Wednesday, June 28, 2017

PLL 7x20 Recap "'Til Death Do Us Part": A.D. is Spencer’s Evil Twin

Pretty Little Liars draws to a close with the series finale episode 7x20 “‘Til Death Do Us Part”. After seven wonderful years watching the Liars, it’s time to say goodbye. We finally find out who A.D. is. After some more torment, the Liars get their happy endings. Ezria get married and Emison get engaged.

The episode kicks off with the Liars drinking coffee and reminiscing about old times. They remember that tingly feeling they got when ‘A’ was watching them. They somehow miss ‘A’ and don’t want to live normal lives. Then Lucas, dressed in a white tux, starts tap dancing near them. And if that wasn’t bizarre enough, Jenna Marshal, dressed as a ringmaster, rides by on a white horse. It starts snowing. The camera pans out and we see Mona staring into a snow globe. So that opening scene was all in Mona’s head.

Mona, who is locked in Welby, drops the snow globe when a hooded figure enters her room. “I never would have guessed it was you. Are you here to kill me?” she asks.

We jump ahead to one year later. Things are going great for Ezria. They are on a studio lot because their book might become a movie. Ezra teases Aria and calls her an ugly crier (referencing when Aria found out Ezra was spying on the Liars in PLL episode 4x20 "Free Fall"). They kiss, happy now that they are ‘A’-free.



We see Alison and Emily’s family. Turns out Emison had twin girls (Lily and Grace). Alison sneaks off for a secret meeting with Emily’s mom (Pam). We don’t know what they are planning, but Alison tells Pam “Like I promised you, I will always be here for her.”

Spencer’s older sister Melissa is back in town. And Spencer has a new rescue horse named Bashful. Spencer and Melissa have been doing some sister bonding. Melissa plans to stay in town a while longer. In a reference to the PLL pilot episode, Melissa says “I was hoping you’d consider swapping the barn for your old room.” Luckily for Spencer, Melissa was just joking. Looks like the Hastings sibling rivalry is finally over.

Toby’s also back in Rosewood. He spent the last year in Africa. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to come back to Rosewood, but he somehow ended up back just in time for Ezria’s upcoming wedding.

Spencer warns Toby not to get to close to her horse. Bashful doesn’t like new people and only lets Spencer get close. Bashful seems to like Toby, though.

Alison is still an English teacher at Rosewood High. She talks to her class about Ezria’s book Then and Now. (Marlene King’s son Emerson has a cameo as a student in Alison’s class). Addison is also a student and she still a mean girl. Addison says the book doesn’t have a happy ending because Aria stole Ezra from Nicole while she was rotting away. Addison also calls Alison a “lesbo”.

After class, Alison grabs Addison’s arm and tells her “You may think you’re winning the battle, but I’ll win the war.” Addison warns her not to leave a bruise or she’ll use it to bury her.  “It wouldn’t be the first time someone buried you alive, would it?” she taunts.

Emily and Alison meet up in the hallway. They watch as a deaf girl, Claire, opens her locker and finds a doll with a knife stuck in it. (Reference to the Christmas episode where Hanna sees mean girls making fun of a deaf girl named Claire). Addison and her friends, who are nearby, are clearly the ones who put the doll there.

Emily and Alison ask Claire if she is being bullied by Addison. Claire’s too scared to tell the truth and runs off.

Jenna Marshall is the new life skills teacher at Rosewood High. Jenna tells Addison to go to class. Addison waves her hand in front of Jenna, but Jenna quickly knocks her hand away. “I may not be able to see, but I can smell a bitch a mile away,” she says.

Hanna and Caleb are having relationship problems. He thinks they should have moved on to bigger and better things. Hanna’s designs are taking off, Caleb sold his software to Lucas and they even bought Lucas’s loft. Caleb is upset that Hanna stayed in Rosewood for Mona. Hanna’s spent countless nights visiting Mona at Welby. Hanna feels guilty. She was the one who convinced Mona to play the ‘Liar’s Lament’ game, which ultimately ended with Mona institutionalized again.

