New ABC Family Mystery ‘Pretty Little Liars’
Suspense Tailored to Teens
Am I a little too old to be looking forward to the new ABC Family mystery series Pretty Little Liars, which premieres tonight, June 8, at 8pm ET? Probably, but who cares. Suspense is suspense, and the genre equals great TV when it’s done right.
One thing that Pretty Little Liars has going for it from the very outset is a terrific cast of both young and older talent. The series focuses on four teenage girls forced to get over their estrangement after they become the texting targets (how modern) of a mysterious threatening person known only as A.
A fifth friend disappeared unexpectedly without a trace a while back, and now the girls are receiving unsettling messages that reveal their darkest and deepest personal secrets. Could A be their missing friend keeping tabs on them from a hidden place? Love that familiar-but-still-intriguing premise. So many possibilities.
The regular cast of Pretty Little Liars includes Troian Bellisario (NCIS), Ashley Benson (Eastwick), Lucy Hale (Privileged), and Shay Mitchell (Degrassi: The Next Generation) as the central characters Spencer Hastings, Hanna Marin, Aria Montgomery, and Emily Fields, respectively.
On the adult side, there’s Charmed fan favorite Holly Marie Combs as Ella and Rob’s younger brother Chad Lowe, whom I’ll always remember for his work on Life Goes On. Lowe took over the role of Byron from Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer vet Alexis Denisof, who was originally cast in the pilot. I wish Denisof had stuck around, of course, but I’m cool with Lowe as a replacement.
Get a taste of Pretty Little Liars in the following clip before checking out the premiere. It looks like a promising summer series to me, especially for mystery lovers.
Pretty Little Liars will air Tuesdays on ABC Family at 8pm ET
Shay Mitchell, Lucy Hale, Ashley Benson, and Troian Bellisario/Pretty Little Liars photo courtesy of Andrew Eccles/ABC Family
