(ABC)
On Thursday’s “Scandal,” Olivia continued to get caught up in Fitz’s presidential dealings in the White House. Here are the most important things to know about “Rasputin,” the eighth episode of season 5.
The episode began with Fitz asking a tearful Olivia, “Tell me it’s not true, Liv.” The show then went back to 48 hours earlier, where Fitz was on the verge of a peace deal with a Middle Eastern country named Bandar. At a celebratory dinner, the foreign minister was totally charmed by Olivia.
In secret, a translator told Liv he wanted to defect to the United States, and knew of an undeclared nuclear facility that he would give information on in exchange for asylum. Cyrus was skeptical, and Olivia vowed to Fitz her company would investigate and have information for him in time for the signing the next day. Fitz then brushed Cyrus off when he wanted to know how Papa Pope was being “handled.” Abby took notice of his displeasure, and warned him not to repeat his past mistakes.
Mellie called Olivia demanding her help per their deal for getting Papa Pope released, and threatened she would tell Fitz about it she didn’t cooperate. Just after, she found her dad waiting for her at her office building. He tried to make the case that he wasn’t the “devil” anymore, but told Olivia she should be “afraid” that his “sons” have “turned against” him. He promised to protect her, and cryptically added, “In the event of my death, I have already given you everything you need to survive.”
Olivia asked Huck if he knew about Lazarus One, the plan to kill Papa Pope, but he was unfamiliar. He and the rest of OPA were already deep into investigating the translator, who worried he’d be killed for giving them info. Fitz asked Susan to stall the deal to give them more time to verify the location intel, which she did by questioning the agreement to the media.
Meanwhile, Cyrus shocked David with the news that Papa Pope was out of prison, leading the Attorney General to put all his resources into investigating how that happened. At the same time, Olivia had Jake come to the White House, where she told him about the meeting with her father. “I think he’s actually the innocent one this time,” she insisted. Jake was unmoved, and ripped Olivia for seeking his help.
Jake and Abby both pressured Olivia to tell Fitz about her involvement in her dad’s release, but she feared he would not forgive her and they’d be “over.” And despite Huck’s earlier denial, he was actually helping Jake track down Papa Pope. Huck, however, worried about getting pulled back into the darkness.
Olivia was furious when the translator’s intel didn’t pan out, but just as Quinn was giving up on the case, Huck made a discovery: What they thought was just a soda factory was actually a cooling warehouse for servers that were to be used for a cyber attack on Western countries. Liv called Abby to stop Fitz from signing the deal just as the ceremony was taking place. With the media watching, Fitz bailed on the signing, right as Olivia found the translator with slit wrists. As he recovered, he cried as he revealed why he wanted to come to the U.S…. because gays are killed in his country… and Olivia apologized for not believing him earlier.
David revealed to Cyrus that he uncovered Olivia as the “mastermind” behind Papa Pope’s release, just as she was apprehended by FBI agents, who arrested her for “aiding the escape of a prisoner.” At this point, the episode caught up to the opening scene, now with Liv handcuffed in a holding room. Fitz was convinced she was innocent, but her silence told him otherwise. When she did finally speak, the dialogue wasn’t audible to the viewer, but it culminated in Fitz walking out as she broke down in sobs.
To Cyrus’ surprise, however, Fitz wanted the charges dropped on “some technicality,” revealing she told him about Papa Pope’s fear he was being hunted down. And because she was “right” about the translator and Bandar, he was choosing to trust her again. He demanded Cyrus get her released and brought back to the White House, and went to sign the treaty, after which he told the minister his warehouse would be blown up.
In the episode’s final moments, Jake called Fitz saying he knew Papa Pope’s location. After Fitz told him “let me know when it’s done,” Jake loaded his gun and went to make the killing… only to find the henchman Tom dead. Mellie was stunned to find out Olivia told Fitz the truth, and then Fitz went and lied to Liv, claiming he told Jake to bring Papa Pope in and NOT kill him.
Then it was Liv’s turn to be shocked when all her belongings were brought over to the White House. Fitz told her, “This will be your home. You and I will be together now. And you will be safe and protected.” The show ended with Huck holding Papa Pope captive. The promo for next week’s winter finale indicated that will have a twist no one sees coming. TELL US: What do you think of tonight’s “Scandal”?