Caleb is particularly upset that Hanna is letting Mona stay with them now that Mona was just released from Welby. Caleb disappears and Mona shows up at the door. Mona wants to get Thai takeout and have a girls’ night in with Hanna. Hanna can’t, though. She has to go to Aria’s bachelorette party. After Hanna leaves, Mona also sneaks out.

Aria and Ezra take a tour of the Lost Woods Resort, which Spencer and Alison remodeled. Their friends surprise them with a bachelorette/bachelor party outside.


The group toast to love, unaware that they are being watched by someone in a black hoodie. The person turns and we see that it’s Melissa.

The Liars all go off to bed with their significant others. Hanna and Caleb are trying to have a baby even though they are still fighting. “You’re scaring my ovaries,” Hanna tells Caleb. Caleb feels like a passenger in their marriage. If Hanna doesn’t care how he feels about Mona (or Sylvia Plath as Caleb calls her), then he doesn’t think they are ready to have a baby.

Spencer and Toby play Scrabble. We find out Spencer is now a partner at her mom’s law firm. Spencer’s currently a paralegal, but she’s going to law school full time.

Aria gets bad news on the phone. Spencer finds Aria crying. “I can’t marry Ezra,” Aria tells her. The rest of the Liars come in and huddle around Aria. After Aria tells them her big secret, they tell her talk to Ezra. 

Outside, we find out Melissa isn’t the real Melissa. It’s Mona wearing a Melissa mask. Mona talks to A.D. on FaceTime (A.D. using a digitized version of Mona to communicate).

Mona wants to use Aria’s secret against the Liars, but A.D. says that isn’t part of the plan. A.D. had Mona put on the Melissa mask as a test to make sure Mona is loyal. Mona proved herself, but A.D. isn’t ready to reveal who she/he is.

The next day, Aria is still a wreck. She breaks a glass and cries as she picks up the broken pieces. Ezra asks what’s wrong. Aria tells him that she can’t have kids. She just got confirmation from the doctor. Ezra holds Aria while she cries. He promises that they will get through it. They have other options, like adopting or using a surrogate.

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Spencer visits Mary in prison. Mary hasn’t seen Spencer in a week. Mary is struggling in prison, but she’s trying not to lose hope. “Hope breeds eternal misery,” Mary says (In the pilot episode of PLL, Spencer tells Melissa "Well, you know what they say about hope. It breeds eternal misery”). Spencer says she doesn’t believe that anymore. She asks Mary for help.

Later that night, Hanna brings Mona to Aria’s rehearsal dinner. The rest of the Liars, Caleb and Hanna’s mom are all upset, but Hanna didn’t have a choice. Caleb didn’t want to leave Mona alone in the loft and it’s hard to find a sitter for someone in their mid-20s.

They remind Hanna that Mona tried to push her off the bell tower. Hanna defends Mona, saying that Mona feels bad about that. Hanna begs them to pretend to be Mona’s friend. To fake it for just one night.

Ezra and Byron drink scotch and have a heart-to-heart. Ezra never asked Byron for his blessing to marry Aria. He never felt like Byron and Ella truly accepted him. Byron says Ezra never worked to prove them wrong. He never gave a persuasive argument to make Aria’s parents feel good about Ezra as a son-in-law.

Instead of trying to make Byron and Ella happy, Ezra was focused on making Aria happy. And Byron can see how happy Ezra makes Aria. Ezra’s had Byron’s blessing for a while. “Don’t screw it up,” Byron tells Ezra.

Tension is running high between Ella and Ezra’s mom (Dianne). While discussing the seating chart for the wedding, Ezra’s mom threw a center piece at Ella's head and later claimed it was an accident.

Ezra’s mom also argues with Ella at the rehearsal dinner, which makes Ella drink a lot of wine. Spencer’s mom and Hanna’s mom join her. The PLL moms talk about the basement, though they don’t reveal how they got out. And Pam Fields, Emily’s mom, didn’t drink for a year after that. The PLL moms get wasted at the dinner, so Spencer has to be their designated driver.

