Guilty Pleasures: Pretty Little Liars

Unless you are a girl between the ages of 12 and 22, Pretty Little Liars, currently airing the second half of its third season (the show splits seasons into a summer and winter segment) Tuesdays on ABC Family, is probably one of the best examples of a guilty pleasure you could ever find. However, as anyone who's seen a decent part of the show can attest, it is addictive as hell, roping you in with mysteries on top of mysteries and their solutions yield twice as many new questions as they do answers. Pretty Little Liars follows four high school girls, picking up as the body of their fifth  BFF, classic mean-girl Alison, is found after she went missing a year earlier, her murder completely unsolved. At the funeral, the girls all receive a text from someone only known as A, who seems to know all of their secrets and continues to mess with them throughout the series. Those are the two primary mysteries of the show, and even though the identity of A was eventually discovered, there turned out to be more than just one A-ntagonist. Similarly, the case of Aly's murder has also yielded a variety of seemingly sure-thing suspects, only for crucial new information to be revealed (often through flashbacks, naturally) that of course clears the person you were so sure did it an episode ago. Add those to the ever increasing number of other mysteries involving the upper class citizens of Rosewood, PA, and you have the twistiest and most secret-filled town this side of Twin Peaks.

In addition to these perpetual mysteries, the other main aspect that keeps you coming back are the show's four talented leads and, as a guy, their attractiveness certainly doesn't hurt (and like most high school-set programs, they are all well into their twenties of course). Spencer Hastings (Troian Bellisario) is the over-achiever, facing constant pressure to live up to her family name and her sister's academic success. Emily Fields (Shay Mitchell) is the sensitive athlete who experiences an awakening as she realizes her sexual orientation. Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale) is the artsy old soul who becomes romantically involved with her English teacher. And Hanna Marin (Ashley Benson) is the formerly-hefty rebellious one who never met an authority figure she couldn't flout or a situation she couldn't lighten with a sassy line. Together they attempt to fight back against the A-team, uncover the true identity of Alison's killer, and the reason for her murder. All while simultaneously trying to navigate the academic and social drama of high school (and never wearing the same outfit twice apparently). This being a show directed at teenage girls, there are of course a variety of guys present as well (ones who typically end up shirtless at least every other episode), but the show also devotes a substantial amount of time developing the adult characters (parents, teachers, school alumni, etc.) as well. Add these fully developed characters to Pretty Little Liars' juicy mysteries, plot twists, and crazy cliffhangers, along with healthy doses of humor (intentional comedy as well as the often hilarious melodrama), and you have a show that just might lure you out of your own demographic to tune in as well.

Procedurals with Pedigree: Person of Interest

Currently airing its second season on CBS Thursdays at 9pm, Person of Interest has developed from a simple procedural with a slight sci-fi bent into a compelling drama with unique cases, exciting action, and complex adversaries. The basic premise of the show relies on today's camera surveillance-heavy world, as Harold Finch (a typically subdued Michael Emerson, who perfected his subtle acting style as Ben Linus on Lost) relies on a machine that hacks into every camera and computer to predict violent crimes. Finch, a computer genius, created this machine and sold it to the US Government so it can prevent acts of terror, however they have deemed the everyday crimes involving ordinary people that are also predicted irrelevant. As a fail-safe, Finch left a secret backdoor into the machine so he can receive the identification numbers for the people involved in these murders, but the catch is the machine does not specify whether the number refers to victim or the perpetrator.

To help him in his mission, Finch recruits a presumed-dead CIA Agent named John Reese (a stone-faced Jim Caviezel) to take care of the leg work, which often involves the use of weaponry and hand-to-hand combat, to stop these violent criminals and save innocent lives. Their partnership reflects the classic pairing of "the brain" and "the muscle," as Finch and Reese coordinate their respective skills to remain in the shadows and atone for their individual pasts. As a show produced by J.J. Abrams (Lost, Star Trek), there are of course regular flashbacks to fill in the historical context and open up new mysteries involving each character. While the show's creator, Jonathan Nolan (who co-wrote The Dark Knight along with his brother, director Christopher Nolan), imbues the series with action and detective styles that call to mind Batman himself. The dry banter between the two leads also offers some very welcome comedy to the typically tense proceedings.

The two rely on a couple of assets in the NYPD as well, by blackmailing former dirty cop Detective Fusco (Kevin Chapman), and eventually recruiting his boss, Detective Carter (Taraji P. Henson), as well. Carter actually begins the series hunting Reese, aka "the man in the suit," because of his ties to multiple crime scenes,  but the show really takes off when she finally realizes the good in their work and joins the team. Carter's initial arc is just one small example of the various serialized plots that occur within the procedural frame work of the show. These complex storylines, often involving new and formidable adversaries for both Reese and Finch, present intriguing mysteries for the audience to unravel and are primarily what make Person of Interest such an exceptional show, one that is truly worth watching.

Newbies: The Following

The Following, Mondays at 9pm on FOX, is the gripping tale of a serial killer's elaborate revenge against the FBI Agent who caught him, complete with plenty of flashbacks as well. Having seen three episodes so far, the show does seem to execute these tasks artfully and sufficiently, however its dark topic can often be pretty appalling for broadcast TV and may be difficult for some viewers who may not be so desensitized. For those who can stomach it, the show effectively combines elements of suspense, horror, and mystery to offer a deep look inside the mind of serial killers and the FBI's intense efforts to stop them.

The series stars Kevin Bacon as Ryan Hardy, a former FBI Agent who is brought back into the agency as a consultant once the serial killer he put away, Joe Carroll (an exceedingly creepy James Purefoy), sets into motion an intricate plan involving his own cult of killers. A former college professor, Carroll is obsessed with the work of Poe and uses his stories and philosophies to inform his actions. His goal is to create a novel (each episode takes on the title of chapter) with Ryan as the protagonist, while each of his disciples provide a new challenge. Part of his elaborate plot involves his ex-wife Claire (Justified's Natalie Zea), as he had supplanted her nanny with his own follower for the past few years, so his seven year-old son could be efficiently abducted for further nefarious schemes and methods of taunting Ryan. This early in the story, its difficult to know what shape Carroll's entire scheme will eventually take, and that is one of The Following's greatest strengths: a complex narrative that will unfold slowly over the course of the series. Even as we get to witness his followers handling his son, along with flashbacks into their diverse and disturbed lives, the ultimate outcomes remain unpredictable, maintaining the audience's focus. Additional flashbacks to Ryan's initial investigation and discovery of Carroll's sinister nature, including his own relationship with Carroll's ex-wife, add an intriguing dimension to the show, even though their chronology can be tricky to follow and they sometimes take away from the present-day case's momentum. Overall, The Following is an interesting examination of serial killers and the people who hunt them, wrapped up in a tense and intricate yarn.