The Other Woman isn't Just Olivia: Scandal Ep 202 Recap

When we left off in the premiere episode of Scandal’s season 2, David Rosen had just lost his case against Quinn aka Lindsey Dwyer in the 11th hour and to say he wasn’t pleased is an understatement. Let’s just get into this tea!

Booty Call Hours – Liv is in bed late at night when the phone rings and it’s Fitz. She talks nothing but business and then tells him 23 people have to work late every time he decides to call her. “Tell me to stop calling. Tell me you don’t want to hear from me.”

She pauses and he tells her he gon talk to her tomorrow. WELP. They hang up and the phone rings. She picks up to say “stop calling I don’t wanna hear from you” and this time, it’s not Fitz on the phone.

Displaced Gladiators – Huck is at his AA meeting at the very back and he gets called on but his phone rings. Back at Olivia’s place, Quinn is on her couch and asking for answers about her trial and Liv leaves her there to go handle business.

Newest Client – At OPA office, Abby is telling Huck and Harrison about their new client. He’s a high profile Black pastor (Marvin Drake) who officiated a gay wedding and has been getting death threats. He is missing and his wife is worried because she feels like something happened to him and there are no signs of him anywhere.

Olivia calls David and he isn’t willing to do her any favors. He’s lost his power so he can’t help, plus she’s not his fave person at the moment. Huck’s surveillance turns up where he was last at, and it’s a hotel room so they roll up there. They hear someone’s muffled voice and they go in to find the pastor dead on a woman who he’s tied to the bed post. Truly a “How he die?” “On top of me” Color Purple moment. BOM CHICKA WOMP WOMP!

James Daddy Fever – Cyrus wakes up to James who is talmbout them adopting a baby. He quit his job so Cy better bring him a lil bambino as he promised! And his claims of being an award-winning journalist have him rolling his eyes.

Keep It On the Down Low – Anna, the pastor’s lover is all distraught, understandably and Harrison escorts her out the hotel room. Liv says the Gladiators gotta get him out without attention because he is a highly respected figure. She tells his wife that his congregation will never know and neither will their kids. They gotta keep his legacy intact.

Liv asks Huck what he needs to handle it and he reads off a list that includes a meat cleaver and latex gloves.

A worried Liv tells him that he is to move the Pastor, not get rid of him. Huck is clearly fiending for some action he hasn’t had in a while.

Back at the Drake residence, they’ve moved the Pastor into his bed and put him in some pajamas to dress it up like he died in his sleep at home. His wife enters their room and they tell her to call 911 after she puts her nightgown on. Liv says her story to tell is “He was asleep when you came in and dead when you woke up.”

Harrison is sitting in front of Anna’s home and she isn’t signing the non-disclosure form nor taking the hush hush money. She isn’t a hooker like they thought. She’s his mistress. OOP.

Left for Dead – At the White House, Fitz walks into the war room where his defense team is sitting and sees a photo of dead children laid out. They were killed at the hands of the government of East Sudan and Fitz wants military options by noon. As they all file out, Cyrus stops a young looking dude and asks if he’s ok.

Gladiators Gladiating – They find out that the woman under Pastor Marvin is Anna Gordon, a lawyer and civil rights activist. Turns out she and the pastor have a 15-year history, based on cellphone records Huck dug up. She wasn’t just his lover but his mistress. Liv understands that she clearly loves him because otherwise she coulda been paid off years before. So Abby’s in charge of the funeral, Harrison has to make sure that anyone who knows bout the affair STFU and Huck gotta check on Quinn at Liv’s crib.

Ornery in the Oval – Mellie walks into the Oval Office and Fitz ain’t got time for her small talk. He scolds her and she says she’s there to tell him Reverend Drake died and thought he’d wanna know. “A great man died today but you’re running a country. I’ll let you get back to it.” They’re so damb CUTTING to each other.

Quinn’s Gone – Huck gets to Liv’s apartment and says Quinn’s name but she isn’t anywhere to be found. He opens her comp and sees that she’s booked a ticket to Oakland, California. We then see that Quinn is sitting in a diner and a man walks in and says “Lindsey.” It’s her dad.

