ABC’s ‘Scandal’ season 2, episode 17 preview: Is Scott Foley Olivia’s do-over?

As if there was not enough anticipation out there already for Thursday night’s new episode of “Scandal” season 2, all you have to do is watch the new sneak peek below in order to be jumping up and down with excitement. It’s intense, strange, powerful, and all in all a pretty fantastic showcase for Scott Foley’s character of Jake.

In what is either a very sincere moment or an expression of pure manipulation, Foley’s Jake convinces Olivia Pope that this is the time to let loose of all her burdens. He knows that someone has hurt her, which is why she has such a sad and sullen look on her face much of the time. He wants to be the guy to fix it, and in order to do that, he needs her to close her eyes. Why is this important? Maybe it’s symbolic, or maybe he is really trying to pull a fast one on Olivia. At the end of the video, it looks like Jake is going in for a kiss, but who knows if that is what he is really trying to do?

At the end of the day, one of the biggest questions for some of these characters revolves around how exactly they choose to move forward. While we already know that Jake may not be moving on from Fitz as much as Olivia may think, she is not particularly aware of that. Shouldn’t she at least try, since her other relationship is so damaged at this point? It’s a pretty good point, but it does not look as though the effort to do that is there just yet.

What do you think Jake ultimately wants out of Olivia, and do you think there are genuine feelings there? If you want to watch another sneak peek for Thursday night’s episode, you can do so over here.

Photo: ABC, video via SpoilerTV