How To Get Away With Murder 1×02 – It’s All Her Fault

I was worried that after a highly entertaining pilot, the second episode would flop somewhere. Luckily, it didn’t, but there seems to be a few issues that the show isn’t handling very well.

For one thing, the flashforwards didn’t seem interesting this time around. We had seen most of the scenes in the pilot, so nothing was quite surprising, until that ending. It should’ve been more powerful, the twist that the students are covering up for Rebecca possibly killing Annalise’s husband, but it wasn’t powerful nor was it exciting. The problem is that we just aren’t there yet: the characters we are seeing are not developed enough to the point where we can see them care for each other that much. They are not at the same place right now than they are in the flashforwards, and that makes it tough for us.

With Annalise’s husband possibly being connected to his dead student’s murder, it felt like the show was forcing us to believe that Annalise would be the one to kill him—and that’s who the students are covering up for. But that didn’t do it for me; I wasn’t invested in believing that, but I can’t say I like where the flashforward is going. I have zero interest in that Rebecca person so far. And is she trying to frame Wes in the present-time by leaving a phone in his bathroom?

While I had issues with the flashforwards, the show did handle the present quite well. The case with the husband who was thought to kill his wife was much more interesting than the aspirin case from last week. Steven Weber is amazing at playing a creepy mysterious killer, and his role was more remarkable in this episode than anything else that was happening.

At this point, it’s safe to say the show is still exciting. It’s still confusing as hell to go between the flash-backs and the present-time when we’re still trying to slowly like these characters, but Viola Davis remains outstanding in her role. Her conversation with her husband about whether he slept with that dead student, followed by her snarky remark “It’s happened before” made me love her so much more. She can be intense, scary and affectionate all at once. And I love her scary side more; it’s amusing to watch our “hero” defending people who, really, do not deserve a second chance. That’s what makes HTGAWM so exciting.

Sneaky Courtroom Bits

– The teaser was a bit much, no? The part with the husband showing everyone how he “killed” his wife was a bit unrealistic.

– Annalise crying after her detective boyfriend because she’s scared of her husband was so well-played. Still, I prefer Davis when she’s not an emotional mess.

– So Connor is actually gay. Do I care, and does it matter?

– When Annalise was reading her husband’s emails with the dead student, was anyone else annoyed with the two WiFi signals appearing on the top of the screen?

– Wes lied to the Murder gang about the result of the coin-flip, and that was quite interesting actually. Why did he so badly want to go back for the body?

– That cliffhanger really did not excite me as much as I wanted it to.

Amusing Keating One-Liners

Ahser: Maybe he’s her secret baby, like she gave him up for adoption.
Michaela: Because all black people are related.

Annalise: I’m trying to make things right. Don’t you want me to make things right?

Nate: I’m done with your crazy.

Annalise: The question I’m asked more often as a defense attorney is whether I can tell if my clients are innocent or guilty. And my answer is always the same: I don’t care. And it’s not because I’m heartless—although that’s up for debate.

Conclusion
While the flashforwards were a bit confusing at times, the episode was still exciting with a lead as remarkable as Davis and a guest as thrilling as Weber.

Chris Rating
B