S06.E07: O Brother, Where Art Thou?

[dwmckim]

Must be of the "Plan meticulously but if need be don't be afraid to use whatever you have" mentality.

 

Besides, never let it be said that Charles doesn't have balls and knows how to use them.

[mercfan3]

Hmm, if A knows everything..wouldn't he/she know that Jason tried to go alone? 

 

I wish we got more of Mona/Ali together. 

 

Bye Toby? (maybe? Hopefully? Please? Take Ezra with you..) 

 

Hmm..Hannah gets a scholarship, Aria gets approved for her art show...is A trying to apologize. How very abusive relationship of him/her. 

 

Did we find out second good boyfriend in Rosewood? Mike Montgomery. 

[Spencer Hastings]

Okay, I hate to seem dense but....

Am I really supposed to believe that the A that hijacked a police van under gps and video surveillance, kidnapped 6 women, mentally tortured them, implanted microchips in their necks, and kept them in a dungeon/dollhouse over a period of 1 month - 3 years is the same A whose track record includes saran wrapping Aria to a wall and tossing a few tennis balls at the Rosewood Mall Cops?

Maybe he's just resourceful? Like a demented MacGuyver....

[WhosThatGirl]

Well, I guess i happen to be alone in the unpopular episode of not liking this episode. I just feel the showis taking too long to tell us things we already know so they can fill in the time crunch of this episode until the finale.

It bothers me a lot how the show can't seem to have all the parents in one episode lately. This season we got an episode where all the moms were present but it upsets me when things like this happen and we only get Ashley's reaction. Granted we did hear from Mike that Ella and Bryan were upset but Emily came home to a dark house? No way. Pam would be standing in the dark and switch a light on. Same with Spencer's mom and or dad.

I hope Sara's gone for good. Emily is getting really bad as a character, the first half of last season did her no favors and then Sara runied her. The fact tha she put Sara above the others made no sense. I sort of understand why she did with Ali last year in a sense but.. Sara? Sorry writers, no go.

[GaT]

Who wrote Toby’s hallucination scene, the writers of Reefer Madness?? That was so stupid.

 

Ali actually called the police & told them stuff! Will wonders never cease. 

 

I guess each of the girls will be getting something from whatever that corporation is, & of course A is involved.

 

Still feels like they're still stringing us along waiting for the big summer "finale"

 

Favorite quote of the night goes to Mona: “Half the time I thought I was being haunted by Ali, & half the time I thought I was auditioning for American Idol”

[Lii]

I like how Emily just lets random women move in to her home, then immediately forgets about them when they move out (Talia). Please go the way of Talia, Sara. Girlbai.

Whoever wrote that "eating weed candy is just like acid" scene needs to be slapped. FFS.

So after several years of stalking, torture and murder, now A just wants to be friends? K. We'll all have a sleepover and totes paint each other's nails. The hell.

[dwmckim]

So after several years of stalking, torture and murder, now A just wants to be friends? K. We'll all have a sleepover and totes paint each other's nails. The hell.

Isn't that how most people play with their dolls?  Pull out all their hair, drag 'em through the mud, run over with the trike and then hug them to death and treat them to a tea party while proclaiming "I wuv you"?

 

So after tonight's episode the one scene i want so badly to be in the next eppy (and probably won't happen precisely because i want to see it) is Tanner chewing out Toby.  Heck i could watch a sequel of Tanner coming down on Ociffer Toby!

 

(Is it just me or has anyone else come dangerously close to accidentally clicking on the "Report this post" button instead of the intended like, edit, or reply buttons?)

Edited July 22, 2015 by dwmckim

[Eneya]

Wow... the U.S. definitely has some very weird ideas about marijuana. It in no way affects people like this. There is no "trip". People become calm, relaxed and comfortable. No hallucinations, no... whatever that was supposed to be. Seriously, you don't need narcotic chemistry (is this the phrase in English?) knowledge, just wikipedia to know this and to write it accordingly.

 

I didn't like the episode either. Sara is... meh. The whole thing is... meh. It has been dragging for too long, using the same shtick and the audience (me) can't muster any more energy to feel invested, since it is repeating the same 4 steps ad naseum.

[Spencer Hastings]

It bothers me a lot how the show can't seem to have all the parents in one episode lately. This season we got an episode where all the moms were present but it upsets me when things like this happen and we only get Ashley's reaction.

Yes! I wanted to see Veronica hit the ceiling twice. Once for being stupid and again for not including her.

[dwmckim]

Of course maybe we're all so used to underestimating this show and rather than being a "mistake" about the effects of marijuana, it's always possible that the inconsistency was intentional and that Spencer's candy was spiked with something else.  (Which would actually be a nod to the more recent books in the series.)

[Cranberry]

(Is it just me or has anyone else come dangerously close to accidentally clicking on the "Report this post" button instead of the intended like, edit, or reply buttons?)

 

Don't worry, it won't automatically send a report. It'll take you to a screen where you're supposed to enter a reason for reporting the post, and you can just back out of there.

 

Okay, I hate to seem dense but....

 

Am I really supposed to believe that the A that hijacked a police van under gps and video surveillance, kidnapped 6 women, mentally tortured them, implanted microchips in their necks, and kept them in a dungeon/dollhouse over a period of 1 month - 3 years is the same A whose track record includes saran wrapping Aria to a wall and tossing a few tennis balls at the Rosewood Mall Cops? 

 

I don't know, actually. A got a birthday gift at the end with a card that said, "Happy Birthday! -Your Friend and Ally," so maybe that person is doing the heavy lifting.

