A series premiere is one thing, but it's how a series follows up said premiere that paves the way to success.
ABC's How To Get Away With Murder absolutely nailed this in last night's episode, titled "It's All Her Fault", written by Pete Nowalk and directed by Bill D'Elia. We saw the team defend a father who was found to have committed murder previously, but was now being tried for a murder he didn't commit. The procedural process the series looks to be taking was set more firmly with the students each getting their time in the spotlight when finding their big break.
This episode was paced perfectly. When you watch as much television as I do, your body clock can subconsciously keep track of the time that's lapsed and the time that's remaining in an episode, but last night I found myself a bit off the mark. The episode crammed a substantial amount in, but it didn't feel crammed or rushed at all. The intensity was evident throughout, backed up by an excellent score.
Alongside the procedural process, some interesting progress was made along the lines of the timeshifted murder of Annalise Keating's husband, which played a major role in last week's series premiere. We didn't learn anything drastically new - instead what we saw was a few moments of footage that backed onto what we saw last week. This is clever work by the showrunners. I was worried that too much was revealed upfront last week, but the showrunners found the perfect balance between new information and connecting the dots.
With the sheer volume of content in the episode, character development in the present has taken the back seat for the students, with the timeshifted case telling us precious little instead. Keating's assistants Frank Delfino and Bonnie Winterbottom remain stagnant while Keating and her husband see development in the present.
That being said, Viola Davis carried an immense screen presence in the premiere, but this was toned back slightly last night, and it worked a charm. Viola Davis was by far the biggest selling point in the months of promotions but confidence in the supporting cast to do their bit is just as important. Annalise Keating is the character we know the most about, but for me, it's Rebecca that interests me the most, especially given the scenes we saw in the final moments of the episode.
That's not to say Annalise Keating isn't interesting at all - that couldn't be further from the truth. The character has two sides, one being the lawyer, the other being a timid, vulnerable wife. The two are destined to collide head-on at some point, which I'm really looking forward to seeing.
Lastly, I want to mention the character relationships. The showrunners have found a way to drive wedges of varying sizes between all the characters so far. This has the advantage of making everyone accountable, and vulnerable to someone, but the disadvantage comes in the form of not being able to trust anyone. The showrunners need to be careful not to divide all the characters too significantly, though the flash forwards prove that the students seem to stick together for the most part. Beyond that is anyone's guess.
Thanks for reading! Please do share your thoughts, comments and feelings in the comments section below on the episode. Don't forget to check out the press release and promo for next week's episode, titled "Smile, or Go to Jail", and track How To Get Away With Murder's ratings on my television ratings website, www.seriesmonitor.com/howtogetawaywithmurder.
Jimmy.
