HOLLYWOOD—There has been one show that has been a guilty pleasure since its very first episode. That show is none other than the ABC hit “How to Get Away With Murder.” The first half of the season culminated with the revelation that Wes was responsible for killing Professor Keating’s husband, Sam.
So how would the first season wrap? Let’s just say it was 2 hours of jam packed surprises and a jaw-dropping cliffhanger fans will be talking about until the show returns from hiatus. The first episode, ‘The Night Lila Died’ answered the question we’ve all have been dying to know? Who killed Lila? And that person was JACK! Oh, yes a surprise to say the least, but we have to rewind a bit on the big revelation.
The episode opened with Wes and Laurel debating precisely what happened to Rudy and why Rebecca lied. A flashback revealed Rudy in his room listening to Rebecca and Lila arguing in her room about Griffin and her life being ruined by Rebecca’s influence, and how Rudy spied on the tiff between the two friends. The audience soon learns that Rebecca was hanging out with Griffin as they did drugs, and she texted Lila from his phone staging a set-up.
The narrative later moved to Connor and Oliver testing their relationship by Oli asking Connor to get tested. Back in the courtroom Jack made it known to Bonnie he knows about her hookup with Asher, just as Annalise took on her next case involving a priest accused of murder. Wes and Laurel continued digging as they reviewed transcripts from Rebecca’s confession, as they were interrupted by Michaela. The Keating five took a field trip to the church, were Father Bernard was murdered.
The priest revealed to Annalise and Bonnie that he killed Father Bernard because he was molesting a student named Brian who killed himself. Whoa, how do you tackle such a complex case without going against your ethics? In a flashback, Lila did indeed catch Griffin and Rebecca in bed and confronted the duo before storming off, which led to Wes and Laurel continuing to decipher precisely what went down, just as it was revealed she was heading back to the dorms.
Annalise had Jack use his connection at the correctional facility to implement an attack on Nate; that lady is one wicked soul to say the least. Bonnie was shaken when she learned Annalise was behind the attack on Nate and her plan backfired. Another flashback reveals Rebecca sneaking into the frat house the night of Lila’s murder. Laurel and Wes’ secret conversations sparked the interest of Connor and Michaela who became entangled in the murder mystery.
Nate got released from prison, and confronted Annalise about her recent betrayal. Rebecca found herself confronted by Wes, Laurel, Michaela and Connor about the night Lila died. She admitted that the campus cop was stalking students; it was planned by Annalise, just as Rebecca made threats to use what she knows to her advantage. Annalise arrived at Wes’ apartment and looked in the bathroom where she found Rebecca tied up and gagged.
The second half of the season finale opened with a bunch of chaotic images, as Annalise questioned the truth about Sam’s involvement in Lila’s case and decided to have a chat with Rebecca. Another flashback revealed Sam and Lila having a heated phone conversation. A constrained Rebecca was brought to Annalise home, where Frank made threats if she didn’t cooperate.
Bonnie was busy getting cozy with Asher, while Frank did his best to reach her. Another flashback to that fateful night, revealed Bonnie listening in to Annalise’s conversation with Sam. It led to Bonnie informing Lila to leave the premises. Hmm, that means Bonnie knew what transpired all along and she kept it secret, lying to her boss about who the girl really wanted to see.
Annalise was forced to interrupt her grilling of her students, as she found herself being interviewed by the prosecution. Bonnie was a bit uneasy as her boss continued to weave lie after lie about what happened the night Sam was murdered.
Another interesting tidbit involved Lila confessing to Sam that was she on the roof and planning to commit suicide, but Griffin ran to the roof and screamed for his girlfriend who hid on top of the water tank. Sam met Lila on the roof where she confessed she was not going to have an abortion.
Rebecca did her best to get inside Connor’s head, which left the others debating that perhaps Rebecca didn’t tell any lies. They were petrified when Asher came knocking, and busted into the house, but surprise they were all hiding out in the basement. Bonnie and Asher shared a moment about their relationship, just as Frank decided to teach Rebecca a lesson about making threats.
Jack made the moves on Laurel, which unnerved his lover as she thought he was capable of bad things. Michaela had lunch with Aiden’s mother, who admitted that she was visiting to try to save her son’s relationship and she made a stance that deserved an Oscar!
Annalise decided to have a conversation with Rebecca to discover just what she was hiding, but she wouldn’t budge. She demanded Wes get Rebecca to talk about what truly transpired and he took action. She admitted that she gave Rudy PCP and Purple X to keep him from talking. She revealed that she was wet because she was hiding in the water tank where she found Lila’s dead body and hid as others hid on the roof.
No one wanted to believe what Wes was selling, but it did indeed make logical sense, but Annalise was not convinced of any of the stories her students told. Bonnie unleashed holy hell on the law students, just as Annalise went into a tirade realizing that Rebecca was missing. Want to guess who let her go? Yep, it was puppy dog Wes.
The final 10 minutes of the show was packed with so much craziness. Asher received a visit from the prosecutor about Annalise. Connor was destroyed to learn that Oliver tested positive and a flashback revealed Rebecca sneaking into the sorority house. Michaela and Laurel decided to share drinks, just as Laurel revealed she had Michaela’s ring all along.
On the roof, Rebecca spotted Lila’s phone as an incoming call came through. As Sam passionately kissed Lila, he left the scene, just as he made a call from a pay phone asking for someone to take care of something. So who was the person who murdered Lila? It was JACK! Jeez, I didn’t see that one coming at all, I was certain it was Bonnie.
The final moments saw Annalise return to the basement where she asked Jack if he was the culprit, and he asked if she did the deed. Why? Because Rebecca’s dead body was hidden under the stairs! Yes, a game-changer to say the least! I did not see that one coming from a mile away. So the big question everyone wants to know is precisely why did Jack kill Lila, what did Sam have on him? More importantly does Annalise know that her right-hand man killed her hubby’s mistress?
That might have been the best 2 hours of television in my life. What sucks is the fact that fans have to wait till fall 2015 before the series returns. Let’s just say to those “How to Get Away With Murder” fanatics will have to watch this episode a second time to truly relish on all the juicy narrative and suspense-filled series this show can be.
