‘Pretty Little Liars’ Recap: Aria Makes A Heartbreaking Confession To Ezra

So many of our fan favorite couples were left in jeopardy after tonight’s episode of ‘Pretty Little Liars’. Buckle up, Spoby, Paily and Ezria fans.

The Jan. 27 episode of Pretty Little Liars was a big one. The barrel of doom was finally opened, Aria (Lucy Hale) and Ezra (Ian Harding) had an emotional heart-to-heart, two of the Liars nearly died and pretty much every relationship encountered breakup-worthy problems. Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and it looks like not everyone in Rosewood will be celebrating.

‘Pretty Little Liars’ Recap: Run, Hanna, Run

“A” had chosen Hanna (Ashley Benson) as the one she/he would love to frame for Mona’s (Janel Parrish) murder. The storage unit, which included that pesky barrel, was rented in Hanna’s name four months ago. The day before Mona’s murder to be exact.

Her alibi wasn’t perfect either. She was alone with Caleb (Tyler Blackburn) at home. This is just not good for Hanna. As much as I hate to say it, I hope Hanna can pull off an orange jumpsuit. 

‘Pretty Little Liars’: Will Talia Come Between Ezra & Aria? – Watch

As the girls and Caleb discussed what to do next, Hanna stormed out. I would be f r e a k i n g out as well, especially since Mona’s body could definitely be hiding in that barrel. Take Our Poll

Aria was still struggling about telling Ezra about the Talmadge letter. This would go in a very unexpected direction for Ezria fans.

Hanna confronted her mom about her current situation with Ted. Ashley didn’t plan on telling Ted about Jason (Drew Van Acker). She just wanted Hanna to forget it ever happen.

Hanna may forget, but “A” will not. Or Jason, for that matter.

‘Pretty Little Liars’ Recap: Notes On A Scandal

Aria admitted to Ezra that she got into Talmadge. She actually did it!

Ezra read it and was NOT angry. WHAT?! I’m flipping out over this. Ezra said she did what she had to do to get in. He said that he knew she didn’t mean it. Yeah, right.

I just cannot. Ezra is too perfect. However, he looked like he was maybe holding something back. Hope for the best and prepare for the worst, Ezria fandom.

Hanna was making moves to protect herself at this point. She wanted to get rid of the barrel and not leave a trail of evidence behind. Caleb and Hanna headed over to the storage unit. Caleb cut the wire to the security cameras. They walked into the unit and found the barrel. If Mona’s body was in that barrel, they had to get it out. But they couldn’t go through with looking inside. They had bigger problems to deal with at that very moment.

As they left, they ran right into Toby and Detective Tanner. Great. Just great.

‘Pretty Little Liars’ Recap: The IcemAn Cometh

Ashley (Laura Leighton) had lunch with Jason to tell him she was quitting her job. He didn’t want her to leave and said their fling was just unexpected. She admitted that Ted had been away and she was lonely. Their hookup was a bad move on her part.

From the look in Jason and Ashley’s eyes, it certainly didn’t seem that way.

Meanwhile, Spencer (Troian Bellisario) discovered that Mona’s laptop was gone from the storage unit. Since Hanna had been conveniently absent from school, Spencer thought it was her shady blonde BFF. Spencer, Emily (Shay Mitchell), and Aria raced to track down the laptop. They followed the tracker to an abandoned building.

To cover more ground, the girls split up. This is always a bad idea. Spencer followed a trail of voices in the building — it was a video of Hanna and Caleb from their talk earlier about getting rid of the barrel! Aria showed up, and they both got locked in a room that was slowly filling with LIQUID NITROGEN. They would freeze to death if Emily didn’t save them.

My anxiety is going through the roof right now. It was nearly too late, but Emily was a total badass and saved them. Bow down to Emily.

As Aria continued to run right into the face of danger, Ezra reread the letter. He was clearly hurt.

‘Pretty Little Liars’ Recap: Secrets & Heartbreak

After running into Hanna and Caleb, Detective Tanner (Roma Maffia) and Toby went inside the storage unit and found the barrel. They opened it up, but we did not learn what was inside. It smelled rank, though. While Toby called for a hazmat team, Detective Tanner discovered someone’s blood on the ground. C’mon, Pretty Little Liars. Cut me a break!

Ashley said her final goodbye to Jason outside her office. He pleaded with her to stay, but Ashley was firm in her decision. This didn’t stop him from planting one big fat kiss on her lips!

(Sidenote: While writing this portion of the recap, I literally wrote, “Patrick” instead of Jason. Yes, as in Patrick Schwarzenegger. Seriously, these two are twins.)

Ezra and Aria had their first post-letter dinner together. He got her a gift — a journal! He wanted her to experience everything in college and not have him holding her back. Be still my heart.

“If we stay together, you might grow to resent me,” he told Aria. “If you take this time for yourself, there will be no regrets.”

Oh no. Aria said she didn’t feel any of those things she wrote in the letter. But it was a little too late. The damage had been done.

Over at the Hastings house, Spencer was furious with Hanna for going to the storage unit. She screamed at Hanna that she had not only screwed over herself but Caleb, too. Detective Tanner made one last plea to Toby. If he knew anything about Mona’s murder and the Liars’ connection with it, then he needed to speak now. His job and freedom were on the line.

Later, Toby called Spencer but wouldn’t tell her what was in the barrel. Looks like he’s chosen where his allegiance lies. Like Ezria, Spoby’s in big trouble. And Paily might be, too! Talia admitted to Emily that she was gay. This changes the game.

The only couple not in jeopardy was Haleb. Even though Hanna wanted Caleb to stay away from her because she’s dangerous, Caleb wasn’t going to let her go. He was willing to go to jail with her if that’s what it came down to. Haleb forever, y’all.

HollywoodLifers, do you think Ezra and Aria are better off apart? Let me know!

— Avery Thompson
Follow @avery__thompson