“ | HEY EM SOME CREAM WITH YOUR COFFEE? | ” |
— A
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Save The Date is the eighth episode of Season 2 of Pretty Little Liars. It aired on August 2, 2011.
Synopsis[]
Aria and Hanna talk with Spencer in her car, while she fills them in on how she got away from Garrett in his cop car. Emily joins them, when suddenly the man of the hour parks in front of Jenna's House, which is across the street from his parents' house. He could go either way, but he goes in Jenna's house. Toby is out on an errand picking up his parents from the airport. The girls trod closer to take a better look, when the light flicks on, revealing Jenna, who slowly strips to reveal the same black negligee the girls saw her trying on in the store! Garrett approaches her, starts to caress her shoulders, then starts kissing her slowly; Jenna kisses him back.
The next morning, Hanna enters the kitchen to find Emily doing crunches. They both reveal they haven't slept since seeing what they saw. Emily then joins Hanna for breakfast, not in the best of moods. Her muscles are still sore, so she asks Hanna to pass her the medical cream she bought the day before. Apparently, she's used half the tube in less than 24 hours. Hanna thinks Emily is being way too intense for a swim meet, especially when she passes up excess orange juice lest it spike her blood sugar. Emily expresses her concern about the Danby scout, who is supposed to be spectating her meet today. She hopes she can make the Danby lie less untrue.
Just then, Tom enters -buttoning his shirt. Hanna plays dumb - putting on a surprise face. He starts making excuses, but Hanna makes a "yeah, right" face. Then Ashley enters, expressing her surprise at seeing Tom awake (or maybe her surprise to see him showing his face to the girls in the kitchen). She then catches sight of a pile of mail and asks about it. Emily says it was on the doormat when she came back last night (obviously Ashley and Tom were too drunk to stop and pick up on a detail like that), so the thoughtful house guest that she is, she brought it inside. Ashley hands Hanna an envelope addressed to her, and Hanna reluctantly admits to her mother that it's from Isabel. She pointedly uses it as a coaster for her coffee instead of opening it. But, Ashley wants to know why her competition is writing her daughter and so tears into the envelope exposing Tom and Isabel's "Save the Date" notice. Curtly, she informs Tom that he's getting married in six weeks. "Save the Date." It's all awkward turtles after that.
Next, we see Spencer viewing a classic picture of Alison on her computer. She gets up to answer the door and finds Wren with another plant entering her kitchen. But, this time, it looks like he bought the plant, and he's definitely not drunk. He says he has come to see Melissa, but Spencer informs him that she's still in Philadelphia. He drops the bomb that he's moving back to Rosewood now that he's been accepted for a rotation at Rosewood Community Hospital - he applied back when he was still planning his life with Melissa. Spencer uses the opportunity of Wren's presence to pick his brain and ask whether doctors can determine what kind of murder weapon was used to kill a victim based on the victim's autopsy. He raises his eyebrows, so she quickly claims that it's for a school project. He answers her all the same though, and says information such as that, at least in Rosewood Community Hospital, would be in the morgue's files. He asks for coffee, but Spencer claims she has to go to school. He offers her a ride, suggesting they pick up coffee along the way instead, so she calls him out on coming to see her, not her Melissa. He doesn't deny it, so she lets him know she has a boyfriend. He asks for tea instead, and Spencer seems to be having a dilemma; being above cheating never was her strong suit.
On their way into school, Emily and Hanna discuss Emily's upcoming meet. Then they catch sight of Caleb conducting another shady business deal in the front yard of the school. Hanna walks towards him. On her way, she sees a man in a black sports car writing in a file with glossy pictures of Caleb attached to it. (Was that who was watching them the previous week?) Alarmed, Hanna tries to discreetly warn Caleb by suggesting conducting business out in the wide open may not be the best idea, but he rebuts her idea, refusing to work in a lowly part-time job at a fast-food establishment. She sighs as the stubborn boy walks away and the car speeds off.
While at her locker, Spencer is approached by Garrett. Her eyes open wide while he explains the reason for his presence at Rosewood High: he is here to teach the driver's ed class. Spencer tries to split when the bell rings, trying to make a beeline for class, but Garrett stands in her way and brings up their unfinished conversation. Spencer had left as soon as Aria texted her under the pretense that her mother wanted her home ASAP. He tries to get her to continue where they left off, but she makes a bunch of excuses, namely that she can get intense like that in general. She tries to make it seem like something in her biology book got her wondering about the murder, but Garrett's attempts to dissuade her suspicions had convinced her all at once. She announces again that she has to get to class, and Garrett stares after Spencer as she rushes off.
