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How To Get Away With Murder S01 E10 – We’re all in this together.

Previously: It was Wes, at 12 Grimmauld Place, with the trophy. And Annalise knows.
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Hello Raskolnikov

Democracy Diva: Welcome back to Shondaland! Let’s see if the new year has brought us some new love for these characters. Probs not, though.

Marines: I like that you at least mentioned the possibility! That’s positive.

Diva: I try.

We begin, as we always should, with a stripped-down, natural Annalise in front of the mirror. This is already so much better than any episode that starts with the murder!bonfire. The Voiceover Police question Annalise about why she thinks her husband murdered Lila. She explains that he’s “missing.” We watch her putting on her makeup and wig, preparing for the performance she’s about to give to the authorities. In the court house, or the police station, or wherever creepy interrogations take place, Annalise half-truths her way through the story, explaining about the affair, but lying that she just found out about it last night. (Last night being the night of Sam’s “disappearance.”) The male detective asks why Annalise didn’t recognize the why-is-your-penis-on-a-dead-girl’s-phone photo of him when it went public. “Women aren’t like men, detective. We don’t obsess over every detail of our lovers’ bodies.” The female detective gives her a look, like, “Bitch, now I KNOW you’re lying.” That look is everything. I hope Shonda is already planning a new series about that lady.

Mari: Agreed. Her judgey eyebrows were second only to Viola’s tear stain down the face we just watched her powder.

Diva: Annalise explains that she stayed with a friend for a few hours before coming home and realizing her husband was missing. (What she actually came home to was blood on the bannister and a corpse on the floor.) In flashback, we see her crying and screaming over his body. A+ for keeping in the shot of the snot dripping out of her nose. Back to the interrogation: Annalise cries and says she hoped it wasn’t true, that Sam hadn’t hurt that girl. MurderNight!Annalise gives Wes explicit instructions on how to destroy the evidence, which is the outline for what we’ve already seen the gang do that night – all that debating over what to do with the body was meaningless, because Wes had the instructions from the boss all along. MurderNight!Annalise tells Wes that her husband killed Lila and deserved to die. She got Wes into this, and she’ll get him out of it, she tells him. “Now go and do what you’ve been told.”  Even crying, even vulnerable, Annalise is IN CHARGE.

The police asks who Annalise was spending time with that night. She’s all, oh, Detective Abs, the one you fired when you found out I was sleeping with him! Annalise steps out of the questioning room, where Bonnie is waiting for her. She sees Detective Abs and is all, sorry I dropped your name to the cops. He assures Annalise that the police will find Sam and she shouldn’t worry.

Mari: I don’t know why Detective Abs still likes Annalise. She’s always putting him in crap situations!

Diva: Well, you can’t have everything, and he already has those amazing abs, so maybe that’s all he gets. (Sorry, Detective Abs. We still love you.)

12 Grimmauld Place. Dumbledore’s Army freaks out because the cops are there to interview them. Connor goes apeshit about how Annalise is probably ratting them out, and one of them is going to crack, and yadda yadda yadda. There is maybe nothing more suspicious than all of you huddled together with your shoulders hunched stage-whispering about MURDER in front of the POLICE, you fucking idiots. Annalise arrives and of course, Michaela’s first question is whether this investigation will get them out of their final exam. Spoken like a true 1L. (Also, Annalise says no. Sorry, girl.)

In her office, Annalise tells Wes that Dumbledore’s Army is a bunch of paranoid hot messes who are about to lose it and spill the beans. Wes says, maybe if they knew you were helping us cover this up, they wouldn’t be so freaked out. Annalise explains that she’s not helping Wes, she’s helping herself. She’d be the prime suspect in Sam’s murder after she caught him cheating with and probably murdering one of his students. These idiots, including Rebecca, need to know nothing about Annalise’s involvement. Wes insists that he hasn’t told Rebecca anything. Annalise assures him they’re going to get Sam’s laptop, which will prove he was at the sorority house on the night of Lila’s murder, and they’ll be able to get the charges against Rebecca dropped. Wes starts to cry, but Annalise tells him to be strong, so that he can help protect the others. He hands her Sam’s ring, which he took off the corpse before they disposed of it. I guess they shouldn’t have left it on him, because it maybe wouldn’t burn and then it would help the police identify the body? But keeping it also seems like a big fuckin’ risk.

