

 

I wish the characters were better fleshed out because I like the mystery side of the show, the murder within a murder along with a general case of the week, but I don't really care for or am interested in spending time with any of the main characters and that's a big thing for me. I'll put up with a lot of crappy TV if I enjoy spending time with the characters. So right now I'm in it for the mystery rather than the characters. I hope that changes.

[JAYJAY1979]

I was excited last week because it appeared Annalise was a ball buster, not another Olivia Pope who goes weak in the knees over some guy.  Sadly, we saw her acting all pathetic over that cop.  I was hoping since Shonda Rhimes wasn't writing this show that we'd be spared another Olivia Pope clone.. guess not.

[ribboninthesky1]

I realize the show is finding its legs, but some of the cast chemistry is so strange to me. To wit:

 

• Connor and Michaela have more chemistry than Connor and cute patootie IT guy. I don't get the sense Connor is supposed to be bisexual, but the actor seems to play it that way, albeit unintentionally. (There's a interesting shot of what looks like Connor/Michaela in the next episode promo that reinforced my perception of their chemistry.)
• Annalise and Sam have no chemistry. Their dynamic reminds me of the Molly/John relationship from Extant.  Hell, Annalise has more chemistry with Wes than her husband, not to mention hottie cop.  That would be fine if it wasn't apparent that Annalise loved, or at least cared for, her husband at some point in their marriage. For now, I'm reading it like Sam's infidelity drove her to seek solace elsewhere, and she found it, in spades, with hottie cop.  Which is different than my assumption from the first episode, where I assumed that Sam and Annalise were married in name only, and had an open relationship, or at least some kind of agreement where they could seek sexual satisfaction elsewhere. I'm kind of bummed that Sam is not long for this world, as I was interested in seeing more of them together. 
• If the plan is for Frank and Laurel to eventually get involved, they're doing more telling than showing.  They don't have any chemistry, either. Matter of fact, Laurel seems like she doesn't belong among the group at all.  I can't tell if it's the actress or the direction, but she always seems to have a "I wondered in off the street...how did I get here?" expression.
• I can't get a read on the relationship between Annalise and Bonnie.  It seems strained, though I'm not sure if it's because Bonnie is an open book regarding Sam, and either got involved with Sam in the past, wants to do so now, or did so in the past AND still wants some action.  

 

I agree with the poster that compared Wes to an ostrich, heh. Frankly, the only natural interactions Alfred Enoch has is opposite Viola.  Don't know if that's direction, or him being at ease with Viola.  It's amusing, though. 

 

I'm not invested in either of the 2 murder mysteries, as they seem to be plot devices for fleshing out the students. I liked this episode more than the pilot because it felt like we got more Viola. My interest hinges on Viola being on my screen.  I'm okay with the other fully adult characters being fleshed out, but the students could die in a fire and be replaced.  Makes little difference to me. 

[helenamonster]

ribboninthesky1, I totally get a vibe from Connor and Michaela as well. It's not too late to make him bi!

 

And, yeah, I'm kind of wondering where they're going with the whole Laurel and Frank thing. Because Laurel right now does not seem like she has any interest in sleeping with him. In fact, she seemed really distressed by the idea that the only reason she was picked was because Frank thought she was cute. Maybe it'll be a swerve and they won't end up sexually involved. I really hope that's the case. Have some pride, girl!

 

I think it's kind of interesting the dichotomy they've made between the four main students (Douche Face is clearly a tertiary character and I'm wondering what'll happen to him that he doesn't end up burning Sam's body with the others). You've got Michaela and Connor who are assertive and not afraid to use illegal means to get information on a case and impress Annalise. Then you've got Wes and Laurel, who are really observant, honest for the most part, and who both happen to be insecure as to why they were picked (Wes thinks it's because Annalise is afraid he'll squeal, Laurel think it's because of Frank). I just think it's an interesting way to set the four of them up, and I wonder if they'll go anywhere with this divide they've created.

[FlyingEgret]

Regarding the case of the week: I would say on average, it takes about a year for a high-profile case to go to trial. Anna told Steven Weber to leave the bedroom exactly as it was. So, my question is would the blood on the sheets and walls really stay that red a whole year later? Wouldn't it turn dark brown? I honestly don't know since I wash my sheets in bleach after killing someone...

[ToukieSmith]

 

It was brought up in this episode that Anna's husband had an affair with one of his students before, Anna said something like, "you said that the last time," or something like that.  So she looked in her husband's phone and saw a few messages with the dead girl; the one message she saw was pretty innocent, but before Anna could check out some more, he came out of the shower.  Then when he went down to the cellar to get a bottle of wine, she checked again and found all of their texts deleted.  Red flag for Anna.

 

Anna ran to her boyfriend and begged him to help her out, but he blew her off, understandably.  I think she went back and made love with her husband because she wants to believe that he's innocent, she doesn't want him to be a killer, even though her instincts are telling her he is.

I question why she leaped to Sam being a murderer.  He is a cheater and she is upset by that.  Okay.  Why was she on the verge of hysterics when she cornered Nate on the street outside of his house?  She is a big time lawyer.  She doesn't have investigators on the payroll to quietly look into things?  What was she going to do if Nate had decided to look into the matter and found that Sam did murder his lover?  If she loved Sam, I would think the last thing she would do is to go to the police on her suspicions.

 

I felt like she wanted Nate's attention and she would make up anything to get him to pay attention to her and to be intimate with her.  When he did not take the bait, she directed her pent up sexual energy towards her husband.

