Pretty Little Liars has always enjoyed pulling the wool over our eyes. Actually, no. Scratch that. It's even more accurate to say that they enjoy pulling the masks over multiple mystery characters' eyes, thus keeping us completely in the dark and void of all answers. However, all of that is about to change, my friends. Charles' days of hiding are about to finally come to an end at the close of the Pretty Little Liars Season 6a finale. But before we start breaking out the champAgne and reveling in our new-found A knowledge, there are still a ton of different mysteries we have left to decipher — one of which involves figuring out who the masked guy is in the PLL prom photos.
You know which guy I'm referring to, of course. He's the one that appears to be having a rather intense staring contest with Alison right in from to the punch bowl. (Perhaps he's judging her for spiking it with alcohol?) Understandably, many fans have interpreted this face-to-face confrontation to signify that Charles is, indeed, the one behind the mask. I mean, who else would be looking at Alison so intently than the guy who's been obsessing over her for YEARS. He's really the most logical choice. Not to mention that Charles has already conveyed his affinity toward masks in the past…
That being said, though, it would be foolish to assume that Charles is the only potential suspect for who's underneath that veiled facade. Which brings me to my next candidate: Freddy. Since we still don't know for sure who Freddy is and whether he and Charles are two different people, it's entirely possible that he could be the man behind the mask instead. Up until now, there's been no indication that Charles has suffered from any facial scars, and yet the guy in these images clearly has been burned in some way.
Could this be a detail that Charles has simply left out thus far? I suppose. Or maybe this Freddy person fits into the puzzle in some important — but completely separate — way. Perhaps his injury is even what led him to team up with Charles in the first place — that is, of course, if they are on the same side.
Furthermore, there's also a great deal of speculation that Detective Darren Wilden isn't dead after all. He could just as easily be the one behind the mask. In fact, many believe that Freddy and Wilden are actually the same person, given how much the young Freddy closely resembled the shady cop in Charles' latest home movie.
I guess what I'm trying to say right now is that anything is possible at this point, so go into this prom episode with an open mind. Because just when you think you've got it all figured out, the writers will make sure to throw you for another loop.
For more Charles theories, check out Bustle's latest PLL podcast below:
Images: Eric McCandless/ABC Family; prettylittleliars/Tumblr (2)
