The Perfectionists - General Discussion

[Meredith Quill]

Quote

Set in Beacon Heights, a seemingly perfect town, the series revolves around a group of three college friends who struggle with the stress of being overachievers. In the aftermath of the town’s first murder, each Perfectionist hides behind a secret, a lie and an alibi.

 

[Cranberry]

 

[Cranberry]

"Pretty Little Liars" Spinoff "The Perfectionists" Has Started Production

‘Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists’: Noah Gray-Cabey & Evan Bittencourt To Recur On Freeform Spinoff

Janel Parrish Opens Up About 'The Perfectionists'! (Exclusive)

[paulvdb]

Freeform Announces March 20 Premiere Date for the Highly Anticipated Series "Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists"

New trailer:

[marinaalexis]

Another new promo started airing yesterday. A lot of fun little callbacks to PLL!

[NeenerNeener]

The books were about high school kids, so it sounds like Marlene is aging up the main characters in this show.

[Cranberry]

[Cranberry]

Full trailer:

[ElectricBoogaloo]

S1.E1

Quote

Everything about the town of Beacon Heights seems perfect, from its top-tier college to its overachieving residents - but nothing in Beacon Heights is as it appears to be. When the high-stakes environment pushes the residents to a breaking point, someone snaps and kills someone. As they work together to solve the murder mystery, it soon becomes clear that behind every Perfectionist is a secret, a lie - and a needed alibi.

Original air date: 3/20/19

[NeenerNeener]

I'm not thrilled with I. Marlene King aging up the high school characters from The Perfectionists books and then shoe-horning PLL characters into this show. I'd successfully managed to forget the soap opera insanity of Alison having been artificially inseminated with Emily's eggs back on PLL. I shudder to think of what kind of a train wreck she's going to make of this show, but I may not be able to look away either. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Clips:

Alison meets the students

Mean girl to mentor

Dylan & Andrew

[marinaalexis]

Aaaaand we're back! Spoilers incoming (can we get a forum back instead of just this one thread?!):

It was stupid and ridiculous and I loved it, but maybe I was just blinded by seeing Mona and Ali on my TV again - INTERACTING WITH EACH OTHER!! We haven't seen that since 6x07 you guys!

I laughed out loud when that rowing shot appeared during scenes, and even more so when we found out that apparently crew is the big sport at the prestigious BHU. How wonderfully and hilariously relevant. #AuntBecky

Those kids sure jumped to joking about graphic murder pretty quick. Yikes. Not sure how I feel about any of them yet, it'll take more time for me to connect with them and care about their storylines.

Nice to see that at least Nolan had sex indiscriminately. Damn.

I saw everything coming, right up until those last few seconds. What?!?! I need to go back and rewatch that scene (as if I won't be rewatching the whole dang episode) because I was so stunned that I couldn't make out all of the other little pictures/surveillance on the giant, Charlotte's lair-esque screen. That's the Beacon Guard people, I'm assuming? Or it is the witness protection program? Or is it just all happening in Mona's head?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Orchestral version of a Lady Gaga song + Lily van der Woodsen = me hoping that this show will be as ridiculously entertaining as the early seasons of Gossip Girl! My favorite Claire moment so far:

Nolan: I might not crew this fall.
Claire: But you've worked so hard to become captain. Why would you want to throw all that away?
Nolan: Cause I'm taking on a full load of classes. I'd like some time for myself.
Claire: To do what?

The way she delivered that line was perfect.

Every time someone said Nolan's name, I kept expecting them to say Noel Kahn!

I was starting to have a hard time keeping track of all the people who Nolan slept with in one episode. Since he seemed to be the only one who knew Taylor was alive, is she going to have to come out of hiding?

I was relieved when Mona was yelling at her reflection in the mirror and it turned out to be the Beacon Guard people. Heh, maybe they were the ones funding her millions of spycams in Rosewood!

[Samwise979]

I'm a huge fan of pll so I was very excited about this show. I'm not sure I liked it. This happened to me with the Roswell reboot too. I watched the first episode with all this anticipation and expectation of what it would be and I hated it, then I rewatched it with a clean slate so to speak and I liked it more and now I'm loving the show. So I need to do the same here. I want to like the show so much!! I am willing to give it a really good chance. 

[SadieT]

I thought it was entertaining enough to warrant a watch of the next episode. 

I don’t hate the new characters but I’m definitely more interested in Alison and Mona and their dynamic. 