Edited October 5, 2014 by ToukieSmith

[zillabreeze]

I'm on and enjoying it.  But I totally agree with the poster thst said Shonda is good till she isn't.  I was a Grey's fan then all of a sudden, I just stopped and never looked back.

There might be something wrong with my middle aged ass, but I rather like two hot guys getting busy.

And yes, poor Paris looks like Skeletor, but that's prob what Hollywood requires.  I liked her so much more in Gilmore Girls where she was a normally shaped bitch.

Edited October 5, 2014 by zillabreeze

[ribboninthesky1]

And yes, poor Paris looks like Skeletor, but that's prob what Hollywood requires.  I liked her so much more in Gilmore Girls where she was a normally shaped bitch.

 

Ha! I first knew the actress as Paris Gellar as well, so when Bonnie said something like, "I know you feel you can talk to me because I have a nice face," my immediate reaction was, "In what world? You perfected the art of the perpetually sour-face, Paris!" Maybe if I never knew her as Paris...

 

The actress has always been slim and petite, so I feel like the bleached blonde, severely cut bob is too harsh for her, and making her look more haggard than she should be.  But it could be she's too thin as well.

 

On a separate note, I know Connor is supposed to be the hottie Casanova, and yes, he's attractive.  But the only men who compel "Yeah, baby!" out of me are Billy Brown and Tom Verica. (The actor playing) Frank comes third only because I appreciate the beard. The actor playing Connor has an annoying mix of babyfacedom and smuggery that doesn't appeal to me.

Edited October 5, 2014 by ribboninthesky1

[truthaboutluv]

To me, Connor and Michaela have "chemistry" due to the often used television trope that a guy and girl who snark at and seemingly can't stand each other, eventually end up hooking up because all the fighting is to hide their attraction to each other. So it doesn't surprise me that some see chemistry between them but far as I can tell and based on interviews with the actor and the creator, Connor is gay, not bi-sexual. And I for one hope they don't change that just because some see chemistry between the actors because that will be disappointing in my opinion. 

[theatremouse]

Anna told Steven Weber to leave the bedroom exactly as it was.

My bigger problem with that scene was her talking about preserving the crime scene, which they proceeded to walk through, touching all sorts of stuff, reenacting, shoes on the murder-location-bed, etc. So, what exactly was being preserved and how could anything they might possibly find in that room be remotely admissible given the half dozen random people all related to the defense being in the room with no police officers or anything that could resemble a chain of evidence? So whatever she intended to glean from it...it was basically supposed to trigger brainstorming, right? Because nothing they might literally find would be usable.

 

Ugh. I don't expect realism and I know there's a whole other thread for that law-wise, but seriously, I do expect the basic rules of logic to apply. Unless the word "preserve" has an archaic usage that makes it synonymous with "to traipse through with reckless abandon".

Edited October 5, 2014 by theatremouse

[jaytee1812]

Is Steven Weber saving up for a yacht? I'm not complaining, mind you, i've been a fan since Wings. But he's been a regular supporting character in two shows this year, (one in which he was a charter jet pilot!), and now this. I hope he doesn't end up taking a long break from acting after this.

He was on NCIS: New Orleans last week too. I'm beginning to think he's obligatory for all new shows this year. I wouldn't be complaining if he was.

[Mabinogia]

My bigger problem with that scene was her talking about preserving the crime scene, which they proceeded to walk through, touching all sorts of stuff, reenacting, shoes on the murder-location-bed, etc

 

That was the biggest WTF ever! Especially because she specifically said something about in case they need to find more evidence in it if something new comes up, and then they have Hot Gay laying on the bloodstained pillow while Wings stabs him repeatedly and with some glee with a pen while half a dozen others look on. All I could think is any prosecutor worth a damn could get any evidence discovered in that room after that dismissed without breaking a sweat. So really it was just to have the "OMG they went there!" scene where one of the students had to lay in a murder bed. Yawn!

[Matteo]

This is just my theory, but I assume this main murder mystery of the Lila girl will have many, many more twists and turns, and I don't think Rebecca or Wes are in any way guilty of killing her (or Viola's husband, for that matter), though they are involved in the coverup.  My guess is that Bonnie might be behind it?  I don't even know why exactly, but there's something about Bonnie/Liza Weil that is coming across as creepy to me.  I think she has totally had an affair with Annalise's husband in the past, and maybe he was also sleeping with Lila, and she killed Lila (and possibly killed Sam too?).  Just a guess, but there's something off about her character, and I could see her being expendable by the end of the season when they will need to resolve the mystery.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Why was she on the verge of hysterics when she cornered Nate on the street outside of his house?  She is a big time lawyer.  She doesn't have investigators on the payroll to quietly look into things?  What was she going to do if Nate had decided to look into the matter and found that Sam did murder his lover?  If she loved Sam, I would think the last thing she would do is to go to the police on her suspicions.

I think the hysterics were fake and that she's using Nate to compromise any future case that might be made against her husband. The thing is, Nate already let her play him like that once so why would he do again unless her coochie is just that good. But it won't matter anyway since we know the husband ends up dead. Maybe she's trying to compromise any case that might be made against her (or one of her students, say, Wes?).

 

I was excited last week because it appeared Annalise was a ball buster, not another Olivia Pope who goes weak in the knees over some guy.

ICAM. The change was dramatic. However, I guess solid ball-busting female characters don't really work as leads on TV because audiences tend to want to see some weakness (or punishment). Shonda's way seems to be to make the woman's attraction to some guy her primary weakness.

Edited October 5, 2014 by Joimiaroxeu