Alison DiLaurentis, formerly Mrs. DiLaurentis-Fields, has just gotten divorced from Pretty Little Liars‘ Emily Fields on Freeform’s The Perfectionists, so having a conversation about Alison moving on, romantically, shouldn’t be necessary… yet here we are.
On The Perfectionists season 1, episode 8, Alison DiLaurentis finds herself engaging with a colleague from Beacon Heights University, and there is a spark between the two that seems to be leading to something more… until it’s not.
Alison’s relationship with Emily has been a very vocal topic with fans of the show, who have continuously been outraged by how the writers of Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists have treated their relationship, so I’m just very confused about this most recent development. Who, in the writers’ room, thought this was a good idea?
Her divorce was just finalized
Love them or hate them, Emily and Alison ended Pretty Little Liars engaged, were married in the off-season, and Alison moved to Beacon Heights, Oregon, as a married woman pursuing her Master’s degree to become a better teacher, wife, and mother.
However, in just a few episodes (The Perfectionists season 1, episode 4, to be exact), Emily served Alison with divorce papers requiring her signature as the last step to terminating their relationship. Now, on The Perfectionists season 1, episode 8, Alison is already trying to move on from Emily, chasing a spark with a man.
Just like Pretty Little Liars, time moves by slowly in Beacon Heights. Each episode seemingly picks up the following day, unless specifically mentioned or shown otherwise, so in the universe Alison’s relationship has been over for all of five minutes.
It’s a mess. A mess.
Frankly, this entire story was unimportant and, honestly, quite disrespectful to everyone who has supported Emily and Alison’s relationship.
It would have been an entirely different story if there was actually something learned, by Alison, from this experience. However, this was not the case. It was as if Alison completely forgot Emily ever existed (though we know she didn’t, as she mentioned her “ex-wife” with a bit of a surprised, unnoticed reaction from her suitor), and is that really how this should be written?
Embracing and exploring sexuality should be something we see from Alison if she’s not going to be allowed to be with Emily until (likely) the series finale of The Perfectionists, but not like this. Alison should have proper time to respect and mourn her relationship, learn from the various romantic interests she does have, and move on with her life.
The man pursuing her being married and in an open relationship should not have been what turned Alison off of the situation; she had great potential for a story about her lingering feelings for Emily, possibly realizing she is or isn’t ready to try to move on, and for some sort of character development to come out of this.
All we learned was that Alison isn’t down for casual sex with someone in an open relationship (which is also ridiculously unbelievable because most people who are freshly divorced are just looking for something with no strings attached). If this man hadn’t have been married, what would have happened? Would Alison have easily moved on and forgotten about her broken relationship with Emily?
Introducing this man into Alison’s life seemed pointless and disrespectful, as nothing was gained from the plot. Nothing about Alison’s character was discovered, her sexuality was hardly touched upon or explored, and there was no conversation between Alison and anyone (probably Mona) about how it all made her feel.
So, I ask, why even write this story at all, particularly just a few episodes (and a few days, story-wise) after Alison signed her divorce papers?
Alison’s journey on ‘The Perfectionists’ season 1
Emison is/was a relationship that many fans are very passionate about, which is likely partially why they ended up together on Pretty Little Liars. Taking Alison from Rosewood to Beacon Heights was risky, but it could have been much more successful if mistakes like these weren’t occurring.
What’s most confusing about this entire situation is how the creator, I. Marlene King, could say that Alison’s journey will make Emily and Alison fans “happy” by the end of the season.
As I’m sure you know, we didn’t have the opportunity to put both actors in the show. I’m excited to see where Alison’s journey takes her. I hope you will be open to that also. I’m grateful that you care so much about these characters
— I. Marlene King (@imarleneking) March 23, 2019
I don’t want to confirm or deny but I will say Emison fans won’t be upset about Ali’s journey this season.
— I. Marlene King (@imarleneking) May 2, 2019
Even if Alison and Emily were to rekindle their relationship — unlikely considering there’s been no mention of Shay Mitchell reprising her role as Emily — the mess from the brief time apart would still be cause for outrage.
If there’s anything this episode did, it ensured that fans will never forgive the writers for what they’ve done to the relationship between Emily and Alison, even if they do end up back together.
The Perfectionists airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Freeform!