District attorney Wendy Parks shows up for an unethical and illegal impromptu visit at 12 Grimmauld Place because this show gives no fucks about actual legal things. She breezes in all, LOL, it’s hilarious that you’re pretending your husband is dead because you want to win Rebecca’s case that badly. Annalise tells her to get the fuck out of her house and maybe don’t mock the lady who’s husband disappeared. Parks insists Rebecca and whatever-the-fuck her boyfriend’s name killed Lila, not Sam, and she’ll prove it.

Mari: District attorney Wendy Parks needs a hobby or two.

Diva: The cops interview Wes, who says he was studying for exams with the rest of the DA, and last saw Sam a few days ago. Wes is not nearly as convincing a liar as Annalise, but, you know, no surprises there. He tells the police that he’s dating Rebecca, which isn’t against the rules because he’s not her actual lawyer. He’s just her lawyer’s bitch 1L student.

12 Grimmauld Place. Annalise apologizes to Rebecca for not realizing sooner that her husband murdered Lila. She could have saved Rebecca a lot of grief (and legal fees). Annalise promises to get these charges dropped, hopefully before it comes to a trial.

Wes’s apartment. Rebecca asks if Annalise knows about the murder. Wes is all, LOL NOPES. Rebecca’s all, well, she apologized to me, which she doesn’t do, so what gives? Wes still insists Annalise doesn’t know anything. Rebecca is smarter than he gives her credit for, though, and wants to know why he’s so chill and normal right now. Wes bullshits that he’s scared, but doesn’t want to give into the fear, because that will get them caught.

12 Grimmauld Place. Asher is worried because he was here to find the trophy last night. What if the cops think there was foul play and worse, that he was involved? Connor deadpans, “Sounds like you might need a lawyer.” Annalise enter-nounces that have three days before the trial in which they have to prove that Sam murdered Lila. First, they need to prove Sam had motive. Laurel and Frank grab some hair from Sam’s hairbrush so they can paternity-test that shit. He tells her she should be thanking him for the trophy – he stole it from Asher, I guess? – but she’s all, don’t talk to me when you’re secretly lying about a long-distance GF, kthanxbai. He says she’s no better, dicking around Legal Aid Guy. Both of you are terrible people and so is everyone else on this show, so, I care basically not at all about this.

Their next task is to prove that Sam had the means to kill Lila; i.e., that he was at the sorority house at her time of death. Cut to Oliver asking Connor what kind of drugs he’s on now. Connor says he’ll get help after exams, and Oliver is cold but still helping him with the case because he is the only moderately good person in this universe. Connor asks about the sexy guy who was here the other night, and Oliver is all, don’t even ask, and also he’s back together with his underwear model ex. Oliver gives him some info, but they can’t pin down exactly where Sam was that night. Until Wes realizes that if Sam’s phone is backed up to his computer, his GPS info might be on his laptop. Annalise orders Bonnie to get the laptop from the police, and bring Asher as backup. Asher is SO EXCITED TO BE BACKUP.

Courthouse. Asher tries to flirt with Bonnie but she is not having it. And the cops won’t release Sam’s laptop because DA Wendy Parks said so. Back at 12 Grimmauld, Laurel tells the gang this is a good thing – the DA must think there’s evidence on that laptop that weakens their case against Rebecca. But Michaela points out that this means they can’t track Sam, and they’ll all become suspects in HIS murder. Connor references Crime and Punishment, and so a celebration is in order:

title star

Connor insists yet again that someone is going to freak out and rat them all out. He thinks that someone is Annalise. Wes is all, BUT SHE DOESN’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS! AREN’T I CONVINCING? Connor thinks Laurel probably told Frank, or at the very least, that cop that saw them with Sam’s body in a goddamn rug might be of use against them. They’re at a standstill in terms of pinning motive for Lila’s murder on Sam, until Rebecca remembers that Lila asked her what women’s health clinic she went to. Maybe Sam was trying to convince a reluctant Lila to get an abortion.

Court House. Annalise and Wendy Parks go to the judge’s chambers so Annalise can be all, “guess what, I think my husband killed Lila, so, drop this case now plz!” Annalise explains about her husband’s affair, and that Lila went to an abortion clinic. “A women’s clinic that happens to do abortions,” Parks corrects her, and I give a cheer. Judge is all, this is all bullshit, I’m not looking into the clinic. As they leave, Wendy tells Annalise to hide her crazy a little better around the judge.

