Bloody Rose Waters Is Coming For The Liars In Pretty Little Liars: Summer School Episodes 1 and 2
Following the harrowing events of Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, our little liars Imogen (Bailee Madison), Tabby (Chandler Kinney), Faran (Zaria), Mouse (Malia Pyles), and Noa (Maia Reficco) face a fate worse than death — summer school. They embrace summer jobs and summer flings as a new villain Bloody Rose, who may or may not have a connection to A, puts them through the ultimate final girl test. Let’s talk about the first two episodes of Pretty Little Liars: Summer School.
We pick off right where we left off on Christmas morning as A is on the loose getting his final revenges. Not only are both Chip and Kelly’s dad found dead, but the people that connected to our Liars at the end of season one are killed back to back as well. A is eventually caught on New Years Eve paying tribute to his sister Angela at her grave and we get a six month time jump to the last week of school. Throughout that time, the girls have started their own fight club and have been seeing a therapist Dr Sullivan, played by Annabeth Gish, who is reprising her role from the original Pretty Little Liars series. Archie Waters’ trial is over and deliberations on underway, meanwhile this gives us a chance to get an update on the liars.
Faran decides that she doesn’t want to dance anymore and goes full jock, going toe to toe with the guys. She’s feeling a bit mixed on her relationship with Henry and tries out to be a lifeguard at the local pool.
Tabby wants to get her short film that represents her experience with Chip out into film festivals despite his mom calling her a liar. We’re also introduced to a new character Christian (Noah Alexander Gerry), a new movie theater employee with a passion for horror special effects from New York. While they seem interested in each other, his presence has her on edge with fear that he could be like Chip.
Noa’s been staying with her boyfriend's family while her mom’s in rehab, but decides to lie that her mom’s getting out so she can spend the summer alone in her apartment. That is until another new character appears, this time it’s someone from Noa’s past in the form of Jen (Ava Capri), who she knew in juvie.
Imogen is worried about her baby. We learn she didn’t allow Aria and Ezra from the OG series to adopt her because she thought Ezra gave off weird vibes and they lived too far away. She instead has a gay couple the Winters adopt her. She’s also struggling with her mental health and begins taking medication for her anxieties. She sees her late mother and Bloody Rose, which makes her worry she’s hallucinating. To find a sense of freedom, she gets a job working at a diner outside of town using a fake name.
Meanwhile Mouse has been spending time with her boyfriend Ash and obsessing over the website Spooky Spaghetti. She’s been monitoring the site, which has become a hub about Archie Waters and his family, especially his mother known as Bloody Rose Waters. Legend has it Rose kept Archie locked up in a cage. When he finally broke, he made his mask by sewing together pieces of his mothers skin for revenge.
The show also introduces a religious storyline around Kelly (Mallory Bechtel) that seems like it may tap into a creepy cult storyline, especially as they plan a production called Redemption House to purge the town of its sins.
This season is already off to a solid start and they manage to jam pack a lot into the first two episodes. The summer vibes are immaculate. I love the backdrop, as well as the music that soundtracks the episodes. It gives off a retro, but also sinister energy. My favorite moments are when our Liars are together. There’s a great balance of horror but also summer fun, friendship, mental health, and the girls supporting each other. This season has us questioning if our liars are reliable narrators or beginning to lose it. Some highlights in the first two episodes including the Bloody Rose summoning in the girl’s bathroom, the girls hanging out on Noa’s roof prepping for their hot girl summers, Tabby’s movie premiere at the Orpheum, and seeing the girls band together to support Imogen when she breaks down.
Of course, this season also introduces us to a brand new villain in Bloody Rose — a female horror villain at that, which is very fun. She also has a cool A meets Yellowjackets-style design. After attempting a Bloody Mary-style summoning, we can confirm (for now at least!) that this is not a supernatural tale, but someone is truly out there targeting people like A did. While A was out for justice, I’m curious what Bloody Rose’s motivation is. She is ready to put the girls through the ultimate final girl test, but at the same time she’s killing people that just seem to be there. I feel like she could tie back to this strange religious cult as well. Initial guesses on who she could be are the real Rose Waters, although that might be too obvious, Chip’s mother seeking revenge against Tabby and Imogen, or maybe even Dr. Sullivan since she’s experienced this all before.
Bloody Rose is just starting to ramp up, leaving roses for the girls, killing suspects, and even video calling Mouse to threaten her. I’m excited to see how she tests them the rest of this season and what her true motivation is. Right now we can’t trust anyone.
New episodes of Pretty Little Liars: Summer School air Thursdays on Max.