Later, during Mike's school break, one of his jock buds approaches to see what's up with his former friend getting arrested. Mike is barely communicative and is about to start a physical fight with his friend until Ella swings by in the hallway and tells them to get to class. Before Mike scrambles, she tries to talk to him, but he turns his back on her and walks away.
Alone in the pottery studio, Aria paints one of her clay pieces blue. Ezra, not surprisingly on campus at Hollis College himself, comes in and approaches her. He puts his arms around her and tries to woo her, but she asks him to wait until later. He mentions that she flew past his apartment without stopping this morning - have her interests shifted? He asks, "how are things at home?" He tries to explain Mike's behavior by suggesting that Mike's friends put him up to it, but Aria informs him that he's broken into his own friends' houses too. She mentions him trying to break into Jason's place, and it dawns on Ezra that, that was why she and Jason were privately whispering to each other at the failed dinner party.
Aria picks up her finished piece and sets it on the shelf of pottery awaiting the kiln. Ezra picks up Jenna's candle holder and compliments it; Aria lets him know who its artist is. While on the subject, he asks how the two are coping with a shared class, but Aria reveals Jenna dropped the class after she realized Aria was taking the class too. Ezra asks why Aria hadn't confided in him about Mike; she replies she hand't told anyone because it was embarrassing. He reassures her not to feel that way around him, because he's understanding. He invites her over for later that day, she accepts the offer telling him she'll call him. During their conversation up until this point, Aria's voice has been very subdued, so as Ezra leaves, he turns quickly on his heels and asks if Jason is a threat to him. Aria gives a little laugh and denies it. When he leaves, she doesn't bother to turn her head to watch him go.
At school, Emily is getting things out of her locker when she spots her dad in the hallway. Happily, she embraces her father to discover that he came alone to Rosewood - Pam is still in Texas. His flight to Texas is delayed due to inclement weather while he was in Deleware for a training seminar. He lets her know he came to surprise her by watching her swim meet. Emily panics that her dad is poised to meet the Danby scout; her whole house of cards is about to come crashing down! Her father leaves her to do her thing. Suddenly, Emily clutches her side in pain, panting hard, and falls to the floor. Garrett walks by and immediately goes to her side and calls an ambulance to come get her.
At the hospital, Wayne tries to comfort his daughter, who is more tense then ever. He guesses correctly that it's about Danby, but his offers to call them on her behalf just stress her out more. So far, the running theory is that Emily has a stress-induced ulcer.
Spencer and Hanna visit the hospital, the latter of whom is none too happy to be back in Rosewood Community Hopital so soon. She dismisses a call from Caleb, making Spencer raise an eyebrow. Hanna confesses her fear that an undercover cop is following her boyfriend. Spencer expects her best friend to say that she alerted her boyfriend to this fact, but she doesn't, and Spencer is shocked. Hanna fears Caleb will leave town again if she clues him in on the tail, but Spencer makes a strong argument tell him anyway as could lose him either way.
At the Marin's, Ashley is fingering the "Save the Date" when tom drops in, having wanted to see her in his hotel room. She offers by way of explanation the fact that Emily is in the hospital. Tom tries to persuade Ashley to go out with him, but Ashley turns him down, calling the previous night together a mistake. She tells him to go home, and he takes the bait; he sets his copy of the house key down on the counter next to the invite and leaves out the door, leaving Ashley standing alone in her foyer.
Back at the hospital, Spencer and Hanna talk to Emily. Her left to talk to the new tenants at the Fields' home. Aria then joins the party with coffee, and everyone looks on awkwardly as Aria offers the cup of Joe to her friend with a hole in her stomach, which Hanna can't get over. Emily considers telling her dad the truth about the Danby letter. Later, walking around the hospital, who does Spencer see, but Dr. Wren! She goes with him to the third floor where Emily is staying so as not to make it obvious that her real target destination is the morgue!
Next, a juicy conversation between Jenna and Garrett ensues in his car. Garrett lets Jenna know that Spencer is onto something and is questioning whether Ian really killed Alison, and that the girls are questioning if Jenna did. Jenna tells Garrett they need to "take care" of this situation... What is Jenna trying to hide?
