S06.E20: Hush... Hush, Sweet Liars

[WhosThatGirl]

When did CeCe/Charles/Charlotte become the main character of this story?  I mean, first CeCe is some girl Ali befriended, no wait, she was Jason's ex, no wait, she's their sister, no wait, she's their brother, no wait, she's their cousin, so what will she be next, is she really their father, the mayor, god (I'd say the devil but man is this show trying to push the Charlotte is really good deep down agenda so they would likely go with god.)

 

It has gone far beyond farce at this point. And AD? WTF? Why do we need an AD? They keep calling this one Uber A. Wasn't the last one Uber A when they switched from the first one who was Uber A before there was a next A? It has all gotten so convoluted that it has to be that the entire series has been some asylum patient's dream, or better yet, we've been watching Ezra's "great American novel". Okay, that would crack me up, if this mess was his masterpiece. And the final scene of the show is his editor putting the manuscript down, pointing to the door and saying "take this crap and get the hell out of my office!"

I really think the whole thing is actually what goes inside insane Aria's mind when she had a psychotic break after finding her Dad and Meredith making out in the car. 

[fitzcarraldo]

I would be ok with them being Mona's actual dolls.

[Jack Shaftoe]

This perfectly sums up what is wrong with the mystery with this show.  I just wanted to add, that the writers are in this situation because they have not introduced any well developed character since season 3 (Cece was probably the last somewhat well developed character) and they have used up all of the original characters for "shocking" reveals.  I guess it kinda a chicken or the egg situation.  The writers don't have any well developed characters because they keep throwing in new characters for reveals (Shower and Rollins) but the since they keep adding new characters for each season, no one new is around long enough to become a well developed character.  Repeat every twelve episodes.

 

I have honestly never watched a long-running show in which not a single character introduced in after season 2 is a fan favourite (not necessarily the biggest favourite but at least in top 10). If anything, PLL has achieved the opposite with characters like Rollins and Sara that virtually nobody likes.

 

 

It has all gotten so convoluted that it has to be that the entire series has been some asylum patient's dream, or better yet, we've been watching Ezra's "great American novel".

 

It would explain why all men like teenage girls. Classic case of projection.

[DigitalCount]

I still remember back when Garrett felt like a character who had been suddenly introduced as if we were supposed to care. I can't believe he's more thoroughly part of the show's DNA than almost all of the series' main villains.

Like seriously, Mary Drake? It's days later and that still annoys me. Was this ever intended as a mystery show?

[WhosThatGirl]

Let's be real here: This show already has too many characters anyway and yet they keep bringing in new ones and worse of all, they keep making our main villains RANDOMS!  Mona is the only who made any sense. Cece was such A RANDOM drop in a random episode of season three- or four, I can't remember-who Ali befriended because she was Jason's ex, also I love how much canon changed with that explanation, she was Jason's ex-girlfriend whose parents also rented houses in Cape May next to Ali and Jason's parents when we learn Cece is actually Courtney/Charles, it's actually her being asked to go on the vacation via Jason.

 

Also for some reason I have a memory that can remember so much of this stupid show when the people behind it cannot. I'm sorry but the Cece reveal will never make sense. Let us not forget that when Spencer started looking for more info on her and she pulled out the yearbook that Cece got a random picture in, underneath her picture they said she was homecoming queen-or prom queen, can't remember which- and I'm sorry, but.. what? I really wish I could not remember these little facts but I do. Sometimes they just pop up when a certain scene will come up and I'll be all, "that's not what happened, show". I think it was more obvious during last seasons finale because they tried so so hard to make sense of Cece being BIG A! when they just made it worse. 

[Mabinogia]

I really wish I could not remember these little facts but I do.

 

I really wish someone who worked on the show actually did. CeCe's pic in the yearbook could have jived her her being A if A hadn't been Charles turned Charlotte who'd been locked in an asylum and her real motive had been...okay, nevermind, it didn't make sense unless she was part of NAT and NAT had a thing for tormenting underage girls and just picked these ones as easy targets because they are dumb as bricks, even the "smart" one. It's just that they kept piling so much shit on Charlotte/CeCe/Charles/A/Santa/Easter Bunny/Gaia/Whoever else they think of that there was no way possible to make it all make sense.

