#plot: sam's murder

[dana-watches-htgawm]

HTGAWM rewatch blog "It's Time to Move On" (2x01)

At the start of the episode, Annalise asks her students, "Why are we more inclined to hurt the ones we love the most?" which honestly could be the tagline for this season or this show in general. In this fantastic episode, it's Wes who's been hurt by Rebecca and Annalise, Wes who is hurting Annalise (figuratively, but also literally in the flashforward as we know on a rewatch), Bonnie hurt Annalise, Annalise hurt Eve and Nate...

Anyway, this episode started off the new season with a banger.

Sam's murder/Nate's trial Last season, we ended with Nate calling the number of a lawyer Annalise handed him in prison, after she framed him for Sam. Eve visits Annalise after Nate called her, but Eve has no idea why Annalise would give Nate her number without even reaching out. She suspects Annalise and Nate killed Sam together, so Annalise desperately tries to convince Eve that Nate is innocent.

When Eve talks to Nate, he's uncooperative and tells Eve that Annalise framed him, so Eve refuses to take the case. Nate calls Annalise to tell her he might go down for Sam, but he's gonna make sure he'll take Annalise down with him. Annalise, desperate to fix everything, stops Eve at her hotel lobby, but Eve confronts Annalise with framing Nate and tells her that she's not going to let her ruin her like she ruined Nate.

Annalise later shows up crying at Eve's doorstep to tell her she's right, she ruins people. Nate, Eve, Bonnie (but more on that later)... Annalise admits that Nate was telling the truth and she did frame him, not because she killed Sam, but because she's protecting the person who did. Eve softens up and starts comforting Annalise. In the end, she takes on Nate's case.

In court, Eve convinces the judge to go along with the last-minute change, despite A.D.A. Emily Sinclair's protests. Sinclair then approaches Asher and blackmails him into telling her that Eve visited Annalise at the house.

A bit more on Annalise & Eve In this episode, we learn that Annalise is bisexual and used to have a relationship with former Harvard classmate Eve Rothlo, but they have a complicated past. Annalise hurt Eve when she left her for Sam, to which Eve ends up admitting she hasn't stopped thinking about her even now. On a rewatch, we also know that after Rose committed suicide 10 years ago and Annalise got into her car accident as a result of trying to warn the FBI to protect Christophe/Wes, they haven't seen each other, and Annalise has been avoiding Eve.

I like the chemistry between them, and out of Annalise's love interests, they are the ones who I found the most believable and engaging to watch. Chemistry is subjective, and for me their scenes aren't as electric as Wes and Annalise's scenes (although that's incredibly hard to top), but they would definitely rank in my top 5 of characters with great chemistry on this show.

We also know that Eve is very special to Annalise, because we see a rare moment of Annalise showing vulnerability and actually opening up to someone. Annalise doesn't trust people, but she seems to trust Eve enough to seek her out when she's struggling and confide in her. That's incredibly rare for Annalise; the only other people she does this with are Ophelia and Wes.

Rebecca's murder It's been ten days since Annalise and Frank found Rebecca's body in the basement. Annalise told Frank to get rid of it and handed him an old suitcase of Sam to hide Rebecca's body in... Annalise may not have killed people, but she's far from innocent...

The students have no idea Rebecca is dead, but Wes, who is acting out in class and pushing everyone away, seems to suspect it because he's looking for Jane Does on his laptop. Laurel also has a hunch that Rebecca is dead. Connor thinks Wes is the one who let Rebecca go. Michaela is more concerned about Eggs 911, the text Rebecca sent from Michaela's phone. Michaela wants to change her number, but Frank tells her not to, and in the end, Michaela ends up reaching out to the mystery person.

Meanwhile, Frank and Annalise try to find out who's behind Rebecca's murder. Frank is convinced that it's Wes, and even clones Wes's computer to prove it. Annalise is suspicious of Frank's attempts to pin it on Wes, but also has her doubts about Wes's innocence. So they set up a "puppy trap": Annalise gives Wes a fake address of a motel Rebecca would be staying at to see if he would go there. Wes doesn't check it out, so Frank is even more convinced Wes is behind it.

Annalise ends up inviting Wes for dinner, where Wes confronts her with lying about Rebecca's whereabouts, and ultimately Annalise gets Wes to open up about feeling betrayed and abandoned by Rebecca.

Annalise: Do you want to find her? Wes: Of course, but I'm not pathetic. She ran away, after I told her I believed her and after everything I did for her... Sam. And she still didn't trust me. Instead, she chose to run away. I have to respect that decision. I'll get over her soon... I promise.

Oh puppy :(. Annalise seems convinced and apologizes for not trusting him. I wonder how strategic that was, because moments before that, Wes admits how hurt he feels because Rebecca didn't trust him. It works: Wes immediately apologizes for being mean in class. I'll take a bit more meta about Wes and Annalise later because there's a lot to unpack in this episode.

After Laurel visits Frank to share her suspicions that Rebecca is dead, Frank then suspects Laurel. So Frank tells Annalise and goes on and on about how it would make sense for it to be Laurel because of her messed-up childhood, which is when Annalise realizes it was actually Bonnie. Annalise confronts Bonnie and yells at her that she's a monster now.

We need to talk about Bonnie From season 2 onwards, we start to see this pattern where every season or season-half tends to have a few spotlight characters. In season 2A, these characters are Bonnie and Asher. Bonnie gets some much-needed character development in this episode.

We get a bit more insight into Bonnie's past when Frank suspects that Laurel is behind Rebecca's murder, and tells Annalise the following:

It's like you say -- it's always the ones you least suspect, you know, the quiet ones. It makes sense with her background, too. Her father -- you don't grow up to be normal when that's who raises you. No, you become messed up.

This quote fits both Laurel and Bonnie extremely well, especially in hindsight (although I still wish we had gotten to know a bit more about Laurel's upbringing around Jorge). Bonnie later tells Rebecca in the flashback that the "worst things" happened to her.

Bonnie is such a hypocrite, though. She tells Laurel, "I didn't make this mess, so don't you dare include me in it." But she left Rebecca's body in Annalise's basement for Annalise and Frank to deal with it, and later she tells Annalise that everything is Rebecca's fault.

Bonnie also tells Rebecca, "I grew up, stopped playing the victim. And I definitely don't keep the cycle going. Hurt people, because they hurt me... Kill a girl." And then she proceeds to kill a girl. I just can't... I love Liza Weil, but Bonnie is by far my least favorite character on the show.

I sometimes see people on Reddit saying Bonnie deserved happiness, but what she did in this episode is seriously messed up. She goes to the basement to give Rebecca some water, makes some small talk and connects with Rebecca. Rebecca literally tells her she won't tell anyone, and then Bonnie just kills her in cold blood and never shows any remorse for it. Not when Annalise confronts her in this episode, not when the D.A.'s office suspects Annalise is behind Rebecca's murder in S3, not when the FBI thinks Annalise is behind Rebecca's murder in S6... Oh no, jumping a bit to S3, but in Bonnie's eyes, Wes and Rebecca are behind everything bad that happened, and Wes is a murderer (who even goes down for her crime!).

I'm sorry, but I really can't stand her. Bonnie might've had a messed-up past and killed Rebecca to protect Annalise, but trauma is no excuse for murder, and I never understood why Bonnie never even suggested turning herself in for Rebecca if she's truly 'ride-or-die' for Annalise.

I also see people on Reddit sometimes call Wes ungrateful or claim that he constantly blames Annalise, and I just don't get it. Wes is constantly beating himself up over killing Sam, blames himself for everything, and is willing to turn himself in to protect Annalise. Meanwhile, Bonnie blames Wes and Rebecca, tells Annalise that she wants her to die, tries to sabotage Annalise's class action suit, and not even once shows any remorse for killing Rebecca.

