Pretty Little Liars: I'm a Good Girl, I Am
March 18, 2015 5:37 AM - Season 5, Episode 24 - Subscribe

Alison’s trial is coming to a close, and the outcome looks bleak when a surprise witness not only paints Alison in a bad light but also the Liars and Mike. Aria, Emily and Spencer race to find someone or something that can prove Ali’s innocence and put an end to this nightmare. Meanwhile, Mike becomes a target of "A" when it looks like he might be called to testify, and Ezra and Caleb have differing opinions on what he should do.

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posted by Bulgaroktonos (17 comments total)
 
There's so much to talk about in this episode, but let's get this out of the way: why in the hell is it set up so that Mike has to make a crucial decision guided by the voices of Ezra and Caleb? Obviously, the two most influential forces in a young man's life, someone he kind of know's boyfriend and the teacher that used to bang his sister. It's like all the spare characters got dumped in one plot together for no reason.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 5:40 AM on March 18, 2015


Yeah, that was super weird.

Most pressing question (besides, obviously, WHO IS A? WHO IS IT? WHO IS IT WHO IS IT WHO IS IT?) for me is whether Tanner is working for A consciously or whether she's being manipulated (or, of course, if she IS A, although that seems like too much and I'd need a REALLY good explanation of her motives for it to make any damn sense). Initially I thought she was a really good and perceptive cop but now she's clearly got it out for the Liars which makes sense if she's been manipulated into believing they are legit guilty but it seems like now maybe she's doing it on purpose.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:45 AM on March 18, 2015


Oh, also, we didn't really see Ali's note, did we? I'd like to know what that says and if she figured anything out but that sort of got dropped after the lawyer confiscated it. Do you think she solved the puzzle?
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:46 AM on March 18, 2015


Oh God also that whole archery thing -- that was bonkers! If it turns out Andrew is A that'll be too much, too, and sloppy -- they're clearly pushing him really hard as creepy and bringing up that Pathfinder Scout thing right after the ARROW SHOOTING is too much. I'm assuming/hoping he's innocent. He seems like a decent guy and Aria could use one of those.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:49 AM on March 18, 2015


I'm leaning toward consciously, but it's obviously open. She could just be a stereotypical lawman with a vendetta.

For me, I'm oddly anxious about whether that fucking bird is coming back next week. They teased it last week, so I think there's a good chance. I feel like that bird is the key to unlocking everything, but I can't really explain how.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 5:49 AM on March 18, 2015


Also, did it seem kind of weird that they ALL got arrested? I mean, I get why Hanna -- there were pictures and things of her in the storage locker, they'd decided to pin stuff on her, fine, whatever, but what do they think Spencer had to do with Mona's death? Or Emily? Or Aria, even? On what charge are they being arrested? Being friends with Alison DiLaurentis? Isn't that punishment enough?
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:50 AM on March 18, 2015


Really? That's interesting. I can't explain how either. It hadn't really occurred to me that the bird would come back in a major way (also I thought it might be dead) although it would be interesting. I kind of figured it was just there to make me go "oh shit!" in the ending teaser (which it totally did).
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:52 AM on March 18, 2015


Oh, also, it was nice to see Aria's mother again. It's been FOREVER since she's been around! Holly Marie Combs was looking lovely, too. I like her so much.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 5:52 AM on March 18, 2015


Yeah it was nice to have a parent around (other than Ms. Marin) even if it was basically a cameo. Holly Marie Combs is great, obviously.

Getting them all arrested seems fishy, I agree. Their evidence amounts to Lesli's testimony that they were acting weird about Mona's death, which is flimsier than evidence that has been completely ignored about crimes they actually committed. I think that makes it more likely Tanner is in on it, since she's obviously orchestrating things in ways that don't make sense if she's just trying to build a case. I don't think she's A; that would really strain credibility.

