Oh, Scandal. My love affair with you continues, doesn’t it? This episode had me from the very first shot of the shoes coming down the hallway! I’d insert a particular gif displaying heart eyes, but I don’t think too many would appreciate the accompanying expletive, so I’m just going to opt for this one instead:
I thoroughly enjoyed this episode for a myriad of reasons. There was the seamless integration of the “case of the week” into the pre-existing tapestry that has thus far been woven of the season’s narrative and its use in reinforcing key ideas and truths that have been mentioned in previous episodes. Present throughout was this sense of urgency that applied not only to what was happening with the White House, but also to the secret that Olivia Pope had yet to share with her beau, the President. Then there was the writing and direction and the editing. And must I really mention the acting? If somebody doesn’t quit sleeping at the wheel and give Kerry Washington her propers because she's…
I am in awe of her as an actress right now. She is doing such incredible, nuanced things in her portrayal of Olivia that she renders me unable to pull my eyes away from the screen because she’s that bleeping fantastic! This may all sound like hyperbole to you, but I am being completely serious. And don’t even get me started on her and Tony Goldwyn as an acting tandem because we will be here for days. So. Let’s talk about “Rasputin” instead.
The tone of this episode was set right out of the gate with its opener where we see Mr. President accompanied by two Secret Service agents as he walks with determination towards a room that we have come to be very familiar with. I don’t even know what it’s called. FBI interrogation cell? You only end up in that room if you’re done bad things or have been wrongly accused of having done bad things. In this case, Fitz enters the room to discover a handcuffed Olivia sitting at the lone table in the room. Ut oh.
That opener was the perfect use of a flash forward because now who wouldn’t want to hang around to find out how in the world Olivia ended up in federal custody? To get that answer, the episode flashes back 48 hours to show us the events that led to this moment.
All is abuzz in the White House press briefing room because a historic moment is imminent. (Did you catch the quick flash of a replica plaque of the dedication of the room to former real life White House Press Secretary James S. Brady?) A disarmament deal between the United States and the fictional Middle Eastern Republic of Bandar is set to be signed after years of failed diplomacy. The agreement would put an end to decades of sanctions that have been levied against the nation in exchange for the regulation of Bandar’s nuclear program. This sounds quite similar to the nuclear deal that was reached between the real life UN Security Council and Iran this past summer, doesn’t it?
Next we see members of the Executive Office aka immediate staff of the President (and at least one from office of the Vice President) receiving the Bandar contingent. At the very end of that receiving line is Olivia and Fitz. Abby and Cyrus are debating on whether or not the Bandaris will receive Olivia in light of her “unclean” status as the former mistress/current girlfriend to the President. Abby is telling Cyrus that the Bandaris assured her that Olivia would be received just fine, but Cyrus believes otherwise. Abby is soon enough proven right. After receiving what appears to be an explanation as to who Olivia is from one of his ministers, President Razani offers his hand to her.
It turns out that Olivia has assisted this minister over the years. Through translators, he’s relaying to the President how she has been of help and Olivia is playing the humblebrag. She is literally the center of attention on their side of the table and she is just aglow. The minister looks to be as charmed by Olivia Pope as Fitzgerald does.
We flash away from this side of the table for a moment over to Susan Ross and Elizabeth, but soon return to find Fitz engaged with in conversation with the man to his right and Olivia partaking in further small talk with the minister. During the course of their conversation, the minister’s translator Navid accidentally on purpose bumps into a guy passing by with a drink, which spills all over the dress of Olivia’s translator. The woman is forced to leave to go tend to her ruined dress, leaving Olivia and the minister alone with Navid to serve as lone translator.
When Olivia returns her attention to the conversation, the minister picks up from where they had left off, but when Navid translates, he includes a bit about needing Olivia’s help. Olivia is initially confused by this request because it didn’t at all match with the smile on the minister’s face. The idle talk continues, and again upon translation, Navid tells Olivia that he would like to defect and asks if she would help him. Olivia doesn’t let on that something is afoot when she asks the minister if he would like to meet the chef who grew up in the same province as he had. This turned out to be the perfect use to keep the minister occupied while she spoke alone with Navid.
Once in the kitchen, Olivia wants to know why Navid wishes to defect to the United States. He cites human rights violations that Bandar is responsible for committing. She tells him that there is nothing that the United States can do for him if he has not been personally persecuted and she starts to walk away when Navid tells her that he has information about a nuclear facility that the U.S. knows nothing about. He is willing to share the location of this facility, but only if he is offered asylum. Now he’s got her attention.
Later that evening in the Oval Office, Olivia is sharing what was relayed to her with Fitz, Cyrus and Abby. Cyrus is suspicious of Navid’s story and cites how the Soviets routinely used to do this kind of thing where they come to America, fall in love with that they see and then proceed to feed the government nonsense information in order to stay in the country. Olivia insists that Navid looked scared, not like someone enamored with America.
Cyrus then addresses Fitz directly, stating that they are on the verge of something big here, something that will not only restore Bandar as an ally in a region of the world where the United States has none, but will also serve as a reset button for the President. He advises that they stand their ground and not blow anything up. Olivia counters by saying that she isn’t suggesting that they blow up the deal, but that they should at least check into Navid and his claims. When Fitz says that he doesn’t want the White House involved in any way, Olivia says that OPA will handle it and do so quickly and discreetly. She and her team have until the following afternoon, which is when the accord is scheduled to be signed.
