Characters / Pretty Little Liars

The characters from Pretty Little Liars.

Main Cast

Aria Montgomery

Aria Marie Montgomery

Portrayed by: Lucy Hale

Voiced by: Mireya Mendoza (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 1-6), Romina Marroquín Payró (Latin-American Spanish dub, season 7), Arisa Ogasawara (Japanese dub)

Don't look at me! I'm ready to hang a sign "Bitch can see"!

"There’s a reason why we can’t just go around telling the truth. Because it comes back to bite you. Hard."

Born on July 22, Aria is the artistic rebel of the liars who moves back to Rosewood with her family after spending a year in Iceland after Alison went missing. She has returned as a mature, changed, insightful young woman who slowly reconnects with her old friends.

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• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Aria is a composed, aloof, insightful brunette.
• Beware the Nice Ones: She can be extremely ruthless and aggressive when provoked. In "She's Come Undone", she completely trashes Ezra's apartment.
• Childhood Friends: She's been friends with Holden since kindergarten.
• Consummate Liar: Not as much as Ali, but definitely fits.
  Mona: Which one of you girls is best at hiding the truth from someone who's close to you?
  Spencer, Hanna & Emily: [points at Aria] Her!
  Aria: Wow, really? Thanks, you guys.
• Cool Big Sis: She's always looking out for Mike.
• Girly Bruiser: Begins self-defense classes in "Turn of the Shoe" and uses it to take Red Coat in a fight.
• Dating Catwoman: Gender-flipped: Aria's had a romantic relationship with Ezra (aka A). Subverted when it turns out that he actually wasn't the bad guy, he was just writing a book.
• Disappeared Dad: Averted in the case of Aria in the show, as her father refuses to leave the family when he and Ella separate.
• Drink-Based Characterization: Artistic Aria always orders a Soy Latte. Her vegan diet is described in the series is yet another aspect of her general hipster-ness.
• The Dragon: To Uber A. She becomes their right-hand woman after joining the A-Team.
• Easily Forgiven: While the Liars started to hate Aria after they found out that she was working with AD, Ezra was the only person out of everyone in the group to forgive her for this and he felt guilty that because of him, Aria had to go through all of this just to get the police report she made against him because of his actions in season 4.
• Face–Heel Turn: She joins the A-Team in the final season, acting as A.D.'s agent in return for her unfiled report of abuse that could land Ezra in jail.
• Flashback: Aria is the first liar to have a flashback of Alison.
• The Friends Who Never Hang: With the help of flashbacks mainly, it's became clear Alison and Aria are this, Aria and Alison are mostly connected by blackmailling and Ezra.
• Hair Colors: Aria used to have pink highlights prior to Alison's death and moving to Iceland.
• Happily Married: In Season 7, Aria marries Erza.
• Heartbreak and Ice Cream: In "There's No Place Like Homecoming", when Aria is planning on not going to homecoming, her friends ask her what she will do instead. Her plans involve reading gossip magazines and eating copious amounts of Chunky Monkey.
• Heroic BSoD:
  • Has this at the end of "Stolen Kisses", after Ezra's mother blames her for his economic situation and getting him to quit Hollis and Rosewood High.
  • In "She's Come Undone", after finding out that Ezra dated Alison in college, was writing a book about her, and knew who Aria was before they even met.
• Hipster: She is artsy and imaginative and has a hipster style.
• Hypocrite: She's furious with Byron for cheating on Ella, while she cheats on every boyfriend she's had.
• I Did What I Had to Do: Inverted. After she kills Shana in defense of her friends, she is deeply upset and even has nightmares about it. It's her friends who assure her that she had no other choice.
• Idol Singer: In the episode "The Perfect Storm", we learn that Aria is a talented singer.
• Kidnapped by the Call: In "Welcome to the Dollhouse" Aria and other Liars are kidnapped by A and taking to a dollhouse.
• Known by the Postal Address: In the episode "Fresh Meat" we discover that Aria's email address is [e-mail].
• Meaningful Name: "Aria" is shown to be a talented singer, as demonstrated by her duet with Noel Kahn in Season One.
• My God, What Have I Done?: She deeply regrets killing Shana in "EscApe from New York", even though it was in defense of her friends.
• One Head Taller: When she dates Noel Kahn, who is played by 6'1 Brant Daugherty, while Aria is played by 5'2 Lucy Hale.
• Perky Goth: Before Alison left, she was known for dark outfits and pink streaks in her hair with a friendly personality.
• The Piano Player:
  • Aria's tinkling away on a piano in "Moments Later".
  • In "Kingdom of the Blind", Aria tells Jenna she's ready to play with her in the assembly, Jenna and Aria both practice on the piano together.
• Promoted to Love Interest: In the first arc of the books, Aria briefly dates Sean Ackard after he breaks up with Hanna, until she cheats on him with Ezra and Sean finds out and calls the cops on them. No such thing happens in the series.
• Secretly Selfish: When Spencer is missing and everyone splits up to search for her, Aria instead goes to Ezra’s apartment and then lies about where she has been. And she is willing to allow her mother to think that Spencer is interested in Fitz to protect herself. These are just a few examples of Aria’s most selfish moments.
• Take My Hand!: Aria tries to save CeCe Drake in Now You See Me, Now You Don't, but fails. Again, CeCe lives.
• Teacher/Student Romance: With Ezra. This is even weirder because Aria's poor, oblivious mother works at the school too. Ezra eventually quits and goes to teach at- wait for it- her father's school.
• Their First Time: Aria lose her virginity with Ezra in the episode "If These Dolls Could Talk".
• The Moving Experience: After Alison disappeared Aria and her family moved to Iceland for a year, before returning to Rosewood.
• This Is for Emphasis, Bitch!: "Bitch can see!"
• Undercover as Lovers: Aria and Holden pretended to be dating in front of their parents during season two, so she could see Ezra and he could go to the fight club.
• Vanity Publishing: After graduating from college, Aria becomes a publisher and helped Ezra to write his second novel about his missing girlfriend, Nicole.
• You Bastard!: The other Liars are particularly disgusted by Aria's handiwork when she takes a mission from A.D. to trash Ali and Emily's nursery.
• You Have to Believe Me!!: Aria doesn't believe Hanna when she tells her Zack tried to flirt with her.

Hanna Marin

Hanna Olivia Marin

Portrayed by: Ashley Benson

Voiced by: Marisol Romero (Latin-American Spanish dub), Yu Shimamura (Japanese dub)

Fool me once, shame on you. And fool my best friend, you’re dead-freaking-meat

"Sometimes telling the truth does more harm than good."

Born on March 7, Hanna is the "It Girl" of the group. After Alison's disappearance, she distances herself from the other girls and becomes best friends with another unpopular outsider named Mona. They managed to make themselves popular over the summer by becoming gorgeous and skinny. Hanna takes Alison's place as the most popular girl at Rosewood High School in her absence and wins 'Homecoming Queen'. She does everything for her loved ones and is the funny one of the bunch.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: She was a brunette in the books, but blonde in the TV show.
• Aren't You Going to Ravish Me?: She feels completely insulted that Shana flirts with every girl around but her. This, of course, leads to her not liking Shana at all.
• Berserk Button:
  • She does not take it well when Caleb insults Justin Bieber.
  • When A gets between her and Caleb, for that matter, driving her to an almost-obsessive search to unmask him/her in season 3 after Caleb discovers there's a second A, which is likely to get him in danger for knowing too much.
• Big Beautiful Woman: Prior to losing weight over the Summer, Hanna was still very pretty when she was overweight, with gorgeous blonde hair, cute blue eyes and a great personality. Really, her weight wasn’t what made her unattractive, it was her frumpy outfits and lack of confidence.
• Big Damn Heroes: She charges headlong into a burning house to save Jenna, without even a second's hesitation.
• Big Eater: Prior to Alison's disappearance, she was quite an eater; she even sneaked food between meals, at least until Alison discovered her.
• Book Dumb: She once claimed that she couldn't even spell Louisiana, let alone know anything about its history.
• Class Princess: She's at the top of Rosewood High's Popularity Food Chain, but she's nice to just about everyone.
• Deadpan Snarker: Despite her ditziness, she's quite witty and sassy.
• Determinator: The most determined member of the group after Spencer to discover A's identity.
• Disappeared Dad: Her parents are divorced and she lives with her mother.
• Dumb Blonde: Although her grades aren't really bad, she has her dumb moments as well.
  Hanna: Please, Jenna can't hear us. She's blind.
• Eating the Eye Candy: When Hanna and Caleb are in the shower (he's bathing, she isn't) and he turns around, she likes what she sees...
• Everyone Loves Blondes: Blonde and popular at school.
• Fanservice Pack: Season 3 shows Hanna wearing Hotter and Sexier outfits. Hanna herself becomes Hotter and Sexier.
• The Fashionista: When Spencer's room was searched by the police, she mentions the cops taking some of her shoes, Hanna's immediate reaction is to ask if the Tory Burches might not have been confiscated too.
• Formerly Fat: She used to be mocked by Alison (the Alpha Bitch and former "It Girl") for being overweight. Over the summer, after Alison's disappearance, Hanna became gorgeous and skinny.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: If occasionally shallow. She's still young, blonde, beautiful and kind when she wants to be.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Mona, after Ali vanishes from the picture. They later grow apart, as Mona was revealed to be in the A Team, but their distance is bridged a little in the season4 premiere. It will probably never be what it was, though.
• In-Series Nickname: "Hefty Hanna", by Alison, due to her being fat before Ali went missing. This is later picked up by A, much to her annoyance.
• Ms. Fanservice: Although she did have a few scenes, she hits the ground running in season 4. "Grave New World" in particular; Hanna's Halloween costume accentuated her cleavage a lot more than the rest of the girls, which the viewers indeed noticed.
• Nice Girl: She's too nice to qualify as an Alpha Bitch or even Lovable Alpha Bitch. Despite her popularity, she's anything but bitchy.
• She Knows Too Much: In season 1, after A runs her over with a car, he/she texts Aria, Spencer and Emily that simply said "she knows too much".
• Sarcasm-Blind: Takes it as a compliment that she's as subtle as a hand grenade.
• Smarter Than You Look: Surprisingly, it's revealed in season 5 she scored very high scores in her SATs.
• Spell My Name With An S: Although Word of God has stated that her name is Hanna (same name as in the book series), some fans insist her name is really Hannah.
• Unsuspectingly Soused: Kate puts alcohol in her drinks at Tom and Isabel's wedding rehearsal, which does not end well.

Spencer Hastings

Spencer Jill Hastings

Portrayed by: Troian Bellisario

Voiced by: María Fernanda Morales (Latin-American Spanish dub), Toa Yukinari (Japanese dub)

"You know what they say about hope. It breeds eternal misery."

You know what Ali said that night? About our secrets keeping us close? I think it was the opposite.

Born on April 11, Spencer is a classic overachiever, is confident, calculating, and could stand up to Alison when no one else could, showing her determination. However, Spencer begins to show a bit of strain when she and her friends begin receiving strange texts from the mysterious "A". She's the smart member of the group. Although she may come across as stuck-up, a know-it-all and comes from a rich background, she cares about her friends.

