Pilot (''Pretty Little Liars'')

"Pilot"
Pretty Little Liars episode
Episode no. Season 1
Episode 1
Directed by Lesli Linka Glatter
Written by I. Marlene King
Original air date June 8, 2010
Guest appearance(s)

"Pilot" is the series premiere of the mystery drama series Pretty Little Liars. It introduces each of the main characters, as well as establishes the basic premises of the series. The episode aired on June 8, 2010 on ABC Family.

In the episode, the main characters find themselves apprehensive one year after the disappearance of Alison DiLaurentis. When Aria returns to Rosewood, she rediscovers her old friends and secrets of the past begin to haunt them. Alison's body is then found in her former home, and after the funeral, the girls receive a frightening anonymous message signed by "A."

The episode received mixed reviews and was watched by 2.47 million viewers.

Plot

In Rosewood, Pennsylvania, not far from Philadelphia, four friends get together in a homely barn, drinking and having fun. At one point, a noise outside the barn scares them. The girls slowly make their way to the barn door, and a blonde girl gives them a fright, screaming. The blonde is after revealed to be Alison DiLaurentis (Sasha Pieterse), the clique's leader. The five then either sit or lie down and return to playful activities, falling asleep shortly after. During nightfall, Alison disappears and Spencer Hastings (Troian Bellisario) tries to look for her in the night. Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale) then wakes up and finds Spencer arriving back in the barn, who tells her and the others that she did not find Alison anywhere.

One year later

It is revealed that Alison mysteriously vanished that night, and the girls went separate ways. Aria and her parents traveled for a year to Iceland; Hanna Marin (Ashley Benson) underwent a complete style transformation, becoming the it-girl of Rosewood's social scene, and is friends with Mona Vanderwaal (Janel Parrish), who used to be bullied by Alison; Emily Fields (Shay Mitchell) focused on her swimming skills, hiding that she's attracted to girls and was in love with Alison; and Spencer focused on her studies and struggled to become Rosewood High's number one student.

The Montgomery returns to Rosewood after spending a year in Iceland, and Aria finds herself unable to adapt again to the town's mediocrity. Ella (Holly Marie Combs) and Byron (Chad Lowe), Aria's parents, are happy together again after a crisis they had in the past, while Mike (Cody Allen Christian), Aria's younger brother, quickly settles himself in the field hockey team. In an attempt to refresh her mind, she goes to a pub to drink and meets a guy there who also likes literature. They feel connected and make out in the pub's bathroom. On the first day of class, she discovers he's her new English teacher Ezra Fitz (Ian Harding). Aria receives a threatening message from someone who identifies as 'A', and who apparently knows about hers and her father's secrets.

At the Rosewood Mall, Hanna and Mona shoplifts and camera footage catch Hanna, leading her mother (Laura Leighton) to sleep with Detective Darren Wilden (Bryce Johnson) to release her daughter. Spencer prepares for a family dinner in which her sister Melissa (Torrey DeVitto) introduces her fiancée Wren (Julian Morris) to the Hastings. Spencer discovers that Melissa and Wren will live in the barn that Spencer has gone on vacancy reforming and it irritates her. Meanwhile, Spencer discovers that she feels something for Wren. Emily's mother (Nia Peeples) asks her to drop a welcome basket to the family which just moved to Rosewood and is living in the old DiLaurentis residence. Emily is reluctant, but ends up meeting with Maya (Bianca Lawson) who is the daughter of the St. Germain. They quickly befriend. Ashley, Hanna's mother, is still suffering from her divorce, and is having an affair with the detective who released Hanna. Is also revealed that Aria's father had an affair with one of his students in the past, Meredith (Amanda Schull), just like what's happening between Aria and Ezra. Spencer receives a message from 'A' which makes her remember she kissed Ian Thomas (Carlo Marks), Melissa's former boyfriend, in the past. Emily and Hanna also receive threatening message from 'A'.

They soon suspect Alison is 'A', until her body is found in the St. Germain residence and the town gets shocked. At her funeral, Jessica DiLaurentis (Anne Marie DeLuise) meets the girls and places her in the front row. The girls worry when Jenna Marshall (Tammin Sursok) — a classmate who was blinded in an incident involving the four girls and Alison — and her stepbrother Toby (James Neate) appear in the funeral. After, outside the church, the girls receive one more text: I'm still here bitches. And I know everything -A.

Production

"Pilot" was written by series' showrunner and main collaborator I. Marlene King and directed by Lesli Linka Glatter. On January 27, 2010, ABC Family picked up the series for 10 episodes, set to premiere in June 2010.[1] The theme song for Pretty Little Liars opening is "Secret" by The Pierces, which was suggested by one of the show's stars, Ashley Benson.[2]

