Scandal review – 3×04: ‘Say Hello To My Little Friend’

Mind = blown. I don’t even know where to begin, but let’s start with the big stuff: Fitz knows Eli/Rowan/Command (Joe Morton)! The man that Huck (Guillermo Diaz) killed last week was a pilot that flew the Operation Remington mission…but Fitz was the pilot on record for that flight. What happened?

Let’s bitch it out…

First, the case of the week has a very Law & Order, “ripped from the headlines” vibe. Patrick Fabian’s Senator Whoever (aka Rep. Weiner) sends dirty pictures to a girl online. When the girl is found murdered, he becomes the prime suspect and turns to Olivia (Kerry Washington) for help. Thank God too, because gladiating (yes, it’s a word) without clients does not pay the electric bill. Unfortunately it turns out this isn’t a one-off for the Senator. Is anyone else super uncomfortable when the various women take the stand and read his sexts out loud? I need a shower.

Anyhow… now that their defendant’s character is shot, Pope & Associates must “slut shame a dead girl” to provide alternate suspects. In the end, the Senator’s wife (Melora Harden) testifies as his alibi. Naturally it’s revealed that she’s lying…not to cover for him, but for herself. Assuming that the murdered girl was the only other woman in her husband’s life, the wife murdered his sexting partner to get her out of the picture. Whoa! That backfired. Well, I guess she gets away with murder, so maybe not entirely.

Meanwhile Huck’s back at AA for going off the wagon “drinking whiskey” (by “drinking”, we mean murdering, and by “whiskey” we mean a defenseless man). All of the subterfuge prompts Quinn (Katie Lowes) to badger him – continually – to open up to her. Finally, Huck calls Quinn out on what we’ve been seeing since the Billy Chambers’ torture scene: Quinn gets off on violence. Huck tells her to stop while she still can and I really hope she does. I love Huck’s character and his depth, but I personally don’t want the show to go there with Quinn. One (three, if you also count Scott Foley’s Jake and the guy from Father of the Bride) is enough. Although admittedly this is the most interesting she’s been…like, ever.

Over in burned B613 agent land, Jake and Huck collude against Eli. Pete Foster, the man that Eli had Huck kill last week, turns out to be a Navy pilot with one mission missing from his official file. Fortunately, the man has the mission number tattooed on his ribs, so Huck and Jake are able to discover that he flew the Operation Remington mission. Reminder: Fitz is the one that actually flew that mission.

When Fitz (Tony Goldwyn) reads about Foster’s death in the paper, and learns Foster had no money to be properly buried, the President orchestrates a funeral in Arlington Cemetery and attends himself. (This is the least annoyed I’ve been with Fitz in a while, so good job, Scandal!) Cy (Jeff Perry) also reveals to Fitz that he knows about Operation Remington. Whatever it is, it plagues Fitz’s conscience. (Is there any room left for plaguing? I mean, between his infidelities, Verna, framing an innocent Jeanine…).  Now that the past is coming to a head, Fitz needs to discuss it, reuniting with…ELI!  Apparently these two go way back.  Does Fitz know he’s Olivia’s dad?  SO. MANY. QUESTIONS.

The night closes out with a Liv/Jake make out. I for one had a smile on my face, even if Liv’s head seems to be at a really awkward angle for that kiss. I’m sure 90% of fans were screaming at the TV, but it’s time for Liv to move on…again. However, I understand it’s a unique situation but when the girl with whom you’re making out stops to answer a call from her ex-boyfriend, and then tells him that “it’s okay, we can talk,” that does not bode well. I LOVE that Jake is bitchy enough to loudly say “more wine?” in the background so Fitz knows she is occupied. HA!

Other Observations:

• I love seeing Olivia with professional vulnerability. She’s always so seemingly untouchable in that arena, so watching her cope with not having the same pull and prestige she’s always had, even worrying about paying the electric bills, is an interesting development.
• This episode gives decent storylines to everyone in the cast…except for Harrison (Columbus Short). Poor Harrison. Guy needs his own plot ASAP. Even Quinn, who I thought was the most boring person alive in Season 1, has a really compelling dark side now.
• I guess David (Joshua Malina) and Abby (Darby Stanchfield) are back on. A good sexting picture goes a long way…
• I had such high hopes for the Mellie (Bellamy Young) vs Congresswoman Josephine Marcus (Lisa Kudrow) match-up but there’s not enough. I am very excited to see Kudrow in the weeks to come. I would really love to see her and Mellie go head-to-head.
• I don’t know what I love more: how pissed Mellie gets at Fitz when he holds her hand compassionately after Cyrus yells at her, or how clueless he looks at her response.
• Wasn’t Jake’s cover a Navy intel officer at the Pentagon? What happened to that? I would assume he’s not still employed after 2 months of not showing up to work. But did they file a missing person’s report on him? Did anyone ask questions? Is anyone even looking for him?

Best Lines:

• Abby (discussing the Senator’s screen name): “Goes by the name of Redwood Johnson.” Huck: “Gross”
• James (asking for a comment): “Do it Cy, open your mouth and give it to me, you know you want to.” I don’t know if this is the best line, but it is the most ridiculous
• Mellie (accidentally discussing Josephine on the record): “Give any piece of trailer trash a microphone and a push up bra and the fly-overs eat it up like fried Twinkies”

I think Scandal is really hitting its stride this season. The overarching arc about Operation Remington is unfolding at a satisfying pace, and the cases of the week are working for me. What did you think of this episode? What direction do you want to see Quinn’s story go in? Or Harrison’s for that matter? Sound off below

Scandal airs Thursdays at 10pm EST on ABC