Once Olivia departs the room, Cyrus broaches the subject that is Eli “Rowan” Pope yet again. Last episode, he had asked Fitz about why the FBI search for Rowan was called off and all Cyrus got was a vague answer about the matter being handled by alternate means. Now here Cyrus is revisiting the same topic and being met once more by a presidential Chinese wall.
Upon leaving the Oval, Abby asks Cyrus if he is okay after what she witnessed transpire between him and the President. Cyrus is like, yeah I’m cool. No biggie. We just live in this new world that is controlled by Olivia Pope. Ain’t nothing to be done about it. If the President is good, I’m good. See my happy face? I serve at the pleasure of the President.
Of course, Abby knows better and wants to know what his game plan is. Cyrus says that David Rosen is his game plan. Abby tells him that going to David with this would be him going against what the President has asked him to do (which is to leave the matter alone), but Cyrus isn’t concerned because he isn’t going to David. David will be coming to him. Oh boy.
I wonder why it is that Cyrus is intent on finding Rowan. I suppose he has as much of a reason as everybody else to want to see the man rot in a 6 by 8. Rowan’s destruction has known no bounds. Working with Rowan is the reason why Cyrus was ousted from the White House in the first place, and despite his return to duty, his influence in the Oval has been greatly diminished due to the presence of Rowan’s daughter. Could Cyrus be suspecting that Olivia is responsible for the President’s change in strategy with regards to Rowan?
Olivia is on her way into the building housing OPA when Mellie calls and says that the two of them need to talk. Olivia tells her that right then isn’t a good time, but she inquires as to what it is that they need to talk about. When Mellie says that they need to discuss their deal, Olivia tells her that they never made a deal and that she never agreed to Mellie’s quip pro quo. Mellie then threatens to tell Fitz all about what they did if Olivia goes back on their deal. What does Olivia do in response to that?
I die! She hung up on her. So much for Olivia being indebted to Mellie. Haha! Nobody has time to waste on entertaining Mellie’s threats when there are bigger fish to fry.
Olivia steps into the elevator and is pulling the door closed when a big hand holds the door open. Olivia is taken aback by this and then is surprised when the door is pushed back to reveal none other than former trusted Secret Service agent Thomas “Tom” Larsen aka creepy ass dude who calls Olivia “Helen of Troy” and looks at her like he’s set to cook her for dinner.
Tom enters the elevator and Olivia promptly puts some distance between them. She’s looking at him as a tourist would a lion that is staring at them from the other side of their rolled up car window. Tom ain’t too stable from the look of things.
When Olivia warns that her people are right upstairs, Tom inquires about the President. “How is he?” he asks. Olivia’s face in this moment is priceless.
Her attention is soon captured by her father, who is standing on the other side of the slowing elevator. I assume that they are on a level that is below the fifth floor, which is where OPA is located. Tom pulls open the door and Olivia reluctantly steps forward when Rowan greets her and asks for a moment of her time. The two of them step into a suite that appears to be a work in progress.
When it comes to Rowan, one can never quite know when it is that he’s being genuine and when he’s being manipulative. This is one of those such moments, though I must say that it felt different. Maybe that was due to the Donny Hathaway song (“A Song To You”) that overlaid it and gave it a somber, tragic tone.
I know your image of me is what I hoped to be
I treated you unkindly
And darling can't you see
There's no one more important to me
Baby can't you see through me
Cause we're alone now and I'm singing this song to you
Rowan starts off by saying that he knows that Olivia is wondering why he is there and he tells her that whether she believes him or not, it is because he came to see her face. Olivia, of course, doesn’t believe that. He then goes on to tell her that he is being hunted, and Olivia says that she is aware of this and that his hunter is Jake. No, Rowan says. Jake isn’t the hunter that he is referring to. Matter of fact, Jake is the least of his concerns. Rowan is worried about the person who has stepped into the void that was left when Olivia took him down. That person is a devil of unknown quantity who is far more dangerous than he is. Rowan then says that his “sons” have turned against him.
Didn’t Rowan eliminate all of his sons and agents who knew of who he was (422)? Or maybe it was that he just eliminated those who were in close proximity to him? Certainly Charlie’s behind should have been killed, but he still lives. Maybe I missed something in the narrative that could explain why this is and why there is still anyone left who could turn against him. Anyone such as the recently deceased Elise. But anyway…
Olivia says that whatever is going on with Rowan is none of her concern. He responds by telling her that while it may not yet be her concern, she ought to be afraid because he is afraid. His countenance is definitely that of a man who is running from the boogeyman, and this gives Olivia pause. Rowan has never shown himself to fearful of anything.
When she asks him for context as to what he is talking about, Rowan tells her that as long as he is alive, he will do everything that he can to make sure that she is protected. However, should he die, he has already provided her with everything that she needs to survive. Now if Olivia wasn’t having a mini panic attack before this bit…
Rowan goes on to say that he hopes that Olivia knows that he did his best for her. He then utters her name in an affectionate manner and briefly sets his palm upon her face as he says, “I take tremendous pride in who you have become.”
Okay, now I’m worried. These are words that this woman has wanted to hear from her father for like forever! For seasons on end, we’ve had to listen to this man denigrate and shame her for not meeting his expectations of greatness, but now he’s proud. It’s an interesting turnabout, especially when one considers that Rowan’s points of contention with Olivia has primarily been over her personal choices and what he perceived to be her abandonment of family (himself) over outsiders (her gladiators, Fitzgerald, Jake). I certainly wouldn’t have thought that he’d be proud of her after the turmoil she had brought upon the country with this affair business.