Nolan sure was a busy boy. Was there anyone on that campus he wasn’t sleeping with? Other than blackmail and his parents’ money I’m curious as to what exactly about this guy drew Ava, Dylan and Caitlyn to him. I know it’s only been one episode but he appears to have no redeeming qualities. At least when Alison was the dead bully on the first couple of seasons of PLL, the show did a good job of showing why the other liars cared about her, she had a way of making them each feel special. Nolan just seems like a run of the mill tool. 

When Mona first looked directly into the mirror and spoke I was like oh hey she’s crazy again, but good to know she’s just talking to super fancy high tech campus big brother who’s watching their every move. Also I chuckled when she said her reasons for being in Paris “escaped” her. Guess we’ll see where that goes. 

Alison freaking out because the not dead girl looks vaguely like her...that’s a specific type of “oh shit is this person might be related to me” panic that only people from Rosewood are familiar with.

Also Ali getting all upset because Nolan knew who she was....like the story of a pretty white teenage girl in suburbia going missing, then being found dead, then showing up alive, then being arrested for murder, then being freed from jail cause the murder never happened wouldn’t be national news. Anyone with a phone or computer would probably recognize Alison’s name. 

[Samwise979]

I forgot about that line from Mona about the reasons for being in Paris escaped her. Hilarious! 

[Callaphera]

So as someone who was too lazy to switch the channel when the cat sat on my remote and put on this episode, do I need to watch the original series to understand this one? Because I was a little lost as to who Betty and Veronica were to each other and this whole sordid history that they apparently have which leads to Veronica holding up a knife in a vaguely threatening manner before chirping about how she brought pie! And Betty slamming her hands down on the car and growling out that "WHY am I here?" 

Because honestly, those two were the most entertaining portion of the episode (Alison/Ali is the blonde? and Mona is the brunette, right?) and I'm sure the others will be just as entertaining eventually but the pure cheese of talking into a mirror and there being a whole CIA of people behind it will bring me back for more and the written in red message behind the wallpaper. It's like a V.C. Andrews novel with more tech and less incest (I hope). I just feel a little adrift in a sea of previous history and I tried to read up on the first season but damn, that was confusing. 

[marinaalexis]

Ratings are coming in, and they're not looking good: 0.457. Yikes.

I'm hoping that additional viewings from the website and Hulu will factor in as well, or that the network realizes that the days of most people sitting in front of their TV and watching live on cable are behind us. 

[Jack Shaftoe]

I promised that I wasn't going to watch this but I couldn't resist. Damn you, Marlene King, and your "So Bad It's Good" work!

So, that elite university gives students a summer assignment to read Agatha Christie? I mean, I love mysteries myself but "tackles many complex themes" isn't how I would describe And Then There Were None. And they kind of spoiled the book too. 🙂

I wonder if this really was Nolan in the end or some secret twin in a good old PLL fashion. In any event, he was a boring cliche and I don't want to see much of him but I probably will if the show survives and I keep watching it against my better judgement.

They were really trying too hard with all the "surprising" and oh, so edgy sex scenes (I could literally hear Marlene yelling "You wanted a gay male character and I am delivering, leave me alone!"). Alison showing up suddenly in front of Mona's car was such a lame jump scare that it made me laugh out loud.

This show doesn't really have the off-the charts eye-candy quotient of PLL or someone to grab your attention with their crazy intensity like Spencer did.

Gotta wonder if Marlene is taking a beating from Emison shippers on Twitter.

7 hours ago, SadieT said:

Also Ali getting all upset because Nolan knew who she was....like the story of a pretty white teenage girl in suburbia going missing, then being found dead, then showing up alive, then being arrested for murder, then being freed from jail cause the murder never happened wouldn’t be national news. Anyone with a phone or computer would probably recognize Alison’s name.  

Yes, that was really dumb, especially considering Alison's rather memorable surname. It's not like she is called Jane Smith or something.

Quote

Nice to see that at least Nolan had sex indiscriminately. Damn.

It could have been his secret gay twin, I wouldn't put it past Marlene.

3 hours ago, Callaphera said:

So as someone who was too lazy to switch the channel when the cat sat on my remote and put on this episode, do I need to watch the original series to understand this one? 

Well, be warned that it's never going to make sense, so I think you will be fine if only read some summaries or the plot of the original series. Let's just say that both Mona and Alison were mean girls who bullied each other at different times, then reformed (if we are feeling generous towards), then bullied some more, and were involved in a million byzantine plots all along, including about a dozen murders, and it really doesn't make much sense in context either. The first two seasons are pretty damned good, though, despite the zillion plot holes. If you liked this show's brand of craziness you will probably like the original too.

