Scandal: Where’s The Black Lady?
So how many of you naively thought that somehow Olivia would be back by now? I’m not going to lie, there was a tiny part of me that thought it would happen. Only because I am anxious to see how Liv and Fitz would reunite. Team #olitz and #oneminute all the way!! Don’t judge my priorities. If this was you, then sadly you were a bit disappointed but only for a little while. This episode was so good and I am very intrigued by the turn the show is now taking.
Let’s get right into the episode, shall we?
Proof of Life
Fitz is distraught about Olivia’s disappearance and barely holding on by a thread. Andrew gives FItz 48 hours to declare war on West Angola or else Liv will die. Fitz tries to get in touch with Jake and get joint chiefs in a meeting but was thwarted by Andrew. It is revealed that Andrew has eyes and ears all over the White House including secret service agents. If they even suspect that Fitz is letting anyone else know about this, Olivia will die anyway. Paranoid, President Grant is reduced to a puppet being pulled by Andrew and is unsure of what to do. He eventually demands proof of life from Andrew. Let me know that Olivia is alive or I will not be making any moves to West Angola is what he basically tells him. Andrew makes it happen and Fitz is presented with the video of Olivia. Naturally he wants to see it over and over again but the laptop is taken from him by one of the Secret Service plants.
He does, however, leave him with a thumb drive of the recording.
Helen of Troy
The face that launched a thousand ships. That is Olivia alright. And who initially made that reference on Scandal? Our used-to-be favorite SSA, Tom. After requesting a pardon, Fitz goes to visit him. Under pressure from Andrew and skeptical of everyone in his administration at this point, he goes to Tom to ask for answers. He wants to know who he can trust in his detail and where he can speak privately. Tom’s answers: No one and the only place he can speak privately is the place he has always gone.
Raise your hands if you know the place he is talking about. If you guessed Olivia’s apartment, you are correct and I will give you a gold star for the excellent detective work! Fitz goes to the apartment, with his own key I might add, and asks his agents to stay outside. Once inside Liv’s bedroom, he sees Jake and gives him the thumb drive of the video.
Let’s go back to Tom for a second. I know that he is B613 before anything else but there really was a part of him that was undoubtedly loyal to Fitz. I mean, let’s be real for a minute here. This was the same man that told Fitz where he could have sex with Liv to not get caught. You can argue that it was a part of his job as a Secret Service agent but it’s more to it than that. He was Fitz’s right hand man in so many ways. He helped drive Fitz to Liv’s house undetected. He went above and beyond when it came to protecting that secret, even at times sparing Mellie’s feelings when it wasn’t necessary. Tom was literally Fitz’s shadow since we’ve come to know these two. I honestly would not be surprised if once Olivia is back, Andrew is out and they try to go back to some normalcy if Fitz doesn’t pardon Tom after all. Yes, I know that thought is dark and twisty and absolutely absurd but this is Scandal we are talking about. Stranger this have happened. Tom is a very interesting character for me and I truly do hope we see some more of him.
Leaving Breadcrumbs
The team is dissecting the Olivia’s video and it is only after what seems like the hundredth time that Huck catches something. They all find it initially odd that Liv would ask for a drink of water in the middle of the recording. She held the glass in the air for 4 seconds. Why? So that the team could catch a reflection of her captor’s face. They start running facial analysis on him but weren’t able to get any hits. No need to panic immediately though. The ever resourceful Olivia Pope strikes again really soon.
Declare War
Fitz had been acting cold towards Mellie at the beginning of this episode but that was a result of him being watched and didn’t want to say anything out of the way to potentially put her or Liv in danger. Mellie was under the assumption that he was angry because she slept with Andrew again. As a result, Fitz finally told her the truth about the kidnapping and told her that he couldn’t give into Andrew’s demands. He was going to kill Olivia by not launching this war. Mellie, in all her Mellie glory, point blank asked him if he loved her because she would have hated to go through all of this and Olivia was just a cheap screw. When he did indeed confirm the love, she told him he knew what he had to do.
Where is the Black Lady?
Marla Gibbs, who I loved on The Jeffersons as Florence, guest starred on this episode. She walked into the Pope & Associates office on two occasions asking to speak to the “Black Lady”. Quinn finally talks with her when she arrives for the second time to find out that she believes her friend is missing, she believes that Olivia can help her. Why does Rose believe that Olivia would know? Well her friend lives across the hall from Olivia and Liv was given a spare key in case of emergencies. A light bulb goes off and Quinn, Huck and Jake race off to the Lois’s apartment. As expected, Liv’s captors had wiped everything clean. Huck was able to locate Liv’s ring that she left under the rug. Another one of the bread crumbs that Liv is leaving behind in hopes of them finding her. They also found the internet box that they had to use in order to monitor Liv. They were able to track the login information back to the guy Liv killed last week, ( I can’t remember his name now) and in turn found the identity of Ian. One step closer to Olivia.