At the rehearsal dinner Emily spots two of Addison’s friends, Hadley and Willa. They are working as caterers at the party. Coincidentally, Hadley is Maya’s niece. Emily talks to them about being in Addison’s clique. Hadley and Willa don’t want to stand up to Addison. “You don’t say no to someone like Addison. She’d have to be dead first,” they tell Emily.

Ezria get into a fight when Ezra finds out Aria knew about her fertility issues for more than a few weeks. She even went to three different doctors. Ezra doesn’t understand why Aria didn’t tell him earlier. “I just wish that you had as much faith in me as I have in you” Ezra tells Aria. Aria says that she loves him. Ezra loves her too, but that isn’t really the same thing as having faith in someone. Ezra doesn’t go home with Aria.

Emily saw her mom slip something in Alison’s purse at the rehearsal dinner. Emily demands to know what it was. Alison pulls out an engagement ring. She wanted to surprise Emily with a romantic Emison proposal. Instead, she ends up proposing to Emily while wearing a pug sweatshirt.

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“When I was an ugly human being, you saw a beautiful soul. You make the world a better place because you see the good in it. And you make me a better woman because you search for one. Do you promise to that everyday for the rest of our lives?” Alison asks Emily. Emily says yes.

Toby is in his Radley hotel room when Spencer knocks on his door. Spoby end up making out on the bed.

Later, Spencer is back in the barn. She hears music playing. She goes into the kitchen and looks around. Mona, wearing a black hoodie, appears behind her. “Déjà vu, b*tch,” Mona says before knocking Spencer unconscious.

Spencer wakes up in a custom made jail cell. Spencer looks at her reflection in the mirror, but suddenly we find out it isn’t a mirror. Spencer has an identical twin, who was copying Spencer’s movements. “Boo!” the identical twin says. Spencer jumps back.

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Mary Drake suddenly appears. “We didn’t think you’d wake up so soon, Spencer,” Mary says. Mary jabs Spencer with a syringe and Spencer loses consciousness again.

Back at the Radley hotel, Ezra makes discrete reservations with someone. Ezra is surprised to see Spencer (actually Spencer’s twin).

Spencer wakes up in a cell. She’s cuffed to the bed. Spencer’s twin is also in the cell, waiting for Spencer to wake up. Spencer’s twin, who has a British accent, finally explains things. “I’m just a girl who met a man when he came in from the rain,” she says.

In a flashback, we see Spencer’s twin (Alex Drake) working as a bartender in England. Wren comes in and is shocked to see her. He thinks it’s Spencer, but he finally realizes it is Spencer’s identical twin. Wren shows Alex a photo of Spencer on his phone. At the time, Alex didn’t know about Spencer, Charlotte or Mary. It took Wren a few days to explain everything to her.

Wren and Alex started dating. By that time Melissa was already out of the picture. (So Wren dated Melissa, Spencer, Melissa again and then Spencer’s identical twin Alex. Wren must really have a type).

Wren wasn’t part of the ‘Liar’s Lament’ board game. Wren knew Alex needed closure after Charlotte died. She needed to deal with it on her own terms. So Alex came to Rosewood alone to find out who killed Charlotte.

Spencer tells Alex that there is no way she’ll be able to switch places with her. Her friends will know Alex isn’t really Spencer. Alex isn’t worried. She’s already pretended to be Spencer a few times and no one caught on.

When Hanna was kidnapped and tortured with the cattle prod, Alex pretended to be Spencer. Alex was also the one who looked through the photo album in Spencer’s barn. When Toby was leaving Rosewood, Alex posed as Spencer and asked Toby for one last kiss. Also, it was Alex who slept with Toby in the cabin. And when Ezra ran into Spencer and Wren at the airport, that was actually Alex.

In a flashback, we see Wren and Alex arguing at the airport. Alex wants to punish the Liars killing Charlotte, but Wren misses her. He wants Alex to come back to London.

