Okay crazy mind blowing theory here that probably is nowhere near true but it just fun to think about.
What if Alison is really dead and Aria was her torturer and killer? And the “daydream” Aria had of Ezra being arrested was actually something else that really happened?
So, Aria was the one who had the breakdown after she killed Ali and was found to be mentally insane. And the whole show is just Aria’s mind protecting her from the truth that 1) she was A, 2) she was Ali’s killer and 3) Byron, her father, was arrested for his relationship with Ali (she actually saw him and Alison together instead of Meredith)
Some clues:
When she reunited with Emily, she commented that they “had” to stay away from each other. Emily said “we all know she’s dead” but then Aria says something odd, “I’ve just never heard anyone say it out loud”.
Some Clues: There are the journals she writes. When people go through something traumatic, journaling is a form of therapy. She also once wrote something before it even happened. The guy that came to see Ashley looking for Mrs. Potter’s money. She wrote the dialogue word for word.
Her babysitter she ran into talked to her about wanting to see her writings one day. Aria said they are just journals.
Who goes to Iceland for a year? How can a teacher and an artist afford taking their family away for a year? And we know nothing about that trip. Like zero.
The MAYA KNEW clue. Miss Aria, You’re a Killer Not Ezra’s wife. Could be her mind giving her a clue.
The comment Ali made to her in a visit or a dream “you know why I picked you right?” may be a hint that she just picked Aria as a friend to get close to Byron and have an excuse to see him. I mean Aria and Ali didn’t really have anything in common. Meredith could have been her Nurse and her blonde hair reminded her of Ali and that’s why she got all panicky and scared. Mental patients can turn on their caregivers. Maybe that’s why she was so drugged because she attacked her nurse (Meredith). Meredith made the comment to Byron that Aria knows everything. But after Meredith leaves to never to return (and oh btw she just so happens to have a history of mental illness??!?!?) then Aria wants to destroy any evidence that would incriminate Byron with Ali. So she burned the diary pages. Maybe she was burning them from her mind because it was her mind trying to tell her the truth about Ali and Byron and she wasn’t ready to face the ugly truth of it all.
She told Ezra recently that she was writing a story and it’s taking a change. She’s become fascinated with the villain.
She is acting very very strange at Radley.
She drifts off a lot. She is always looking out windows and staring into mirrors.
She’s extremely paranoid.
She zones out and comes to like she’s been in a trance.
She has outbursts and fits of rage.
Could Ezra be her therapist and she has fixated on him and having fantasies about them two and that’s why her mind went off on all the spy equipment path and she thinks he’s watching her and her friends when really he’s just monitoring her behavior and counseling her and writing all this down because he’s her therapist? And maybe that’s why Ezra disappears off and on because he doesn’t work 24/7
She used to lie on Ezra’s couch a lot and he would be sitting up. Kind of like a patient/therapist thing. Why else does Ezra LISTEN without passing judgement to everything Aria tells him? He is there to listen and help. Which is what therapists do.
There seems to be a time warp going on in Rosewood. Clocks are always shown. Especially around Aria.
The Lolita thing is really big which points to an Ali/Byron type of relationship.
Aria could be schizophrenic and the other liars could actually be patients in the institution with her. Or the liars could be parts of herself that she has segregated off. Or she is reliving everything in her mind to change the story of how it all goes and ends. The closer she gets to the villain the closer we get to the truth. She said it the other night, the more I look, the closer we get to A. Which may be herself.
This theory could explain a lot of holes in a rosewood and story lines that are dropped off and people coming and going. (As Mona said, one girl checks in and another one checks out). The weird time passages. This could be why everyone seems to be a suspect and the liars are always being stalked. Schizophrenia causes extreme paranoia. Now that I think about it, I actually believe there are a ton of clues that could support this theory. It’s all in how you look at things. but do I think they show will go this route? Probably not. MOTIVE: Aria’s ultimate motive. She was betrayed by her father and the girl she wanted so bad to be best friends with and thought she was but realized she was being used. Aria adored her father. That has been said by Ella before. But this destroyed everything so her mind created an alternate reality. a different story. Mona being A could really be an alternate personality of Aria. So all the A early activities was Mona. Lost Woods Resort could have been where Byron and Ali met and Aria as A spied on them. Which makes sense why all the Ali faces with eyes cut out. And it drove her crazy and she killed Alison. Byron was arrested after the truth came out. Ella moved away. Mike, we rarely see. We haven’t seen Byron in awhile. He’s always traveling. Aria’s friends were also bullied by Ali and she witnessed it all. Which fueled her hatred for Ali. So her mind is now doing wish fulfillment for her friends. Turning hefty hanna into the IT girl, nerdy loser Mona into a diabolical villain, over-achiever nerd Spencer into a cooler relaxed version who stands up to her family, lovesick weak Emily into a strong powerful and comfortable with her sexuality. Which prior to Ali being “gone” they were not any of that. Aria was a little strange with strands of pink hair. Now, she’s beautiful with great style and having super hot romance with her English Teacher (like her Dad was) and close to her friends again. Wish fulfillment. But her mind is naturally dark, so it eventually goes back to the schizophrenia places and paranoia. And the Ali being “back” is really wreaking havoc with Aria’s alternate reality she has created for herself. And the truth keeps trying to surface which is why everything gets more and more intense.
I know it’s ultra crazy and a mind trip. Kind of Shutter Island-ish but it’s fun to come up with crack theories because you never know til it’s over.