[lorikauai]

These writers are killing me.

 

Toby: "Hey lets go check out what's happening at Wallaby Road." (Side note: Isn't that the address from Finding Nemo?)

Lorenzo: "Um but that's not our jurisdiction."

Toby: "But it's so BORING here. I'm sure they'll appreciate our help."

 

WTH was up with Toby's reaction to the pot cookies? For a second I thought maybe he had been poisoned (Spencer being the intended victim) and Spencer's barista/supplier would turn out to be Bethany Young/Charles' accomplice. 

 

It was painful again watching Emily try to keep Sara all to herself, not to mention incredibly creepy. Yes Em, let's tell the girl who has been kept captive for years that she needs to stay with you, a stranger, instead of spending time with her friend. It makes total sense that she shouldn't be allowed to leave Rosewood. Hey, at least it's bigger than the bunker.

 

The ages seemed all messed up again in the birthday party video. Shouldn't Ali be way younger than Jason and Charles/Freddie?

 

So who do we think the painter/Charles' "ally" is? We know Bethany Young was an artist. Aria also was an artist and helped with the Radley art class. We saw Wren drawing Red Coat.

[raytch]

I refuse to talk about Emily Fields this episode. #characterassassination

I'm glad Sara shut her up with a kiss and went on her way to be with her friend.

 

Finally my girl Ali is coming back! I wanna see her take down her dad next week when he tried to shame her for calling the police.

Loved her scene with Mona. I hope we have more interactions between these 2 before the finale.

 

Anyone else feel like Freddy!Charles kinda looks like Wilden?

Not that it's something to consider given that Ali looks as old as her brothers...

 

Okay, I hate to seem dense but....

 

Am I really supposed to believe that the A that hijacked a police van under gps and video surveillance, kidnapped 6 women, mentally tortured them, implanted microchips in their necks, and kept them in a dungeon/dollhouse over a period of 1 month - 3 years is the same A whose track record includes saran wrapping Aria to a wall and tossing a few tennis balls at the Rosewood Mall Cops? 

 

You're forgetting that up until the kidnaping A constantly had the element of surprise, because the police never saw him coming.

I think after the dollhouse he's had to make do.

 

Well, I guess i happen to be alone in the unpopular episode of not liking this episode. I just feel the showis taking too long to tell us things we already know so they can fill in the time crunch of this episode until the finale.

It bothers me a lot how the show can't seem to have all the parents in one episode lately. This season we got an episode where all the moms were present but it upsets me when things like this happen and we only get Ashley's reaction. Granted we did hear from Mike that Ella and Bryan were upset but Emily came home to a dark house? No way. Pam would be standing in the dark and switch a light on. Same with Spencer's mom and or dad.

I hope Sara's gone for good. Emily is getting really bad as a character, the first half of last season did her no favors and then Sara runied her. The fact tha she put Sara above the others made no sense. I sort of understand why she did with Ali last year in a sense but.. Sara? Sorry writers, no go.

 

Ali was her first love. It made sense that her come back to town would leave Emily reeling. She's known Sara for 2 weeks and she's already giving Claire those crazy eyes she once gave to Spencer when she knocked over a bucket in that abandoned building where Emily was supposed to meet Ali. 

 

Isn't that how most people play with their dolls?  Pull out all their hair, drag 'em through the mud, run over with the trike and then hug them to death and treat them to a tea party while proclaiming "I wuv you"?

 

So after tonight's episode the one scene i want so badly to be in the next eppy (and probably won't happen precisely because i want to see it) is Tanner chewing out Toby.  Heck i could watch a sequel of Tanner coming down on Ociffer Toby!

 

Tanner is overdue for a come back. I wanna see her chew Mr. Dilaurentis is who I wanna see her chew.

 

I wanna see Toby leave Spencer for good because even though she had no idea about those gummy bears, he nearly lost his job (haha!) and his life because of it.

Toby shouldn't have taken the candy? No but it's candy and seriously everyone eats candy. Even A for chrissake!

Anyway... IF they break up because of this - an they have a good reason here- maybe there'll be a chance for Spencer and Dean, who honestly, at this point, I think is the only who can help her. 

 

 

HAHAHA TENNIS BALLS! I don't know about you but I'm team A!

Edited July 22, 2015 by raytch

[raytch]

So who do we think the painter/Charles' "ally" is? We know Bethany Young was an artist. Aria also was an artist and helped with the Radley art class. We saw Wren drawing Red Coat.

 

The painting seemed very different from what we've seen of Bethany's and Wren's. I don't recall any Aria paintings.

 

Did anyone notice the extensive emphasis on dolls this episode? We see Aria sorting them to throw them out. We see Mona picking them up one by one while talking to Mike. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

[SadieT]

Ali actually called the police & told them stuff! Will wonders never cease. 

 

She was probably just looking for a date. We know she has a thing for cops and Rosewood cops have a thing for underage girls. 

 

Whoever wrote that "eating weed candy is just like acid" scene needs to be slapped. FFS.

So after several years of stalking, torture and murder, now A just wants to be friends? K. We'll all have a sleepover and totes paint each other's nails. The hell.

 

It would have been more fun (and realistic) if after eating all the pot gummi bears, Toby just showed up to the arcade and decided he didn't really feel like shooting A because he just didn't have the energy and wasn't up to it, so instead he went home, ate some taco bell and played xbox.  

 

Loved her scene with Mona. I hope we have more interactions between these 2 before the finale.