This moment between father and daughter is surreal and is one of my favorites in the episode. Shonda Rhimes has this annoying ability to take a character that I absolutely love to hate and humanize them in a way that then has me empathizing with them. Why would anyone do such a thing to their audience? I don’t appreciate this, Shonda!
Finally Olivia makes it up to OPA and she immediately goes to Huck to ask him about Lazarus One. Huck plays dumb as Olivia relays what it is that Rowan shared with her about it and how his sons have turned against him and are now trying to kill him. Huck says that he’s never heard of Lazarus One, but that if someone is trying to kill Rowan, he wishes them luck. Well, damn.
Once Olivia walks into the conference room, she’s giving Huck this look right before her attention is drawn away by Marcus sharing information on Navid. Quinn keeps interrupting with comments about his pace, telling him that he needs to speak faster. Olivia tells her that Marcus is doing fine and that Quinn shouldn’t worry, her “sandbox” (presentation of the case details on the wall and in rapid fire) will soon be back in her possession. Marcus has yet to master OPA pace. Quinn loses patience with Marcus and eventually takes over the presentation. Haha!
What is learned is that Navid translates for a number of Bandari dignitaries, but is usually paired up with the Minister of Energy Farshad Khansari. There is nothing about this Navid anywhere that would indicate that he’s bad news, so the least they can do is speak with him. In order for them to do this, they must get him alone, but he is currently under lock and key at the Bandari embassy. Olivia turns to Huck for a solution and he assures her that he’s got this covered.
Next scene we see is of the United States and Bandari contingents sitting at a table in final negotiation. While this is going on, Navid suddenly feels nauseous and gets up to leave the room, but doesn’t make it out. He instead collapses on the floor. He is eventually transported to the hospital, which allows Olivia to speak with him alone. She had apparently slipped him a pill that induced that unfavorable reaction. I’m guessing that that pill was Huck’s handiwork.
Now that Olivia has him alone, she discusses with him the terms that he must meet in order for him to be granted asylum. His intel must check out before any protection is given. Navid is hesitant, but he agrees. He points out a nuclear facility that no one knows about on a map that Olivia provides to him, and she tells him that if all checks out that he will be provided asylum.
Over at the White House, Fitz is talking to Susan about providing him the time necessary to check out Navid’s intel. Susan is confused as to how it is that she is supposed to do that, given that she isn’t even involved in the negotiations. Fitz walks her through (with baby steps) what it is that he needs her to do. Because he can’t be seen as the one stalling or stepping away from the negotiations, he needs her to do what she is great at and publicly stick her foot in her mouth by voicing concern over the deal….even though she doesn’t really have any concerns.
If you haven’t seen the episode, my description of this scene is piss poor because it is a hilarious. I have no idea where they dug up Artemis Pebdani, but I love her as Susan Ross. She plays the idealistic, awkward, lovable and nerdy Vice President oh so well.
Despite Elizabeth instructing her to ignore the press and continue straight to their destination, Susan immediately comes to a stop in front of the first reporter who asks her a question and proceeds to indeed stick her foot in her mouth. She’s a team player, that Susan.
Meanwhile back at Cyrus’s office, David Rosen has arrived. Cyrus does this whole song and dance about wanting to convene a panel that would address parole loopholes and federal sentencing issues, which prompts David to point out that one isn’t the same as the other. Cyrus then says that he’s interested in fixing whatever flaw exists in the criminal justice system that allowed for Eli Pope to walk out of a federal prison.
David’s eyes bulge at this news. Rowan was out?! He clearly hadn’t known that. And I’m betting that Cyrus knew that he hadn’t known that, too. At that point, there wasn’t much else Cyrus needed to do because David was taking over from there. They didn’t need to create some task force to address parole loopholes right at that moment! Their first concern was to find Rowan and return him to prison. David says that the FBI and every other intelligence agency should be on this, and Cyrus is like, well, if you say so, Rosen. And off David goes to do Cyrus’s bidding without even realizing that he’s doing it.
Back over at the Oval Office, Jake arrives. He is expecting to find the President when he walks in, but instead gets Olivia and learns that it was actually her who summoned him. Now Jake’s annoyed by her audacity to use executive privilege to get him in her presence. She tells him that she needed something of him and he asks her if she understands that he no longer cares about what she needs. Sigh…
Olivia acknowledges that she knows that he doesn’t give a damn about her needs, but that she didn’t call him there on her behalf. Jake figures out that it is because of Rowan, that he has contacted Olivia. She tells him what Rowan told her about someone trying to kill him and how she believes that he is innocent this time around. She also shares with Jake that when she looked into her father’s eyes, she saw fear there, and this cause Jake to laugh at the absurdity of that notion.
Jake proceeds to ask Olivia a series of questions about if she’s ever found herself lying when her back was against the wall in order to get what she wanted or if she has ever looked someone in the eye and convinced them that she loved them in order to get what she wanted from them. At this point during the live broadcast, I kinda zoned out because, well, who wants to listen to this?
Olivia stares Jake right in the face and maintains her stance about her father. She believes that he is telling her the truth. Her gut says that Rowan is telling the truth.
For the uninitiated, Olivia’s gut (aka instinct or intuition) has been a guiding force going all the way back to the very first season. Her gut hasn’t been in working order for the better part of two seasons, so her mentioning it now is significant. It would seem that the reclamation of her control over her life has had the added benefit of the return to her instincts. And as the Olivia from way back used to say, her gut (when functional) is never wrong.