When Bonnie makes stupid decisions, it's because of her trauma, so all is forgiven. But when Wes makes stupid decisions, he should've known better despite his trauma, so he gets hate. Make it make sense... Bonnie tells Rebecca, "Bad things happened to me, too. The worst things. The difference is, I don't use them as an excuse." But fans of the show clearly do.

Annalise tells her, "You're the one sick enough to do this," and truer words have never been spoken. But Bonnie still shows not a single ounce of remorse. Nope, she says she did it for Annalise, and that she knows that Annalise would've done the same for Bonnie... Would she? I'm usually not a big Annalise defender, but Annalise has never killed anyone. Annalise yells at Bonnie that she killed Rebecca for Sam, and that she's just as bad as him.

I'm not sure if Bonnie killed Rebecca for Sam, but there's a running tread throughout the show of abused people becoming abusers, and that's something we see in Sam, Annalise, and now also in Bonnie. Maybe Bonnie's intentions were out of loyalty, but she still killed an innocent girl.

Anyway, that was my Bonnie-rant.

Keating Five Things are tense between them. Connor and Michaela get along, but Michaela is still angry with Laurel for stealing her engagement ring, so Laurel tries to get Michaela to forgive her. Asher is detached from the group and feels like an idiot when Connor and Michaela tease him about seeing Bonnie (something they overheard Asher say in 1x15, and Asher accidentally admits it in this episode). Wes is acting indifferent and is kind of isolating himself.

What they are up to in this episode:

Connor: He is on prep because of Oliver's HIV diagnosis, so he thinks it's fine to be intimate with Oliver. Oliver is afraid he's still putting Connor at risk, though, so he wants to wait until Connor's prep has fully kicked in. To show Oliver how committed he is, Connor decides to move in with him.

Michaela: She's angry with Laurel for stealing her ring, worried about Eggs 911, and looking for a new boyfriend. She tries to hit on someone in a bar, but he turns out to be gay. She then makes a dating profile in an attempt to find a new boyfriend, and ends up texting Eggs 911.

Asher: He shows up late for work and is distracted. Bonnie invites him over to his place, but Asher comes up with an excuse and walks away. He's distant because Sinclair is blackmailing him: either he gives her intel on Eve, who just took on Nate's case, or she'll out what happened at Trotter Lake.

Laurel: She tries to get the latest intel on Rebecca from Bonnie and Frank, but Bonnie refuses to tell her anything, and Frank suspects Laurel's behind Rebecca's murder when she shares her suspicions that Rebecca is dead.

Btw, Laurel starts to show a different side of herself in this episode. We got to know her in season 1 as the most level-headed and rational one of the group. In this episode, Frank brings up her father and how that must've impacted Laurel's psyche growing up. Laurel's cunning and manipulative character come through when she confronts Bonnie about being out of the loop regarding Rebecca, since Annalise only talks to Frank. She also shows she's good at deceiving people when she pretends to be a worker at a spa that Helena Hapstall visited and has video footage for the defense.

Michaela calls Laurel a "sociopath who steals engagement rings," I wonder if there's some truth to that. It's at least not the last time Laurel's called a sociopath.

Wes & Annalise Season premieres tend to be very Wes/Annalise-centric, so this episode had a lot of interactions between them. The combination of their scenes is somewhat unhinged: in class and in Annalise's office, their role is more professor/teacher-like, except that Wes is defying her openly (and gets away with it). In the kitchen, it's more maternal. In the club, it starts maternal but later shifts to somewhat sexual. As usual, their scenes are unsettling and electric at the same time.

Wes isn't doing too well after Rebecca's disappearance. He's acting out in class, isolating himself from the group, and looking for Jane Does. Turns out, he's feeling hurt and betrayed by Rebecca's 'disappearance'. Annalise sees through it and gets him to open up.

I feel sad for Wes in this episode. It's not uncommon for people with a fear of abandonment to push people away when they get the smallest suspicion someone might leave them, which is exactly what Wes is doing here with Annalise, I think. Wes has incredibly sharp instincts, and based on that classroom scene, I wouldn't be surprised if he picked up on Annalise's suspicions about his role in Rebecca's disappearance and went "attack dog" on her because of it. Annalise doesn't trust him, and for Wes, that might have caused him to think that she might leave him, too.

Annalise is the only meaningful connection Wes has besides Rebecca. (He's friendly with Laurel, but he doesn't really open up to Laurel in the way he did with Rebecca or Annalise). So Wes, still hurt from feeling abandoned by Rebecca, starts to push Annalise away before she can ultimately abandon him, too. This actually reminds me of a quote by Isaac Roa in 4x06:

Some people who've experienced immense loss develop a defense to more loss. It's an instinct to push people away before they leave us.

Isaac was talking about Annalise, but I think it also perfectly fits Wes here. Wes and Annalise tend to deal with trauma in similar ways: they both lost people, so they are scared of being alone and are desperate to save people they care about. But they also tend to isolate themselves when they are not doing okay (although they often seek each other out, probably because they see and understand each other on a level others don't).

Maybe Wes is also testing Annalise: trying to be as mean and distant as possible to see if she really cares.

Either way, Annalise sees right through him. She's so good at reading people, especially Wes. She knows he's alone, she knows about his mother, so when she tells him, "You can tell me anything, I'll protect you, always," she also knows that that's exactly what Wes needs to hear. It works like a charm: Wes opens up to her about feeling hurt and abandoned by Rebecca, and apologizes for his behavior in class.

Wes responds to Annalise's affection and physical touch, stronger than any other character on the show, and it's often emphasized through the editing. Annalise knows that Wes just wants someone to love him, so while she genuinely cares about him, she also uses it very strategically. It's something that'll happen a few more times in the first part of season 2, and every time Wes grows closer and more protective of her as a result. Which is also very characteristic of a trauma bond and Stockholm Syndrome, as far as I'm aware.

Btw, this episode has a disturbing amount of hinting at a Wesalise hookup:

Annalise is cooking for Wes and offers him wine. That in itself is odd, but the fact that Wes even agreed to have dinner with her despite his annoyance shows that there's something mutual about it. Annalise initiates odd situations, but Wes goes along with them.

In that moment on the dance floor, the sexual tension between them is through the roof. Annalise asking him to dance, cupping his face, holding hands, her hands gliding over his chest, and Wes enjoying it... Meanwhile, the others are dancing right next to him, but Wes and Annalise are so lost in their own little bubble that they just don't care. That moment gives me chills every single time... I want to look away, but at the same time, it's magnetic.

Oh, and am I the only one who noticed that the way in which Eve cups Annalise's face is almost identical to how Annalise cups Wes's face shortly after, when she's telling him to stop beating himself up?

And let's not forget about the parallels in Annalise's monologue at the start and end of the episode about your killer often being your lover, with a focus on Wes's face when the voiceover is about Rebecca, and we see Wes running away from the Hapstall mansion when the voiceover is about Annalise.

I don't think the writers ever intended for Wes and Annalise to hook up, though. My theory on why they often wrote scenes filled with sexual tension and shipped them in the subtext of the show was to emphasize how unhealthy and boundary-blurring their relationship is (which is once again typical for a trauma bond).

Hapstall case There was no case of the week in this episode, instead we were introduced to another season-long case: the case of Caleb and Catherine Hapstall, who are accused of murdering their adoptive parents.

