S06.E10: Game Over, Charles

[ottoDbusdriver]

I just couldn't believe that ...... once again .... the PLLs were trapped in a room. Geez, have they never learned anything from being trapped umpteen times. 

 

And that scene on the rooftop was just a big letdown.  Plus, you don't find out what happened to CeCe -- was there a trial ?  Or did she get off scot-free ?  

[Shangrilala]

Just one last thought. The moms are still locked in the basement.

Great minds...

[allonsyalice]

I still have so many questions, summer of answers this was NOT. more like summer of weak reveals and boring episodes.

anyway, this episode really sucked. They had the potential to make it so cool and all the theories i read here and on tumblr were way better.

someone needs to save the moms.

I just can't, i'm honestly just so displeased. I've been on this dumb shows since 2010 and i'm like not angry, just dissapointed.

and a little angry.

[KaveDweller]

You're right, kissedbyarose, they could have done this entire storyline with A as Charlotte from the beginning. It feels like they made her transgender just to force us to be sympathetic. I don't want to be sympathetic to A!

 

(Or worse, they made her trans to give her a reason to go "crazy" when her dad wouldn't accept it.)

 

I think they made her trans to make it more "shocking."  If they had said the long lost sibling was a girl, everyone would have guessed CeCe.  

 

Also, if CeCe was a child when Marion died, then that means Toby was a child when she died.  So how was there a flashback with a teen Toby, teen Alison and her?  

 

In the future either Mona or Spencer invents a time machine? I kind of believe they're capable of it.

[itainttippithebird]

 

People being psychotic and/or evil because they're queer is actually not uncommon.

See: http://tvtropes.org/...ravedHomosexual

http://tvtropes.org/...n/PsychoLesbian

Also, that TV Trope entry explains PERFECTLY why it's such a cheap out to use this to make A sympathetic - it's still part of the incredibly narrow and stupidly offensive trope:

 

"For decades, this was the only role gays could play in mainstream media, and it still crops up uncomfortably often. Frequently the villain will be the only homosexual in the story. Now there will be a Freudian Excuse or they be played sympathetically - a kind of Author's Saving Throw against criticism."

[jjjmoss]

http://www.ew.com/article/2015/08/11/pretty-little-liars-marlene-king-answers

 

Some answers from EW:

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Who killed Ian? (Season 2, Episode 4)
MARLENE KING: Ian killed himself but Mona staged the note and the crime scene.

If Ali saved Hanna from the Thornhill Lodge fire, who saved the other girls? (Season 3, Episode 24)
Sara Harvey! And the person who set the fire was Shana.

Who was responsible for killing Garrett and putting Aria in a box with his dead body? (Season 3, Episode 13)
Wilden. Garrett found out that Wilden was a dirty cop and was going to tell. [Wilden] was acting on his own.”

Who killed Wilden? (Season 4, Episode 1)
CeCe.

Who murdered Jessica DiLaurentis? (Season 4, Episode 24)
That is still a mystery. That’s the one thing we don’t solve when we give you all the [other] answers. But Charlotte buried Mrs. D.

 

Sure, the one thing.

Ian killed himself WTF?

When did Sara have time away from the asylum/being kidnapped or w/e to save the girls' lives?

So Cece killed one person altogether? She's tied with Aria?

Edited August 12, 2015 by jjjmoss

[Bort]

p.s. can somebody let the moms out of the basement now?

Just one last thought. The moms are still locked in the basement.

Jinx!

[superman1204]

Also I would just like to add, I can't figure out how I feel about Cece as A, even without the mess it makes of transgender issues.  I feel like Cece was so sympathetic during the flashbacks and A was so sadistic during the present, that Cece being A just has no impact because there just seems to be no connection between the two parts of the show, if that makes any sense.

[Perfect Xero]

Poor Jason has actually dated 2 of his sisters.

[kat165]

Considering my feelings toward this show for about the past 2 or 3 years I was somewhat satisfied with the reveal & the answers to several of outstanding questions. I expected a load of bullshit (never really recovered from the Toby & Ezra fakeouts) so on the whole this wasn't complete a load of crap.

 

This show has never been good with continuity so I didn't expect any of the answers to make a whole lot of sense in context with what we've seen previously.

 

I'm not even going to address the trans issue because I don't expect enlightened views from this show - see Ezra/Aria relationship. Which reminds me, I caught the pilot this morning (which I hadn't seen before as I came in at maybe ep 3) & the inane "special" that accompanied it. Those women gushing over the Ezra actor & the Aria/Fitz relationship was an embarrassment & absolutely nauseating. Any show that presents Aria/Ezra as the love of the century isn't going to handle transgender well. I'm still shocked that they've done ok so far with Emily being a lesbian.

 

Whether CeeCee being "A" will end up being a fake-out or not, this reveal was still done better than the Toby or Ezra reveals. And then there's not only is Ezra a pedophile, but also a crazed stalker, but hell, true love conquers all.

 

I'm looking forward to the flash ahead. Is the upcoming season the last? I don't read any background on the show & only know what I read here so I was surprised about the flash forward. It's almost like starting with a clean slate. But I'm sure they will muff that up too.

Edited August 12, 2015 by kat165

[RedInk]

I am too damn old to be watching this dumb show, but I couldn't quit it. And now I have! This reveal was the worst. The criticism that CeCe's miserable upbringing is disappointingly humanizing doesn't resonate here, because I don't get that at all. I couldn't care less about why she was evil/seeking revenge; I hate her just the same. And I think it's a tired and unimaginative resolution to boot. It panders and it's completely risk-free because it doesn't upend anyone's true love pairings. Boo.