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• Academic Athlete: She isn't just into field hockey, lacrosse and tennis, but also one of the better students in her class and a potential captain of the academic decathlon team.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Blonde in the books, brunette in the TV show.
• All Girls Want Bad Boys: According to most people in Rosewood, this suits her relationship with Toby. Although now that Toby has been revealed as part of The A Team, it takes on a new light.
• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: She's a tall, mature, beautiful girl with long dark hair.
• Badass Bookworm: Not only the smartest liar, but also a Determinator and quite the detective. in season 5, she threatens "to slit Noel Kahn's face open" with a bit stick (ironically, she and Alison are the only Liars who never actually kill anyone). You Go, Girl!.
• The B Grade: Considers getting a B "failing".
• Big, Screwed-Up Family: Especially as of season 2, the Hastings proves to be this.
• Book Worm: Greatly emphasized in this quote:
  Spencer: I've been in the library so much, I am on a first-name basis with the homeless guy that sleeps next to the microfiche.
• Brainy Brunette: Has brown hair and is the smartest of the liars.
• Broken Ace: An excelling athlete and student (Ace), who lost her friend Not Quite Dead, battles an addiction and a pretty bad relapse, suffers a mental breakdown more than once and deals with her parent's divorce. Pretty much covers the broken part.
• Determinator: She is a very driven young girl.
• Driven to Madness: Spencer's mental breakdown. Until it's revealed she faked being crazy to get Mona to underestimate her. This allows Spencer to beat Mona. Sorta.
• Even the Girls Want Her: Shana immediately hits on Spencer seconds after meeting her.
• Extracurricular Enthusiast: sports, academic clubs, you name it.
• Face–Heel Turn: Appears to join the A Team in "I'm Your Puppet". Later revealed to be fake, to learn the identity of A.
• Go-Getter Girl: She has straight A's, is an Academic Decathlon champion, and plays lacrosse and field hockey. Eventually, she pursues a career in politics.
• Grammar Nazi: She usually corrects other characters, particularly Hanna.
  Hanna: This isn't a secret it's a bombshell, like a nucular...
  Spencer: Nuclear. Nu-cle-ar.
• Gender-Blender Name: Spencer is traditionally a male name, although it's not unheard of in females in real life. In television, however, it's not that common.
• The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: She doesn't really understand why, although being The Unfavorite has a lot to do with it. That and her sister's abominable taste in men, who constantly go after Spencer.
• Informed Ability: She is apparently very talented in Field Hockey, but we never actually see her play.
• Insistent Terminology: Post-Time Skip, she takes a job supporting grassroots political campaigns. She is not, repeat, not a lobbyist, despite Veronica's claims to the contrary.
• Must Have Caffeine: The other girls won't drink any of the coffee she makes because it's too strong.
• Opposites Attract: She and Toby are quite different, both in personality and background.
• The Perfectionist: She is known for being the competitive, overachieving, perfectionist of the group.
• Sanity Slippage: After finding out Toby is in the A-Team. Not clear how much was her actually slipping and how much was planned to get Mona to underestimate her.
• Sexy Shirt Switch: Has a tendency to wear her lovers' shirts, mostly Toby's but she also wears Caleb's after they sleep together.
• The Smart Girl: She's the smartest member of the Liars.
• Statuesque Stunner: She's tall, athletic, and attractive.
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: A Stepford Snarker to be exact, given her general Broken Ace arc.
• Token Good Teammate:
  • Of the Hastings family.
  • Of the A Team, as she has actually joined to expose them rather than to help them.
• Tomboyish Name: Spencer can also be a male name.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: After she and Toby break up she possibly becomes a bigger bitch than Alison. However, this is due to the fact that Toby betrayed her and is in the A-Team, not because of a simple break-up, so, it is somewhat justified.
• The Un-Favourite: When Spencer's parents are home they tend to neglect her in favor of Melissa. "The dArkest Knight" establishes that Spencer's parents aren't her actual parents.
• Uptown Girl: with Toby and with Alex, the tennis instructor. She likes those almost as much as she likes her sister's boyfriends.

Emily Fields

Emily Catherine Fields

Portrayed by: Shay Mitchell

Voiced by: Rebeca Gómez (Latin-American Spanish dub), Seiko Yoshida (Japanese dub)

"There's always more to a story than people think."

If lying was a crime we would all be in jail.

Born on November 19, Emily is the star of Rosewood's swim team. She struggled with an on-and-off relationship with Alison, who at times would say things to put Emily at risk of being outed. Initially, when Emily came out, her parents, especially her mother, struggled to handle the news, but now they seem to be accepting of her sexuality.

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• Academic Athlete: She is the most athletic of the group and a talented swimmer, and it's mentioned that she gets good grades.
• Action Girl: She wins in a fight against Lyndon James, her stalker and Maya's murderer. She kills him in self-defense, an act that seriously traumatizes her.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Has Red hair in the books. In the TV show, she has Black hair.
• Adaptational Sexuality: In the books, she was bisexual and had a baby which she gave up for adoption. In the series, she is, except for a lackluster relationship with Ben before she figures herself out and a confused grief-induced kiss with Nate, shown to be exclusively attracted to women.
• Belated Love Epiphany: In season five, after Alison drove a wedge between her and Paige causing them to break up, and she finishes rebounding with Alison, she reveals this to Spencer
  Emily: God, the thing I had with Paige was so genuine! And now...
  Spencer:Do you think you can fix it?
  Emily: Sure, just go up to Paige and say you were right all along, let's kiss and make up.
• Brainy Brunette: She gets good grades and has dark hair.
• Calling the Old Man Out: When her mother freaks out at the idea of her and Maya even studying together, Emily tells her "For the first time, I am ashamed to be your daughter."
• Cartwright Curse: Out of her four canon love interests, two are dead, one was almost killed, and one was Put on a Bus. And she also had feelings for Alison.
• Coming-Out Story: Emily was thrown out of the closet by their nemesis.
  Emily: Why did you think I would take Maya to the dance?
  Hanna: What?
  Emily: You thought I wanted her as my date. Why?
  Hanna: “A” sent me a picture of you and Maya kissing. So, can I just ask — You took Toby to the dance, but then you took that picture with Maya?
  Emily: [Pregnant pause] ... I think I know what I want. ... But if I say yes to Maya, everything would change. You know it would.
  Hanna: Yeah, it would. You wouldn’t have to pretend you’re someone you’re not.
  Emily: But what if I’m wrong? What if I’m not … that person?
  Hanna: Emily, you’re not signing a contract. You were Emily dating Ben and now you’re Emily dating Maya. We love Emily. No one cares who you’re with.
  Emily: Really? Have you even met my parents? Mr. and Mrs. Military and their perfect daughter...
• Daddy's Girl: Despite Wayne not always being around due to work, compared to the other dads, he has a healthier and loving relationship with his daughter from immediately accepting her sexuality to prioritizing her well-being over being recruited for colleges. Wayne’s death in the Time Skip caused her to drop out and even drink as a coping method. But she gets better.
• Duet Bonding: She and Paige became closer after singing a duet of P!nk's "So What?".
• Gayngst: Because of her sexual orientation, she has been shamed, rejected, conflicted, blackmailed, and outed and that's all before the first half of season one is over. Her first crush goes missing and is found dead after a year. Her first girlfriend gets sent away by her parents after her mother turns her in for possessing weed, and is stalked and murdered by someone she meets in rehab camp, who goes after Emily and her next girlfriend, stalks and kidnaps them, and attempts to make her watch him murder her girlfriend and then her for both rejecting him and being picked over him by her previous girlfriend. Not to mention the main secret she was trying to keep and her main source of conflict in season one was her attraction to girls, leading A to use that against her. All this and more occurred in the first half of the show.
• Girl Next Door: Introduced as the perfectly obedient daughter and girl next door type.
• Leg Focus: The camera and some characters seem to pay special attention to her legs.
• Lesbian Jock: Emily definitely fits the lesbian part. Whether or not being a swimmer counts as being a jock is debatable, but Maya has called her such on occasion.
  Emily: And you're looking at me 'cause I'm gay?
  Aria: No, you just happen to be the sporty one.
• Lipstick Lesbian: She's shown to be feminine and fashionable (maybe a Tomboy with a Girly Streak since she is also an athlete).
• Love Revelation Epiphany: She didn't realize she had feelings for Paige until after she kissed her for the first time in season one.
• Maintain the Lie: Emily concealed from her mother for years the fact that she dropped out of college, sending "letters" from the school. She even went so far as to claim a storm would prevent her mother from attending her graduation and sent a photo of herself in a rented cap and gown.
• Military Brat: Her father is in the National Guard and spends most of the series stationed away from Rosewood. In the second season, it looks like Emily may move to Texas with her parents for a year, but she convinces them to let her stay with Hanna instead. In the Time Skip between 6A and 6B, Wayne is killed in action, leading Emily into a downward spiral that she only starts to pull out of when she returns to Rosewood.
• Near-Death Experience:
  • She and Paige were almost killed by Nate in "The Lady Killer".
  • In the second half of season 3, when Emily climbs out of an elevator that was stuck and seconds later, it re-activates and falls down with Jason still on it.
  • Then again in season four. First when she gets locked in the school at night and her dad has to climb a window to save her from an assailant, and then again when she gets kidnapped and nearly split in two in a sawmill.
• Nice Girl: She is the sweet and loyal "good girl" of the group.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Emily is consistently depicted as a kind-hearted person who can forgive almost any offense, so if she's chewing you out, then it means that you have well and truly screwed up.
• Passionate Sports Girl: The most athletic of the liars.
• Race Lift: Emily is portrayed by Shay Mitchell who has mixed Filipino and Irish heritage. In the book, Emily is just plain Caucasian.
• Statuesque Stunner: She's a tall and beautiful girl.
• Took a Level in Badass: In the beginning, "A" considered her to be the weak link, and repeatedly referred to her as such. By season 4, she is in many ways the strongest of the Liars. Mona even lampshades it.
• Twofer Token Minority: She’s both a woman of color and a lesbian.

Alison DiLaurentis

Alison Lauren DiLaurentis

Portrayed by: Sasha Pieterse

Voiced by: Valentina Souza (Latin-American Spanish dub), Yoko Honna (Japanese dub)

"Friends share secrets. That's what keeps us close."

Two can only keep a secret if one of them is dead.

Born on June 6, Alison was the "It Girl" and the Queen Bee of Rosewood High School until she mysteriously disappeared. One year after her disappearance, her body is found buried in the backyard of Maya St. Germain's house, which used to be hers. However, she is constantly remembered in flashbacks and has also appeared to the Liars through dreams in the present day.

