Entertainment htgawmhow to get away with murderSkanks get shanked

'How To Get Away With Murder' Continues To Take Our Breath Away

Shonda can do no wrong.
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By 

Reporter, HuffPost

Spoilers obviously abound below for Season 2, Episode 4 of "How to Get Away with Murder," "Skanks Get Shanked."

Not sure when we're going to end an episode of "HTGAWM" this season where we're not screaming at the TV, but that hasn't happened yet, and it doesn't look like it will.

Several things went right this episode -- there was a crazy case at hand, Annalise had to deal with Nate's wife (finally), Michaela grew some courage, Wes did some detective work, Asher betrayed everyone and the flash-forward was suspenseful as all get out. 

Normally, we here in "HTGAWM" recap land don't care about the case at hand. But a crazy teen trio that killed their friend? Yeah, that finally got our attention.

On a personal level, Annalise finally met with Nate's cancer-ridden wife, Nia, who we've been wondering about for years. And, to be honest, this confrontation was a bit disappointing. Where was the outrage, like from Addison on "Grey's" or Mellie on "Scandal," that we've come to know and love from Shonda wives that have been cheated on?

She did ask Annalise to find her pills that would kill her, but that's just not what we expect, as viewers, from Nia after so many episodes of buildup. She should want to kill or wound Annalise -- not sympathize with her. She's one of the few women who should be able to bring Annalise to her knees and didn't do it. 

But the rest of the episode revolved around the evolution of Michaela. The girl who was a stuttering, crying mess last murder (note how casually we throw around the term "last murder") is cold, calm and collected in the future murder fast-forward. Although taking a call on your cell that pins you near the murder scene is a rookie move. Someone hasn't listened to "Serial" recently.

In the case this week, she's on point -- excelling under pressure, despite Annalise pushing her to use her boobs to get her way. She gets to the truth of the matter with the siblings, finding out that the sister, Catherine, is a virgin (are we really doing a virginity test, ABC? Really?) in order to disprove the incest claims. And at the end of the episode, she might even be sleeping with the hot brother client, Caleb. While not professionally great, at least she's going for what she wants. 

Back to the case of the week: turns out the girl that the Keating crew is defending is a murderous sociopath. Connor shows a flash of a soul and tips off the DA to her insanity, eventually standing up to Annalise himself. And that's where one of the best twists of the episode came -- Annalise threatened to expose Connor's car, which has Sam's blood in it.

The above brings us to a greater point -- this show does best when it builds on the crimes committed last season. There is so much unresolved from the last major murder, and the resulting building tension makes the sophomore season of this drama tick.

The final conversation with Nate's wife, Nia, which revolves around Annalise lecturing her on her pain, was a bit off. Once again, Annalise just really doesn't have a leg to stand on with this woman. Should she give her the drugs to die? Absolutely not. But should this conversation have gone differently? Yes. 

In "What's Asher feeling guilty about this week?" news, the kid signed a plea deal to protect himself over whatever happened with him at Trouter Lake. But for Bonnie to lie for Annalise and say she killed Sam is insane. What will poor Asher do? Throw his plea deal away for the woman he loves, or forge on ahead for his own greater good?

And then even worse -- or better, really -- Annalise sees Wes and Nate conniving after Wes figures out, with Levi's help, that Rebecca is probably buried in a cemetery nearby. Gig is up, though, boys -- Boss Annalise knows. Prepare for all hell to break loose.

And then to the flash-forward: the kids are all upset because either they are mad Annalise isn't dead or think she will die. It's hard to tell, but assuredly future flash-forwards will reveal what side the kids fall on. 

As for Michaela -- she ends the episode with her alleged client-lover hottie. Two boyfriends makes up for that one unfaithful fiancé, right? We're looking forward to seeing her continue to evolve this season.

