Scandal Review: Rasputin (Season 5 Episode 8)

Scandal hit it’s first real lull of Season 5 this week. Coming off of the high octane episodes surrounding the presidential affair and Fitz’s potential impeachment, this episode fell a little short. This week I’m going to break down the good, the bad, and the downright cringe worthy moments of “Rasputin.”

The Good:

Abby Whelan is really good at her job, like really really good. Abby’s scenes in this episode are few and brief (as usual) but even in these small moments she embodies competence and grace in her job and kindness and empathy in her friendship with Olivia. Abby’s best moment of the episode comes when she has to stop the President from signing a peace treaty with a middle eastern country literally seconds before he puts pen to paper. Olivia calls her with important information that needs to be explored before the treaty is signed and Abby discreetly notifies the President without giving anything away to the leader of the foreign nation beside him. Abby is a seriously underused character and I hope she gets more to do in the future besides running around saving face for Olivia and Fitz.

Susan Ross is an absolute ray of sunshine; amidst the mess of shady politicians and crooked lawyers, Susan keeps her innocence and her optimism. Additionally, neither of these characteristics take away from her intelligence. Fitz asks Susan to stall the treaty signing by voicing apprehensions about it and instead of “sticking her foot in her mouth” she takes the opportunity to make a statement about feminism. Susan’s pure heart and good intentions make her a breath of fresh air on Scandal and I am loving it.

Susan: What do I know? I’m just a woman, a woman a heartbeat away from the presidency.

The Bad:

Jake and Olivia’s interesting friendship from the beginning of this season has been completely destroyed. Jake’s anger at Olivia is completely justified though. She shouldn’t use him for whatever she wants or needs and then turn around and let his worst nightmare out of jail for her own benefit and still expect him to like her. Seeing their relationship go down in flames is rather heartbreaking. They get into a shouting match in the Oval Office that is promptly interrupted by Fitz before they can really get to the heart of the matter. These two have a lot of unresolved issues. 

Scandal is setting up a new love triangle between David, Elizabeth, and Susan and I don’t really understand why. David and Elizabeth are sneaking around in closets and side rooms, while Susan is touched by David’s compliments , but she doesn’t have the confidence to make a move. David and Elizabeth are a strange pair and we all know it won’t last, but I’m not looking forward to seeing Susan get her heart broken in the meantime.

The Cringe Worthy:

Olivia finally tells Fitz about her part in setting her father free, at least we assume she does. The words of her actual confession are covered by a rendition of “Tonight You’re Mine” leaving the audience to gather the vital information from Kerry Washington and Tony Goldwyn’s nonverbal acting. But since I can’t read lips, there’s no way to be completely certain what exactly Olivia told Fitz.

That scene isn’t what causes viewers to become uncomfortable and a little afraid for Olivia, it’s what happens next.

After hearing Olivia’s confession at the government holding facility/prison where she was being detained, Fitz promptly drinks all of the whiskey in the Oval Office and comes up with a plan: his most twisted and menacing plan yet, when it comes to Olivia Pope. He tells Cyrus that he wants Olivia released and brought to the residence. Okay, sure that’s cool–get your girlfriend out of prison–it’s what any good boyfriend with that kind of power would do.

After she comes back, Olivia sees her clothes and belongings being brought into the residence by a team of aides. The confusion on her face is clear–she wasn’t a part of this plan, she never wanted to move into the White House. Fitz tells her, in a voice that leaves little room for argument, that he had all of her things boxed up and shipped over because this is where she lives now. Fitz has taken Olivia out of an actual prison, only to keep her in his own personal cage. The whole scene is entirely uncomfortable, and Fitz’s creepy overtures that he’s doing it to keep Olivia safe are nothing short of obsessive and frightening.

Other thoughts:

• The White House is already decorated for Christmas and it looks so beautiful. This set dressing detail warms my Christmas-loving heart.
• Mellie is drastically underused in this episode (after having not been in the previous one at all). She’s only around to be shot down not once, but twice, by Olivia when she tries to cash in on the deal she’d made in setting Rowan free. Olivia can’t keep using people for her own gain, and expect that they ask for nothing in return.
• Rowan fears for his life, and it looks like he has a good reason to when it’s revealed that Huck has him tied up by the end of the episode. It’s a toss up who will come out on top of this exchange, and certainly a question for the mid-season finale next week.

Reviewer Rating: 

User Rating:

What did you think of this week’s episode of Scandal ? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Scandal airs Thursdays at 9/8c on ABC.

Samantha Coley

Samantha (she/her) is a social media specialist by day and a sci-fi junkie by night. As a freelance writer and podcaster, she also enjoys live-tweeting, blogging, good music, and better television. Her current favorite television shows include Star Trek (yes, all of them), Riverdale, and Stranger Things and there will always be a place in her heart for Battlestar Galactica, Leverage, and The West Wing.