They’re integral to the action because it’s primarily in texts from the mysterious “A” (and dozens of “A” cronies) that the girls are told where to go, what to fight about, and who to fear. Texts are forwarded, screenshotted, or typed slowly and deliberately as cliffhangers. Later seasons toyed with the idea of text superimposed over the characters’ scenery. Middle seasons mostly showed close-ups of the messages, letting viewers read for themselves before the Liars delivered a clutch reaction shot. Early seasons often showed wide shots of the girls in a semi-circle, looking down at screens that weren’t visible, and reading the messages aloud in unison. The way PLL depicts texting has varied widely over the course of its run. Scream Queens creator Ryan Murphy might owe PLL creator I. Three seasons in, The Atlantic even credited Pretty Little Liars with reinventing the slasher for TV. Pretty Little Liars was inspired by Sara Shephard’s genre page-turner of the same name, and the wildly successful adaptation may explain why studios have snapped up the rights to anything and everything by Gillian Flynn and Liane Moriarty. And plenty of viewers have drawn lines from Rosewood to Riverdale, or between Freeform’s pretty-girl criminals and the vigilante duo of MTV’s Sweet / Vicious. The ever-growing roster of moody, violent dramas aimed at women also likely has some roots in the PLL phenomenon.
WHERE CAN I WATCH PRETTY LITTLE LIARS SEASON 4 SERIES
The series finale is coming this summer - timed to coincide with the same dangerous period of adolescent malaise that instigated the violent pilot episode events seven years ago.Ī number of cultural movements can be traced back to this show - dozens of nail-polish and hair-styling trends, but also the rebirth of prime-time soap operas, and the practice of TV stars live-tweeting alongside viewers. The show, improbably sustained for 160 episodes on the basic conceit of “a group of friends is terrorized by text messages from an anonymous villain,” is premiering the second half of its final season tonight. Pretty Little Liars, the crown jewel of the Freeform network (previously ABC Family), will drop its final ridiculous surprises soon.