It’s our first episode of The Lying Game where both Sutton and Emma are actually being themselves! And I must say, props to miss Alexandra Chando. I know that this show is soapy and ridiculous and over-the-top and the story is really, really frustrating sometimes because it never lets the viewer in, but those aren’t Chando’s problems, and she is a really good actress. I’m amazed at the amount of nuance she brings to Emma and the amount of fire and intensity she brings to Sutton. I mean, I know that the girls are polar opposites and that makes it a little easier to play, but she does a really, really good job. I’m especially impressed with her portrayal of Sutton and the mix of condescension and desperation she somehow manages to balance. Maybe that’s because we’ve seen a lot more of Emma than we have of Sutton, but, still. It can’t be easy playing two characters in one show. (Or maybe it is. I am not an actress so I have no idea. It definitely seems hard to me.)

Anyway, I found this episode, “Black and White and Green All Over,” to be especially frustrating. There was a lot of characters talking around topics instead of talking about them and it really makes me want to stomp my foot and scream at people and storm out of the room. Actually, Laurel did exactly that in one scene and I was like, “SHE IS THE AUDIENCE. SHE FEELS OUR PAIN.” But of course she does, because Laurel is our homegirl. But outside of this episode being highly frustrating, it also gave us a lot of Miss Sutton and her—surprise!—jealousy of Emma once she realizes how much better Emma is at being a human than Sutton is. Sutton goes into manipulation mode and I found it to be really pathetic. It was almost this sense that she suddenly realized everything she once had was slipping away and she was doing everything she could think of to hold onto it. And, not surprisingly, the only person who seems to be giving into that is Emma. I find it to be a very interesting power struggle, and one that I wasn’t really expecting. So I guess that’s one thing the show has got goin’ for it.

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Y’all! This was our first Char-free (!!!!) episode! And you know what else? The show gave us some (really shitty) answers about some things we’ve been demanding to have answers for! And even though those answers were, indeed, REALLY shitty, at least they are answers. And hopefully one of them means that another character will be leaving soon. However—with the dismissal of Char, we have added not only Cordy to the cast, but also some British fop named Ryan. Do not want. I want Lexi and the hot guy whose dad owns a casino. They were fun.

Alright, so since I don’t really want to invest too much time/energy into this recap because I am SLAMMED at work (and because I’d rather spend time/energy on my New Girl recap later tonight!) I’m gonna make this short and sweet. And, really, this episode is one that is super easy to make short and sweet as there was a lot of filler in-between some pretty major plot changes. Yay for forward progression, show!
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Y’all, I have been remiss. I was completely unprepared for the return of The Lying Game last week. I was so unprepared that I was actually on my way back from skiing and not even in my home, AND I didn’t set the DVR to record it. Yep.  That is how completely unprepared I was. I’m sure you’re all just chomping at the bit for this recap. (That’s sarcasm, y’all. Promise.)

So let’s start things off with a teeny tiny recap of what happened in last week’s episode, “O Twin, Where Art Thou?”

• First and foremost, we should note that the perennially gorgeous Cordelia Chase (I know her real name is Charisma Carpenter. But she will always be Cordy to me.) has joined the cast as Annie “Rebecca” Sewell, who is Char’s aunt.  Annie Sewell and Annie Hobbs are two different people, apparently.
• Cordy (Annie-Rebecca? WHAT SHOULD I CALL HER?! Perhaps we should have a poll…) and Phyllis do not get along at all.
• Adrian Pasdar/Ted/Cordy all talk a lot about how much they’ve changed and don’t want to re-hash anything.
• Thayer/Ethan/Emma trying to figure out where Sutton is. (Answer, to refresh your memory: at the bottom of the lake. Maybe.)
• The Mercers have come home from “Sutton”‘s birthday party and found out that someone (Sutton) stole the “extra” car. I really want these fictional people to pay off my grad school loans for me.
• The costume designer is really into those weird shirts that have slits down the arm. I dislike them. Well, maybe I feel ambivalent toward them. But I seriously disliked that both Char and Emma were wearing them in the same scene.
• The Mercer’s “extra” car is found in lake, but there no Sutton. Ethan/Emma arrested by his bitch-ass brother. Ethan/Emma/Thayer think Sutton is dead.
• There was a moment during this episode where I wasn’t paying attention to what was actually happening on screen (because Boyfriend who is now living in Singapore was texting me) and all of a sudden the score sounded a whole lot like the opening theme for BSG and I was seriously excited.
• Thayer thinks Ethan whacked Sutton.
• Annie-Rebecca/Cordy stopped by the Country Club to talk to Adrian Pasdar about Ted…and then we never got the end of that conversation. *kicks show*
• Laurel loses Justin’s mom’s bracelet . . . Ted finds it and acts SUPER CREEPY about it.
• Emma receives a present containing a piece of Sutton’s dress and a note that threatens her if she keeps pretending to be Sutton. DUN-DUN-DUN.

And now for last night’s episode, “When We Dead Awaken.” (Which, btw, is the title of the last play Henrik Ibsen wrote.)
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On last night’s mid-season finale of The Lying Game the writers FINALLY played their hand at penning a show that makes people want to watch it. The sad part is that they didn’t do it until the last ten minutes or so of the episode. Seriously. I spent fifty minutes staring at my television, thinking “This is the most boring mid-season finale episode I think I’ve ever seen.” Maybe that’s unfair. Ok, it’s definitely unfair because there were a lot of really great Sutton moments. It’s obvious to me that the writers love her the mostest. Well, her and maybe Char. I think the writers revel in her idiocy. And I suppose I can’t blame them for that.

