Many new TV shows premiered this fall, but “How to Get Away with Murder” has been a standout in the
line-up. Fair warning: there may be some spoilers below.
“How to Get Away with Murder” isn’t the typical legal drama that viewers are used to seeing. It combines drama, romance, thrill and suspense into one program without it seeming overbearing or like it’s trying too hard.
The show stars Viola Davis as Annalise Keating, a defense attorney and criminal law professor at Middleton University, a prestigious law school in Philadelphia. She, along with five of her students, defends her clients against homicide charges, for the most part, while teaching the way of the law.
Where the show moves away from cookie-cutter legal shows is when four of Keating’s students, Connor, Wes, Michaela and Laurel, find themselves involved in the murder of Keating’s husband, Sam. The show uses flashbacks to Keating’s lectures at Middleton, where she explains how to get around the law to get what is needed to get acquitted. This plays out when the show flashes forward to Sam’s murder and how the students react.
The show does seem to rely on shock factor. Almost every episode ends on a cliffhanger, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It was the right choice to end the episode when it was revealed the body the students were trying to get rid of was Sam’s. After the midseason finale last night, we finally found out who the murderer was, leaving us with one hell of a cliffhanger to last until the show picks back up in 2015.
Jack Falahee shines as Connor Walsh, a confident and lovable student working at Keating’s law firm. Falahee walks the line of Walsh’s arrogant nature and absolute terror when he finds himself involved in a murder plot with finesse. Every character brings something new to the table and adds to the greatness that is “How to Get Away with Murder.”
If you want suspenseful drama combined with a murder mystery, “How to Get Away with Murder” is worth checking out. The midseason finale premiered last night on ABC, but previous episodes can be viewed on hulu.com.