Jake isn’t buying any of this gut business. He thinks that she’s hanging her hat on that because otherwise she would just be a “fool with daddy issues who just got played by a mass murderer”. Olivia then asks about what if it turns out that Rowan is innocent and that there are really out to kill him, and Jake replies that if there are indeed people after him, that he hope that he gets to Rowan before they do.
Wow. I honestly don’t know what kind of response she was hoping to get out of Jake. He’s been thirsting for Rowan’s blood for years. She may have been able to convince him in the past that killing her daddy was not the way to go with the whole “standing in the sun” business, but that life is over. Olivia should also understand that there is such a thing called karma and that Rowan is due for a whole Titanic load of it. She is probably the only person on the entire planet who presently doesn’t want Rowan killed.
Dear empathetic Olivia, Rowan has done quite a bit of damage and has got to go. Say your prayers now, girl.
Olivia is taken aback by Jake’s sentiment and starts away from him. Unfortunately, this isn’t the end of the scene. Oh no. Jake must now ridicule her for reaching out to him in the first place by recalling moments when she had leaned on him during times of emotional turmoil (502). He tells her that that “train has left the station” and that she no longer gets to ride on it. If she wishes to speak with anyone, she should turn to Fitz and let him know that she is responsible for setting his son’s killer free.
Olivia says that she plans to tell Fitz about Rowan, but Jake doesn’t believe her and makes to leave the room when Olivia says something that stops him in his tracks.
“I was supposed to choose you. … When you told me Fitz loved me and that I should go to him, what you really meant was that you wanted me to say that I didn’t love him and … I was supposed to choose you.” -- Olivia Pope
Welps. Me thinks Olivia has hit the nail right on the head. Jake comes back to say that Olivia was supposed to be too good for him, but that it never occurred to him that he would be the one who was too good for her. Pause. What?
Olivia is in the middle of giving him a piece of her mind when Fitzgerald decides to make an appearance. If only he had been a minute later… Olivia is quick with an explanation as to why Jake is present, telling Fitz that he came by to provide an update on Rowan. Jake plays along (like the good puppy that he is) and says that he hasn’t found anything, but he is still looking.
Later that evening, we see Olivia having wine with Abby in the latter’s office. We must have been dropped in somewhere in the lull of their conversation because it is obvious from the exchange that occurs that they have been in discussion about Olivia needing to tell Fitz the truth about Rowan’s release. Olivia is feeling judgement from Abby who is silently staring at her and she tells her to stop doing that, and that she does intends to tell Fitz everything. When Abby remarks about Fitz finding out about Rowan’s release from someone else, Olivia cuts her off with a stern “Abigail!”
Damn. Has Olivia ever called her Abigail before? You know ish is real serious when somebody opts for your whole first name. You’ve officially crossed the annoyance threshold at that point.
After a moment, Abby tells her that Cyrus is working with David behind the President’s back to hunt down Rowan, so Olivia’s window to tell the truth is limited. It was only a matter of time now before they are able to link Rowan’s release back to her. Olivia says aloud that she has to tell Fitz everything, that she can’t continue to lie, that this secret has been pressing on her like a weight. She is, however, hesitant to come clean because she believes that he won’t forgive her for it and that it would bring an end to their relationship, something that she is not ready to see happen.
Just then she gets a call from Quinn who tells her that the information Navid gave her is bogus. With that update, Olivia is off to see Navid in the hospital and she is spitting mad! There is not secret weapons facility there. It’s just some old soda factory! She believes Navid lied to her--don’t ever do that, clients--but he insists that he hadn’t. He recalls talk of an attack that originated from that building.
Whatever Navid is saying at that point is falling on deaf ears. Olivia tells him that no one will know that they had this discussion and that tomorrow morning, he would be released from the hospital. Navid starts to panic and beg her to reconsider, but she tells him in no uncertain terms that his asylum has been denied and that there is nothing that she can do for him. Yikes!
Elsewhere Huck is seen assisting Jake by providing him with leads as to Rowan’s whereabouts. One lead was a dead end, but now there is another one to pursue. Huck mentions to Jake that someone activated Lazarus One and asks if that is what all of this intel for Jake is about, and Jake nods in response. When Huck has him some traffic cam footage that he lifted, Jake remarks about how he’s going to run it through some software to see if it’ll lead them to where Rowan was. Huck is quick to correct that there is no “we” in this and that all he agreed to was providing Jake with intel and nothing more. He then tells Jake that it his “guy” is out (Jake mentioned him in 413) and that it is obvious that this is more than just a job for him. Huck refuses to be around that kind of energy after working so hard to get his inner beast in check, and so he’s out. Jake’s on his own.
Over at the Residence, Olivia and Fitz are lying in bed. Fitz is reading something and Olivia is staring up at the ceiling, preoccupied with her thoughts. No doubt that the secret is one, if not the only, thing that is rolling about in that head of hers. Fitz turns away from his reading material to ask if he could inquire about what’s on Olivia’s mind, and she tells him that he can’t. At that, he puts down what he had in hand and adjusts himself to give Olivia his full attention. Noticing this, she turns towards him and kisses him a moment before settling back down into pensiveness. Fitz then tries to take her mind off of whatever it is that was worrying her just then by asking if she would like to watch TV, but she says that she’s fine there in the bed with him. Wishing to provide her with some solace, Fitz pulls her into an embrace and plants a soft kiss on her forehead.
