‘Pretty Little Liars’ Drops Major ‘A’ Clues As Charles Is Exposed
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Pretty Little Liars.
This week’s episode of Pretty Little Liars may have given PLL fans their first real bit of proof that Charles DiLaurentis and A are not one and the same. The first half of the Pretty Little Liars episode “FrAmed” focused on Hanna enlisting Spencer’s help to prove that her scholarship was one of A’s plots, and, ultimately, their investigation led them to Rhys Matthews (Caleb Lane), a dead ringer for DiLaurentis.
Later in the same Pretty Little Liars episode, Rhys (or Charles?) was seen meeting covertly with Aria’s newest friend, Clark Wilkins (Titus Makin Jr.), raising suspicions that they might be in league with A or that one of them (Rhys) might actually be A. On the other hand, is it possible that there has always been more going on in Pretty Little Liars than even the PLL theorists have accounted for in the series? Is it possible that Rhys, who is either Charles himself or working for Charles (Let’s not forget that overly private boss unwilling to even share an email address), are actually working against A and his eternally loyal lacky known only as Red Coat?
In the meantime, Lt. Linda Tanner (Roma Maffia) was seen at the close of this week’s Pretty Little Liars episode reviewing security tapes of someone, presumably A, setting up Aria’s photography exhibits, which PLL fans already know were revealed to be photographs of the liars laying unconscious on morgue slabs. The security footage never revealed A’s face, which is usually the case when a Pretty Little Liars episode comes close to exposing the identity of A, but the form and shape of the hooded figure did bear a striking resemblance to Toby Cavanaugh (Keegan Allen).
Setting aside Toby’s incredibly distinctive mannerisms, it seems questionable that, while Lt. Tanner assigned nearly the entire Rosewood police department to cover security at the exhibit, Toby was still nowhere to be seen. Do you still have your doubts, PLL fans?
The synopsis for the upcoming Pretty Little Liars summer finale only casts more suspicion on Toby with its very first question.
“Who killed Toby’s mother? Who hit Alison in the head with the rock the night she went missing? Who is Red Coat? Who killed Bethany? Who is the Black Widow? Why has ‘A’ been targeting the PLLs all this time? After years of torture, Alison, Aria, Emily, Hanna and Spencer finally come face-to-face with their tormentor and learn the story of how and why Charles became ‘A.'”
Pretty Little Liars wouldn’t be the first to use the death of one’s mother to create a devious sociopath and, as Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) once pointed out, “We all go a little mad sometimes.” Perhaps the death of Toby’s mother really was nothing more than a mere accident, but one that created A in the mind of the little boy who lost his mother.
That may mean that the entire Charles DiLaurentis subplot on Pretty Little Liars has kept everyone focused on unmasking the hero of the PLL tale, while the villain has been free to move unchecked against Aria, Hanna, Spencer, and Emily. Is it possible that Rhys Matthews, while a new face on Pretty Little Liars, has always been working behind the scenes to help out the liars in their struggle against A?
Of course, this still leaves Red Coat unmasked. Who might be so devoted to A’s plans that he or she are willing to do anything in service to A?
The next episode of Pretty Little Liars, “Last Dance,” is scheduled to air on August 4 on ABC.
[Featured image courtesy of ABC/Pretty Little Liars]