Casting

ABC Family began casting for a Pretty Little Liars television pilot in October 2009.[3] Lucy Hale was cast as Aria Montgomery in the project, followed by Troian Bellisario as Spencer Hastings and Ian Harding as Ezra Fitz in November 2009.[4] In December 2009, The Futon Critic confirmed the casting of Ashley Benson as Hanna Marin and Shay Mitchell as Emily Fields, as well as the addition of Laura Leighton as Ashley Marin, Nia Peeples as Pam Fields, Roark Critchlow as Tom Marin, and Bianca Lawson as Maya.[5][6] Mitchell had initially auditioned for the role of Spencer and then tried for Emily.[7] The Hollywood Reporter also noted that Torrey DeVitto and Sasha Pieterse landed recurring roles in the pilot.[6] The Alloy Entertainment website later confirmed that Pieterse would be playing Alison DiLaurentis and DeVitto would be Melissa Hastings, also mentioning the casting of Janel Parrish as Mona Vanderwaal.[8] Initially, Alexis Denisof was cast to be Aria Montgomery's father Byron. In April 2010, the role of Aria's father Byron was recast with Chad Lowe,[9][10] and Holly Marie Combs was cast as Aria's mother Ella. Jenna Marshall is played by Tammin Sursok.[11] The actors who played Ian Thomas and Toby Cavanaugh in this episode were after replaced by Ryan Merriman and Keegan Allen, respectively.

Filming

After the pilot was shot in Vancouver, filming for the rest of the series has since moved to Los Angeles.[12][13] The series is primarily filmed at the Warner Bros. studio and backlot in the city of Burbank (near Los Angeles).[14]

Reception

Ratings

The pilot was broadcast on June 8, 2010.[15] It was watched by 2.47 million viewers, scoring a 0.9 rating in the 18-49 demographic.[16]

Reviews

"Pilot" was received with mixed opinions, although the series has gotten a more positive critique over its progression. Metacritic gave the pilot episode 52 out of 100, based upon 14 critical reviews.[17] The New York Daily News gave the show a positive review, commenting that it "makes most popular vampire romances look anemic", while concluding, "Pretty Little Liars could go in several directions, including mundane teen clichés. It's got an equally good shot at making us care about these imperfect pretty girls."[18] A writer on Terror Hook has stated that " 'Pretty Little Liars' gets off to a very promising start. Great production all around, the writing keeps the viewer on their toes, and the acting just reinforces it. The overall mystery of the show in the end is dark and unpredictable, even stepping into the slasher film realm."[19] The New York Post gave the show three out of five stars, stating, "OK, so we've established that there is no socially redeeming value in this series and that your kids shouldn't watch it if they are too young and impressionable. But if you can distract them enough to miss the first 15 minutes, the show isn't half-bad. Actually, it is half-good, if that makes sense."[20] The Los Angeles Times wrote that the series is "one of those shows that manages to mildly, and perhaps unintentionally, spoof its genre while fully participating in it, and that's not a bad thing at all."[21]

References

  1. ↑ "ABC Family Announces Pick-Up Of Dramas "Huge"" (PDF) (Press release).
  2. ↑ Taub, Melinda (August 4, 2010). "Ashley Benson Picked the Theme Song". Wetpaint. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  3. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (October 19, 2009). "ABC Family nears 'Little Liars' pickup". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on January 28, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  4. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (November 11, 2009). "ABC Family fills comedy, Liars roles". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on January 28, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  5. ↑ "ABC Family announces additional casting for its upcoming pilots" (Press release). ABC Family. December 7, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 28, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Andreeva, Nellie (December 7, 2009). "Laura Leighton joins 'Pretty Little Liars'". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on January 28, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  7. ↑ Ko, Nalea J. (July 6, 2011). "'Pretty Little Liars' Actress Shay Mitchell on Coming to America". Pacific Citizen. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Pretty Little Liars on TV!". Alloy Entertainment. January 28, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  9. ↑ Burt, Kayti (October 23, 2014). "9 Things You Didn’t Know About Pretty Little Liars". Wetpaint. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  10. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (April 1, 2010). "Chad Lowe joins ABC Family series". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ Ausiello, Michael (April 10, 2010). "Exclusive: Holly Marie Combs joins 'Pretty Little Liars'". Entertainment Weekly. Time. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  12. ↑ Moorhouse, Drusilla (June 8, 2010). "Pretty Little Liars: Stars Share Secrets on the Set of Their New Show". E! Online. NBCUniversal. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  13. ↑ Ahearn, Victoria (June 21, 2010). "'Pretty Little Liars' actress shows Canuck roots". MSN Canada. Archived from the original on June 24, 2010. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  14. ↑ Garland, Chad (28 March 2015). "Library hosts fans of cult book and show 'Pretty Little Liars'". The Burbank Leader. Tribune Publishing Company. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Shows A-Z - pretty little liars on freeform". The Futon Critic. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  16. ↑ Gorman, Bill (June 9, 2010). "Tuesday Cable: Justified Finale & Law & Order:CI Flat, Plus Deadliest Catch, The Hills, WWE NXT & More". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
  17. ↑ "Pretty Little Liars: Season 1". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Pretty Little Liars - The Complete First Season : Release Year - 2010". Terror Hook. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  19. ↑ Hinckley, David (June 8, 2010). "Time will tell if 'Pretty Little Liars' are good at keeping secrets". Daily News. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  20. ↑ Stasi, Linda (June 8, 2010). "Not just another 'Pretty' face". New York Post. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  21. ↑ McNamara, Mary (June 8, 2010). "Television review: 'Pretty Little Liars'". Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
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