ABC’s new hit crime-drama series “How to Get Away with Murder”—also known as HTGAWM on social media—has become a phenomenon since the first season aired in September of 2014. The creator of the show, Peter Nowalk, works along executive producer Shonda Rhimes—the brains behind the two hit series “Scandal” and “Grey’s Anatomy”—to build a suspense-packed, hard-to-resist show that could surpass the other hit series airing on ABC. With such a notable creator and executive producer- you wouldn’t be surprised at the jaw-dropping, head-turning series of events in HTGAWM that leave you yearning for next Thursday at 10 P.M. to indulge in the compelling obsession of finding out what is going to happen next.
The main character, Annalise Keating, is played by Emmy Award winning actress Viola Davis, who earned her Emmy as “Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series” in “How to Get Away with Murder.” Keating, a successful lawyer who doesn’t take no for an answer tackles the most difficult cases in her state, all while trying to maintain a failing marriage and teaching “Criminal Law 100” to a class of hundreds of students on the art of getting away with murder at Middleton University.
Davis is nothing without the help her two sidekicks: the often unreliable Bonnie Winterbottom (Liza Weil) who is always on Annalise’s side as an obedient puppy dog and the good-looking Frank Delfino (Charlie Weber) who with his mysterious charm, takes on dark secret missions in order to protect everyone.
From her large lecture hall of dedicated law students, Keating only picks five of them to work for her on law cases and in some instances, her private endeavors as well. The five “lucky” students who find themselves lost in the world of law, murder, and lies are: Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch), a troubled youth who falls for his neighbor; Connor Walsh (Jack Falahee), a handsome gay guy who uses sexual gestures to get answers; Michaela Pratt (Aja Naomi King), a dedicated law student who comes up with great leads on cases while hiding her private problems from the group; Laurel Castillo (Karla Souza), a smart girl who ends up in a love triangle between Frank and another man; and let’s not forget about Asher Millstone (Matt McGorry) the ridiculously goofy outcast from the group who is often left out of the team’s dark secrets.
Surprisingly, this series has been the big break for the actors that play Annalise’s minions. It is hard to believe that each actor/actress is not an Oscar award winner; with the ability to cry so intensely that the viewers want to cry too, the sexual scenes that are played so passionately to make you feel steamy, and the double-sided characters that make you relate to each side—innocent or guilty; they are all up and coming actors/actress. The emotions are played so well that you would think the role was specifically designed for each and every actor/actress. Who could’ve picked a better cast for their show?
Each character is so dynamic that we are introduced to who the character used to be and who they are now. Every person has a story and we are given time to learn about their past, their dark sides, their addictions, what makes them happy and what makes them tick.
Episodes one through nine begins and concludes with flash forwards of the murder and crime scene that the show revolves around—one that we do not find out the full story until episode nine. Leading up to the revelation, each episode teases us with a bit more information to piece together the unlikely turn of events that led to an unfortunate murder, surprisingly shocking killer and the actions that followed.
By the time you get to episode nine, you may have already been given enough information to guess what actually happened and why—you could be right or you could be wrong. Since the show always has a twist, the chances are that your guess would be wrong. But by episode nine, there is no further room for confusion as we find out the motive of the crime, the suspects and who’s guilty. The following episodes show the cover-up and the many lies to make the guilty look innocent—the true secrets of getting away with murder. Make sure to have your notebook ready…or maybe you shouldn’t.
In addition to the larger crime, every episode shows how the gang uses their many skills to help Annalise battle individual law cases. The students are caught up in the sticky world of deceit by doing whatever it takes to help their master defend her clients, even if that means breaking the law, using people as puppets, making bribes or using their own charm—I mean lets be real, they all look like gods and goddess—to find out the truth. I don’t think they were prepared for all of this but they can’t get out of Annalise’s dark hole now. Or can they?
Just be prepared for more mystery, love, hate, sex, murder, law, and lies in season two of “How to Get Away With Murder” which launched on September 24, 2015. Let’s see what trouble the gang will find themselves in next and if they will continue down the dark road or turn on their master, Annalise Keating to avoid getting into any more sticky messes.
