Pretty Little Liars Review: Empty Shadows
Teresa Lopez
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Well, it was bound to happen some time.
Last week's Pretty Little Liars Season 4 Episode 18 was an amazing installment and - if the promos are any indication - next week's will be just as exciting... but I guess it was time to slow things down a bit.
Luckily, it wasn't your average filler episode, so viewers could at least be entertained as they waited another week for the real drama to begin.
Pretty Little Liars Season 4 Episode 19 was mostly a flashy installment with very little substance. It seemed more like an excuse to put the actors and actresses in beautiful 1940s and 50s fashions than anything else.
Spencer's pill-popping has become a serious problem. She looks jittery and exhausted, basically like a drug addict in all her non-noir scenes. And now her little habit has caused her to hallucinate an entire episode. Thanks a lot, Spencer.
The film noir daydream was clearly a way of indicating that Spencer was beginning to crack up, while giving the characters a chance to look mostly uncomfortable in a costume drama. There were some stunning images in the episode and some killer clothes, but it was odd to have the characters completely adopt the 1940s atmosphere, especially because most of the events of the episode had no real effect on the actual storyline.
There was some exciting stuff in the noir scenes, but none of it really happened. So those scenes didn't really matter at all. Kind of seems like a waste of time, right?
While most of the noir stuff seemed pretty ridiculous (15-cent coffee, Hanna working as a telephone operator), the Paige and Emily relationship really worked as a romantic piece of social commentary. It may have been unnecessary, but watching the two struggle with the stigma of their love was moving.
Spencer's little hallucination may have shown us that her mind is overworked, but it also gave her the space to work out the mysteries of the show and put the puzzle pieces together. In the end, she realized that the it was too easy to find that journal.
A is smart enough to know how to misdirect the liars and let them put themselves in trouble.
So the journal may have come back to them, but Spencer's pictures of the original show that certain words and phrases have been altered. If these seemingly innocuous changes were made, that must mean that they hold some clue to figuring out who A really is (or who all the As are), who tried to kill Ali, and where she might be hiding.
Now it's time to tell Aria. It's just too bad that now her friends now she's back with Ezra. Next week's installment looks like it will tackle the long awaited moment when Aria finds out. And it's about time.
Did you enjoy the film noir diversion this week?
