Scandal Round Table: Season 2 Finale

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The Scandal Season 2 finale was knock-your-socks-off fantastic. Between Billy Chambers, divorce plans, sex tapes, Baby Huck and the redemption of David Rosen, our heads never stopped spinning. And let's not forget the jaw=dropping reveal in the last few minutes!

Below, TV Fanatic Staffers Christine Orlando, Leigh Raines, Miranda Wicker, Jim Garner - and Emily from ABC Scandal Fans - gather to discuss "White Hat's Back On." It's time to breakdown the Scandal season finale, people! Pull up a virtual chair and jump right in...

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What was your favorite scene or quote from "White Hat's Back On?"

Christine: I couldn't help but laugh at Huck's "It's true what they say. If you want someone killed right, you've gotta kill them yourself." and Abby's response: "Somebody stitch that on a pillow." I just love Abby.

Leigh: The redemption of David Rosen and watching Olivia pop that white Fedora on her head. I so did not see any of that coming. Floored.

Emily: My favorite scene had to be Cyrus calling Fitz from the ambulance!! I mean the man NEVER quits! And trying to get his SS agent to shoot the EMT?? HILARIOUS! And since this was the season finale, I have to add my favorite quotes too - well the top 3...3. Hollis' "Bang bang, boo hoo, bye bye" re: offing Billy, 2. Fitz's "Using my super power" Enough said, 1. Cyrus' "the killers were merely firing heart shaped bullets made of bubbles and candy that signifies that you and your boyfriend Fitzy were MFEO, made for each other"

Miranda: The reveal that David Rosen stayed "true" to Pope and Associates. He doesn't necessarily believe in what they do 100% of the time, but he knows Olivia's a white hat. Watching Fitz announce him as the new District Attorney of D.C. was great. He deserved good things after the hellacious season he's had.

Jim: I loved Olivia opening the box from David and finding the white hat. It was such a clear sign that he now understood that good people sometimes have to do the wrong things for the right reason. 

Was it really plausible that Fitz would divorce Mellie and marry Olivia?

Christine: I really didn't think so until Olivia spun it. She's good. Damn good. If they could've stuck to that script they might just have pulled it off and it could have been amazing. It's as thought the Scandal universe dangled the carrot in front of us before yanking it away once again

Leigh: Well, like Christine said, if anyone could make it happen it would be Olivia. I didn't think so at all, but her plan was pretty damn good. That said, soo many people would be obsessed with the who what why of it and I don't think it would ever go that smoothly. Watching Fitz crawl back to Mellie the way he did was pathetic.

Emily: I definitely didn't think OLITZ shippers would get off that easy, but hearing that plan - Liv could totally have made that work.

Miranda: When Fitz was all "I am going to marry you and you are going to be my First Lady" I was all "there's just no way." And then as he Fitz revealed the plan to Mellie step by step all I could think was "that would totally work!" So, I think he totally could have left Mellie for Olivia. But I don't think he ever will. 

Jim: Plausible? Yes, the plan was plausible. Was it likely to work? No. Sadly America is just not ready for a divorced president yet. 

What was your reaction to Quinn stepping up her Baby Huck spy game?

Christine: Whoa! Did you see that maniacal, psychotic look in her eyes as Chambers' blood splattered across her face? That was scary. Apparently Quinn is more damaged that I thought. It's not what she did that disturbed me as much as how much she enjoyed it. The girl needs help.

Leigh: Super inevitable. It was only a matter of time before she flipped the switch. She was so hyper. Quinn go that rush that Charlie and Huck used to talk about. 

Emily: My live tweets during that scene were: "HuckleberryQuinn needs to go to a meeting ASAP" and "Holy Drill Bit Batman, Huck's created a monster". I mean Quinn totally had the crazy eyes!! Definitely concerned about how this is gonna play out!

Miranda: Hat's off to Katie Lowes for the crazy eyes. She went from consoling Huck to completely nuts to charged up and it was just sad and great. I'm definitely eager to see where this goes next season.

Jim: That look on her face when she was torturing Billy was soooooo creepy/scary. I think Huck needs to take her to an AA meeting before things go any further!

Now that the Jake-arc has played all the way out, have your feelings about him changed since he was first introduced?

Christine: I think he's less creepy now that we know what his assignment was. The poor guy got locked in the box for saving Olivia. Where is that box anyway? How often do you think they use it? He's too darn cute to be locked in the box. Any chance we'll get him out for season 3?

Leigh: Ugh. I love Scott Foley, can we keep him? I guess if he's in that box he's not gone for good. I honestly still have a hundred questions with that whole storyline and feel like it deserves a rewatch. But hey, he's in B6-13, like Huck was. Guys a little quirky to put it one way.