Edited August 12, 2015 by RedInk

[cuddlingcrowley]

I know there are going to be people who do not like the CeCe reveal and some who are going to be offended by it but I thought it was sensitively done and very well done as well.  It made sense or at least as much sense as this show is capable of making.  I liked that although Cece was guilty of a great deal she wasn't guilty of everything the liars attributed to A and that everything began because a boy liked dressing as a girl and because of what was simple accident by a child.  Honestly I thought this was a very well done episode that answered a lot of questions for me.

 

 

That's how I felt as well but I get why some people were offended. And while the girls were touched, her story didn't erase everything, even to Alison. It was clear there was no expectation from the writers that it would for the audience as well. I'm really, really, really glad for that. But count me in as really fucking shocked at the reveAl. I've always know Cece was no good and there was the weird stuff hinted between her and Mrs. D but damn!! All in all, as it is I'm satisfied with the reveal, not over the moon, but I'm satisfied. 

 

I may or may not have let a little chuckle when Cece said she had been targeting the girls because they were happy Alison was dead. As a Alison fan I couldn't help but empathize just a little.

 

I'M OVER THE EFFING MOON BECAUSE SARA HARVEY WAS RED COAT!!!  PRAISE JESUS AND BE GONE!! THERE WAS NEVER A MORE DESERVING PUNCH!! 

 

On another note, Mona having killed Bethany was interesting. I've always thought she was hiding more about that night that she had revealed. But i thought she had been the one to hit Ali. Close enough!

 

My one real disappointment was that Melissa wasn't Black Widow. Now that's gonna sting for a while.

 

I'll confess I chocked up like a little bitch at the goodbye scene between the girls. It was damn gorgeous! I noticed Hanna was the only one Alison didn't hug.

 

Aaaaand Alison is a teacher! Yay! But married young...nay. Called it! Along with like three of you. Rip Emison.

 

Poor Jason has actually dated 2 of his sisters.

 

 

 

Omg.

 

ETA: btw, thank you EW. I love how the press is like don't fear fans, WE'RE ON IT!

Edited August 12, 2015 by cuddlingcrowley

[superman1204]

The sad this I feel they could have made Cece being Alison's long lost transgender sister work as a plot thread, if Alison had found out about Cece and the two teamed up for all of Alison's schemes.  Something along the lines of, Cece is just happy to be accepted, so she helps Alison with whatever crazy plan Alison can think of.  Alison finally has a friend who is loyal even beyond the PLL's and together the two go nuts until they final get in too deep and piss off A who is Wren or Wilden who is really a crime lord or something.  At that point Ali turns into the super-villain-in-training we saw in the flashbacks and tries to blackmail and bribe their way out, because she is trying to protect Cece.

 

There you go.  Nothing transphobic (if anything they get points for having a transgender character), it explains why Alison did a 180 after she came back, and you could cram all of the other answers into my reveal just as awkwardly as you did with this final.  Someone give me Marlene Kings job!

Edited August 12, 2015 by superman1204

[mercfan3]

The Good

 

CeCe..is a good choice. There were a lot of CeCe clues. That's a satisfying person that I can believe was thought of originally. (Although, there were probably lots of other picks.) 

 

I also liked...my one struggle with CeCe being bad was she always seemed to show a lot of love and loyalty to Ali, so the fact that it made sense (and that the original CeCe's motives was that the girls hated Ali)

 

I also got the sense that we weren't supposed to forgive CeCe, but maybe understand her a little. She was creepy and had a dark humor about her and what she did. They didn't try and make the character completely forgiven.  

 

The meh..

 

I'm actually going to say the transgender reveal was okay. It could have been done better. But let's be honest, the most famous trans character is a criminal. Is a crazy person that much worse? Likewise, I'd say that this show is so lgbt friendly, that it has earned the right to use a trans character as big bad. And finally, it was clearly yet another "fuck the patriarchy" moment from this show..because truly she was locked away for that reason. (And plus, truly..Mr. D was the biggest bad.) 

 

It could have been done better, though. For instance, have Charles be transgender...but actually die, and then have Bethany be obsessive and take her identity. OR..Charles should have been played by a trans character. 

 

The Bad..

 

Sara Harvey - Wtf. First of all, time frame doesn't match up. Second...does she have stockholm syndrom or was she just a psycho...wtf was her motive here. And did I see it right or was she black widow too? 

 

Those are two big reveals to have the character be introduced this season. 

 

The pacing of the episode..it was just info dump after info dump. This really should have been done thoughout the season to get us fully emotionally involved. 

 

The Why? That was supposed to blow us away? We're back to " hyper intelligent crazy person who loves "the game" " , although this time..the game was "keep Ali here, and play with my dolls.." 

 

Ali's married...Booo..that needs to not be the case. 

 

WTF happened to Jason, CeCe, their father, and Sarah. 

Edited August 12, 2015 by mercfan3

[Writing Wrongs]

That reveal was...disappointing. So did Jason and CeCe not go very far? Wouldn't he have noticed, um, things?

 

How awful was that shot of CeCe outside the coffee shop after meeting the girls? It looked like they used the window as a tv screen to play the original episode footage.

[WhosThatGirl]

Aside from the reveal and the transgender storyline, which still bothers me because that's what made all the girls feel for Cece/A and forgive her, the episode was... kind of boring.  The liars didn't really do..much of anything. And it was just kind of an episode where someone talked and monologues for an hour. And while I did love the punch to Sarah, I think Emily was acting kind of stupid this episode. The moment where Cece reveals Sarah was in on the plan, "no, she's lying!" um.. Emily, Sarah didn't walk into the vault with you, I would have been suspicious then. 

[william0102]

Points for creativity superman1204, you put in more effort than the writers did.

The show's lesbian inclusiveness does not mean they "earned" anything when it comes to groups that are even more marginalized. Writers and producers earn the audience's leeway for such ploys by first proving that they can write characters, plots and continuity, something this show cannot say they accomplish even with their half seasons.

