Scandal - S3E2 - Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
Previously on Scandal, It’s Handled
Five Years Ago
Olivia reluctantly attends her weekly Sunday dinner with Rowan at a fancy restaurant. After some sighing and eye rolling, he calls her on her shit. He’s paying for law school in exchange for her presence at these dinners so she should try. He admits to messing up by sending her away to all of those boarding schools after her mother died, but these dinners are his way of trying and he wants her to meet him halfway. She gives in and talks about her boyfriend, briefly. He continues the charade of working at the Smithsonian.
After dinner, Olivia is waiting for her train talking to Edison. They live together and he has proposed, but she won’t say yes. When the call ends, she gets mugged by two thugs, but Homeless Huck rushes in to save the day, beating the guys to a pulp and returning Olivia’s purse with the instruction to, “Run!”
Run she does.
Bimbo On the Loose
Secret Service Tom jogs alongside Olivia in the park and slyly hands her a cell phone. She stops and takes a call from Fitz. He wants to tell her all about his basketball game with the Dali Lama because when something funny or interesting happens in his life, she’s the one he wants to share it with. He says in another life they are married and happy with four kids in Vermont. He’s the mayor and she says she makes jam. *sigh* The lovey dovey talk ends when she reminds him that she’s about to go after the White House to protect Janine’s name. Fitz tells her to bring it.
Speaking of Janine, Mellie is furious that no one knows where Janine is. She’s not happy there’s a bimbo on the loose, but Cyrus reminds her that the bimbo part is kinda a lie. OK. It’s a total lie, and it’s their lie. Mellie, never one for truth or logic, tells Cy to find Janine. Cyrus’ day goes from bad to worst when Rowan calls to put in his two cents worth of “Find that bitch, make the president confess to it.” Cyrus warns that the only thing he has over Fitz is the info in that folder, and Rowan doesn’t want that coming out, either.
The Bimbo is found! Olivia holds a press conference outside the White House and announces she’s representing Janine and that’s she’s innocent. Olivia brought it.
Five Years Ago
Olivia asks Huck how he knew to go all badass on those two guys and he tells her about B613. How it was a covered by an Acme Paper Company, which was also called Wonderland. He tells her about being in the hole and answering to the leader known as Command. Later, at Rowan’s for dinner, she asks him to look into Huck’s story. When she mentioned B613, she definitely has Rowan’s attention. He agrees.
Presidential Balls
Mellie and Cyrus try to convince Fitz to admit to the Janine affair. Cy challenges him to grow some presidential balls. Fitz tells them both to go to hell. He’s not going to destroy Janine.
Mellie later tells Cyrus one of her aides will give him a folder of all the dates she was out of town without Fitz and they will line up with all the dates Janine worked late in the White House. They leak this to the press, but Janine tells Olivia that she was never alone in the White House with Fitz. When she worked late, she would always do so with another aide and their IMs to each other will prove that. One problem: Those exchanges are on the White House server.
Later, Rowan shows up at Olivia’s office, making small talk with her gladiators like that shit’s okay. You can tell by Olivia’s face it’s so not okay. Especially when Rowan shake’s Huck’s hand.
Five Years Ago
Rowan tells Olivia that he had his FBI friend look into Huck and that Huck is crazy, violent, and was recently arrested. Olivia doesn’t believe it, but Rowan gets all scary like he does and insists that she drop it.
Jake’s In The Hole
The reason Rowan’s at the offices is to threaten Jake’s life if Olivia doesn’t let Janine burn. Olivia asks Huck what happens to people in B613 when they disobey an order. He tells her about the hole and how the hole sucks ass. Olivia calls Fitz and asks him to find out what happened to Jake Ballard. She wants Jake away from B613. Fitz ain’t really feeling Jake these days, but he agrees to do it for Olivia because she holds the secret to the universe between her magical thighs.
Meet David Rosen
Olivia meets David Rosen via a law school connection and has him look into Huck. He ran the prints on her purse and says Huck is not in the system, therefore never arrested, therefore Rowan is a lying ass. She looks into Acme, which is located on a street called Wonderland. She realizes a pen her father gave her is from the same fake company. Olivia confronts her father at dinner and he basically, “You don’t know me like that. And you don’t want to know me like that, so back off.” Liv leaves.
Quinn hacks into Olivia’s email because she can. She’s curious about Liv’s relationship with her father and notes they were having dinner every Sunday five years ago, but then it just stopped with no more contact.
Fitz orders Cyrus to get Jake out of B613 even though Cyrus tells him it doesn’t work that way. Abby convinces Janine’s aide friend to get them the IMs.
Janine has a breakdown and Olivia promises her she’ll get her through it.
Mellie Makes a Play
Olivia visits the morgue any time a John Doe fitting Jake’s description is found. She has to make one such visit late at night and while she’s gone, Janine gets a call and meets with Mellie who offers her a deal.
Five Years Ago
Olivia makes her own play by showing up to Sunday dinner with Edison, the senator and head of the Intelligence Committee … you know, the same committee that makes sure shit like B613 doesn’t exist. She wants Huck back.
How You Like Them Presidential Balls?
Janine is about to give her live interview, but Abby calls with the news that the aide will not be giving the IMs because Janine told him to get rid of them. Olivia realizes someone in the White House got to her. She calls Fitz to get Jake released and he says he can’t. She’s like, “What is it all for if you can’t do presidential shit?!” She calls her dad to beg for Jake’s life… again. She puts Sunday’s dinner back on the table. Those must be some good dinners because he says he’ll take it under consideration. Olivia warns Janine not to lie, but Janine wants the $2 million in a Cayman Island account that Mellie is giving her.
Janine’s press conference is pre-empted by Fitz’s. He tells Cyrus he’s going to either tell the truth about Olivia (and throw Cyrus under the bus for framing Janine) or the lie about Janine. It all depends on whether or not Jake Ballard gets released.
Five Years Ago
Olivia’s play works. Huck is back in the train station, but he’s obviously been beaten. Rowan wants Olivia to dump Edison in return. I’m okay with this plan. However, it kinda sucks Rowan had Edison beaten up. Olivia tells him they are done. They’re family; they’re never done, Rowan says.
The Big Lie
Fitz tells the world that he had sex with Janine. Sally Langston doesn’t buy it, and feels like Fitz is going back on their deal, but he sticks to his story, confident the American people will forgive him.
Quinn didn’t stop digging into Olivia’s emails like Huck told her to and she figures out that Rowan looked into Huck on Olivia’s request and then their emails stopped.
Huck confronts Olivia in the parking garage and wants to know if her father is Command. After he grips her up, she admits that he is.
#GoodJake
That night, Rowan calls Olivia and tells her to open her door. She does and finds Jake, all beaten, dirty, and bruised.
“Hi.”
Rowan wants Olivia to come to his house next Sunday for dinner.
How’d you do this week in our Ultimate Gladiator leaderboard? Points have been awarded. I’ll be watching the episode once more to make sure I didn’t miss anything so more points may be added. A new round of predictions for episode 3 will be up on Saturday, October 12th. Our Scandal podcast will be available on iTunes later tonight.