Annalise has no clients since her reputation had taken a hit after Sam's murder, so when she sees the Hapstall case on the news, she decides to make their lawyer screw up to steal the case. Oliver obtains surveillance footage of Caleb and Catherine's aunt Helena Hapstall at a spa, so Laurel manipulates it to make it look like it was this year, and hands it to the lawyers. Turns out the footage was from a year earlier, so Caleb and Catherine fire their lawyer and hire Annalise. Catherine tells Annalise that someone is framing them.

At the end of the episode, Helena Hapstall is murdered, and since she testified in court that she saw Caleb and Catherine flee the scene of their adoptive parents' murder, it adds to their motive.

The flashforward to the season mystery About that flashforward at the end of the episode... Since this is a rewatch blog, I don't really feel like dissecting every flashforward because I already know what's going to happen in the midseason finale. The flashforward of this particular episode did nicely set up the season mystery, though: Annalise bleeding out on the floor of the Hapstall mansion and Wes running away, with the implication that he shot her.

Random thoughts and observations There's a notable shift in the show compared to season 1. First, flashforwards are fewer, and give a piece of the puzzle instead of some character background. Second, this season is incredibly Annalise-centric (with Wes as secondary lead and a few spotlight characters), while season 1 felt more balanced between Annalise and Wes, with the other students also getting a decent amount of screentime. I get that Annalise is the main character and Viola won an Emmy for her performance on the show, but especially on a rewatch, I wish others would get some more focus as well (there's still so much we don't know about Laurel's past, or even Connor's, by the end of the series).

I really loved the Lila Stangard case last season because both Annalise and Wes had personal stakes in it, which is something I find lacking with the Hapstall case. I do like the idea of a season-long case (and season 4 did it right again with Annalise's class action suit), but the Hapstall case is messy and lacked the fun twists that Lila's case had. I love season 2, but this is probably the weak spot of the season (especially knowing how it gets resolved).

Some other random thoughts:

Eve says some interesting things to Annalise when they fight in Eve's hotel lobby. "I'm not letting you ruin me the way you ruined him." That's another recurring theme: Annalise saying she ruins people.

I loved the parallels with the pilot episode: Wes on his bike, Annalise calling on Wes in class and Wes not answering, Wes studying alone in his room, Annalise rubbing Wes's chest... The writers love their Wes & Annalise parallels, and this episode was full of them.

The classroom scene about police immediately suspecting a loved one was great, especially in how it mirrored Annalise's suspicions of Wes.

I love that Connor has an Annalise ringtone xD

I also love that Annalise takes the students with her to a club. That was such a random and fun little montage.

Anyway, this was a banger of an episode and a fantastic way to start the new season :)

Rating: 10/10

[dana-watches-htgawm]

HTGAWM rewatch blog "He Deserved to Die" (1x07)

Wesbecca was my favorite ship, so an episode focusing on Wes & Rebecca is of course gonna be one of my favorites :)

This episode doesn't have a very clear theme, unlike some of the other episodes, but if there's one thing many characters have in common, it's that they are dealing with relationship issues. Annalise & Sam, Wes & Rebecca, Laurel & Kan/Frank, Michaela & Aiden, Connor...

In the spotlight this episode: Rebecca Sutter (& Wes Gibbins) Seriously, Rebecca gets more and more awesome on every rewatch. People tend to call her awful, but I really don't get why. Did she do an awful thing when she drugged Rudy? Yes. Is she a vulnerable orphan with no support system, a rough upbringing, and who always had to look out for herself? Also, yes. Does she have trust issues? Absolutely, but seeing her past, I wouldn't say that's surprising. Rebecca does the things she does because she's always had to fend for herself. I don't think she's a horrible person, she's just incredibly misunderstood by both people in the show and many viewers.

Rebecca doesn't trust people, so she has her walls up and acts snarky and manipulative around everyone. But underneath that mask is a very vulnerable person, who comes through when Lila's mother accuses her of killing Lila, and when Wes tries to kiss her. She's also protective of people she cares about, which we see in the present day where she manipulates Laurel and Michaela into shutting up about Rebecca sleeping with Wes, and also in the flashforward where she offers to take the fall to protect Wes.

Despite her armor, we've gradually seen her open up to Wes, and this episode marks another step in their relationship. Wes is very similar to Rebecca: he also had a rough upbringing, is the outsider, and doesn't let people in. He desperately tries to help Rebecca, but at the same time, she still knows little to nothing about him. In this episode, she calls him out on it twice: first when she teasingly calls him "the most privatest person ever," the second time when they fight and she asks him if his parents had issues and if that's why he's so obsessed with her life. She absolutely has a point there.

Wes just keeps insisting that he wants to help her, but if she doesn't want that, he'll stop. Which is honestly a bit manipulative and very characteristic of someone with a savior complex. I don't think Wes is doing it intentionally, unlike Annalise or Rebecca, who manipulate the hell out of people. But he is doing it, and it gives us a glimpse into Wes's dark past and how he has no idea how to be in a healthy relationship.

Wes and Rebecca then just... start making out... in the heat of the moment, which is also kinda toxic, and I guess that is expressed by intercutting their make-out scene with Lila's autopsy scene. I guess that's also a bit of foreshadowing that Rebecca is doomed, basically. She also showed up twice in a bathroom, once in the present day and once in the flashforward.

I love how Wes finally opens up to Rebecca. He tells her a lot of random things about his hobbies and his life, but also drops a bomb when he somewhat casually glosses over how his mom killed herself when he was 12. Rebecca stops him, but he barely seems to be able to talk about it, which shows how deeply that trauma or even PTSD is still buried. He tells her his mom is messed up, too, just like he is. Rebecca is there for him, accepts him.

I really, really love that moment after they made out and they're just lying in Wes's bed. I also love that Rebecca is looking for Wes's favorite ice cream when she's in the supermarket, and tells Nate that her "boyfriend" is waiting for her in the car. I just find it sweet how two guarded, somewhat broken outsiders open up to and protect each other.

In the flashforwards two weeks later, they are madly in love. Wes lifts her upstairs moments after Sam's death. He cleans the blood off her face. They kiss, and he tells her everything's gonna be fine over and over throughout their flashforward scenes. Is it? No, but that's his savior complex speaking. Rebecca lets Wes take care of her (which I think is very rare for Rebecca). Rebecca mostly looks out for herself, but her willingness to take the fall for Wes shows how much she cares about him.

The Lila Stangard case This episode didn't feature a case of the week, but focused solely on the Lila Stangard case. Rebecca and Griffin have their hearings, but things get a bit ugly as the press gets involved, rumors are spread, and plea deals are (almost) made.

Griffin's lawyer wants to exhumate Lila's body to prove Griffin's innocence, but Annalise and the prosecutor (Wendy Parks, who is one of the most awesome minor characters) are against it. Sam gives Annalise a hint on how to block it, but ultimately, the judge orders to continue with the exhumation. Turns out that some red marks were ant bites instead of Rebecca's fingernails, and Lila was six weeks pregnant.

Annalise and Sam have been working on their relationship. Annalise tells Sam she needs more time, but things improve throughout the episode. At least, until Bonnie reveals that Lila was pregnant. Annalise seems shattered while Sam couldn't look more guilty after that revelation.

Meanwhile, Nate confronts Annalise with planting Lila's phone in Griffin's car, and says he knows she doesn't believe that Sam is innocent. He approaches Rebecca in the convenience store and asks for her help to take Sam down. Nate, what the hell.

Wes & Annalise... don't really have any scenes together. Wes still seems to be a bit annoyed with her and intervenes when Annalise yells at Rebecca for not taking her trial prep seriously. Annalise still has a sweet spot when she actually listens to Wes's suggestion to take a break. But when Annalise & Rebecca team up to leak a fake story to the press, Wes is annoyed with both of them.