Alex did go back to London, as promised, after the game was over. Alex couldn’t stop thinking of Spencer, though. She was jealous of Spencer. Spencer has a home, parents, and friends who risk their lives for each other. Even when they make huge mistakes, they still love each other. Alex inherited all of Charlotte’s money, but that wasn’t enough for her. She wanted to know how it feels to be friends with the Liars.

Wren told Alex to tell the Liars the truth. He’s sure they’ll understand. Alex says she can’t be one of the Liars after everything she did as A.D. Her only choice is to take Spencer’s place.

Alex convinces Wren to shoot her in the shoulder, so she’ll have the same gunshot scar that Spencer has.

Alex planned to be Spencer with Wren, but he always thought of her as Alex. Alex didn’t want to be Alex anymore, so she murdered Wren. She turned his ashes into an eternity stone. After all, diamonds last forever.

Officer Maple tells Alison and Emily that Mary Drake had help escaping from prison. He warns them to stay vigilante. Aria’s friends decide to keep her in the dark about Mary, since they don’t want to spoil Aria’s wedding day.

Aria looks beautiful in her wedding dress. Alex, posing as Spencer, cries. She’s just so happy to be celebrating Aria’s wedding. Aria, who can’t imagine her wedding day without her best friends, takes a group photo with her friends.

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Pam Fields, Emily’s mom, comes in with Emison’s baby. Alex takes the baby across the room. She whispers “You have your daddy’s eyes. I knew Wren would make pretty babies”.

Back at the cell, Mary brings Spencer lunch. Spencer is furious at Mary for helping Alex, but Mary claims to also be trapped. Mary doesn’t even know where they are because Alex drugged her.

Alex promised Mary that she wouldn’t hurt Spencer. Mary thinks Alex will let her out of the room as soon as she earns her trust.

Mary didn’t meet Alex until a few weeks ago. In a flashback, we see the Mary giving birth at the Radley. The Hastings didn’t know there was a second baby. Mary sold the second baby, so she could leave Radley. Mary figured Alex would have a Cinderella life, since she was bought by a wealthy couple in England. “Have you read Grimm’s Fairy Tales?” Spencer retorts.

Alex had issues, so her parents left her in an orphanage. They didn’t want Alex to tarnish their family name, so they took the name back. She became Alex Drake. Alex ran away from the Ambrose Home for Wayward Children on her tenth birthday. Mary feels compassion for Alex, who must have felt so lonely.

Spencer starts to cry, so Mary opens the cell and rushes in to hug her. After comforting her, Mary leaves the cell and makes sure Spencer doesn’t escape. She says Alex would never forgive her if Spencer escaped. During the hug, Spencer stole a bobby pin from Mary’s hair.

Back at the church, Aria is in tears. She got a text from Ezra saying that he isn’t going to show up for the wedding. Aria tried to call him, but he’s not answering her calls. Aria’s dad tells the guest that the wedding is off.

Meanwhile, Spencer tries to pick open the cell lock with the bobby pin. Ezra wakes up in the cell across from Spencer. Apparently, at the Radley Ezra was making a reservation that Spencer suggested. When he saw Alex, he thanked her for the suggestion. Alex didn’t know what he was talking about, so Ezra followed her. She gave him a death stare, knocked him out and kidnapped him.

Ezra, who didn’t want to spend his wedding day locked in a do-it-yourself dungeon, gets a bit sarcastic. “Sorry, sarcasm is my brain’s self-defense mechanism for when I'm about to be murdered," he tells Spencer.

Alex comes back and Spencer tries to convince her not to kill them. Spencer says that her friends will forgive Alex, just like they did with Mona. They’ll understand Alex became A.D. because of Charlotte.

Suddenly it dawns on Spencer that Alex doesn’t just want her friends. Alex wants Toby. So she needs to get rid of Spencer. “He settled for Yvonne and now he’s free to be with is one true love. Me,” Alex says.