And I'm going to say it, even though I'm sure many will disagree, but Emily is not treated the same as the other girls when it comes to her lovelife. Aria, Hanna and Spencer all have a "true love". So even if by some chance including a lgbt character on screen earned points, the show hasn't earned getting to write a trans character as psychotic.

Edited because I forgot about Alison: Alison has been shown to have feelings for Emily, but overall, she mostly flirts and uses people for her own selfish reasons- so another great shining example of PLL using a trope that shamefully portrays the marginalized bisexual community; a community that is derided for having multiple partners, not being able to "choose" and selfish because they like more than one sex. So no, the show doesn't have the right to make it's other only marginalized character psychotic.

Edited August 12, 2015 by william0102

[Lolabelle]

 

It could have been done better, though. For instance, have Charles be transgender...but actually die, and then have Bethany be obsessive and take her identity. OR..Charles should have been played by a trans character. 

You stole my thoughts.

Needless to say, I'm very disappointed for various reasons outlined much more eloquently by other posters.  

Why was Rhys at the D's house then?   

 

The lack of age continuity was infuriating.  We saw Marion alive when Toby and Ali were like 13, making CeCe nearly an adult.  

 

Someone let the moms out of the basement plz

 

Best parts of the episode were Mona having a shoe-weapon (love her), Shower Harvey getting punched in the face after yelling "I WAS PROTECTING YOU", and the thought of Jason immobilized on the floor realizing that he dated 2 of his sisters, 1 of which was his brother.

[itainttippithebird]

I find this helpful for articulating why this CeCe reveal is fucked up: http://www.thesociologicalcinema.com/blog/the-not-so-hidden-transphobia-in-silence-of-the-lambs.

 

In particular, the parallels between the moment with CeCe admiring her reflection with scenes in Silence of the Lambs of Gumb in the mirror is striking - given this is a show that does film homages all the time, I almost suspect it's on purpose. Ugh.

Edited August 12, 2015 by itainttippithebird

[lorikauai]

I am watching this now and somehow the girls are in a spaceship watching footage of Ali and Cece is Charles/A. I'm feeling like I've seen this done better on Days of our Lives. I can't believe they actually went with the Cece/Charles thing but this is a writer that thinks pedophiles like Ezra are the most romantic boyfriends ever. If the writers were determined to do a hackneyed TV trope they should have just gone with the evil twin thing.

So why have the whole Charles prom in the dollhouse? Shouldn't she have come in a gown instead of a tux?

[superman1204]

I find this helpful for articulating why this CeCe reveal is fucked up: http://www.thesociologicalcinema.com/blog/the-not-so-hidden-transphobia-in-silence-of-the-lambs.

 

In particular, the parallels between the moment with CeCe admiring her reflection with scenes in Silence of the Lambs of Gumb in the mirror is striking - given this is a show that does film homages all the time, I almost suspect it's on purpose. Ugh.

Actually I think PLL was worse.  If I am remembering right, Hannibal has a monologue were he mentions that the killer isn't actually trans-gendered, he just thinks he is because of all the abuse he suffered as a child and he assumes that the hatred he feels for his sexuality is gender dysphoria.  Also I believe the killer was repeatedly turned down for sex change operations, because the doctors recognized that he was psychologically damaged.  Silence of the Lambs at least attempts to make a distinction between the killer and transgender individuals (not that it make it completely ok, but at least an attempt is made), where PLL is just like "Cece is A...and transgendered!".

[insubordination]

That was some stupid shit and I'm not sure I believed any of it.

 

Firstly, I didn't even recognize CeCe when they first showed her. That's how little she's been on the show. The character of Alison's older friend has always been a non-entity to me. 

 

I didn't give a shit about her implausible sob-story because it felt like an amateur writer desperately trying to repair their fucked up fan fiction that went on too long. I think the actress did the best she could under the circumstances. Making CeCe transgender ensured the audience couldn't guess she'd be Charles (though some did in the other thread, and I dismissed the theory).

 

I kept thinking at any moment they were going to say that CeCe merely received Charles' heart or something after he died (BTW - hated that scene with the kid version of Bethany and Charles).

 

There are many pieces missing, so I don't believe CeCe is A - just a minion. I knew today would disappoint. Alison just fell so short in this episode, and so did the girls.  The whole thing was just really fucking stupid (oops, I already said that). S6 wasn't a total waste, 'cos I liked the initial dollhouse episodes, but this is not an episode I'd bother watching again.

 

Ezra or Wren had better come through.

[lorikauai]

How the hell is Charles so young when Toby's mom died? Too cheap to get a different actor from the "cousin" birthday party? Shouldn't Charles be older than Bethany? He looks younger! Wasn't Toby older than that when his mom died?

And wasn't Mrs D the one who told the girls about Cece going to Radley and pretending to be Ali? Why would she do that? This show makes no sense!

[ottoDbusdriver]

If the futuristic holo-projector was just light, why did it bend like it was made of elastic or something when Hanna shoved her hand into it ?

 

Where was the camera on the floor looking up at Alison from Papa DiLaurentis Point of view ?

 

Does CeCe do crossfit or something similar -- otherwise how is she hauling around these limp bodies ?

 

There is nothing more fun that watching the PLLs stand around and watch a video.  It was so boring.  Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

 

If the water in the tub scalded baby Alison, why was there no steam in the bathroom ?  And didn't Charles break Alison's hand ?  I remember that came up at the trial.

 

So, Charles was committed to Radley at the age of 5.  I'm still having a hard time believing that a sanitarium has unrestricted rooftop access for the patients, even the children.

 

Why would the sanitarium let Charles out to attend a fake funeral for himself ?  And the sanitarium staff playing along by actually making up fake documents saying that Charles died, and then make up new records for when Charlotte shows up at the front doors.  That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

 

When Spencer explains that CeCe is going to blowup Radley, someone (I'm thinking Hanna) should have said go ahead -- just to get rid of the entire DiLaurentis clan at once (and possibly killing Shower Harvey as a bonus).