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• The Ace: The reason why she was the "It Girl," since she is attractive, smart, and charismatic.
• Adaptational Heroism: She's still an Alpha Bitch, but she's nowhere near as horrible a person as she was in the books. She's not the Big Bad and, after her return to Rosewood, seems to be trying to shed most of her Alpha Bitch traits.
• Adaptational Sexuality: The books make it clear that both Alison and Courtney are heterosexual, whilst the television show eventually has Alison realize that she is bisexual.
• Adaptational Villainy: Despite also going through Adaptational Heroism, she’s a much more villainous character than Courtney, going far beyond the comparatively more schoolyard bullying of that character, such as by blackmailing several people.
• A Day in the Limelight: "The First Secret" has Alison as the main protagonist for a change since the whole episode is a flashback to the Halloween before her disappearance.
• Almost Kiss: With Toby in a flashback shown in the season 4 premiere episode; they're interrupted by his mother right before their lips touch.
• Alpha Bitch: She has her own Girl Posse - the Liars - and is at the top of the social pyramid. She's willing to do anything to stay there, including blackmail and bribery.
• Ambiguously Bi: It is unknown whether Alison actually was an Armored Closet Gay who had feelings for Emily or she was just manipulating her until she admits "those kisses weren't just for practice" in season 4. Again when she tells Emily that she loves her
• Asshole Victim: She might have been only 15 when she died though she's not actually dead, but she managed to make so many people hate her that just about every other supporting character in the show had a motive for her murder.
• The Atoner:
  • The time she spent on the run has apparently made her realize just how much damage she did as Alpha Bitch. In "Whirly Girl", she even tries to make amends to Mona and says that the awful person she used to be is gone. Her words during her fight with Mona in "Miss Me x 100" cast some doubt on whether or not she is genuinely trying to change her ways, though:
    Alison: All I had to do was say "I'm sorry" and Mindy and Cindy were begging to be my friends again.
  • After being wrongfully arrested over Mona’s murder, Alison makes a much more sincere Heel–Face Turn.
• Big Damn Heroes:
  • She runs into a fire to save Aria, Hanna, Emily, and Mona.
  • She stops the buzzsaw trap that A used on Emily in "Now You See Me, Now You Don't."
  • In "For Whom the Bell Tolls", Ian attempts to murder Spencer by pushing her off the bell tower. Someone in a black hoodie comes to rescue Spencer and pushes Ian off the bell tower, leaving him to fall onto ropes, hanging. It is revealed in "A is for Answers" that this was Alison trying to keep Spencer alive. She also reveals that Ian wasn't dead when she left.
• Big Sister Worship: While not actually her sister, she adored her brother's girlfriend Cece and became just like her... which isn't a good thing. And it turns out, Cece really was her sister all along.
• Blackmail: She blackmailed Paige and Byron.
• Broken Ace: By Season 5, she's clearly damaged by the hell she's gone through.
• Chekhov's Skill: She learned how to hold her breath for extended amounts of time. Doing so allowed her to survive being buried alive.
• Consummate Liar: The biggest liar of all the Pretty Little Liars.
• Cooldown Hug: Gives one to Hanna when she walks into her house and finds her finishing an extra meal, which prompts the girl to start crying because she can't stop herself from eating more and more.
• The Corrupter: To the other four Liars. She gets Hanna to get into bulimia, for instance, and even assists Aria in trashing Byron's office and framing Meredith for it.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: She was beaten up with a hockey stick and buried alive afterward! She is later revealed to have survived, though.
• Dead All Along: Remember when Ali was missing? Oh yeah, she was actually dead. Buried under her parent's gazebo since the night of her alleged "disappearance". Subverted as of "Now You See Me, Now You Don't.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Alison provides a perfect deconstruction of the Alpha Bitch and The Friend Nobody Likes. Her behavior gained her and the Liars the disdain of 90% of the town, and she has multiple enemies in the A-team that want her dead. By season 5, the Liars themselves wonder why they ever put up with her and do everything they can to get her arrested when they suspect her of murder. In fact, Alison is so hated that when she was hit in the head with a rock and presumed dead, her own mother buried her to cover for her attacker!
• Deadly Prank: She, along with the other Liars, blinded Jenna Marshall with a stink-bomb in a prank intended for Toby Cavanaugh.
• Everyone Loves Blondes: As the blonde school diva. Not loved by everyone though, since she has a lot of enemies.
• Frame-Up: In "I'm a Good Girl, I Am", she is found guilty of murdering Mona Vanderwaal.
  • Sometime between "Welcome to the Dollhouse" and "Game On, Charles", she was released from prison. This is because of the footage from the dollhouse that Lieutenant Tanner sees at the end of "Welcome to the Dollhouse".
• Faking the Dead: She survived a blow to the head and being buried alive, but disappeared afterward to make her attacker think she had died.
• Female Misogynist: Ali strongly disliked Jenna seemingly because Jenna refused to be intimidated by Ali and refused to join her group of friends, saying that she'd prefer to pick her own friends.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: A dark deconstruction with Alison. While everyone in town hates her, the Liars put up with her. However, they spent most of season five wondering why and turned on her when she continued to lie to cover her tracks. They even suspected her of murder and did everything they could to get her arrested.
• Hated by All: Alison's behavior and antics have earned her the disdain of nearly everyone in Rosewood, and she has multiple enemies on the A-team that want her dead. By the time of season 5, the Liars themselves have gotten sick of her and wonder why they ever put up with her in the first place. Hell, even her own mother seems to hate her, to the extent that when she saw someone hit Alison over the head with a rock, she buried Alison alive to cover for her attacker.
• Heel Realization: Being in prison makes her realize how horrible she was to her friends. By the time they realize she's being framed and reach out to help make things right, she feels she's the one who owes them an apology.
• Jerkass: Was known for being cruel, selfish, and deceitful.
• Manipulative Bitch: Often using other people as tools in her manipulations.
• Ms. Fanservice: Particularly in season 1, where she appeared wearing only a bikini in some flashbacks.
• Meaningful Name: Ironically, the name Alison means "truth" in Irish. It also means "noble" - everything Alison is not since she is a manipulative liar.
• Noble Profession: Post-Time Skip, she becomes a teacher at Rosewood High.
• Or Was It a Dream?: Every time she appears in the present, there are ambiguous circumstances that make the viewer think that she could still be alive.
• Posthumous Character: Or not, since she actually comes back and is revealed to be still alive.
• Properly Paranoid: Being almost murdered will do that to you. She has a short list of people that she trusts.
• Single-Target Sexuality: she told Emily that all her relationships have failed because she always loved her but she isn't exactly known for her honesty.
• Spotlight-Stealing Squad: In-Universe. Her funeral was a huge event that pretty much the whole town attended.
• That Man Is Dead: In "Whirly Girl" she tells Mona that the awful person that the "Alison DiLaurentis" grave was made for is gone.
• Took a Level in Kindness: In her present-day appearances at least. She seems much nicer compared to her flashback appearances. Present-day appearances of her are only dreams. It's later confirmed they're not.

Mona Vanderwaal

Mona Vanderwaal

Portrayed by: Janel Parrish

Voiced by: Cecilia Gómez (Latin-American Spanish dub), Eri Goda (Japanese dub)

"It's easier to forgive an enemy, than it is to forgive a friend."

I’ll shake people down — I love doing that.

Born on October 8, Mona is a former loser who was tormented by Alison (yet still idolized her), Mona and Hanna became really close friends after Ali goes missing, and becomes the top popular girls of Rosewood High. She's witty and can be mean at times, but treats Hanna like a sister and seems to get along with the other Liars as well. The second season finale reveals that she's A, and she's sent to an asylum after being diagnosed as insane. She returns to school after "getting better" in the second half of season 3, but continues working with the second A all along, until she's betrayed in the season finale and almost burnt alive with the Liars. She is promoted to main character status in the fourth season.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: Blonde in the book, Brunette in the TV show.
• Adaptation Expansion: In the original book series, Mona dies when she tries to kill Spencer. While the same scene happens in the Season 2 finale, she manages to survive. Everything from that moment onwards has been created exclusively for the TV series.
• Ambiguously Bi: She is EXTREMELY fond of Hanna. "A Is For Answers" hints that she was attracted to Ali as well.
• Ambiguously Evil: In Season 4, after her supposed Heel–Face Turn. It's still unclear if she has genuinely ended her vendetta against the Liars.
• Ascended Extra: Her role wasn't that influential in the first season, but she gradually starts gaining more importance from the second season onwards. In season 4, she becomes a main character.
• Beautiful Singing Voice: Has this in canon, and has several moments in the series where she gets to show off her vocal talent; most of them involve her singing soft, creepy nursery rhymes to herself. Lampshaded by Hanna in one scene where she sings the bridge of Sara Bareilles’s “Gravity” to prepare for an audition:
  Hanna: Okay, Mona, we get it. You can freakin’ sing.
• Big Bad: For the first two seasons, though none of us know this until the end of the latter. In Season 3, she becomes The Dragon, while pretending to have reformed, until she's expelled from the A Team in the finale. She becomes an anti-hero in Season 4, but returns to Big Bad status in Season 5A, after she bands together an army of Ali haters to work against her. Ali ultimately takes the role from her near the end, when she goes rogue and starts her own army.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: With Charles in Season 3A. It seems that at the start Mona and Charles/Big A were working together as partners, but Big A eventually took the game away from her and made it entirely his.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Zig-Zagged in regard to Hanna: On the one hand, she used her friendship with Hanna to gain inside info on the girls, making her more effective as A. On the other hand, she seems to truly care about what happens to Hanna.
• Brainy Brunette: She has dark brown hair and is great at hacking, computing, science, and most things. She was a geek before her makeover and was much more open about her talents as a genius before the world of popularity came into her life.
• Brilliant, but Lazy: In her Freshman year she was unpopular, friendless and a nerd, however after Alison disappears she becomes the new Queen Bee. Even though she became vain she was still very clever.
• Broken Ace: Her unique repertoire of skills that allowed her to flourish as A makes her a useful ally to the Liars in later seasons, but the group (sans Hannah) never truly trusts or accepts her. She's also a mentally unbalanced individual who tends to lapse back into unhealthy behavior and obsession.
• Darker and Edgier: As the series progresses, her character becomes much darker than the light-headed girl in the beginning.
• Dark Horse Victory: And how. She's the ultimate winner of the A game in Season 7, outwitting the Big Bad, and imprisons her (and her mother) in her personal dollhouse in the penultimate scene of the series.
• Deadpan Snarker: Now that she's been revealed as A, she indulges in this on occasion.
  Spencer: If you so much as touch one hair on their heads, I will make you very sorry!
  Mona: [smirking] Looks like someone's been skipping her anger management classes.
• Deal with the Devil: Invoked. She describes her arrangement with the true A as this. Basically, she became The Dragon and gave control of the A-team over to the true A and in exchange, the true A arranged free passage in and out of Radley for her. Now, whether or not she was telling the truth about that is open to interpretation.
• The Dragon: To the second "A". She also sorts of becomes this to Ezra Fitz in Season 4, but clearly does not want to be in his employ.
• Evil All Along: Is revealed to be the first "A".
• Evil Former Friend: Mona was Hanna's best friend and later turned into her worst nemesis.
• False Friend: Mona is Hanna's best friend but only uses this to gather information on how to take the girls down as "A".
• The Fashionista: Along with Hanna, she is stylish and interested in fashion.
• The Friend Nobody Likes: To the Liars. Even before she was revealed as A, only Hanna liked hanging out with her. After she is revealed to be A, she's generally kept around because she's useful and Hanna still likes her a little.
• Girlish Pigtails: In flashbacks, the pigtails were part of her dorky appearance.
• Good Girl Gone Bad: She used to be a nerdy harmless girl who was frequently bullied by Alison in the past. She changes after she becomes popular.
• Heel–Face Turn:
  • She's trying to convince Rosewood that she's made one, but "Mona-Mania" confirms that she is definitely still on A's side.
  • She makes one for real in "A dangerous gAme".
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Hanna, after Ali vanishes from the picture. They later grow apart, as Mona was revealed to be in the A Team, but their distance is bridged a little in the season 4 premiere. It will probably never be what it was, though.
• If It's You, It's Okay: Mona is completely heterosexual by her own admission, but she jokingly tells Hanna that she'd totally go gay for her.
• It Meant Something to Me: Despite having used her position as Hanna's best friend to help her attack the girls as "A", she tells Hanna this in the Season 4 premiere:
  Mona: I really did love you... [Beat] and I really was your friend.
• Might as Well Not Be in Prison at All: During her stint in the Radley Sanitorium, she continues to act on instructions from the A-team and communicate with them. She even manages to leave for a night in "This Is A Dark Ride."
• Near-Death Experience: A tries to kill her in "Turn of the Shoe".
• Not Quite Dead: In 'Welcome To The Dollhouse' it's revealed that she wasn't killed, and the attack from 'Taking This One To The Grave' was actually a kidnapping.
• The Nicknamer: Coming up with nicknames, especially mean ones, are part of her heritage as Alpha Bitch from Ali
• Obfuscating Stupidity: She seems a bit dumb and ditzy initially, but in "The Naked Truth" she reveals herself to be smart enough to help Emily hack into Tamborelli's system. And of course, this is taken even further when she's revealed to be part of the A team.
• Playful Hacker: Reveals to be a very skilled hacker in "The Naked Truth".
• Sixth Ranger Traitor:
  • Mona pretends to get texts from "A" and bonds with the girls over it. It is later revealed that Mona is A.
  • She regains her status as the Sixth Ranger in the fourth season premiere.
• Spared by the Adaptation: If the TV series had followed the books, she would have been killed off in season 2. Instead, she appears to have been killed in season 5's midseason finale, but the season 5 finale reveals she's Not Quite Dead.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: After Alison's disappearance, she reinvented herself from the quiet, mousy girl she was into a new It Girl, and total bitch. She even adopted Alison's insult for Lucas, "hermie".
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: For all her Jerkass behavior in forming the Mona Army in Season 5, she seems to be honestly concerned that Alison's return is going to be bad for the rest of the Rosewood student body.
• With Friends Like These...: She only seems to get along with Hanna. The other girls only tolerate her for the most part and it's clear they don't completely trust her.
• Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: She was completely psycho as A but we do have to remember that she had no friends.

The final "A" (spoilers)

some caption text

Alex Drake

"You wanna know who I am? I'm just a girl who met a man when he came in from the rain.

