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Discussing the first two episodes of season two — Let’s focus on the return of all the romantic entanglements that kept us glued to our TV sets earlier this year. While the mystery of who A is and who killed Alison are important, the boys of Rosewood have stolen my attention so far this season.
Pretty Little Liars: The Boys of Rosewood Are Back!
Well, except for Ian, but that’s a whole other story.
First, let’s focus on the return of all the romantic entanglements that kept us glued to our TV sets earlier this year. While the mystery of who A is and who killed Alison are important, the boys of Rosewood have stolen my attention so far this season.
When the first season ended, Spencer and Toby were on the brink of a relationship, Caleb had left town and Hanna, and Aria had just learned Ezra’s new job involved his ex-fiancé. And if the first couple of episodes are a setup for the rest of the season, it’s safe to say that romance isn’t going to be easy for our favorite little liars.
Emily seemed to be only girl not fretting over her heart’s desires, at least not in the romantic sense, but hat may change if her new blonde friend has anything to say about it. It’s kind of nice to see Emily dealing with more realistic problems. She’s struggling with possibly losing her home, a separation from her best friends, and creating a lie so she can stay in Rosewood.
It was nice to see her leaning on Toby. Despite their complicated past, he knows Emily so well and she can talk to him about Maya because Toby saw her feelings before she was willing to admit them. These two better continue being best friends forever, and since she’s crafting a lie about the Danby scout, she’s going to end up needing him and the other girls. There’s no doubt that A is going to use this to her advantage and find some way to torment Emily with it. You’d think by now these girls would know better than to lie.
The forbidden relationship between Spencer and Toby hasn’t changed. None of their parents want them together, which works perfectly in Jenna’s favor. This didn’t stop Toby from attempting to see Spencer and telling her father he would never hurt her. Or Spencer from going to Toby’s only to be run off by Jenna. It’s bad enough that Spencer is dealing with whatever happened to Ian, her sister’s pregnancy hormones, and a mother that sees her as a complication. There’s also the fact that she’s a murder suspect. You’d think the girl could catch a break somewhere. And it doesn’t look like it’s going to be with her and Toby.
Dropping out of school and taking a job in construction led him to a dead end. Although it was nice to see him in a tool belt – he was pretty darn cute, eh? The town of Rosewood isn’t happy to have him hanging around and it seems the only thing keeping him is his relationship with Spencer. It’s a good thing since she seems willing to lay everything on the line for Toby. Her offer to go to the police with the information she had on Ian was a big step and shows how much Toby means to her.
Caleb’s also trying to get his feelings across. He didn’t waste any time heading to Hanna’s where they shared an adorable, “Hi,” before having a painful conversation. I understand why Hanna is so hurt, but given at how easily it seems for Jenna to get these boys to do her bidding, I think he deserves a second chance. His intentions were wrong in the beginning, but his feelings are genuine. Not to mention that: 1.) Caleb has a face that could melt a girl in a heartbeat. 2.) Mona threw his goodbye letter away. 3.) He told her he loves her. One of those three things has to change something, Hanna.
By the way, was anyone else bummed that the second episode was Caleb-less? Sure, it was nice to see Hanna dealing with her family issues, but judging from the way her father swept back into their lives, he’s only there because he’s having problems of his own. It’s all downhill from him offering her mother a martini. That’s definitely code for, “Things with the woman I left you for are falling apart, so is there anything left here for me?” Hanna and her mother deserve better.
Hanna also deserves better in the best friend department. I was glad that she confronted Mona about the letter, who just says she was trying to protect her. Friends make mistakes sometimes, but something about Mona is so… grating. Every time she talks it’s superficial and stupid, but I guess having a friend who isn’t being stalked and tied to a murder is kind of a relief. But if no one ever forgives you, Mona, it’s probably because you suck. Take note of this and do not screw Hanna over again. Oh, and take Hanna’s advice about Noel Kahn. Considering what secrets he knows and how easily Mona will stab a friend in the back, this pairing is nothing but trouble, especially since Noel’s suspension didn’t seem to each him anything.
In his first ten seconds back at school, Noel gets under Mr. Fitz’s skin and toys with Aria. The last thing they need is Noel breathing down their necks again when they have Ezra’s past hanging over their heads. He pulled a fast one on Aria by not only failing to tell her about his previous engagement, but also by forgetting to mention he would be working with his ex. That would make any girl feel a little insecure, but Ezra’s made it very clear that he only has eyes for Aria. It wasn’t enough for her and while she waited around when he asked her to go, she eventually left with a dramatic note left in the typewriter. “Sorry, we couldn’t make this work.”
Determined to get through to her, Ezra made a pretty sweet declaration in front of the entire class. “You must give up the life you planned, in order to have the life that is waiting for you. Thought I knew what that meant, but I didn’t until I met you.” Insert major swoon here, especially when she ran into the school parking lot and practically mounted him where anyone could see. Um, Aria, he may not be your teacher, but you’re still way underage.
I hope this is the last bit of drama for these two for a little while because the back and forth issues are getting old. Aria’s a teenager and insecure whereas Ezra’s a grown man and knows exactly what he wants. Things are black and white for him and Aria’s still muddling her way through everything. I get that this is going to cause problems, but Aria’s got to be a little more mature about things. You can only fight about things like this for so long before you realize it’s time to part ways and I really do not want these two to part ways.
Of course, not every boy in Rosewood manages to make me swoon. Alison’s brother is back in town and living in his old house, which is unnerving for obvious reasons. Not to mention that he is putting up a privacy fence, hates animals, and didn’t appreciate Spencer’s baked goods. He is, however, extremely cute. What’s in the water in Rosewood? Cute is dangerous in this town and no good can come from this.
Creepy Officer Garrett continues to play the girls, who have no idea he’s also playing with Jenna, smoothly playing two very different sides. He’s managed to sneak his way into Ian’s disappearance, which is overshadowing the mystery of Alison’s death.
So, the biggest question of all is Ian dead or alive? We’re being led to believe he’s alive, but things are never that black and white in Rosewood. There’s something bigger going on here, something that makes me wonder if we’ll be chasing Ian for the rest of the season. Someone’s been stealing survival gear from the neighbors. Perhaps, the same someone who broke into Spencer’s and attacked Aria on their way out the door?
Melissa is relatively calm despite all of this going on around her. In the first episode, I felt bad for her, but after dealing with her snotty attitude and knowing she’s getting texts from someone who appears to be Ian, I just wonder if she’s part of whatever is going on with him. After all, she did tell Spencer she could keep a secret, and her wet rain boots indicate that she’s hiding something.
Alive or not, Ian still has control over their lives. Confronting him just seemed to make a bigger mess of things now that they’re all suspects in Alison’s disappearance and being forced to go to therapy. Their grief counselor thinks the girls need to spend some time apart, and their parents agree, leaving them all alone in the crowd – just what A wanted. Can they survive without their best friends, boyfriends, and support of their families? All their separations are a prime opportunity for A to strike harder than ever, which means everyone better start looking over their shoulders starting now.
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