Mystery Garage. Annalise and Nate talk in his car. He asks if she knows anything about Sam’s disappearance. She doesn’t say no, just “I came to you because I needed you. He’s the monster, not me.” Nate apologizes because he’s a bad detective and doesn’t realize that this was basically her way of saying THAT DUDE IS DEAD AND I KNOW ALL ABOUT IT.

Mari: I just don’t get why anyone still believes Annalise’s tears. THOSE TEARS TELL LIES.

Diva: I saw someone call this show “Pretty Little Lawyers,” so I think those lying tears definitely fit in with that theme.

After the break, the cops interview Laurel. They ask about her contact with Sam. She looks uncomfortable and the female detective insists on her telling the truth. Laurel gets all vulnerable and makes sure Annalise won’t hear about any of this. Laurel admits, with difficulty, that Sam used to look at her in a sexual way. She begs them not to tell Annalise. A+ acting there, Laurel. This bitch knows how it’s done.

Mari: Though I have no cares about the Frank/her storyline, she’s been my favorite student/lawyer in training by far. If anyone is getting away with murder, it’s probably Laurel.

Diva: I didn’t give too many fucks about Laurel until this episode, but she’s definitely become my favorite soldier in Dumbledore’s Army.

12 Grimmauld Place. Laurel asks if Frank believes Sam really ran away. She’s digging to see how credible this story is to him. He’s suspicious as to why she’s asking, since it’s not her job to worry about that.

Connor approaches Michaela and intensely whispers (seriously, that’s all these two do together) about how they’re the only two sane ones and they need to turn everyone else in. He insists that they can save themselves, if they plead to a lesser charge. A felony conviction won’t stop them from sitting for the bar exam, he says. Well, this is true in theory – felons aren’t automatically banned from taking the bar except in a couple of states. But you do have to pass what they call “character and fitness,” where they dig up all the dirt on you to make sure you have good moral character. And good luck proving that when you’re a felon who’s also been a murder suspect. I know people who have failed character and fitness for way, WAY less than that. Any-tangent, Wes approaches and their suspicious convo ends abruptly.

Bonnie walks into Annalise’s office. She says Griffin’s lawyer has agreed to stay quiet for now. She lingers to ask about how they left things, what with Annalise firing her and all. Annalise says everything’s changed and they don’t need to talk about it. Bonnie does the impossible and tells Annalise that if she needs to talk, she’s there. Annalise coldly says, “I’m good.” Whatever, Annalise. You don’t deserve a friend like Paris Geller anyway. Michaela interrupts to announce that there’s security camera footage of the clinic, and she found precedent that would allow them to use it.

Judge’s chambers. Annalise wants access to this footage. DA Wendy Parks insists that women’s clinics need to be protected from invasions like this. God, I love this scene, where Wendy is fighting for everything I believe in, but only because it’ll allow her side to win. (You know that if it would prove Rebecca killed Lila, she’d demand those tapes in a goddamn heartbeat, the privacy of women be damned.) Judge says, I’ll allow it, and without not violating anyone’s privacy. The footage can only be viewed in this courthouse in a protected room for the purposes of this case.

Frank arrives at the courthouse and hands Annalise the DNA results. She asks him to stay while she reads them. She’s very clearly relieved and happy when she discovers Sam was the father of Lila’s baby. Frank is obviously suspicious, and wants to know what the fuck is up. Annalise promises to tell him, if he keeps it quiet from Bonnie. Annalise is too smart to get Frank involved in this without a very good reason. Maybe we’re about to find out what Frank’s mysterious non-lawyer background is?

Mari: I mean, he wasn’t very good about planting that cell phone in BROAD DAYLIGHT so if they tell me he’s a super spy or some crap, I’m calling BS. I think Frank’s mysterious background is, “loyal do-boy.”

Diva: Actually, I think we all know what Frank’s mysterious background is.

#crossovermagic #benisglory #gloryisben

The cops interview Asher. He explains that he was getting “turnt up” before the bonfire and I laugh for approximately eleven and a half hours. He explains about the trophy, and gently reminds the cops that he really needs to go study like NOW. He explains that the gang wasn’t at 12 Grimmauld Place when he arrived, which was weird because Connor’s car was there. But no one answered when he knocked. Asher says he was there for two minutes, went to the bonfire, got a call from a lady and went to get his dick wet.

