S02.E11: Heavenly Creatures

[Cranberry]

In the wake of another murder, Emma and Audrey find themselves primes suspect when evidence appears implicating them both in the killing spree.

 

[wrongheaven]

So this episode increased my suspicion that Kieran is the killer tenfold, and I am hoping that the show is not that obvious (but - who am I kidding - it probably is).

• Kieran is the one who found the letters in Eli's room - obviously could have planted them.
• Kieran overheard Eli and his mom talking about scamming the Mayor so he obviously could have texted him and scheduled the meet up. 
• Kieran was the one who called into the police that Audrey and Emma were at the farm, which got them framed. 

This is why the show is difficult - with 12 episodes it's either going to be a killer out of nowhere with nothing to back it up, or something that viewers picked up over time and it's obvious (see: Piper Season 1, and probably Kieran Season 2). 

At this point I am just hoping Kieran has an accomplice that comes out of nowhere so there is some element of surprise. 

Otherwise, OK episode. I liked Stavos' speech to Noah, and I liked Ms. Lang's moment of insight to the Sheriff re: Stavos. Some nice character touches, both of which make Stavos more fully detailed and less suspicious. Of course, Stavos is the one who convinced Noah to restart the Morgue which was necessary for the video to be uploaded. 

Speaking of: in the video, isn't Emma reading her dream journal out loud? How is that possible unless Emma is in on it? Or am I misremembering?

[Last Time Lord]

Computer viruses and hacking do not work like that. That was my biggest annoyance about the episode. Well, that and the now late Mayor pulling out the pitchfork. Why would you do that? That was keeping everything  in. Without it, it all came spilling out, and now you're dead.

We're had other episodes that ended on big and shocking moments, but this one had a "To Be Continued" tag. I assume next week's the finale, then? DVR cut off during the promo.

[colorbars]

Kieran just looks more and more guilty every episode, and considering he looks this guilty but hasn't been a suspect for any of the characters, pretty much seals the deal. And I'm okay with that. He's so useless and bland and this is the perfect way to both give his character purpose and get rid of him at the same time, win/win. I'll deal with some predictability in exchange for that. I'm assuming he has an accomplice, but I don't think there's anything that's happened that would absolutely have to have two people, like the Piper/Will attack last season. Not sure who it would be, if he does have one.

Poor Brooke. First Jake, now her dad? Though, she doesn't look all that torn up in the promo, weirdly. I was gonna speculate that maybe her father didn't die after all, but they show him dead at the end, so obviously not. I guess nobody gets the chance to tell her while everything is going down.

[Free]

18 minutes ago, Last Time Lord said:

Computer viruses and hacking do not work like that. That was my biggest annoyance about the episode. Well, that and the now late Mayor pulling out the pitchfork. Why would you do that? That was keeping everything  in. Without it, it all came spilling out, and now you're dead.

We're had other episodes that ended on big and shocking moments, but this one had a "To Be Continued" tag. I assume next week's the finale, then? DVR cut off during the promo.

Yup, next week is the finale according to the promo.

4 minutes ago, colorbars said:

Kieran just looks more and more guilty every episode, and considering he looks this guilty but hasn't been a suspect for any of the characters, pretty much seals the deal. And I'm okay with that. He's so useless and bland and this is the perfect way to both give his character purpose and get rid of him at the same time, win/win. I'll deal with some predictability in exchange for that. I'm assuming he has an accomplice, but I don't think there's anything that's happened that would absolutely have to have two people, like the Piper/Will attack last season. Not sure who it would be, if he does have one.

Poor Brooke. First Jake, now her dad? Though, she doesn't look all that torn up in the promo, weirdly. I was gonna speculate that maybe her father didn't die after all, but they show him dead at the end, so obviously not. I guess nobody gets the chance to tell her while everything is going down.

Kieran really has no other use tbh.  There seems like an accomplice, like usual Scream tradition.

[wrongheaven]

9 minutes ago, colorbars said:

 I'm assuming he has an accomplice, but I don't think there's anything that's happened that would absolutely have to have two people, like the Piper/Will attack last season. Not sure who it would be, if he does have one.

 

The only thing I can think of was Haley's death last week. As she was getting killed he was shown walking around the dance floor. Could be a trick of the editing, but he seemed to have an alibi for that (although Haley did seem gleeful to Emma about her secret boyfriend, so who knows?)

[Pangloss]

@Last Time Lord I had the same reaction to the Mayor pulling out the pitchfork! Idiot. Also: how freaking stupid does the Mayor have to be to meet an anonymous extortionist in an abandoned barn late at night when there's a freaking murderer on the loose?!?!?!?! I mean I know it's a slasher show but come on, the Mayor is REALLY that stupid? At that point, he just had it coming... 

