There are spoilers in this review. Duh.
It’s back! The show that has me screaming at the end of every episode going WHY DO I DO THIS TO MYSELF and waiting an entire week to see the next one. You’re killing me, HTGAWM. You’re killing me. One thing I especially love about this show is that emotionally it keeps these characters building with their experiences. They are having mental breakdowns left and right and now we know that the kids were all failing too (obviously!). These characters are growing and changing, not always in good ways, but they don’t forget the past. Annalise has decided: “We’re Good People Now.” The title of the episode. But we all know what a lie that is. Yet I love them all, what can I say? It is impossible to summarize this show, so I’ll just do the thing that crosses over here. Frank was revealed to have killed Lila, he ratted out Annalise that led to her baby dying years ago, and Annalise was like SEE YA. So he disappeared. Wes approached the man Annalise said was his father, a rich businessman, and he was killed instantly in front of the boy. Wow. Now if only this made Wes more interesting, and not less. Seriously, he’s the protagonist-ish, and the only one I’m indifferent toward.
So this starts out with that moment. It also runs all around time, which took me a little while to catch on to. Wes is being questioned by the police. He admits to Annalise that Frank brought him there, and they are pretty certain Frank is the one who murdered the man. It’s POSSIBLE. It’s a mix between knowing if he did it FOR Annalise (which she thinks might be possible) or some other reason. But it could be he didn’t do it at all. Either way, he shaved off his hair and beard and disappeared, but Annalise has been searching for him. We learn this later in the episode when her mysterious burner phone has what looks like a bounty hunter on the other side, and then Frank apparently kills him too. He asks Annalise what she wants him to do before that, and I’m wondering if she was contemplating killing him? Maybe, but I don’t think she would. Her emotions toward Frank are always going to be complicated, like it is for all her “kids.” Yes he was Sam’s choice and Sam’s little puppy, and Bonnie is her darling in comparison, but he still was part of the team. And she could always count on him to clean up things. What are they going to do without Frank to constantly clean up their messes? I guess we’ll find out. This could lead to Frank circling around as an enemy, but he also still cares about them, I believe that. I think he wanted Annalise’s forgiveness. IT IS COMPLICATED. This show.
Over the summer, the kids all basically lost it. Or they tried to heal by doing things, and failing at it. Laurel went to Mexico and dealt with Frank’s loss, Wes put distance between them and started dating someone named Maggie. Apparently they’re still trying to sell us on that romance, but it feels wooden, because Wes is boring. Michaela gets a DUI because she’s falling apart, and Annalise helps her out. Asher is poor and asks Annalise for money, but has to live in the dorms again and get a job. Connor begs her not to hire Oliver, but she ends up hiring him and letting Connor know that Oliver deleted/hid his Stanford acceptance. How did he get into Stanford when his grades are apparently in the bottom percent of the school???? Oliver and Connor break up because Connor just passively accepted it, and Oliver feels like he personally has changed and it’s not working. I’m not sure where that’s headed, it did feel a little abrupt. So Annalise lost her class, and she asked to have a pro-bono workshop instead, since they’re trying to phase her out into a research position. Annalise, just go hang out with Eve or go to another school. You don’t need that shit! You’re a super star.
They have a case about an immigrant being deported for having marijuana, but honestly, why do they have these cases of the week if they’re going to waste no real time showing them? It’s supposed to be a test subject for them to pretend to be lawyers, but in this case, they lose it. They almost win it, but then they lose it. The real meat is what’s going on with the characters, and then we flash forward a few months and see Annalise’s house on fire. And someone is dead. Someone that she sobs hysterically and cries over. If you ever doubt Viola Davis’ incredible acting (see the gif above), wow does she sell this. Like it is painful and heartwrenching and I don’t even know who died! My guess is it has to be Nate, Eve, Wes, or Bonnie. Eve might be the most obvious, since she’s coming back and Famke has her own show, but it would be super problematic to fridge a lesbian. Come on guys. I think Bonnie might be it. She was barely in this premiere and she doesn’t have Frank or Asher to interact with as much. Bonnie has basically been Annalise’s right hand woman and surrogate child for years. They love each other dearly. It would be like losing another child for her. I hope it’s Wes because obviously I find him the least interesting character, but it’s probably Bonnie for the reason just stated. And she’s my favorite, but I’d be okay with saying goodbye if it serves the greater story.
AHHHHH how am I supposed to wait. They say each week they’ll tell you who is NOT going to die, until they get to who does. For Annalise to freak out like that, though, I can’t see her currently reacting like that for just anyone. It felt like true devastating heartbreak. Of course she could be acting. This is Annalise. We’ll see. I LOVE THIS SHOW. And hate it.
Media Nerd Alert! 