This article contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin and discusses potentially harmful topics.
The first three episodes of the newest Pretty Little Liars spin-off, Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, premiered July 28th on HBO Max. The premiere episodes were full of shocking and frightening moments that promised a chilling and exciting first season that left the audience wanting more.
The new A’s tangled web caught the next generation of liars, who all had secrets to hide. The masked and mysterious villain was intent on destroying the five girls and their mothers over a decades-old mystery. The girls were left fighting for their academic careers, reputations, and lives by the premiere episodes’ end.
10 Angela Begged For Help, But Everyone Ignored Her
The show opened with the five liars’ high school-aged mothers in a warehouse at a New Year’s Eve/Y2K party in 1999. Then, Angela Waters came stumbling into the party, crying and begging for help. Tabby’s mother, Sidney, wanted to help the girl, but Imogen’s mother, Davie, discouraged her.
Angela then climbed to the rafters and jumped to her death. No one called the police, and Angela’s body stayed in the warehouse, undiscovered, for two days. The young girl hysterically crying and begging for help was distressing, and it gave the girls’ mothers long-lasting trauma and guilt.
9 Davie’s Death Was A Graphic Sight
Twenty years later, Davie received a flyer for the 1999 rave with a note that said, “Gone but not forgotten. You can’t ignore the past forever. The countdown is on.” Minutes later, Imogen and Karen found Davie dead in a bathtub filled with blood after she presumably committed suicide. However, a mysterious “A” appeared on the wall, written in her blood.
The scene was graphic and disturbing, made even worse by Imogen’s visions of her own death. When she had a panic attack over her pregnancy, her mind went to a very dark place where she imagined committing suicide in the same manner as her mother.
8 No One Mentioned The Janitor’s Murder
Millwood High’s janitor, Jason, discovered A in the school after hours, chased him to the building’s recesses, and discovered A’s lair. There, he found ballet slippers, an empty drug testing cup, and a live rat. Jason threatened to call the police, and A responded by slicing his throat with a box cutter.
The innocent man suffered a violent and bloody death, but no characters brought it up in the first three episodes. So either no one noticed Jason was missing, or they didn’t care enough to report it, both sad realizations.
7 A Sent The Girls Disturbing And Threatening Videos
An anonymous source, presumably Karen, sent the five girls threatening videos. Imogen and Tabby’s video showed someone slicing through Karen’s Spirit Queen posters. Faran’s video displayed a gloved hand putting a razorblade in Karen’s ballet slipper. Noa’s video showed A pouring marijuana-laced liquid in her drug testing cup, which violated her probation.
Mouse’s video was the worst, displaying a rat getting vacuumed to death, which Karen found in her bag. These videos were all disturbing in their own way and shocked the girls and viewers. Unfortunately, they also convinced the liars to take revenge on Karen.
6 The Girls Showed An Exploitative Video Of Karen To The School
The five girls plotted to get revenge on Karen by creating a fake Spirit Queen campaign laced with a damaging video of the girl drunk at a party. The footage showed the overly-intoxicated teen flirting with the recorder, and she almost undressed before Imogen interrupted.
The video was gross, as the boy was obviously taking advantage of Karen, who couldn’t consent to the recording. It was shocking that the liars used this tape to embarrass Karen in front of the whole school, as it was a massive invasion of privacy.
5 Karen Died In An Eerily Familiar Way
Karen planned to get back at Imogen by throwing red paint over her as she accepted the Spirit Queen crown. She waited in the rafters for her opportunity, but instead, A threw her to the stage below. Karen died on impact, and although it appeared to be a suicide, the five girls knew the truth.
After Karen’s fatal fall, the liars all received a text that read, “To thine own self be true. One bully down. Five more to go. Keep quiet about me or you’re next. -A.” Karen’s death was eerily reminiscent of Angela’s two decades before, and it’s safe to assume the similarities weren’t coincidental.
4 One Problematic Theme Transferred Over From The Original Show
The original Pretty Little Liars featured multiple adult men who dated or showed interest in minor girls, including teachers and police officers. Unfortunately, the showrunners didn’t leave this extremely problematic and shocking theme behind in Rosewood. Tabby’s boss, Wes, showed romantic interest in her and compared her to the girls he dated in college.
Wes was a grown man who often drove Tabby home, invited her to his house, and kept her flash drive so she’d spend time with him. He even attempted to kiss her in his car, but A interrupted him. Wes’ actions were highly inappropriate and criminal, and this shocking trend throughout the Pretty Little Liars franchise needs to end.
3 Sheriff Beasley’s Investigation Was A Huge Conflict Of Interest
Sheriff Beasley began investigating his daughter Karen’s death, which the department shouldn’t have allowed. It was a massive conflict of interest, as he couldn’t view the evidence from an impartial lens. His bias showed, as he regularly threatened the girls and their mothers.
Beasley believed the video led to Karen’s suicide and wanted to charge the girls with murder. He threatened to have them expelled, arrest them, and ruin their lives along with their parents’. Those actions were wildly inappropriate for a police officer and set a dangerous precedent, as there was no one the girls could turn to for help against him.
2 Mrs. Beasley’s Outburst Led To Kelly’s Confession
Imogen attended Karen’s funeral, which prompted a hysterical outburst from the grieving Mrs. Beasley, who believed Imogen and her friends were responsible for the suicide. Mrs. Beasley screamed that she hoped Imogen would lose her baby in the same way she lost Karen, which was a shocking and disturbing statement in itself. While it was understandable that she was devastated and grieving, someone shouldn’t wish death on a child.
The outburst and Sheriff Beasley’s threats to “make [the girls] wish they were dead” prompted Karen’s twin sister, Kelly, to tell the truth about the dance. Kelly informed the principal that Karen planned on sabotaging Imogen and that her death was a tragic accident rather than a suicide. Kelly confessing was as shocking as the events that caused it, as it seemed she was just as angry as her parents, but it highlighted Kelly’s good moral standing.
1 A Was Always One Step Away From The Girls
Millwood’s A was much scarier than Rosewood’s, as he wore a creepy mask with long hair, a jumpsuit, and a threatening presence. Unlike the original A, who often hid in the shadows, he ensured his victims saw him. A seemed to be everywhere, always right next to the girls. He watched Imogen and Tabby from inside the abandoned house and peered at Faran while she practiced ballet.
Then, in a heart-pounding moment, he almost grabbed Imogen’s legs from underneath the school bleachers. Finally, at the third episode’s end, the girls gave eulogies at Karen’s grave and spotted A watching them from across the street. He was everywhere and nowhere, thrived on being seen, and even described himself as a “Peeping Tom.” Thus far, Millwood’s A appeared to be much more dangerous, ruthless, and fearless than the A fans knew before.