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I Want You to Die
Original Air Date: Nov 5, 2015
Caitlin- Senior Staff Writer
caitlin@thetwocentscorp.com
I feel like I should have remembered this lesson from last season, but there is a point where this show goes from being purely jaw-dropping watercooler fodder to being actively detrimental to my emotional well-being. This season, that point happened in the last parts of tonight’s episode.
This isn’t to say the OMGWTF isn’t still strong with this show- if anything, it’s stronger than ever. But by the end, you’ll be terrified for the well-being of some characters and left wondering if others are somehow even more screwed up than you had already imagined. You have been warned.
Must We Really Bring Mother Teresa Into This?
When it comes to the case that never ends, we now have a real suspect in Phillip. But how to do we make him look guilty? Annalise subtly brings the matter into class by asking a student how he would pin a crime on Mother Teresa. Because that’s just what you do in a class with Professor Keating. Thankfully, making Phillip look guilty should be much easier than that hypothetical- especially when DNA is found in the sibling’s house that doesn’t belong to either of them- and could belong to him.
And Yes, We Still Have ANOTHER Case, Too.
On the one hand, this just feels like too much drama to shove into a single hour of television- not that this show has ever worried about that before. On the other, this new case gives Laurel a chance to shine in absolutely delightful fashion. Which is a good thing, because her very ill-timed sex with Frank is already rubbing Annalise the wrong way- though, as Annalise tells her (not overly kindly) later, she’s actually screwing up less than the other students. I’d say the jury’s out on that, but…
Anyway, the case involves a man named Marco, who is accused of driving his ex-wife’s new husband to suicide. And let’s be clear, the dude is delusional. But when the prosecution makes their key evidence a 911 call where the victim blamed a random man for his suicide, Laurel seduces a doorman (with a wonderfully heavy accent), and tricks him to testify to the truth- that man was actually ex-wife’s own attorney, because the two of them were sleeping together. Now THAT is OMFG.
Something About Nate Being On Trial Again. But More Importantly: Eve!
I go back and forth about whether I really feel sorry for Nate, but you’ve got to admit, this guy spends a frankly astounding amount of time on trial. Now, Sinclair, in her never-ending pursuit of Annalise. (As a ginger, I must ask: did she REALLY have to be a redhead?) is putting him on trial for killing his wife. Which, as it turns out, he really did do. Whoops. Thankfully, Annalise calls in Eve to save the day! And, hopefully, to have more romantic scenes with her ex-lover. I’m Team Annalise/Eve all the way.
Eve takes the case on with a grudging amusement at its absurdity, but quickly kicks Annalise far away from it. A good thing, too, because things seem to go bad quickly. With Wes observing, the nurse who is acting as Nate’s key witness messes up big time by stating that people should have a right to help their terminally ill loved ones die peacefully. When Eve doesn’t question the witness herself, Wes thinks Eve is intentionally throwing the case, and tells Annalise as much.
Annalise meets Eve and presses the issue. But Eve reassures her there’s a plan that Nate knows about, so they split some greasy snack food and drinks instead. Can you see why I love these two? And there is a plan- Eve wanted to keep the nurse on their side to persuade her to doctor some blood tests. Nate’s wife’s results conveniently come back negative for the drugs he used to kill her. And the two of them celebrate with another date and couldn’t we just watch this and have less of the angst?
Asher Screwed Up and Bonnie IS Screwed Up
A quick disclaimer: This subtitle is not related in ANY way to the terrible things Bonnie endured as a child, but only to her actions in her final scenes here, which I will discuss in just a sec.
The good news is, Asher did not actually rape anyway. The bad news is, he did host a party where a girl was gang-raped. He was drunk, but he was aware of what happened after the fact. He tells Bonnie that he did tell his father about it to try and get him to make a case, but his father covered up the incident instead and Asher didn’t try to stop him. He tries several times to talk to Bonnie, but she tells him what he did wasn’t good enough, and that he let himself forget what a victim never could.
She’s absolutely right, especially when Asher asks what he can do to make things right, and Bonnie tells him he can’t, because things will never be right again for that girl. But I feel like the show had her treat his actions as nearly equivalent to those of the rapists. He didn’t do enough, but he did more than anyone else at the party. He hid the truth because he was a scared, drunk kid. His father hid it for self-protection. But never mind. What really matters here is Asher slipping to Bonnie what he knows about her.
Bonnie, immediately realizing Annalise must have been the one who told him, first tries to call her and then heads over to her house. She’s already drinking by the time Annalise gets there and is met by angry accusations. Soon, Bonnie is screaming that Annalise ruined the one good thing in her life- hon, didn’t you spend most of this episode implying rightfully that Asher ruined himself?- and then saying that she wishes Annalise had died in Sam’s place. Holy crap, woman.
So We Have Teams Now?
You’ll remember that, in previous flash-forwards, we saw all the students getting into a car with Nate- together. Turns out they had to go even further to reach that point when you might think. Connor is first see going into the house with Michaela trying to slow him down. Neither of them realize that Laurel and Wes are there, the later with a gun he got from Levi. When Laurel asks what they should do, he says he wants to use it to stop Connor and Michaela from doing…something.
Indeed, we see Wes examining the gun during the episode’s present, and eventually deciding to hold onto it. The two groups do confront each other, but this is subtly interrupted when Sinclair’s body crashes onto the scene between them. All involved are too horrified to see what the camera shows us- Bonnie standing up from the ledge where Sinclair fell. So is Ms. Winterbottom a serial killer now? I have to say, given what we saw, I wouldn’t be surprised.
But, Oh, Oliver, No!
When Connor first reacted with outrage to Frank hiring Oliver to help with the sibling’s case, I was surprised. He’s already had his boyfriend do plenty, and Oliver is adorably excited about being taken on by Annalise Keating. But it makes much more sense when you remember what happened at the end of last week’s episode. And you certainly can’t blame Connor for thinking Oliver setting himself up with a man who is probably the actual killer we’re looking for is a really bad idea.
Eventually, Connor goes on the date (Oliver was using his photo on the online dating site anyway) and Oliver himself stays home. A packing Michaela alerts Annalise to this scheme and she shuts it down immediately. But Connor is not the one we should worry about, because Connor is not the one Phillip saw when he double-hacked his hackers. Oliver lets himself into his apartment to find Phillip already there. By the next episode, he is missing, and I am not at all sure he’ll be okay.
And One More Little Thing…
Remember how I declared that Annalise discussion Wes’s mother’s suicide meant the theory that SHE was actually his mother couldn’t be true. Turns out I should take my own advice not to assume anything about this show. No, it might not be that- but, in a conversation with Eve, Annalise heavily implies that they have some pretty serious connections. But the suicide thing is true- Annalise sends Wes away from the new case because of it. So what gives?
Next Week: Hi, I’m Phillip