Just an observation, but Wes's behavior toward Rebecca is very similar to Annalise's behavior towards the Keating Five (and Wes especially) later on. In the flashforwards, Wes keeps telling Rebecca that he's just trying to help her and that things will be fine (even though he just killed a man), and Annalise constantly does that with people later on. Pete Nowalk has said in interviews that he sees Wes and Annalise as two sides of the same coin, and even though this episode showed once again how different their values are, they are very similar in the lengths they go to protect the people they love. Wes isn't the only one with a savior complex.

Wes and Annalise are both traumatized by losing people, feel they might be unlovable (or "messed up," as Wes calls himself), and basically have built a fortress around themselves. But deep down, they are both just craving connection. Wes finds it in Rebecca while Annalise works on restoring it with Sam, but eventually they'll find it in each other.

The Keating Five This episode didn't really have that many group scenes, but the moments they had together were mostly spent mocking Wes (or "Romeo") with his obvious crush on Rebecca. Asher thinks they are doing the nasty, Connor says some people just have it up for crazy, Michaela calls it inappropriate, and even Laurel seems a bit awkward when she says it's kinda sweet.

This episode has a few scenes in a row that are comedic gold. It starts with Bonnie asking the guys to go to a bar to get Wendy Parks's assistant to talk:

Asher: On it. Bonnie: Connor and Wes, you go, too. Asher: What do I need them for? Connor: This works on women as well as men. Bonnie: He's right. Rebecca: Hey, can I go, too? I'm really good at flirting with girls. Bonnie: I'm sure. You stay here with us. Rebecca: Girls' night. Whoo-hoo...

Followed by a scene where Rebecca skillfully manipulates both Laurel and Michaela to get them to stop talking about her and Wes. Laurel can be pretty manipulative, and she's also a bit more resistant to Annalise's manipulation than the others, but she's no match for Rebecca. Michaela is just incredibly easy to manipulate.

Next is the scene at the bar, where Connor is talking to the assistant, drunk, dumping his worries about him cheating on his girlfriend "Olive." Followed by a hilarious interaction between Wes, who only cares about getting the assistant to talk, and Asher, who just wants to "release the kraken." It's a mystery to me how Alfie (Wes) managed to keep a straight face while Matt (Asher) was saying the most ridiculous lines ever, but I love it xD.

Finally, Wes and a drunk Asher report back to Annalise and Bonnie. I love that interaction between Asher and Bonnie (and how he makes a complete idiot of himself in front of Annalise), before Wes steps in and kills the fun.

Oh, and for the record: it is Wes who got the assistant to talk. Not Asher, who insisted he didn't need Connor and Wes. Not Connor, who said 'this' works on both women and men. But the puppy. Don't underestimate the puppy.

Besides the comedic moments in this episode, the students also have some more serious individual plotlines:

Connor hooks up with a random guy through Humpr, but can't seem to get over Oliver. When Connor shows up in front of Oliver's door with flowers, a random guy opens and tells Connor to stay away.

Kan offers Laurel a job at Legal Aid, but Laurel is torn. Frank is still pissed at Laurel for telling him she's not interested, but when he finds out she's considering taking another job, he tells her he'll get over his feelings for Laurel. Laurel tells him she doesn't want him to get over it, and they kiss.

Michaela thinks she's invited for an interview at a famous law office, but when she shows up, it turns out Aiden's family wants her to sign a prenup.

(Asher... has the trophy, flirts with someone at the bar by using the lamest pick-up line ever, and gets drunk.)

A few other random observations Connor mentions that "Romeo saves Juliet again" implying Wes has been mediating between Annalise and Rebecca more than once. Not really an observation, but I just love that moment where Annalise yells at Rebecca, Wes proposes to take a break, and Annalise slowly turns to Wes without saying a word. It's such an awkward moment, I love it.

Annalise mentions having miscarriages. She may have been manipulating Wes in the pilot when she told him she and Sam were trying for a baby, but she wasn't entirely lying. We'll see it play out a bit through flashbacks in 3x05.

Also, I have a feeling the writers very intentionally had both Annalise bring up her miscarriages, and Wes bring up his mother's suicide in the same episode. Love how the writers are planting seeds for their relationship in the back half of season 1.

Rebecca is really smart, btw. During her psych evaluation with Sam in 1x05, she already said she had a high IQ. In this episode, she brings up the O.J. trial, showing she's clearly done her research, and we learn that she's really good at reading people. Annalise, Laurel, Michaela, Wes...

We can also piece together Wes's academic background based on this episode. He went to community college and got his degree from a night school. Wes is 21 throughout most of his 1L year (his DOB is 6 October 1993, this episode takes place early December 2014), so I suspect he graduated from high school at 17 and got an Associate's Degree at his community college at 19. He then may have transferred his credits to his night school and crammed a lot of courses into one year to obtain his degree at 20. In that same year, he was placed on the waitlist of an Ivy League-level university, which is seriously impressive when you think about it. Wes is really smart, he just doesn't brag about it.

Final thoughts This is one of my favorite episodes. It has some great comedy, is full of Wes & Rebecca moments, Wendy Parks and Keegan bring some spice to the court scenes, we get some more background on Wes... There are so many moments I like in this episode that I don't even notice the lack of Wes & Annalise scenes (and they still have their moments, even though they only happen in group scenes). I'd say this episode is an underrated gem, at least for the Wes and Rebecca fans out there.

Rating: 10/10

[dana-watches-htgawm]

HTGAWM rewatch blog "He Has a Wife" (1x08)

This is such a good episode, revolving around trust and betrayal. The case of the week was the least interesting part of the episode, but it was also a relatively short case. The main part of the episode focuses on flashbacks leading up to Lila's death, and the lead-up to the night of the bonfire.

Trust and betrayal In the case of the week, a wife discovers her husband cheated on her with the nanny, and then kills the nanny (and has the drugged wife clean up the mess) because the nanny cheated on the husband with the son. Yeah, that one was messed up. Trust and betrayal also show up numerous other times throughout the episode.

Annalise trusted Sam over and over: when he told her he didn't sleep with Lila, when he told her he taught his class at Yale that night, when he told her he wasn't aware of the pregnancy. And every single time, he lied. By the end of the episode, Annalise is just done with it. As she tells the client: "He lied to you, betrayed you, took advantage of your loyalty and trust. And that's unforgivable."

That's not the only betrayal happening in the episode. Annalise tells Wes about the pregnancy and asks him to keep it quiet from Rebecca, because Annalise is scared Rebecca will sabotage her case. Wes immediately tells Rebecca, who goes behind Wes's back and tells Nate.

And there's more betrayal. Sam betrays Annalise once again when he kisses Bonnie to try to keep Bonnie quiet. Bonnie stays loyal to Annalise, but Annalise sees the kiss as betrayal and fires Bonnie. Laurel feels betrayed by Frank when she realizes Frank has a girlfriend. Michaela feels somewhat betrayed by Aiden, who doesn't call her back or stick up for her to his mother. Michaela betrays Asher when she steals the trophy from under his nose.

The Keating Five With exams getting closer, the competition between Michaela and Connor is still there. Connor isn't really on his A-game this week, though. He gets a stern scolding from Annalise when he fails to get critical information from the client, which Michaela loves to rub in. Connor, in turn, refuses to include Michaela in his study group. When Michaela solves the case and is convinced she has earned the trophy, she gloats and isn't interested in the study group anymore.

Michaela doesn't have the trophy, though. Asher still has it, which he loves to tease the others with. After helping to win the case, Michaela asks Annalise for the trophy, but Annalise couldn't care less and just tells her, "I thought you had it." Michaela, feeling the stress of exams as well as a looming prenup, ends up stealing the trophy from Asher.