 

What I don't get is why? Why did CeCe have to be Charlotte? Why did Charlotte have to be Charles? Why couldn't CeCe have been Mary Drake's daughter who was locked away, along with her crazy mother perhaps, by an evil aunt and now that she's out she is out to destroy Mrs. D's family? Why did they have to go with the transgender thing? Oh, right, to shock us, even though I remember several people right here predicting exactly that when the name Charles came out. It could have easily been Charlie (short for Charlotte, and left us guessing if it was a guy or a girl). I'm still more frustrated by the transgender twist than anything else because it was so insensitive and unnecessary.

 

Sorry for the rant. I just get frustrated at seeing so much potential go to waste. This show has a mostly great cast, a stunning cast for sure, and had so much story potential in the beginning that it actually hurts to see how it was all squandered. Marlene doesn't deserve this show anymore. It should be taken away from her and given to someone who actually cares about it.

[rho]

Let's be real here: This show already has too many characters anyway and yet they keep bringing in new ones and worse of all, they keep making our main villains RANDOMS!  Mona is the only who made any sense. Cece was such A RANDOM drop in a random episode of season three- or four, I can't remember-who Ali befriended because she was Jason's ex, also I love how much canon changed with that explanation, she was Jason's ex-girlfriend whose parents also rented houses in Cape May next to Ali and Jason's parents when we learn Cece is actually Courtney/Charles, it's actually her being asked to go on the vacation via Jason

So true!

 

Remember when we found out Lucas and some other Rosewood High kids were in on Mona's game? They've had so many opportunities to make Lucas part of the big bad and he would totally fit the bill (tech skills, lots of money, hatred of Ali, and sometimes Hanna) but they never go for it. Instead they introduce new characters with zero subtlety. They may as well have stamped an A on Elliot's (is that his name?) forehead.

Edited March 18, 2016 by rho

[superman1204]

I really wish someone who worked on the show actually did. CeCe's pic in the yearbook could have jived her her being A if A hadn't been Charles turned Charlotte who'd been locked in an asylum and her real motive had been...okay, nevermind, it didn't make sense unless she was part of NAT and NAT had a thing for tormenting underage girls and just picked these ones as easy targets because they are dumb as bricks, even the "smart" one. It's just that they kept piling so much shit on Charlotte/CeCe/Charles/A/Santa/Easter Bunny/Gaia/Whoever else they think of that there was no way possible to make it all make sense.

Wait, wait.  I like the NAT idea.  Cece was dating Jason, Jason was part of NAT.  They could have just had Cece be in some of the videos and/or have helped make them.  Alison steals the videos and gives one or more copies to the Lairs.  Cece and the rest of NAT spend the next three years trying to track down the videos because none of them want to go to jail for child porn.  Cece eventually starts to go crazy from too much study aid and becomes uber-A.  There we go, we did it.  We made a better ending than the actually writers.  Totally a worthwhile use of a Friday night.

[Mabinogia]

Wait, wait.  I like the NAT idea.  Cece was dating Jason, Jason was part of NAT.  They could have just had Cece be in some of the videos and/or have helped make them.  Alison steals the videos and gives one or more copies to the Lairs.  Cece and the rest of NAT spend the next three years trying to track down the videos because none of them want to go to jail for child porn.  Cece eventually starts to go crazy from too much study aid and becomes uber-A.  There we go, we did it.  We made a better ending than the actually writers.  Totally a worthwhile use of a Friday night.

I like it. It pulls in characters and a storyline that was there from the start. It actually makes sense. Hell, Ali could have hidden the videos in gifts she gave the girls. didn't she do something like that with some music box? Was that her? It feels like it was centuries ago. The girls wouldn't even have to know what it was they had, NAT thinks they do. A twisted game of cat and mouse ensues. Crazy CeCe starts getting paranoid, thinks the other NATs are after her, starts going after them (explains away Ian's death (RIP my milk drinking creeper!) Ali knows what they are after, which is why she's hiding.

 

Put some professional writers on this and I think it could hold up quite well as a storyline.

[jjjmoss]

I have honestly never watched a long-running show in which not a single character introduced in after season 2 is a fan favourite (not necessarily the biggest favourite but at least in top 10). If anything, PLL has achieved the opposite with characters like Rollins and Sara that virtually nobody likes.

