There are spoilers for Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin. Remember A? The vindictive blackmailer on Pretty Little Liars tortured high school students Spencer, Hanna, Emily and Aria for seven years? In the original show, multiple people took up the mantle of "A" each season. There's even "Uber A" and "A's Army." Eventually, A turns out to be Allison's sister, Cece Drake.
In the HBO Max reboot, In Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin , A is back armed and dangerous. Millwood's new Masked A is torturing another group of women - Imogen (Bailee Madison), Tabby (Chandler Kinney), Noah (Maya Refico), Fran (Zaria), Rat (Maria Pyles) - Unlike Rosewood's villains, this A is scarier than ever. First, A is wearing a horror mask, disheveled hair, and a construction jumpsuit, looking like a character from a horror movie. Plus, this new version is even scarier.
"Our A is very vindictive, cruel, cruel, and has no remorse or fear about pushing the limits," Bailee Madison tells Bustle. "Our A is not gentle at all. If our A comes out to catch you, your life will be in A's hands."
According to "Original Sin" creators Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Lindsay Calhoun, "Original Sin" doesn't have the years-long speculation that existed in the original film. "Lindsay and I are both storytellers. We like a beginning, a middle and an end. So we decided early on that whatever mysteries we introduced in the first few episodes of season one, by the end of the season, they might It’s not quite over yet, but they all need at least a satisfying conclusion," Aguirre-Sacasa tells Bustle.
The question "Who is A?" takes on another layer in this new iteration of the PLL . In the original novel, the Liars were already friends and committed their "sins" and lies together - at least in the eyes of their tormentors. But in the town of Millwood, the Trickster Moms have a stake in the Big Bad's ultimate revenge. "These girls are suddenly brought together by A, who don't really know what's going on, and they must unravel the mystery of why A specifically targeted them and why they were tortured," said Chandler Kinney. The man who plays horror movie fan Tabby tells Bustle. This is definitely an extra dimension that PLL fans must consider when investigating clues to A's identity. But viewers can finally wrap up the investigation because A's identity is finally revealed in the season 1 finale, and it's pretty awesome.
Who is A in "Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin" ?
Original Sin lists several suspects for the Masked Killer, including Wes, Sheriff Beasley, Freddy, Principal Clanton, or Mrs. Geary. But it turns out that Person A’s true identity is much more complicated. While many viewers believed the villain was inspired by Angela and her death in the first episode, the finale revealed that the "A" in question actually stood for Angela's twin brother "Archie." Why does Archie go on a murder spree? Well, it has to do with Principal Clanton (aka Archie’s dad).
After falling in love with Rose Waters, Clanton soon and unknowingly became the father of twins Angela and Archie. However, because Rose and her family needed help, the Walters accepted hush money from the Clantons before leaving town. Principal Clanton remained at Millwood, rising through the ranks in education and earning the title of high school vice principal. Around that time, Ross reappeared and asked Angela to attend Millwood High School. Clanton agreed, not realizing that he was leading his daughter into circumstances that would ultimately lead to her death.
Clanton explains his entire backstory after coaxing the con men into the school to take their final exams. He seduces them into seeking revenge against the bullies in their lives, only to congratulate them when they choose mercy. The Tricksters then head to the school's gymnasium, where all their mothers are imprisoned by Archie and a gun-wielding Clanton.
Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin Season 1 Finale Explained
In 1999, Angela confided in Imogen's mother David that she had been assaulted by future Sheriff Tom Beasley. Outraged by the accusations, David recruits her friends Sidney, Elodie, Cory, and Marjorie (the con artist's mother) to systematically ostracize Angela. They basically turned Angela Waters into a ghost and made her presence ignored by the entire school. One day, David came to Angela to apologize and invited her to a New Year's Eve party. When Angela finally arrived at the party, she was depressed, and the situation worsened when she discovered that the attendees continued to ignore her. After a series of rejections, Angela climbs to the roof of the rave warehouse, and we see the scene where Angela jumps to her death at the beginning of the show.
Clanton blames Liar's mother, and David in particular, for her daughter's death. However, as Tabitha points out, Clanton should have included Sheriff Beasley (Eric Johnson) in his revenge plan since he attacked Angela in the first place. Clanton revealed that he planned to blame Beasley for the entire conspiracy, but little did he know that he was working on it after Beasley threatened to kill Kelly the same way he killed Karen (Mallory Bechtel) Nursing wife's stab wound.
The principal explained that in order to stop the cycle of violence and bullying, the sins of the mother must be placed on the daughter. Clanton orders Archie to kill Imogen. She ran home, lured Archie into the bathroom, and stabbed him multiple times - a scene inspired by Psycho . Back at the gym, Kelly arrives with Greg (Elias Kakavas) to finally give the con men the backup they were hoping for. Clanton is startled and shoots Greg in the arm, then Tabitha hits the principal on the head with the nameplate on the desk. Kelly, Greg, Liar, and their mother find Imogen at her home. The pregnant teen sat on Archie's limp body and told everyone her water had broken.
The season ends with a flash-forward to Christmas and everyone seems to be in high spirits. Clanton was arrested. Chip (Carson Rowland) was also punished for attacking Imogen and Tabitha, but he was released on bail. It seems like the whole ordeal is over, but the final scene cuts to the hospital where Archie and Beasley are still alive after being stabbed. In a final horrifying tribute, Archie broke out of his bed and murdered Beasley in his sleep. As the credits roll, the season ends with Archie arriving on Chip's doorstep and killing him. While the show's mysteries seem to have been mostly solved and A's true identity is known, Original Sin has everyone wondering what Archie will do once he's free.
