Ever since last August we’ve known about Rosewood’s very own Toby “Smokin’ body” Cavanaugh’s dark secret, but the Liars have yet to figure it out — at least until now.
The episode had been pretty hyped for quite a while because of the reveal of Toby’s betrayal, however, the other storyline revolving around Byron’s own dark secrets and Meredith’s rather suspicious kindness turned out to be another insane factor in this episode.
If you’re a “Spoby” shipper or just simply love looking at Toby’s abs, you’ll remember the moment in season one when Spencer and Toby were held up in a motel playing scrabble and spying on Jenna… Oh yeah, and the epic first kiss that took us all by surprise (or was it just me?). I honestly can’t see how you cannot be rooting for Spencer and Toby after that episode, but hey, who am I to judge? My point is, I’m pretty sure my heart wasn’t the only one that broke a bit when Spencer finally figured out Toby’s secret and betrayal. It’s no secret that Spencer is probably the brain of the Liars, and it was only a matter of time before she would figure it out. The timing though, could have been better. I mean, their anniversary? Come on, that’s just mean and it only made the reveal so much more heartbreaking.
Along with the rest of the world Spencer begged Toby for an explanation, to tell her (and us) that there’s more to the story and that he really isn’t the big bad wolf that is A. Of course they left us hanging with a lot of questions, but I, for one, am pretty confident that Spencer won’t let him off that easy. I mean, it’s Spencer we’re talking about.
Spencer’s heartbreaking reveal wasn’t the only interesting thing to happen in this episode. Meredith finally revealed her true colors by drugging Aria and more or less going downright “Mona-crazy.” The drugging of Aria resulted in a hallucination of Ali (or so we’re led to believe. Am I the only one who keep wondering if that’s all there is to it?). At that point, hallucination or not, I’m pretty sure we were all convinced that Aria weren’t feeling all that well and after smashing a mirror and unsuccessfully using a piece of the glass for protecting against Meredith she ends up passed out in the basement (way to fall asleep girl! In her defense though, she’d been drugged).
Of course the rest of the liars are immediately on a rescue mission (except from Spencer, who was obviously busy getting her heart ripped out, tramped on and eaten…), and they soon, of course, joined Aria in the tiny basement — will they ever learn? Probably not, since I’m finding myself agreeing more and more with Paige about the fact that the Liars have been at this game with A for so long now, that they’re numb to the constant danger surrounding them. To be honest, so am I. I mean, they’re practically in real danger in every single episode, but for them, and for many of the viewers I think, it’s just another normal day in Rosewood.
Getting back to this week’s life threating danger in Rosewood, Byron surprisingly turns out to be the hero of the day. I honestly had my doubts about whether Byron was a bad guy or a … well just a guy, because murderer or not, he did cheat on sweet mother Ella and had his daughter cover for him. Aria seems to believe he’s innocent for now after hearing his side of the story, but for the sake of everyone in Rosewood I hope he’s done with Meredith after this, she did drug and knock his daughter unconscious after all. In his flashback however, we might have been given another clue to who killed Alison. It was revealed that Melissa might have been the last one to see Alison alive after all! (How many times must we suspect her of the murder of Ali?).
Overall an exciting and gut-wrenching episode that reminded us all that no one is really safe in Rosewood, and that the A-team may be closer to the Liars than any of us thought.
Notes and thoughts
- The big question on my mind at the moment is how long Toby has been on the dark side.
- Is Byron really telling the truth?
- If Byron wasn’t the last one to see Ali alive, was it Melissa? And what does that mean?
- How long will Spencer keep Toby’s betrayal a secret from the other girls?
- Is Toby the only person close to the Liars who’s on the A-Team?
- If not Mona, who’s calling the shots?
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