Even in her death, I still get a strange feeling about Zoe, and (even though this is totally out there and not evidenced at all) I wouldn't be surprised if she turns out to be the killer/accomplice (the finale promo basically told us there are two killers in addition to PIper) and the "body" we saw was, like, her twin sister or something. In fact, maybe Zoe has a twin whose identity she assumed (which had something to do with her disappearance last year) and that was the body we saw (totally out-there theory, I know). 

Eli is creepy but I get red-herring vibes from him. I'm really glad we're learning more about the mayor's scams though, and I'll bet the murders link back to that entirely. Also, Lang still creeps me out. 

In the promo for next week, did anyone else see the scene in the back of the police car (where Emma and Audrey are presumably attacked by the killer) and immediately think it was a nod to Scream 2? The exact same thing happens to Sidney and Halle... also worth noting: before the script for Scream 2 leaked onto the Internet, Halle was planned to be one of the killers. Casts suspicion, then, on Audrey, Lang, and anyone seeking vengeance for the death of Piper or Brandon.

The thing that made Piper's guilt obvious was that she revealed her motivation too early in the season. This time, though, I think the motivation will come as a complete surprise to the audience. 

[colorbars]

21 minutes ago, wrongheaven said:

The only thing I can think of was Haley's death last week. As she was getting killed he was shown walking around the dance floor. Could be a trick of the editing, but he seemed to have an alibi for that (although Haley did seem gleeful to Emma about her secret boyfriend, so who knows?)

It was a scene after Haley's death. We saw Haley die and then Noah/Zoe turn the power off, and then we see Kieran walking through the club. So definitely not impossible for it to have been him, though I do think there's an accomplice, since if there's a Halloween special like speculated, then they'll need something to reveal there.

17 minutes ago, Pangloss said:

Even in her death, I still get a strange feeling about Zoe, and (even though this is totally out there and not evidenced at all) I wouldn't be surprised if she turns out to be the killer/accomplice (the finale promo basically told us there are two killers in addition to PIper) and the "body" we saw was, like, her twin sister or something. In fact, maybe Zoe has a twin whose identity she assumed (which had something to do with her disappearance last year) and that was the body we saw (totally out-there theory, I know). 

In the promo for next week, did anyone else see the scene in the back of the police car (where Emma and Audrey are presumably attacked by the killer) and immediately think it was a nod to Scream 2? The exact same thing happens to Sidney and Halle... also worth noting: before the script for Scream 2 leaked onto the Internet, Halle was planned to be one of the killers. Casts suspicion, then, on Audrey, Lang, and anyone seeking vengeance for the death of Piper or Brandon.

I really doubt Zoe is not dead. At most, she could've maybe been the accomplice and then Kieran/the killer killed her for whatever reason, but I doubt it, since as above, I think any accomplice will be revealed in the post-finale episodes.

But I definitely immediately thought of Scream 2 when I saw the car crashed in the promo. I don't see how Audrey can possibly be involved in the killings this season, with how often the killer taunted Audrey while she was alone earlier in the season, her reaction to seeing Jake, etc. At most, there could possibly be more to her association with Piper, but I can't see any logical way she could be the killer/accomplice this season.

Edited August 10, 2016 by colorbars

[Cthulhudrew]

Anyone else notice that Stavo's portfolio as he left had a picture of Kieran on one side, and then the picture of Ghostface on the other? Co-inky-dink? 

Nah, I don't think so, either.

He sure seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere, though. Can't yet decide if he's going to end up being an accomplice or if he'll help to blow the killer's id out into the open.

Speaking of Stavo's picture of Ghostface and Kieran- that picture of how GF was holding the knife reminded me of the shot when Kieran went back into the house. Closeup of him holding the letters (almost like a knife?) and then pulling back to him opening the door. It also for some reason made me think we've seen that exact shot before, but with GF holding a knife. It wasn't in this episode, though; I went back to the opener and there wasn't a shot like that in there (just him dragging the knife along the banister). But it really seemed familiar, just in a different context.

That was kind of weird about Emma's words from the dream journal, because she was reciting them aloud. Maybe she read her dream journal to Miss Lang at one point? It was Miss Lang that suggested it, and we know the killer stole the audio recordings.

Also- regarding the crashed car in the promo? Whom else do we know with a connection to crashed cars... hmm.

