Liv grapples with the decision to kill Cyrus once and for all–but can she do it?

Scandal is really pulling out all the stops as it approaches the final two episodes of the series. This week’s episode is emotionally and dramatically charged in a way we haven’t seen since the first season of Scandal. Mellie (Bellamy Young) asked Liv (Kerry Washington) to “handle” Cyrus (Jeff Perry), and rid them of his existence once and for all. However, Liv has been slowly inching away from the dark side she has spent most of the final season in and finds herself struggling to commit the deed. On the flip side, Jake (Scott Foley) is still working with Cyrus to come up with a game plan to take down Mellie. In order to get Cyrus alone, Liv asks QPA for help in taking him down. Under the guise of sending flowers, Liv manages to corner Cyrus and finally have a one-on-one conversation. With Huck (Guillermo Diaz) guarding the door, Liv confronts Cyrus for his crimes and makes him an offer–which he confidently refuses because–well, he’s Cyrus.

At the QPA offices, Abby (Darby Stanchfield) and Quinn (Katie Lowes) begin hacking to locate the person responsible for hacking Air Force Two. Meanwhile, Mellie begins to slowly unravel as the burden of the situation begins to get the best of her. Aware that Jake is watching her over surveillance, she delivers an epic monologue threatening to take him down because “time is up!”. Marcus (Cornelius Smith Jr.) confides in Fitz (Tony Goldwyn) that Mellie may be losing herself in the situation and fears that she will lose herself in all of this–a point that Fitz connects to the burden of being President. And to make matters worse, Huck realizes that Liv plans to poison Cyrus if he does not agree to their terms. But she believes Quinn will find the hacker long before she has to resort to killing Cyrus. Unfortunately, Quinn and Abby learn the hacker is dead.

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Before Liv is able to take any action against Cyrus, Jake locates them and wrangles Cyrus away before anything can be done. He fails to taunt Liv into killing them anyway in order to prove she is not capable of doing it. Out of frustration, Jake pushes for Liv to be included in the Air Force Two investigation as well, but faces more criticism from Vanessa when he gets home. Mellie and Liv meet to discuss the plans to handle Cyrus which pushes Mellie to speak out against all the accusations–resulting in one amazing speech to the American people. And while the world is one chaotic mess in Scandal, Fitz and Liv find a moment to have some sexy time.
And just as we think the episode has come to an end, Jake rattles things up after an argument with Vanessa–resulting in him murdering her in cold blood. When Cyrus unexpectedly shows up at Jake’s house, he realizes what Jake has done–and what it means for their partnership.

Holy moly, that episode, though! We have so much to discuss between Mellie’s monologue, Jake losing it, and the original OPA working together so let’s see what our Scandal roundtable had to say!

Mindset Podcast (@Mindset_Pod)– Podcast focusing on social justice and black culture

Dorothy (@DorothyJGentry)– Educator, journalist, Jeremiah’s mom

Lucy (@lampareaux)– Account manager, life enthusiast, New Yorker

Myoshi (@BeingMyoshi)– Writer, comedian, and traveler

Nthabbie (@nthabbie)– Marketing & Media Maverick, Sometimes TV Commentator (TVAD) & most times Epitome of Awesomery

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1. Jake has officially gone off the deep end! Did you expect him to go as far as he did and what are your thoughts on who he has become?

Mindset Podcast (@Mindset_Pod): I told y’all to watch Jake! People forget how crazy he is; he’s right up there with Huck, he just does a better job of masking it. He’s been tired of being treated like everyone’s lapdog so I feel like this was just a matter of time.

Dorothy (@DorothyJGentry): I called it last week. I said in our last roundtable – I don’t like Jake. Never have. And I was right. I did, in fact, expect him to go as far as he did and as soon as his wife called him “Cyrus’ bitch,” I knew she was a goner. SMH.

Lucy (@lampareaux): No never!! I always thought Jake was capable of going to the dark side but was able to come back to the light. We all knew he wasn’t too fond of Vanessa but to go as far as to kill her?? NEVER! I honestly don’t think Vanessa deserved to be killed, she didn’t mess with anyone or do anything other than to push Jake’s buttons. I secretly hope Jake staged her death in order to get Cyrus under control. Seems like that message really got through to Cyrus. Sometimes I forget innocent people die often on Scandal.

Myoshi (@BeingMyoshi): I kept watching Jake and he looked so ready to snap at any moment in the last two episodes. It seems like everyone is going to go dark before the end of this season. LOL. I think Mellie going off on him through the camera, Cyrus telling him what do do, and finally seeing that all of them don’t get their hands dirty. “It’s the people like him that do the dirty work”, as he said to Olivia. I mean the man killed his wife for calling him weak one too many times. I expected him to take charge because he felt so mistreated by the women in his life. He just really wants to show he is Command of B613.

