She said, "Yes." No one is getting engaged, but Olivia Pope did do the most shocking thing at the very end of this week's episode. We will get back to that though...
Last week ended with a big moment for Scandal — what we've waited the whole show for finally transpired. We knew it would happen one day, but we didn't expect it at the beginning of the season. The affair between Olivia Pope and President Grant was revealed on Sally's show. However, the timing was less than ideal — right after Olivia told Fitz she was all in, only if they could figure out their relationship together before revealing it to the world.
President Grant thought he could ignore his official title, become just Fitz, and do whatever he wanted. He thought he could make the world forget Mellie, and Liv could move into his home. Yes, in his world they could live happily ever after in The White House. Olivia wasn't on the same page. From the minute that she realized the world would be looking at her and calling her "America's Mistress," she had other plans — mainly a beer and a new deadline. Yes, Fitz was "Pope'd" (Abby's wording), and she left for a new case.
She left D.C., her team, and her normal wardrobe behind. I love Olivia's business attire and fancy peacoat collection, but I wasn't opposed to her in jeans, a leather jacket, and a baseball hat either. In this new look she found the murder suspect before the second commercial break. Is this a new record from finding a case to "it's handled"?
No. Such an abbreviated case would have forced Olivia to deal with her personal life. Instead the case is a back and forth game of blaming the son and step-wife, based on the the deceased's will and hearsay. This case was really not up to Pope & Associates' standards. We aren't surprised since the case was just background noise anyways. Tonight is all about Liv and Fitz. Oh, and Mellie worrying about how this makes her look. She is a Senator now, after all. Mellie had the second best quote of the night, "America will never elect a woman that can't get laid."
Meanwhile, in the land of B-plots, someone really needs to fix Huck. I'm still having a hard time with the fact that he murdered a bus full of people last week. (Just imagine what Fitz would think if he found out, considering he handed Mellie divorce papers over supplying the list of names). He has always been so loyal to Olivia, yet we are to believe he did something Olivia opposes so much? It's very out of character, but it does provide some good Quinn and Huck fight scenes. And a Huck and Quinn makeup. Two things that are always audience pleasers. This romance brewing again brings up the question — what is happening with Huck's family? Will Quinn become his son's new stepmom? Back to the main storyline. Tonight was the only time Cyrus, Elizabeth North, Abby, Susan Ross, and Mellie will ever all be on the same page. They all agree — Fitz needs to get Mellie back in The White House. He needs to tell America he wasn't having an affair. They succeeded. But, they also drove Fitz to do the one thing that according to TV history always wins the girl — he set her free, and put her happiness first. Yes, it's how Pacey made Joey stop running in Dawson's Creek, and it's how Fitz made Olivia stop running. Right when everyone thought Olivia and Fitz were done (for a few episodes), she listened to the voicemail where Fitz says, "I just wanted you to know, I get it...I don't want you to throw away your whole life just for me. I love you too much." We're now back to that moment. She said "yes." After running the whole episode, Olivia did what nobody thought she would do. When reporters asked if she was the President's mistress, she turned around, stared America in the eyes and said, "Yes." She managed to win the best line of the night by saying only one word, and we are finally at a new stage in the show. Yet, every story line tonight was actually a distraction from the most pressing issue — the biggest scandal to happen on Scandal happens, and no one can give poor Olivia Pope a Pope-size glass of wine? Olivia, you should call Tami Taylor (admit the two of them are your ultimate TV friend goals). She always has some wine to share, and she would really love your new casual look. Let's all cross our fingers this will happen in next week's episode.
Meanwhile, in the land of B-plots, someone really needs to fix Huck. I'm still having a hard time with the fact that he murdered a bus full of people last week. (Just imagine what Fitz would think if he found out, considering he handed Mellie divorce papers over supplying the list of names). He has always been so loyal to Olivia, yet we are to believe he did something Olivia opposes so much? It's very out of character, but it does provide some good Quinn and Huck fight scenes. And a Huck and Quinn makeup. Two things that are always audience pleasers. This romance brewing again brings up the question — what is happening with Huck's family? Will Quinn become his son's new stepmom? Back to the main storyline. Tonight was the only time Cyrus, Elizabeth North, Abby, Susan Ross, and Mellie will ever all be on the same page. They all agree — Fitz needs to get Mellie back in The White House. He needs to tell America he wasn't having an affair. They succeeded. But, they also drove Fitz to do the one thing that according to TV history always wins the girl — he set her free, and put her happiness first. Yes, it's how Pacey made Joey stop running in Dawson's Creek, and it's how Fitz made Olivia stop running. Right when everyone thought Olivia and Fitz were done (for a few episodes), she listened to the voicemail where Fitz says, "I just wanted you to know, I get it...I don't want you to throw away your whole life just for me. I love you too much." We're now back to that moment. She said "yes." After running the whole episode, Olivia did what nobody thought she would do. When reporters asked if she was the President's mistress, she turned around, stared America in the eyes and said, "Yes." She managed to win the best line of the night by saying only one word, and we are finally at a new stage in the show. Yet, every story line tonight was actually a distraction from the most pressing issue — the biggest scandal to happen on Scandal happens, and no one can give poor Olivia Pope a Pope-size glass of wine? Olivia, you should call Tami Taylor (admit the two of them are your ultimate TV friend goals). She always has some wine to share, and she would really love your new casual look. Let's all cross our fingers this will happen in next week's episode.