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• Accomplice by Inaction: In Season 5 and Season 6A. Alex was well aware that Charlotte was "A" and while she was not actually on the A-Team herself at this point, she never does anything to stop her and actually tries to come back to Rosewood with her.
• Avenging the Villain: Alex was initially driven by finding Charlotte's killer and continuing the Liars' harassment on Charlotte's behalf.
• Bed Trick: She seduces and sleeps with Toby twice, while he's under the assumption that she is Spencer.
• Dragon Ascendant: She was never The Dragon to Charlotte, nor a member of the A-Team, but she was well aware of Charlotte's actions during her reign as "A" and after her death, she takes over the game.
• Early-Bird Cameo: She is not officially introduced until the series finale, but she had already been appearing as "A.D." and masquerading as Spencer.
• Evil Brit: She's British and the final "A".
• Final Boss: She is the final main antagonist of the show and the final major "A".
• Master of Disguise: Hides in plain sight via masks and disguises, including an old gardener, an old bellhop, a police officer, a maid and possibly a surgeon.
• Playing Their Own Twin: Troian Bellisario plays both Spencer and Alex.
• Separated at Birth: Alex was sold off to a rich family in London after she and Spencer were born.
• The Reveal: She is Uber A. Her existence in general counts as this as well.

Acquaintances of Aria Montgomery

Byron Montgomery

Byron Montgomery

Portrayed by: Chad Lowe

Voiced by: Víctor Covarrubias (Latin-American Spanish dub), Yasuhiko Nemoto (Japanese dub)

"I guess we’re all going to have to just pitch in a little bit more around here."

I made a mistake, all right? And I will be sorry about it for the rest of my life.

Byron is Aria's father and a college professor at Hollis. Shortly after Alison's disappearance, he moves the family to Iceland for a year as a sabbatical. He had an affair with a student prior to the moving, and was discovered by Aria and Alison. It's the first secret A uses against Aria and the Liars, threatening to expose it to Ella.

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• Amicably Divorced: With Ella, in the third season. They get married again (with Aria officiating!) in season 6.
• Books vs. Screens: Kind of. In both versions they are very lenient parents who try and act as friends towards their children. But in the books this is taken even more so as they insist on their children calling them by their first names rather than Mom or Dad. In the TV show however Aria and Mike call their parents Mom and Dad.
• Dark Secret: His affair with Meredith. Garrett later reveals an even darker secret: Byron and Ali met up on the night of her disappearance, due to her extorting him about the affair.
• Do You Trust Me?: Invoked in the second half of season three; he asks this to Aria after she finds the pages of Ali's diary containing their encounter.
• Jerkass Has a Point: Like any parent would be, he was rightfully enraged after he learned that a 24 year old Ezra (her former high school English teacher) was dating Aria, who was a minor.
• My Greatest Failure: His brother Scott committed suicide, and Byron has since then regretted not being able to help him.
• Offscreen Breakup: Both times he broke up with Meredith, it was off-screen. Also, he divorces Ella in the six months timeskip between seasons two and three.
• Papa Wolf: His paternal instinct kicks in with Aria when he learns she's seeing Ezra, and when Meredith drugs and attacks her. This also goes with Mike when he has a bad depressive episode. Despite all his flaws, he does care about his kids.
• Red Herring: After his blackmail at the hands of Alison was revealed, he's treated as the main suspect both in canon and fanon. While it hasn't been 100% proven, Aria and the fanbase seems convinced he isn't the murderer.
• Secret Relationship: His affair before the series begin. Also, in the second half of season one, he develops a secret relationship with Ella after the two reconnect.

Ella Jane Montgomery

Ella Jane Montgomery

Portrayed by: Holly Marie Combs

Voiced by: Cony Madera (Latin-American Spanish dub), Kaori Yamagata (Japanese dub)

"People aren't dolls. You can't just play with them and put them back in the box."

I haven't been on a date since George Clooney has been on E.R.

Aria's mother and Byron's wife (later ex-wife), who later becomes a substitute teacher in Rosewood High (and a full-time teacher after Ezra gives up the position). Ella believes in treating her children as friends, not as property. She has mentioned that she doesn't want to push into Aria's private life, and she thinks that Aria should be allowed to keep secrets.

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• Books vs. Screens: Kind of. In both versions she and Byron are very lenient parents who try and act as friends to their children. However, in the books this is more so as Ella and Byron insist on their children calling them by their first names rather than Mom or Dad. This isn’t in the show.
• May–December Romance: With Zack, the coffee shop owner. They later broke up.
• Offscreen Breakup: She and Byron divorce between seasons. But they marry again onscreen in season 6.
• Open-Minded Parent: She is much more open than Byron, and has stated that she treats her children more like friends, not an authoritarian figure. The best example is probably how she was more open to Ezra and Aria's relationship than Byron. She was shocked and mad, of course, but later (thanks to some Character Development of her own) comes to accept them, unlike Byron who gets Ezra fired instead.
• Save Our Students: The reason why she completes Emily's test for her, despite it compromising her job.
• Secret Relationship: After learning about his affair and leaving her house, Byron and her reconnect and start secretly seeing each other again.
• Shipper on Deck: For Caleb/Aria, after seeing them talking really close. She also mistook a conversation between Spencer and Ezra as the two of them being in a secret relationship. Ella has pretty much been founding the crack ships in the series by now.

Mike Montgomery

Mike Montgomery

Portrayed by: Cody Christian

Voiced by: Miguel Calderón (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 1-5), Miguel Ángel Ruiz (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 5-6), Kengo Kawanishi (Japanese dub)

"You lie and cheat but you draw the line at hypocrisy. You're such a role model."

Aria's little brother with whom she is close to who has some secret activities

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• Alliterative Name: Mike Montgomery
• Big Brother Instinct: In this case he's Aria's younger brother, and he punches Ezra in the face after it's revealed the latter is dating her. One episode even has him promising to become more protective of her.
• Big Little Brother: He's significantly taller than Aria.
• Demoted to Extra: In Season 3, he stops appearing entirely before returning in Season 4. Subverted in season 5B, where his role becomes pretty important.
• Only Sane Man: Along with Caleb in 5B, as he's the only one who understands that maybe, going to the police could be helpful in fighting -A.
• Out of Focus: He does not appear at all in season 3. Unlike other cases, his absence is not justified at any given point.
• Remember the New Guy?: He is still referenced several times in Season 3 despite not appearing once.

Ezra Fitz

Ezra Fitzgerald

Portrayed by: Ian Harding

Voiced by: Carlo Vázquez (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 1-6), Eiji Hanawa (Japanese dub)

"Fear is the number one motivator."

If A knows, I'm thinking B and C and everybody else knows.

A new resident of Rosewood who is hired as a literature teacher in Rosewood High at the beginning of the series. Ezra meets Aria in a bar shortly before classes begin and the two connect and make out, only to meet each other later as student and teacher in Rosewood.

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• Adaptation Expansion: In comparison to his book counterpart, who is a pretty minor character in the book series.
• Big Bad Ensemble: With "A" in Season 4. He's an Anti-Villain, who is only stalking the girls for his book.
• Book Worm: How he connects with Aria, who is a bookworm herself.
• Break the Cutie: Season 6B wasn't that kind to him.
• Chick Magnet: His love interests include a total of six girls: Aria, Jackie, Simone, Maggie, Nicol and Ali.
• Cool Teacher: He is well liked by his fellow faculty members and by his students.
• Deadpan Snarker: He uses sarcasm to deal with any threats from A.
• Disappeared Dad: An unintentional example though, since he didn't know about it. And then it turns out he's not the father anyway.
• Hidden Depths: We don't learn more about his backstory until the third season.
• Hot Teacher: Aside from Aria and his other love interests, Spencer, Jenna and Hanna have remarked on his good looks as well.
• Lady Macbeth: A genderinverted and heroic version of the trope. But whenever Aria ends up murdering someone, Ezra seems remorseless about it and is willing to cover it up. Justified because they were hurting and tormenting Aria first.
• Locked Out of the Loop: Ezra is the only one of the main characters' love interests to not know about the second A. It's ultimately subverted. He knows about the second A because of his surveillance to get information for his true crime book.
• Lonely Rich Kid: Became this after he got Maggie pregnant in high school, which made him abandon his family after seeing how easily his mother could make problems disappear with money.
• Near-Death Experience: When Shana shot him in the stomach in the season 4 finale.
• Nice Guy : He is shown to be very sweet and kind mostly towards Aria and the other girls and steps up to help them in any problem.
• Shout-Out: Given the fact that he's a literature buff, his name is probably one to poet Ezra Pound and author F. Scott Fitzgerald.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Ian Harding's height is 5ft 11in, is also dark-haired, and considered handsome on the show.
• Villain Protagonist: In Season 4, he has his own team working for this book including Mona Vanderwaal and CeCe Drake. Though, he is much less antagonistic once the truth about the book comes out into the open.

Noel Kahn

Noel Kahn

Portrayed: Brant Daugherty

Voiced by: Ricardo Bautista (Latin-American Spanish dub), Shusaku Shirakawa (Japanese dub)

"Bad boys got nothing on mean girls. Guys have a fight, there’s a punch it’s over. Girls don’t fight fair. They gang up, keep secrets, plot. They can cut you down with a look."

It’s kinda hot, knowing you think I’m capable of murder.

Noel is a popular jock and a student in Rosewood High. He has feelings for Aria and briefly dates her, ending things when he discovers that Aria is seeing Ezra. Noel attempts to blackmail Ezra with this information, but ends up getting framed by A (for apparently stealing mid-term exams) and gaining a suspension. In the second season, he returns when said suspension ends, and begins a romantic relationship with Mona.

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• Ambiguously Evil: Is he "A" or on the A-Team? Is he on the Liars side? Is he in a separate villainous club/evil on his own? The Liars are never entirely sure with him. Season 4 seemingly answers this question, revealing that he knows Alison is alive and is helping her out. However, Season 5 has him back in the ambiguous category. Season 7 finally answers the question, revealing that he was a member of the A-Team.
• Big Man on Campus: A popular handsome rich boy.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Well, a jerk in nice-guy clothing. He seemed really pleasant when introduced. Then his relationship with Aria fell apart, and so did the facade...
• "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: He tries to blackmail Ezra when he learns of his relationship with Aria.
• The Bus Came Back: He returns to school in season two, though.
• Chick Magnet: Noel has been shown to be very popular with girls.
• Implied Love Interest: Was this to Mona, since although it's mentioned many times that they're dating in season two, we don't see much interaction between them.
• Jerkass: He acts like this towards the main characters, specially towards Aria since she chose Ezra over him.
• Jerk Jock: The resident high school jock and a Jerkass.
• Jerkass Has a Point: His page quote is pretty dead-on, at least as far as the mean girls in Rosewood are concerned.
• Just Friends: With Alison. Neither were romantically interested in one another.
• Killed Off for Real: Beheaded during a fight with the Liars in Season 7.
• Life of the Party: He frequently throws wild parties.
• Offscreen Breakup: How he breaks up with Mona.
• One Head Taller: With all three of his canon love interest.
• Put on a Bus: In the first season, after he fails to blackmail Ezra, he's framed by A and is suspended from school.
• Really Gets Around: He dated Aria, Jenna and Mona in the first two seasons alone.
• The Reveal: He was a member of the A-Team and was in the Dollhouse, assisting Charlotte.
• Secret-Keeper: Knew Alison was alive the whole time.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: He's good-looking and played by 6'1 Brant Daugherty.
• Villainous Friendship: With Jenna. They are romantically involved in earlier seasons, but are seemingly not a couple during the final season and only seem to be allies.

Holden Strauss

Holden Strauss

Portrayed by: Shane Coffey

Voiced by: Enzo Fortuny (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"Sometimes what people believe is best for you is not really what's best for you."

I'm not gonna spend the rest of my life sitting in front of a TV.

Holden is a childhood friend of Aria's who hasn't seen her in a very long time. He has been living in Portugal with his family and returns to Rosewood halfway through season two. He's very sweet and caring towards Aria, but just as a friend. He loves martial arts and secretly practices it, despite having a heart condition that could cause his death if he's not to careful about it.

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• Canon Foreigner: He does not appear in any of the books.
• Childhood Friends: An old friend of Aria as their fathers were also friends.
• Commuting on a Bus: He is a Recurring Character in Season 3, but he had so few appearances that people often forget about him. He hasn't appeared in almost twenty episodes by now, so it's pretty safe to assume he's been Put on a Bus.
• Nice Guy: Was always a good friend to Aria.
• Undercover as Lovers: Aria and Holden pretended to be dating in front of their parents during season two, so she could see Ezra and he could go to a fight club.