Nthabbie (@nthabbie): Jake is a robot. He will go as far as his master needs him to, I was not surprised he killed his wife. She was annoying, to be honest, I would have killed her myself if she called me someone’s bitch.

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2. The original OPA is officially working together again! Did you like seeing them all work together again?

Mindset Podcast: It was nice. Huck is so concerned for Liv! He’s so scared she may slip back to her old ways and even though I wanted Liv to be command, I’m happy their relationship is on the mend.

Dorothy: Yes. I did like them doing their thing. It just seems right. Definitely brings some closure to the pain they’ve been going through.

Lucy: Of course, who doesn’t love a reunion? Scandal couldn’t come to an end without the OG Olivia Pope and Associates working together again. It’s a crew that’s very difficult to keep apart.

Myoshi: I do love the old season one feel of them working together again, but I feel the end outcome won’t be so OPA positive. Someone may have to take the fall for all of them to walk away clean.

Nthabbie: I don’t know, something was missing. They were too many disjointed parts to feel whole. But overall I’m glad to see some harmony amongst them again.

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3. During Mellie’s monologue, she referred to Jake as a follower. Do you agree with her? Why or why not?

Mindset Podcast: So I hate what Jake has become but I also kind of feel bad for him. He’s so miserable! I think Jake has been a follower (by force) for a long time. First Papa Pope, then Liv, and then Mellie, so now with Cyrus he’s just had enough. I feel bad that he’s so broken, but it’s hard for me to have sympathy because he’s power-hungry. If he was taking control back to get out of the White House, I would have so much more respect for him. I am however glad that he got rid of his wife; I never really understood why she was there in the first place.

Dorothy: I agree with her. Ever since he’s stepped onto the scene – at the request of his old friend Fitz – he’s basically been working for – or following – the highest bidder. Fitz, Liv, Papa Pope, Liv again, Mellie, Cyrus, etc. Truth be told, I wouldn’t put it past him to be the one trying to make it to the Oval and gain the power.

Lucy: Mellie knew what to say to get under Jake’s skin and she’s right. Jake used to work for Command, Fitz, Olivia, and now Cyrus. But when has Jake made a decision of his own for his own benefit? Mellie’s monologue was nothing but the truth. It just sucks that Jake took his anger out on Vanessa.

Myoshi: Mellie’s monologue gave me life! She wasn’t holding back at all. I agree that he is a follower. All you have to do is give Jake a kiss and/or sex and he will do WHATEVER you want, even if that means kill. He never stood up for himself until now. He’s snapped and wants to prove Mellie wrong, but we all know the truth.

Nthabbie: Yes, Jake doesn’t stand for anything but whoever he serves. For the longest time, it wasn’t evident, but he has a need to be controlled.

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4. Cyrus asked Liv if she would have been a better person if she never met Fitz. What are your thoughts on this statement?

Mindset Podcast: So obviously, if Liv’s life went in a different direction and she never met Fitz or got involved with the White House, then her life would be different. Fitz is not the reason Liv went off the deep end. If there is anyone to blame, it would be her parents and that whole twisted family lol. But ultimately, Liv is an adult and responsible for her own actions.

Dorothy: Powerful. Something to think about. We are who we are because of the relationships in our lives and their influences on us.

Lucy: Honestly, I think Liv would be a better person. Liv crossed so many lines and broke so many rules for Fitz’ sake. She even got kidnapped because of the man. I don’t think she would’ve gone through all of those troubles had Fitz and she never met. In a lot of ways it’s Cyrus’ fault, he introduced her to Fitz. Maybe Scandal is coming full circle.

Myoshi: Well, yes. All of the women involved in Fitz’ campaign, staff, personal life aka Liv and Mellie, would have been better people. Look at the things Liv had to go through and decisions she had to make in order to get Fitz to the White House, keep Fitz in the White House, and get Fitz out clean.

Nthabbie: She is a better person, period. Her meeting Fitz and doing unsavory things might have tainted her but at the core of her DNA – Liv has always been a better person.

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5. Watching Abby channel her inner hacker was absolutely hilarious. How do you think she did as she got her first taste of the hacker life?

Mindset Podcast: I don’t know if the hacker life is for Abby lol, but it was definitely funny watching Quinn try to teach Abby about the dark web!

Dorothy: Abby is so great. I love her. She did pretty well. Soon she’ll become a pro!

