Pretty Little Liars ran from 2010 to 2017 on Freeform (formerly known as ABC Family), and starred Lucy Hale, Troian Bellisario, Shay Mitchell, and Ashley Benson as four teenage girls grieving for the missing best friend, Alison DiLaurentis (Sasha Pieterse) They were also being stalked by the ever-mysterious “A” that knew everything about them and was prepared to make them pay for it. As the series went on, the Liars kept on lying, leading them to some terrifying places and dark secrets… but one thing stood out most about the show, which was the friendship between Aria (Hale), Spencer (Bellisario), Emily (Mitchell), and Hanna (Benson). These girls stood by each other at every corner, albeit not without some fights along the way, and continue to be one of the most prized examples of friendship on the small screen.
We’ve whittled through the 160 choices and picked the 25 best episodes of Pretty Little Liars. Whether the focus falls on the mysteries, the girls’ personal lives, or whatever else Rosewood may hold, there’s no shortage of delectable drama and show-stopping performances… but some may have stood out a bit more than others, especially if escaping without becoming the victim of A’s plot holes.
“Pilot” (Season 1, Episode 1)
To this day, there’s no feeling like going back to watch the Pretty Little Liars series premiere which started this story so innocently (for the most part). Beginning with Alison’s disappearance, we flash forward to one year later, as the girls have fallen out of touch and have yet to discover the truth about what happened to their friend. Taking quite a bit of inspiration from the books, it’s an interesting starting point to see how things change, both in terms of the plot and for the girls as characters.
“The Perfect Storm” (Season 1, Episode 9)
When it’s time to take the SATs at Rosewood High School, a storm arrives just in time to make the continuation of test day questionable. While there is certainly nothing shocking about “The Perfect Storm,” it’s a beautiful episode. Particularly because we see Emily officially coming out to her best friends and confessing her love for Alison. Additionally, it’s a wonderful moment that shows another side to the relationship between Spencer and her mother, Veronica Hastings (Lesley Fera), as Veronica has a devastating confession that is even more heart-breaking considering the reason why she had never told a soul.
“Keep Your Friends Close” (Season 1, Episode 10)
In what was technically the first finale, but later deemed as a mid-season finale, “Keep Your Friends Close” finds the girls stepping up their game to find A. After having her relationship with Mona (Janel Parrish) torpedoed by, well, Mona in secret, Hanna secretly attends Mona’s glamping birthday party, determined to discover the identity of their black-hooded foe. Hanna being hit with a car was just the tip of the iceberg, as the girls’ futures are drastically changed from here on out with the knowledge that A is an enemy capable of more than just exposing their secrets.
“For Whom the Bell Tolls” (Season 1, Episode 22)
The Pretty Little Liars Season 1 finale set the bar for what was expected from the finales over the years. The discovery of Ian’s (Ryan Merriman) pervy videos perpetuates the girls' suspicion of his involvement in Alison’s disappearance, while the girls finally have leverage to use against Jenna (Tammin Sursok), who has been a thorn in their sides since her return to Rosewood. The girls’ active suspicion has a cost though, as Ian is desperate to stop them from spreading lies about him around town, and he’s willing to go to great lengths to stop them. Just as Ian is about to murder Spencer in the church, a hooded figure pushes Ian and saves Spencer but when the girls return to the church with the police, Ian's body is gone, and this still remains as one of the show's most shocking moments.
“Over My Dead Body” (Season 2, Episode 12)
Things are shaken up for the viewer as “Over My Dead Body” begins with three of the girls—Aria, Hanna, and Spencer—sitting in an interrogation room at the Rosewood Police Station, covered in dirt. What happened? Well, A began their most dangerous game yet with the Liars: Using dolls with pre-recorded messages to make them tell the truth, no matter the consequences. Considering what they had been hiding, the girls lives are about to change drastically... and was that Alison?