 

Loved Mona and Alison's scene, too, even though it was way too short and they barely spoke, but it made me want to see them team up again in the future. Lot of awkward tension in that car though. In my head their conversation went a little something like this: 

 

Alison: Thanks for picking me up. Weird that I don't know one single other person who could get me who didn't try to frame me for murder. 

 

Mona: No problem. Sorry I faked my own death, framed you for murder, turned everyone you ever loved against you, and had you thrown in jail. 

 

Alison: Yeah, no worries, it's cool. Sorry I bullied you so badly you went crazy and started sending me and all my friends harassing text messages. 

 

Mona: Hey, remember that time I helped you fake your own death and convinced you to run away for two years and let all your loved ones think you were dead because some deranged psychopath was trying to kill you and I wanted you gone so I could be popular? 

 

Alison: Yeah... good times. I'm going to call the cops now and tell the truth this one time. I'm sure it'll work out perfectly because the Rosewood PD is totally competent and has done an excellent job keeping the residents of Rosewood safe while not solving a single murder case. 

 

Anyone else feel like Freddy!Charles kinda looks like Wilden?

Not that it's something to consider given that Ali looks as old as her brothers...

 

I've seen some Charles is Wilden theories out there that point out the physical similarities, which pretty much come down to blond hair and blue eyes, but you never know. 

 

This is what annoys me about this show. You never know what details are clues and which are just production screw ups. Some fans pay attention to every little detail on this show looking to piece together the mystery, but considering the writers are clearly just making it up as they go along, most things people notice are just coincidences or mistakes. Alison really should have been about 3 or 4 in that video and the kid playing her looked 8 or 9. It's a glaring error to viewers but I don't necessarily believe it's meant to mean anything other than the PLL casting director is horrible at casting kids. Remember the boys in the apple farm video looked entirely too young to be 6 and 7 years older than baby Ali, so this isn't the first time they messed up. 

 

I wanna see Toby leave Spencer for good because even though she had no idea about those gummy bears, he nearly lost his job (haha!) and his life because of it.

 

He went to the police academy for 3 whole weeks to get that job! 

 

Did anyone notice the extensive emphasis on dolls this episode? We see Aria sorting them to throw them out. We see Mona picking them up one by one while talking to Mike. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

 

Marlene instagramed a pic of the girls with their mini me's plus mini me dolls the other day. I feel like the dolls are probably a huge clue because the doll motif has been pretty obvious throughout the series, but ugh, I can't bring myself to care.  

Edited July 22, 2015 by SadieT

[Spencer Hastings]

Anyone else feel like Freddy!Charles kinda looks like Wilden?

Not that it's something to consider given that Ali looks as old as her brothers...

Yes, but for awhile I was like the band on the Titanic when it came to the Wilden!Charles theory. Can't let myself go back there.

[Lii]

I wanna see her chew Mr. Dilaurentis is who I wanna see her chew.

 

I wanna see Toby leave Spencer for good because even though she had no idea about those gummy bears, he nearly lost his job (haha!) and his life because of it.

Toby shouldn't have taken the candy? No but it's candy and seriously everyone eats candy. Even A for chrissake!

Anyway... IF they break up because of this - an they have a good reason here- maybe there'll be a chance for Spencer and Dean, who honestly, at this point, I think is the only who can help her. 

  

Daddy DiLaurentis has been the most ridiculous human being on this show for the past three straight episodes, and these episodes included magical marijuana candy hallucinations of doom, tennis ball cop killer A, Sara and her tattoo, Hanna going full ecoterrorist on an animal testing lab, and Aria. Apparently he's the REAL victim here. You know.

Ohhhhh, Officer Toby. If being underage and a convicted felon isn't stopping him from being a cop, I feel like he'll be okay. Maybe he can have more awesome magical hallucination dreams first, tho. I'm down. Officer Toby, keeper of law and order and part-time Magical Girl! Imagine the glory!

The painting seemed very different from what we've seen of Bethany's and Wren's. I don't recall any Aria paintings.

 

Did anyone notice the extensive emphasis on dolls this episode? We see Aria sorting them to throw them out. We see Mona picking them up one by one while talking to Mike. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

That the final scene will be of a dead future Earth with nothing left alive but Mona, who managed to survive Skynet in a bubble of hyperadrenalized superreality, Jean Grey style. With dolls. And yellow tops.

[Agent Dark]

I'm sorry, but creepy possessive manipulative Emily is amazing.  It's like she's going full Ezra or something.  Never go Full Ezra.

[Lii]

I'm sorry, but creepy possessive manipulative Emily is amazing.  It's like she's going full Ezra or something.  Never go Full Ezra.

I miss when Ezra went full Ezra, though. This show needs more THAT.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Aria: What about Sara? What happens when A retaliates?

Me: WHO CARES?!

I was like dude, now Emily AND Aria are totally concerned with Sara's safety. Gawd.

Last week the girls faced a raccoon. This week - tennis balls. What should we expect next week?

I totally loved that Jason went from protecting Spencer from the dangerous tennis balls to telling her not to touch him and stalking away from her.

Loved that Hanna and Spencer were determined to get shit done, from finding Charles to getting rid of their chips.

I wonder if they are going to use one of the book plots in reference to Aria's possible fellowship. In the books

a famous art collector offers to buy one of Aria's paintings of Ali for $100K which turns Aria into an overnight sensation. She is inundated by offers to have gallery showings in New York and to be interviewed by all kinds of art magazines. After her gallery opening, the New York Post publishes a story that says Aria pretended to be the assistant of the famous art collector and paid for the painting herself in order to get publicity. Aria realizes that A was the one behind her instant fame and that she did it just to take it away and make Aria look like a liar.