Back at the hospital, Wren meets privately with Emily to drop the bombshell that HGH, that is, Human Growth Hormone, was found in her bloodstream...so that's what "A" snuck into the healing cream of hers! He warns her of its dangers, but she denies ever using it. She begs him not to tell her father what the tests show, as it could ruin her swim career and consequently, her scholoarship too. Wren chalks the whole thing up to Emily coping with her high stress position as a varsity athlete trying to land a scholarship.
Then, Hanna rides by in her car and grabs Caleb off the sidewalk, while dressed as a 1930's movie starlet with headscarf and glamorous sunglasses. She drives away from the man in the black sports car, who gets out of the car to take a better look as she speeds off.
Then, Spencer pulls Aria into the laundry room to don the same pink and white pinstriped dresses Alison wore in Hanna's hallucination - and that the hospital candy stripers wear.
At home, Mike is on his laptop. Ella comes in trying to get answers about his behavior. When she bothers him enough, he reveals he's waiting for her to move out of the house again.
Meanwhile, Hanna takes Caleb to Spencer's family's log cabin, where they crash to avoid the man following him. They light a fire and remove the furniture sheets to cozy up. Caleb says he won't hide from him, while Hanna is worried he's going to skip town again, but Caleb insists that he's staying in Rosewood. They make out.
Back in Emily's hospital room, she asks the staff person not to take away her dinner, which has been lying on its tray for hours. After he leaves, she sees a note on soup lid scrawled by "A" along with a tube of her healing cream sitting atop some peas. She calls in Aria and Spencer, who are still dressed like candy stripers. The two try to talk Emily out of fleeing Rosewood, trying to convince her that her swim career is not over. Wayne comes in, and Aria and Spencer pretend they are new hospital volunteers, careful to haul away Emily's dinner tray as part of their "hospital duties." Wayne then lets his daughter know that there's no pressure on her anymore to score a swim scholarship. He assures her they can pay for college if that is the case. He is sure she will be accepted into any college, whether or not her swim record is a part of the reason. Incredibly relieved, Emily hugs her dad.
Meanwhile, in the morgue, Aria and Spencer locate Alison's file.
At the Marin's, Ashley cleans out the fridge of all the food items she bought her ex-husband. Hanna reveals she knows everything about her father's past romance, so she can openly argue with her mother to give her father another chance. But, Ashley insists that it's the right thing; Tom is about to marry Isabel, and now he's sleeping with another woman. She feels like their situations have been completely reversed. Frustrated with her mother's conclusion, Hanna leaves.
At the morgue, the girls discover Ali's murder weapon had a curved blunt edge (like a field hockey stick?). In addition, the attack with the weapon was from behind as the injuries were in the back of her skull. And, the force of the weapon was so strong it dented Ali's skull. Lastly, her lungs were filled with dirt, meaning she was breathing in dirt when she died, as in, she was buried alive (under the gazebo in her own backyard).
Meanwhile, Hanna approaches the black stake out sports car to let the stalker driver know that there are people in town who love and will protect Caleb. She tells him to get lost and leave her boyfriend alone.
At the hospital, it seems the girls have swiped Alison's file for the time being to show Emily what they've found. Aria then gets a text from Ezra, who she never called as promised. As soon as Aria leaves to call Ezra, Spencer confesses her suspicion that Jason is responsible for Alison's death.
Later, Ezra shows up at the hospital where he and Aria talk in the waiting room. He invites Aria over, but before she responds, she gets a call from Jason. Instead of picking up, she ignores the call and tells Ezra the caller is just her dad. She tells him she has to get home, then kisses him goodnight.
The stalker in the black sports car calls someone to alert them of something as Hanna and Caleb sit together outside of "Lucky Leon's Cupcakes" while Hanna sulks over her failed family reunion. Her caring boyfriend tries to comfort her.
Back in Emily's room at Rosewood Community Hospital, Spencer realizes page 5 of the autopsy report is missing. Has it always been missing, or did "A" take it?
We then cut to the morgue, where an oblivious cookie-munching janitor, handling the biohazardous waste no less, is oblivious to someone stirring under the covers on one of the beds. The figure then fully rises with the sheet still atop him/her, so that his/her face cannot be seen...
Notes[]
- When Spencer discovers that the murder weapon used to kill Alison was a curved object, she immediately assumes it was the curved hockey stick Toby dug up in her yard. Interestingly, when Hanna and Caleb make out in Spencer's family's cabin, the camera focuses in on a fire poker at the end of the scene, revealing another curved object sturdy enough to make a dent in someone's skull.
