TV REVIEW: Pretty Little Liars “Surfing the Aftershocks” Hefty Hanna, Ezra’s Return & More

By Nicole Bozzani

After the discovery of Mrs. DiLaurentis’ body in the Hastings backyard on last night’s episode of Pretty Little Liars, Ali is despondent until her funeral. She appears, much to her father’s displeasure, wearing the dress Mrs. DiLaurentis wore to what was believed to be Ali’s funeral. The Liars return to school at Rosewood High where they have a run in with Mona. Mona reveals Ezra is back in Rosewood and the girls see no choice but for Aria to tell him about Shauna. Emily meets the new girl in school, Sydney, who just so happens to be on the swim team and needs Emily’s help. Meanwhile, Hanna has a series of flashbacks to her life as Hefty Hanna before being saved by Mona, and Spencer becomes ever more suspicious of her own family.

Ali has trapped the rest of the Liars into the one lie they just might not be able to talk their way out of. Now with Mrs. Di being laid to rest, it’s time to start covering their bases. Two people know the secret of New York: Mona and Ezra. Manipulative Mona will do anything to take down the Liars especially Ali, so why is she continuing her fake parade? Why not just go for the jugular at this point? Right, because it didn’t work the first time. Not only did Mona remind them she has enough intel to bring them all down, but she informs them Ezra has made his grand return to town. Why Mona was in charge of the Get Well Soon committee is a mystery. Maybe to make the Liars, particularly Aria, squirm. Maybe with the hopes she can bring Ezra to her side? Make him a weak link? Mona is still one hard character to get behind. Not only does she make it her life’s mission to bring down the girls (although one is her main target), but, as viewers learned through a series of flashbacks, she turned Hanna into a mini Ali. Not just a mini Ali, but the new Ali and strictly to serve the purpose of creating a new high school hierarchy featuring her as one of the leaders.

(ABC FAMILY/Eric McCandless)
JANEL PARRISH, LUCY HALE, ASHLEY BENSON

“Surfing the Aftershocks” contained multiple flashbacks involving Hanna and Mona, and in one Hanna reveals she never quite knew who she was. It’s still quite sad seeing the flashbacks to a very unhappy Hefty Hanna. At times it felt as though the flashbacks were never ending and on a road to nowhere. Until the final scene where Hanna finally takes control of herself and decides who she wants to be. Even if that means simply changing up her hair color. Not to be outdone, Mona is there with a suspicious figure. Who could it possibly be?

Ah, Ezra. Ezra makes his less than grand return to Rosewood this week feeling like a carved turkey who has been sewn back together. Aria decides to pay him a visit to let him in on the Ali lie which he without argument decides to protect. And later Aria decides to confess to him she killed Shauna. It’s rather confusing why Aria decided to reveal this information to him. It could be a big mistake. It could come back to bite her. Ezra is safe for the time being, but what does that hold for his future with Aria? He certainly wants to help them no questions asked, but does he have some other motive?

A storyline which feels like it can go without being mentioned was the triangle of Emily, Sydney, and Paige. With an episode so heavily focused on Hanna’s ‘Ali Upgrade’, Ezra’s return, and the mysterious behavior of Mr. Hastings, the girls seemed to get lost in the shuffle. It’s hard to recall the importance of these events other than the breakup of Paige and Emily. Now Paige can put even more effort into Mona’s merry band of misfits. She certainly has a new grudge to hold. As for Sydney, the new girl on the swim team, is she seeking Emily’s help for good or to get closer to her for another reason. It’s becoming harder and harder not to believe new people entering the lives of the infamous Rosewood Five have ulterior motives!

(ABC FAMILY/Eric McCandless)
TROIAN BELLISARIO, ASHLEY BENSON, SHAY MITCHELL, LUCY HALE

The biggest questions of the night surrounded Mr. Hastings and Jason DiLaurentis. Let’s begin with Jason. Everyone with half a brain seems to suspect Jason killed his mother. That is until Hanna and Emily pay a visit to the creepy apartment from last weeks episode only to uncover his real alibi. Jason then turns his sights on Spencer and gives her some pretty sound advice: don’t trust their father. Jason is right, Mr. Hastings is being quite shady. First hauntingly offering to give Ali a ride home when he discovers her wandering the streets at night. Then again when Spencer confronts him about the email Mrs. Di was attempting to send before she went missing. Spencer has some pretty strong theories about who did it when suddenly she is shut down by Melissa. Melissa is very protective of her father and vice versa. In fact they are hell bent on protecting each other which is fairly unsettling to both Spencer and the audience as a whole. What could Mr. Hastings and Melissa be hiding? By far the most frustrating moment of the entire episode occurs when Mr. Hastings tells Spencer she’s better off not knowing because she can’t “tell a lie about something she knows nothing about.” Please, someone just tell us viewers what it is!

The latest turn of events in Rosewood continue to create more questions with no answers in sight, but that’s what makes Pretty Little Liars worth returning to week after week. Jason is no longer a suspect (at least to the Liars) in the death of Mrs. DiLaurentis. Ezra is willing to, figuratively, bend over backwards to protect the girls, especially Aria, no matter the cost. He’s already been shot. Suppose he’s got nothing left to lose? Mona was seen with a mysterious figure at the hair salon. Who could that possibly be, and what is their plan? There has to be a plan there somewhere. What on Earth is Mr. Hasting and Melissa hiding? Is it something dark enough to lead Spencer on yet another wild goose chase for answers? Better fire up the Mystery Machine because she is certainly not going to let that one go. Most importantly, is A planning their big return? Surely not before the girls are Thrown from the Ride…?