Edited August 10, 2016 by Cthulhudrew

[Steph619]

I'm sticking with Kieran being the killer with Stavos being the accomplice. Kieran always happens to be there when something goes down and he could've easily planted those letters from Audrey to Piper in Eli's room. He continues to communicate with the police and letting them know where Emma will be and that's probably to frame her and Audrey. It seems to me that Eli is suspicious of Kieran, but because people view him as so shady and as one of the possible killers, he hasn't been able to speak up to Emma or anyone about it. My guess is that Kieran was in a relationship with Piper and that's why he's doing all of this. 

I think Stavos convinced Noah to not shut down The Morgue in order to upload that video of Emma and Audrey. Brooke has been unharmed so far and that's probably due to her relationship with Stavos. It seems to me that he got Jake, Mr. Branson, and her dad out of the way to have her to himself.

I still don't like Ms. Lang. It seems like she's too intent to make Emma seem guilty.

Edited August 10, 2016 by Steph619

[colorbars]

1 hour ago, Cthulhudrew said:

That was kind of weird about Emma's words from the dream journal, because she was reciting them aloud. Maybe she read her dream journal to Miss Lang at one point? It was Miss Lang that suggested it, and we know the killer stole the audio recordings.

There's always the chance the killer read her dream journal aloud for the video, since in S1, the killer imitated both Audrey and Will's voice over the phone somehow, so they apparently have the technology for it. It hasn't been used this season, though.

1 hour ago, Steph619 said:

I think Stavos convinced Noah to not shut down The Morgue in order to upload that video of Emma and Audrey. Brooke has been unharmed so far and that's probably due to her relationship with Stavos. It seems to me that he got Jake, Mr. Branson, and her dad out of the way to have her to himself.

I definitely could see him being the accomplice, but I hope for Brooke's sake that he's not, she's already lost enough to this season, I want her to have someone.

[niklj]

Can someone tell me how Kieran is NOT the killer at this point? Really other than Stavo, I can't think of anyone who has the strength to ram the mayor into a tractor like that, who could string up Jake and Haley, who could bury Noah that deep into the ground in (presumably) really hard dirt, not mentioning as many have already noticed how conveniently he shows up to scenes after the killer has already left.

I thought Emma looked like Nancy Drew in the farmhouse, that was a cute touch.

I want a Season 3 dammit

[Xazeal]

So this season, Brooke lost her boyfriend, her ex-boyfriend, and her dad. She was attacked/chased by the killer more times last season than maybe anyone else. The killer dropped Jake's dead body onto her.

And yet, it's basically a foregone conclusion at this point that the killer is Kieran, who has no reason to really give a shit about Brooke. Because it's "all about Emma and Audrey".

The story that we're seeing and the story we're being told don't line up. I'm guessing they just wanted to give Carlson Young some material to work with whether it made sense from a plot perspective or not. It bugs me.

Other than that, solid episode.

[Chaos Theory]

It's funny when the sheriff was talking to the teacher who was taping the students without their consent what she said was hilarious "Your son who sneaks into your office to look at autopsies and draws dead people is perfectly normal but the girl with a valid case of PTSD is dangerous."

Edited August 10, 2016 by Chaos Theory

[Lady Calypso]

Yep, it's totally Kieran. There's no doubt in my mind. Clues for me that make me more and more convinced? The killer at the beginning dragging his knife on the picture of Kieran and Emma, almost as if he's saying either that Kieran's gonna die next, or "THAT'S ME. I'M THE KILLER, LOOK, I'M POINTING RIGHT AT ME". Stavo's portfolio. The letters being under Eli's bed, because what killer would keep letters under their own bed? Ok, it was in the headrest, but still. I think the Killer has the same phone as Kieran. Kieran calling Emma's mom to tell her where Audrey/Emma went. Kieran conveniently making a scene as Emma/Audrey are arrested. And finally, the preview for the finale. 

If Kieran as an accomplice, maybe Eli's it. It would be a perfect alibi for Kieran. Or Ms. Lang. Or Stavo. It's one of the three of them, that's for sure. Maybe Stavo is being blackmailed by Kieran/Killer. But ultimately, I think he has to be a red herring. 

So, Miguel and Emma's mom (I'm surprised I can't remember her name) have a thing going on? Or had a thing? Or will have a thing? I just get vibes.

Eli's mom/Kieran's aunt is so going to get killed. 

Brooke has gotten a lot of shit thrown at her and I'm not sure why. Actually, all three main girls have gotten the worst of it. Noah's fairly close behind with two girlfriends being murdered. But Brooke's ex and her dad are now dead. I did like the touch in her dad's flashlight going off, so he immediately uses his phone's flashlight. A cliche turned on its head through modernism. 