I also think strip trivia dude must be a red herring. All that talk about his Pathfinders (I think?) right after Ezra and Caleb are attacked with arrows? Classic red herring talk.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 5:58 AM on March 18, 2015


That's what I figured, yeah, and his being framed really creepily? Too much. That also happened at a Pathfinder camp, they said, so it's just too much.

Another argument for Tanner being in on it is her reaction to Ezra and Caleb which was SUPER sketch. I mean, seriously, here is a legit adult (albeit an annoying one who sleeps with teenagers) telling you about a serious attack with Mike obviously beaten up and in bad shape and she just blows them off? Really? That is completely inappropriate and if she were actually interested in justice I think she'd at least pay SOME attention to that. I wonder if A got to her recently? I feel like she used to seem like a good cop. Scary to the liars, obviously, because they lie all the time and a perceptive police detective is not going to be great for them, but a legitimate authority.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 6:07 AM on March 18, 2015


The way she's treating Toby is also not okay, and I'm SUPER glad he and Spencer made up. I think he's really, really good for her and I like them together. God knows he's better than Johnny who was absolutely 100% the WORST.

I also really enjoyed the conversation between Emily and Spencer where Emily kept being like "Who kissed whom? Open mouth or closed?". It was a pleasant moment of friendly levity and also a reminder that they are still high schoolers in a way I think we haven't gotten for a while. So much of their relationship now is based on secrets and lying and protecting each other and we don't get enough chances to see them actually being friends.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 6:09 AM on March 18, 2015


I seriously, SERIOUSLY don't know how I am going to handle not knowing who A is for another week. This is killing me.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 7:13 AM on March 18, 2015


Oh and Aria's bizarre TRES TRES shirt was a real return to form. It's not that comic book dress, but it's nice to see she's not letting Ali's trial keep her from dressing like an idiot.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 7:21 AM on March 18, 2015


I think it said "chic" on the bottom but was tucked in so you couldn't see it most of the time. It was amazing and profoundly Aria.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 8:04 AM on March 18, 2015


Yep!

Here's more Aria Montgomery fashion, if you can handle it. What in the Sam Hill, Aria? Why?
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 8:58 AM on March 18, 2015 [1 favorite]


Yep!

No longer available? Damn and blast.

The part where two guys in their early twenties (probably? I actually have no idea how old either is supposed to be) yell at each other about what some 16 year old who's already made his preferences very explicit should be forced to do was pretty weird. Maybe not as objectively weird as the part a few minutes later where they were throwing rocks at some mysterious and hidden archers, but weird in a more uncomfortable way, like they can't decide whether the characters are actually teenagers or miniature adults who still occasionally go to high school for some reason and are sometimes very immature.

Oh shit, speaking of that, maybe putting them all in jail for a while will give them a reason to keep everyone in high school/out of college for the foreseeable future.

Also, while I did appreciate the small amount of pushback on the idea that the Liars are entirely right to hide and suppress everything they know, mistrust if not actively foil every authority figure, and compulsively (and increasingly poorly) manipulate every person in their lives in an attempt to find some sort of bizarre vigilante justice, it would maybe have been better if it didn't come in the form of Caleb yelling at his girlfriend who is in prison.
posted by Copronymus at 10:26 AM on March 18, 2015


Yeah, that was rough. Also that whole archery thing was bonkers. Seriously? The moment where they find Mike's car and there's an ARROW shot through the windshield is amazing. It's stuck! It's just sitting there! I mean, at the very least, couldn't they show THAT to Tanner? SOMETHING clearly happened and even if it's just that Mike somehow got in a car accident that didn't damage any of his car except the windshield which has, you know, an arrow hole in it and he's got a black eye and is a bit beat up in a way that is not consistent with a car accident, you'd think the police would want to know. This is a town full of rich white people! Multiple parents on this show are lawyers! Seriously, no one is complaining? Or is this just a reflection of the fact that even rich white people are starting to realize that, in many cases, you can't trust the police?
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 10:35 AM on March 18, 2015


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