On a logistical note, we only have four more weeks till we catch up with the flash-forward, but 11 more episodes. Does that mean we have half a season of Annalise Keating vengeance on the Keating quartet, plus Nate? Can you imagine anything better?

Odds and Ends

  • Connor's analysis of Annalise's bullying was on point.
  • An episode without Oliver is a sad thing.
  • Wes has a tendency to really trust people he met like 20 minutes ago. Why, we will never know.
  • In Shondaland PSA news, this week, it was parents learning about the smartphone app that looks like a calculator and hides all kinds of things on teens' phones. Hopefully, your teen is hiding innocent things instead of murder evidence.
  • Michaela was adopted?!?!
  • Bonnie and Frank should have their own show.
  • Laurel should have subtitles when she speaks in Spanish.
  • Was anyone else offended by Annalise telling Michaela to use her sexuality?
  • "Damn Cloud, worst thing ever invented," is Annalise's best line this episode.
  • That time Nate apologized for his wife to his mistress? We could not even.
  • We want all of Annalise's clothes this episode.
  • Anyone know the song in the last minutes of the episode? 
  • It's incredibly ridiculous that the sister referred to her "virginity test" as passing.

"How to Get Away with Murder" airs on Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.

Also on HuffPost:

11 Reasons To Get On Board With Shonda Night
Shonda Night gives viewers subtle lessons in feminism, every week. (01 of11)
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The shows are filled with empowering speeches, mold-breaking women, and characters calling each other out for sexist behavior.

In "Scandal," viewers have had to observe what women risk when they come forward about abuse, why the media treats female politicians differently, and the problem with the word "bitch,"And it's awesome. (credit:ABC)
The badass, unapologetic female characters. (02 of11)
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Rhimes' shows are full of competitive, successful women who won't take sh*t from anyone. And it's incredible. May the legacy of Cristina Yang live on forever. (credit:ABC)
The shows challenge stereotypes about black women. (03 of11)
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While Hollywood generally ignores dark-skinned women, Rhimes' shows definitely do not. Black characters are given the same complex storylines and powerful scenes as the rest of the cast -- no "token" characters welcome on Shonda Night.

Especially notable is the incredibly powerful scene in HTGAWM where Annalise removes her makeup and wig. Davis has spoken about how empowering she found that moment.

“I wanted that scene to be somewhere in the narrative of Annalise,” Davis told The Wrap. “That who she is in her public life and who she was in her private life were absolutely, completely diametrically opposed to one another. Because that’s who we are as people. We wear the mask that grins and lies.” (credit:ABC)
Even Shonda herself is inspired by her characters. (04 of11)
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In a Sept. 8 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Rhimes shared how writing a storyline for "Grey's Anatomy" character Cristina Yang helped her clarify her own views on marriage.

”I was seriously dating somebody and I was like, 'I don’t want to do this,'" She said. "I guess I had been secretly feeling that way and writing it for Cristina."

Writing for "Grey's Anatomy" helped Rhimes realize that she didn't want to get married -- and that there was nothing wrong with that.

"We’re all so conditioned to want [marriage], I felt like there must be something wrong with me," she told Entertainment Weekly. "But the minute I said it out loud to my family, it was fantastic. Now if somebody says, ‘Are you looking for that?’ I say, ‘Nope, looking for a boyfriend, not a husband.’ And there’s a freedom to that. There’s no pressure if you’re not looking for it.” (credit:ABC)
The shows push the envelope when it comes to sex on TV. (05 of11)
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Remember that "Eiffel tower" scene in "Scandal?" Or Callie and Arizona in the shower on "Grey's Anatomy?" Or all the absurdly steamy sex scenes on HTGAWM? There is way more happening here than standard vanilla sex scenes, offering a more inclusive representation of what goes on in real life. (credit:ABC)
Shonda totally knows how much easier it is to be a man, and her shows reflect that. (06 of11)
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Rhimes gave a speech at a Feminist Majority Foundation event in May 2015, where she talked about embracing womanhood in a world that makes things easier for men. She said:

"My assistant wants to walk through the world just for a day without some guy hitting on her when she runs to Starbucks to get me coffee. She wants to not be called 'cute' by the security guard. She wants to not be told that she should be a model. She wants to not see the look of surprise on someone’s face when she tells them where she went to college. She wants her boobs to no longer be a topic of conversation. She wants to no longer make 70 cents on the dollar. She wants to not have old men legislate her vagina’s rights. She wants to not know that a glass ceiling ever existed. She wants to not believe that having a baby would end her career. She wants everything in the world to be made for her, be about her and speak mostly to her. Because that’s how it is for men." (credit:Getty Images)
The shows are dedicated to telling LGBT stories, too. (07 of11)
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"I think in telling LGBT stories, I'm telling everyone's story," Rhimes said while accepting a GLAAD Award in 2012. "Love is, in fact, universal, right? … I want my daughters to grow up in a world in which there is more love than hate. I want them to know a world where everyone is free. So that's why I write the stories that I do, because everyone should be free."

Back in 2014, Rhimes shut down a Twitter user who complained about the "gay scenes" in her show, responding: "There are no GAY scenes. There are scenes with people in them." (credit:YouTube)
"How To Get Away With Murder" reminds us that all women can be sexual beings. (08 of11)
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During a June 2015 roundtable, Viola Davis spoke out about being cast as attorney and professor Annalise Keating.

"There was absolutely no precedent for [this role]," she said. "I had never seen a 49-year-old, dark-skinned woman who is not a size 2 be a sexualized role in TV or film. I’m a sexual woman, but nothing in my career has ever identified me as a sexualized woman. I was the prototype of the 'mommified’ role.”

Davis went on to discuss how she embraced the role, and hopes to represent the women she knows in real life.

“The women in my life who are sexualized are anywhere from a size zero to a size 24. They don’t walk like supermodels in heels. They take their wig and makeup off at night.So this role was my way of saying, 'Welcome to womanhood!'" (credit:ABC)
So many types of couples and families are represented.(09 of11)
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Childfree couples. Same-sex marriages. Trans-racial adoptions. Single moms. Surrogate parents. Step-parents. Three-parent families. Marriages of convenience. Nuclear families. They're all there. (credit:ABC)
Shonda says she isn't "diversifying" TV -- she's normalizing it.(10 of11)
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"I really hate the word 'diversity,' it suggests something... other. As if it is something… special, or rare," Rhimes said while accepting an Ally for Equality award at the 2015 Human Rights Campaign Gala. "As if there is something unusual about telling stories involving women and people of color and LGBTQ characters on TV. I have a different word: NORMALIZING. I’m normalizing TV."

Rhimes explained that her goal is "making TV look like the world looks," saying:

"Women, people of color, LGBTQ people equal WAY more than 50% of the population. Which means it ain’t out of the ordinary. I am making the world of television look NORMAL. The goal is that everyone should get to turn on the TV and see someone who looks like them and loves like them. And just as important, everyone should turn on the TV and see someone who doesn’t look like them and love like them. Because, perhaps then, they will learn from them." (credit:Paul Archuleta via Getty Images)
The Executive Producer of Shonda's shows fully supports "slutty slutsters."(11 of11)
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Betsy Beers, the Executive Producer of "Grey's Anatomy," "Scandal" and "How To Get Away With Murder," talked about the importance of representing complex women while at a luncheon in 2014.

Beers explained that she and Rhimes work hard to make sure women like themselves are portrayed on screen -- sexual escapades and all.

“We were two strong, competitive women with dark and twisty centers for whom work was a paramount importance, who had complicated love lives and messy relationships with a diverse group of friends who were as screwed up as we were," Beers said. "When we looked at the television landscape around us, we didn’t see us in any network dramas or really, anywhere else.” (credit:courtesy of Betsy Beers)

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