Not exactly the same circumstances, but I suspect that A is behind Aria being selected as a finalist for the fellowship, just as I suspect that A is behind Hanna's college scholarship, and that both of these things are being dangled in front of them just so A can snatch them away later.

For the record, the letter Aria received was hilariously bad. It had the word "prestigious" three or four times. There was also something that said all finalists are expected to adhere to the standards and practices oulined by the fellowship (I hope one of their guidelilnes is "no creepy doll photos"). So does this mean that A will reveal something about Aria to the fellowship people to make sure she doesn't win? Part of the prize is a summer internship with a prestigious (unnamed) magazine in Los Angeles so maybe this is Aria's ticket out of Rosewood and after the time jump we will learn that she decided to stay in LA instead of going to college. Not only would she be on the other side of the country but you know not going to college would incense Byron so bonus!

Emily was being such a jealous secret girlfriend while Sara and Claire were catching up. I didn't buy her story for one second that this was all because Claire said some less than flattering things about Sara. And even though Claire did say that Sara was a bitch, so what? It's not like the other PLLs never said anything like that about Ali and they are all friends with her again. Emily's obsessive possessiveness about Sara gets worse and worse every week. What made Emily's jealousy seem even grosser is that this was the first time we have seen Sara act like a normal teenager (as opposed to the scared girl who spends most of her day showering and avoiding her mother). Instead of seeing this as a positive thing, Emily acted like a bitchy third wheel and a creepy controlling girlfriend.

Why did Mike bring all of Aria's creepy dolls to Mona? I thought we would finally be rid of those damn things. Please don't tell me that A hid a secret message in each doll and we will have to see Mona decapitating each one to retrieve them.

Ha, I love that Toby finds a note in his girlfriend's bag that says, "Don't stress, babe! <3 S," and his only instinct is to eat the candy. Not that I'm saying he needs to be jealous or anything, but still. I saw Sabrina skulking nearby when Hanna and Spencer were talking so I was convinced that she was on the A team and trying to poison Spencer

It could actually be really interesting to see Ali and Sara interact. I mean, what does Sara think about this girl she has been forced to be (to the best of our knowledge) all these years? Does she resent or hate Ali, or has she in some strange way become bonded with Ali because she was presumably told so much about her? Does she sympathize with Ali because her brother is obsessed with her or hate her for not being the one who he kidnaped? Any of that would, in my opinion, be far more interesting than watching Emily fall in love with another passing character.

Ha, at the very least it could be like George Costanza being jealous of Frankie Merman ("the summer me"). In all seriousness, you'd think that Ali and Sara would at least be curious enough about each other to want to talk, even if just once.

I agree that no Ezra is good but no Caleb is bad!

I miss when Ezra went full Ezra, though. This show needs more THAT.

Ha, I have to admit that I miss Ezra pretending he was out of canned chickpeas so he could go watch everyone on his Sliver monitors. That was almost as creepy as Ian's milk drinking. Edited July 22, 2015 by ElectricBoogaloo

[raytch]

The painting seemed very different from what we've seen of Bethany's and Wren's. I don't recall any Aria paintings.

Did anyone notice the extensive emphasis on dolls this episode? We see Aria sorting them to throw them out. We see Mona picking them up one by one while talking to Mike. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

That the final scene will be of a dead future Earth with nothing left alive but Mona, who managed to survive Skynet in a bubble of hyperadrenalized superreality, Jean Grey style. With dolls. And yellow tops.

I love you. Tell me more!

[raytch]

I wonder if they are going to use one of the book plots in reference to Aria's possible fellowship. In the books

a famous art collector offers to buy one of Aria's paintings of Ali for $100K which turns Aria into an overnight sensation. She is inundated by offers to have gallery showings in New York and be interviewed by all kinds of art magazines. After her gallery opening, the New York Post publishes a story that says Aria pretended to be the assistant of the famous art collector and paid for the painting herself in order to get publicity. Aria realizes that A was the one behind her instant fame and that she did it just to take it away and make Aria look like a liar.

. Not exactly the same circumstances, but I suspect that A is behind Aria being selected as a finalist for the fellowship, just as I suspect that A is behind Hanna's college scholarship, and that both of these things are being dangled in front of them just so A can snatch them away later.

Wow that sounds like an awful plot.

I just did a quick re-watch without the Emily parts.

So wasn't Fred what Holly called Varjak because he reminded her of her brother?

Also, A seems kinda pissed when he gets the gift? Is BV/RC behind this?

In the arcades showdown, A looks kinda tiny and skinny? Do we know if at that point they were working with one stunt double until the finale or were they still using anyone available on set?

Yes, but for awhile I was like the band on the Titanic when it came to the Wilden!Charles theory. Can't let myself go back there.

I am practically out of ideas.

I'm almost convinced Charles is someone we've never seen. Which, to tell you the truth, I wouldn't mind so much if they had spent more time showing us how he works from under the hoodie, just so we get a feel of a certain character.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

When I saw that A's present was signed from "Your Friend and Ally," I thought for a second that it was signed from Ali.

 

Is the fact that A received a birthday present on Charles's birthday supposed to be confirmation that Charlie is definitely A? I don't trust MK anymore.

[raytch]

I think that's what they're saying. Charlie is A.

[Eneya]

I doubt the cookies were poisoned.