Connor, meanwhile, asks Wes and Laurel to form a study group. Wes and Laurel are just quietly working on the case and studying, but when they realize Connor has a copy of the exam of last year, they are more than eager to join.

I love the interactions between Connor and Wes: Wes just stares at Connor blankly when Connor asks him the first time about a study group, Connor's "dude, you should've told me you live in the ghetto" when he sees Wes's apartment, or his awkward "bitches be crazy" when Rebecca storms out after a fight with Wes. Gotta love snarky Connor.

What the students are up to Laurel is still hooking up with Frank. She slept (off screen) at his place, so he placed his photo on her phone. They hook up again in the car. And again on the night of the bonfire, but they are interrupted by Frank's girlfriend, who calls Laurel the "student of the month."

Michaela tries to reach Aiden, hoping he'll support her decision not to sign the prenup, but he doesn't pick up. Mrs. Walker shows up so Michaela heads to dinner with her for an awesome confrontation. We learn a bit more about Michaela, who tries to convince Mrs. Walker that she's not marrying Aiden for his money. But Mrs. Walker doesn't want to take any risks, and when Michaela refuses to sign, she threatens Michaela with sending her back to that "nasty, backwood, bayou swamp." Michaela loses it and tries to slap Mrs. Walker, but Mrs. Walker is too fast. She tells Michaela that she now knows she was right about her and leaves a rattled Michaela behind. Love the failed slap.

Asher is very relaxed because he has the trophy, which means he doesn't have to study. He's throwing a party before the bonfire and invites Bonnie, after Bonnie had to endure some verbal abuse by Annalise in front of everyone.

Connor doesn't do that much. He gets yelled at by Annalise, and convinces Wes and Laurel to join a study group. Wes is dealing with Annalise and Rebecca.

Lila Stangard case This episode saw some major progress in Lila's case: Lila was pregnant, and the extent of Sam's lies becomes clearer to the people closest to him. Meanwhile, Nate and Rebecca team up to take Sam down. This episode didn't have flashforwards, but flashbacks leading up to Lila's death.

The sweetest flashbacks ever Ohh I love those flashbacks of Rebecca and Lila on the rooftop. We see a very different side of Rebecca, and their friendship was uncommon but also felt very genuine. My favorite moment is when Rebecca bursts out laughing when she sees Mr. Darcy's photo on Lila's phone.

Lila gushes to Rebecca about "Mr. Darcy," and how it didn't hurt. She doesn't tell Rebecca she was pregnant, but she confides in Rebecca when Sam wants to end it, and when she's clearly upset, she asks Rebecca to stay. Rebecca does. Takes her hand. Supports her in silence.

On the evening Lila was killed, she headed to the Keating House upset to tell Annalise. But unfortunately for her, Bonnie opens the door, sends Lila away, and doesn't say a word to either Annalise or Sam. At least until in the present day.

Poor Bonnie Bonnie is probably my least favorite character on the show, but I can't help but feel sorry for her in this episode. First of all for Annalise forcing her to stay in the room while Annalise confronts Sam about getting Lila pregnant. Awkward. Sam tells Annalise that he didn't know, but Bonnie remembers Lila showing up at the house, so she confronts Sam with his lie (seriously, Sam just can't stop lying). Sam kisses Bonnie to keep her quiet. Ugh.

Bonnie just couldn't win in this scenario. She's getting manipulated by someone she has feelings for. She could've kept it from Annalise and deal with the guilt for kissing her boss's husband, or tell Annalise the truth. Bonnie chooses the latter, and gets fired for it. Even though Sam came onto her. Bonnie, in tears and on her knees, literally begs Annalise for forgiveness, but for Annalise this is like the ultimate betrayal, and she doesn't want to have anything to do with Bonnie anymore. Annalise and Bonnie's relationship is just so strained in season 1.

Annalise is done with Sam That scene in Annalise's office where Annalise tells Wes about Lila's pregnancy but asks Wes not to tell Rebecca, really felt like a "no matter what, do not touch the red button" moment. Wes is suspicious of Annalise's intentions and asks her why she's telling him, to which Annalise gives him the most manipulative/seductive smile ever and answers with "because I've learned my lesson about keeping secrets from you." So did she really trust Wes, and did he go behind her back when he told Rebecca? Or did she fully expect him to tell Rebecca?

I suspect the latter, seeing how unfazed she was when Sam tells her Rebecca dropped by the house, suspecting Wes told Rebecca. I think Annalise is just done with Sam's lies and wants to turn him in, but she also didn't want to get her hands dirty. So she tells Wes, hoping that Wes and Rebecca go to the police 'behind her back'.Rebecca wants to, but Wes stops her because Sam might have an alibi, and they still need Annalise to win her case

She's setting us up, you do get that? Annalise doesn't do anything without some sort of plan. So her telling me Lila's pregnant, then sending her boyfriend?

Wes sees right through Annalise. Sure, he was wrong about the boyfriend part, but his killer instincts were right about the rest.

(If Annalise would've just told Wes the full story, that Sam drove back to Philly that night and had no alibi, her plan might've worked... but Annalise, in true Annalise-fashion, loves to withhold information).

Sam starts to freak out a bit when Rebecca drops by the house, suspects she knows about the pregnancy, and asks Annalise if he should talk to the police. Annalise is just distracted. Sam asks Annalise not to give up on him. Tells her he's the one who broke them, and that he'll do whatever he can to make things right again.... (like, kissing Bonnie....)

Nate, Wes, and Rebecca After Annalise told Wes about the pregnancy, Wes of course immediately tells Rebecca. But instead of going to the police, he asks her to wait and let him handle it. Rebecca doesn't, but turns to Nate for help. So Nate, a grown-ass man, asks a 21-year-old girl to go into the house of a suspected murderer to grab a DNA sample, and when that fails, asks her to steal data off Sam's laptop. All because he lost his job for snooping around. Dude...

Nate played a huge part in Sam's death, but I don't think he was aware of that, at least not until probably the final episode when it turns out he read Wes's confession letter with the real version of what happened that night... Maybe that's why he ultimately flipped on the stand and supported Annalise. Anyway...

When Wes realizes Rebecca is working together with Nate, he is furious. He tells her, "I tell you everything. Things no one knows about me. You just went behind my back like it's nothing." Rebecca tells him she's honest now, but Wes responds with, "It's hard for me to believe that." In all honesty, Wes has major trust issues, so I think it's hard for him to believe anyone... which is also why Rebecca's 'betrayal' hit so hard for him. He rarely opens up to people out of fear that they'll eventually leave him, but he opened up to her, and she lied to him.

Rebecca cares a lot about Wes, is grateful for his help, and just wants to do something for him after everything he did for her (and let's be honest, she also wanted the charges against her dropped). So she goes ahead with Nate's plan anyway, despite Wes's objections.

The lead-up to Sam's murder I love how by the end of the episode, all the pieces are in place.

Connor shows up at Wes's apartment for their study group and basically walks in on a fight between Wes and Rebecca. The latter storms off. Laurel, still a bit emotional after finding out Frank has a girlfriend, arrives shortly after.

Wes is trying to talk to Rebecca, who is just blasting music from her apartment, but when Connor says that maybe she's not even there, Wes realizes Rebecca took the flash drive and is on her way to the Keating House. So Wes asks Connor if he has his car with him, and takes off with Connor and Laurel to stop Rebecca. Meanwhile, Michaela is also en route to the house with the stolen trophy.

We end the episode with Annalise and Sam. Through the case of the week, Annalise slowly comes to terms with how Sam's constant betrayal is unforgivable. When she finds out Sam knew about the pregnancy and kissed Bonnie, she makes her next move: telling the D.A. to take DNA samples of all the men in Lila's life, including Lila's teachers.