Alex explains how she used Sydney Driscoll and Jenna Marshall. Sydney was stealing from the bank, so Alex blackmailed her. And Jenna was desperate to see again, so Alex paid for Jenna to get another eye surgery. The surgery failed though. Jenna’s still blind.

Charlotte told Sara Harvey that there was treasure hidden in the Radley. So Sara wanted to get rich, but the hidden treasure was actually a file folder.

In a flashback, we see that Charlotte Drake and Archer Dunhill met on a transatlantic flight. Archer was immediately charmed by Charlotte. He promised to call her the following day.

After he left, Charlotte got a call Wren. “Is she here?” Charlotte asked. Wren says Alex is waiting for her at the bar. Charlotte, who is desperate to have a family, has already met with 12 different women named Alex Drake. None of them were related to her.

Charlotte is shocked when she finds out Alex is Spencer’s identical twin. Once they started talking, they couldn’t stop. They felt like they’d known each other their whole lives. Charlotte and Archer were happily in love, as were Wren and Alex. Everything was perfect until Charlotte started to miss the ‘A’ game.

In another flashbook, Chalotte explains that she needs the power rush that she gets from being ‘A’. Alex wants to come to Rosewood with Charlotte, but Charlotte wants her to stay far away from the Hastings. Alex gets jealous, assuming Charlotte wants to keep Spencer to herself. Charlotte assures Alex that Spencer is just a doll to her. Charlotte gives Alex a Patsy Cline’s Greatest Hits record as a goodbye present.

Alex says she was thrown away like trash, but Charlotte saved her. Charlotte told Alex that Spencer was toxic.

Still, Alex won’t kill Spencer because they are sisters. Ezra’s not family though. So Alex plans to kill him.

The Liars spend the night with Aria, so she doesn’t have to be alone. Alex stops by when they are all asleep. Alex climbs in bed with Aria and Hanna. Alex strokes Aria’s hair and whispers “I think that you and I are going to be the closest of all”.

The next day, Alex goes to the stable to meet up with Toby. Bashful can tell Alex isn’t Spencer and gets spooked. Alex runs off, leaving Toby confused.

Alex is outside the Hastings law office when Jenna comes out. Veronica and Jenna are going to threaten Addison with a civil case. Hopefully, that will be enough to stop Addison from bullying other students.

Jenna, assuming Alex is Spencer, asks if she’s wearing a different perfume. Alex says it’s because she was at the stables earlier, but Jenna doesn’t buy it. Jenna calls Toby. She knows it sounds weird, but she doesn’t think Spencer is Spencer.

Meanwhile, the gang is trying to find Ezra. Aria finds Ezra’s packed bag in the apartment, so it doesn’t look like he ran off. A man comes to the door looking for Mrs. Fitz. Yesterday Ezra met with the Radley concierge and booked a hot air balloon ride to kick off the honeymoon. Why would Ezra book a hot air balloon ride if he wasn’t planning on marrying Aria?

Caleb uses his hacking skills. Ezra hasn’t used his credit cards at all since he disappeared. And he traces Ezra’s car to the Radley parking lot, so Ezra couldn’t have gone anywhere.

The Liars are about to call Spencer when Toby rushes in and tells them not to. He shows them the book Alex gave him when she wanted one last goodbye kiss. Toby didn’t look at the book until now, so he didn’t realize something was off. The book isn’t Spencer’s. Spencer was always jotting notes in her book, but that book doesn’t have anything written on it. What if twins run in the family, Toby asks.

Spencer’s twin would be Charlotte’s half sister, which gives her motive to be A.D. Emily can’t believe that Spencer has an evil twin, which has to be the most insane A.D. theory ever. While the Liars are discussing this shocking revelation, Mona listens to their conversation from her laptop in the Brew.

Meanwhile, Mary and Alex are arguing. Alex is ready to kill Spencer. Mary begs her not to. She offers to take a mother-daughter Europe trip with Alex. Alex refuses to leave. She insists that she’s Spencer and that Toby loves her. Alex punches Mary, knocking her out so she can’t protect Spencer.