In regards to the story... I am feeling more and more uncomfortable how ableist and problematic is the attitude towards mental illness from the author and in the show. Recently I read the two books for which it is known they will be made into a tv show as well. Spoiler alert,

the crazy one did it (split personality). Again. That's her favourite trope, apparently

.

[Peanut6711]

I'm with this show to the end, but God every episode I feel like I'm getting jerked around.

 

Why did Toby take Spencer's candy? Did he think it was for him?

 

I thought Ali was a lot younger than Jason and Charles, but she seemed around the same age in that video.

 

I used to like Emily, but now she is annoying as hell with her Sara obsession.

Yeah, Officer Toby the Brownie Theif was too contrived. If there was simply a plate of them sitting out it might of been one thing but what kind of a boyfriend steals what looks like a present (since it was wrapped with a tag) out of his girlfriend's bag without at least saying "Hey, can I have one?"

 

Jason and Ally clearly looked too close in age in the ridiculous video. Do the writers even care any more if there's a thousand continuity errors?

 

Emily was grating my nerves and it wasn't 10 minutes into the episode.  Can we say lousy friend (she chooses her love interests over them) and possessive girlfriend!  Sara actually seemed like she was acting normal around her friend and Emily kept butting in because she felt left out. wtf  Clearly it's not really Sara's well being she's concerned about. 

[insubordination]

• So Hanna's Dad couldn't cough up some college money even though she was kidnapped?

Solid work from Laura Leighton as usual.

The girls referred to 'A' as a 'he' again, but last week a 'she'.

So 'A' is some blonde guy? I still reckon 'A' could be someone who received an organ transplant. Why say Charles is dead when he's not? Convoluted doesn't cover it.

Lots of odd scenes that kept me interested (Allie in the car with her Dad, arcade madness). I was surprised they integrated Jason into the plot. He's not my favourite actor or character, but he was good tonight.  I love the four girls, but it's always interesting when other characters get scenes together (like Ali and Jason or Caleb and Ashley). Why hasn't 'A' been menacing Jason like he does with the girls (elevator shafts aside)?

No Ezra! (or is he the ally who wished 'A' a happy birthday or was it Tobes?)  'Ally' is too similar to 'Ali'.

I didn't like Emily in this episode. I haven't like her much lately, but I forgive her 'cos she looks pretty.

I would never have predicted I would ever type this, but Lucy Hale was MVP. I actually find Aria's freaking out/doll obsession/911/curling up to be interesting and she had a comedic moment too. They should give her more of those. I usually can't stand Aria, but she is better this season. More vulnerable and yet tougher too. It's nice that she's not relationship obsessed.

It really wasn't a good idea to pull out a chip lodged near their spines, but  off-camera was the way to go. It was actually funny.

How come dealer girl always smuggles her stuff in elaborate treats? How exactly did she make it? Were they LSD dipped Jelly babies?

Spencer sure has some dumb ideas, but Troian always manages to convince with the determination in her eyes.

Mike and Mona squicked me out a bit. I guess I still see Mike as a kid.

Yes it was a pointless and silly episode, but most of them are.

ETA The arcade/tennis balls reminded me of some scenes in the Stephen King directed movie 'Maximum Overdrive'. A nod? I want to agree that the show is brilliant for Jason/Charles imaginary friend, but even that seems 'Rain Man'.

ETA Maybe Toby stole the sweets 'cos he wasn't getting enough sugar.

Edited July 22, 2015 by insubordination

[Mabinogia]

Lucy Hale was great this ep. And Aria had some good stuff. It is amazing how much better she is without Ezra. Actually, it's not. Most of us knew she would be better as a character without the Ezra albatross around her neck. Sadly, the upgrade of Aria made Emily look even worse. Ugh. I hate this Emily/Sara storyline, and I don't think it's over. If that was it, then what was the point? We didn't learn anything about Emily, we didn't get any story progress. It was the filliest filler ever if it's over.

 

I hope that it turns out those were LSD gummy bears and not pot gummy bears because Toby was acting more like he was on an acid trip. That said, even high/tripping he's boring and a bad boyfriend. Ugh Toby, maybe don't go eating other people's food without asking first. It's not like she wasn't in the same house with you. "Hey, Spence, I'm starving, mind if I take these carefully wrapped and clearly a gift gummies?" Not that difficult. I really hate Toby's macho, "stay here little lady, I got this" BS. Especially when he goes and epically ruins it by being a selfish dick and taking candy that isn't his and well could have been something Spencer made as a gift for someone else! Hello! (I don't think it had her name on it).

 

Mona and Ali was great. Two great actresses able to convey without words the odd undercurrent in their relationship.

 

As ridiculous as this show is, I still find it pretty entertaining. I embrass the crazy, like cops being taken down by tennis balls or teenage girls learning to remove the chips in their neck on youtube. lol

 

I was thrown by little girl Ali being the same age as little boy Jason and Charles/Freddie. Unless that was Bethany. Did Mrs. D call her Ali or anything? IDK, that part confused me. She was an infant in the last video and the boys didn't look that much older in this one. Weird.

[mercfan3]

Charlie used her name. It's really not a big deal, and funny enough my cousins actually look like that and have the age differences that the show supposedly suggests. 10, 9, 8, and 4...4 year old looks just as old as the 10 year old...little 10 year old, big 4 year old. Not a big deal. 