Emily: I was never sold on the fact that Jake was a bad guy, at least in the sense that he was going to hurt Olivia. Back when he turned off the surveillance cameras when she was changing clothes, I thought he was torn between his mission and doing what he thought was right, regardless of his orders. 

Miranda: I'm with Emily in that I never really thought he was a bad guy. He's capable of doing bad things when it's his mission to do them, but he was never totally bad. I feel quite terrible for him after watching him go into that box and knowing how that turned out for Huck.

Jim: First, I don't think it's done. I would not be surprised to see him turn up again. That aside, I've thought he was a good guy even if he did wrong things (see answer #1 above).

Olivia chose her gladiators over Fitz. Did she make the right call?

Christine: Just when I begin to enjoy Olivia and Fitz as a couple they go back to one of them pushing the other away. I was actually more upset with Fitz. It felt as though he gave up too easily and went slinking back to Mellie because it's what he was told to do. It could have been fun to watch them play out the secret affair, with all of its obvious pitfalls for at least another season.

Leigh: Yes and No. Both decisions had pros and cons. I wanted her to not be so predictable and let something get in the way of them AGAIN. But I guess if she got with Fitz, Cyrus would have another heart attack and we don't want that so...

Emily: To me, I think it was the safe call, but I think either choice could have been the right one. Like she said to Fitz in the kitchen, she let herself believe the waiting was over. And even though Fitz chose her over Mellie, he sure didn't seem to fight her decision. It was like the season 1 finale all over again. Fitz just went along with it which sort of reinforced the fact that he hasn't really chosen her over the job. At the same time, she could have made her decision to protect herself since Jake said she was in danger as long as she and Fitz were in a relationship. 

Miranda: I think she made the best call, yes. Her gladiators are her family. While I think she deserves to be happy, she doesn't get to be selfish to get there. She owes it to them to get them back on track and that includes not becoming her own client. Of course that's moot now that someone outed her, but still. 

Jim: Absolutely. Olivia and Fitz are Romeo and Juliet, there really is no way for them to fully be together. There are too many powerful forces working against them, they will just get crushed in the middle. 

On a scale of 1-10, how shocked were you by the episode's closing scene with Olivia and Rowan in the limo?

Christine: Pretty darn shocked. Was her father really going to have her killed earlier? Talk about Daddy issues.

Leigh: 11. Ask my neighbors if they heard my reaction. Like...WHAT? Again, I need a rewatch. Can't wait for season 3 to find out WHY Olivia's dad would try to ruin her life and kill her. What's up with that?

Emily: I'm definitely at an 11 on this plot twist! Especially rewatching the episode and putting the fact that now we know he's her Dad in context with what he's ordered Jake and Cyrus to do makes it even more shocking! My big question is does Cyrus know that he's her father??

Miranda: Oh, I'm definitely going with 11. Definitely. Because we know so very little about Olivia's background, that was a twist I did not see coming at all. AT ALL. Daddy's got some explaining to do.

Jim: I think it scored about 13. I slack-jaw-gaped at the TV for nearly a minute and then all I could say (scream, really) was DADDY? WTF!!!

Grade Scandal Season 2.

Christine: B+. I run hot and cold on Fitz and Olivia and their never ending back and forth. The David Rosen arc turned out to be one of my favorites this season. The twists and turns of watching a good man's life get ground to dust and how he climbed back to the top was surprisingly satisfying. Now if he and Abby could only find their way back together, that could make for a happy season 3.

Leigh: A+. Best damn show on television. Shonda Rhimes may have gotten a little too kill-happy and depressing on Grey's Anatomy, but Scandal is just perfection.

Emily: A+ for sure! To me this show has a little of everything for the viewer: politics, romance, drama, suspense. And the twists and turns just keep the viewer on the edge of their seat. The only thing I would change about season 2 would be the on again, off again schedule which I hear won't be a problem next season! Can't wait until September!

Miranda: A. There was definitely a low point in some of the episodes in the middle of the season. Things got a little too bogged down in Defiance. But on the whole, this is a wild ride that I cannot miss week to week and one of the best written shows on television. 

Jim: A This season was as good if not better than last season. I can't wait to see what they do for season three!

White Hat's Back On Review

Editor Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 (384 Votes)
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Scandal Season 2 Episode 22 Quotes

[to Hollis] Talking about murder in the White House in front of the President is like talking about sex in the Vatican in front of the Pope. We do not do it.

Cyrus

Huck: It's true what they say. If you want someone killed right, you've gotta kill them yourself.
Abby: Somebody stitch that on a pillow.