Who gave Huck a new toolbox?
I thought we took Huck’s tools away after the fiasco with Quinn when he pulled out her tooth?! With Huck gone, he’s not willing to wait idly by and wants answers by any means necessary. He visits Elizabeth’s house and threatens her daughter if he does not get answers quickly. Shaken up, she visits Andrew to get some information and railroad him for kidnapping Olivia. She gets nowhere fast with Andrew basically telling her to get on board quickly. With no new information, Huck pays Elizabeth another visit where she finds him in her daughter’s bedroom. Terrified, she asks him not to touch her daughter. Huck merely moves from the bed where he was lying down to the foot where he opens his red toolbox.
Taking Care of it
Elizabeth walked into Mellie’s office where she initially received no sympathy because by then Mellie was aware of what was going on. Elizabeth told her that Huck came into her house and was afraid that he would kill her and her daughter. Mellie initially feels no sympathy for Elizabeth and is merely annoyed that she would even walk into her office. Noticing this, Elizabeth lowers her shirt where we see that Huck really did some damage to her back. It looks like he might have sliced her a few times and was that burn marks on her back? In either case, Mellie was forced into action.
She went to Andrew and basically seducing him, giving her the perfect opportunity to steal his cell phones while he slept. She then gave them to Elizabeth who delivered it to Pope & Associates where they were able to track Olivia’s location. This was based on the calls from Andrew’s burner phone when he was in communication with Ian. With David Rosen’s help, who wants to make it known that he is saving Olivia, they are able to storm the place in Pennsylvania where she is being held hostage.
Do you want to be a boss?
Meanwhile back at the ranch aka the cell where Liv is being held, she decides to start wielding her power on Ian. After realizing that she is going to be held captive for at least another three years, she knows that she needs to turn Ian. She asks him what he wants though she is pretty sure he wants power. She proposes a deal. Right now he is sitting on the most powerful asset aka her and is doing nothing but babysitting her. She can get a ton of money on the black market because of what she is worth to the president. Sell her, she says, and you will be a very rich and powerful man. What does she want? A shower and a change of clothes would be really nice. One of my favorite lines of the night is when she asks him, “Do you want to be a babysitter, or do you want to be a boss?”
We know how persuasive Olivia can be but this time she was just a bit too quick on the draw. Ian takes her up on the offer so when Jake and DEA storm the building she is already gone. I know hindsight is 20/20 but damn Liv! I wish you had waited one more day for this proposal.
We cut to a scene where Fitz is about to take a call from Olivia. After their obligatory “Hi” moment, Ian snatches the phone from her and lets Fitz know that the games are about to begin and he will let him know when he can join.
So now we are left with several questions:
How far is Fitz willing to go?
What will be the price for Olivia Pope?
WHO will pay that price?
Will Mama Pope be of any help?
Where did Olivia find that flat iron that fixed her hair? I need that! The one I got from Target isn’t nearly as good!
Where is she and Ian going? At this point we have no idea. The only thing we know is that they’re definitely not in Kansas anymore! ( I would hope you all understood that reference!)
Oh but wait. One last thing before I go. Where the hell is Eli? Does Papa Pope not know what is going on?! I find that hard to believe. He has to be working some other angle to get his baby girl back. I know that Liv tried to kill him but that is irrelevant at this point. That is his heart and deep down, we all know Eli will drop a few bodies for the sake of Olivia. And don’t give me that line about he is somehow involved with the kidnapping. I don’t believe that for one second, it would be way too convenient. I guess we’ll be finding out soon enough.
Side note: I know there wasn’t a review for the winter premiere last week and for that, I apologize. I was travelling and honestly didn’t have a moment to give it the type of review that you are now used to. Won’t happen again! Scandal reviews will be up every week even if it’s four days late, damnit! Meet me back here same time, same place next week. Deal?!
Natalya is the author of All The Things I Never Said, a soul-stirring collection of short stories, prose and love letters for the soulful wanderers, the brokenhearted and the hopeless romantics.
You can follow her rantings and occasional sparks of brilliance on Twitter @NatalyaMuncuff.
- Review: Kiss of Life by Louise Lennox - July 21, 2021
- Release Blitz: Kiss of Life by Louise Lennox - July 13, 2021
- Review: The Alpha’s Affair by Dria Andersen - June 7, 2021