[Mabinogia]

Thanks mercfan3, wasn't sure her name was mentioned. Not that I think for a second it wasn't Ali. I just enjoy making wild speculation about this show because it's just that insane. But it really shouldn't have been that hard to find an actress who looked more like 4 year old, just for the sake of simplicity. It's not like it was a big role, or required any great skill other than being available, and I'm sure there were plenty of 4 year old actresses available for the one day shoot. But this girl was probably someone from productions daughter or a friend of someone's family so she gets the job and gives me more chance to stretch my imaginative speculations. lol

[itainttippithebird]

I actually thought Toby's reaction was somewhat believable - edibles like that can be crazy potent in small doses, and he straight up ate the entire bag! I think some visual/auditory perception problems, dizziness, turning all pasty and sweaty is all in keeping with ingesting that much.

 

At first I thought it was very rude of him to steal his gf's candy (sacred!) but then I realized he thought they were for him ("Love, S") - still, rude to not thank her for them! You could have saved yourself a lot of tennis balls and falling pipes if you'd just used your manners, Tobes.

 

I think they are dropping lots of clues this season to something coming on with Aria - the funhouse mirror reflections, the dolls, etc - I think the trauma of the dollhouse is going to have turned her dark. My guess is that they are hinting toward some kind of dissociative identity disorder plotline, where her "evil" other self is working with Charles and/or doing weird things. I can't quite puzzle it out, but something's definitely going on there.

 

 

[number12]

Does this make any sense? These are all just total guesses but I think Sarah could end up being Charles/A. Apologies in advance for the pronouns, but I'll refer to Charles as "he" and Sarah as "she" for the sake of knowing who I'm referring to

 

• Sarah is first seen huddling up in the Dollhouse, but she was actually hiding from the girls, not Charles/A
• Sarah suddenly cuts her hair short, but she actually had short hair all along and was wearing one of her Ali wigs
• Sarah talks about her parents, but we have never seen them or have any evidence they exist
• Right as Emily was about to touch her neck to see if she had a microchip, she turned around and started making out. This is because she has no microchip, and it was her way to distract Emily before she found out. Besides, does she even know Emily is a lesbian? Or does she only know because she's been stalking her for the past several years, knows she's into girls, and especially knows that she's into Ali AKA Sarah's obsession?
• Sarah very conveniently left psycho-girlfriend-Emily's house on Charles' birthday, which I believe was the first time the girls have encountered Charles/A since the Dollhouse

 

I think they could retrofit this to work. Check it out - Charles was born a boy, but ended up identifying as a girl. That freaked out Mr. D so he sent Charles to Radley, Mrs. D felt horrible about it and had enough sympathy to still care for Charles and visit him and let him come out sometimes (as cousin Freddy) for visits with his brother and sister. But Radley turned Charles into a nut by some super shady means, his rage against his family turned to obsession against Ali (the daughter in the family who was allowed to live as a girl). Somehow yada yada yada he becomes a computer/spying evil genius, escapes from Radley, and tortures the girls/transitions into Sarah from an underground bunker for 3 years. Sarah's "concerned friends" (Claire and co.) were somehow the A Team all along.

 

Obviously this show is so batshit crazy that I am not sure if all of those things fit together. I probably forgot/missed some things that make this all fall apart, so feel free to correct me haha. But it's just insane enough to work, AND it would make all of the "A has a soul!"/"You'll end up feeling sorry for A in the end" stuff make sense.

[Giuliano Lanzilli]

Can someone please explain to me why Spencer made that leap from "Maybe we should keep our chips in" to "We're gonna have to remove them and leave them behind"?

On a bit of an unrelated note, am I the only one who's sick of Ashley Benson's acting? The way she constantly shakes her head and shrugs her shoulders with all that eye-goggling (is that the word?)? You can see that in the scene where they're discussing the chips removal (22.30 for those who downloaded the episode)! I mean, she ALWAYS does that!

Edited July 22, 2015 by Giuliano Lanzilli

[itainttippithebird]

 

Check it out - Charles was born a boy, but ended up identifying as a girl. That freaked out Mr. D so he sent Charles to Radley, Mrs. D felt horrible about it and had enough sympathy to still care for Charles and visit him and let him come out sometimes (as cousin Freddy) for visits with his brother and sister.

 

This has been a theory making the rounds since the finale last season, albeit with CeCe as Charles rather than Sara (which I think fits a bit better). I *really* hope they don't go this direction, as the trope of "trans person = psycho" is old, tired, and seriously destructive and transphobic. No matter how much they tried to turn it into a sympathetic narrative, it would be really, really ugly.

 

For awhile I was despairingly convinced they were moving in this direction, but now I'm less convinced, and I hope upon hope I'm right! I was really hanging on to "Sara is Bethany," though, but last night's appearance by Claire, who knew Sara prior to her kidnapping, sorta took the wind out of those sails a bit. (Unless Claire is being paid/bullied into pretending "Sara" is really the Sara she knew years ago...)

[raytch]

I'm all in on Wilden. Especially that they changed his age around season 4 (from early 30s to mid late 20s and

the new photos from 6X09

Edited July 22, 2015 by raytch

[WhosThatGirl]

I don't think Clarie was being paid, and during the lunch Sara was asking questions only Sara would ask- the puppys name- and learning he was no longer a puppy. Sara brought that up first, I for one hope we are done with Sara. Just a long line of girls who bring Emily down, if you ask me. Maybe not stick Emily with a new LI fo a while, I know this show can't do that ever but they seriously SUCK with Emily- granted Spencer and Aria don't do much better but at least Spencer is awesome when she isn't around Toby, and Aria has her moments, Emily's girlfriends of the seasons keep shadowing her moments and bringing her down-seriously writers read some message boards.