Sigh. It’s such a beautifully sweet moment that is also heartbreaking because of the secret that lies heavily between them. It is but a matter of time before that bomb goes off and sends their bliss scattering into a thousand different directions.
The following morning at OPA, Huck finally shows up. Quinn inquires as to his whereabouts the night before, but he simply tells her that he was out. He asks about whether Navid’s story checked out and Quinn replies that atmospheric data failed to prove that there was anything nuclear present in that building. She says this as she tosses the file with the pictures as Huck. He takes the photos out and does a quick scan, and he is able to see what Quinn does not. The building may not be a nuclear weapons facility, but it wasn’t a soda factory either. Huck hops onto his computer and gets to typing.
Quinn and the guys are soon bursting into Olivia’s office to update her on their discovery. Navid wasn’t lying after all. Olivia must now move with a swiftness. (See, this is what happens when you have Huck off doing stuff that he has no business being involved in instead of helping at OPA.)
Over at the White House, Fitz and President Razani are walking into the room and Abby’s cell phone begins to buzz. She tries to ignore it, but eventually answers. It’s Olivia telling her that she has to find some way to stop Fitz from signing that deal because the Bandaris are hiding something. Just as Fitz was set to put pen to paper, Abby hurries forth with a much needed interruption. She tells him that Olivia’s gut was right and that Navid was indeed telling the truth. That leaves Mr. President in an awkward position. What’s he to do now, especially with all those cameras flashing and documenting every moment of the historic occasion?
Meanwhile, Olivia is at the hospital trying to get to Navid before he is discharged. She is running at high speed in her stilettos and bursts into the room to find that Navid is not in his bed. She notices a pool of blood coming from beneath the bathroom door and goes over to open it. Out falls a groaning Navid who has stabbed himself in multiple areas of his arms in an attempt to kill himself. Olivia quickly attempts to staunch the bleeding while screaming for help.
At the White House, Abby is fielding questions as to why it is that the President backed out from signing the deal. Abby reassures them that nothing is broken and that the President is simply taking the time to make sure that they get things right.
The next time we see Olivia and Navid, he is all patched up and back in bed and Olivia’s jacket is stained with his blood. She comes into the room and tells him that the doctor said that he will be okay, and that she had attempted to find a family member or emergency contact to notify them of his situation, but was unable to. Navid says that he has nobody.
Olivia then tells him that a contact of hers at the White House (likely Abby) tracked down his old phone records and was able to find lots of calls made to a man by the name of Amir. Navid looks flustered by this and Olivia is quick to tell him that his secret is safe with her. At this point, Navid gets emotional and asks Olivia if she is aware of what they do to gay people back in his country? “Being born different is a crime punishable by death,” he tells her. Coming to America was to be his chance to leave a life that was free of secrets.
Navid then apologies for all the blood that is on Olivia’s coat. Death by his own hand was preferable than death by the hands of others back in Bandar for his “crime” of being gay. Olivia informs him that his intel actually was not bogus as she had initially stated that it was. She tells him that the factory was indeed hiding something that the Bandaris didn’t want the United States to see and that she should have believed him. Because of this, Navid will indeed be granted asylum.
That’s what I’m talking about. Olivia Pope: woman of the people. Protector and gladiator extraordinaire.
Over at the White House, David has some information to share with Cyrus about Rowan’s release. He tells Cyrus that none of the information is conclusive and that none of the suspects have been questioned, but that it looks like Olivia was the mastermind behind it. Cyrus is as floored by this revelation as David must have been when he found out. He really can’t believe it. Cyrus asks if he is sure about this information and David tells him that agents are already out to pick up Olivia as they speak.
Over at the hospital, we see Olivia being being approached by FBI agents. They have a warrant for her arrest on the grounds of aiding with the escape of a prisoner. She is instructed to turn around and is handcuffed. Oy!
Cyrus asks David if the President is aware of the information and David tells him that he thinks that it’s best if this kind of news came from and friend and not directly from Cyrus, so off David goes to inform the President of Olivia’s treachery. Cyrus certainly can’t believe his luck. The very woman who has prevented him from doing his job as Chief of Staff and who, in his opinion, has been operating as shadow president has done something that is bound to get her kicked out of the White House. Cyrus couldn’t have been more excited if he tried.
Next we pick up at the scene that opened up the episode with Fitzgerald walking into the interrogation room to find Olivia handcuffed. Upon seeing him, she looks at him with bloodshot eyes, but is quick to lower her gaze. She appears to be in a stunned stupor. Her moment of reckoning is finally upon her.
After standing a moment, Fitz asks the agent at the door to hand him the keys to the handcuffs and then motions for him to leave the room. Fitz heads over to Olivia, sits on the table in front of her and places her hands on his lap as he proceeds to unlock her cuffs. She doesn’t lift her eyes to meet his again until his one hand tenderly caresses her face and slightly raises her head. She looks at him for a long moment then, but once more drops her eyes when he begins to talk. both of her hands are engulfed in one of his.
Fitz shares with her what he was told, which was that she was the one responsible for Rowan’s release. He mentions the insanity of that accusation and calls it an impossibility because Olivia would never do such a thing. She wouldn’t free a man who has caused so much pain, a man who was responsible for killing his kid. Right? Not Olivia. She’s not Mellie, he says. Doing things behind his back and then not telling him about it isn’t her.
