Welcome back to Pretty Little Liars, Season 5, The One Where Ali Is Back. Good news: we totally killed A last week and the show’s over! You can all leave now, nothing to see here.
Wait, nah, let’s stretch this out a little more with an entire season of MOOOOOORE LIES.
“Well, this isn’t called the Pretty Little Tell-The-Truthers,” I said to my sister, mentally patting myself on the back for my own cleverness. I think she rolled her eyes. She’s just jealous she isn’t as funny as I am.
Oh, and one more thing before we suspend our disbelief for the next 42 minutes: Lizz is off being a doctor. I’m here. You’re here. We’re all here in this hot mess together. Let’s goooooo!
Emily is having NONE of this shit.
We arrive in Rosewood at who the fuck knows o’clock. The Liars get off the bus, looking exhausted. Ali tries to bolt at the last minute, but Emily grabs her and says, “Stop! You don’t need to run anymore. A is gone.” Hahahahahaha oh we were all young once.
The Liars convince Ali that she needs to go to the police station before going to see her mom. Ali really isn’t into the idea of telling the police the truth, but she tells the Liars she’ll do it anyway.
This album cover reveals Spencer’s actually dead, that’s why she’s out of step with all the other ones; this theory is totally sound.
They strut into the police station where they find Detective Holbrook, who is more than ready to hear the truth.
And that’s where we go wrong! Ali says, “I was kidnapped and held hostage for two years.”
And just like that, we + the Liars are all sucked back into another ridiculous lie for maybe no reason!
OMFG he can totally tell how high we are right now stop looking so high why did Aria give us those cookies OMFG stop laughing Spence
It’s pretty clear while Ali is telling Holbrook her story that he knows something is off. It’s only a matter of time before the Liars are in trouble for something Ali masterminded again.
Your hair smells so good… Is that… Is it Herbal Essences or what? Garnier?
Ali’s Dad shows up and so we are saved from the botched kidnapping story. I didn’t even recognize this guy, so I looked him up to see if he was the actor who always played Kenneth DiLaurentis and yep, it’s a fact. He was also in Law and Order, season 7, just saying.
The Liars take this moment to ask why Ali is lying, but that’s a trick question at this point. Why is Ali lying? WE WILL NEVER KNOW.
Spencer and Emily go back to Spencer’s, because Emily’s mom is out of town, so she’s hanging there, it seems.
Yes, we are all STILL constipated in this house.
Mrs. Hasting’s is super pissed that Spencer lied about Ali being dead or alive, and Spencer takes it personally, saying she had nothing to do with the dead girl in Ali’s grave.
‘Have you tried prune juice?’ Really, Spencer, you didn’t think we’d have done that already?!
Mrs. Hastings thaws slightly, and confesses that Melissa is back in town, saying she brought back attitude and secrets.
No, seriously, Mom, Dr. Lizz said you just shove a clove of garlic up there and pow, it’ll be gone in like a day.
Hanna’s mom is also pretty confused by this ordeal, and Hanna stress eats a grilled cheese; she’s a girl after my own heart. Hanna dodges her mom’s questions pretty badly, then tells her that “Yes, it was a nightmare, but it’s over, and she needs it to end.” Pretty clear we’re not talking about Ali anymore.
He’s like right behind me, isn’t he?
Over at the Montgomery residence, Mike asks Aria for all the gory details, which freaks out Aria. He overhears Aria asking about Fitz in the hospital, and Aria lies terribly and gets caught up saying she saw Ezra in the hospital. You’d think with so much practice they’d be expert liars at this point, you know?
Spencer finds Emily outside talking on the phone to her mom. She’s understandably pissed that they’re all sucked back into another of Ali’s lies.
Emily tries to find reasons to defend Ali, but before Spencer can punch her in the face, they notice Jason cleaning his car veeeery thoroughly in the middle of the night. They go over to investigate, and Ali opens her window to throw her phone out to Emily and Spencer.
There’s a threatening text (SURPRISE SURPRISE) and who knows who sent it?
This represents my entire thought process while watching this episode.
Dad, ugh, GET OUT, I’m busy telling Cindy about the past two years of my life!
Ali goes through her old things in her room, which was so creepily preserved after Maya was living in there and the DiLaurentis family moved out and in and out and in again. Ali’s dad suggests she sleeps downstairs to feel safer. This is a great moment with Ali’s dad, and I like him a lot, which means he’ll most likely try to murder her in an episode or two. He wants Ali to feel safe, which is cute but so not attainable at this point, and Ali seems genuine with him. He even kept a picture of Ali as a child and we can catch this glimpse of non-liar Alison.
TBT y’all
Let’s hold onto that and let it carry us through this season.
The prop director isn’t even TRYING anymore.
Aria is in bed reading Paradise Lost, which is so overly obvious but kind of perfect here, and she falls asleep to start dreaming of Shana playing the violin. Only, when she wakes up, violin music is still playing! It’s coming from outside!
Yeah, there’s some dude down there holding up a stereo, I’m going to call the cops.
Hanna calls, telling Aria about Ali’s text. Apparently Spencer and Emily didn’t want Aria to be in the know. Why are they still trying to keep secrets from one another? It’s infuriating. The text Ali received is the reason she lied to the police. Or at least, that’s the story she’s telling the Liars.
Aliburrito.
Ali tries to catch some shut eye, and she hears a door open. Then her door opens. Then Jason stands in her doorway, watching her sleep.
NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE
Here’s another famous Jason who would like to watch you sleep:
SERIOUSLY YOU GUYS THIS IS ALL JASON MAKES ME THINK OF ANYMORE
It was at this point that I, Sarah Hansen, a goddamn grown woman, realized I cannot watch this show when I am home alone. I can’t do it. Last week’s episode literally gave me nightmares and I had to wake my girlfriend up to give me a hug. I am a fragile soul and I just cannot with this dude standing in the doorway in the middle of the night right now.
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The fact that Emily was clinging so hard to the fact that Shana was A really bothers me. Like, do the girls not realize that doesn’t make sense? Maybe they’re just doing that cause they really want things to finally be over, but you’d think they’d have learned that you can’t let your guard down when things appear to be calm–that’s when shit gets real! Anyway, I actually loved Aria in this episode because she was the only person properly distressed by what’s been going on.
And on that subject, I guess I’m confused. Are we (the audience) supposed to think Shana was A? Cause I don’t buy that. But Mona just came out and said she sent that text to Ali. So I am confused–is she evil but not A? Or did she just openly admit to being A and now the mystery isn’t the drama of the show, it’s the fact that the liars are caught in their lie again?
Anyway, Mike was looking cute this episode. If he was a lady, I would be all up on that short on the sides but longer on top hair cut. Toby, on the other hand, was bringing back the 90s in a totally gross way. I always think he’s gross though…why do he and Spencer get all the implied sex scenes?!?!
Ugh, Alison is the literal worst. She’s so needlessly dramatic and such an asshole, even now. I’m kind of dreading how she’s probably going to be directly ruining the other Liars’ lives now, rather than indirectly like she has been.
I liked you better when you were dead, lady!
I’m really loving how weird it is having Ali back in Rosewood. The episodes so far in this season are certainly showing us, this is an entirely new show now. IT kinda re-birthed itself, yet all the same story is there. :) There really isn’t a lot to talk about from these episodes, they’re more showing us the differences and adjustments, than answering any questions. =D