Warning: This post contains Pretty Little Liars spoilers. If you haven’t watched the whole show, then proceed with caution.
A little note: In August 2014, I started watching Pretty Little Liars. That November, I started blogging about it until it ended in 2017. I haven’t watched it since, but people are still reading my posts in 2021. So, I’ve decided to add thoughts and comments based on the feelings and opinions I have in 2021. Because you’re reading this now, I want to thank you! Tbh, after the disappointment of the series finale, I felt like I wasted time writing these posts. Because you’re reading this, it doesn’t feel like a waste anymore. So, thanks!
(Unless otherwise noted, parenthesis indicate thoughts from 2021)
**Originally published on June 17, 2015. Republished on April Yes, on a Tuesday in honor of the show originally airing on Tuesdays.**
What is Radley Sanitarium? Radley is a mysterious psychiatric hospital. More than that it’s a home. Home to Rosewood’s biggest secrets. Home to two of our Liars. Home to one of our Liar’s boyfriend’s mother. Home to Rosewood’s two biggest mysteries—Bethany Young and “A” himself.
Tonight, Alison and Jason confronted their father, demanding he tells them about Charles. Mr. DiLaurentis sat down, looked up at them, and answered their question. Of course, we didn’t get to hear the answer. Instead, we saw a hooded character watching them from outside the house. In the preview following, we heard Alison telling the Liars her father said Charles is dead. The look on his face when he sat down to tell them seemed to prove he believes what he told them. It seems clear Mrs. D did NOT believe Charles was dead. Charles must have been in Radley for some reason. Then something happened to him while he was there to lead Mr. D to believe he was dead. But Mrs. D knew the truth–Charles ran away. I bet that’s why Mrs. D was so involved with Radley.
I also believe the theory that Spencer was in Radley as a child is also true. She might have known Jason was her brother but was lead to believe she was crazy? Or it could’ve been far more sinister. I don’t know. I do believe Spencer was in Radley and that she met Charles there in Radley. Or she might have known Bethany Young and Bethany talked about Charles because she knew him. Think about it. Why and how could Spencer seem so comfortable in Radley if she had not at some point spent time there? This would explain why Peter Hastings felt the need to be so involved in Toby’s search of Radley. He wouldn’t have wanted Toby to know Spencer had been in Radley. If I’m wrong, then Spencer must have known Jason and Charles as a child but was told, like Jason, Charles wasn’t real. It’s also possible since she and Alison are the same age, she was too young to remember him. But wait! Didn’t Peter Hastings claim there was a time when the DeLaurentis’ didn’t live in Rosewood? It’s possible they didn’t live in Rosewood until after Charles’ disappeared.
Fast-forward a few years in Radley’s timeline and we see Toby’s mom was once a resident. Maybe at the same time as Bethany Young. The public records say Toby’s mom jumped out of a window at Radley and died. What if that’s not true? What if someone pushed her? Why would someone do that? Well, she was blonde and so was Mrs. DiLaurentis who was allegedly working at Radley at the time. It seems obvious Bethany loathed Mrs. DiLaurentis. She must have plotted to push Mrs. D off the roof. But she mistook Mrs. Cavanaugh for Mrs. D and pushed her instead. (This show is so messed up. Like what even?)
Fast-forward a few more years. We see Bethany Young does have some major connections to the DiLaurentis family. She was even at their house the night Alison disappeared. So far, we know Byron Montgomery, CeCe Drake, Ezra Fitz, Jenna Marshall, Melissa Hastings, Spencer Hastings, and Toby Cavanaugh were all there that night. And they all had something to be angry with Alison about. Aria Montgomery, Emily Fields, and Hanna Marin were each there that night too. For whatever reason, Bethany escaped Radley to be there that night. Alison, Bethany, and CeCe were all wearing the same outfit. So, someone must have mistaken Bethany for Alison, since they had something against her.
Side note: What if Sara Harvey has nothing to do with that night or any of the Liars on a personal level at all? What if the next morning, as Alison and Sara were both running away and they ran into each other? Then, Alison somehow managed to convince Sara to trade clothes with her. A could’ve captured Sara instead of Alison. If Sara does have more to do with the Liars, I think she was also in Radley at some point as a child. She could be the real person whose father had an affair with Mrs. DiLaurentis.