 

CeCe is super-brilliant -- you could tell because she had a LOT of books in her room.  I mean a lot of books.  Don't you have to finish high school before being allowed to take classes at university -- did CeCe get her GED ?

 

I thought that Spencer hit Alison with a shovel -- is that just being forgotten as well ?  And why didn't CeCe/Mama DiLaurentis check Alison for a pulse before they started digging ?   And wasn't Bethany's body found under a gazebo on someone else's property ?

 

That touchscreen showed the Carissimi group holdings -- stocks, bonds and real estate worth $18 million -- and while that is impressive, it has only been about 4 years since the night of many yellow tops/Labor Day weekend when Bethany was killed, so where did CeCe get the seed money to invest and make all this money ?

 

Here's the really funny thing -- Rhys Matthews employee number is A458987.  How many employees did CeCe have ?  Spencer made several assumptions about Rhys -- but there was no evidence he didn't know anything.  Plus, no explanation why Rhys was at that doll factory meeting Clark.  Just saying.

 

CeCe didn't really explain why she buried Mrs. D in the Hastings backyard.

 

Why did the alarms stop when CeCe pressed the trigger ?

 

Why was Sara in the hospital for nearly 3 months from getting punched by Emily ?  Because the prom took place in early June and this was Labor Day weekend.

 

ETA:

 

How awful was that shot of CeCe outside the coffee shop after meeting the girls? It looked like they used the window as a tv screen to play the original episode footage.

 

It was bad.  Really, really bad.

Edited August 12, 2015 by ottoDbusdriver

[Spencer Hastings]

I am so pissed. So very pissed. I can't even deal. There were so many things wrong with this episode.

1. Just the fact that CeCe is A pisses me off. They so clearly went for shock value and to do something connected to the LGBT community and it SHOWS. This was obviously a ploy and I hate that they went there. Cheap move. I kept waiting for Wren, Ezra, Rhys, Jason, Toby, Lucas, Holden, ANYBODY to make it better and say that HE was really Charles and CeCe was just telling his story.

2. What was with that hologram bullshit? Get out of here with that.

3. The effects were so cheap. CeCe staring at them through The Brew window was almost comical. Mrs. D's wig was falling off. The scene at the end five years later looked like a damn amateur YouTube video.

4. I didn't feel sorry for "Charles" AT ALL. All I could think was that this is some bullcrap move for Marlene to feel brilliant and like she was writing something meaningful. You're writing a show for teenagers that grown ass women like myself happen to watch.

And when the hell did Vanessa Ray develop an accent? Show ruined.

Edited August 12, 2015 by Spencer Hastings

[larapu2000]

What I fail to understand is how the DiLaurentis family refuses to intervene in Jason's love life when he's DATING HIS GODDAMN SISTER unless it looks like sex might become involved.  Because fucking your sister is so very very different than kissing her.  And he HAD to have been kissing Cece, it makes a tiny bit of sense for him to stick around even if they weren't sleeping together, but there's no way he wasn't dumping her if he wasn't getting some mouth action.

 

I really would have loved this reveal if it hadn't been transgender.  In fact, I was hoping that Cece was somehow obsessed with Charles who was obsessed with his family and she was carrying out his vengeance wishes.  At this rate and with these writers, Jason is going to get a sex change operation just so that there is no possible way he could ever mistakenly date a sibling again.

Edited August 12, 2015 by larapu2000

[itainttippithebird]

 

How the hell is Charles so young when Toby's mom died? Too cheap to get a different actor from the "cousin" birthday party? Shouldn't Charles be older than Bethany? He looks younger! Wasn't Toby older than that when his mom died?

And wasn't Mrs D the one who told the girls about Cece going to Radley and pretending to be Ali? Why would she do that? This show makes no sense!

 

I can almost hand waive away the CeCe pretending to be Ali thing as either an unreliable flashback or some kind of other hidden meaning story - I think it can be explained somewhat successfully, but Charlotte being like, at most, what - 14? when Marion Cavanaugh died, which we know for a fact happened in October 2007, when Toby and Liars were also around 13/14 and thus CeCe should have been about 20, IS NOT IN ANY WAY plausible. I know the show is infamous for its time...inconsistencies, to put it lightly, but this is so obvious and out of control that I'm baffled.

[SadieT]

I can't even. I just... there should be more transgender characters on TV, but not like this. Not when they're evil because they're mentally ill. I can't believe the show went there. I can't believe they had CeCe date her brother (at least they didn't have sex, but still, ugh). I can't believe they used a sob story involving CeCe's gender identity to try to downplay every legitimately evil thing she did to the girls. We've waited years for this, to see A's story and find out how they pulled all of this off. It was supposed to be fun. We were supposed to get another villain we could all love to hate. This was just depressing and infuriating and I wouldn't be surprised if it causes a massive shitstorm in the LGBT community. I can't wait to see what Heather Hogan has to say.

 

On the positive side, uh... I liked two things: Mona's shoe with a blade hidden in the heel, and Emily punching Sara in the face. And I think that Vanessa Ray did a really good job selling CeCe's mental state. A lot of that would have been super fun and creepy ("I love all of my dolls," for example) without the trans thing hanging over it.

 

 The trans theory had crossed my mind a few times but I honestly dismissed it because I didn't think the show would go there. I'm honestly shocked they went this way. It was a real risk and they didn't pull it off. They didn't do it justice or handle it as sensitively as it needed to be. And I still don't feel bad for CeCe. 

 

Agree with everything you said, and those were the best parts of the episode for me, too. That and Spencer being able to disarm a bomb... because why wouldn't she be able to disarm a bomb. 

 

Here's the biggest plot hole off the top of my head. Alison was the one writing to Bethany, sent her clothes, and asked her to meet her that night, IIRC.