But why did it take Emma and Audrey so long to get down to the farmhouse? Did they just chill out in the house for five minutes and then head down? Maybe if they got there sooner, they would have been able to see the killer.

[Misty79]

Another excellent episode. This has become the guilty pleasure show I really look forward to each week, in the way Harper's Island was a few years back. It's well crafted and plotted, and deserves a better fate than it's likely to receive as yet another of MTV's tanking scripted dramas. 

But yeah it's so obviously Kieran, they're telegraphing it, and like others I've fine with that. It only became predictable to me sort of half way through the season, and his motivation is still a big question mark, so I'm intrigued. As for the accomplice (presuming there is one) applying the Agatha Christie school of logic that it needs to blow your mind a little to be satisfying, for me it would need to be Maggie, Noah, or Brooke. I'd be surprised if these writers went there with one of them, but I'd enjoy it if they did. Maybe that could be the ultimate resolution for why Brooke has suffered so much this season - she's actually been picking people off around her specifically? But no, it's not going to happen. 

Audrey would be interesting. And not entirely implausible. But we'd need to be getting the unreliable narrator angle there for that to make sense. Let's not forget that in one of the early episodes she looked like she was readying to smash Noah over the head with that thing on his bookshelf to stop him finding out about her Piper association. That was pretty dark. At the moment we're all taking her word for it that all she did last season was incite Piper to come to town. 

I like the Zoe theory. But I don't think it's a PLL style twin thing, but rather that Kieran decided to off her once she was surplus to requirements the way he offed Haley. 

Eli is the red herring, the unlikely knight in shining armour (with an admittedly sketchy past) who I'm sure will die in the finale trying to save Emma from the clutches of evil Kieran. 

Edited August 10, 2016 by Misty79

[Lady Calypso]

23 minutes ago, Misty79 said:

Eli is the red herring, the unlikely knight in shining armour (with an admittedly sketchy past) who I'm sure will die in the finale trying to save Emma from the clutches of evil Kieran. 

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if Eli suspected that his cousin his the killer and that's why he came back. To confirm that he is and to save Emma and her friends from him. Would it make much sense with the continuity? Not really. But I wouldn't be surprised if that was the reasoning they gave.

Kieran has been on my suspect list from season 1, so him being the killer would make sense for me. I don't care about it being shocking (god knows Pretty Little Liars messed that up for everyone); I just want it to make some sense. 

Edited August 10, 2016 by Lady Calypso

[KaveDweller]

4 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

But why did it take Emma and Audrey so long to get down to the farmhouse? Did they just chill out in the house for five minutes and then head down? Maybe if they got there sooner, they would have been able to see the killer.

And why did they go out to that house/pig farm alone and not wait for Keiran. Safety in numbers and all that. Wasn't he just putting back those letters? 

[KnotsLanding]

I have a strong feeling we will have two killers. They're making Keiran so obvious that I feel he will be one and that won't be the shocker, the second killer will be the shocker. I hope that is the case and since we know this show hates killing off major characters, I hope at least ONE important cast member dies in the finale, not including any killers.

[dirtydi]

It has to be Kiernan, but can't figure out his accomplice.

I don't know if this is important or not, but one of the deputies asked the sheriff about why there were no fingerprints in/on? the coffin where Zoe was buried.  Clue?  The sheriff just poo pooed the question.  Am I remembering this wrong?

[wrongheaven]

At this point I am most interested to see how it all ties back to the Brandon James situation. 

I would sort of love it in a twisted way if the accomplice was Maggie and the killer was Kieran. After all, when the killer went to Emma's house in this episode, he did check in on Maggie first. (Which made me think it maybe WASN'T Kieran because it made it seem like he didn't know his way around the house - but with this out there theory, that could work). 

[bettername2come]

The friends who show up to your hospital bed WITH HORROR MOVIES after you've been stabbed and your girlfriend murdered are not the friends you should keep. Jeez, you couldn't have brought him some sci-fi?

I'm deeply disappointed in the girls for splitting up at the pig farm. They should know better. 

Kieran and Stavos, right? Stavos has more of a connection to Brooke and is more like the sidekick in Scream 2, Kieran is the boyfriend like in Scream 1?

Edited August 11, 2016 by bettername2come

[Pangloss]

1 hour ago, dirtydi said:

It has to be Kiernan, but can't figure out his accomplice.

I don't know if this is important or not, but one of the deputies asked the sheriff about why there were no fingerprints in/on? the coffin where Zoe was buried.  Clue?  The sheriff just poo pooed the question.  Am I remembering this wrong?