Lucy: She did pretty well. OPA staff has been pretty good at being lawyers, assassins, and hackers all at once. It was cute to see Abby diversifying her resume in true OPA form.

Myoshi: It was fun to see her so excited about something that the others take for granted. Abby did exceptionally well during her first hack. She was just a smidge too late to keep up with Cyrus.

Nthabbie: It was cute, but it did nothing for the overall theme of the episode. It felt too unreal how she was able to decode things that take hackers a long time.

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6. Mellie was a force to be reckoned with this episode, right?! What was your favorite Mellie moment from tonight’s episode?

Mindset Podcast: Oh my goodness, Mellie’s press conference was my favorite moment! When she looked into that camera and said “I will not be bullied,” I had to shout a little. I also chuckled at her attempt at a covert conversation with Marcus- he was totally clueless!

Dorothy: Mellie was all that AND several bags of chips. I loved the monologue and this line in particular; “Times up! We’re coming for you!” Gone girl with ya bad self!!! Madam President!

Lucy: My favorite Mellie moment was when she addressed the press about the conspiracy rumors. She told the truth and it felt like she was someone’s mom getting the record straight in her house. I loved it! It was truly Mellie’s most presidential moment since she sat in the Oval Office. I was apprehensive when Olivia told her to say the truth since we haven’t seen Olivia taking the sane route this season. Seeing Liv being more aligned with her older self was heartwarming.

Myoshi: O-M-G! Mellie was not playing with folks this episode. I have two favorite Mellie moments, but my top one would be when she addressed the press. Lord! She got up and told them the truth and when she said “I am NOT guilty. In case you didn’t hear me I am not guilty.” I was like tell em, Mellie! She was fierce and let Cyrus and his crew know she was not going down without a fight. Get it, Mellie!

Nthabbie: You know, leadership is taking the road less traveled. As a publicist myself, I would have warned her against going to the press like that but what she did set the tone for how the case will unfold. I think.

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7. Olitz are once again back in each other’s arms! Assuming the old Liv is back and with only two episodes left ever, do you think they will finally end up together?

Mindset Podcast: It certainly looks like they’re back on! I don’t know if they’ll get to Vermont, but I think they’ll end up together. They still love each other.

Dorothy: I still don’t know… it would be too easy and too cliche for them to get back together and ride off into the sunset. It would be too expected. I want them to get back together but something tells me Shonda is going to do something different.

Lucy: Ughh! This is a very difficult question. One would like to dream, plus there’s really nothing holding them apart at this moment. Happy endings can either be amazing or cheesy, but seeing Fitz and Olivia end up together would be beautiful.

Myoshi: Olitz is giving me a headache. When I thought they were going to make jam together in Vermont they broke up. I think Fitz loves Olivia so much, but she only wants him when she needs that comfort she’s used to. It’s like he can bring her back to reality and out of the darkness, but she won’t commit completely. Let us pray they stay together one last time before the last two episodes.

Nthabbie: Yassssssss!!! Oh, my word Olitz give me so much life. I hope they end up together, making jam in Vermont. I just need something to work out before the show ends.

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Final Verdict: Scandal’s twisty, dramatic plot comes to a head as the team prepares to take down Cyrus–and Jake

There is so much to process about this week’s episode of Scandal! With all the pressure and ridicule from the females in his life, Jake has officially lost it–and we mean really lost it. After killing Vanessa, Jake is dead set on teaming up with Cyrus as a partner, rather than his lackey. And if killing his wife in cold blood doesn’t do the trick, then we’re not really sure what will. There was a lot of speculation on whether or not Olivia would kill Cyrus, and take him down once and for all. But, of course, Scandal will keep the suspense alive until the very end, as we ponder what Cyrus’ fate will be.

This week is incredibly strong for Mellie, who stepped out of hiding to confront the American people about the accusations against her. While she asked Liv to take down Cyrus, it is Liv (along with Marcus) that convinces her to be brave and come into the spotlight. We hope that this outspoken, kickass Mellie stays strong to the very end because we absolutely love everything she represents! And then there’s Liv. She has been going through quite the journey this season, juggling between her dark and light side. This week her attempt to stay on the straight and narrow while trying to deal with Cyrus comes to a dramatic head. Unable to kill him, it gives fans a momentary sigh of relief that the old Liv is indeed back!

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With just two episodes left, there is a lot of ground to cover and a lot of loose ends to tie up. The race to take over the White House has never been more desperate and with Cyrus willing to go to any lengths, the sky’s the limit. Will Jake and Cyrus make it all the way to the top? Or will Liv and co. be able to stop them once and for all? Only time will tell–and we can’t wait.

Scandal returns Thursday, April 12th at 9/8C on ABC.