Scandalis known for itsfast-paced dialogue, exceptionally smart and powerful characters, and incredibly high-stakes situations. One of the many successfulTV shows created byShonda Rhimes,ScandalstarsKerry Washingtonas Olivia Pope, a PR genius and former member of President Fitzgerald Grant’s (Tony Goldwyn) campaign team. Based in Washington, D.C., Pope helps anyone from her high-powered friends to Presidents manage their public image when faced with scandals that could ruin them.
The best episodes ofScandalwere able to find the balance betweenPope and Grant’s tumultuous, will-they-won’t-they romance and the backroom dealings of the President’s staff and Olivia’s team. Despite so many intricate storylines,Scandalwas always able to give audiences a new perspective or shed light on something that seemed clear-cut, never failing to keep audiences interested and coming back for more.
10"Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself"
Season 7, Episode 12 (2018)
Fans of Shonda Rhimes’How To Get Away with Murderwere in for a surprise when Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) showed up to ask none other thanOlivia Pope for legal helpin this episode ofScandal. After Olivia decides to take the case, her and Annalise butt heads as they try to get the case to the Supreme Court. After hitting a few roadblocks, old allegiances come into play when Quinn (Katie Lowes) puts her differences with Olivia aside in order to help the case.
The crossover between two of Shonda Rhimes' ABC shows was a significant moment for fans who got to see Viola Davis and Kerry Washington at their best, playing two iconic roles. The conflict between the two made forfun, high-energy back-and-forth and gave audiences something fresh in the final season of the show. Without the help of her usual high-powered friends, audiences see Olivia falter and question if she can get the job done, showing a more vulnerable side to a character who so frequently only displays her strength.
9"Baby Made A Mess"
Season 4, Episode 7 (2014)
“Baby Made A Mess” gives fans insight into a different character’s perception ofOlivia and Fitz’s relationship. When visiting Tom (Brian Letscher), former Secret Service agent to President Grant, to get information on who ordered the hit on the President’s son, Tom tells Olivia about the power she holds over Fitz. The ensemble cast gets several moments in this episode as well, including a continuation of Huck’s (Guillermo Díaz) relationship with his son, Abby (Darby Stanchfield) standing up to her abusive ex-husband and an upping of the ante in the search to find the person responsible for killing President Grant’s son.
Tom, a character fans have seen a lot of but haven’t gotten to know very well, is given more screen time this episode, giving fans afly-on-the-wall point of view about a story that has been present since the beginning. This helps keep the romance between Fitz and Olivia exciting, despite its consistency. In addition to a new perspective, audiences get to see the ensemble aspect ofScandalshine with a long-awaited win for Abby regarding her past and new connections for Huck, and they are left wanting to learn more about the death of the President’s son.
Season 4, Episode 10 (2015)
Olivia Pope has been kidnapped from her apartment and now audiences get to see what happened from her point of view. She is first taken to a neighbor’s apartment and then transported to a cell in an unknown location. As Olivia tries to work out an escape plan, she befriends her cellmate Ian McCloud (Jason Butler Harner). After she is caught trying to escape, her abductors take Ian away, as they are not allowed to kill Olivia, and kill him. Olivia is terrified but still tries her best to escape. When she finally reaches the threshold of her captivity, she realizes that it was all a lie and that Ian is the actual mastermind.
A new venture forScandal, which usually takes place in the fast-paced environment of Washington, D.C., “Run” gave audiences something new to focus on: who took Olivia, where she is, and will she make it out. Both fans and Olivia know that the President will be looking for her, but the question is,will he be able to get her out before something happens to her? This episode gave viewers a reprieve from the usual diplomatic and publicity high-stakes ofScandaland shifted those stakes tolife or death for Olivia Pope.
7"White Hat’s Back On"
Season 2, Episode 22 (2013)
The season two finale provides fans with thelove triangle between Olivia, Fitz and Jake Ballard(Scott Foley), blackmail of President Grant with the truth about the election, and the reveal of the head of B613. The stakes are high from beginning to end in “White Hat’s Back On,” as the election rigging in Defiance is brought to light by Billy Chambers (Matt Letscher), who passes the information to Governor Reston (Tom Amandes) who uses it to blackmail the President into choosing him as his new VP. But of course, things do not go as planned as the supposed proof of this fraud is only in the hands of David Rosen (Joshua Malina), who saves the day and is awarded a new appointment as Attorney General as a result.
This jam-packed episode sees new information leaked to new characters, threatening the Presidency and the future of all those involved in President Grant’s White House. But nothing is ever as it seems, as David Rosen had been in power all along, giving a character who has been pushed aside frequently a chance to come out on top. Not only do fans get to see the underdog finally win, buta new character who has played a significant role behind the scenes as the head of B613 is finally revealed as Olivia Pope’s father, Eli Pope(Joe Morton). This reveal leaves the audience desperate for more information in a new season, with just enough new information to keep them interested.
6"Extinction"
Season 6, Episode 6 (2017)
Eli Pope is given some backstory in “Extinction,“where we get to meet Sandra Potter (Tonya Pinkins) a former girlfriend of his from graduate school. Back in town to give a lecture, Eli reconnects with her. Unfortunately, he soon discovers that she came back into his life as a pawn controlled by Samantha Ruland (Zoe Perry) and Theodore Peus (David Warshofsky) to force him to help in a plot to ensure that Mellie Grant (Bellamy Young) wins the Presidential election. After Olivia’s own work gets in the way of Eli’s attempts at rigging the election, Samantha tells Eli that he has to assassinate Mellie’s competitor, Frankie Vargas (Ricardo Antonio Chavira).
