From Shonda Rhymes, creator of Greys Anatomy and Scandal, comes How to Get Away with Murder, a suspenseful drama set in a top law school. Viola Davis (The Help) stars as the professor and a few familiar faces round out the cast, including Alfred Enoch (Harry Potter film series), Katie Findlay (The Carrie Diaries), Matt McGory (Orange is the New Black) and Liza Weil (Scandal, Gilmore Girls).
Professor Annalise Keating teaches a law school course called “How to Get Away with Murder.” She’s a tough, no-nonsense professor who lets her students compete for a trophy that will get them out of any exam of their choice. Professor Keating is also a practicing lawyer who lets her top students participate on her defense team. In the pilot, we see her select her team while working on a difficult murder trial.
Does that sound gripping enough to you? What if I told you that the pilot mostly takes place as a flashback? And that this flashback appears between scenes of four of her students trying to cover up a murder they committed with the trophy prize? The deceased body is revealed at the end of the episode and in true Shonda Rhymes fashion, it will leave you saying “Ohhhh myyyyy GooooooOOOOOD!”
This series is expertly cast. Professor Annalise Keating, esq. is a mysterious and intriguing character and Viola Davis makes her even more interesting. She may not be as addicting as Olivia Pope, but she has more skeletons in her closet than the central character of Scandal, possibly literally. The class contest is reminiscent of what made Legally Blonde so engaging and the students are so desperate for success that they will do anything… anything! I can’t wait to see how this story plays out. The murder that opens the series takes place three months before the start of the semester. Will we have to wait that long before this story arch is wrapped, or will we find out next week?
I love How to Get Away with Murder. I’ve added it to my DVR list and I really hope this one lasts for more than a season. I seem to have a curse with new dramas. If I like them from the start, they get canceled. Lets hope this series breaks my curse.
I give How to Get Away with Murder 4.5 out of 5 murder weapons.