Oh Scandal, will you never stop being crazy? The promos for this episode teased a possible shotgun wedding between Olivia and Fitz, and while that is definitely a big part of it, it’s not even in the Top 5 of most shocking moments from “Get Out of Jail, Free.”
There’s Elise, Jake’s wife, who tries to have Papa Pope killed (you can guess how that ends for her). There’s Papa Pope (and Tom) getting out of jail. There’s Mellie learning the whole truth about Olivia’s father being responsible for Jerry’s murder. It’s the kind of episode where the vice president wanting to resign is reduced to a minor subplot.
The Trial
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s investigation into Fitz’s affair begins with Mellie being ambushed by the revelation that she’s known about the affair a lot longer than she claims. It all comes back to that intern OPA framed for having an affair with Fitz a few seasons ago to cover up for Olivia.
When the OPA gladiators testify, they escape with literal answers and by blaming the leaked video of the intern on Harrison, which is technically true and has the added benefit of him being dead.
To Wed or Not to Wed?
Cyrus scrambles because he knows if Olivia testifies, she’ll either commit perjury or tell the truth and get Fitz impeached. His solution is to stage a shotgun wedding so Olivia can’t be compelled to testify against her husband. Olivia clearly doesn’t want to do that because she’s not ready, even after Fitz has rose petals scattered on the White house balcony. She calls Jake for advice, but he’s smart enough to know that this is one thing he’s not getting involved with.
Papa Pope in Prison
In a surprise to no one, Jake’s wife Elise visits Papa Pope in jail. However, unlike my prediction, she’s not really working WITH him. Instead, she claims to help him, but actually sets him up to be killed. He barely survives, winding up in the medical ward of the prison.
Jake finds out Elise visited Rowan and confronts her. It seems she’s working for the mysterious person or people behind Lazarus 1, but she was hired to kill Rowan and get him out of the picture. I guess someone is trying to restart B-613 without the old Command. By the end of the episode, Jake decides to leave with Elise, but when he meets her at the train station, she’s dead.
Mellie Learns the Whole Truth
While testify or marry are Olivia’s two main choices, a third option arises. Papa Pope summons his daughter (via Quinn) to propose a deal. He can make the committee and the impeachment all go away with what he knows if she frees him from prison to save his life.
Olivia tries to do it by meeting with Mellie. In a shocking and game-changing scene, Olivia asks Mellie to free the man she knows as a donor to her campaign. Mellie is shocked to learn that the mystery man who used her to kill a bunch of jurors is actually Olivia’s father AND the leader of a secret government agency AND the man who killed Jerry. That’s a whole lot of information for one meeting and it ends with Mellie refusing to help free him.
So Olivia reluctantly decides to go through with the wedding, but first Fitz has to finalize his divorce with Mellie. That leads to an epic fight between Fitz and Mellie with him blaming her for being greedy and her putting him in his damn place for ruining her life. She makes some valid points about how much better her life would be if she didn’t waste 20 years propping him up.
Almost Married
Olivia is about to marry Fitz, though the Secret Service requests freak her out. However, she’s saved by the bell because a last-minute phone call from Mellie means that the wedding is off. Mellie agreed to Olivia’s terms, freeing Papa Pope (and Tom too!). Papa Pope then used blackmail to force the Senate committee to stop proceedings, as promised.
Mellie is happy because now Olivia owes her and she wants to use her ex-husband’s mistress to help make Mellie Grant the next President of the United States. It’s a wacky, crazy final scene because…why the f*** is Mellie working with the man who literally killed her son and the man who ordered him to do it? Is she up to something or is she just criminally insane?
Is the Vice President Leaving?
There’s also a minor subplot where Vice President Susan Ross meets with David Rosen and asks him if there are any legal ways for her to quit her job. She isn’t sure she could do the job if Fitz got impeached, but David gives her a pep talk about how that makes her a worthy possible successor. I hope this is going somewhere, because these scenes made no real sense.
(Image courtesy of ABC)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