At this point, I’m wondering if Fitz truly doesn’t believe that Olivia could have done such a thing or if he’s trying to convince himself that she couldn’t have. As he starts go on about how he’s going to look into how this came to pass, Olivia slides her hands from beneath his and lets out a deep breath as if girding herself against what’s to come. Her lack of response to his questions leads to a shift in Fitz’s face as if he was starting to realize that the impossibility may indeed be very possible. He says her name a few times in an effort to get her to say something, and then finally she once again looks him in the eyes, her expression sad and knowing of the disillusionment that she is set upon him.
Just as she starts to talk, Roberta Flack’s “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” plays. Creative move on Shonda’s part to use this track to overlay what was being said in this moment. The decision to do this on one hand has me thinking it to be genius in allowing us to bear witness to the emotion of the moment without hearing what was being said by Olivia, but on the other hand left me frustrated because I want to bloody well know what Olivia had to say!
(Donny and Roberta in one episode! Random trivia: For those who don’t know, Donny Hathaway and Roberta had been good friends and had recorded a duet album together. It’s pretty cool that their respective songs are featured in this episode.)
There were some in the fandom who were so determined to catch even a bit of what was said that they took the video and played around with the audio and even engaged in some fancy lip reading. Here is some of what I was able to make out from the modified videos posted by @JLovesOlitz on Twitter:
“He was going to die. If he stayed in that prison, he was going to die. There were people hunting him who wanted him dead. They tried to kill him in prison, but [unintelligible] ... so I released him.” [Source: @JLovesOlitz]
It is at this point that Fitz gets up from the table and puts some distance between himself and Olivia. You can almost hear his heart being churned into ground beef. Olivia can’t stop telling him the rest of it now. She continues by telling him of Rowan’s role in ending the impeachment hearings.
“He blackmailed the Senate Judiciary Committee to stop the impeachment.” [Source: @JLovesOlitz]
As he starts to walk away, Olivia gets up from the table and follows him to the other side of it while saying:
“Fitz, I know what you think of him...the terrible things he’s done in the past, but he’s not the bad guy now.”
Fitz turns around then to look at her like she done lost the last of her damn mind. Truthfully, I’d have probably looked at her in the same manner. Rowan isn’t the bad guy now? Girl, he’s always the bad guy. He’s just now in a position where people can actually come for him and not miss!
Olivia says more after this, but it’s anyone’s guess at this point. The only thing I can make out is what seems to be her telling him that she doesn’t want to be done and then her asking him to “say something, Fitz.” She has finally (and without a choice at this point) told him everything and he hasn’t said a darn thing to any of it. His facial expressions do the speaking for him as it displays disbelief, heartbreak, confusion.
At the end, it appears that Olivia is pleading with him over something, but he instead exits the room and leaves her in utter devastation.
The next time that we see Fitz, he’s in the Oval. Is it the next morning? Must be. He’s wearing a different tie. Anyway, he’s staring out of the window (as is his wont whenever his mind is on Olivia) and was already nursing a glass of scotch when Cyrus walks in. His Chief of Staff starts off by saying that he takes it that Fitz has heard about Olivia and then goes on to express his shock at the news. He shares with Fitz what he believes their next move should be. Cyrus says that they should let Olivia know that they aren’t out to get her, but if she is willing to assist them with recapturing her father…
Before Cyrus could finish that train of thought, Mr. President cuts him off with a “no”, which surprises Cyrus. Fitz tells him that he wants Olivia released and instructs Cyrus to find some technicality that’ll result in the charges being dropped and Olivia being set free.
I’m willing to bet that Cyrus wasn’t expecting this turn of events. Haha! He’s rendered momentarily speechless before he’s able to formulate his question to ask Fitz what it is that Olivia said to him that has persuaded him that this is the proper course of action. He needs to understand Fitz’s frame of mind here.
While Cyrus is speaking, Fitz saunters his way back over to the side table to pour out the little bit of alcohol that is left in the decanter into his glass. Liquid courage at that time of the morning is a definite sign of distress. He finally shares with Cyrus what Olivia told him about people trying to kill Rowan, and Cyrus is like, dude...you believed her??
Fitz doesn’t give him a direct response, instead choosing to pick up a bound document and handing it over to Cyrus. He explains that he received that information from the CIA (aka Langley) an hour ago, that they had looked into the intel Olivia garnered from Navid about the soda factory. It turns out that the Bandaris weren’t cooling uranium but housing supercomputers in the building, computers that were used to carry out cyber attacks on Western targets.
Cyrus is at a loss as to how this information, while significant, applies to the matter at hand regarding Olivia and Rowan. Fitz remarks that Olivia’s gut was right with the Bandari matter and because of that, she and Navid had saved them from making a grave mistake. She knew something was wrong and she was right. Fitz tosses in there somewhat as an afterthought that he’ll be granting Navid asylum.
Cyrus is confounded that Fitz would think that just because Olivia was right about the Bandaris that it must also mean that she could be right about her father. He stresses that “history and commons sense” tells them that Olivia is wrong here with Rowan, but Fitz can’t be swayed. He tells Cyrus to have Olivia brought home to him as soon as she’s released, and when he says “home,” he means the Residence and not her apartment.
Trying once more to try to have Fitz see reason, Cyrus implores him not to do this. He points out the obvious and says that Rowan is the man who killed Fitz’s son! Having Olivia released is akin to allowing Rowan to roam the earth without consequence! Cyrus should have realized that he was talking to a man who would not be swayed because at this point, Fitz reminds him with an ironic smile that he has forgiven Cyrus for all of the bad things that he has done, so essentially, he can forgive Rowan as well. At that, Cyrus no longer has a leg to stand on and his argument ends. He has no choice but to go off and do as he has been asked to do. Get Olivia released and have her brought back to the Residence. Oop.