 

I don't think Alison knew Bethany or sent her any letters or clothes. Wasn't the letter planted in her house to frame her for Mona's murder? Still doesn't explain how Bethany knew what Alison was wearing that night or how she got it. Unless Mrs. D. sent the outfit to Charlotte because she got everything Ali got, and then Bethany snuck out, saw what Ali was wearing and went back to Radley to put Charlotte's clothes on so she'd match Ali? 

 

 

The poor Emison fans over on Tumblr are trying to explain away the "Mrs. Rollins" that Ali wrote on the board.

 

(Hey, I'll give it a shot. Maybe Ali is a teacher's assistant and she's writing the actual teacher's name on the board. Or maybe Mrs. Rollins is going to be a special guest speaker that day.)

 

My first thought was actually that she was using an alias and trying to stay off the grid, then I quickly realized that would make no sense because she's still in Rosewood where literally everyone knows who she is. 

 

From tumblr: 

 

"S4 ep 1 A is alive. Flashback scene with toby and Ali. Toby’s mom walks in. How do you explain Bethany pushing her when that had to be at least 6- 7 yrs prior??"

 

The continuity on this show is literally the worst thing I've ever seen in my life.

 

I know, how could they not remember that Toby was a teenager when his mom died?

 

So CeCe is trans why exactly?  To make the audience sympathize with her?  A is evil and there's no way I'm feeling sorry for her.  CeCe as Charlotte, the long lost crazy sister would have worked too.  But at least Vanessa Ray was great.

 

What is Shower Harvey's motive?  Why pretend to be a victim and date Emily?  My favorite part of the episode was when Emily punched her in the face, finally!  

 

Exactly. It was just a cheap ploy to make us sympathize with a character who has been torturing a group of teenage girls for years and sorry, I'm not going for it. They could have done the same story without the trans angle and therefore without offending a whole lot of people. Alison and Jason's sister could have been institutionalized at a young age and then everything else unfold the same way. I honestly feel like they went the trans route to capitalize on the recent influx of trans related news in the media.

 

I guess Sara's not totally evil because she pulled the girls from the lodge fire and wanted them to get out of Radley before she blew it up, but I didn't even feel bad for Emily when she was crying over her shock at discovering the girl she's known for like 2 weeks betrayed her. Of course she was fucking shady, Emily, that's what you get for being stupid and inviting weirdos you don't know to share your room. That was some punch though. 

 

If Mona thought she killed Ali how the hell was she not shocked to see her wandering on the side of the road?

What was she doing in the Ds backyard that night?

 

Well Ali was wandering around with a head wound so maybe Mona thought Ali just survived her attempt to murder her? And then after actually trying to murder her, Mona drove her away from her friends and family and let her think someone was still after her so she lived two years by herself on run fearing for her life for no reason, and then when she returned home, Mona framed her for murder and had her put in prison. 

 

This is why I'm always blown away when people call Alison a sociopath but seem to forgive Mona's wrong-doings, which include attempting to murder Alison, tricking her into going on the run for 2 years, cyber-bullying and tormenting the girls for an extended period of time, hitting Hanna with a car, attempting to throw Spencer off a cliff, and framing Alison for her murder. I love Mona as a character but she's not a good person. And all she has to do is tell Hanna she's sorry and Hanna forgives her, but Hanna couldn't forgive Alison for being a bitch before she fake died and actually wanted to help her leave last season because it was hard for her to see her? 

 

Back when I first heard the trans theory it was right around the time that Caitlyn Jenner revealed herself as trans. I figured the theory came about because of that. I'm still thinking that - I'm not convinced that they knew this 3 years in advance. The only clue they dropped that I can tell was the scene when Mrs d comes home with 2 yellow dresses. And that could have been anything, really.

 

 

I think this idea came about around the time Caitlyn Jenner came out as trans, too. No way did they have this in mind for 3 years. Too many loose ends and things that don't add up. I think they were originally dropping hints for a twin like in the books but then wanted to throw people off because everyone was expecting the twin theory, so not only did they do this Charlotte thing as a slight twist on the twin theory but also to capitalize on the attention the trans community is getting right now. 

 

So Cece killed one person altogether? She's tied with Aria?

 

And also Emily. And of course Mona attempted to kill some and Melissa buried someone alive... the girls of Rosewood commit or nearly commit a lot of murders.  

 

Poor Jason has actually dated 2 of his sisters.

 

Man, it must suck to be Jason. Why would he as a man in his early 20s who could probably get any girl he wanted because he's very attractive, date a girl for any extended period of time who wouldn't even kiss him? This is one of the many reasons why I don't believe they had this storyline in mind since season 3. 

 

I may or may not have let a little chuckle when Cece said she had been targeting the girls because they were happy Alison was dead. As a Alison fan I couldn't help but empathize just a little.

 

Aaaaand Alison is teacher! Yay! But married young...nay. Called it! Along with like three of you. Rip Emison.

 

Ha, yeah, I was glad CeCe mentioned how messed up it was that the girls were happy, or at the least relieved, that Alison was dead because Alison never deserved that from them. I know she was a lying manipulative bully, but she always did seem to love them in her own messed up way, and they've forgiven a lot worse people for a lot more (Mona, Ezra, Toby).

 

But didn't CeCe also say she was doing it because they took Ali from her and all the near killings was to draw Ali out of hiding? That (badly) explains why she targeted the girls, but why send Ali threatening text messages? I know it was Mona in the beginning but wasn't Ali still getting them after she returned to Rosewood? Including that creepy video of A burying her mother? Who sent that then? And why did CeCe want Alison in jail? 

 

I was surprised they addressed the who attacked Alison in her house last season because I thought for sure they'd let that drop in an attempt to hand-wave all the evil shit A's done and make us sympathize with her. 

 

Alison as a married teacher in the future... pretty much what everyone expected when we were discussing it in the spoiler thread. 