To be fair, all characters introduced after season 1 have been in fewer than 20 episodes, so it's pretty hard for anyone to become a favorite. 

 

Personally, the most recently introduced character I ever liked is Lucas (ep 6), so.

[WhosThatGirl]

I think most of us have realized though that the show now doesn't put any sort of logic into the show. All the finales have had some sort of shocking result but for most of them, then they backtrack and rewrite it so our villains are not really evil. 

 

The only finales worth anything are the first two seasons. The first finale, 1A had Hanna getting run over by the car. 1B had Ian being a red herring but not A because someone pushed him off and the girls get an A text realizing that A is still very much alive and still texting. 2A's finale was that crazy wedding episode where the girls were framed and 2b was the Mona reveal, also Maya's death, at the time I think the liars assumed that Maya's death was a Mona plan and the show let us to think that too. These finales made sense. These two seasons made sense as they were cohesive.

 

3A's finale was kind of a let down, we find out Maya was killed by Not Cousin Nate and then because WE NEED A SHOCKING REVEAL, Toby is an A team hoodie wearing member and so 3B we were all forced to endure Toby/Keegan's glares at the camera and then 3Bs finale was where they rewrote Toby being an A team member double agent because god forbid, Toby be evil, the show needs it's shipper viewers so then we find out Ali is still alive. 4A's finale was the Ezra reveal which then the show once again backtracked in 4B! And 4bs finale was all about Ali being alive and telling us what happened. 5A's finale was thanksgiving and Mona dying and 5b's finale was the dollhouse. And 6A was Cece being the big bad A! The A of all the As but once again with 6bs finale, that isn't the case.

 

Also, I highly doubt that this new Mrs. Drake will be straight up evil. None of these villains are allowed to be evil. Mona actually seems to be the only who gets taken to task every time she comes around and while it is somewhat rightfully so, she did do awful things, a lot of the rest of them never get called on the things they did. Cece/Courtney's behavior was pretty much excused by Ali-granted the other liars all seemed rebuffed by having her out in normal society but still went along because Ali asked them too. Ezta was stalking the girls for a book and Aria said she would never go back to him but that lasted about a week or two. The only liar who even gave her an issue was Spencer for like an episode. It was never mentioned again that Toby was terrorizing the girls because he was doing it for LOVE and to protect  Spencer but yet he still did things to hurt the liars. I highly doubt Mrs. Drake and Ali's husband will be straight up bad people. According to this show, they ALL HAVE REASONS for doing what they do. No one is allowed to be evil. 

[Black Knight]

Of course there is a double standard. The question is whether this is not actually for the better in this particular case, considering the utter ineptitude shown in the portrayal of all romantic relationships for at least two seasons now. Personally, I'd rather watch no romance than crappy romance, regardless if it's a heterosexual relationship or not. If the writers want to make Aria, Spencer and Hanna stay single for a while too, I would be all for it. If they decide to pull their heads out of their asses and portray an interesting relationship involving Emily, I am sure I will ship it as I did Emily/Paige but as it is Emily being single is preferable. To summarise, I really don't like the fact they writers are applying a double standard but ironically the results of that are not that bad because the way the pander to shippers makes me say "no, thanks, I'd rather you not pander to me". If Paige hadn't left, they would have made me dislike her too, the way they have managed to turn me against Hanna and Caleb.

I read your post and I started thinking about Emily's S6a story...and I remembered, it was all about Sara. I had blocked it out, but it came rushing back in - her entire story all S6a was Sara Sara Sara, and it turned Emily into the new Aria, as she was always off with Sara and away from the mystery that was consuming the other girls. Only in the S6a finale did they finally connect Sara to the mystery, with the rage-inducing reveal that she was Red Coat and Black Veil (rage-inducing because she wasn't a character during those seasons). Emily's S6a story suuuuuuuuucked. And in S5b she had the married baker girlfriend, and that sucked too.