I actually noticed this too! When the deputy asked about the fingerprints. There was something strange about how they made it a point to show the audience that question being asked. I thought to myself, "Well duh, the killer wore gloves," but I did wonder why they insisted on having that line in the episode. It even made me question that deputy... I guess we'll see if it has any significance in the finale.

[Cthulhudrew]

22 minutes ago, Pangloss said:

I actually noticed this too! When the deputy asked about the fingerprints. There was something strange about how they made it a point to show the audience that question being asked. I thought to myself, "Well duh, the killer wore gloves," but I did wonder why they insisted on having that line in the episode. It even made me question that deputy... I guess we'll see if it has any significance in the finale.

Agreed, that was kind of an odd observation. I can't decide whether they intended it to mean the obvious (the killer wore gloves) and that they were just mentioning it help drive the point home that Audrey and/or Emma were the killers to help with the frame with the police, or if they were dropping that clue as a hint that one of the three might actually be involved (I've been kind of a fan of the Noah as killer theories, but honestly I don't see how it could be possible- how would he have buried himself?).

[Misty79]

6 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Agreed, that was kind of an odd observation. I can't decide whether they intended it to mean the obvious (the killer wore gloves) and that they were just mentioning it help drive the point home that Audrey and/or Emma were the killers to help with the frame with the police, or if they were dropping that clue as a hint that one of the three might actually be involved (I've been kind of a fan of the Noah as killer theories, but honestly I don't see how it could be possible- how would he have buried himself?).

It did feel odd. If we dismiss the obvious imputation that the killer wore gloves (why bother with the deputy mentioning it at all if so) it does point us in the direction of one of Emma, Audrey or Noah being the accomplice. We don't know how long Zoe was dead, so the fact Audrey and Emma were together that day doesn't prove much. I can't see it being Noah - would he really be willing to be stabbed for the sake of staging everything? Audrey is the only one that feels viable to me. 

[colorbars]

8 hours ago, Misty79 said:

It did feel odd. If we dismiss the obvious imputation that the killer wore gloves (why bother with the deputy mentioning it at all if so) it does point us in the direction of one of Emma, Audrey or Noah being the accomplice. We don't know how long Zoe was dead, so the fact Audrey and Emma were together that day doesn't prove much. I can't see it being Noah - would he really be willing to be stabbed for the sake of staging everything? Audrey is the only one that feels viable to me. 

We spent the first half of the season watching Audrey being harassed by the killer, I can't see her being the accomplice making a lot of sense. If anything, they've been hinting at a split personality type deal for Emma, and to a much lesser extent Brooke (with the Branson thing), but I don't think they'll go there. I think it was more to show her PTSD while creating a red herring, since I've seen lots of people theorize it was Emma during the season.

Anyways, for all the people that have mentioned the kills having a connection to Brooke, and wondering why the killer is doing that to her when they're do focused on Audrey/Emma otherwise, I think it's worth mentioning that I don't think her father's death was planned or targeted as being something to hurt her. Assuming Kieran is the killer, we saw him overhear Eli/his aunt talking about the Mayor and then find those files; then he gets a text from Emma saying she and Audrey are heading up to the pig farm, then we saw the Mayor get the blackmail text, so I think it was really just a murder of convenience. The killer/Kieran wanted to frame Emma/Audrey and needed a dead body, and the Mayor was the easiest to get up there on short notice. Jake was the only one that seemed to be about hurting Brooke, but Zoe was the same for Noah, so it's not really that weird.

[tennisgurl]

I have really liked the last few episodes. More horror and friendship and less boring romance. 

I do have to say, I shook my head a few times. Both when the mayor pulled out the rake from his guts (come on, your letting all the squishy stuff out), and then when Audrey and Emma were running around crime scenes, and grabbing murder weapons. I have seen a lot of crime shows, and I know how things go for the hapless idiots that pick up the murder weapons next to ( or inside) the dead body. 

Kieran seems just painfully obvious at this point, but now I wonder if his sidekick will be more of a shock. Maggie? The sheriff? Random background character number 2? And what does Brandon James have to do with this? I feel like the sheriff and Maggie know more than they are letting on, and thats going to tie into all of this somehow. 

Poor Noah. Stabbed, buried alive, find girlfriends body after she died horribly, repeatedly hearing her dying screams, and not long after his last girlfriend died. One more incident and the poor guy will be heading towards full breakdown time. Also, it really sucks that all the miserable stuff that have happened to him and Brooke apparently has nothing to do with them, they are just unfortunate enough to be friends with Aubrey and Emma. 