Edited March 22, 2019 by Jack Shaftoe

[marinaalexis]

20 minutes ago, Jack Shaftoe said:

Gotta wonder if Marlene is taking a beating from Emison shippers on Twitter.

Right now, it seems to be a mix of people screaming at her and the world in general for daring to break them up, and others insisting that they're still in love and it's just a "rough patch" (because moving across the country from the spouse that you're feuding with clearly indicates that everything's fine, lol).

The official PLL account posted some stupid text conversation thing between Emily and Ali today, which ended with Alison telling Emily she loves her and Emily not reciprocating. Needless, to say it did not help the frenzy.

[Jack Shaftoe]

I am sure Marlene will string them along as long as she possibly can, any word on whether Emily will appear at all in this show?

[Callaphera]

27 minutes ago, Jack Shaftoe said:

Well, be warned that it's never going to make sense, so I think you will be fine if only read some summaries or the plot of the original series. Let's just say that both Mona and Alison were mean girls who bullied each other at different times, then reformed (if we are feeling generous towards), then bullied some more, and were involved in a million byzantine plots all along, including about a dozen murders, and it really doesn't make much sense in context either. The first two seasons are pretty damned good, though, despite the zillion plot holes. If you liked this show's brand of craziness you will probably like the original too.

Not gonna lie, this isn't persuading me away from getting my hands on the original and locking myself away for a week or two to binge-watch it until I forget my own name. I appreciate anything that embraces its insanity and cheese. Because seriously, that knife/pie bit was everything. 

5 minutes ago, marinaalexis said:

Right now, it seems to be a mix of people screaming at her and the world in general for daring to break them up, and others insisting that they're still in love and it's just a "rough patch" (because moving across the country from the spouse that you're feuding with clearly indicates that everything's fine, lol).

The official PLL account posted some stupid text conversation thing between Emily and Ali today, which ended with Alison telling Emily she loves her and Emily not reciprocating. Needless, to say it did not help the frenzy.

Oh, this show comes with a built in batshit insane fan-base? Sign me the hell up!

[SadieT]

12 minutes ago, Jack Shaftoe said:

I am sure Marlene will string them along as long as she possibly can, any word on whether Emily will appear at all in this show?

I'm assuming that depends on what direction Shay's career veers off into. But I wouldn't put it past Marlene to string along Emison fans for the entire length of the series and then slap them back together at the last minute off-screen with Alison returning home to Emily and the twins in the series finale. 

[marinaalexis]

1 minute ago, SadieT said:

I'm assuming that depends on what direction Shay's career veers off into. But I wouldn't put it past Marlene to string along Emison fans for the entire length of the series and then slap them back together at the last minute off-screen with Alison returning home to Emily and the twins in the series finale. 

I think what it'll come down to is how long the show lasts. If it's cancelled after one or even two seasons, I definitely think Marlene will end it with a call from Emily (or even an appearance) that Ali's absence made her realize how much she really does trust her, and she'll go running back to Rosewood. But I can't see the writers holding out on giving Ali, arguably the central character of the show, any sort of love interest or romantic storyline if this goes on for three, four seasons or more. As much as I would love to see a main character not wrapped up in stupid shipping nonsense, that's just not realistic for a teen/young adult drama. 

I think Marlene made the right choice, putting Emison in a kind of limbo, not broken up but not exactly happy together either. The ball is in Emily's court too, as she's the one who has to decide if she can get past her distrust or not, so we won't have to deal with Ali struggling to make some big decision about her relationship all season. 

[UNOSEZ]

Lotta white dudes in Oregon.. Apparently its Rosewood all over again... 

[SadieT]

2 hours ago, marinaalexis said:

I think what it'll come down to is how long the show lasts. If it's cancelled after one or even two seasons, I definitely think Marlene will end it with a call from Emily (or even an appearance) that Ali's absence made her realize how much she really does trust her, and she'll go running back to Rosewood. But I can't see the writers holding out on giving Ali, arguably the central character of the show, any sort of love interest or romantic storyline if this goes on for three, four seasons or more. As much as I would love to see a main character not wrapped up in stupid shipping nonsense, that's just not realistic for a teen/young adult drama. 