“Through Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares” (Season 2, Episode 14)
The Season 2 mid-season premiere picks up a month after the girls have been arrested for finding the real murder weapon in the Alison DiLaurentis case, but things have changed. Emily is on the outside with the other girls, as part of an ingenious plan to trick A into thinking Emily has been completely ousted from the group. There’s something clearly different about this episode when you’re watching, later revealed to be the beginning of the countdown to the first A reveal. It’s a fun episode that sees the girls getting the upper hand… for once.
“The Naked Truth” (Season 2, Episode 19)
At Rosewood High, it’s “Truth Up” day, a school-wide workshop that has the students come together to try to call out and improve upon the bullying issue that has been spreading. With this, we see some unusual dynamics explored for the first (and, in some cases, last) time, like Aria and Hanna’s boyfriend Caleb (Tyler Blackburn) or Emily and Mona. “The Naked Truth” really leans into the dynamics between all of the characters instead of getting distracted by the mysteries at hand, which is quite refreshing.
“If These Dolls Could Talk” (Season 2, Episode 24)
The girls are getting closer to finding out who A is with every episode, and “If These Dolls Could Talk” leads them further down Alison’s presumably final steps, to a town called Brookhaven where Alison was set to meet A according to the newspaper clippings Spencer found of them communicating. Meanwhile, Aria hits her breaking point over the situation with her boyfriend/teacher Ezra (Ian Harding) and her parents when she finds an application to a boarding school in her father’s things. (Her parents were right about Ezra, but I digress.) The tension is rising, the answer so close to fruition, and the drama at an all-time high. It may not be the finale, but it certainly is in that league.
“unmAsked” (Season 2, Episode 25)
Not a lot of episodes live up to the Season 2 finale, “unmAsked,” which revealed that Mona had been the girls’ tormenter, spending her free time causing them unjust pain. Plus, in true Pretty Little Liars fashion, this accompanied a masquerade ball that saw milestone moments for the show’s beloved couples, had the girls chasing clues to get to the truth at the Lost Woods, and introduced twist after twist that ensured they were not going anywhere despite revealing their first black-hooded baddie. The episode ends on a truly tragic note as Emily's girlfriend Maya’s (Bianca Lawson) body found after she had been missing for weeks, ending the episode with a devastated Emily crying into Spencer's arms.
“It Happened That Night” (Season 3, Episode 1)
Three months have passed since the events of the Season 2 finale, which saw Mona unmasked as A and Maya's body finally found. After a summer full of new and quiet adventures, the girls reconvene in the barn where it all started… and all happens again. This time, Emily goes missing, found at the local graveyard with Alison’s body dug up and gone - who stole it? Meanwhile, Hanna’s visiting Mona at Radley Sanitarium, desperate for answers about how her so-called best friend could’ve done this to her. It’s senior year, a new start for the Liars, but how much has really changed in Rosewood?
“Kingdom of the Blind” (Season 3, Episode 3)
So much happens in “Kingdom of the Blind” that it’s hard to pick just one reason why it’s one of the series’ best episodes. From the reveal (to the girls) that Jenna’s no longer blind, finding out that Melissa (Torrey DeVitto) was lying about the weekend she supposedly lost her baby, and Mona and Caleb’s confrontation at Radley, it’s a very dramatic episode that shows just how screwed up the people around the Liars are. The worst part is Spencer’s mother deciding to be the lawyer for Garrett (Yani Gellman), the man accused of killing Alison and Maya. The dysfunctional Hastings family certainly gets a spotlight here, and it’s perfectly representative of just how often they screw Spencer over.
“This Is a Dark Ride” (Season 3, Episode 13)
This special Halloween episode of Pretty Little Liars, set in the present day instead of a flashback like Season 2's Halloween special, brings the girls aboard a train for a themed party and surprise musical guest. But, how silly to think A wouldn’t be following them to try and ruin their Halloween. With masks, costumes, wooden boxes, and death of course, there is no shortage of scare. You’ll be left breathless, but maybe not as breathless as our beloved and claustrophobic Aria as she is trapped inside of a box, about to be pushed off of the high-speed train.