[jhlipton]

Mr Mayor, you were almost killed by showing up alone at a sketchy location to be blackmailed!  Didn't you learn ANYTHING from that experience???  Too late (as in the "late Mr Mayor") for you though.

I wonder what was in Stavos' email that made Noah do a 180 like that.  Too bad we didn't get to see it.

Since Audrey was with Emma while Mr Dumbass Mayor was being killed, I think we can rule both of them out as the primary killer.

Quote

And why did they go out to that house/pig farm alone and not wait for Keiran.

PLOT!!!!

[ParadoxLost]

On ‎8‎/‎10‎/‎2016 at 4:28 AM, Xazeal said:

So this season, Brooke lost her boyfriend, her ex-boyfriend, and her dad. She was attacked/chased by the killer more times last season than maybe anyone else. The killer dropped Jake's dead body onto her.

And yet, it's basically a foregone conclusion at this point that the killer is Kieran, who has no reason to really give a shit about Brooke. Because it's "all about Emma and Audrey".

The story that we're seeing and the story we're being told don't line up. I'm guessing they just wanted to give Carlson Young some material to work with whether it made sense from a plot perspective or not. It bugs me.

This is bothering me quite a bit.  I can get on board with Kieran being the killer but mostly because he has all the charisma of a wet blanket and it seems the fastest way to get him gone.  But I think this more than anything points to two killers.

One killer wants to frame Emma and Audrey to avenge Piper. The other killer is focused on murdering people connected to Brooke for some reason.  So they are working together but nothing quite makes sense.  Almost like one is picking the victim and the other the set-up.

They dropped that Brooke's Dad played the James'.  Suddenly Brooke is hanging out at her dead? Mom's love nest. 

But my out there. Can't possibly be true.  I don't know how they could possibly pull it off. Its really that implausible.  But I'm considering it anyway idea on who the other killer is that its ....Jake.

[Pangloss]

1 hour ago, ParadoxLost said:

But I'm considering it anyway idea on who the other killer is that its ....Jake.

I love this idea, but for it to fly, Maggie would have to be in on it. She's the coroner, and so she had to get deep into that body and would have noticed if it were a fake (unless we're going with a hidden twin theory like I had about Zoe lol). That said, it could be Jake, and Maggie could be in on it! That would be pretty cool.

[omophagia]

Finally got caught up on the last two episodes, and I agree with the consensus that Kieran has to be the killer or one of a pair of killers. The problem what that, though, is that there's been enough work done to set up both Eli and Stavo as red herrings-- to say nothing of the Brandon James back-story, Emma's dad's non-arc of a plot line, or the still-unresolved business with Brooke's dad-- that there isn't going to be enough time to wrap up the loose ends in a way that accounts for the actions of the eventual red herring(s) throughout the season.

I do love the idea that it's a Jake-Maggie conspiracy, though, which would be an entertaining hard-left turn and would at least attempt to cover the seeming targeting of Brooke in addition to Emma and Audrey.

Noah's getting stabbed in the gut and neither bleeding out nor going septic is straining credibility, as much as I wouldn't have wanted to lose him as a character.

[truthaboutluv]

Quote

The problem what that, though, is that there's been enough work done to set up both Eli and Stavo as red herrings

IMO, either Eli or Stavo being the big bad killer and not maybe just some lame sidekick, would be a cop out for the simple reason that no one is really invested in Eli or Stavo. They're both new characters who popped up this season with not much relationship with the core group. Sure Stavo's now hooking up with Brooke but he and Eli are still both peripheral characters in my opinion. Added to that, again they both have such GLARING guilty signs pointing their way that their being guilty would just be an, "okay, and..." 

Yes, to anyone paying close attention and who has watched enough scary/mystery shows, Kieran is fairly obvious but I bet you there are many casual viewers who probably don't suspect him at all and would be shocked if he is revealed to be the killer. There are many people who really do fall for the "obvious" edits, as in probably thinking it must be Eli for example. In my opinion, while it is clear that yes, Eli and his mom are both shady people, I don't think they are killers. I think the whole family is probably messed up in their own way, including cousin Kieran. And when the killings started in Lakewood last season, Eli heard about it and probably suspected Kieran was behind them, because he knew Kieran was in the town. He probably went to Kieran's father about his suspicions and that's why Kieran killed his father. 

The only people other than Kieran being guilty that would satisfy this season in my opinion, is one of the core group, like Brooke or Emma herself or Audrey, never mind we saw the killer messing with Audrey. Anything else, especially Eli or Stavo would just be a really, really lame cop out. I would rather have an ending I expected if it makes sense than some out of left field crap that the writers have to pull out some bullshit to justify. 