At this point in the episode, I was uttering a whole bunch of OMGs. Like what is going on right now? On the same token, I was laughing so bad because Cyrus really thought that he was finally rid of Olivia Pope. There was no way that Fitzgerald would forgive Olivia for doing what she did, right? After all, the man kicked out his wife and Cyrus out of the White House over their respective roles in assisting Rowan with his machinations just months before. If there is anything that Fitzgerald Grant is unable to forgive anybody for, it is helping Command in any shape or fashion.
But see, Olivia isn’t just anybody. And while Fitz may not give a gatdamn about whether Rowan lives or dies, the fact that Olivia does matters a great deal to him. There have been many a time before where he has opted to not kill Rowan because it was something that Olivia hadn’t wanted, but not too long ago (507), Jake did reveal that the plan this time around was to terminate. That, of course, was before Fitz knew that Olivia was involved in his release and the why of it. The whole thing is one complex jumble of emotions, motivations and compromises.
Now before I go on, I did wonder how it was that Olivia was the only one implicated in this plot. David did mention to Cyrus that there were a number of suspects, but he only mentioned Olivia to Cyrus. We didn’t see the conversation that happened between David and the President, but maybe he shared with him the other suspects? Surely Mellie Grant’s name should have been on that list, given that she was responsible for seeing that this plan actually came to pass.
Due to a flashback that Olivia had of Mellie saying that she could forge Fitz’s signature in her sleep (506), the audience was led to believe that Olivia was going to have Mellie forge Fitz’s signature in order to get Rowan released. Now that right there would have resulted in a much worse outcome for not only Olivia, but for Mellie, and thinking on it now, that wouldn’t have made much sense. Would Mellie had really done such a thing? It would have implicated her and not Olivia, and after seeing what transpired in this episode, I am inclined to think that Olivia may have had Rowan medically released to her care (h/t @LegallyCam225). Rowan was experiencing (self-induced) arrhythmias, and with him being in jail for embezzlement, releasing him because of his “condition” is conceivable. After all, no one knows of his far darker deeds. Olivia’s name would be the one associated with his release and she would thus then be the one carrying all the risk. This, however, does not at all explain Tom’s release or what Mellie did to get him out, so I don’t know. This is all really speculation at this point. If we are lucky, we’ll learn what information David shared with Fitz about the matter and the other suspects involved.
Anyway, back to the rest of the episode. We next see Fitz at the table with President Razani and they are finally signing the deal after a number of false starts. The cameras are clicking away as the two men stand and shake hands. Speaking for his ears only, Fitz informs Razani that he is aware of what he is doing with that soda factory and that in just a short while, that building is going to be blown up. Heh. The deal is signed and America’s new ally is weakened at the same time. Consider it’s handled.
The media reports out to the masses that after years of negotiations, the treaty that all thought would never be signed has finally been signed. Add this to the win column for President Grant...and for Olivia Pope. That woman has had a hand in some form or fashion with quite a number of his significant accomplishments as president. Look back over the seasons if you don’t believe me.
Next we see Jake in his apartment. There is a search being conducted of Rowan by facial recognition software on his laptop as Jake’s loading bullets into the magazine of his gun. Suddenly, the software lets out an alert to signal the end of its search and images of Rowan and Tom pop up. They’ve been located. Jake calls up Fitz to inform him of this development, and after a moment’s pause, Fitz tells him, “Let me know when it’s done.”
Wait...is he about to kill Rowan?!
Off Jake goes to where he believes Rowan and Tom are holed up. He cautiously makes his way into the apartment, gun with silencer drawn. He continues back into the bedroom only to find Tom lying prone on the floor. Jake kicks at him to see if he’s alive and gets a moan in response. Creepy Tom still lives. Jake crouches down to get his pulse and then seems to notice something on the back of Tom’s neck. Somebody crafty had made it to that location before Jake could.
Over at the Residence, we see that Olivia is freshly out of the shower. She’s wrapped in this incredibly heavenly looking White House robe and her hair is in its natural state of tiny curls. Her phone goes off then and we see that it is Mellie calling. Olivia ignores the call and appears to be pondering something when she hears and then sees two valets rolling by with a rack of clothes. She follows them to the closet out of curiosity and there gets yet another call from Mellie. This time she answers and Mellie demands to know where she is, telling her that they were supposed to be having a meeting. Olivia informs her that she isn’t coming and Mellie again threatens Olivia with the reveal of their little alliance to Fitz, but Olivia bursts her bubble by letting her know that she has already told Fitz the truth.
There goes the one thing Mellie thought she was holding over Olivia’s head. She stays losing. Womp.
There goes the one thing Mellie thought she was holding over Olivia’s head. She stays losing. Womp.
Mellie right then must have been like:
Hahahahaha! Oh how I loved her deflation in that moment. I know. I’m totally evil.
Once off the phone, Olivia focuses on the clothes that are now hanging within the space that used to belong to Mellie and realizes that they are her clothes. Just then, Fitz makes his presence known by telling her that he called off Jake, that Jake will bring Rowan in instead of killing him.
Wait. Pause. What? Is he lying to her….or is this another red herring? Scandal is known for pulling these stunts, so I’m hesitant to believe what they are trying to have me believe. What he said to Jake on the phone is pretty vague and lacking in updated context. I mean, if Fitzgerald was saying to Cyrus that he was giving Olivia the benefit of the doubt when it came to her father because her gut had worked with the Bandaris, why the hell would he then turn around and kill Rowan, especially when he knows that doing so would break the woman that he loves?