“Misery Loves Company” (Season 3, Episode 16)
This devastating episode leaves Spencer heartbroken, as her anniversary plans with Toby (Keegan Allen) don't go quite as expected upon the discovery that he has been helping A torment her and her best friends. Meanwhile, Aria is down and out with the flu, and her father’s girlfriend, Meredith (Amanda Schull), volunteers to be her caretaker. Little does Aria know, Meredith is drugging her as she struggles to keep some secrets hidden. All-around, a fantastic and tense episode, and the peak of the storyline with Toby as A’s helper.
“A is for A-L-I-V-E” (Season 4, Episode 1)
After the fire at the lodge, everyone is left wondering whether the mysterious blonde that pulled them out was really Alison or not, and there’s dissent between the group as to whether Alison could be alive. This is a big episode for Mona, too, as this is the first time she’s just another one of the Liars, now that A has officially stolen the game from her. The stakes are higher, and the truth about Alison is just around the corner.
“A is for Answers” (Season 4, Episode 24)
At long last, the girls track down Alison and are able to sit down and have an actual conversation about what happened during that Labor Day weekend in 2009 when she, supposedly, died. While the answers may not have been as satisfying as fans desired, it certainly was a relief to get some sort of information after a mystery that had taken so many twists and turns. Plus, the girls being actively hunted by A and the police kept everyone, including viewers, on their toes.
“Taking This One to the Grave” (Season 5, Episode 12)
The Liars’ war with Alison is heating up. After her return to Rosewood, the tension has been building, and the divide between Alison and the girls grows as she continues to try to reclaim her place as Rosewood’s Queen Bee. When Mona gets involved, it ends in quite a bloody manner on our first Thanksgiving in Rosewood. This is a really interesting look at Alison's character when her back is against the wall, which is not a position we saw her in before. Her friends are intent on taking her down and exposing her as their tormentor, showing just how little trust is left after all of the secrets they had discovered Alison was keeping before she vanished.
“I’m a Good Girl, I am” (Season 5, Episode 24)
It is the final days of Alison’s trial for the murder of Mona Vanderwaal, and everything is falling precisely in place… except not in her favor. While the girls try to find a way to exonerate their wrongly accused friend, there’s a bigger threat looming. If Alison is found guilty, the rest of the girls will be joining her in prison as accomplices to the crime. Pieterse shines as all hope is ripped away from Alison in this emotional episode.
“Welcome to the Dollhouse” (Season 5, Episode 25)
After Alison’s trial for the murder of Mona ended on a rather sour note, the girls were arrested as her accomplices, the latest in a series of missteps for the Rosewood Police and the FBI. But A has other plans, drugging and kidnapping the girls as they’re being transported in police custody. When the girls awaken, they are in for the most despicable game A has ever played with them, locked in an underground dollhouse equipped with the perfect items to torture them. As if this wasn’t shocking enough, the reveal that Mona’s death had been faked and she’d been in there for months, with her captor forcing her to dress up and pretend to be Alison, was enough to render viewers speechless.
“Game On, Charles” (Season 6, Episode 1)
After the discovery of their tormentor’s name and the unfortunate events of the Season 5 finale that left the girls still stuck in the dollhouse, three weeks go by before the girls are allowed to leave their bedroom replicas and interact again. When they do come out, everyone is changed by the extreme trauma they had just experienced. Meanwhile, back in Rosewood, the girls’ family and friends are desperate to bring them home, making some risky moves to do so.
Songs of Experience (Season 6, Episode 3)
The girls are free from the dollhouse, but confronted with the police’s suspicion that Andrew Campbell (Brandon Jones) is behind their kidnappings. Given that Aria cozied up to him shortly before being taken, this sends her over the edge, bringing out a new side to her. Meanwhile, the discomfort that the girls feel around each other given what they were subjected to in the dollhouse is addressed so their friendship can move forward again. “Songs of Experience” is a great exploration into the girls’ mental state after so much distress and trauma.