Mona finally tells the Liars everything. Wren came to Welby to kill her. Mona managed to talk him out of it. Mona’s not playing the ‘A’ game to help Alex. She’s playing the ‘A’ game to beat her. Mona gives the PLL gang the coordinates to Alex’s do-it-yourself dungeon.

Toby is shocked. Alex is hiding out in the house Toby built for Yvonne. Toby never found out who bought the house. They race over to rescue Spencer and Ezra.

Meanwhile, Spencer uses the bobby pin to break out of the cell. Spencer and Ezra run for it, while Alex chases after them with an axe. They run through a door and make it outside, only they are still underground. Alex built an underground fake Rosewood.

The PLL gang rush inside the house, which is decorated exactly like Spencer’s barn. They head underground.

In the underground fake Rosewood, Alex knocks Ezra out with the axe. Spencer pleads with Alex, reminding her that they are sisters. It’s not too late to be a family.

Alex, unmoved by Spencer’s speech, attacks her. They are still fighting when Spencer’s friends run in. Toby, pointing a gun at them, tells them to stop. Both Alex and Spencer claim to be Spencer.

Toby asks which poem from the book is Spencer’s favorite. Only the real Spencer knows the answer, so they quickly figure out which girl is the evil twin.

A cop comes in to take Alex away. Apparently, Mona called 911. “Well, no one can call you Loser Mona anymore,” Alex tells Mona. “You don’t know the half of it,” Mona says.

With Alex out of the picture, Aria and Ezra can finally get married. Ezria get married in a beautiful ceremony. Aria’s wedding dress is different than before, but she looks stunning in this shorter wedding dress. Aria’s friends are in the front row and Emily starts to cry. Aria's parents are at the wedding, but Aria's brother Mike isn't there.

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A phone rings and all the Liars instinctively reach for their phones. Luckily, it’s not another ‘A’. The wedding photographer’s phone rang and she does the “Shhh”. (The wedding photographer was played by PLL showrunner Marlene King.)

The Liars hang out one last time before Aria heads to France for her honeymoon. Things are looking up for Spoby. Toby’s going to stay in Rosewood for a while. Amazingly, all the Liars are happy at the same time.

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Looks like Emily and Alison won’t be the only ones with kids. Hanna’s already pregnant. And Aria and Ezra are going to meet with adoption agents after their honeymoon.

Aria is only going to be gone for three weeks, but the girls are in tears. “For some reason, this feels like the end of something”. They hug one last time.

We cut to France, but not Ezria’s honeymoon. Mona is working at a doll shop in Paris. She sells a doll to a mother and her son. (Played by PLL showrunner Marlene King’s son Atticus and her partner Shari).

After they leave, Mona’s French boyfriend shows up. (He’s the “cop” who took Alex into custody). Mona says she’ll meet him for dinner in a minute. (Too bad Mona didn't end up with Mike).

Mona goes down to the basement where she keeps a dollhouse. There are two dolls, one resembling Mary and one resembling Alex. “Tea time, pretty girl” Mona says. The camera pans out and we see that Mona is keeping Mary and Alex locked up in a room.

“She can’t keep us here forever,” Mary says. “Of course she can. She’s Mona,” Alex says. Mona sips her tea and smiles at them. So Mona created her own dollhouse and kidnapped Mary and Alex?! Looks like Welby didn’t help Mona, after all.

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Addison’s clique are having a sleepover, much like the Liars did in the pilot episode. The girls wake up to find Addison gone. Pretty Little Liars has come full circle.

What did you think of the Pretty Little Liars series finale episode 7x20 “‘Til Death Do Us Part”? Were you happy with the Spencer’s evil identical twin reveal? Did the episode answer all of your burning questions? After seven years of watching PLL, it’s hard to imagine Tuesday nights without it. There were so many memorable PLL moments. As Spencer and Winnie the Pooh said, "How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard?" Still hoping for a spinoff or a PLL movie in the future! Leave your thoughts and comments below!

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