Andrew Campbell

Andrew Campbell

Portrayed by: Brandon W Jones

Voiced by: Alan Bravo (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"You guys have history, that's rough."

War is a game that has to be played with a smile.

Andrew is a Rosewood High student, almost as smart as Spencer, who he seems to be friends with.

He first appears briefly in season 3, then in season 5 he connects with Aria and they have a brief romance, while signs seem to pile up to suggest he's more than what he seems...

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• The Ace: He's one of the best students of Rosewood High.
• Heel–Face Turn: He seems to be hedging closer and closer to the edge of it each time he appears in 5B. Might have crossed it with his spying on Melissa's call in 'Welcome To The Dollhouse'.
• Nice Guy: At least at first he seems to be nicer than Ezra.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: He was trying to catch "A" to impress Aria and prove himself worthy of being her boyfriend in Season 5B. Instead, he is arrested and accused of being "A" with Aria being the most vocal about his guilt during Season 6A.
• Out of Focus: After his appearances in season 3 he disappears almost completely until season 5B, appearing once or twice in season 4.
• "Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives one to the Liars after he is proven innocent of being "A" and released from jail during Season 6A.
• Shirtless Scene: In one of his early appearances he and Spencer engage in some friendly Strip Decathlon, which leads to this.

Meredith Sorenson

Meredith Sorenson

Portrayed by: Amanda Schull

Voiced by: Liliana Barba (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"Listen, sweetie. I'm not in high school. You don't have a say in this."

You are in this class to discuss American history, not mine, got it?

Meredith is a former student at Hollis who had an affair with Aria's father prior to Alison's disappearance. She wished for Byron to leave his wife and be with her, but instead he broke the affair after Aria and Alison trashed his office, pretending to be Meredith and left for Iceland. In the third season, she becomes the history teacher of Rosewood High.

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• Adaptation Name Change: From Meredith Gates in the books to Meredith Sorenson.
• Adaptational Villainy: In the novels, Meredith was a kind-hearted, slightly soft-spoken Sympathetic Adulterer who while not wanting to stop the affair with Byron they eventually marry and have a daughter named Lola, didn't brag about it (telling others about it was actually a source of embarrassment and shame for her) and meant no ill will towards any of the Montgomery's, even Aria who had been openly hostile to her for a while, and therefore welcomes her into her new family with Byron and the two actually develop a fairly healthy friendship. In the TV series, Meredith flaunts the fact that she had an affair with Byron to Aria's face, by showing up at places where Byron and Ella are and saying Aria is in no position to object while hiding her true colors behind a thin veil of kind cheerfulness and worst of all drugs and beats Aria and locks her and the other Liars in the basement.
• Frameup: Aria and Alison frame her up for the destruction of Byron's office, prior to Ali's disappearance.
• Near-Death Experience: Lucas sets a cabin on fire to kill Mona, yet he doesn't succeed and almost kills Meredith instead.
• New Old Flame: She begins to date Byron again after he divorces Ella.
• Put on a Bus: Sent on her way to get medical help towards the end of season 3.
• Yandere: For Byron, going as far as drugging, beating and locking up his own daughter.

Dianne Fitz

Dianne Fitzgerald

Portrayed by: Mary Page Keller

Voiced by: Loretta Santini (Latin-American Spanish dub, season 3)

"It's all romance and sacrifice in your little Paris garret. Except you determine what's sacrificed, not him."

Everyone has motives.

Ezra's estranged mother, with who he parted ways when he came to Rosewood. She tracks him down in the third season, and is initially introduced as nice, but later we find out she's not as pleasant as she seemed to be. Dianne does not approve Ezra's relationship with Aria, and has warned her not to bring her son down after he's kicked out of Hollis.

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• Canon Foreigner: Does not appear in any of the novels.
• Good Is Not Nice: She's not evil, but is by no means nice.
• Manipulative Bitch: Shown in how she bribed Maggie into getting an abortion, moved her out of town and had her raise her grandson in secret, keeping it from Ezra.
• Missing Mom: Played with. Ezra hasn't seen her in seven years prior to season 3, but that was just because he didn't want to see her.
• My Beloved Smother: Not only to Ezra, but to his brother Wesley as well. She expects highly from both of them, and since she does not like to be disappointed (as she has been with Ezra) she enforces her behavior on Wes, suppressing his true feelings and desires.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Delivers one to Aria in the very first episode she appears. In return, she gets one from her son after the truth about Maggie and Malcolm comes out.
• Spell My Name With An S: Whether it's Diane or Dianne is debatable.

Acquaintances of Hanna Marin

Ashley Marin

Ashley Marin

Portrayed by: Laura Leighton

Voiced by: Yolanda Vidal (Latin-American Spanish dub), Yurika Hino (Japanese dub)

"When they find the maniac who did this to you, I will kill him. After I kill him, I will sue him."

It's only a felony if they find out.

Hanna's single mother, who works at a bank in Rosewood. She's a kind, wise woman and has a very good relationship with her daughter Hanna and her friends. Her ex-husband Tom, Hanna's father, left her and Rosewood prior to the beginning of the series. She also has a complicated relationship with the police, particularly with agent Wilden.

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• Adaptation Expansion: Her book counterpart isn't very close to Hanna, and barely appears in the story at all before she's Put on a Bus to Singapore.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Has reddish-gold hair in the books, but brown in the TV show.
• Amicably Divorced: With Tom, although it's implied that this wasn't so much the case when they did get divorced, but after time passed by and she came to accept it.
• Hot for Preacher: In season 3, she begins to date a pastor.
• Mama Bear: She will do anything to protect her daughter.
• May–December Romance: She forced herself into this with Darren, in order to prevent Hanna from being arrested.
• Open-Minded Parent: She's shown to be a supportive mom to Hanna in many situations.
• Out of Focus: When the second half of season three begins, Ashley is not seen, and Hanna is living with her grandmother instead. She shows up a couple of episodes later, but an explanation for her being missing is not provided.

Caleb Rivers

Caleb Rivers

Portrayed by: Tyler Blackburn

Voiced by: Miguel Ángel Leal (Latin-American Spanish dub), Tsuyoshi Inoue (Japanese dub)

"Knowing the right questions is better than having all the right answers."

The rich girls steal, the pretty girls lie, the smart girls play dumb, and the dumb girls spend their days trying to be all of the above.

Caleb is a street-smart new kid at Rosewood High, who has a checkered past and illegally hacked into computers for money when he first moved to Rosewood. He is found by Hanna and Aria living at the school because of troubles at his adoptive parents' house, which prompts Hanna to invite him to stay at her house, secretly, without letting Ashley know (although she eventually accepts him).

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• Big Brother Instinct: He's fairly protective of Emily. He even gives her a Cooldown Hug in season 3's mid-season finale.
• The Bus Came Back:
  • He returns in the season 1 finale.
  • Literally in Season 4, when he goes to Ravenswood. He planned to get on the next bus back with Hanna, but he stayed behind at her request, in order to help Miranda.
• Canon Foreigner: Caleb did not exist in the books.
• Dark and Troubled Past: He tries to avoid talking about his experience in the foster system, but what he did tell is not quite nice.
• Deadpan Snarker: More and more as the series progresses.
  Hanna: I almost killed you!
  Caleb: With a pink furry lamp, Hanna?
• Eating the Eye Candy: When Hanna and Caleb are in the shower (he's bathing, she isn't) and he turns around, she likes what she sees...
• Foster Kid: Caleb was given up by his biological mother when he was five years old, leading him to live in different foster care homes and with different foster parents.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Lucas, the only guy in his school he genuinely likes, until his Face–Heel Turn in season 3.
• Near-Death Experience: He was almost killed by Nate in "The Lady Killer". He also has two of these during his time on Ravenswood.
• Playful Hacker: His hacking skills can also be useful to the girls.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: He was the manly man to Lucas’s sensitive guy until he got darker.
• Street Smart: He is very resourceful and take care of most problems he comes across.
• The Smart Guy: He is a tech-genius and brilliant hacker.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Relatively tall, dark-haired, and good-looking.
• Troubled, but Cute: A reformed bad boy with a troubled family history, also a badass hacker, and quite attractive and charming.

Lucas Gottesman

Lucas Gottesman

Portrayed by: Brendan Robinson

Voiced by: Javier Olguín (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 1-6), Hideto Nitta (Japanese dub)

"Icebergs turn over. They just roll over and turn up all that buried junk. You don't want to get too close when that happens."

Girls like her don't approach guys like me unless they have deep-seated self-esteem issues and a serious drinking problem.

Lucas is a member of the yearbook committee who was tormented by Alison in the past. He becomes good friends with Hanna after the two work together on the yearbook and the prom and eventually develops a crush on her, but steps aside when she begins dating Caleb Rivers. In the third season, he makes a Face–Heel Turn and his character grows darker as the series continues.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: His book counterpart is blonde.
• Adaptation Name Change: His last name is changed from Beattie in the books to Gottesman.
• Ambiguously Evil: It's unknown whether he's actually evil or just plain creepy, but in the season 4 premiere the reveal that he's the one who gave Emily the massage makes him look really suspicious...
• Blackmail: Mona has been blackmailing him for an uncertain amount of time.
• Creepy Monotone: Specially in "Kingdom of the Blind". He was way too calm while he lit his papers on fire.
• Face–Heel Turn: From Season 3 he becomes a darker character.
• Hero Antagonist: He's this in Season 5 as a member of Mona's Army. Unlike the other inner-circle members, he seems to genuinely just want protection from Alison and actually feels a little bad for her.
• I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: In the second season, he puts his feelings aside to let Hanna be happy with Caleb. His thoughts about this from the third season onwards are unknown.
• Just Friends: With Hanna. It was used to hurt him and Hanna in a school dance episode, with A forcing Hanna to dance with him, which causes her boyfriend Sean to break up with her and to hurt Lucas as well.
• Nice Guy: Prior to Face–Heel Turn, he was good friends with Hanna and Caleb.
• Pyromaniac: Let's see, lighting up some documents on fire? Check. Almost burning Hanna in the process? Check. Burning down an entire gazebo to try to kill Mona? Check.
  Caleb: Dude, you tried to set fire to my girlfriend.
  Lucas: [with a straight face] Yeah sorry about that, I was being ground down by trivial bureaucracy.
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Until the third season. Lampshaded by Hanna, who comments on it early in that season.

Darren Wilden

Darren Wilden

Portrayed by: Bryce Johnson

Voiced by: Manuel Campuzano (Latin-American Spanish dub), Ryo Iwasaki (Japanese dub)

"Your mom may be hot, Hanna, but she’s not hot enough to make that go away."

The evidence doesn't lie.

A police detective who arrests Hanna for shoplifting in the Pilot episode. Ashley begins a sexual relationship with him in return for him dropping all charges against Hanna. He is later put in charge of the investigation on Alison's murder.

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• The Bus Came Back: He was put off the investigation after four episodes, then returns to the case from season 2 onwards.
• Death by Adaptation: He never dies in the books.
• Dirty Cop: Darren uses some questionable methods while he is investigating the murder of Alison although he doesn't do anything that is actually illegal. After Hanna gets arrested for shoplifting, her mom starts a relationship with Darren to keep Hanna from getting in trouble. Thankfully, she eventually kicks him out of the house. He usually targets Hanna for interrogation and harassed Emily in one episode.
• Informed Attribute: He was apparently a "wild partier" in the past.
• Jerkass: Wilden would often harass the girls in the process of the investigation.
• Mysterious Past: He seems to know Mona from before the series begin, but this has yet to be addressed.
• Near-Death Experience: Ashley runs him over with her car after he threatens her. He survived, though, thanks to Jenna and Shana who passed by.
• Put on a Bus: Veronica is capable of getting him off the case, but he returns in "Over My Dead Body" when the Liars are put in police custody.
• Rabid Cop: Starts to fall into this as the series progresses. He threatens Ashley in an episode by telling her to shut Hanna up, or he would.