I think Marlene made the right choice, putting Emison in a kind of limbo, not broken up but not exactly happy together either. The ball is in Emily's court too, as she's the one who has to decide if she can get past her distrust or not, so we won't have to deal with Ali struggling to make some big decision about her relationship all season. 

Even if the series does have a long run I wouldn't put it past Marlene to smack Emison back together at the very end, either on or off screen depending on Shay's willingness and availability. Whatever love interests Alison might have throughout the series will probably be temporary but it'll be interesting to see how the fans react to these potential love interests. 

Emison being on a break makes sense from a practical standpoint, but Marlene botched the handling of the situation when she came out of the gate making promises and reassurances she had to know she couldn't honor. Now since Alison is our protagonist and Emily exists entirely off-screen in Rosewood, I hope they use the break to explore Alison's character and growth. Emily not being able to get past who Alison was at 15 is kind of lame honestly and it would have been nice if she came to that realization before she pressured Alison into having those babies, so I'd like to see Alison exploring all that she's been through now that she's on her own, including the trauma of the pregnancy. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I'm waiting to see who will be revealed as the new creepy milk drinker.

[Jack Shaftoe]

8 hours ago, Callaphera said:

Not gonna lie, this isn't persuading me away from getting my hands on the original and locking myself away for a week or two to binge-watch it until I forget my own name. I appreciate anything that embraces its insanity and cheese.

PLL should be right up your alley then.  It usually embraces its absurdity in a hilarious way and is at its worst when it actually tries to seriously offer rational explanations for its absurd plot developments (that is to say, most of them). The explanation for why one of the main villains was seemingly everywhere and knew everything was literally "adrenalized hyperreality".

8 hours ago, marinaalexis said:

But I can't see the writers holding out on giving Ali, arguably the central character of the show, any sort of love interest or romantic storyline if this goes on for three, four seasons or more.

I am sure they will give her love interests. I mean, they did it in the original series with Rowlins even though practically nobody wanted that relationship.

I have to wonder how they are going to combine the protagonists who are college students (should we call them Liars or Perfectionists or what?) with Alison, Mona and the other older characters (not that those two are really that much older unless Marlene decides the show is set in 2025 or something). It would be pretty silly if they became confidants of the youngsters and still made the dumb mistakes they constantly made back in Rosewood but I am pretty sure that something like that will happen. In PLL we saw the Liars parents very early on, I wonder when we are going to see those of the new cast.

Edited March 22, 2019 by Jack Shaftoe

[Jennabelle88]

So are our favorite Liars gonna make appearances on this show? I'd love to see them! Honestly, they picked my least favorite characters to do a spinoff. Granted, I don't hate them, but they wouldn't have been my runners-up. However, I am interested to see where this show goes. Lord knows I wasted 7 years of my life on this roller coaster, yet here I am again! Hopefully the logic behind this one will make more sense than PLL, but then again, the writer hasn't changed. We'll see, I guess!

[NeenerNeener]

On 3/22/2019 at 12:22 PM, Jennabelle88 said:

Hopefully the logic behind this one will make more sense than PLL, but then again, the writer hasn't changed. We'll see, I guess!

Marlene has never been able to transcend the source material before, and I doubt she'll do it now.

I hope she gave Sara Shepherd a tropical island for the rights to The Perfectionists. With PLL the first few seasons followed the books somewhat, before veering off towards outright insanity around season 3 or 4. With Perfectionists she just took the names of two characters from the books, Nolan Hotchkiss and Ava Jalal, and scrapped everything else (except for Nolan's murder) right off the bat. 

This Ava seems to be modeled after Olivia Jade, which cracks me up, especially since this had to have been filmed before the "Aunt Becky" scandal became common knowledge. And the "security company watching everything" angle interests me. I wonder if that was the original show pitch and they had to graft PLL/Perfectionists onto it to sell it to Freeform. 

Edited March 23, 2019 by NeenerNeener

[ottoDbusdriver]

On 3/21/2019 at 10:46 PM, UNOSEZ said:

Lotta white dudes in Oregon.. Apparently its Rosewood all over again... 

Considering it's Oregon, where's all the hipsters ?

On 3/21/2019 at 3:11 PM, Samwise979 said:

I forgot about that line from Mona about the reasons for being in Paris escaped her. Hilarious! 

That was definitely smirk-worthy.