[Crim]

Spencer told Toby the truth and what did this get her? She handed him her agency and got punished for it. Not just the disaster with Charles, not just being apologetic for something Toby did to himself when he stole the candy, no, the very worst for me was that she immediately had to resort to begging him not to go to Tanner and submitting to his orders for her and her friends. That was just gross.

 

Wtf is the show doing with relationships? I remember a time when only Ezria was messed up, but now they all are. Spencer was defensive and pleading before she even told Toby; how is that normal? And Emily was so creepy in this episode(*), and how did that end up? She was rewarded with a kiss and the promise of dating. I don't need shows to be educational, even shows with the target audience of PLL, but this is matching the early Ezria stuff in wrongness. And the show is trying to educate... as to the dangers of pot, of all things!

 

And sorry to rain on parades, but Sara is not gone. She moved out, but she is dating Emily. Sure, she will be on screen less (hopefully), but that doesn't mean things will change with Emily's character assassination and plot irrelevance. It's a step in the right direction though.

 

(*) I didn't want to mention this, but I can't help it. Writers, when you make out with a woman, and in the morning she says something along the lines of "Did that really happen?" and means it literally, that is not a cute or funny thing that leads to awww awkwardness and fuzzy feelings. And when that question was not the result of being drunk, high, or otherwise temporarily impaired, having them just proceed with the relationship mere hours later is not particularly romantic either. It is even less so when you double down on the subtext that Emily is not capable of making the right decisions at the moment. It happens to some of us, we can get blinded by our wants, and it can be very twisted, it can turn us into the very worst versions of ourselves. The show is aware of this as it used it again and again. But it seems blind when it comes to romantic relationships. It should not be. The nature of the wants makes no difference. We crave, and we lose ourselves. Calling it "love" is no magical protection against this.

Edited July 22, 2015 by Crim

[apgold]

The good

 

Mona and Ali - more of these 2 please!  What an odd dynamic and history they have.  Would be funny if they wound up being BFFs.

Mike and Mona - not a shipper of these two necessarily but I think Mona really has feelings for him.

Mike and Aria - I liked that last scene between them, nice brother/sister bonding moment.  And for once he's not acting sketchy.

 

The bad

 

Emily and Sara - don't care unless Sara is playing Emily.  Emily is becoming the new Aria and Sara is Ezra, off in their own storyline.

Toby and Spencer - they have no chemistry and Toby is an idiot for stealing the "candy" and then munching on it.  He deserves what happened to him, maybe it was laced with LSD or something?

 

The Wtf -

Removing the chips themselves.  I get that they may not want to report this to a doctor - where is sketchy Wren when you need him? (Unless he's A and implanted them himself).

Ali finally calls the cops? Someone called the cops?

Hanna's wardrobe - now she's dressing like an Upper East Side matron with the pearls and the boxy jackets.  I liked when she was going thru her punky phase.

[itainttippithebird]

@crim, I wish I could like your post 3,000 times. Yes to allll that! Especially:

 

 

Spencer told Toby the truth and what did this get her? She handed him her agency and got punished for it.

 

I was SUPER pissed through the whole episode for this exact reason.

 

Also, I extra-appreciate your analysis of the Sara/Emily kiss and convo, and the very dark implications of her comment about not knowing if it was real or not in light of her trauma. I didn't even really think about it in the moment, but reading your comments, I was stunned by what a great insight this is. You are so right, and that is such a really critical moment to unpack!

 

Generally, I give this show alllll the credit and I think that the writers and directors are really smart and thoughtful and feminist in their presentation, but they really wiffed it this time.

[Spencer Hastings]

I'm all in on Wilden. Especially that they changed his age around season 4 (from early 30s to mid late 20s and

the new photos from 6X09

Can we have a party if it's Wilden? Because I need it to be Wilden so that I can rub it in my friends' faces.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Hanna's wardrobe - now she's dressing like an Upper East Side matron with the pearls and the boxy jackets. I liked when she was going thru her punky phase.

When Hanna walked downstairs in that boxy red jacket, I thought she had either raided Mrs. D's closet (until I remembered that she only had real estate agent blazers from 1992) or that it would turn out to be a sort of costume to convince someone that she was an Upper East Side socialite's daughter who needed behind the scenes access at an art exhibit as part of this week's A investigation. But no.

Spencer told Toby the truth and what did this get her? She handed him her agency and got punished for it. Not just the disaster with Charles, not just being apologetic for something Toby did to himself when he stole the candy, no, the very worst for me was that she immediately had to resort to begging him not to go to Tanner and submitting to his orders for her and her friends. That was just gross.

Yes to all of this. Just all so wrong.

[luvly]

Can someone please explain to me why Spencer made that leap from "Maybe we should keep our chips in" to "We're gonna have to remove them and leave them behind"?

She initially wanted to keep the chips in because A didn't know that they knew about them, so that gave them the upper hand. Once they got the call from Ali and decided to follow Jason though, they needed to take the chips out or A would know they were heading there.

[Jack Shaftoe]

That was a bad, bad episode. Emily is so creepy around Sara. Even Emily/Alison which I loathe is usually less cringeworthy. Good news is Sara is improving, bad news is she can't be around Emily because I might break my TV in frustration. I also can't help but wish Paige could see Emily's crazy eyes and realize what a bullet she unwittingly dodged.

