'How to Get Away with Murder' Recap: "No More Blood"

Nora Dominick ‘17/ Emertainment Monthly Executive Stage Editor
How to Get Away with Murder sure knows how to kick it into high gear before a mid-season finale. Frank (Charlie Weber) makes his way back to Annalise (Viola Davis) this week and that’s just the tip of the crazy iceberg. As we get closer to the “Under The Sheet” reveal, every character finds themselves in precarious situations. Let’s recap the latest How to Get Away with Murder episode “No More Blood.”
This episode opens with something I never thought I’d see on How to Get Away with Murder: Annalise with actual fear in her eyes. In present day, Bonnie (Liza Weil) visits Annalise’s prison cell and swears she isn’t the one who sold Annalise out. For the first time in the shows history, Annalise doesn’t know if she will get out of this one.
Fast backwards and we pick up right where we left off, with Frank standing in Laurel’s (Karla Souza) apartment. He tries to apologize to Laurel and tells her he shouldn’t be left alone tonight. Annalise and Bonnie call Laurel and ask if Frank is there and if she’s safe. After some back and forth, Frank says he will leave. Laurel tells him to stay.
On the Wes (Alfred Enoch) front, he’s been subpoenaed and asked to appear in court for Charles Mahoney’s (Wilson Bethel) defense. Annalise launches into fixer mode and says they need to find Charles’ alibi. Without coming into contact with him, she asks Frank to get the job done. Frank tails Charles Mahoney’s lawyer. What he finds strikes a nerve when he sees the very woman who gave him the money prior to Annalise’s accident that killed her baby. We were wondering when that would come around again.
Frank starts tailing the woman and breaks into her house. She’s a single mother named Lisa. From inside her child’s bedroom, Frank calls Bonnie and Annalise and says he will do whatever Annalise wants him to do. She tells him to leave immediately. Although we are sure Annalise would love to bring her down for the death of her child, they are innocent. We have enough innocent blood on our hands. Frank hides in the house until he can sneak out.

Alright, at first this reviewer wasn’t on board with the Wes/Laurel ship. We were just so entranced by Frank (and his beard). Now that we are several episodes in, we are obsessed with Wes and Laurel! Can we talk about their adorable moment on the front porch of Keating & Associates? Even though Wes isn’t thrilled about Frank being back, he makes it clear that he’s all in with Laurel. And she assures him the same. Annalise even ships the duo. She tells Wes not to worry about Frank’s involvement and she’s happy for him. Adorable.
Back to the Charles Mahoney case, Annalise and the gang come up with a way to stall Wes’ appearance in court. They decide to hand over Wes’ medical records from his time in the psychiatric facility. He must go through an interview with a court-appointed psychologist, which stalls the hearing. Wes is eventually given a clean bill of health and takes the stand to testify against Charles Mahoney. He lies once again about seeing Charles in NYC that day. Charles’ attorney fights back saying Wes has a history of mental health issues and he is working with someone.
In typical How to Get Away with Murder fashion, Annalise is one step ahead of everyone. She has a burner phone mailed to Charles in jail. Once he has it, Frank calls it from Lisa’s house phone. Then, Laurel got Nate (Billy Brown) to hint to Wes’ lawyer that she should look into Lisa’s call history to see Charles and Lisa’s full relationship. Eventually, Lisa takes the stand and claims she was with Charles the night Wallace was shot. She claims that her relationship with Charles was not serious. Of course, the phone records Annalise and the team create disprove this. Wes seems off the hook for Wallace’s murder.
How to Get Away with Murder always knows how to create a buzz worthy scene week after week. This episode’s scene involves Frank and Annalise finally coming face to face. Frank apologizes for everything he’s ever done, especially his direct involvement in killing Annalise’s child. Annalise isn’t listening to Frank. In a brilliant Viola Davis performance, Annalise lashes out at him for watching her life be ruined. Frank says he wants to do anything he can to make it up to her. Frank even tells Annalise he loves her. Eventually, the scene hits a breaking point when Frank pulls out a gun and threatens to kill himself. Annalise starts yelling at him to pull the trigger. She’s had enough. Bonnie stumbles in and begs Frank to put the gun down while Annalise begs him to pull the trigger. How to Get Away with Murder ends before we know if Frank did indeed pull the trigger.

Elsewhere in the episode, Connor (Jack Falahee) and Oliver (Conrad Ricamora) are back at it. If you remember, last week the duo slept together after their nasty breakup earlier this season. In the latest How to Get Away with Murder episode, they are spending tons of time together. Oliver’s ex-boyfriend continues calling him, but Oliver wants nothing to do with it. Everything seemed fine, until they had yet another unnecessary fight. Oliver claims Connor isn’t being honest enough, which spirals into a conversation about who is more damaged. We feel like we are running in circles with these two. Why did Oliver go back to Connor in the first place? Was this all an elaborate plan to get information out of him? Who even knows.
Alright, now onto who isn’t under the sheet! Flash forward to present day when Wes, Oliver, Michaela (Aja Naomi King) and Asher (Matt McGorry) hunt down Bonnie at the hospital where Laurel is. They’re trying to get information about Annalise, the fire, and the other body that was found. Oliver is really worried the body could be Connor.After weeks of speculations, we learn that Connor is NOT under the sheet. Instead, we learn he’s just slept with Thomas, Oliver’s ex. Connor seems to be back to his old ways.
How to Get Away with Murder leads into its mid-season finale by shortening the list of possible people under the sheet, but we still have so many questions. Could Frank or Nate be under the sheet next week? Or will How to Get Away with Murder throw us another curve ball? Honestly, based on Annalise’s reaction we are betting on Frank, Nate or maybe Wes. It has to be someone close to Annalise and the whole team in order for it to effect the rest of the series. Get ready for a wild ride!

How to Get Away with Murder’s mid-season finale airs Thursday at 10/9c on ABC

Overall Grade: B+