Some random thoughts and observations This episode really highlights two characteristics of Annalise that constantly pop up throughout the show. The first one is that Annalise really doesn't want to get her own hands dirty, so she often has other people do things for her. It's also why there is no concrete evidence of her involvement in Sam's murder: she orders people around (Nate, Frank, and Wes especially) while her hands remain clean. The second one is that Annalise uses information as power, something Michaela explicitly tells Gabriel in season 6. Annalise does it when she tells Wes about the pregnancy, but she doesn't tell him the full truth.

Also on the topic of Annalise, she says to herself, "this is what happens when you screw somebody else's husband." I wonder who she is talking about. Does she refer to Vivian, Sam's first wife who she and Sam cheated on? Or is this also about Nia? I guess it's Vivian, but I'm still not entirely sure.

Was there some very subtle foreshadowing again? When Annalise is teaching and talks about sleeping pills, the camera pans to Wes almost immediately after. Wes struggles with insomnia, which has also been hinted at in 1x02 when he was still awake at 3:48. When the client says something about killing someone she loved, the camera focuses on Wes again, subtly foreshadowing how his actions in the back half of the season ultimately lead to Rebecca's death?

Connor tells Wes "Dude, you should've told me you lived in the ghetto, we could've done the study group at my place," which makes me wonder, why did they agree on Wes's place if Connor was the one who suggested the study group? (Okay I know that the answer is that it needed to happen for the plot, but I just wish we would've gotten a glimpse of Connor's apartment because his apartment is the only one we never get to see).

Final thoughts I didn't think the case of the week was that interesting, but I loved everything else in this episode. I especially remember that anticipation on my first watch, when Michaela is having dinner with Mrs. Walker while we see students on the street beginning the bonfire festivities. I really love the build-up to the midseason finale.

Rating: 9/10

[dana-watches-htgawm]

HTGAWM rewatch blog "Freakin' Whack-a-Mole" (1x06)

This episode is such a fun one. The theme of this episode is creating your own truth, or as Annalise tells the students: "The justice system doesn't always reward those who tell the truth... but those who have the power to create their own." Senator Trucco has that power. He framed an innocent black man for a murder, so Annalise is desperately fighting to get her client off of death row. It's one of the more emotional cases, and the relief and emotion on Annalise's face when she wins is telling.

I love the duality of Annalise's character in this episode. She is doing everything she can to get her client free, but she also frames Griffin (who is innocent!) for killing Lila to protect Sam and get Wes off her back. How can a person who is so insistent on saving an innocent man also frame another innocent person as if it's nothing?

Another theme in this episode is daddy issues. Asher is shocked to learn that his father, Judge Millstone, played a role in convicting an innocent client. Annalise tells Asher he's not the only one disappointed by his father, hinting Annalise may have some daddy issues as well (and yes, she does, as we learn in season 2). The camera also pans to Bonnie and Laurel whenever fathers are brought up. Finally, when Michaela asks Connor if he would like it if someone would look into his dad, Connor responds with "sure, maybe they could actually tell me something about the guy."

In the spotlight this episode: Asher Millstone Over the past few episodes, we've come to know Asher as a highly competitive douchebag, and everyone at the Keating house seems to be annoyed with his tactless remarks. This episode also gives us a flash of Asher's rage issues. At the same time, we saw a softer side of Asher when he was crying in the previous episode after they got the client's sentence reduced.

This episode gives us a bit more background on Asher. His dad has already been brought up by Laurel in 1x02 when she says Asher was picked because of his dad, and by Frank in 1x03 when Asher shows up to the house with info he got through his dad to help win their case. In this episode, Asher realizes that the reason Annalise picked him for the Keating Five was purely because of his dad, and the possibility that her appeal on the David Allen case was granted.

Asher comes from a very wealthy and prestigious family, and his father is a well-respected lawyer. We see Asher's apartment (which is a stark contrast with Wes's), as well as his family's fancy house. We've seen how competitive Asher is, even in this episode when Wes doesn't show up to class but leaves the trophy on his desk, Asher only cares about the trophy being back in play. But we also see a different side to Asher. He feels betrayed when he realizes his father closed an eye and let a perjured testimony slip through, to further his own career. So he outs his father to Annalise, but on the condition that his father's name stays out of it, and he gets the trophy.

Asher wants to do the right thing, but just as Annalise, he's still protecting someone he loves despite knowing they did something bad. He also wants to win the trophy. I loved the interaction he and Annalise have in her office. Asher doesn't really respect her as much as the others seem to, so he negotiates with her ("like I'm gonna tell you that before you agree to my demand"), and I love the amused look on Annalise's face when he demands the trophy.

We also get our first glimpse of Bosher, as Asher literally calls them "Team Bosher" when Annalise tells him to accompany Bonnie to talk to the key witness. Bonnie seems proud and amused when Asher demands from Annalise that he get the trophy. She is warming up a bit to Asher, and as we see in the flashforwards, they will be hooking up on the night of Sam's murder. It is Asher whom Bonnie seeks out/uses as a distraction when she's going through a rough patch.

The Keating Five Annalise basically demands that the students stay at her house to work on the David Allen case. We see them in the same outfits for three days, and they are spending two nights crashing on couches, chairs, or even just the ground. Which also means that they have a lot of interactions together, and the rivalry between them is as good as ever.

Everyone is annoyed with Asher, as usual. The bickering between Michaela and Connor continues when they bring up Connor's daddy issues and Michaela's gay fiancé. I also love how Michaela is hesitant to tell Annalise about Asher's father's corruption in front of Asher, but Connor just doesn't care. People who claim Michaela is selfish are so wrong, she actually is one of the characters with the most empathy. Not only in the present-day moments, but also in the flashforwards where Michaela and Wes are the ones opposed to incriminating Asher, while Laurel, Connor, and Rebecca want to let him in the house and make him a suspect.

Laurel once again stands up for Wes, multiple times even. She's the only one who seems worried about him when he doesn't show up to class, while the others seem thrilled to have less competition. She defends him after he arrives with Annalise at the house. She tells the others to stop when they all gang up on Wes for possibly sleeping with Rebecca. Laurel really aligns herself with Wes, the poor kid who just wants to help people.

At the same time, Laurel has no issues confronting Asher with the fact that he spends his summer holiday at Kennebunkport, and when she joins Wes in calling Asher out on his dad's corruption. Wes rarely snaps, but I really love it when he claps back at Asher with his "the guy with the corrupt dad doesn't get to say crap to me right now." Connor and Michaela jump in as well. Yeah, no one really likes highly competitive and elitist Asher.

Wes is still the outsider of the group, and Annalise's favoritism once again is not helping. They all knew Annalise picked him up after missing class. Which is incredibly weird from a student's perspective, and I totally get their suspicions and frustrations. I just feel sorry for Wes, it's not like he asked for Annalise to pick him up either.

Lila Stangard Case This episode was more focused on the case of the week than on Lila's case, but there were still some developments, now that Rebecca ran away, Wes knows Sam is involved, and Annalise has to try to keep Wes under control.

Frank's whereabouts in this episode I completely missed this on my first watch, but Frank is spying on our puppy for a large part of the episode. He calls Annalise to tell her she can go over to Wes's apartment, so in other words, he's been lurking outside of his apartment all day waiting for Wes to come home. Laurel mentions it too, when she asks him if he was doing "spy duties" for Annalise (possibly not realizing she was actually right). Once Annalise has Wes somewhat under control again, she has Frank spy on Rebecca and plant Lila's phone in Griffin's car.