Cut to Bonnie’s interview, where she insists it was a one-time thing. She says she left the house at 9 pm, after telling Annalise that Sam knew Lila was pregnant. She admits that Sam hit on her to keep her quiet, and that’s probably the type of guy who’d run away. Outside, Bonnie pulls Asher out of his studying/pretending to be researching the case, and she makes it clear that their sex was a one-time drunk desperate mistake.

 

Poor Asher. Caught up in a murder he had nothing to do with, not allowed to study for exams, AND spurned by Paris Geller? Rough stuff.

Mari: Something tells me he’ll hit that again, though. Take heart, Asher.

Diva: Courthouse Movie Theater for Totally Not Violating Women’s Privacy. Dumbledore’s Army watch the footage of the women’s clinic. We see Sam and Lila there, having an argument. Bonnie thinks they should ask the receptionist what Sam and Lila were fighting about.

Cut to the receptionist on the stand, who testifies that Sam really wanted Lila to get the abortion, but Lila herself didn’t want it, hence their argument. Annalise introduces the DNA test proving Sam is the father of Lila’s baby, and Wendy Parks objects. Judge says this is circumstantial; Annalise is all, uh, only because Wendy won’t give me the goddamn laptop that will make this NOT circumstantial. The laptop will prove he was at Lila’s sorority house the night of the murder. The judge says, we’re going to get that computer, analyze it, and we’re adjourned til then. Annalise hisses at Wendy:

Post-break, the cops interview Michaela. She had dinner with her monster-in-law, then headed to Asher’s for his non-party. After that, she went to Wes’s for the study group, and then they went to the bonfire. They all drove together in Connor’s SUV. The detectives wonder why was Connor’s car outside the Keating house if they drove it to the bonfire. Michaela backtracks and is all, yeah, because we parked there, because parking was going to be a nightmare by the bonfire so they walked from Annalise’s. Oooooof. Gurl. Be better at this.

In the halls, Michaela and Connor do more of their angry-whispering about the case. She says she can reinvent herself after this – she’s done it before – and they need to turn themselves in. Connor says fine, but we need Laurel too. Frank sees Laurel first, and calls her a hypocrite for treating him like shit fork ting about his girlfriend “after what you did.” She plays dumb and he says, if you lie that well, you might get away with this! With what? MURDER?!?!?!!?! DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN. Anyway, Michaela tries to pull Laurel aside in the courtroom, but she brushes her off. Conor says, listen or we’ll sell you out to the cops.

GPS expert dude gives testimony proving that Sam arrived the address of Lila’s sorority house, and he was there within the window of Lila’s time of death. The courtroom goes nuts. Annalise says, hey, Rebecca didn’t impregnate and murder this girl, so drop these goddamn charges already. The judge agrees, and Dumbledore’s Army gets to do their patented strutting-out-of-the-courtroom-in-slow-motion thing. The journalists outside ask if they can talk to Annalise, but Bonnie insists she needs a lil’ bit of privacy when she just proved her husband was the prime suspect in the murder of his student/lover/baby-mama.

Annalise runs into the bathroom and basically hyperventilates inside the stall. While she’s in there, two basic bitches argue over whether Annalise is a heartless animal who sold out her own husband. But Annalise ain’t no middle-school bitch who will just hide until they leave and then cry her eyes out. She busts out of that stall, and walks in slow-motion to the sink, glaring at these two little bitches with a look that could absolutely kill.

 

Mari: I really expected that lady to clutch her pearls. I think she was on the inside.

Diva: Internal pearl-clutching sounds like something Ana Steele’s inner goddess would do. So, yup, probably also true for this dumbass bitch!

Connor and Michaela try to convince Laurel that they need to turn themselves in. The cops will be looking for Sam now that he’s implicated in Lila’s murder. They can get a better deal if they go to the cops now. Reluctantly, Laurel agrees.

After the break, Michaela, Laurel and Connor show up at the police department. Of course, before they can go in, who do they see there but Annalise and Wes! Cut to Laurel, saying that Frank knows about the murder, because Annalise told him, because Wes told Annalise. Wes denies telling Annalise anything, but Laurel informs him that Connor and Michaela are going to pin it on him and Rebecca. So he should tell her the goddamn truth.