Not only do fans get to see a different side to Eli Pope’s Command, the always calculating father of B613, but they also get to see how he reacts when he is the one being controlled.Scandalalways finds a way to give audiences new perspectives on characters that may seem one-track minded, and this episode informs the audience aboutEli’s unwavering ability to eliminate any weaknesses that he may possess in order to maintain his powerand get rid of any means of controlling him.
Season 5, Episode 2 (2015)
The moment that fans had been waiting for finally came in the episode appropriately titled “Yes.” Sally Langston (Kate Burton) has started rumors about the President’s affair withhis former Communications Director, Olivia Pope. The White House scrambles to give answers to the hungry Press Corps, and after taking some advice from Cyrus (Jeff Perry), Abby tells the Press that despite the rumors, the President and the First Lady are still a team. After doing her best to ignore the gossip, and hearing that Fitz is unwilling to see her reputation tarnished by this scandal, Olivia takes the story into her own hands and admits to a reporter that she is, in fact, the President’s mistress.
The dramatic irony ofScandalis lifted in this episode,letting the world of the show in on the secret that audiences have been aware of all along. “Yes” keeps audiences at the edge of their seats, wondering what will happen in the aftermath of this confession, as well as grappling with the severity of the decisions that President Grant and Olivia have made for years through the eyes of disappointed staff members and the valid questions posed to them.
4"The Trail”
Season 1, Episode 6 (2012)
The Fitzgerald Grant presidential campaign is the focus of this episode. Through various flashbacks, viewers are finally given insight into how Olivia Pope came into Fitzgerald Grant’s life and the undeniable attraction the two felt when she did. When Olivia arrives to save the failing Grant campaign, fans get to see Olivia do what she does best: fix a PR mess. As the romantic tension between Olivia and Fitz comes to a head, Olivia helps make Fitz’s marriage to Mellie look alive and well in order to win over voters. Once their campaign is saved, Sally Langston, once Fitz’s political opponent, is on board to take the VP seat, much to the chagrin of her future Chief of Staff, Billy Chambers.
The mystery of the genesis of Olivia and Fitz’s relationship is finally revealed in “The Trail,“giving context to the tension viewers have been privy to all season long. While an excellent episode for romance fans, “The Trail” also gives motivation to Billy Chambers, who, by the end, stabs a reporter who has figured out his secrets, and Mellie is established as a woman who will do whatever it takes to give her husband and herself the best shot at power.Scandalfrequently uses flashbacksto fill in the gaps in the stories fans have become familiar with, and this episode is a prime example.
3"The Price of Free and Fair Elections”
Season 3, Episode 18 (2014)
President Grant is at the end of his bid for a second term in the White House when everything that could go wrong goes wrong. After an explosion at a church a week before the election, his competitor, Sally Langston, makes headlines for herself as she is seen helping victims. This heroic action steals the attention away from President Grant’s campaign and all but decides the race for him. That is until, during a campaign rally, his son has a seizure and ultimately dies. Olivia’s mother, Maya Pope (Khandi Alexander), is given the blame, but audiences soon realize that the true culprit has yet to be brought to justice.
Murder plots, narrative-spinning and political campaigns areScandal’s bread and butter, and they shine in this episode. Audiences are taken on a rollercoaster with the almost guaranteed defeat of President Grant in his bid for reelection, which gives both fans and Fitz hope that he can finally be with Olivia, untilthe twist of the tragic loss of Fitz’s sonsways voters back in his favor. The season three finale gives audiences exactly the kind of drama they expect, while leaving them eager to see when and how the characters will uncover the truth behind the cover-up of the murder of the President’s son.
2"Grant: For The People”
Season 1, Episode 7 (2012)
The first season finale starts with a bang as Quinn shows up at her boyfriend Gideon’s (Brendan Hines) apartment to see him suffering from a stab wound. In order to save Quinn from being a suspect, Olivia Pope & Associates treat her as their client as they clean up the crime scene.Gideon’s killer, Billy Chambers, resigns his positionas VP Sally Langston’s Chief of Staff and makes a case to the White House Press Corps that paints Fitz as a President who takes advantage of his young staffers. Fitz sees this crisis as his way to have a real relationship with Olivia, free from the responsibilities of the presidency, but Olivia and Mellie have other plans.
In this episode,Scandalpulled at fans' heartstrings by teasing the future of a happy Olivia and Fitz and then taking it away with a dramatic twist and beautiful characterization. Olivia, though she truly loves Fitz, is unwilling to let him give up what he has worked so hard for, and what she saw in him in the first place. Mellie uses her powers as an extremely savvy First Lady to turn the negative press into a positive moment for the First Couple, giving viewers an insight into her desire for power.With a tumultuous romance and the incredibly high stakes of a murder, a cover-up and a media scandal, “Grant: For The People” represents the best ofScandal.
1"Happy Birthday, Mr. President”
Season 2, Episode 8 (2012)
Picking up right after President Grant is shot at his birthday party, the audience is thrust back in time to the beginning of his presidential term. In between flashbacks to the beginning of Fitz’s affair with Olivia, viewers learn more about Olivia’s connection to Quinn’s arrival in Washington, D.C., how Mellie pieced together that her husband was having an affair, and how Olivia ended the affair.
This tense episode combined all the things fans ofScandaltune in for: romance, drama, and high-stakes moments. Despite Fitz being in the hospital, the audience learns more about his romance with Olivia and sees that the love between them is real and still exists. Fans also learn more about Vice President Sally Langston as she takes this opportunity to make a move for the Oval Office while Fitz is still unconscious.Through nonlinear storytelling, “Happy Birthday, Mr. President"weaves together several different storylines to answer questions about the motivation behind the actions of several main characters. This pulling back of the curtain behind stories that have been teased for several episodes makes this episode shine.
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