‘How To Get Away With Murder’ recap: Final season begins with one shocking question

Annalise Keating has been getting away with murder for five seasons but in the premiere of How To Get Away With Murder‘s final season, it looks like her luck may have ran out.

In case you missed it, here’s a recap of what went down in the season six premiere:

A Deadly Dream

The premiere opens with the Keating Four, Bonnie, Nate, and Frank all at a funeral. An older Christopher opens the casket to reveal Annalise’s dead body, points a gun at her, and says “stay dead, bitch!”

However, this was all a dream. Annalise has been at rehab ever since Laurel disappeared at the end of season five. As it turns out, the dream sequence was all part of a group exercise to help patients deal with their feelings about themselves and how others see them. Guys, this is Annalise Keating we’re talking about. She isn’t going to open up about her past or her feelings to just anyone.

Annalise’s break through

Through flashbacks, we learn just how Annalise landed in rehab. She went to a bar the night Laurel disappeared and got a call from Tegan, who told her that Emmett Crawford had died. This took Annalise over the edge as she ordered several shots of vodka before doing cocaine, MDMA and fentanyl in the club bathroom.

She was then rushed to the hospital, where she begged Bonnie for help. Bonnie got her a spot in rehab and she’s been there ever since. As I said, Annalise isn’t opening up to anyone and she has a really annoying roommate, Sally, that isn’t helping things. She takes no interest in getting better or participating in a group exercise that involved hitting a pillow with a baseball bat to let out the anger and frustration.

Later in the episode, Sally breaks down to Annalise and tells her she hates her kids and being a mom. This causes Annalise to confess the truth: “People think I murdered my husband, but I didn’t. I helped cover it up.” In her one-on-one session with her therapist, Annalise says she feels she is selfish because always chooses herself, despite helping others stay out of trouble.

After resisting, she privately does the group exercise, beating a pillow with the bat. She tearfully tells herself she isn’t a loser, selfish, or a monster. Once again, Viola Davis does a phenomenal job showing the pain, suffering, and heartbreak that Annalise has built up over five seasons. Brilliant job.

#WhoKilledAnnalise?

Annalise is finally out of rehab and calls the Keating Four over to her place. She explains that they’re going to bury the lies, hate, and baggage they’ve carried. One by one, they all do the same exact thing she did in rehab: hitting a pillow with a firepoker. Michaela goes last, telling Laurel goodbye and getting rid of her baggage once and for all.

When asked if she felt better, Asher interjects. He says Michaela would feel better if she knew the truth and drops the bomb that Annalise knew Michaela’s birth father.

“If that’s true, I’m gonna kill you,” Michaela tells her.

The episode ends with a flash forward; blood is splattered on the wall and a bloody fire poker is seen on the ground. We’re then at another funeral and a slow camera pan shows a closed casket and a framed photo of Annalise.

“We ask you, oh Lord, to lift up our dearly departed Annalise and give her peace,” the minister says.

Episode Notes

• Elsewhere in the premiere, Tegan is now the new managing partner at Caplan & Gold after Emmett’s death. However, Nate is not sure it’s as simple as that. He does some digging and finds out that Emmett’s body was transferred back to London for an autopsy and burial. Nothing strange, right? Wrong! It was Tegan who signed off on the move. Later, Nate discovers a photo of Tegan and Jorge Castillo at a conference. Okay, now things are shady.
• Nate might have a reason to be suspicious. Near the end of the hour, Tegan walks into her new office and takes Emmett’s glasses, saying “Boy, bye” before throwing them into the trash can. Did she have something to do with Emmett’s death?
• Michaela and Gabriel finally gave in to their feelings and slept together. However, Gabriel got a call from his mother Vivian and lied to her about him still being in college in Virginia. Vivian knows this is a lie because she’s right outside looking at Gabriel through the window.
• Vivian isn’t going anywhere either. She was seen in her apartment unpacking her things. She put a box marked “Dr. Sam Keating — Case 2882” away in the closet. What exactly is going on here? Who is Gabriel, really?
• As for #WhoKilledAnnalise, I personally don’t believe she’s dead. First of all, we haven’t seen the body. So unless the credits roll and her dead body is on screen, that’s the only way I’ll believe it. Right now, it looks like she may have faked her own death.

What did you think of the episode? Let me know your theories in the comments below!

How To Get Away With Murder airs its final season Thursday’s at 10/9c on ABC.