 

So nice of A to send more clues because god knows the girls can't find shit on their own. "Oh, Lesli doesn't want to talk... whatever, we are most certainly not going to press her for info because we are so meta and we know she isn't in this episode". Followed by "We removed our chips but decided to let Toby go on his own... then changed our minds for no reason". And mostly "We aren't going to even mention the idea of tracking where these chips are sending their signal to because that would be too easy. We will just hack Jason's GPS instead."

 

I loved Ashley as usual and Alison was surprisingly not annoying but that was about all good I can say about this episode.

 

The anti-pot PSA was so terribly bad that it went past it's so bad it's good and into bad again.

 

Jason is a suicidal idiot for wanting to go alone to convince Charles to give in. Maybe he had too much pot too? And wouldn't he have have realized back then that this "cousin Freddy" looked exactly like his imaginary buddy Charlie?

 

 

I didn't want to mention this, but I can't help it. Writers, when you make out with a woman, and in the morning she says something along the lines of "Did that really happen?" and means it literally, that is not a cute or funny thing that leads to awww awkwardness and fuzzy feelings. And when that question was not the result of being drunk, high, or otherwise temporarily impaired, having them just proceed with the relationship mere hours later is not particularly romantic either.

 

Word. Remember when Paige kissed Emily when the latter had drunk too much? When she learned what had happened Paige felt terrible, so the writers can do this kind of plot better. It's just that they don't even seem to be trying with this Emily/Sara plot.

 

 

When Hanna walked downstairs in that boxy red jacket, I thought she had either raided Mrs. D's closet

 

I think you mean Alison's closet because unbelievably Alison was dressed as a teenager in this episode.

Edited July 22, 2015 by Jack Shaftoe

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I agree that those were probably baseballs at the arcade because they were white but tennis balls somehow seem funnier.

I'm 99% sure that instead of pot cookies, those were gummi bears. They looked too colorful to be regular cookies.

[number12]

This has been a theory making the rounds since the finale last season, albeit with CeCe as Charles rather than Sara (which I think fits a bit better). I *really* hope they don't go this direction, as the trope of "trans person = psycho" is old, tired, and seriously destructive and transphobic. No matter how much they tried to turn it into a sympathetic narrative, it would be really, really ugly.

 

Totally agree by the way! At this point I'm just trying to think of how ANYONE in this universe could be revealed as Charles/A and have it make any sense.

[itainttippithebird]

^ I think the only thing that maintains some semblance of fit is Wren as A, but no doubt next week that'll end up blown to bits, too! :)

[methodwriter85]

Did we find out second good boyfriend in Rosewood? Mike Montgomery. 

 

I'm still bitter that they didn't make Mike gay. And god, Cody Allen Christian is pinging my gaydar so hard on Teen Wolf right now.

 

I'm going to pretend that Mrs. D. filmed those videos on videos like a normal 90's person and A just found some way to transport it on to Super 8 because he/she likes retro stuff.

 

 

This has been a theory making the rounds since the finale last season, albeit with CeCe as Charles rather than Sara (which I think fits a bit better). I *really* hope they don't go this direction, as the trope of "trans person = psycho" is old, tired, and seriously destructive and transphobic. No matter how much they tried to turn it into a sympathetic narrative, it would be really, really ugly.

Oh my god, if that's where they're going, imagine the shitstorm and Social Justice Warriors descending on the show.

Edited July 23, 2015 by methodwriter85

[raytch]

@crim, I wish I could like your post 3,000 times. Yes to allll that! Especially:

 

 

I was SUPER pissed through the whole episode for this exact reason.

 

Also, I extra-appreciate your analysis of the Sara/Emily kiss and convo, and the very dark implications of her comment about not knowing if it was real or not in light of her trauma. I didn't even really think about it in the moment, but reading your comments, I was stunned by what a great insight this is. You are so right, and that is such a really critical moment to unpack!

 

Generally, I give this show alllll the credit and I think that the writers and directors are really smart and thoughtful and feminist in their presentation, but they really wiffed it this time.

 

Actually I cought a nice parallel between Sara talking about "pretend kisses" and Ali talking about "kissing for practice" talks in earlier seasons ("they don't tell you the practice is so much better than the real thing"). 

 

Can we have a party if it's Wilden? Because I need it to be Wilden so that I can rub it in my friends' faces.

 

At the risk of sounding like a total snob. I wanna rub it in A-Trouble Maker's face. I don't know if anyone has seen his Website Page, he has a very interesting theory about Wren and Ezra, but he is so condescending to his followers I just don't want him to be right.

He keeps SCORES of how much he's right about stuff... (ATM 1 - Fandom 0) WTF

Oh and, should we do a drinking game on the night of the finale?

 

I'm all the way across the globe so the episode airs at 4 - 5 am here in Leb but I wouldn't mind staying up for once and live streaming the episode and drink shots with you guys!

[mac123x]

I see what you're doing, Show.  "Your Friend and Ally" -- seriously?  They'll capture Charles in the finale, but he'll turn out just to be another patsy, and the Real A will still be out there.  This is a rehash of MonA:  Charles will be caught, go to prison / a mental ward, and get a black-gloved visitor...

 

I had to mute the Sara / Emily / Sara's friend scenes.

 

The whole bit with Toby's accidental OD was a ridiculous plot contrivance.  "We were so close!  If only Spencer had bothered to tell her supplier that she was back in AA and not needing pot-based consumables!" 

 

Loved the Aria / Mike scenes, though I really think he should have sat down next to her and put his arm around her.  No words exchanged, just being there for her since her parents are either off-screen or behind the camera.

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

Desperate Times Call For Chip-Extracting Measures On Pretty Little Liars / As the end approaches, the knives come out.