Beacon Guard gives off a very 'Cabin in the Woods' vibe to BHU -- and the fact that Mona is "in on it" is even more confusing.   From that video wall it looks like they have cameras EVERYWHERE -- in the upper right corner you can see a couple making out under a blanket on a bed.  Wouldn't surprise me if Hotchkiss Technologies is behind Beacon Guard -- for some nefarious purpose that is yet to be revealed.  Does that mean that Mona was monitoring students before she moved to Admissions and Recruitment ? 

Of course, Taylor Hotchkiss faked her death.  Yawn.  Now where have we seen that before ?   Next thing your know Taylor will be seen wearing a red coat.
Per her obit, field hockey captain, calculus tutor, student body chairperson, Oregon beach cleaner and volunteer at the renowned Hotchkiss Industries Safe and Security Dept.  That last one seems awfully suspicious.   The general consensus is that Taylor is definitely dead since they know it was a suicide (not that she just disappeared).  Was there no body at the funeral ?  Or was that a clone or something else ?  Because I'm thinking the dead Nolan impaled on the fence is also a clone.

Considering that Ali has been at BHU all of 1 or 2 days, she is getting WAY too involved in her student's lives already.

It was all about the blackmail with Nolan, which is kind of what used to be Ali's MO used to be.

Contrary to Caitlin's plan, if one of your mom's becomes President they don't usually fill their empty Senate seat with the college-age child with no political experience of the previous seat-holder .  They generally have elections for that kind of thing.

Mona should know how to cut a pie, yet she sliced right through the aluminum pie pan with that knife.

Taylor Hotchkiss was the town's only suicide -- ever ??  Only it turns out not so much. 

Per Ali's TA seating chart, there is an Emily 2 seated rows behind Caitlin.  That might get awkward when she calls on her.

The jump scares in this show were just stupid and unnecessary, especially the 2 by Alison.

Wouldn't be a PLL show without a creepy doll sighting -- there was one in Taylor's cabin.

So who on campus drives a white Mini Cooper ?  The car that followed Nolan to Taylor's cabin.

I guess all the foreground characters (Nolan, Caitlin, Ava, Dylan, etc.) are all in the 2nd year of the same program at BHU ? 
Which seems unlikely, yet they are all taking the same English Literature course.

[marinaalexis]

1 hour ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

I guess all the foreground characters (Nolan, Caitlin, Ava, Dylan, etc.) are all in the 2nd year of the same program at BHU ? 
Which seems unlikely, yet they are all taking the same English Literature course.

I assume it's just a gen ed course that they all have to take to fulfill their graduate requirements, since Dylan's a music major, Ava's a fashion major I guess, and Caitlin's most likely either political science or pre-law. My university required us all to take some sort of literature course.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

S1.E2: Sex, Lies and Alibis

Quote

In the wake of Nolan’s murder, Ava, Caitlin and Dylan join forces to give themselves a credible alibi on the night in question. Alison goes toe to toe with Dana Booker, BHU’s new head of security, who is suspicious of Nolan’s “perfect” posse. And Mona starts slipping into old habits while wrestling with a guilty conscience.

Promo:

Clip #1:

Clip #2:

Original air date: 3/27/19

[Chaos Theory]

Well I was thinking through the entire pilot what inconvenient time it is to have a murder mystery set on a rich college campus.  Although maybe it will get a few more eyeballs from people who want to watch rich people die in increasingly bizarre ways.  Love you Marlene.

Still the whole thing already reeks of contrivance.  Mona and the people in the mirror,  the dead sister who looks exactly like Alison,  the rich kid with fake friends who he is blackmailing, and a security system that makes A look like an ameteur.  

In other words I am in like Flynn.

i hate myself.

Edited March 26, 2019 by Chaos Theory

[tennisgurl]

Am I really ready to commit to more PLL, after just barley escaping the madness of the original? 

...probably.

[ottoDbusdriver]

7 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Am I really ready to commit to more PLL, after just barley escaping the madness of the original? 

...probably.

Can't wheat until the next episode.   

Sorry, I thought we were making cereal grain puns.  :)

[Jack Shaftoe]

On 3/25/2019 at 10:05 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

In the wake of Nolan’s murder, Ava, Caitlin and Dylan join forces to give themselves a credible alibi on the night in question.

And here I was wondering if the new protagonists would be just as dumb as the Liars. Alibi? I guess they assumed they were the main suspects for no reason and just had to lie, again for no reason. Talk about deja vu. 🙂

[Lady Calypso]

On 3/22/2019 at 12:22 PM, Jennabelle88 said:

So are our favorite Liars gonna make appearances on this show? I'd love to see them! Honestly, they picked my least favorite characters to do a spinoff. Granted, I don't hate them, but they wouldn't have been my runners-up. However, I am interested to see where this show goes. Lord knows I wasted 7 years of my life on this roller coaster, yet here I am again! Hopefully the logic behind this one will make more sense than PLL, but then again, the writer hasn't changed. We'll see, I guess!