Kate Randall

Kate Randall

Portrayed by: Natalie Floyd (season 1), Natalie Hall (season 2)

Voiced by: Diana Pérez (Latin-American Spanish dub, season 1), Claudia Motta (Latin-American Spanish dub, season 2)

"Training a horse, it's an art. You have to bend its will until it knows you are its master. That's how you are gonna feel when I'm done with you. Welcome to the family, sis."

If someone messes with you, you should get to choose their punishment.

Hanna's soon-to-be step-sister. Kate is the daughter of Isabel Randall, Tom Marin's fiancée, who comes to live at Rosewood with him later on. She seems to be poised and well-brought-up, but eventually reveals her desire to make Hanna's life miserable.

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• Adaptation Distillation: Her book counterpart has a much bigger role in the story.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Her hair is brown in the books.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She initially comes out as a normal, fashionable teenage girl, but after overhearing Hanna insulting her mother she begins showing a more aggressive and bitchy side.
• Informed Ability: Horseback riding and sailing are some of her mentioned talents.
• Karma Houdini: Played with. While her framing Hanna was revealed to the school, her dad immediately pulled her out before we could see her get punished.
• Put on a Bus: Then came back in season 2, and then she was sent away again.
• Shrinking Violet: After a photo of her naked is spread around school. It later turns out, she did this herself and photoshopped the photo and tried to make it look as though Hanna did it as she thought Hanna was going to send actual photos of her as Spencer had photos of Kate from an allergic reaction at Riding Camp.

Acquaintances of Spencer Hastings

Peter Hastings

Peter Hastings

Portrayed by: Nolan North

Voiced by: Roberto Mendiola (Latin-American Spanish dub), Takeshi Maruyama (Japanese dub)

"You're not supposed to watch me so closely."

I have a few other choice words I would reserve for Ian, but if I start listing them, I’ll never fall asleep.

Peter Hastings is the wealthy father of Spencer and Melissa Hastings. He is a successful attorney and is all about winning and being the best. He is the picture perfect husband and father who controls a seemingly picture perfect family.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: Like in the case of his daughters, his book counterpart has blonde hair.
• Ambiguously Evil: The shady traits he shows after the truth about Jason comes out have fans wondering...
• Dark Secret: His affair with Jessica.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: He had an affair with Jessica DiLaurentis which resulted in the birth of Jason DiLaurentis.
• Non-Idle Rich: He's still practicing lawyerly, exercises and plays tennis on a regular basis.
• Papa Wolf: Despite not showing much affection, he seems to care for Spencer at times.
• Throwing the Fight: He and Spencer play doubles with a potential client and his daughter. Then he tells Spencer to let them win so that they would hire him.

Veronica Hastings

Veronica Hastings

Portrayed by: Lesley Fera

Voiced by: Laura Torres (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 1-5), Rebeca Manríquez (Latin-American Spanish dub, seasons 6-7), Miwa Kohinata (Japanese dub)

"Our family doesn't handle imperfection very well."

Like it or not, this is your family.

Veronica is Melissa and Spencer's mother. She is a well-educated woman and a caring mother for both girls (although, like her husband, tends to favor Melissa). She is a workaholic and is often out of the house. However, behind the perfect façade, she has her own flaws.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: Like her husband and daughters, she's blonde in the books.
• Dark Secret: Melissa's unfortunate abortion.
• Hello, Attorney!: She's a good-looking lawyer.
• Mama Bear: Not only to Spencer, but has this instinct towards all of the Liars, shown as how she hugs Alison in a flashback and how she gets Darren kicked out of the case when he harrasses Emily.
• Open-Minded Parent: Becomes a lot more open-minded in the third season.
• Put on a Bus: She goes to London with her husband in the third season, but makes an impressively quick return when Spencer is sent to Radley.
• Shipper on Deck: Surprisingly, she turns into this for Spencer/Toby by season 3, after accepting their relationship at last. She even helps her make lasagna for their anniversary!
• Tall, Dark, and Snarky: She has her snarky comments, specially when she's on the job.

Melissa Hastings

Melissa Hastings

Portrayed by: Torrey DeVitto

Voiced by: Gaby Beltrán (Latin-American Spanish dub), Eri Goda (Japanese dub)

"I don't feel like I need to be the best and the first anymore. All those things that used to matter just... don't seem that important."

I've seen some stuff that makes you and your friends look pretty bad..

Melissa is Spencer Hastings' seemingly perfect older sister. Melissa has everything her sister has ever wanted. She was accepted to the Wharton School of Business with nothing but praise from her parents. What she doesn't already have, she's not afraid to take, such as the barn. The thing is, her boyfriends seem to be attracted to her younger sister instead.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: Like the rest of the Hastings clan, she's blonde in the books.
• Ambiguously Evil: She's always been hostile towards Spencer, but the fandom are split as to whether she's willingly involved with the A game.
• Brainy Brunette: Like the rest of the family, she's extremely smart.
• Broken Bird: She seems truly broken after Ian's murder, so much that she even warms up to Spencer with time. Not to mention after the death of her unborn child.
• Brother–Sister Incest: She and Jason hooked up in the Hastings' lake house. Granted, she didn't know they were related, but still...
• Commuting on a Bus: In the third season, she doesn't appear as much as the previous ones.
• Extracurricular Enthusiast: Similar to Spencer, she was an overachiever involved in many extracurricular activities.
• The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: With Spencer, although both are smart and pretty.
• Green-Eyed Epiphany: She runs back into Ian's arms after finding out Wren with Spencer, claiming that their time apart and her break-up with Wren made her see that Ian was the right one for her.
• Informed Ability: Apparently, she's more talented than Spencer in many areas, but we have yet to see that in practice.

Dr. Wren Kingston

Dr. Wren Kingston

Portrayed by: Julian Morris

Voiced by: Alan Prieto (Latin-American Spanish dub), Junpei Endo (Japanese dub)

"None of us are perfect, we all come with baggage."

One does not come unfortified to the house of Hastings.

Wren Kingston is the fiancée of Melissa Hastings, who became attracted to Melissa's younger sister, Spencer, which causes the two of them to break up after she finds them making out. He is a physician who works in a hospital. He currently has a rotation at Rosewood Community Hospital, and also currently volunteers at Radley Sanitarium.

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• Adaptation Expansion: A lot of his parts in the tv series were added and are not in the books.
• Adaptation Name Change: Wren was an Asian with a last name of Kim in the books, but here he is played by British actor Julian Morris.
• Disposable Fiancé: For Melissa, finding him with Spencer made her see how much she misses Ian.
• Face–Heel Turn: He was a nice guy in early seasons but in Season 3 his character became more dark and suspicious. Fitting, since the final season reveals he is a member of the A-Team.
• Hospital Hottie: A handsome doctor who attracts both Melissa and Spencer.
• New Job as the Plot Demands: In addition to being a good medical doctor, in Season 3 he also becomes a psychologist.
• Nice Guy: In the first episode, when the Hastings parents show their clear favoritism for Melissa, Wren is genuinely nice to Spencer and reassures her. This is put in doubt in season 3, after Spencer hears some rumors at Radley that seem to indicate the contrary.

Ian Thomas

Ian Thomas

Portrayed by: Ryan Merriman

Voiced by: Misael Martínez

"You know what they say about quicksand, Spence. The more you struggle, the faster you sink. And you're sinking fast."

You know, you can't avoid me. I live in your backyard.

Melissa's ex boyfriend, who she later starts dating after breaking up with Wren. He had a brief relationship with Spencer before he broke with Melissa the first time, while she was still 15, something only Ali knew about. He is appointed the field hockey team's coach in early season 1.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: He has brown hair, as opposed to his book counterpart, who is blonde.
• Suicide, Not Murder: A stages his murder to make it look like a suicide.

Toby Cavanaugh

Toby Cavanaugh

Portrayed by: Keegan Allen

Voiced by: Gabriel Ortiz (Latin-American Spanish), Aigasa Keisuke (Japanese dub)

"Different is good. I like different... this town has too much of the same."

I've got friends in all the wrong places, and misery loves company.

Toby is a troubled young man from Rosewood who lives near Emily's house. He's a shy, quiet boy who was framed by Ali for the prank that made Jenna Marshall lose her sight, and spent some time in juvie because of that. He quickly becomes the lead suspect in Alison's murder investigation, and is regarded as an evildoer by almost all Rosewood. He begins a romantic relationship with Spencer by the end of season 1.

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• Adaptation Expansion: He has a bigger role in the tv series, where he remains very much alive, unlike the book series.
• Adaptational Heroism: While the actions of him saving Emily from being taken advantage of by her ex-boyfriend Ben and mostly cleaning up his act remain across the novels and TV series, Toby is a much more unsavory fella in the novels. In those, Toby intentionally spied on The Liars while they changed (only smirking when they saw him in the act) and molested Jenna. In the TV series however, Toby is more of a Not Evil, Just Misunderstood Jerk with a Heart of Gold than an outward pervert. For instance in the show, Ali was the only one who exclaimed Toby watched them undress (Fridge Brilliance: though this almost certainly was a mistake with Toby accidentally locking eyes with Ali's in a split second and Ali exaggerated the story to the others for drama as Ali's not the model of honesty) and Jenna was the one molesting Toby. Around Season 5, Toby becomes an official Rosewood Police Officer, further elevating his heroism.
• All Girls Want Bad Boys: According to the people of Rosewood, at least, this fits his relationship with Spencer. And then we learn that he's in The A Team, which gives a whole new meaning to this.
• Almost Kiss: With Alison in a flashback shown in the season 4 premiere episode; they're interrupted by his mother right before their lips touch.
• Big Brother Instinct: He's pretty protective of Emily.
• Big Damn Heroes: When he saves Emily from being raped by Ben.
• Bodyguard Betrayal: Toby is Spencer's protector but he is really much better at luring her into the arms of "A".]]
• Butt-Monkey: Nothing goes right for him. Ever.
• Deal with the Devil: In Season 4. He trades Mona's RV with A for information about his mother's suicide.
• Evil All Along: Subverted. He was working as a double agent.
• Frameup: Alison frames him for "The Jenna Thing" prior to the start of the series. Only the Liars, Toby and Jenna know the truth.
• Misunderstood Loner with a Heart of Gold: How Toby Cavanaugh is played at first. Later on, he drops the "Misunderstood Loner" part.
• Near-Death Experience: In Season 2, A makes him fall off a notable height while he's working. Luckily, it failed.
• Opposites Attract: He and Spencer are quite different, both in personality and background.
• The Quiet One: In the beginning of Season 1, Toby barely says more than 3 words to anyone who isn't Jenna or Emily. Later on in the show while he isn't the most loquacious, he opens up a lot more.
• Spared by the Adaptation: He ends up committing suicide in the books, but survives the entirety of the TV show.
• Troubled, but Cute: A motorcycle-riding Misunderstood Loner who has a relationship with one of the main girls.
• Undercover as Lovers: In "The Remains of the A" he accompanies Hanna to a dance as her date to "scare off a creep that wanted to date her", although it's actually due to a lie Hanna told Ashley and it was the first thing that came to her mind.

Jenna Marshall

Jenna Marshall

Portrayed by: Tammin Sursok

Voiced by: Mariana Ortiz (Latin-American Spanish), Yuka Nakatsukasa (Japanese dub)

"I don't need a special flashlight to know what people around here are hiding. This school is filled with phonies and liars. They're everywhere."

I'm fascinated by the nature of evil.

Toby Cavanaugh's blind step-sister. She's a sly, smart young woman who had a very complicated rivalry with Alison after she turns down Ali's offer to join her group briefly after moving into town. The Liars accidentally caused her blindness in a prank intended for Toby that went horribly wrong. She does not approve of Toby's relationship with Spencer, but eventually Toby pushes her aside to be with Spencer.

