Pretty Little Liars Review: “Thrown From The Ride” (Season 5, Episode 4)

Pretty Little Liars is really giving fans a lesson in patience this season. “Thrown From the Ride” was more of a series of awkward moments strung together than any sort of cohesive, or even satisfying, viewing experience. Alison (Sasha Pieterse) being back in Rosewood has apparently made everyone’s interpersonal skills go on hiatus. And, that doesn’t even account for the already tense relationships that existed prior to her re-emergence on the social radar.

If you’re having trouble adjusting to Ali’s return to the day-to-day comings and goings of Pretty Little Liars, don’t feel bad. Even the Liars, who once (err, possibly still do) considered Ali to be there unofficial leader and best friend, are having some difficulty adapting to the renewed pressures of living up to Ali’s standards (e.g. Hannah’s outburst: “I’m tired of being the messenger.”)

Ali’s game has always been about control, and now that she is experiencing the painful realization that her lies have cost her a lot of her previous clout, she’s frankly starting to get a little scary. Even though she still has a lot to hold over people, even the Liars are weary of falling in line. Emily (Shay Mitchell) is on the rocks with Paige (Lindsey Shaw). Spencer (Troian Bellisario) is in the middle of family drama. And, Aria (Lucy Hale) is a mixed bag of emotions after New York, and to make things worse, someone is tormenting her. Seriously, sending her a live feed of Shana’s (Aeriel Miranda) funeral service, that’s just cruel.

Sooner or later Aria’s going to realize that the only reason she is in this predicament is because of Ali, and maybe then she’ll follow Spencer’s advice and take a “pyshological selfie.” She needs to find an outlet for her guilt, but confessing her dark and dirty to Ezra (Ian Harding), although cathartic, is probably not the most intelligent option at her disposal. Putting aside his recent act of heroism, let’s not forget that this is the same guy that Mona-level stalked her and her friends in search of material for his novel. Who’s to say that he isn’t behind the video. After all, he is a Rosewood high teacher and would have access to the school intranet – and more damning, Aria told him she killed Shana, so plausible deniability is sort of out the window.

For being such a small town, Rosewood has an uncharacteristically high number of murderers among their population. Think about it, half of the Liars have killed someone at this point. Both times were acts of self-defense, but still – how many teenagers in rural Pennsylvania towns find themselves in life or death situations where they need to protect themselves in such an extreme manner? Best guess – not this many, and definitely not this frequently. Even though Ali wasn’t actually kidnapped, someone still made an attempt on her life, so we can add her to the ever growing list too.

Ali’s lies are starting to catch up with her and they’re already having adverse effects on her “friends.” The Liars, with perhaps the exception of Emily, are one tragedy away from a psychotic break. If Spencer discovers that her father really did have something to do with Mrs. D’s death, it’s back to Radley for her for sure. At least she can look forward to more bonding moments with her mother, since I’m fairly certain that “spa” was code for mental hospital.

Who you think will crack first? Let us know all your Pretty Little Liars theories in the comment section below!