I doubt any of them will actually make an appearance. I think all the main Liars have moved on from PLL. Troian is definitely not coming back, Lucy has been busy with other projects, Ashley doesn't seem to want to come back to the PLL universe, and Shay's the only one that could come back, but the actress may not want to. Which is why I think they'll continue stringing along Emison as a couple, exactly like they did in the original, until closer to the end of the series, where they'll  throw them together with no build up or logical sense to it. Emily has never really loved Alison and had her more as a visionary girlfriend, the person she wanted Alison to be for her. They never spent the time together in the original that classified them as true love except the last season, when they randomly threw in some absurb plot for them to be pushed together as a couple. 

I always have liked Mona....Alison, on the other hand, not so much. If you didn't know the history of Alison and how Marlene King treated her on the original, I could see why people might like her. I just can't get past how Marlene wrote off all of Alison's terrible things without much more than an "I was a kid and now I'm a grown-up." But hell, the Mona/Alison dynamic works for now. 

I don't really know how I feel about the new college students right now. They're alright but I don't know how compelling rich kids keeping secrets is going to be for me.  The only new character I might marginally like is Caitlin, but even then, I don't even know how much I like her.

I surprisingly was entertained by Nolan. I'd be down for him still being alive somehow. He reminds me of a toned down version of pre-PLL Alison, but also what Alison could have been like if the characters had been older. 

I'll give this another chance tonight.

[Chaos Theory]

Episode 2

And these kids didn't think Alison could teach them anything.  Bring it on bitch.

This is PLL so it was only a matter time before texts were being sent by dead people,  and a shady cop with ulterior motives started to investigate.  God I love this show.

Personally I think Mad World is the best possible song for this show in general.  

Edited March 28, 2019 by Chaos Theory

[ottoDbusdriver]

Wow !! A full one minute and 30 seconds of previouslies.

You just know that Beacon Guard has a video of Nolan's fall onto the fence (contrary to what Mona told Alison) -- plus someone had to put that ridiculously bright light of convenience on the roof so Nolan couldn't see who he was talking to.

Alison: "I literally just got that text. From the dead guy.  Whose body we just saw while he was dead."

Nothing worse than a sad Youtube influencer.  Ava turns to the bottle while wearing Nolan's shirt, and smelling his scent that's still lingering on it.
And for good measure, she sits all sad and tragic in the windowsill of solace.  She's not looking very fashionable there.

You just know that someone got a picture of Caitlin and Jeremy parked by the river.

This episode of the Perfectionists brought to you by Toyota -- It's a Corolla !!!
And the Corolla syncs to your smartphone -- that's just awesome. No company has ever done that before. </sarcasm>

That church is huge -- and surprisingly sparsely filled considering it was the son of the family that basically owns/runs the town.

Anonymous Campus Chess Club -- sure, whatever.  I bet she's been playing against Nolan. And now against Nolan's ghost.  
Then again, it is Mona so she's probably playing against herself.

BHU -- modern yet classic university campus, complete with creepy abandoned greenhouse.

I swear if these notes and (eventually) texts start being signed by someone named 'B', I'm out.  :)

Openly talking about murders at the vigil for a murder victim -- someone in the crowd had to have heard them.
And now we get ghostly voices that only the 3 main characters can hear in a crowded.  Oh, please !!  Then again, it's probably some new cutting edge Beacon Guard tech is trying out.

Who goes around picking up other people's stuff while they just go up to get coffee ?  That's not right.

So, was Boozy McYouTube ... err, I mean Ava a hard drinker BEFORE Nolan's death ?

Looks like jumpscares are going to be a part of every episode -- what with Mrs. Hotchkiss sitting in the dark in Alison's room.  Which is all kinds of creepy.

Claire: "You're a survivor, and that's what you need to teach them."
In English Lit class ??  Really ?

We do get some OG PLL back story -- Hannah and Caleb are still together and they have a baby, and Toby and Spencer eloped.

