The winter premiere of Pretty Little Liars is just a few hours away, so to help refresh your memory from all of those murder-free weeks, we’ve compiled an A-mazing catch-up guide. We also used our powers of penmanship to create a list of the top five things you need to know about tonight’s episode, “She’s Better Now.” Plus, we’ve got all the details on all the upcoming Rosewood scandals from executive producer Oliver Goldstick. Read on for all the pretty little scoop below!
Where we left off: All aboard the murder train! After spilling (what seems to be) everything he knows to Spencer, Garrett was killed. Actually if we want to be more accurate, Garret was murdered — by “A.” Cause of death? No freaking clue, but he did look extremely creepy lying in that wooden crate next to Aria. While Aria was locked in the crate of death she stabbed one of her stalkers with a rusty screwdriver. Ouch! In a flashback we learned Garrett was thisclose to bludgeoning Ali in the head with a field hockey stick on the night of her murder. He didn’t actually go through with it… but Jenna thinks he did. Also, on the night of her death, Ali was looking mighty cozy with Aria’s dad. “I’m not the one that makes people do these things. If you don’t pay for your mistakes, how can you become a better person?” she cooed. At the end of the episode, Toby and Noel’s “who’s a bigger badass?” fight knocked over a large cooler. It seems that the drinks for the party were sitting in the same container that a body bag from “Charon & Sons Funeral Directory” was chilling in. Whether or not it’s Ali’s body is still to be determined but we do know one thing for sure: That’s so freaking gross!
Biggest Jaw-Dropper of The Fall: Without a doubt, finding out that Toby is a member of the A Team! It’s still hard to believe that our handsome, sweet, and incredibly buff Toby is working with the team of psychopaths who are terrorizing our four favorite females. True he’s had a sketchy past, but as Spencer fell in love with him, so did we. Say it ain’t so Toby!
Biggest Let-Down of The Fall: Ugh, that would definitely be Emily’s chemistry with Paige. All of the liars have passionate and intriguing relationships with partners who are smart, charming, and passionate. However watching Emily ooh and aah over Paige is pretty much a total yawn. She had such electricity with Maya and a fun flirtation with Samara, but Paige is just vanilla. Yes, she proved her loyalties in the Halloween episode and we know she’s there to protect the liars, but Emily still needs time to fully get over Maya’s death.
Most Improved Character: Mona. From geeky school nerd, to queen bee, to split personality psycho and empty-eyed mental patient, Mona has certainly had a unique journey. Her smile can both terrify and thrill you and her meticulous plans leading the A Team are always so devilish and detailed. Whether you love her or you hate her, Mona has definitely proved herself to be an extremely intriguing character to watch.
Least Improved Character: Garret. Not to mock the dead or anything, but what was the point of Garret again? We honeslty can’t remember. He was in jail for the majority of this season, then he was released, and then he died. He didn’t kill Ali, so what was his purpose?
What We Ultimately Want to See: Everything! We want more flashbacks from Ali’s past so we can understand just how fully twisted this teenager was. We also want the liars to figure out exactly who makes up the A Team, and what all of their motives are for harassing them. We want to know everything about the night of Ali’s death, and if any of the liars are involved in the A Team as well.
What Would Make us Turn our Backs: If ABC Family decided to take a page out of the How I Met Your Mother handbook and drag out the reveals of the A Team. True it’s a phenomenally fun show, but if we’re still wondering who is the A that is stalking the girls while they’re seniors in college, we’re going start sending our own threatening text messages.
5 Reasons You Should Keep Watching: The winter premiere, “She’s Better Now” is jam-packed with numerous reasons as to why you need to keep watching this suspenseful drama, but we’ll go ahead and limit it down to five.
1. She’s ba-ack! Little miss crazy — aka Mona — is back in the halls of Rosewood High and she’s on a mission to repair her image. And we hate to admit it, but damn she’s really good at it! Maybe once Mona is done trying to kill Hanna, Emily, Spencer and Aria, she could have a career as a personal publicist.
2. Get ready to Toby embrace his dark side as the member of the A Team. EP Oliver Goldstick says fans need to recall the menacing Toby that we first met way back when in the very first episodes. “I want the audience to remember that when he returned this was somebody who had an ax to grind, and someone who the girls lived in a great deal of fear of, because he took the rap for something they were part of. We have to remember the history of this character that we have sort of forgotten, because there have just been so many episodes and he has become a different person to us — this gentle soul that we’ve all fallen in love with.” You hear that, guys? Our beloved Toby may have just been an illusion!
3. By the end of tonight’s episode, you will know exactly who Aria stabbed with that rusty screwdriver on the mystery train, and add a new potential member to the A Team. Hint: It’s not Jenna. She’s temporarily MIA for now.
4. Goldstick reveals the beginning of this season is mainly about three things: “On the board for season 3B the headlines were Mona’s back, Toby’s in black and Byron may be wack. So that was what we had to start with.” That’s right pretty little fans! In tonight’s episode we’ll see a lot of scenes (and flashbacks!) with Aria’s dear old dad. Get excited because you’ll find out exactly why Byron was with Ali the night of her death.
5. Remember Meredith? The grad school student that Aria’s dad had an affair with? Well she’s now walking the halls of Rosewood High and let’s just say the liars are less than pleased to have a home-wrecker for a teacher. Better watch your back ladies, because this substitute is definitely a spitfire.
Don’t miss Pretty Little Liars tonight at 8pm on ABC Family.
What are you hoping to see from Pretty Little Liars this season? Do you think Toby is all bad? Who do you think is on the A Team? Shout your theories in the comments below!
Follow Leanne on Twitter @LeanneAguilera
[Photo Credit: ABC Family]
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