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• Adaptational Jerkass: The Jenna from the novels was a sweet, innocent, quiet girl (even after getting blinded) who bonded with Ali/Courtney over their sibling issues and planned what would later be "the Jenna thing" to get back at Toby, who had been molesting Jenna during middle school. In the TV series, Jenna is rude, manipulative and forceful which only worsened after "the Jenna thing" (though not without reason) and uses her charm and her blindness to a degree to get what she wants.Very much like Alison, with whom in the TV series she had a longstanding rivalry with as a result of rejecting Alison's offer of friendship.
• Adaptational Villainy: While Toby became more heroic and principled in the TV series, Jenna took a hard left turn on the morality road. In this, not only was Jenna the one molesting Toby , but she was also on the A-Team throughout five seasons and in Season 7 entraps and actively attempts to '''murder''' the Liars.
• Adaptation Expansion: Her role in the tv series is much larger than in the books. Plus, she's still alive, while her book counterpart isn't at this point.
• Adaptation Name Change: From Jenna Cavanaugh to Jenna Marshall.
• Ambiguously Bi: It's implied in "A Dangerous GAme" that she's in some sort of relationship with Shana, yet the nature of said relationship is never clarified. At least for now.
• The Bus Came Back:
• The Bus Came Back: In the season finale, "A DAngerous GAme", she returns and keeps making on and off appearances until the final season. An explanation for her absence is not provided, though.
• Deadly Prank: Became blind when she was the accidental victim of one by the protagonists.
• The Dragon: To Uber A in the first twelve episodes of Season 7. She is the only known member of the A-Team and agent of Uber A until episode thirteen.
• Heel–Face Turn: Well... maybe. In "If These Dolls Could Talk", she claims that she no longer hates The Liars, having been moved by Hanna saving her life. However, she doesn't act much differently towards them.
• Jerkass Has a Point: While Jenna may be rude, sinister and manipulative and she did force Toby into a sexual relationship, her turning down Alison’s offer to join her friend group and make her own friends was a bold move. Although her methods of tormenting the Liars are quite strange, it’s hard to blame her after what the Liars did to her. Seeing as Alison and the Liars are the ones who blinded her, and that they let Toby take the blame instead of getting punished. And even when Hanna saved Jenna from dying in a fire, none of the Liars ever actually apologise to Jenna for what they did.
• Laser-Guided Karma: The Deadly Prank that blinded her happened while she was in the middle of forcing Toby into Brother–Sister Incest (probably not for the first time either).
• Near-Death Experience: In "Eye of the Beholder" someone (presumably A) tries to kill her by locking her up in Jason's house and blowing it up. She is saved by Hanna just in time.
• Obfuscating Disability: As of "If These Dolls Could Talk", Jenna has recovered her eyesight and has been pretending to be blind. When confronted by the four main characters, she claimed she was doing it to protect herself from the person who tried to burn her alive in "Eye Of The Beholder". She drops the act in "That Girl Is Poison" though.
• Put on a Bus: After "This is a Dark Ride" she is not seen again. It is later mentioned that she changed schools.
• The Reveal: She is revealed to be a member of the A-Team.
• Spared by the Adaptation: Killed in the books. Almost killed twice on the show, but eventually she comes back.

Acquaintances of Emily Fields

Wayne Fields

Wayne Fields

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• Good Parents: Despite his work requiring him to travel, he always put his daughter first. He’d come home to look after her, and even prioritized her well-being and safety over a college scholarship. What’s even more, is that when Emily came out, he was accepting.

Pam Fields

Pam Fields

Portrayed by: Nia Peeples

Voiced by: Ruth Toscano (Latin-American Spanish dub), Izumi Sawada (Japanese dub)

"Emily, I still don't understand, but I love you. You're my child, and nobody hurts my child."

Don't take on a tragedy that has nothing to do with you.

Pam is Emily's mother. She is usually very supportive of Emily's decisions, except when it came to Emily's sexuality early on in the series. At first she disapproved of Emily's sexuality but she eventually came to terms with it, and accepted Emily for who she is.

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• Adaptation Name Change: Her name is Kathleen in the original book series.
• Cure Your Gays: Pam initially thought Emily could be cured.
• Heteronormative Crusader: Her initial reaction to her daughter's homosexuality was... locking herself in the kitchen and crying. But then she even gets Maya sent away. She gets better, with time.
• Mama Bear: Particularly in Season 1 when she stands up to Paige's father and protects Emily from his accusations. It's also the first time she defends Emily's homosexuality.
• New Job as the Plot Demands: She suddenly becomes a part of the Rosewood Police Department in season 3, despite not having shown interest in law enforcement previously. It's also possible she's just doing an intership, though. It's never clarified.
• Put on a Bus: She's sent to Texas to live with her husband in the second season. She wanted to take Emily too, but at her insistance Em stays at Hanna's house, for various months.

Maya St. Germain

Maya Anne St. Germain

Portrayed by: Bianca Lawson

Voiced by: Karla Falcón (Latin-American Spanish dub), Mai Yamane (Japanese dub)

"I admit I like to live life in the grey area, but the way I feel about you is crystal clear..."

So I'm corrupting you. You okay with that?

A new resident of Rosewood whose family has just moved into the house that used to belong to the DiLaurentis family. She and Emily began to bond, and the two soon began to develop romantic feelings for each other.

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• Adaptation Expansion: Her character was given much more relevance than her book counterpart, which was more of a supporting character.
• Death by Adaptation: She survives in the original book series, but she is killed in the Season 2 finale.
• Lipstick Lesbian: Like Emily, she's shown to be feminine and stylish.
• New Old Flame: She's Emily's first girlfriend, and the two reconnect in season 2 after breaking up in the first season.
• Offscreen Breakup: Emily and Maya don't break-up while she's gone, but their lack of communication eventually leads to this.
• Put on a Bus: Pam manages to send her away to a rehabilitation program.
• Rebellious Spirit: At one point, Maya is caught with drugs and sent off to a rehab-type program.
• She Knows Too Much: In "Crazy", Mona slips a couple of code messages to Aria and Hanna. One of them read "Maya knew". It's never explained exactly what she knew, however, and her murder wasn't related to it.
• The Stoner: She has a drug problem.

Paige McCullers

Paige McCullers

Portrayed by: Lindsey Shaw

Voiced by: Angélica Villa (Latin-American Spanish dub), Kayo Ishida (Japanese dub)

"I wish I had fought harder for you."

I had nobody to turn to. I was completely alone.

Paige is a talented swimmer and a member of the Rosewood High School's swim team. In the absence of Emily Fields, Paige had become the top dog of the swim team and was aiming to become the swim team captain. When Emily came back, she felt threatened. She was up against Emily for the Anchor Leg and tried to sabotage Emily via intimidation. However, soon after, Paige comes out as a lesbian to Emily, her long time crush.

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• Action Girl: She can definitely hold her own in a fight. She was able to save Spencer from the person in the Queen of Hearts costume by beating said person up.
• Armoured Closet Gay: Was this when she was first introduced, but eventually came out in season 2. In Season 3, it's revealed that this is because Alison actively made her think being gay was something to be ashamed of.
• The Bus Came Back: She briefly appears in two episodes at the end of season 2, at first hoping to rekindle her relationship with Emily, then agreeing to just be friends. Starting with season 3, she sticks around for good and starts dating Emily again. Then after being put on a bus a second time in season five, she comes back again in season seven.
• Canon Foreigner: She didn't appear in the books.
• Driven to Suicide: Narrowly averted in the backstory. Alison was apparently so cruel to her, that she considered this. The only reason she didn't is because she realized doing that would mean "Alison would win.".
• Duet Bonding: She and Emily became closer after singing a duet of P!nk's "So What?"
• Girliness Upgrade: She's initially less feminine than Maya or Samara, and is far more aggressive and competitive (including almost drowning Emily), and yet she's not quite the Butch Lesbian due to the makeover she gets in season 3: the writers decided to make her Hotter and Sexier and so she was presented again with longer hair, sexier clothes and more Lipstick Lesbian tendencies.
• Hotter and Sexier: As the series progresses, Paige gets a makeover, long hair and sexier outfits.
• Informed Ability: According to Spencer, she's a great field hockey player (a penalty was named after her!) but like with Spencer, we never get to see her play.
• In-Series Nickname: "Pigskin", by Alison.
• Lesbian Jock: As a swimmer and a hockey player. There's even a penalty named after her.
• Locked Out of the Loop: By season 3, she and Ezra are the only ones of the main characters' love interests to not know about the second A. Emily opens up about the second A in the season 3 mid-season finale (in order to protect Paige, who is being framed by A), before finally explaining everything in the Halloween special. After that, Paige is actively involved with fighting A alongside the Liars (and Caleb).
• Love Makes You Evil: Averted. She had every reason to join Mona's army and for a second it seemed like she might have, but not only did she not join them, but she gave them a powerful speech about identity in order to try and persuade them to disband, and in a deleted scene was shown to be trying to break the group up from the inside, by trying to appeal to Lucas's love for Hanna, and she even tried to warn Emily about the army Mona was gathering for protection against Alison.
• Near-Death Experience: She and Emily were almost killed by Nate in "The Lady Killer".
• Passionate Sports Girl: Other than a competitive swimmer, she's apparently also a hockey player.
• Put on a Bus: After Emily breaks up with her at the end of season 1, Paige disappears.
• Transparent Closet: Fans supected her sexuality ever since her first appearance, before it was clarified.

Garrett Reynolds

Garrett Reynolds

Portrayed by: Yani Gellman

Voiced by: Christian Strempler (Latin-American Spanish), Takahiro Mizushima (Japanese dub)

"Just because two things happen at the same time doesn't mean they're connected."

Someone you know very well has you completely fooled

Emily's old neightbor who is now a police officer. In season 2, he assists Detective Wilden with the investigation of Alison's murder. He's in a secret relationship with Jenna Marshall prior to the start of the series, and he's killed in the Halloween train.

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• Ambiguously Evil: He's definitely shady, but he was innocent of the murder charges leveled against him, and was about to help Spencer before he was murdered.
• Evil All Along: Not EVIL per se, but he was introduced as a very nice guy, before his murky past and ambiguous intentions became apparent.
• He Knows Too Much: The reason why he's murdered by Darren Wilden in season 3.
• Heel–Face Door-Slam: He's murdered the night he plans on telling Spencer everything he knows.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Perhaps. He didn't kill Alison or Maya after all, was genuinely crushed when Jenna ditched him, and seemed to hold feelings for Spencer. He was about to tell her everything he knew when he was killed.
• Mistaken for Murderer:
  • In "The Lady Killer", it is confirmed that he didn't kill Maya.
  • Also, in "This Is A Dark Ride", he tells Spencer he didn't kill Alison, but Jenna genuinely believes he did.
• Nice Guy: At first. He becomes more of a Jerkass to the Liars when they find out about him and Jenna.
• Secret Relationship: With Jenna. The Liars eventually find out, but the couple come out to the public after the Liars are arrested in the second mid-season finale.

Nate St. Germain

Nate St. Germain/Lyndon James

Portrayed by: Sterling Sulieman

Voiced by: Rodrigo Carralero (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"When I think about Maya, I want to think about how she lived, not how she died."

I was actually really looking forward to hanging out with her again.

Nate is Maya St. Germain's cousin, who arrives to Rosewood after the death of Maya.He enters Hollis College, where he is studying to become an architect, and becomes fast friends with Emily. He's revealed to be actually Maya's stalker, not her cousin, who followed her from True North, and the one Maya seeked protection from.

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• Ax-Crazy:He was a mentally ill man from the beginning.
• Evil All Along: He's revealed to be Maya's stalker, not her cousin.
• Love Makes You Crazy: His actions when it comes to Maya and later Emily, as he is a psycho stalker.
• Secret Identity: In "The Lady Killer", we learn that Nate never really existed.
• Stalker with a Crush: He's revealed to be Maya's Ax-Crazy stalker who also killed her.
• Taking You with Me: Already dying, he grabs Caleb's gun and fires. Who he was aiming at is unknown, but the bullet hits Caleb.

Samara Cook

Samara Cook

Portrayed by: Claire Holt

Voiced by: Lourdes Arruti (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"If you don't want a commitment, we won't get the large popcorn"

They love you. I knew they would.

Samara Cook is a friend of Emily Fields who tried to help Paige with her coming out to her father. She works for an LGBT Pride group as part of her extracurricular activities. She dated Emily during the first half of Season 2.

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• Preppy Name: She's also an actual prep student.
• Put on a Bus: She breaks up with Emily (thanks to A, of course) and never appears again.
• Romantic False Lead: For Emily... shortly after she's Put on a Bus, Maya returns.
• Satellite Love Interest: To Emily. Justified because, unlike Maya and Paige, she only appears in a few episodes.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Her character shared a lot of personality traits with Maya. Shortly after Samara left, Maya is brought back due to this.