Cut to Wes and Annalise. He explains that Dumbledore’s Army will only listen to her, and she needs to let them know that she knows what they did. Otherwise, they’re all going to turn on each other and ruin everything. Crying, and defeated, Wes says he can’t do this anymore, begging Annalise to tell the gang that she knows. Back at the police station, Connor tries to run inside, but Annalise stops him. She admits that she knows what they did, and their plan will not work. Trust her, and she will get them out of this. She plays the nice cop and insists that they’ve been through something horrible but she doesn’t blame them. If they let her help them, they’ll get away with this.

I guess this is as good a time as any to introduce the greatest gif(t) tumblr has ever given me:

Mari: Nay- Tumblr has ever given THE WORLD. That is fantastic.

Diva: I can’t stop looking at it, you guys.

Exam time. Annalise gives them a fact pattern; they’ll have to explain what the defenses are for each individual involved. She describes four people walking into a convenience store. The details are basically identical to the night of Sam’s murder, and we see the look on each faces as they realize this. Well, that’s very nice that they’re good and prepared for this exam, but WHAT ABOUT ALL THE OTHER TESTS THEY DIDN’T HAVE TIME TO STUDY FOR?

As the exam details continue in voiceover, Michaela tries on her wedding dress. She’s extra-skinny because of murder stress, but she’s pretending it’s because of exams. Um, if exam stress is supposed to make you lose weight instead of gaining it, I definitely did law school wrong.

Mari: If stress is at all meant to make you lose weight, I’m doing life wrong. #teamstresseating

Diva: Wes gets back to his apartment, and Rebecca has a little Christmas tree and that bottle of booze so they can celebrate their freedom. It’s actually the first time I haven’t straight-up hated these two as a couple. Laurel apologizes to her Legal Aid boy. Back at the exam, Annalise says the goal of the assignment is to get each defendant acquitted of all charges. There is a way, and they need to find it.

The cops interview Connor. They ask if it’s strange that Annalise’s husband is implicated in the murder that they were all working on with her. Connor says yes, but he’s really just worried about Annalise. She might seem like she’s made of iron, but she’s vulnerable inside. Connor hopes that Sam is man enough to come back and face what he’s done.

Annalise puts Sam’s wedding ring in her drawer. She holds his pillow and inhales slowly. Her phone rings, and Connor’s got news. We see a new player in town – Hannah, Sam’s sister, better known as Marcia Gay Harden. And she says it doesn’t matter what Annalise says – Sam is NOT a murderer. The episode ends with Annalise’s death-glare as she hears that her sister-in-law has come to town.

Mari: Marcia Gay Harden’s face kind of scares me too, Viola. She looks like she will cut you.

Also, hey! I didn’t mind this episode. It went by quickly and I was pretty invested in seeing if Sam really was the father and if he was trying to push Lila into an abortion and if he was at the sorority house. That break really was the right thing for me and this show.

Diva: Amen. See, guys? We can still like things! We just sometimes need a vacation from them first.

We are running a little behind on recaps, but #howtosnark is still alive and kicking! Check out our favorites from this episode:

 

Next time: Marcia Gay Harden brings some holiday cheer to 12 Grimmauld Place, while Dumbledore’s Army takes on a mafia client in How To Get Away With Murder S01 E11 – Best Christmas Ever.

 

DemocracyDiva (all posts)

I'm a J.D. by day/blogger by night who directs her snark and judgment primarily towards celebrities and their many red carpet mishaps. Blogging from the style capital of the world (just kidding - I live in DC), I rant and rave over the best and worst in fashion and pop culture.





Marines (all posts)

I'm a 30-something south Floridan who loves the beach but cannot swim. Such is my life, full of small contradictions and little trivialities. My main life goals are never to take life too seriously, but to do everything I attempt seriously well. After that, my life goals devolve into things like not wearing pants and eating all of the Zebra Cakes in the world. THE WORLD.





Written by

DemocracyDiva

I'm a J.D. by day/blogger by night who directs her snark and judgment primarily towards celebrities and their many red carpet mishaps. Blogging from the style capital of the world (just kidding - I live in DC), I rant and rave over the best and worst in fashion and pop culture.