Creepy doll sighting -- sitting on top of Mona's iMac.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

1.2 quotes

Dylan: Cream? 
Caitlin: Oh, no. Just sugar. Few packs of the real stuff and one pink.
Dylan: Why not just four sugars?
Caitlin: Three sugars is still considered a couple. You know, like, I'll take a couple of sugars. But then when you ask for four, they give you the look like you're gonna steal their sugar and put it in your bag.

Alison: That text was from you, right? You're Nolan? Mona? Have you been holed up in here since Nolan's death?
Mona: I'm the reason he's dead.
Alison: Uh, did you... Were you on the roof that night? Did you push him?
Mona: Jesus, Alison! What kind of person do you think I am?
Alison: Well...

Alison: You know how this looks, right?
Mona: Like you killed him.

Alison: So I don't have an alibi but I don't NOT have an alibi?

Alison: I didn't get to speak to you at the funeral. I'm so sorry, Mrs. Hotchkiss.
Claire: I'm getting drunk in your living room, Alison. You can call me Claire.

Alison: Bring it on, bitch.

Edited March 29, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I'm glad that at least one of the PLLs learned something useful after all their years dealing with the police/FBI/CIA/Al Qaeda. When Dana asked to see all of the students' essays and Alison said, "Do you have a warrant?" I wanted to high five her. It doesn't make up for years of leaving fingerprints all over crime scenes, but still.

Edited March 28, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo
Typo

[Jack Shaftoe]

So the police just decided to let the college security investigate a brutal murder? And here I thought Rosewood cops were incompetent. Speaking of incompetent, this Dana immediately jumps to the conclusion that homework assignments are vital clues about the murder. The idiot trio of protagonists decide to lie because it's not like Nolan was the kind of jerk who probably made literally everyone who got to know him dream of murdering him. Alison decides to give them a fake alibi because it's not like such lies have blown up in her face dozens of times in her face and the faces of her friends. Not to mention that for all she knows, one of the Idiot Trio could well be the murderer.

Alison calling Mona a frenemy made me laugh, I admit.

It only took two episodes for Mona to become a full blown caricature, with her "Beautiful Mind" episode.

Nice to see that skimpy funeral outfits are still a thing, the Liars should be so proud of establishing that fashion trend.

The actress who plays Ava has been pretty bad so far.

Of course Toby and Spencer eloped and Hanna and Caleb have a baby because Marlene's writing is on the level of bad fanfiction. At least we didn't get to see it.

Honestly, this show literally feels like a parody of PLL... then against so were the last several seasons of PLL and I stayed for the end, so maybe I will keep watching to the bitter end of this too. I can't say I like the new characters much, though. This mean girl/guy posse and fake posse stuff works better in a high school setting. If Caitlin's mother is about to run for president, you would think it would be easy for Caitlin to transfer to another college instead of lying her ass for no reason and pretending to care for Nolan even after his death.

Edited March 28, 2019 by Jack Shaftoe

[Brookside]

I'd never seen or heard of this before but it came on after a show I watched.  I realized straight away it was filmed where I live so stayed tuned.  What a travesty.  Starting with Agatha Christie as a set text at college.  Her books have no redeeming qualities except as an easy way to practice foreign language skills by reading a translation.  Next time I need a fix of my town I'll just walk outside.

[kissedbyarose]

I cannot believe I actually watched this. (I mean, I can.) I swore I was done with this hack after sitting through every season of PLL and yet... I sat through two episodes! 

This is pretty bad. The acting, the writing, the characters, the mystery, the cover up and yet... I might watch next week. Can someone explain this to me?!

[Callaphera]

It's so bad that it's good so I'm still here. I've officially starting binge-watching the original show and I'm on getting towards the end of S2 so I don't know when Mona turned from an airheaded sticky-fingered fashionista into a mathematical genius with an addiction to pi(e) or when Alison came back from the dead but holy shit, this is everything I want in a night-time soap. 

I don't even know the history of this show very well but even I got a little thrill when Alison was all, "Bring it on, bitch" at the end and the kids were looking like they were about to start Wayne-and-Garthing it at her feet all, "We're not worthy! We're not worthy!"

I'm gonna be pissed next week if I go to the trouble of making myself a lemon chiffon pie to munch on while I watch the show and there's no pie reference. I mean, two in a row? I'm expecting a pie in every episode now. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

5 hours ago, kissedbyarose said:

I cannot believe I actually watched this. (I mean, I can.) I swore I was done with this hack after sitting through every season of PLL and yet... I sat through two episodes! 

This is pretty bad. The acting, the writing, the characters, the mystery, the cover up and yet... I might watch next week. Can someone explain this to me?!