There is no doubt that Fitz (and just about everyone that Rowan has ever inflicted harm upon) would be justified in killing this man for all that he has done, but I’m having a hard time right now believing that this lie by Olivia has cracked him to the point where he’d turn around and blatantly lie to her while keeping her close. That’s some diabolical shittake mushrooms and I refuse to believe it until next week proves me a fool! My heart just can’t take it...
Olivia really looks stunned and confused by this proclamation. Firstly, she couldn’t have expected that she would be released from custody let alone be back in the Residence with Fitz. She truly believed that this secret was going to break them, that their relationship would be over and that despite her pleas in that interrogation room, that Fitz was going to have her father killed as he had originally planned. Instead here she was sitting in the closet of the Residence and having Fitz tell her that he won’t be killing her father. This all must seem surreal to her.
When she doesn’t immediately say anything to his statement, Fitz prompts her to thank him, which she does. Aaaaaaaaand…..this is where the hair on the back of my neck stands up. Now I’m actively asking WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? in a loop because I’m not sure of what to make of what transpires next.
Fitz steps away from the threshold and finally comes into the room. Olivia is looking about at the clothes being put away and inquires as to what is going on. She points out that these are her clothes, and Fitz informs her that he had all of her clothes and belongings brought over. Perplexed, Olivia asks him why he would do such a thing and he tells her that it’s because she lives at the Residence with him now.
Say what??
Fitz tells her that the Residence is now her home, but Olivia counters by saying that she already has a home. My face would have been just like hers right then: fuzzy with incomprehension. I’m just going to tell y’all straight up that I was giving Fitzgerald the side eye right then. He had all her stuff packed up and brought to the Residence without even talking to her about it? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!
Fitz says to her that he is going to do whatever it takes to keep her safe, and so he will be assigning her her own Secret Service detail and she will live with him in the White House. They’ll be together now and she’ll be protected. He then gives her a little kiss on the nose and then a gentle one on her lips before pulling her in for a hug. Olivia just looks numb. She was probably asking the same thing that I was: WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!
This was me the whole time:
Has Fitzgerald cracked? No, seriously. Has he? If it wasn’t for that ominous music they had playing over the scene, maybe I wouldn’t be inclined to even ask this question. All I know is that I was experiencing all kinds of the heebie jeebies over his behavior. And I’m sure that was their intent. My initial thought was that Fitzgerald was moving her into the White House as some kind punishment for bad behavior, but then I had to think about that a bit. Would that be something that Fitz would do? Besides, he can’t really make her stay at the White House. There are laws against holding someone against their will. If Olivia doesn’t want to stay, she will let it be known and she then will find her way back to her apartment. No one makes Olivia do anything that she doesn’t want to. That’s just not how this works. It’s never been how this works. Olivia does what Olivia wants. Nothing and no one shall ever rob her of her agency. Not gonna happen.
So that leaves me to take what Fitz says to her at face value, that he has done this as a means to protect her. Olivia shared with him just the evening before that Rowan has a target on his back, so it isn’t a stretch for Fitz to worry about Olivia’s safety within that context. She has been publicly linked to Eli “Rowan” Pope thanks to that Franchesca Hunter exposé and so anyone who is gunning for Rowan could very well take aim at his daughter. She’s a soft target.
To top it off, Olivia going about in the world as the girlfriend to the President without protection is a bit loony toons. I get that Olivia wants to continue to live her life as if nothing major has shifted in it, but that’s a fantasy. If she could be kidnapped and used to blackmail Fitz during a time when (1) they weren’t even together and (2) it wasn’t then publicly known that she was the love of his life, what’s to prevent the same or worse from happening now?
Punishment or protection? Diabolical abuser or heavy handed protector? I’m going to leave you all to debate that one on your own. I’m made up of sweet, gooey stuff on the inside when it comes to this character, so I’m inclined to believe that Fitzgerald is doing what he believes is best to keep Olivia safe.
That said, do I believe that he trusts her? That’s a hard one. Something’s been shattered there that’ll need to be bridged. What those two really need to do is talk about some things instead of acting unilaterally on the other’s behalf. They both tend to mean well, but it always ends up in hurt feelings. Stop that mess, Olitz!
That said, do I believe that he trusts her? That’s a hard one. Something’s been shattered there that’ll need to be bridged. What those two really need to do is talk about some things instead of acting unilaterally on the other’s behalf. They both tend to mean well, but it always ends up in hurt feelings. Stop that mess, Olitz!
Elsewhere, we see that Rowan is bound to a chair at some unknown location. It looks like a repair shop for really, really big machines? Airplanes maybe? Big rigs? I haven’t a clue. I’m no good with this kind of thing.
Rowan soon hears footsteps approaching and turns in its direction. Command is being held by Huck and the man has some questions!
Wait….how did….
HUCK HAS COMMAND?! So he tracked him down before Jake could. Ain’t that something? Did he inject Creepy Tom with the same stuff that he used to stroke out former VP Andrew Nichols? Holy moley! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!
So did you feel the way that I did and find that this episode was the bestest ever?! No? Forget you then. I’ll fangirl over it by myself then. I nevertheless thank you for taking the time to read this recap/review of Scandal episode 508. Be sure to share your thoughts below and I’ll see you again next week for the midseason finale!
