Scandal Season 5 Episode 12: Wild Card

me last night after Scandal went off:

So let's talk about how I got to that place.

I was making myself a turkey burger & fries dinner at like 8:30. I thought I could have it done by 9pm (I made the turkey burger from scratch & the fries I popped in the oven) but alas I couldn't. The old me wouldn't even be starting to cook so close to Scandal time but it's a new dawn it's a new day and idgaf. I got DVR. So anyways, the first 9 minutes of the episode I was running back and forth from the kitchen to my room so I missed a couple things. But oooohhhhhhh the rewatch I had this morning made things VERY clear for me.

Set Up for Failure
Didn't notice this last night, but did y'all realize the man Cyrus & Tom set up was the man that told Governor Vargas in the last episode "We don't want your stinking education bill"? That means Cyrus been plotting.

One thing I can appreciate about Cyrus is he's always been ruthless. He can't stand being idle. He has to make something happen. And the only way it seems he can make things happen is by causing harm and ruining people's lives. I mean, did you really have to take these measures to get Governor Vargas some attention? Do you not have social media? Do you not know what kind of politicians the people want in government? Because if you did, you'd know Governor Vargas is perfect! All you woulda had to do is tell him you would think he would make an awesome president, ask him if he's considered it, if he has, say that you'd love to run his campaign, announce he's running, make one of those cheesy 2 minute videos of him with supporters of all races, backgrounds, etc., drop his credentials, and BOOM. He's a hashtag! But no, you gotta do the most by killing people, destroying families & harming Vargas at the same time.

And then, what's the deal with Tom? Are you sleeping with him? What is this!? WHAT IS THIS?!?

Because I was cooking and not fully present until about 15 minutes into the episode, I didn't catch the connection between Cyrus, Wayne, Tom, Charlie & the little boy (whom I discovered on IMDb is named Max). Hell, I probably wouldn't have caught it if I were paying attention. So I knew I had to wait until the episode was over to connect the dots. Until then, I was just confused.

Rewind right quick...SINCE WHEN DID TOM START WORKING WITH CYRUS!? Does Rowan know about this? Is this one of Rowan's power plays? Or is Tom freelancing? I GOT QUESTIONS SHONDA!

Okay so Cyrus is the mastermind behind this plan to make Vargas a hero based on the fact that Vargas was in the Special Forces. He knew he'd be able to handle himself in a hostage situation. This poor man Wayne was not built to hold people hostage! He did it just to save his son. My heart really ached for him.

I really hope someone is smart enough to look at the surveillance footage and realize that Wayne wasn't the shooter. Because why would he look back after shooting? As smart as Cyrus thinks he is, this plan was dumb to me.

F*CK FITZ
And I mean just that.
There are horrible things Fitz did and said in the past, just like everybody else on the show (I'm coming down Olivia Pope Way in just a second) and I will continue to call them out on their bull. Just about every character infuriated me this episode, with Fitz at the top of the list. Here's why:

1) This insistence on having a teenage love affair with #FauxMellie
I just...

It's so sloppy. Abby is trying to warn you, dumbass, that even though you're single, you can't soil your royal oats without having your breezies vetted first! I mean, common sense here!
I was thinking--both our real president and fake president are on this idgaf tip b/c it's their last year in office but one (Obama) is still doing his job while the other (Fitz) is not. Obama dgaf if you think he's black or not...he dgaf if you're gonna block his nomination for a new Justice. He's still gonna nominate someone and he will, I'm sure, do everything in his power to get that person confirmed. Fitz, on the other hand, got crises going on and he's too concerned about "his personal life" and getting his rocks off to handle it.

You still have a job to do!
BUT this reminds me...we can only expect so much from this man who never wanted to be & never should've been president in the first place.

2) He doesn't take Abby seriously
Maybe it's Fitz's privilege as well that causes him to not take Abby seriously when she warns him in this episode. When she mentions how they have to collect his semen & saliva & they gotta know where his DNA "ends up" so world leaders don't swoop their guys in to collect it and create weapons against him, he tells her to stop talking (in a very rude & nasty tone) b/c he's not living in a world where he's threatened at every turn. He doesn't get that reality. I think he thinks he's invincible and baybaaayyy. He's not.
I really really hope Fitz gets burned. He's so hardheaded, that's the only way he learns.

3) Then there's that scene in the residence
ohhhh this is when I lost it. PEOPLE HAVE BEEN BURSTING INTO YOUR ROOM, YOUR BATHROOM, YOUR CLOSET, ETC. AT UNGODLY TIMES TO TELL YOU IMPORTANT SH*T SINCE THE BEGINNING OF YOUR PRESIDENCY AND NOW YOU WANNA GET MAD BECAUSE YOU BOUT TO SEX FAUX MELLIE AND ABBY COCK BLOCKED?

and then AND THEN YOU SAY ABBY'S MAD B/C IT'S NOT HER FRIEND OLIVIA "WARMING YOUR SHEETS"

YOU'RE BEING VERY DISGUSTING, FITZ.

ABBY HAD TO READ THE F*CK OUT OF YOU TOO MANY TIMES THIS EPISODE AND I'M SICK OF IT.

YOU MAY NOT LIKE THE CARDS LIFE DEALT YOU, FITZ, BUT YOU DON'T GET TO BE A LITTLE B*TCH BABY AND WHINE ABOUT IT. JUST BECAUSE THE LIFE YOU WANT ISN'T HAPPENING RIGHT NOW DOESN'T MEAN IT CAN'T HAPPEN IN THE FUTURE. SO BUCK UP AND DEAL WITH IT.

In the end, Abby finally got through to Fitz. And now they're on a first name basis. Whoopty do. I'm exhausted talking about him.

