Scandal Round Table: Papa Pope is Out of Prison!
Miranda Wicker
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Thanks to Mellie Grant, Scandal Season 5 Episode 6 ended with Papa Pope and his sidekick Tom once again joining the ranks of free men. Oh yes, they're out of prison and Rowan Pope is back in business.
Is this an exciting turn of events or more of the same for Scandal? And what's up with Olivia walking out on Fitz AGAIN!?
Join the TV Fanatic Round table as we discuss the most recent episode! Sound off in the comments below with your answers.
What was your favorite moment from "Get Out of Jail, Free?"
Jim: I loved Mellie in this episode. First, confronting Fitz about different her life would have been. Bellamy Young's performance was truly outstanding, I was left speechless. Then, when she tells Olivia that Liv would be making her president, I wanted to cheer! It was about time Mellie stopped playing the victim to Olivia and figure out how to& use her power for herself.
Christine: First off, I agree with everything Jim just said. I also loved the moment Olivia told Mellie that Rowan killed her son. It was like all of the air was sucked out of the room. But my favorite Scandal quote was David telling Susan, “At least, unlike the man who’s currently occupying that job, you wouldn’t snag everyone around you in your zipper.” So true.
Whitney: Jake telling off Olivia was a great moment. It was like he finally grew a backbone and realized that he deserved to be more than Olivia's shoulder to cry on.
Miranda: I totally loved Jake hanging up on Olivia not once, but twice. She needs some men in her life who will stand up to her, and for themselves, so it was great seeing him tell her that discussing marrying Fitz was off limits. Also, how selfish of Olivia to call him in the first place? She knows how he feels about her!
Your least favorite?
Jim: There weren't any really bad scenes, David and Susan Ross were great, Rowan strangling the guard was intense, and of course Huck telling Quinn to "let that go" when she assumed he would kill someone was actually funny.
Christine: Fitz’s unromantic proposal. Not the one in the Oval office but the one on the balcony where he explains how he didn’t want to look for that ring or have his valet get rose petals. Somehow, it’s always about how difficult everything is for Fitz.
Whitney: Everything Christine said! That proposal was so awkward and I just wanted it to end. I never thought for a second Olivia would actually say yes, but if she had I would have been so disappointed.
Miranda: Oh good lord, those proposals. Both of them. Not only does Olivia Pope not want to marry Fitz, she's also not the type of woman to be swept away by rose petals and candles.
Rowan Pope is out of prison. Discuss:
Jim: Holy S#!t! I really, really, really hope that part of Mellie's plan of getting Rowan out is that she is going to personally deal with the people who killed her son. There is nothing like a mother with vengeance in her eye!
Christine: Yeah, I’d be surprised if Mellie just plans to let the man who murdered her son walk free. She’s got to have some sort of plan. But Rowan is incredibly dangerous and he’s going to make trouble no matter what.
Whitney: I'm so over Rowan and I have been for so long. I hope Mellie makes him pay for killing her son. That would be the best way for Rowan to go out.
Miranda: I hate to say it, but with this, I feel like Scandal is jumping the shark. Rowan Pope, everything about him, needs to die. He's becoming the undefeatable villain and after a while that's just not fun to watch anymore.
What happens when Fitz finds out Olivia helped get Rowan out of prison?
Jim: I suspect that it will end on Mellie's shoulder that Rowan is out, Fitz will be annoyed that Liv was involved, but he knows how much they needed another answer other than marriage.
Christine: Fitz always manages to make these things Mellie’s fault. I just can’t see Fitz kicking Olivia out of the White House the way he did Mellie and in this case Olivia knew exactly what she was asking.
Whitney: I like to think Fitz has grown up, but he really hasn't. He may shut her out like he did after Defiance or maybe he'll surprise me and actually listen to Olivia and hear her rationale.
Miranda: I think that, in the ultimate F YOU, Mellie forged Fitz' signature to get Rowan out of prison. Why else would Olivia flash back to the moment when Mellie said she could forge Fitz' signature in her sleep? I think part of Mellie's plan to get into the Oval is to take Fitz down completely and for good.
Olivia doesn't really want to marry Fitz. Discuss:
Jim: She doesn't want to be tied down. Single-powerful woman in DC, not sure I can blame her, even if it is the President that wants to marry her. My question is if Fitz will give her back the ring she took off to put on the engagement ring?
Christine: She gives up her entire life when she marries Fitz. She’s put everything into her career and that, as well as her freedom and privacy will be gone. I couldn’t believe she called Jake to ask for advice about marrying Fitz. I get that Jake is her best friend and sounding board but that seemed cruel. I was so proud of him when he hung up on her.
Whitney: A woman like Olivia has spent her whole life to get where she is and if she marries Fitz then everything she has worked for is gone. She loves Fitz, but becoming first lady means that's all she will ever be in the eyes of pretty much everyone. I can't really blame her for wanting to protect the life and career she's built.
Miranda: I'm all for Olivia not wanting to get married. Truly. I am. I want her to articulate that, but I'm totally okay with her choosing business over pleasure. What I'm NOT okay with is how volatile the writing surrounding this relationship always is. At what point do the fans just throw up their hands and say "Enough!" and stop watching?
Who killed Elise?
Jim: Rowan planned it, I suspect Tom carried it out since he also got out of jail.
Christine: I agree with Jim. I’m sure it was done on Rowan’s orders even if he didn’t do it himself.
Whitney: This has Rowan's fingerprints written all over it.
Miranda: I want to be in agreement, but my money's on Maya Pope.
Check out the sneak peek of Scandal Season 5 Episode 7 and don't forget you can watch Scandal online right here!
Miranda Wicker was a Staff Writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in 2017. Follow her on Twitter.
