The first episode of the seventh season of the popular ABC Family drama Pretty Little Liars provides an interesting opportunity to explore the program’s popularity. The episode, “Tick-Tock, B*tches,” follows a group of young adult sleuths who are tasked with uncovering the identity of a murderer in order to free one of their friends, who is being held hostage by an unknown villain. The program employs elements of the slasher, mystery, and teen soap genres and subtly subverts them by presenting interesting, multi-faceted characters—nearly all of whom are young women—who control their own agency and do not focus solely on young men. Bearing that in mind, one of the show’s primary goals is to appeal to a certain demographic by portraying the complex inner lives of small-town young women facing out of the ordinary circumstances. This essay will address the ways in which the technical and aesthetic aspects of the production aid in that goal.

This episode takes place in fictional Rosewood, Pennsylvania. It has all the trappings of a generic small town (everyone knows everyone else, few shopping and social establishments, etc.), therefore its interchangeable with many small towns in the United States. This allows the viewer to see him- or herself within the setting. Further, the primary characters are at once distinct and relateable. They seem to fit within different clique clichés, thus the viewer might see a reflection of him or herself in one or two of the characters. In this episode, the characters wore trendy but normcore-type costumes. They live in nice homes, drive nice cars, and are conventionally attractive people. While the series started with teenagers, by this point, they’ve transitioned into young adulthood. Along with the excitement of solving mysterious crimes, the basic elements of the primary characters’ lifestyles present a fantasy of a person’s early twenties. This aspect of the program aligns nicely with its categorization of teen or young adult soap (one can see parallels with other programs like Gossip Girl or Gilmore Girls, in that regard). An ideal is presented as part of the escapist illusion and that escapism is part of the program’s appeal.

The darker aspects of the show are bolstered by its color palette and musical selections. Many of these scenes take place at nighttime and interior shots feature moodier lighting schemes. This prepares the viewer for the more sinister aspects of the plot. The instrumentals featured in this episode were simple, but haunting piano melodies which relied on spookier minor notes. Lyrical music was also employed and, again, speaks to a younger audience. A song by The Fray was featured in a bar scene (“Tick-Tock, B*tches,” 32:03) as well as a minimalist cover of the Police song “Every Breath You Take,” by Denmark + Winter (“Tick-Tock, B*tches,” 39:41). The content of the latter enhances the overall creepiness of the show’s content and hints at the ever-present villain. These visual and auditory aspects of Pretty Little Liars situates it firmly within the darker murder-mystery genre.

The more technical production aspects involved with the show are deeply integral in establishing and realizing the goal of the program. While generally well done, they do strongly resemble the visual and auditory elements of shows within similar genres. This draws in the target viewer and provides of sense of familiar comfort before taking on the task of challenging established tropes—especially in terms of the intricate inner lives of women and female friendships. Although Pretty Little Liars is certainly not to everyone’s personal taste, the show does possess some merit and its production value presents an interesting opportunity for analysis.