I still remember how fucking RIDICULOUS the last few seasons of PLL were and how Marlene King tried to justify the terrible choices she'd made with some of the twists, so you'd think that I would run in the opposite direction when this new show was announced. I read The Perfectionists and the books were okay, but knowing that they basically chucked everything out the window except for a few characters' names, I should have known better than to even start watching this show. I'm just here for the Alison and Mona shenanigans. I had high hopes that Nolan would end up being a creepy milk drinker (RIP Ian), but since he's already dead I guess I will just have to hope for some creepy milk drinking flashbacks.

As bad as a lot of the plots were in the later seasons of PLL, I loved the unabashed camp of the early seasons so I guess that's what I was hoping for with The Perfectionists. I'm definitely not as committed to this show as I was to PLL though so if it got canceled tomorrow, I wouldn't wonder what happened with any of the plotlines or characters. I know we can't expect the awesomeness of another A (ACT NORMAL, BITCH!) but I hope that this show is able to embrace some of that off the wall PLL craziness and just go balls to the walls.

Sadly it feels like so far all they're doing is recycling some of the good stuff from PLL and watering it down. Dead guy with secrets who was a dick to his supposed friends? Check. Texts from said dead guy with secrets after he's dead? Check? Constant surveillance? Check. Anonymous notes? Check. Suspicious FBI/police/security person investigating the dead guy's alleged friends? Check.

Edited March 29, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[Chaos Theory]

I don’t think thisshow is bad.  It’s just not a show that you take out and think about for days at a time.  That is fine.  I don’t have to think about every show I watch.  Not every show I watch needs to be a deep look into the human soul.  Sometimes I like a good crazy adventure.  This applies.

16 hours ago, Callaphera said:

It's so bad that it's good so I'm still here. I've officially starting binge-watching the original show and I'm on getting towards the end of S2 so I don't know when Mona turned from an airheaded sticky-fingered fashionista into a mathematical genius with an addiction to pi(e) or when Alison came back from the dead but holy shit, this is everything I want in a night-time soap. 

I don't even know the history of this show very well but even I got a little thrill when Alison was all, "Bring it on, bitch" at the end and the kids were looking like they were about to start Wayne-and-Garthing it at her feet all, "We're not worthy! We're not worthy!"

I'm gonna be pissed next week if I go to the trouble of making myself a lemon chiffon pie to munch on while I watch the show and there's no pie reference. I mean, two in a row? I'm expecting a pie in every episode now. 

PLL is incredibly inconsistent but it is a fun show for at least a few seasons before Marlene King starts writing into her fandoms too much.    It is possible pies will run through the show but it is also possible they will never show up again.

What annoys me is that Marlene King was so adamant about the Emily/Alison pairing but now is writing Emily as someone who can’t forgive Alison’s past but won’t just break them up to leave room for Alison to find other love interests.  My guess is the Emily/Alison shipping is still strong which makes zero sense anymore.

Edited March 29, 2019 by Chaos Theory

[Jack Shaftoe]

8 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Sadly it feels like so far all they're doing is recycling some of the good stuff from PLL and watering it down. Dead guy with secrets who was a dick to his supposed friends? Check. Texts from said dead guy with secrets after he's dead? Check? Constant surveillance? Check. Anonymous notes? Check. Suspicious FBI/police/security person investigating the dead guy's alleged friends? Check.

Yes, it feels more of a parody of PLL than anything else. Then again, so did seasons 3B-7B of PLL itself, so Marlene is continuing from where she left off.

In other news, the ratings have dropped by 50%. I guess the viewers didn't like the pilot very much.

Edited to add: For all of you here dying for an update on Aria and Ezra - Marlene came up with this truly terrible exchange of text messages between Alison and Aria. Of course, Aria's book is wildly successful and of course she has a baby now.

Edited March 29, 2019 by Jack Shaftoe

[marinaalexis]

3 hours ago, Jack Shaftoe said:

Edited to add: For all of you here dying for an update on Aria and Ezra - Marlene came up with this truly terrible exchange of text messages between Alison and Aria. Of course, Aria's book is wildly successful and of course she has a baby now.

Watching that was so embarrassing that I actually feel flushed now. It reads like something a twelve year old would write in their PLL FanFiction. I was hoping that the conversation between Emily and Ali that they posted last week (in which Emily gloriously didn't return Ali's "I love you") was a one time thing, but nope, looks like they're going to be churning out this ridiculousness after every episode.