Everything fits with Kieran in my opinion. He had step-parents who mysteriously died. His "real" father was the sheriff who didn't he seem close to at all, and we know the sheriff, along with Emma's mom and this new sheriff all had their secrets from that whole Brandon James saga. They find out about Ms. Lang's past with Piper after Kieran convinces Emma to go to her house, all points coincidentally start to point to Eli based off stuff from Kieran, who Eli lives with. The killer knew the code to the security alarm at Emma's house. He of course always shows up right after the killer was present. He coincidentally escapes the killer and does it in such a way that seems to remove all suspicion on him. His constant talking to the police to "help" Emma. And most importantly, he was with Nina last season a night before she died and that was so easily explained away. 

And finally, it has to be Kieran because aside from his looking 30 and having zero personality, there is no investment in him. Let me explain that. I said above that it would be cop out to make Stavo or Eli guilty for that reason but here's the difference, Kieran is technically in the core group and we should be invested in him and yet we're not. Why - because he's actually never been a character we were told or truly shown anything about. Has anyone noticed this?

We see Noah's bond with Audrey, we've gotten their backstory, we've seen Noah alone dealing with his show, feelings about Zoe, etc. We have Emma and Audrey's history and bond and of course Emma is the main character and we have Brooke and everything with her. We get none of that with Kieran. Does anyone remember Kieran's reaction to his father's death last season, because I don't. We're just told he and Emma are in love and he's supposed to be this good guy but in two seasons we really know nothing about Kieran, he has no relationship or interaction with any of the group but Emma and even that is barely existent. In my opinion he really just makes the most narrative sense and yes, it will get him and his coma-inducing acting self off my screen.

Edited August 14, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[Misty79]

19 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

We see Noah's bond with Audrey, we've gotten their backstory, we've seen Noah alone dealing with his show, feelings about Zoe, etc. We have Emma and Audrey's history and bond and of course Emma is the main character and we have Brooke and everything with her. We get none of that with Kieran. Does anyone remember Kieran's reaction to his father's death last season, because I don't. We're just told he and Emma are in love and he's supposed to be this good guy but in two season we really know nothing about Kieran, he has no relationship or interaction with any of the group but Emma and even that is barely existent. In my opinion he really just makes the most narrative sense and yes, it will get him and coma-inducing acting self off my screen.

That's a really great point. They've given us pretty much zero insight into Kieran. Very little has been from his perspective. Last season it was easy to write that off as poor writing and acting, but in fact we may have to give them a bit of a pass if - as expected - he is unmasked as the killer in the next ep. They couldn't give us anything much sympathetic or insightful from his perspective if he was planned to be a big bad from the start.  What appeared to be a clumsily written and wooden romance may not have been at all. Or maybe they simply switched in this direction because of the lack of chemistry last season, who knows. Whatever I found myself shipping Emma with Eli so easily compared to Kieran, and certainly Audrey and Emma. So I don't think the actress playing Emma has chemistry issues, and it may well have all been part of the plan.

It's going to be a major let down at this point for me if Kieran isn't the killer. The more interesting outstanding question is who is the accomplice, if there is one as the promo implies.

[ParadoxLost]

18 hours ago, Pangloss said:

I love this idea, but for it to fly, Maggie would have to be in on it. She's the coroner, and so she had to get deep into that body and would have noticed if it were a fake (unless we're going with a hidden twin theory like I had about Zoe lol). That said, it could be Jake, and Maggie could be in on it! That would be pretty cool.

But not really.  My understanding is that Maggie has been specifically barred from acting as coroner on the case up until she and the new Sheriff started getting along.  I think Branson/Piper/Zoe are the first bodies she has worked on.   So that opens Jake's death up to shenanigans.

Frankly, Maggie not acting as coroner early in the season and the killer constantly impersonating almost all the victims via text makes me think they are definitely going to make one of the deceased a killer ala Stuart in the movie.

The idea of Jake wormed its way in because Brooke said something like 'I feel like Jake is still here' which is either mourning... or a hint.  Then I started thinking about it and the blackmail lure of Brooke's Dad/bug in camera started feeling a bit like the season 1 blackmail scheme Jake was part of.  The killer conveniently burns Branson and motel guy in the house Brooke's Dad had hired Jake to burn.  Really, who else has more motive to kill Branson and Brooke's Dad. 

So then it becomes logistics.  Can the torture death of Jake shown to viewers be explained away by playing it up for the camera/recording?  Can we assume Audrey was freaked enough in the storage locker not to detect that Jake wasn't really dead?  Was the body ripe and splatted enough that someone bearing a resemblance to Jake could be taken for Jake?  Did someone fool or bribe the coroner?  