- The wedding date on the invitation reads "November 19, 2011." Since the "Save the Dates" were sent out 6 weeks prior (stated in episode), we may assume it is around October 7 in the chronology.
- Customarily, Save-the-Dates are sent out much further in advance than 6 weeks before awedding.
Continuity[]
- Spencer and Aria wore the same candy striper outfit Alison wore in Hanna's dream of her when she was recovering from the car accident in "Moments Later".
- Emily has been a patient at Rosewood Community Hospital twice. The first time was after the homecoming dance in "There's No Place Like Homecoming."
- We see Jenna wearing the same black negligee she was trying in the clothing store where Aria, Spencer, Emily and Hanna were also shopping in "The New Normal."
- At the end of the episode, Caleb is comforting Hanna outside of "Lucky Leon's Cupcakes," the same place "A" forced Hanna to engorge a half-dozen of the titular confections.
- The "Pilot" takes place at the start of school, September 2010. The wedding date is listed as November 19, 2011. This is most likely an error since an entire school year and summer has not passed since the "Pilot."
- Hanna said one of Ashley’s favorite quotes of the whole show was: “Please, Jenna can’t hear us, she’s blind”
Title[]
- "Save the Date" refers to a pre-wedding invite telling the guests to book their calendars. Much of the plot in this episode centers on Tom's and Isabel's Save-the-Date sent to Hanna's house.
Main Cast[]
- Lucy Hale as Aria Montgomery
- Ashley Benson as Hanna Marin
- Shay Mitchell as Emily Fields
- Troian Bellisario as Spencer Hastings
- Sasha Pieterse as Alison DiLaurentis (credit only)
Supporting Cast[]
- Tammin Sursok as Jenna Marshall
- Yani Gellman as Officer Garrett Reynolds
- Tyler Blackburn as Caleb Rivers
- Roark Critchlow as Tom Marin
- Laura Leighton as Ashley Marin
- Julian Morris as Wren Kingston
- Ian Harding as Ezra Fitz
- Cody Allen Christian as Mike Montgomery
- Holly Marie Combs as Ella Montgomery
- Eric Steinberg as Wayne Fields
Co-Starring[]
- Eddie Purino as Chaz
- Ruben Garfias as Cop
- Rj Tillman as Student #3 (uncredited)
Featured Music[]
- “Alien” by Cary Brothers (while Aria sits in the waiting room)
- “Save You” by Matthew Perryman Jones(while Hanna tells Caleb about the guy following him)
- "Ten-Twenty-Ten" by The Generationals(while Mike’s doing his homework)
- "This Could Kill" Me by Amy Stroup (Ashley tells Tom he should go back home)
- "Change My Needs" by Scars On 45 (Ezra stops by the ceramic studio to visit Aria)
Gallery[]
Save the Date has a photo gallery. |
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Memorable Quotes[]
Hanna [about Garrett]: Can we pull him over for texting while he parks? |
Hanna: Maybe he’s just bringing raw meat to Jenna’s cat. Spencer: Toby lives there too. They don't have a cat. Hanna: Maybe he’s just bringing raw meat for Jenna. |
Spencer [to Aria, about Garrett]: What do you think, he bought it at the blind artists crafts fair? |
Emily [defending Texas to Hanna]: It’s another zip code Hanna, not a parallel universe. |
Hanna: Can you turn on the heat? You could make a slushie back here. |
Hanna: Please, Jenna can't hear us - she's blind. |
Wren: Are the parents home? Spencer: No. Have you ever done an autopsy? |
Hanna: I don't want to talk about it. Spencer: You have to. You're in an elevator. Where are you going to go? |
Wayne: They'll see... Rosewood is a safe place. |
Aria [on how long she and Spencer have been candy-striping]: Today’s actually our first day. |
Caleb (teasingly): Are you gonna lose the scarf and shades at some point, or do you have a costume for me too? |
Aria [to Spencer]: What, were you pre-med in preschool? |
Aria: How can anybody eat cookies in here? Spencer: They stay fresh. |
Ashley [to Tom]: I need to be with a man who is sure of what he wants; that was never you. |
Emily: Spencer, A is taking us down. One at a time. Aria is probably next. Aria: Can't we all go to Texas? |