Warning: This article contains spoilers about the winter finale of How to Get Away With Murder.
Last night's episode of How to Get Away With Murder was a whirlwind — and that's putting it lightly. We thought the Keating Five were safe from the fire, but it was all a trick. Wes' (Alfred Enoch) body was the one pulled from the flames at Annalise's (Viola Davis) house. And now that he's gone, it's hard to imagine Annalise's life without him.
If one of the Keating Five was to be lost in the midseason finale, it really seemed like it would be Connor (Jack Falahee), a character who has undergone major development, especially in the third season. So has Wes, but his character has always been surrounded by mystery, which makes his death all the more surprising.
Over the course of the show's first two-and-a-half seasons, Wes went from being known as "Waitlist," to Annalise's "puppy," to being the show's wild card. A lot of the time, it seemed like Annalise needed him more than he needed her, so we're interested to see just where the series will go from here.
It was no coincidence that Wes managed to attend law school at Middleton after being wait-listed — Annalise had a hand in his admission. And it wasn't because she thought he'd make a good lawyer, either.
Annalise knew Wes' mom when she was pregnant herself, and was working on a case defending Charles Mahoney (Wilson Bethel), who turned out to be Wes' half-brother. Wes' mother was set to testify as a witness against Charles Mahoney, but after pressure from Wallace Mahoney, Charles (and Wes'), father, she killed herself. All of this eventually came to light when Annalise called Wes "Christophe" after he shot her. (Remember when Wes literally shot Annalise?)
But somehow, even through the shooting, the lies, and Sam's death, Annalise has always been a sort of mother figure to Wes (or, at least, she's seen herself that way). She was there when Wes' mother died, and Annalise lost her own child. Plus, she's been looking out for him ever since he stepped foot onto Middleton's campus. This season, she even invited him to live in her house.
It's a strange, and at times uncomfortable, relationship, but Wes has always been a part of Annalise's identity. Yes, he turned on her in the end, offering to help the police in exchange for blanket immunity, but that was because of her (indirect) role in the death of Rebecca, who appears to have been his first real love. His death could be the thing that finally breaks Annalise.
Annalise is one of the best antiheroes in the current TV landscape. She has no moral qualms when it comes to defending guilty clients, which is unsurprising given that she's connected to a number of murders in her own life.
This season, we've seen her confront her addiction. In last night's episode, Annalise falls off the wagon and turns to vodka. But through her conversations with the university president, Soraya Hargrove (Lauren Luna Vélez), and her willingness to help Soraya with her custody battle, we've seen a hint of progress in Annalise. After all, she's been telling Frank (Charlie Weber) and Bonnie (Liza Weil) to stop murdering everyone, because "we're good people now."
But will Annalise keep trying to be a "good person" after Wes' death? It could truly go either way. She might realize how awful she's been to Nate and enlist his help in looking into the actual cause of Wes' death (because apparently, it wasn't the fire). Or, she could fall into a serious depression, especially if she loses her position teaching the legal clinic course.
Annalise no longer has her house, filled with all of her memories of Sam. She no longer has Nate, who called her a "bitch" and told her to leave him alone. And now, she no longer has Wes, and she likely won't have her job, either. Without any of her usual constants in her life going forward, Annalise will be starting anew in many ways. That's exciting, terrifying, and everything in between.
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