Hanna's Given Up On Ali — Kind Of

It was only a matter of time before someone cracked and I'm happy it was Hanna. On Tuesday night's episode of Pretty Little Liars , "Run, Ali, Run," Hanna confessed that she wants Ali gone and she might be the smartest liar of all. Ashley Benson's Hanna Marin has gone through a lot since Alison returned to Rosewood but, unlike the rest of her friends, she hasn't played right into Ali's hand. Because she's done ruining her life for Alison and if Ali wants to run, she's going to let her do it — even if it means losing her friends.

A common thread that's running through PLL's Season 5 is that everyone thinks they know what's best for Alison DiLaurentis. Ali's dad, Emily, Spencer, Aria — they're all trying to tell her what she should do and how she should do it to feel safe in Rosewood. But the truth of the matter is that Ali's taken good care of herself all of this time and she's probably the only one that knows what she should do. And, unlike Emily, Spencer, and Aria — who all have a personal connection to whether or not Ali sticks around long enough to find "A" — Hanna doesn't.

Emily's entertaining some type of romantic fantasy with Alison right now, Spencer's fighting hard against the fact that Melissa is "A," and Aria's worried about getting blamed for Shana's death. All while Hanna's just trying to be her own person and not fall into being Ali's lackey again. So, when she supported and planned to help Ali run on Tuesday night, I was proud of her. She's not playing into Ali's hand and allowing her to become the center of her universe and that's a good thing.

Hanna realized, when she caught Ali secretly planning to run away that there's nothing these girls can do to help her if she won't let them. So, she decided to let her go and ended up alienating herself when Emily caught her doing so. And what happened? Ali decided not to leave. While everyone was busy trying to lock her down, Hanna was pushing her out the door and it worked in reverse. Sure, Hanna wants her freedom from Ali, but after all of this time and self-reflection, she knows more about how to handle her "friend" than any of the other girls.

I always knew Hanna was my favorite, by the way.

Image: ABC Family