The fourth season is a big one for the show. It unravels the mystery of what actually happens to Alison and how all the players, and those who are accused of trying to kill her fit into the scheme of things. In other words, you’ve got a lot going on in a single season and you can’t really skip any episode or otherwise you’re going to miss something vital.
What I like particularly well about the fourth season of Pretty Little Liars is that they keep you guessing on the motives of the characters, which is hot and heavy with this specific season. For example, you get an episode where Mona is put back in a bad spotlight and her trust is questioned within the group. Then you get a nice episode where A’s lair is revealed and you get suspicions set back to square one. The constant back and forth of who to trust and who not to trust keeps the show in a Twin Peak’s like spiral, and more importantly — interesting.
And things just don’t stop there.
Much like Twin Peaks, there is an episode where Ali’s diary is found (Twin Peaks did this with an actual diary sold to the public — just to get clues about Laura Palmer’s death). That one element provides a large amount of internal destruction amongst the group and we’re back to distrust. It’s a great use of a single element that is the catalyst to a series’ story. It was handled brilliantly and they should do things like that more often in future seasons/episodes.
The last episode is probably my favorite. You get some major questions answered surrounding the death of Alison. You get some new suspicions thrown at you about some adult characters (not saying a word) and it all ends on a very high note — although, I think they could have handled one element better at the end (not going to get into that due to spoilers).
My only real criticism of the show, and this season specifically, is the amount of dialogue delivered at any given point. Sure it’s a mystery/thriller type of show and you have to remind your audience of certain untied storylines, but over-writing your characters provides way too much detail for an audience to consume at one time. There were some scenes that were 2-3 minutes (maybe more) in length in a single location because they kept chattering about characters/happenings/etc.. The show had so much to say in a short amount of time that it was difficult to keep up with and acknowledge in later episodes. The writers really need to show more of action to allow audiences to figure things out themselves. Pretty Little Liars should bring down the dialogue a bit and reveal the mystery through visuals.
It seems to do that towards the end of the fourth season, but it really needed to start it earlier.
Other than that small complaint, I felt like this season really kept the audience guessing. The taunting of who ‘A’ is scattered throughout the fourth season kept everything fresh. You can feel that the unveiling of this torturous mystery character is on the verge of happening. The way that reveal is treated is done well, until the very end of the show (I’m not going to reveal anything in case someone hasn’t seen it).
Ultimately, I felt like this season was pretty darn good. It felt like the series progressed and gave incentive for its viewers to keep watching. Alison’s return (it’s on the back of the cover, so I’m sure you’re going to find out before you get to this point in the review) is a major selling point with watching this season. Her return prompts questions and she provides answers. That’s truly enough to make it worth your time.
If you’re a fan of the show then you need to watch this season, or relive it. It’s worthy of your television show shelf.
As for the features included, here’s what you’re looking at:
– Unhooding Red Coat: Alison is Alive!
– Confessions of “A” Liar
– Pretty Little Scenes
– Recap Episode
The first disc includes a recap of the entire series. It will help you get prepared for what you’re about to dive into before you do it. It was enormously helpful for this reviewer and it filled in a lot of gaps left from previous seasons.
The three featurettes included are actually pretty solid as well. You get interviews with producers/actors about the series. You get a little bit more information about what to expect and what decision-making went into the big reveals. There’s al to of good information about the season and how it functioned, as well as the show itself.
Overall, theses are some good features for a great season.