Sydney Driscoll

Sydney Driscoll

Portrayed by: Chloe Bridges

"Because it's not fun being on the losing team."

Sydney Driscoll is a new student at Rosewood High in Season 5 and a member of the swim team. She befriends Emily and the two of them become close. She is revealed to be a member of Mona's Army and a friend of Jenna and later as a member of the A-Team.

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• The Dragon: To Jenna in Season 5. To Uber A in Season 7, until Aria replaces her.
• Evil All Along: She is revealed as an associate of Jenna and a member of Mona's Army in Season 5. However, she fully gains the "evil" part in Season 7, when she is revealed as a member of the A-Team.
• Hero Antagonist: Has shades of this. She claims that she and Jenna are not the actual enemy and that really likes Emily. She mostly loses this in Season 7 and is on the A-Team.

Sara Harvey

Sara Harvey

Portrayed by: Dre Davis

"I tried to keep you safe."

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• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Big time. She pretends to be an innocent and damaged victim of "A", claims to have run away from home and tells some sob story, and then ends up living, and eventually developing a relationship, with Emily. She's actually Red Coat and the Black Widow, who is CeCe's Dragon and accomplice and Emily makes sure she pays for it.
• Canon Foreigner: She doesn't appear in any of the books.
• Cool Mask: Wears an Alison mask to hide her identity from even the A-Team. Though, "'A' Is for A-l-i-v-e" suggests that she just hangs around in it, even when its burned on one half.
• Decoy Antagonist: More like Decoy Big Bad, since she's definitely an antagonist. She's somewhat part of a Big Bad Duumvirate with CeCe, the real Big Bad, and is her Dragon. However, the two of them had Mona and the A-Team believing it was Sara in charge in the third season finale.
• Early-Bird Cameo: She is seen as Red Coat during the third season finale, The Black Widow in Season 4 and Season 5, and in stock photos in Season 4 before she is finally introduced in Season 6.
• Hidden Villain: Both her real identity and her disguises. The Liars assumed Red Coat was gone, just thought Black Widow was suspicious and never suspected Sara.
• In the Hood: Her infamous red coat has a hood. She may have also worn the black hoodie at times.
• Limited Wardrobe: Mostly seen in a red trench coat. Until it is revealed that she is Sara Harvey, who was also the Black Widow.
• One-Letter Name: When using the identity of "A".
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Pretty much all fans knew her as was Red Coat and the Black Widow.
• The Reveal: She is actually the third Red Coat and the Black Widow.

Acquaintances of Alison DiLaurentis

Jason DiLaurentis

Jason DiLaurentis

Portrayed by: Parker Bagley (seasons 1), Drew Van Acker (season 2-7)

Voiced by: Christian Strempler (Latin-American Spanish dub, season 1), Arturo Cataño (Latin-American Spanish, seasons 2-7), Víctor Ugarte (Latin-American Spanish, season 5)

"You can leave Rosewood, but Rosewood will never leave you."

I can tell when someone's lying. Can you?

Jason is the older brother of Alison DiLaurentis. He had an interesting relationship with his late sister; though they often fought, they were both conniving and willing to keep each other's secrets. Jason attended high school and was friends with Ian and Garrett, and returns to Rosewood after Ian's death.

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• Brother–Sister Incest: He and Melissa hooked up before the series begin, and shortly afterwards he learns that they were half-siblings.
• Erotic Dream: Starred in one of Aria's dream fantasies.
• Frame-Up: At the end of "Over my Dead Body", it was revealed that Jenna and Garret tried to make him think he killed his sister.
• Heel–Face Turn: After he's revealed to be Spencer's half-brother. t's actually more probable that after his sister went missing was when he first turned, although the girls stop seeing him as suspicious when Spencer discovers that secret.
• Mr. Fanservice: From Season 2 on due to being played by a more attractive actor.
• Otaku: In a flashback in Season 2, Jason gets angry at Alison. When Aria asks what was up, Alison says that he thought she had stolen "one of his Japanese cartoon porn books", implying he is (or was) a Hentai fan.
• Offscreen Breakup: With CeCe, prior to the start of the series, and (judging from what we could see in one of the Pretty Dirty Secrets webisodes) it did not end up well.
• Off the Wagon: Drove drunk in "crAzy".
• Ship Tease: With Aria, and had quite a bit with Spencer prior to being revealed to be her half-brother.
• The Stoner: He used to smoke pot before his sister went missing.
• Vertigo Effect: When Alison's remains fall out of the drink cooler in the Halloween train.

CeCe Drake

CeCe Drake

Portrayed by: Vanessa Ray

Voiced by: Mildred Barrera (Latin-American Spanish dub)

"Take it from me, you're always better off with a really good lie."

People either love you, or they don't remember your name.

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• Big Bad: Of seasons 3-6. She takes over the role of "A" from Mona Vanderwaal.
• Big Sister Worship: The subject of such from Alison, despite not being sisters. Turns out that they actually are.
• Canon Foreigner: CeCe does not appear in any of the books. Though, she is somewhat based on the real Alison from the books.
• Connected All Along: She is Spencer's sister.
• Composite Character: She combines the backstory of Courtney from the books ( long-lost DiLaurentis sister who spent most of her youth stashed away in Radley) with the personality and role in the plot of Book!Alison ( murderous sociopath who torments the Liars as the second A).
• The Corrupter: According to Jason she was a seriously bad influence on Alison.
• Daddy Issues: Much of her sociopathy is because her father refused to accept that she is transgender and forced her to grow up away from her family.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Hidden Villain. As A, she is initially presented as a dangerous Manipulative Bastard who can predict the Liars' every move and come up with the perfect counter-move. However, once her identity is revealed and all the intrigue stripped away, she comes off less as "cool" (like the typical Hidden Villain) and more as tragic and pitiful. In the end, even her former victims can't help but pity her.
• Driven to Suicide: She plans to kill herself in "Game Over, Charles", but is talked out of it by Alison and her friends.
• Evil All Along: After being friendly to the Liars in Season 3, she is revealed to be Big A and Red Coat. She gets this again after her death, when it seems like she reformed, but is revealed to have been planning to become "A" again.
• Near-Death Experience: Aria pushes her from a height, but she manages to get up and walk away when the Liars aren't paying attention.
• The Reveal: She is revealed to be Big A and Red Coat. She was born as Charles before transitioning to Charlotte.

Kenneth DiLaurentis

Kenneth DiLaurentis

Portrayed by: Jim Abele

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• Greater-Scope Villain: Word of God says He and Jessica are the true villains of the series.

Jessica DiLaurentis

Jessica DiLaurentis

Portrayed by: Anne Marie De Luise ("Pilot"), Andrea Parker (Season 2 onwards)

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• Evil Twin: Revealed to have one in Mary Drake. Though, calling either of them the "good" twin is a stretch.
• Greater-Scope Villain: Word of God says she and Kenneth are the true villains of the series.

Shana Fring

Shana Fring

Portrayed by: Aeriél Miranda

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• Becoming the Mask: She was originally spying on Jenna for Alison, but then she fell for Jenna and decided to kill Alison as revenge for Jenna's blinding.

Mary Drake

Mary Drake

Portrayed by: Andrea Parker

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• Anti-Villain: Everything she does evil has a few good reasons behind it.
• Ambiguously Evil: Both in and out of universe. The Liars and fans are both unsure whether she is on their side or working with/is Uber A. She is not Uber A, but calling her "good" is a bit of a stretch. She helps Uber A kidnap Spencer in the finale.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: She and Elliott could be considered this for Season 6B. He comes up with the plan and she agrees to go along with it, doing most of the work.
• Big Bad Ensemble: With Uber A, Charlotte's Killer and her partner, Elliott in Season 6B.
• Bed Trick: Slept with Peter Hastings, while pretending to be Jessica, resulting in the birth of Spencer and Alex.
• Co-Dragons: She and Mona Vanderwaal are the enforcers of Uber A in the finale.
• Evil Twin: Both she and Jessica are arguably this, as calling either of them the "good" twin is a stretch.
• The Reveal: Her existence in general is this. But she gets more in Season 7, when we discover that she is Spencer's mother as well, and also the killer of Jessica.

Elliot Rollins

Elliot Rollins

Portrayed by: Huw Collins

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• Big Bad Duumvirate: He and Mary Drake could be considered this for Season 6B. He comes up with the plan and she agrees to go along with it, doing most of the work.
• Big Bad Ensemble: With Uber A, Charlotte's Killer and his partner, Mary Drake in Season 6B.
• Red Herring: He is not Uber A or even on the A-Team.

"A"

A (in general)

A

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• Catchphrase: Tends to end her messages with "Bitch" or "bitches", though not quite to the point of being a Verbal Tic.
• The Chessmaster: Manipulating, blackmailing, and threatening the girls with text messages.
• Dark Is Evil: "A" makes appearances as a figure with black leather gloves, a black hood, dark pants, and dark shoes.
• Hidden Villain: A is the main antagonist of the show as they constantly blackmail the girls and has even attempted to kill them on several occasions. Their identity still is a mystery.
• In the Hood: The infamous "A" costume is a black hoodie.
• Manipulative Bastard: Whoever takes this role (male or female) is clearly a skilled manipulator. Just ask the Liars.
• The Omniscient: A has, on multiple occasions, demonstrated not only uncanny knowledge of people and their secrets, but actual prediction of future events. (Example: Emily picks a box of Alpha-Bits from the school cafeteria cereal selection, only to find that all of the pieces have been replaced with A's. Since we see no evidence that anyone else experienced this, that means that A not only knew that Emily would choose that brand of cereal, she knew exactly which box of it Emily would end up with.)
• One-Letter Name: Just goes by A.
• The Reveal: In "UnmAsked", "A" is revealed to be Mona Vanderwaal. She is sent to Radley Sanitarium for treatment, where CeCe Drake began visiting her and took away the game.

Original A

Original A

"I'm still here bitches, and I know everything. -A"

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• Co-Dragons: She and Mary Drake are Uber A's top enforces in the series finale.
• The Reveal: In "UnmAsked", Original "A" is revealed to be Mona Vanderwaal. She is sent to Radley Sanitarium for treatment, where CeCe Drake began visiting her and took away the game.

Big A

Big A

"Mona played with dolls. I play with body parts. Game on, bitches."

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• In the Hood: The infamous "A" costume is a black hoodie and she was also Red Coat.
• The Reveal: She is revealed to be CeCe Drake.

Big A's Ally

Big A's Ally

"I tried to keep you safe."

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• Cool Mask: Wears an Alison mask to hide her identity from even the A-Team. Though, "'A' Is for A-l-i-v-e" suggests that she just hangs around in it, even when its burned on one half.
• Decoy Antagonist: More like Decoy Big Bad, since she's definitely an antagonist. She's somewhat part of a Big Bad Duumvirate with CeCe, the real Big Bad, and is her Dragon. However, the two of them had Mona and the A-Team believing it was Sara in charge during the Season 3 finale.
• In the Hood: Her infamous red coat has a hood.
• Limited Wardrobe: Before Season 6, we only see her as Red Coat and the Black Widow Until it is revealed that she is Sara Harvey, who was also the Black Widow.
• The Mole: Presumably the reason she began living with Emily in the first place.
• One-Letter Name: When using the identity of "A".
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Pretty much all fans knew her as was Red Coat and the Black Widow.
• The Reveal: She is revealed to be Sara Harvey, who was a decoy Red Coat and the Black Widow.

Uber A

Uber A

"I don't lurk in the shadow, I hide in plain sight."

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• Avenging the Villain: Alex was initially driven by finding Charlotte's killer and continuing the Liars' harassment on Charlotte's behalf.
• Big Bad: Becomes the main antagonist in season 6B and season seven.
• Master of Disguise: Hides in plain sight via masks and disguises, including an old gardener, an old bellhop, a police officer, a maid and possibly a surgeon.
• Playing Their Own Twin: Troian Bellisario plays both Spencer and Alex.
• Separated at Birth: Alex was sold off to a rich family in London after she and Spencer were born.
• The Reveal: Uber A is later revealed to be Alex Drake, the twin sister of Spencer.

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