Flaurel, and Bonnie's protectiveness over her 'family' We get some glimpses of how observant Laurel is in this episode. She notices Frank sneaking off, she sees Wes confronting Annalise at the house, and realizes Rebecca ran away, so she asks Frank about Rebecca's whereabouts. Laurel has never been interested in being at the "kiddie table."

Bonnie gets protective of Frank. She tells Laurel she sees the way they are looking at each other, and also "it's not Frank a rich girl like you ends up with, is it?" Bonnie's manipulation of Laurel is top-tier, when she tells her "you're becoming a real asset to this team. I would hate for Annalise to find out you were screwing with someone she considers family." Damn. It works; Laurel tells Frank she's not interested.

Annalise has been very dismissive over Bonnie in the previous episode. They have no real interactions in this episode. However, Bonnie is clearly protecting Annalise, as she tells Sam in no unclear words. It's honestly a bit sad how normal the verbal abuse Bonnie suffers from Annalise has become.

Wes & Annalise Bonnie isn't the only one with a complicated relationship with Annalise. This episode had some very intense moments between Wes and Annalise as well.

First of all, they had the continuation of the confrontation in Annalise's bedroom. Annalise is freaking out, while Wes calmly tells her "you just can't stop lying. You're disgusting. You disgust me," and then walks away. Wes crosses so many lines here... He has a point because Annalise has been lying to him, but dude, boundaries.

Wes is just done with Annalise. I love that he went all the way to the classroom just to place the trophy on the desk. It's so petty, but also has such a huge effect on Annalise. She literally zones out in the middle of teaching a class when she spots the trophy on his empty desk, tries to call him immediately after class, and then drops by his apartment to manipulate/seduce him once again. She even returns the trophy to him after he basically gave it back. Wes really can't lose that trophy no matter how hard he tries.

I love the symbolism of the trophy. Lady Justice symbolizes, well, justice. Wes leaving it on his desk is a reminder for Annalise of what justice is, and Wes refusing to take it back is also a way of him telling her that receiving a trophy representing justice doesn't mean anything when it comes from a morally ambiguous person like Annalise.

Annalise is desperate to keep Wes under control, so she shows up at his apartment, unannounced. While in the opening scene (and 1x05) Wes barged into Annalise's bedroom while she was only wearing a nightgown, here Annalise visits Wes's apartment while he's still soaking wet from a shower and only wrapped in a towel... Love the parallel. I also have no idea why he even lets her in.

Anyway, Wes is not having it. As that sexual tension is present once again, this time it's not throwing Wes off, but he's using it to stand his ground against Annalise. I'm sorry, but that scene is just insane... Wes intently staring at her while he slowly buttons up his shirt? Annalise actually looking away for a change and then asking him if the scratches on his wall are his and Rebecca's? Annalise slowly sitting down on his bed and asking him what he wants? That "Stop this." "Stop what?" "You know what." interaction? It's so inappropriate... and so deliciously good. These two have absolutely no idea what boundaries are... or maybe they do and they just don't care.

Wes doesn't fall for her tricks and just... blackmails Annalise:

So prove it. Find her, and bring her back here. Whatever it takes. Or I swear to God I'll tell the police everything.

I love how Annalise actually looks cornered at the end of the scene. Same in her house when Wes asks her for an update, she tries to evade the question and he just responds with "I don't care." Annalise has shown before that she knows how to control Wes, but Wes also knows very well how to control Annalise.

And then there is their office scene after Annalise framed Griffin. The manipulation in that office scene with Wes... The slow realization on Wes's face as he realizes Annalise has framed a likely innocent person is priceless. He's just so annoyed and disgusted with her. But when she reminds him of his own "whatever it takes," he has nothing to say.

Anyway, in case you haven't noticed yet, I just love how unhinged Wes and Annalise's scenes are, and this was a good episode for that.

Rebecca's return Wes isn't the only one disgusted with Annalise framing Griffin. Rebecca is annoyed, too, but Wes tries to convince both himself and Rebecca that this is a good thing. I really love the complexity of Wes in that moment. You can tell that deep down he doesn't agree either, but Annalise got to him, and he also knows that now Rebecca really has a shot to win her case. I just love their small interaction:

Rebecca: How are you okay with this? Wes: Because you told me you didn't do it. And unless you're lying to me... I don't think you should go to jail for something you didn't do. Rebecca: No one's ever believed in me like this before. Wes: I know. Come home. Let her defend you.

It's subtle, but we do get a bit more background on both Wes and Rebecca. Annalise calls Wes out for "putting your blind faith in someone you barely even know," and when she asks Wes if he has a crush on Rebecca, he doesn't deny it but just says it's not about a crush, but about doing the right thing (I wonder about that, though). Anyway, Rebecca also called him out in the last episode for pretending to be a lawyer and sneaking into the police station for someone he barely knows. His "I know" could indicate that Wes never had anyone believing in him either, so that could be why he believes Rebecca, someone he sees himself in.

As for Rebecca, it is once again brought up she's a drug dealer, and it's clear from her interaction with Wes that she is also not used into people believing in her.

In the end, Rebecca decides to come back, and she and Wes head to Annalise's house to prep her trial. Meanwhile, Nate is watching from his car, and he knows Annalise had Frank plant the phone in Griffin's car.

Some final words on Annalise & Sam Both Annalise and Sam are freaking out a bit in this episode. Sam suggests he should just go to the police and talk to them before Wes goes, but Annalise reassures him that Wes is just a "confused child" and she'll handle it. They don't really interact much in this episode, and the moment Annalise is unraveling, it's alone in her office. There is a moment at the end of the episode where Sam asks her why she's protecting him, she starts crying, and tells him it's because she needs him. I think Annalise is scared of being alone and really needs people to feel in control: it's why he protects Sam, why she sleeps with Nate when their marriage is unraveling, why she keeps Bonnie around despite her obvious resentment toward Bonnie, and why in future episodes she's hellbent on keeping Wes close.

We also see Annalise in a flashforward to the night Sam was killed, and it's framed as if she saw the rug missing, and immediately called Bonnie because she knew something was wrong. On my first watch, I was so curious to how Annalise was gonna find out the students had something to do with Sam's death. I seriously binged every episode, and omg that twist at the end of 1x09.... But I'll save that for when we get there!

Final thoughts The Lila Stangard case was placed a bit on the back burner, so the case of the week and characters had their chance to shine. One of the most interesting parts of HTGAWM is the character dynamics, and this episode has a lot of it.

Rating: 9/10

[dana-watches-htgawm]

HTGAWM rewatch blog "We're Not Friends" (1x05)

This episode is all about emotion vs. law. Laurel feels for the client, and breaks the law by tampering with the jury. Annalise's emotions regarding Sam's involvement with Lila prevent her from turning in Lila's phone to the police, to protect Sam from becoming a possible suspect.

Annalise tells the jury in her closing statement: "Don't send this young man to prison for doing the same thing you would've done for someone you loved. You would protect them, and that is not a crime," essentially playing on their emotions. I love how this is also foreshadowing Wes killing Sam to protect Rebecca, and Annalise protecting Wes in the aftermath.

This episode also revolves around people lying: the episode starts with Annalise calling Sam out for lying to her, Nate accuses Annalise of lying to him, Annalise calls Bonnie out for lying about how she got Rebecca's confession tape, and she calls Frank out for lying about who leaked information on jury nullification to the jury. She also gets called out by Wes, who realizes she lied about the picture on Lila's phone.

In the spotlight this episode: Laurel Castillo Laurel is an idealist: we see it in this week's case about defending a minor who protected his mother from his abusive father, in her budding friendship with similar-minded Wes, and especially in her interest in Kan and Legal Aid.