 

In contrast, upon thinking about it, I've realized that I actually liked Emily's S6b story the best out of everyone's. By far. Although I liked Spencer/Caleb together, I knew their being part of a quadrangle with Hanna and her nonentity fiance that she was stringing along was going to lead to most, if not all, of the characters being massively damaged. And I doubt I have to explain to this board why I was alternately bored by/hating on the Ezaria SL, since those views are not uncommon here. Ali, as I said upthread, could have had a great storyline if they had played out the gaslighting all half-season instead of trying to shock us with the Rollins reveal, but of course that didn't happen. So Emily really did fare the best out of everyone storywise. Since I watched the Fields family all these seasons, Emily dealing with her dad's death and with her mom was rather compelling, and the eggs subplot started the process of re-establishing the Emily/Ali friendship while also playing a part in the Emoji-A plot and giving us a deliciously creepy scene at the donation center. I did think something more was going to be done with Emily and Sabrina, but maybe the actress became unavailable, because she just disappeared. But considering the way things go with all the Randoms love interests, I doubt it would've been interesting to watch. Even when they have invested time and energy in an Emily pairing, the last two, Sara and the baker, were terrible. I didn't want to watch scenes with them, I wanted to FF. Whatever else I can say about Emily in S6b, I was never seized by an urge to FF.

 

Emily does need someone in S7. If they're not going to do Emison, then give Emily a credible girlfriend played by someone appealing, who doesn't turn out to be part of the A-Team or married to someone else, and flesh out that relationship. On the other hand, if they are going to do Emison, then let's not have a temporary girlfriend on the way to that because PLL would no doubt repeat itself and have Emily cheat on the temporary girlfriend with Ali just like Aria cheated on Liam and Hanna on Jordan in this episode. Enough with the cheating. Just because these placeholder love interests are ciphers really doesn't make it better.

 

But really, I'm quite sure Emily will have someone in S7. I can only hope it's not terrible.

[Perfect Xero]

The worst thing about the time jump:

There were 5 years of Ezra and Aria not being together, and we didn't get to see any of it.

[dwmckim]

 

The only finales worth anything are the first two seasons. 

 

And even there, 2A ended up not being worth anything because the biggest reveal in it was that Jenna/Garrett was behind framing the Liars which meant they either had to be part of Mona's A-Team or at least had enough knowledge of it to piggyback off it.  This was never followed up on.

Edited March 19, 2016 by dwmckim

[WhosThatGirl]

I would still prefer the 2A finale over the finales we get now. I also hate that for some reason on this show, the characters who do evil terrible things to 17 year old teenagers can't be evil people. For some reason, there's an explanation for why they did those things. Cece was UBER A but we can't think she's evil because she's transgender and if we do, we are bad people for that reason. Let us forget that she harmed children for a couple years and caused them some psychological damage., Whatever. Aria's speech in 6Bs premiere about being on the train and freaking out should have been what put Charlotte in Radley for good. That was some real talk. Granted, she was let out because of that plan with Ali's new husband or whatever but still. 

[Bwill3133]

Jessica DiLaurentis having the twin was pretty much a given. I know Jason was running the Carisimi group but was it ever said that Alison had any shares in it? or was that last 2 minutes with Elliot and Mary Drake supposed to let us know then? I just don't remember that ever being talked about in any of the episodes.  I agree that Alison went from hallucinating to "send me to the mental hospital" way too fast. Was she on those pills for 2 days? It just seemed like she was freaking out and checked herself in too quickly. Everyone is definitely putting more effort into this than the writers are. 

 

Poor Emily. Having no love interest seems to have worked out for best for you in 6B. No one has come out looking good after the finale. 

 

Well I am in the minority but I still love Hanna Marin. She's lost her way this season but I hope that she can fix that in the new crop of episodes this summer.  There is no excuse for her and Caleb cheating on Spencer and Jordan though. Can't wait to see those scenes with Spencer and Hanna after we miraculously discover that she's alive because we saw the flash forward. (Big mistake if you actually wanted that part to be a "shocker") Once Caleb did not respond to Spencer's I love you, knew it was headed back toward Haleb. While I do love Hanna I will forever hate this show for ruining the one part of it that made it unique;That was there was no boyfriend sharing/triangles. Thank you Marlene for DESTROYING that with Hanna/Caleb/Spencer. 

 

Ezria: still terrible. Aria you were doing so well away from him. I thought she and Liam had broken up but maybe they didn't. It might be addressed in season 7. It might not. 

 

One more season PLL and I can say finally say bye bye to you!