Anyway, in this supposedly important episode only one important thing actually happens: Sutton shows up in Phoenix.

This should have been fantastic, right? Finally, the bitchy twin, who totally takes her life for granted and manipulated people as she sees fit is back to kick the nice twin out of her life and back to Vegas. And a little of that does, in fact, happen. But there were really only a handful of scenes that were exciting and dramatic, and everything else was either filler or really lame set-up for things that will happen in future episodes.

So let’s talk about the good parts. Sutton sets up this whole situation where Ethan, who has declared his love for Emma via webcam (Seriously, dude? Webcam? Negative Pacey Points, yo.) when he was actually talking to Sutton, is to meet her at the cabin from the pilot episode. Sutton then also invites Emma to the cabin by creating a fake e-alert thing from Ethan telling her to meet him at the cabin. So, off we all go to the cabin in the woods.
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Y’all, this show is really weird. And kind of annoying. And last night’s episode, “Sex, Lies, and Hard Knocks High” basically typifies all the things I don’t like about this show. Yes, I realize it’s a teen drama and it’s supposed to be all melodramatic and angsty and the story lines are supposed to be drawn out to the point that you find yourself screaming at the TV for things to just HAPPEN ALREADY, but. I feel like this show makes it much harder to endure than other shows have in the past. Or maybe I’m just getting old. (I def had a Twitter conversation with a friend about how hot we find Jeremy Sisto on Suburgatory, and how weird we feel about that since he’s the dad on the show and not one of the teenagers. But. Seriously, that man is attractive.)

And, actually, there were some really great moments in last night’s misleadingly titled episode—namely the story line with Sutton and Lexi, in which Sutton got a taste of what it’s like to have to be another person, and met a highly attractive, magic card trick doing guy at the high school (that I assume is the “hard knocks high” the episode title refers to. It’s not scary. It’s a normal school. These writers need to stop watching Gossip Girl.) Emma goes to in Las Vegas. Mostly, I just like Lexi.

All right, so now I’ll bitch my way through the rest of the episode. Prepare yourselves for my violent outbursts. (They’re really violent.)
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ABC Family

Well, HELLO THERE underage drinking, I’m glad the writers finally woke up and wrote you in! (Not that I, or any of those affiliated with Off-Color TV condone underage drinking. But, let’s be honest—every teen drama has it.)

In last night’s episode of The Lying Game, gleefully titled “Never Have I Ever” (which is apparently also a title of one of the books in the series this show is based upon) there’s a lot of people trying to put puzzle pieces together, but not quite being able to figure out exactly how they fit. And also, Becky from Friday Night Lights, which made my little FNL-filled fangirl of a heart pitter-patter like whoa. Yes, it would have been more exciting if it had been, say, Riggins or Saracen or Coach (If this show can get Adrian Pasdar, surely they can wrangle Zach Gilford, right? Even for just one episode?) but apparently a sighting of any FNL alum on another show is enough to make me squeal loud enough that my roommates ask if I’m ok.

Anyway, onward with this recap!
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HOLY LAUREL’S ONE-LINERS, BATMAN! These writers have OBVIOUSLY been reading our reviews and know how much we love Laurel. Or maybe they just love her as much as we do. I truly don’t care what the answer is BUT OMG did Laurel have some great one-liners in last night’s episode, “Escape from Sutton Island.” I’m a GINORMOUS Gilmore Girls fan and was literally bouncing and squealing and fangirling when Laurel told Emma who their respective Gilmore equivalents were. OMG. So much Caroline Cash*, ya’ll. Laurel could buy herself an entire case of thousand dollar bottles of wine. (We’ll get to that in a bit.)

Ok, let me tell you about the other shit that went down in this episode real fast, then we will return to the AWESOME that is LAUREL.
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The latest episode of The Lying Game, titled “Bad Boys Break Hearts,” picks up DIRECTLY after Homecoming (but not at an after-party, which still just confuses my mind) in a really cute scene between Emma and Laurel, mostly focuses on each of the five main girl’s “relationships”—and yes, this includes Char who sort of grew on me in this episode. (I know!)

And, actually, a lot of things that move the plot forward happen in this episode. I was SHOCKED by how much the writers packed into this sucker—not that it’s, like, a crazy episode, but the fact that anything other than the characters sit around and talk to each other happened is sort of baffling at this point, since that’s really all they’ve been doing thus far. So, HOORAY WRITERS. Way to do your job!

So, let’s break this down by “couple,” shall we?
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Last night’s episode of The Lying Game, inexplicably titled “Over Exposed,” was all about Homecoming. Which made me realize that this show has talked about the tennis and golf teams at length, but has never once mentioned Arroyo High School’s football team. But that’s not stopping them from having a Homecoming.

Since it’s Homecoming time, Kristen looks through old photo albums from her high school days at Arroyo, where she was Homecoming Queen. Of course she was. Emma becomes sort of obsessed with this photo album, and a couple pictures in particular: one of Ted and baby Sutton, and one of Ted, Adrian Pasdar, and a random woman, whom I can only assume is Annie Hobbs.

Now, I will be honest—while Emma was transfixed by this photo, I was thinking that perhaps the three of them (because I’ve decided this random lady is definitely, absolutely, without a doubt, Annie) had some sort of crazy, drunken three-some and BOTH Ted and Adrian Pasdar are the fathers. But then I realized that is BANANA-PANTS CRAZY. However, I will not rule this out as a possibility.

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