 

Anyone notice the giant A necklace Alison was wearing at the end when the girls said goodbye? I know it's her initial but it seemed like a deliberate choice they wanted us to take note of. 

[Spencer Hastings]

I feel like I need to reiterate that I am livid. I've been sitting here on my couch reading reactions and I'm just getting more disappointed. Guys, we watched this show for five and a half years for this. I'm so over it, I think I'm jumping off and turning in my Spencer hat.

[mercfan3]

No, CeCe's "they took Ali away from me" was directed to her father. She was targeting the girls first because they were happy Ali died. Then she wanted to draw Ali out of hiding..then she couldn't give "the game" up because she liked playing with her dolls. 

 

Also, how does everyone know the ages? I always thought the Melissa generation was about four or five years older...and also how do people know when Toby's mother died? (Are you sure it's not Jenna's mother that walked in on Toby and Ali?)  Granted, PLL isn't good at time. 

 

I think I'm more upset that this wasn't a better episode. CeCe being A...okay..even on the spoiler thread with the shows watched, I picked up on CeCe being shady. The trans storyline? Personally..I'm okay with it. They were sensitive about it. She wasn't crazy or a killer because she was trans..it was just reinforcement that her father was a dick. (And to further relate..fuck the patriarchy..) And she happened to be crazy anyway. 

 

The why? They could have done better. Or they could have explained them more in depth. 

 

And that's really what my issue is..sure..there were answers..but they were all essentially throwaway lines. There's no reason why they couldn't have discovered where Charles makes his money three or four episodes ago.  Or hell, no reason the carissimi group couldn't have been around 3 or 4 seasons ago. Stuff like that..throwaway lines make for a poor episode. 

Edited August 12, 2015 by mercfan3

[SadieT]

I really would have loved this reveal if it hadn't been transgender.  In fact, I was hoping that Cece was somehow obsessed with Charles who was obsessed with his family and she was carrying out his vengeance wishes.  At this rate and with these writers, Jason is going to get a sex change operation just so that there is no possible way he could ever mistakenly date a sibling again.

 

CeCe was one of my top picks for A but I never got on the trans-theory train because I didn't think the show would actually go there. I originally thought CeCe might have been Bethany, Charles' friend in Radley, who had some sort of identity disorder and was acting as Charles or on his behalf because he really did kill himself and she blamed his family and therefore wanted to torture them. 

 

 

There is nothing more fun that watching the PLLs stand around and watch a video.  It was so boring.  Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

 

 

I thought that Spencer hit Alison with a shovel -- is that just being forgotten as well ?  And why didn't CeCe/Mama DiLaurentis check Alison for a pulse before they started digging ?   And wasn't Bethany's body found under a gazebo on someone else's property ?

 

 

Why did the alarms stop when CeCe pressed the trigger ?

 

Why was Sara in the hospital for nearly 3 months from getting punched by Emily ?  Because the prom took place in early June and this was Labor Day weekend.

 

 

Yeah there wasn't a whole lot going on in this episode. Alison sat quietly and listened to CeCe explain her story, occasionally asking a question or two. And the rest of the girls just watched them talk on a video screen. Not exactly action packed. 

 

Spencer threatened Alison with the shovel, but never actually hit her with it. We saw this all explained in season 4, I think. They argue in the yard and Spencer yells at her not to walk away from her and brandishes the shovel but then she drops her pills and Alison realizes she's high and tells her to go back to the barn and she does. That was probably the shovel Mona picked up and hit Bethany with.

 

Because Spencer disarmed the bomb like a super genius badass. 

 

I'd like to think that Emily hit Sara with enough force to knock her out cold for 3 months but I'm guessing Sara is in the hospital for some sort of mental issue or something. 

 

And wasn't Mrs D the one who told the girls about Cece going to Radley and pretending to be Ali? Why would she do that? This show makes no sense!

 

To throw them off? Or more likely, the writers forgot about that. 

[MinionBooty]

I kept waiting and looking at the clock for the real episode to begin. There is NO way Hannah would have forgiven CeCE. I thought it was boring and very manipulative and not in a good way. I was screaming JUMP!

 

By the way that baby was NOT a year or more old.  Why all the hate for Jason? 

 

I bet she committed suicide and that the grave Sara is standing at.

 

Alison's eye make up kept bothering me. And why that horrible dress at the end on Labor Day?

 

So did Sara send the gift? Did Cece and Sara just come up with her pretending to be victim? And bribe all the doctors and Emergency workers who said she was dehydrated and staving? 

 

How did Ezra in all his research not see a third birth certificate and death?

 

It was Cece that wrote the fake letter about Ali inviting Bethany?

 

So since she was killed in the Hastings yard does that put Peter on the list or mama Hastings? And if she could not drag her out , how the hell did she pick each liar up and put them on tables?

 

What the point of  Mrs D. absolute hatred of Spencer? And what was with all the need for the stupid stripes in Aria hair?

 

Who was that at prom and WHAT was the point of prom???? If Cece was now a girl why go back to guy for the prom? 

 

Those are just the ones off the top of my head...

 

Oh and I don't like Caleb's line int he promo, makes me think her engagement isn't to him.

 

[kelslamu]

This was worse than Twlight in my opinion. Hell, they could have left the parents out of the basement and they still wouldn't have been any value anyway.   Okay, I did miss who got Allie out of the grave as well.  

On the preview for season 7 Aria runs in and tells Allie that he's coming for you.  Do you think it's the paperboy and he wants his two dollars?

[MinionBooty]

Maybe  they knew we would all hate this! 

 

The Uber A/ hidden accomplice is coming after Ali after them after Cece dies/finally jumps.  Now can the real A please stand up.... Wren...she sure got a lot of body parts and teeth awful easy....

