ABC’s ‘Scandal’ season 2, episode 18 review: Olivia Pope meets the ‘real’ Jake

If there is one thing that we have learned about Olivia Pope over the years, it is that she is as determined a woman as she comes. If you tell her that there is a case that is open-shut, she will find a way to blow the door off of the whole situation. For one prime example, just look at what happened on Thursday night’s new “Scandal” season 2 episode.

What happened? Olivia Pope was convinced that Osbourne was not a traitor despite all of the evidence to the contrary, and she pent much of the episode trying to find a way to help his widow. Of course, no one really wanted to believe Liv, based on the fact that the widow was obviously more than a little bit biased.

Meanwhile, seeing the evolution of the Cyrus / James relationship also made for a pretty fascinating storyline. Why? The two characters have been apart for months, but this episode did make it clear that there is still something here. The suggestion eventually was made that they go to therapy, but the problem here is that there were so many problems here that are still bubbling underneath the surface … including the fact that Cyrus constantly lies.

Ultimately, it’s starting to become clearer by the second just who is the real snake in the grass on this show: Jake. Scott Foley has done a pretty fantastic job in this role, coming across as sincere when he is really not anything close to it. Take, for instance, him convincing Olivia to have a beer with him. It seems so innocent, right? Well, let’s say “manipulative,” instead. It was revealed that Jake is actually trying to “protect” her from someone out to take her life, though he ended up hurting her himself during a scuffle. She was hospitalized as a result, and thus, we had the first face-to-face with Fitz in quite a while.

In the end, this was a pretty chaotic hour of “Scandal,” but it at least seems that we are a step closer to learning about the true Jake, that Fitz is finding out more Mellie’s past, and that Quinn is starting to become a loyal companion to Huck … although he appears to be in terrible trouble again. However, everything may pale to the bomb that Fitz dropped at the end of the episode, where he admitting to killing a certain key figure from earlier this season.

What did you think about this “Scandal” episode? Be sure to share some of your thoughts below, and you can head on over to the link here if you want to read even more of the latest “Scandal” news.

Photo: ABC