As I’ve said in many past articles, ABC Family’s The Lying Game has been a bit of a surprise to me. The lying twins Sutton and Emma are interesting, but it’s the villainy of the adults — especially Adrian Pasdar’s Alec — that makes the show a can’t miss. As far as “teen dramas” go, I could go as far to say it’s definitely one of the best, even though I haven’t been a teen myself in many years.
Tonight at 9PM (ET), the show returns, picking up where the show left off a few months ago. The real Sutton is in a car that is submerged underwater right as her twin, Emma, is expecting the end of her life and masquerade pretending to be Sutton. We find out what happens when Emma and her mother meet a woman from the adults’ past. And as usual, accusations and mysteries are flying.
If you haven’t seen the show before, there’s a recap of what we’ve already seen. There are only ten episodes in the past, so it might be recommended to just catch what you may have missed…. ABC Family certainly re-airs them enough. I’m kind of surprised the show has come so far in such a short amount of time, and there are characters who barely existed when the show started that are major forces in the series as it exists now. I like that.
Charisma Carpenter shows up as a new character named Rebecca, and she proves to me that it really is the right role for the right actress that will make or break a role. When Charisma appeared on Supernatural a few months back I was quite critical, even wondering if there was more to Charisma than Cordelia Chase. Thankfully, there is. This is a role perfectly suited for Carpenter, and I think she’ll spar with the others — particularly the adults — really well.
More good? There seems to be a rivalry growing between Thayer and Ethan, even though they both should realize there’s no competition. Ethan likes Emma and Thayer likes her twin. The episode ends on a note that makes me anxiously await next week’s installment, so that is good too. The Lying Game is a show that leaves me wanting more, so that succeeds. And I’m thankful Alec is still a part of the show… most definitely the best character of the show. If you’ve seen Profit, you already know that no one plays bad like Adrian Pasdar does.
The bad? There’s a whole subplot with Laurel losing a bracelet given to her by Justin. I am sure this may mean more later in the story, but I wasn’t feeling it at ALL. It feels almost shoehorned in to an otherwise enthralling story.
The midseason premiere of The Lying Game airs tonight on ABC Family.