[SparedTurkey]

What I got from this episode was:

1. Mona was the superior A.

2. Mona is just completely awesome and entertaining -  from 'I am a professional identicator' to the actual stilletto heel.

3. Spencer is the best liar ever because you know she googled 'how to diffuse a bomb' just in case it came in handy.

4. None of the liars should EVER go into detective work just based on every single interaction they had with Sara Harvey in the first five bloody minutes.

 

Otherwise......

What the hell was that? Why couldn't Charles have just been dead and CeCe using his story as a misdirect? Why did A become dumb as a rock while confessing? - the A of all other previous episode tags would have known the second the liars broke the window pane thing. The A of yore wouldn't have been so easily found in Radley but would have been in Timbuktu pretending to be Radley.

 

Why is the audience being asked to think that it is excusable for A to have tortured 5 girls because Mr D didn't like his transgender kid? Why did the show think it is an acceptable excuse - so much so that even Hanna cared if CeCe launched herself off the roof? This is total bollocks and a reversion to the old TV Trope where anyone LGBT would be the psycho. If they wanted A to have been sympathetic and used the transgender bit - make up another UberA who is blackmailing CeCe over it. They did less to excuse Toby and Ezra. And CeCe never really wanted to kill the girls? Pretty sure Aria would have been launched out of the Halloween train in a box if not for Spencer and/or Paige (and I realise how funny it is to use Aria there). And CeCe brought in a snake to bit Spencer only to kill it herself?

 

Goddamn it. I want the A back that removed an entire tree from a forest rather than just cut out a small bit. This reveal is just....it just blows. And how is Melissa not connected?

 

If I don't get a Caleb reaction to all this that is just as scornful and full of disdain as imaginable then that is just a travesty. Bonus points if Mama Harin and Fields are listening in the background skulling wine.

[kelslamu]

 

Also, didn't Melissa think she was the one who killed Bethany? 

 

Thank you!

 

[ottoDbusdriver]

On the preview for season 7 Aria runs in and tells Allie that he's coming for you.  Do you think it's the paperboy and he wants his two dollars?

 

Nice. A reference to 'Better Off Dead', which I consider a very under-rated movie.

[mercfan3]

So...some people on reddit think it's possible that the spoilers were real, and these were some last minute changes so it was a surprise. Which is possible considering how sloppy some of the filming was. (IN particular, the reveal looked almost photo shopped)

[Spencer Hastings]

So...some people on reddit think it's possible that the spoilers were real, and these were some last minute changes so it was a surprise. Which is possible considering how sloppy some of the filming was. (IN particular, the reveal looked almost photo shopped)

That's literally the ONLY thing that makes sense at this point. Bloody heck.

[WhisperingSoul]

Guys Aria still has to be A. Marlene king constantly said the typewriter and that A was wearing the black swan dress that aria was wearing (hinted at it).....why would she post all that if it wasn't the case?Either they decided to scrap and go a whole other direction or this is another fakeout somehow.
That being said this episode is freaking horrible. That sci-fi room literally had me going "I need to check the internet because I can't be the only one that finds this completely odd". When shows break immersion like that its just ridiculous. Also, the liars acting was terrible, Sara Harvey's acting was even worse than it normally is, and why does she always speak with an accent? I thought for a while there that the actress that plays her (Dre Davis) was just from another country or something and can't speak English well, but I looked her up and she is from Connecticut?
The ONLY good thing about this episode was the actress that plays CeCe's acting. It was really good. The flash forward was equally ridiculous. The whole thing is one of the worst finales I have ever seen. I have to admit, I didn't think it could get worse than the whole Lost season 6 and finale trainwreck, but this honestly takes the cake.

[Perfect Xero]

I don't think Alison knew Bethany or sent her any letters or clothes. Wasn't the letter planted in her house to frame her for Mona's murder? Still doesn't explain how Bethany knew what Alison was wearing that night or how she got it. Unless Mrs. D. sent the outfit to Charlotte because she got everything Ali got, and then Bethany snuck out, saw what Ali was wearing and went back to Radley to put Charlotte's clothes on so she'd match Ali?

Was it planted? It's getting nearly impossible to keep track of what's real evidence, what's planted evidence, and what's bad writing with this show.

 

Man, it must suck to be Jason. Why would he as a man in his early 20s who could probably get any girl he wanted because he's very attractive, date a girl for any extended period of time who wouldn't even kiss him? This is one of the many reasons why I don't believe they had this storyline in mind since season 3.

 

I actually kind of bought that part (though I'm not sure that they never actually kissed, just that they didn't go as far as sex) I think that some part of his subconscious under whatever brainwashing his parents did to make him forget Charles, recognized Charles, and Jason felt a strong connection/love for her as a result.

[beetlesoda]

You know damn well they pulled this crap out of their ass last minute when they decide to make Sara freaking Harvey red coat and black veil. Are you freaking kidding, this no body of a terrible actress character is two people I've been spending years wondering about. We just met the girl a few episodes ago and I'm suppose to be satisfied with her being black vial? no way they thought of this all along. These writers are the most terrible uncreative writers I have ever seen, their idea of creating tension in a relationship is having the girls kiss random strangers all the time every time, then they introduce these no one cares about characters and actually waste screen time on them to have it lead to no where, and they can't even shock an audience with a good mystery the fans have been waiting years for and too scared to actually make well liked boyfriends evil or even punish them for being pedophiles. And don't get me started on the constant older male teenage girl relationships they seem so fond of and worst of all, they have ruined one of the most complex interesting characters ever in televison (imo) in the form of Alison Dilaurentis and decided to make her a good girl who needs a man to save her and redeem her. God I hate this show, I have seen fanfiction written by tweens that was more believable and smart than this this crap

 

The plus side though is Vanessa was a great A, acting was great. Wish I can say the same for shower

[SparedTurkey]

And wait - CeCe's big plan was to kidnapp Ali, drag Jason and Mr D to Radley (drugged, so they can hear everything and not react) and then BLOW IT UP!!!!!!!!!! I mean what? Unless it was also the plan for Spencer to disarm it but COME ON. MonA would have planned that but not CeCe. I guess what is a little murder/suicide between family? But nooo..please tell me more about why it is absolutely no big deal that CeCe tortured the liars for 2+ years.