Its probably a stretch.  My back up theory is that we were shown Brooke's Mom's love nest for a reason.  And that reason is that Kierian was the boy toy and Brooke's Mom isn't really dead and is the other killer and she is the one that picked Brooke's boyfriend, ex boyfriend, and Dad as victims.

And ten bucks says that Brooke directs on the lam Audrey/Emma to her Mom's love shack to hide them from the cops and it turns out to be one of the killers lairs where the final confrontation happens.

.

Edited August 14, 2016 by ParadoxLost

[Free]

6 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

IMO, either Eli or Stavo being the big bad killer and not maybe just some lame sidekick, would be a cop out for the simple reason that no one is really invested in Eli or Stavo. They're both new characters who popped up this season with not much relationship with the core group. Sure Stavo's now hooking up with Brooke but he and Eli are still both peripheral characters in my opinion. Added to that, again they both have such GLARING guilty signs pointing their way that their being guilty would just be an, "okay, and..." 

Yes, to anyone paying close attention and who has watched enough scary/mystery shows, Kieran is fairly obvious but I bet you there are many casual viewers who probably don't suspect him at all and would be shocked if he is revealed to be the killer. There are many people who really do fall for the "obvious" edits, as in probably thinking it must be Eli for example. In my opinion, while it is clear that yes, Eli and his mom are both shady people, I don't think they are killers. I think the whole family is probably messed up in their own way, including cousin Kieran. And when the killings started in Lakewood last season, Eli heard about it and probably suspected Kieran was behind them, because he knew Kieran was in the town. He probably went to Kieran's father about his suspicions and that's why Kieran killed his father. 

The only people other than Kieran being guilty that would satisfy this season in my opinion, is one of the core group, like Brooke or Emma herself or Audrey, never mind we saw the killer messing with Audrey. Anything else, especially Eli or Stavo would just be a really, really lame cop out. I would rather have an ending I expected if it makes sense than some out of left field crap that the writers have to pull out some bullshit to justify. 

Everything fits with Kieran in my opinion. He had step-parents who mysteriously died. His "real" father was the sheriff who didn't he seem close to at all, and we know the sheriff, along with Emma's mom and this new sheriff all had their secrets from that whole Brandon James saga. They find out about Ms. Lang's past with Piper after Kieran convinces Emma to go to her house, all points coincidentally start to point to Eli based off stuff from Kieran, who Eli lives with. The killer knew the code to the security alarm at Emma's house. He of course always shows up right after the killer was present. He coincidentally escapes the killer and does it in such a way that seems to remove all suspicion on him. His constant talking to the police to "help" Emma. And most importantly, he was with Nina last season a night before she died and that was so easily explained away. 

And finally, it has to be Kieran because aside from his looking 30 and having zero personality, there is no investment in him. Let me explain that. I said above that it would be cop out to make Stavo or Eli guilty for that reason but here's the difference, Kieran is technically in the core group and we should be invested in him and yet we're not. Why - because he's actually never been a character we were told or truly shown anything about. Has anyone noticed this?

We see Noah's bond with Audrey, we've gotten their backstory, we've seen Noah alone dealing with his show, feelings about Zoe, etc. We have Emma and Audrey's history and bond and of course Emma is the main character and we have Brooke and everything with her. We get none of that with Kieran. Does anyone remember Kieran's reaction to his father's death last season, because I don't. We're just told he and Emma are in love and he's supposed to be this good guy but in two seasons we really know nothing about Kieran, he has no relationship or interaction with any of the group but Emma and even that is barely existent. In my opinion he really just makes the most narrative sense and yes, it will get him and his coma-inducing acting self off my screen.

Exactly this, Kieran serves no other purpose.  All of the other main characters play a respective role.

[colorbars]

Jake being alive and the killer is basically impossible. We spent the whole first episode with Jake being kidnapped and tortured and then killed. With just him and the killer, by themselves in the horse stable. What point would that have served if he was the killer, exactly?

And I still don't think the killer is targeting Brooke, really. Jake and her father died, Jake was a deliberate choice, her father appeared less so. The killer also killed Noah's girlfriend, too.

Edited August 14, 2016 by colorbars

[Grace284]

I'd say Kieran being the killer is too obvious, but then Piper. I'm hoping his family turns out to be a bit Texas Chainsaw Massacre because otherwise we've been annoyed by the bratty cousin all season for no reason. My current unlikely prediction is that it's the sheriff, so he can be killed and replaced with another former Third Watch star. I vote Ty.