SCANDAL
Season 5, Episode 2 – “Yes”
Air Date: September 25, 2015
GRADE: B+
Who knew one word could shake up everything you anticipated or thought you knew? The final five seconds of the second episode of this season of “Scandal” proves that you should always expect the unexpected from Shonda Rhimes. “Scandal” has been founded on chaos between greatly flawed characters as they try to juggle the country with their own filthy baggage. The idea of this is incredibly clear as Abby (Darby Stanchfield) is left with the lingering pieces of the dirty laundry that leaves Olivia on a one way ticket out of town and President Fitz continuing to act like the brat of the White House.
Much of the gravitas within “Yes” is centered around the sensationalism that comes with the leaking of Olivia and Fitz’s flirtatious photos. One scene finds Olivia hiding in a diner only to be attacked and swarmed by nearby patrons in a move that can only be described as equivalent to Michael Jackson circa HIStory. Complete with the snatching. Thankfully, Jake continues to be the savior of the show, swooping into rescue Olivia just like the Rachel Marron she attempts to be. Great moment.
Meanwhile at the White House, the women are faced with cleaning up the mess and find themselves in multiple directions. Abby is headed to a breakdown in trying to make a statement to the press, Elizabeth North is continuing to prove why Huck should have just left her for dead and Mellie, tired of being the scapegoat, is plotting her next move. It’s overwhelming at this point watching all these women being pushed and shoved by the President’s insistence on sticking to his heart instead of his mind. The saving grace comes in from little-used but always necessary, Vice President Susan Ross (Artemis Pebdani) giving Fitz the swift blow and igniting him to actually do something he’s never too eager to do — lead.
The main case that Olivia deals with can tend to be a bore especially compared to the ongoing struggles within the White House and also the dynamic between Huck and Quinn that while dragged out is one of the most interesting relationships on television this season. It’s a tortured love affair. The kind that leaves you with a bloody mouth.
“Yes” leaves fans eager for more and unprepared for the twists and turns. But its greatest feat is that it takes a character that we all thought we knew oh so well – and makes her dangerous with just the power of her words.