 

Also, I'm not interested in whatever the show was trying to sell about what happened to Sara 'that night' and why it is a big deal/setting her up to be the first red herring in 6B. NOPE. Nil interest sharon.

[kelslamu]

My son just said a guy was fired off the set three weeks ago. It was said he told the reveal and that it was Wren as A and Melissa as redcoat.  When he was telling Allie the story he drops his accent.  Now, I don't know if this is true or not, but it would have been better.  Anyone know or am I way behind the times here?

[WhisperingSoul]

Ok so I was just reading the spoiler reddit (the one where the ex employee spoiled the finale) and I think that the people at PLL totally refilmed parts of the finale. So many of the spoilers from the ex employee were true, only certain things were changed. I think Marlene King didn't want to risk another situation like daisygate and they redid the finale. 

[GaT]

I typed as I watched, so sorry if this sounds disjointed.

 

As soon as I saw that opening scene, I knew Charles was a girl, I thought it was either somebody’s twin, or someone living as the opposite sex. Too bad they didn’t do the transgender thing last year, because between Caitlyn Jenner & that girl Jazz, it feels really “been there, done that”

 

Ali’s makeup, YIKES

 

LOL quote of the night:

Hanna: “Do you think Ali is a chopped up body in one of those bags? What? Isn’t that what we’re all thinking?”
Everybody else: NO!

 

All that futuristic tech in that room was just ridiculous, & I knew Cece knew the liars were watching. Where did she get all the money for that? 

 

Bethany killed Toby’s mom!!! Awesome!

 

Cece was wearing a red robe & wasn't dressed as redcoat when she talked to Mona?  I wonder when they thought that up?

 

Mona killed Bethany! And ran Hanna over!

 

Sarah Harvey was the other redcoat! I thought it was really suspicious when she wouldn’t go into the room.

 

Well, so that wraps up everything about A (except for why she called herself A, it would be nice if we knew). It was actually a kind of lame plot, because I really don’t understand why Cece went after Ali to begin with. At least when they return it’s five years later. Do you think the moms ever got out of the basement?

Edited August 12, 2015 by GaT

[kelslamu]

Ok, now I see. Thank you.

[mac123x]

Lots of "oh bullshit" reactions from me as this unfolded, most of which have been listed by others so I won't reiterate, but this one really pissed me off:

 

 

 

If Ali saved Hanna from the Thornhill Lodge fire, who saved the other girls? (Season 3, Episode 24)
Sara Harvey!

 

I complained about how it's really shitty writing to introduce a new character in the last few chapters of a book who turns out to be the villain, and they fucking did that.  Also, Sara was Black Widow?  IIRC, Black Widow showed up at Wilden's funeral, then the A-tag on that episode was her removing the  veil and taking off a burnt / partially melted Alison mask.   Tonight, in the flashback she got into the Limo with CeACe, whipped off the veil to show her regular face.  Why the hell did she put a crisped Alison mask on after that?  Fucking stupid.

 

In general, this felt like a second unit episode.  I'm guessing the main cast only had to do 2-3 days of filming, since most of their scenes included exposition and reaction shots.

 

In the first tag, as they're leaving for school, Emily said that Sara got out of the hospital.  Umm, why isn't she in prison?  Last time I checked, planting a bomb with the intent of destroying a building and potentially killing several people is called domestic terrorism. 

 

I honestly don't think they decided to make Charles into CeCe until this season started.  The Dollhouse prom recreation was set up for a male antagonist -- "Charles" was wearing a freaking tux. 

 

Another random observation:  CeCe evidently spent a good part of the summer at Cape May with the other DiLaurenti.  I don't know how to ask this delicately, but had she already had surgery at that point?  Because summer at the beach = swimwear, and if she still had male plumbing, someone would have noticed.  But given the timeline presented tonight, I don't see when she could have had reassignment surgery unless it was after Charles' "death" and before "Charlotte" was recommitted, which was when she was what, 16?  I'm pretty sure surgeons won't do reassignment surgery on someone that young.

 

Jessica had time to bury Alison (alive), call Wilden and get him to take CeCe back to Radley.  How long was Ali in the ground before Grunwald rescued her, half an hour? 

Edited August 12, 2015 by mac123x

[Perfect Xero]

I think so many of the scenes looked poorly shot because they decided to blow their entire effects budget for the episode on the Dr. Wells/Reverse Flash future room holograms and touch screens and didn't have the money/time to make anything else look decent.

[auntiemel]

I LIVE for this show, truly. I spend hours a week obsessing over podcasts and forums and timelines. But I can't just hand waive this massive misstep. I feel truly a bit bereft, y'all! I know it's probably a bit overwraught to feel this way, especially as I am a 35 year old GROWN ASS WOMAN, etc, but this has show has been giving me LIFE through a really really shitty year - my little brother killed himself, my parents are now divorcing in the aftermath, my siblings are having all kinds of emotional and drug problems in the fall out, and I'm barely keeping it together. Revelling in the joy of this show was a little silly something that was keeping me sane. And now I feel like it's dead to me.

 

Slightly off-topic, but I just had to say...really sorry you're going through all of that! I totally get how being really "into" a particular show, or an author, or a musician, or a podcast, or something similar can help get you through a rough time. It gives you something to look forward to, an escape, a feeling of community, and some much-needed pure, uncomplicated pleasure in a time when nothing else in your life seems pure, uncomplicated, or pleasurable.

I really hope that you find another outlet that will help you soften your reality a bit!