Let's talk about Quinn right quick
I really be wondering about how dumb Quinn is. Like, she thinks she's smart but she's really an idiot. Has she not made the correlation that anything she does with Charlie, especially if it involves children, is not a good thing? I was wondering why her ovaries were jumping so much watching Charlie interact with Max!

They consciously kidnapped a child before and now she's aided in a kidnapping without her knowledge! Messing around with Charlie created the pivotal turn in her character in the first place when she killed that security guard Omar Dresden! So I say all that to say this...why hasn't she caught a clue to start asking questions?

Liz/David/Susan
I can't. I shan't. and I won't. But I will tell you this: Liz = Mellie. David = Olivia. Susan = Fitz.


Olivia Dumbass Pope
Hey Liv. It's me girl. I'm outside your door and I got something to say...
HOW THE F*CK COULD YOU POSSIBLY TRICK YOURSELF INTO BELIEVING THAT WITH ROWAN & JAKE LIVING TOGETHER AND ROWAN BEING WHO HE IS THAT THEY AREN'T UP TO ANYTHING. HOW? HOW?

HELL YES YOU'RE SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY AND SH*T YOU MAY NOT WANT TO CONSCIOUSLY ADMIT IT BUT STOP ALLOWING YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS TO HIDE IT! THE LIES YOU ALLOW TO SPEW OUT OF YOUR MOUTH FRUSTRATE ME TO NO END!

I must say this--Olivia's character has been consistent: She's great at her job but her personal life is a sh*t show. I really work hard not to get mad about it when this is the premise of the show.
*back to all caps*
DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THIS FIASCO YOU GOT GOING ON WITH JAKE!

WHEN WILL YOU END THE CYCLE, SIS? YOU'RE THE SIDEPIECE YET AGAIN! DO YOU NOT WANT MORE FOR YOURSELF? I MEAN, AND YOU DON'T EVEN LIKE THE NIGGA LIKE THAT YOU JUST SCREWING HIM BUT YOU STILL HIS SIDEPIECE!?

BREAK THAT CHAIN SIS!

SO NOW THAT HUCK READ YOU, YOU WANNA BE INSPECTOR GADGET AND START ASKING JAKE QUESTIONS TO TRY TO SAVE HIM. YOU TRYNA ANALYZE AND DECODE WHAT ROWAN IS SAYING TO YOU AT THE DINNER TABLE (YOU COOKED BY THE WAY?)

YOU SHOULDA BEEN ASKING QUESTIONS FROM THE BEGINNING OF TIME! YOU DRANK THE "MY FATHER ALWAYS WINS" KOOLAID AND YOU THINK YOU HAVE CONTROL B/C YOU LET HIM COME OVER FOR DINNER AND YOU LET JAKE TAKE A DIP IN YOUR SWIMMING POOL BUT OH NO BIH. THEY'RE IN CONTROL OF YOU! Until you decide that you're going to be in control of your life and make your own decisions and live your life for you, Rowan will always win. You really gotta learn how to coexist witcha daddy, girl.
ALSO, WHY DO YOU KEEP SAYING YOUR DADDY LOVES YOU AND WILL ALWAYS LOOK OUT FOR YOU? IMMA NEED YOU TO CHANGE THAT CONVERSATION IN YOUR HEAD B/C THAT IS AN UGLY UNTRUTH THAT'S BRINGING YOU DOWN.

I'M SIDING WITH HUCK ON THAT ONE. ALL YOU GOTTA DO IS GET ON HIS BAD SIDE AND HE'LL GUT YOU LIKE A FISH. One can argue that he loves you but truth is it's not healthy. His love for you is a matter of convenience. I think he's proud of you and all that but you shouldn't be trusting him at all.

sn: Yo, Huck was over the unintelligible ish coming outta people's mouths this episode! Did y'all see the side eye he gave Quinn when she said Charlie is gonna make an awesome dad? #iHollered

Kerry girl, you ACTED in this episode okay? You did that.

And that all black w/ leather ensemble at the end!?

In the words of my sister friend Marshé: #EllenSpirit.

So I'm glad Huck got Liv back on her game and Abby got Fitz back on his. Abby & Huck are the true MVPs. Y'all notice how in sync Olivia & Fitz are even when they're not together?

I haven't given up hope.

So Liv is going to spy on Jake's boo or whatever. I don't have any thoughts about what his deal is and what this woman Rachel Moss or whatever her name is does. Mainly b/c I don't care.

FINALLY Liv & Fitz are going to be in the same room together.

(watch the scene be like 1 minute long)

p.s. I GOT MY ENTIRE LIFE WHEN LIV FOUND OUT FITZ WAS F*CKIN SOMEONE NEW

But I'm happy the lines of communication will open back up for Olitz. What I really need is that abortion conversation. Although it probably won't happen for seasons down the line. Yes, I said seasons. She really doesn't have a reason to tell him now.

There's another prediction. I don't think Scandal will end soon. With all these new character additions and this story they're loading on, there's a lot of places they can take it. Olivia still hasn't gotten her life together. Plus, Shonda loves keeping her actors *cough, cough especially Foley* employed. idk. I'm just guessing. Either way, I'll be fine. I'll expect the worst & hope for the best.

Lastly, I wanna give a special shoutout to my girls Tiffany & TeNaea who have been a huge support to me & this blog and is probably the reason why a lot of you read it in the first place. Thank you so much. & if you aren't here via Tiffany (@BeyoncesNum1fan) and TeNaea (@TeNaealuvsU), go follow them on twitta and watch their show on Youtube! It's called "Tha Show".

Godspeed everyone. See y'all in 2 weeks.

-Candyce