Laurel wants to help people. Annalise still doesn't seem to be very impressed with Laurel, and calls her a show-off in class when she gives a correct answer. Despite not caring as much about Annalise's validation as Connor, Michaela, or Asher, Laurel still wants to prove herself. So she informs the jury of nullification, which ultimately leads to a mistrial. Frank protects Laurel by not ratting her out to Annalise, but Laurel is disappointed in him for not telling Annalise. Even if Laurel doesn't care as much about Annalise's praise as some of the other students, she still wants it.

Laurel's love life There's a bit of a love triangle going on between Laurel, Frank, and Kan. Laurel and Kan are seemingly in a relationship: Laurel is spending a lot of time working (or making out) with Kan at Legal Aid. Meanwhile, Frank asks her out for lunch, and is clearly crushing on her. After a heated argument about Laurel's jury-tampering, they kiss. Laurel breaks it off, though, tells him she has a boyfriend, and proceeds to make out with Kan at Legal Aid.

Laurel's relationship with Frank is also the focus of the flashforwards. Frank keeps calling her, and when confronted by the others, Laurel admits to sleeping with Frank and that she's a cheater. She doesn't want to talk to Frank, but the others later insist she pick up the phone to establish their alibi. Laurel is pissed, though, telling Frank how she's just another person on his list of student conquests.

Laurel is allowed to cheat on Kan with Frank, but when Frank has a girlfriend, she gets pissed. A bit of a double standard, but who doesn't have those on the show.

Foreshadowing Laurel's past This episode gives us some implicit foreshadowing to Laurel's past. When Frank asks her, "Why the hell are you so worked up about this case, anyway? Unless your father beat you," Laurel scoffs, but there's some truth to it. Laurel's interest in the case can easily be connected to her own family situation: the father in the case was a cop who abused his wife, so even if the client called for help, there was no point due to his father's job. So he shot his father to protect his mother. We know that Laurel's mother was also a victim of Laurel's father, that Laurel's father put her into a mental institution, and is a very manipulative, powerful, and almost untouchable man. In the series finale, Laurel ends up getting her father killed with help from Tegan, so that she and Christopher will be safe.

I love how the editing very subtly gives hints toward character backgrounds. When Annalise says "sociopath who hated his father," the camera focuses on Laurel... who hates her father, and will be referred to as a sociopath by Connor much later on. That's not the only hint in the editing: when Annalise talks about the "mother's abuse," the camera jumps to Wes, again (see 1x02).

A bit about Wes's "issues" and his relationships There's more foreshadowing when it comes to Wes, not only about his mother potentially being abused (which, as we find out in season 2, she was).

Wes & Rebecca Wes has been keeping his distance from Rebecca, not sure if Rebecca wants to talk to him. Rebecca, lonely and bored, seeks him out. When she barges into his room to steal his pizza, she calls him out on pretending to be a lawyer to talk to a neighbor he barely knows, and says he's got issues. Wes doesn't deny it. When Rebecca says she likes making people feel uncomfortable, he points out he's not the only one with issues.

I really like how Rebecca softens up to him. She still has her walls up, but after everything Wes has done for her and trusting him with the info on Lila's phone, he seems to have broken through to them. It's a one-way street, though; Wes is still a mystery to Rebecca for now.

On a rewatch, it's much easier to attribute Wes's behavior around Rebecca to a savior complex. I also brought it up in my 1x03 blog, but Wes connects with Rebecca, believes she's innocent, and desperately wants to help her, possibly for not being able to save his own mother. In this episode, he once again crosses a line in doing so though...

Wes & Annalise Wes just walking into Annalise's bedroom late at night while calling her a liar is not normal or healthy... at all. Annalise has been coming onto him a few times (including in a scene that sadly got deleted from this episode), but Wes also has no idea what boundaries are. There's a connection between Wes and Annalise that goes both ways, and while the previous two episodes hightlighted the weak spot Annalise had for Wes, in this episode we once again get a glimpse of the pull Wes feels toward her (whether positive or negative), and on a rewatch we know this is connected to the "issues" Rebecca referred to.

Wes is lonely and guarded, but when people start to trust him or open up to him, he starts clinging, too. I'd say he's very torn about Annalise in this episode: on one hand, she's taken on Rebecca's case, has given him the trophy, and put her trust in him. She's giving him special treatment, everyone has been picking up on that, and I think it's also drawing Wes to her, because he's not used to being valued. But on the other hand, she also lies to him, and when Wes feels betrayed, he gets reckless, which is something that'll come back a few times.

I love how Wes confronts Annalise, though. People tend to tiptoe around her, but Wes has no issues calling her out on her manipulation and lies. It's not the first time, and definitely not the last time. I also love how he gets away with it.

The Keating Five Wes and Laurel are not the only ones who are annoyed with Annalise. When Annalise tells the K5 to stay up and go through the client's blog, they all seem annoyed (especially Michaela).

I love how the relationships between the K5 members keep developing, as subtle as they are. Wes and Laurel share more sweet moments, and in this episode it's Wes who is supportive of Laurel. Michaela and Connor are still enemies, in this episode Michaela shuts Connor up when she mentions his boy problems (also subtly hinting at Connor's broken heart over Oliver, together with Connor constantly being on Humpr potentially looking for a rebound). Asher is still not a fan of Laurel and her "cute" scoring card, but he is warming up to Connor. Asher is especially fascinated with Connor being gay, and makes multiple jokes and remarks throughout the episode.

The Lila Stangard case Things are progressing quickly in this episode: we start with Annalise confronting Sam about lying to her, and admitting he slept with Lila over the summer. (Btw, Sam's behavior in that scene was absolutely disgusting). After class, Wes suggests to Annalise that she hand Lila's phone over to the police, but Annalise doesn't want to (to protect Sam), which leaves Wes confused.

Annalise, conflicted about Sam's involvement with Lila, is unraveling and seeks out Nate again. Nate is done with her, though. He got fired after Bonnie blackmailed his boss for Rebecca's confession tape and blames Annalise for it. He calls Sam a killer and tells her Sam drove back to Philly on the night Lila was killed, leaving Annalise in shock.

What follows is the first solo-scene between Annalise and Bonnie, and a tense one at that. The show has already been hinting at Bonnie's feelings toward Sam since the very first episode, but in this particular moment, Annalise clearly shows her awareness when she sarcastically thanks Bonnie for protecting her husband. Their relationship was so strained at the start of the show, with Bonnie just quietly standing there and apologizing, while Annalise acts ice cold.

So Annalise confronts Sam with his whereabouts on the night of Lila's murder, and has Wes and Rebecca come over so Sam can do a psych evaluation on Rebecca, but really just to check if Rebecca knows Sam was sleeping with Lila. Rebecca seems clueless, but just like Sam, lies about Lila's phone, claiming Lila left it at her apartment the night before she was killed.

This episode has another explosive ending: Wes comes home the next day and sees that Rebecca's apartment is empty, so he calls her. Rebecca is not sure if she can trust him or Annalise and tells him to check the wallpaper in Annalise's bedroom. Just like how the episode started with a confrontation in Annalise's bedroom, it also ends with one, but this time it's Wes calling Annalise a liar. Love the parallel.

Final thoughts One reason why I keep rewatching this show is because of the subtle foreshadowing in every episode. I've lost count on how much I've rewatched the first 2,5 seasons, but I keep picking up new things.

I personally enjoy the flashy over-the-top cases and Annalise kicking ass in court. This episode had a bit less of that, and more emotional Annalise and Laurel/Frank/Kan antics... which I personally don't care that much for. I still really like this episode though, especially for the K5 dynamic which remains a highlight for me, the variation in the case of the week, and the developments in the Lila Stangard case now that Rebecca is out of jail and Annalise (and Wes) know about Sam's involvement.

Rating: 8/10