A year and a half later, Mona gets put in Radley for being “A.” While there, she pretends she’s mentally unstable and incoherent. She only communicates with “A” or “Redcoat.” We see them talking in the very last scene of season two. This is the first scene to lead us to believe Mona may have been “Original A” but is not “Big A.”
Mona might have started the “A Game,” but someone much darker and more psychotic took it over. Mona might have been happy to give him the game or he might have threatened her. Who knows? One thing is for sure. A woman working with “Big A.” She might be a minion or she is “Uber A.” I suspect the woman is Sara or CeCe. Sara either has no choice or she wants to get back at Alison for being the reason Charles captured her. I have always been a fan of CeCe, but the more I think about it, the more it seems like she may not be on Team Alison as I have hoped. (Still not happy about this, but I am happy I was open enough to admit it could be true.) After a while, Mona gets out of Radley, but then she goes in again for a little for some extra investigating.
Not long after Mona got out of Radley, one of our four beloved Liars lands herself in Radley as “Jane Doe.” We never did get a satisfying answer why Spencer was so willing to be in Radley as someone else for a few days. I think in the next few episodes we will see why Spencer was content to be in Radley for a while. I think it could come down to the fact that Spencer somehow felt like Radley was a familiar place. Perhaps because she was in Radley for a little while as a child?
Let’s not forget Aria was volunteering in Radley for a while. She was trying to figure out the secrets about Bethany, Mrs. DiLaurentis, and Radley in general. She and Hanna also snuck into Radley one night to speak with Mona about who might still be threatening them. Because she knew others were listening, Mona spoke in a code that only Hanna could understand. What she said was strange but possibly relevant. “Miss Aria You’re A Killer, Not Ezra’s Wife.” We know based on their code, she was saying, “Maya Knew.” What we don’t know is what Maya Knew. Did she know who A was? What we also don’t know is if the words Mona used were significant or not. Did Aria kill someone? In the preview for next week, Spencer asks, “What if we really did hurt somebody?” Marlene once said in an interview that each Liar still has a big secret yet to be revealed. I bet at some point we’re going to find out the Liars have more to do with “that night” than they remember.
Finally, we someone in a black hoodie watching the DiLaurentis’ as Mr. D told Ali and Jason about Charles. So, I no longer think Jason has anything to do with “A.” I do believe Wren Kingston is both Charles and “A.” Since the first time I watched Pretty Little Liars (in August 2014 before 5A ended) I’ve had a gut feeling Jason or Wren is “A.” To this day I haven’t been able to pinpoint why I feel like Wren is “A.” If he’s A, he probably has something personal against each of the Liars. I can’t figure out what, but my gut instinct has never been wrong before, so I’m gonna go with it. Wren has been around way too much, and at way too intense of times, to only be a love interest. Dr. Kingston is the only one in Rosewood who has access to medical supplies and we know “A” has a steady medical supply. “A” and Wren have also both shown a preference for Vodka. And, you know what? It doesn’t make sense for Wren to be around so much. Of all the characters still alive, Jason and Wren are the only two old enough to have their own money. Sure, Ezra is old enough too, but he’s not rich. He’s been a teacher, and now the owner of The Brew. Neither job pays well enough to pull off all “A’s” elaborate schemes AND to build the dollhouse for the Liars. Besides, he’s pretty much always with Aria or Caleb and Toby. In season Jason received a large sum of inheritance money from his grandmother. Wren Kingston is a doctor, which means he very likely has a large sum of money lying around. So, yeah, my theory is that Jason or Wren is “A.”
P.S. I think Eddie Lamb’s in the barrel! It could be Paige. “A” never lets someone leave Rosewood that easily. But she said where she was going and Eddie Lamb disappeared without a trace. (I still can’t believe we never found out who or what was in the barrel. What was the point in all that? Did we ever find out what happened to Eddie Lamb?)
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Brittany Alexandria 