Living Leverage – Anna tells Olivia that her and the Rev celebrated Christmas together every year when his wife, Nancy, went to see her sister in the Cape. December 28 was their Christmas. She wants her to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) but Anna wants she says she wants $6 million before she does it. Olivia tells her she doesn’t have that much leverage. And then she calls her young son Vincent over.

He looks JUST like the Rev. How’s THAT for leverage?

Negotiations and Arrangements – Nancy is not here for the $6 million price and Liv says it’s time to start negotiating. Too bad Anna ain’t moving one bit. Elsewhere, Abby is running the funeral guest list and it seems to be like the opening of a movie. Folks are asking for +1s left and right like it’s VIP at the club. While she’s doing this, Harrison is paying off hotel staff and other folks who might have seen the Rev and Anna together.

Liv proposes that Anna get $2 million up front, $2 million in a trust fund she controls til Vincent is 25 and $2 million in a fund he can’t touch til he’s 30. BUT if her relationship with Pastor Marvin Drake leaks, they will come for her for ALL $6 mil. Deal? DEAL.

Nosy Hollis – Hollis creeps up on Cyrus in the White House and he’s asking about the Sudan deaths. He’s pushing for military action so Fitz can look good for re-election and Cyrus side-eyes him.

Pouring Crisis – At the Gladiator office, Huck tells Liv that Quinn is gone. Then Harrison says they’re trying to do an autopsy on the pastor’s body which could show he didn’t die at home and they could be in hot fire for tampering with the scene. AW DAMB!

He Stopped Believing – Quinn asks her dad if he thinks she committed those crimes (blowing up the citron building) and he said it doesn’t matter. He has to go to work and he leaves, saying his new girlfriend fixed her a bed. Quinn is feeling unloved on her journey. Aawwww.

Autopsy Authority – Abby and Harrison go see the Coroner to try and stop her from doing the autopsy, saying the pastor is a Christian man. They find out that the autopsy call came from the U.S. District Attorney’s office. Oh so David is behind this?? Liv walks in his office and tells him there’s no need to do this autopsy. He says he will not bend the law for her. Rosen is clearly still butthurt bout his case loss.

Doctored Image – President Ghost is in a meeting with his defense staff and Cyrus says he needs a moment with him. Beene thinks the photo of the dead kids was doctored. He doesn’t trust the intel and they barge into the CIA office and confront the young dude Cy stopped after the war room meeting earlier.

Motel Hotel No Holiday Inn – Quinn is at a motel in Cali when Huck walks up behind her and surprises her by saying “This is where it happened. This is where they took you.” She says she came to see her dad (her mom died when she was 7). Huck tells her that this is where they took Lindsey Dwyer. 7 people died in the explosion but if they count her, it’s 8.

Photoshop War – Ghost shows young CIA dude the picture of the dead kids in Sudan and asks what’s wrong with it. The guy says it’s probably not a current pic because the plant around the bodies hasn’t grown in that region in bout 5 years due to global warming. The Director of the CIA walks in and is told to hand in his resignation letter by morning. “I won’t be photoshopped into a war.” WELLLLPPPP!!!

Consider It Handled – Liv is in bed (in this silky gray BOMB ASS house coat) when her phone rings. It’s Fitz. Liv tells him bout the Pastor died on top of a woman. and he tells her “The Pastor is kind of kinky” and they both cackle. They both cackle at the ridiculousness of it all with their gossipy selves.

Fitz laughs HARD and Liv tells him she was his mistress. He asks what she wants him to do and she says sadly “Let me go.” And she screams that what she really wants is for him to shut down the autopsy for the Pastor. He echos her line back to her with “Consider it handled.” That convo turned left quick.

You Are His Partner – Liv is at Pastor Drake’s home talking about how the funeral will go when she notices Nancy is fidgeting. Turns out she took a sedative. Liv instructs her what to say when Mellie gets there. “No matter what she says, you say thank you.” Mellie walks in and sees Liv and rubs her stomach. Petty. As she says she’s sorry for her loss, Nancy whispers “he had a mistress.” They clear the room and Mellie asks for a private moment that included Liv herself leaving them two alone. Nancy talks about how she feels like she didn’t know him at all and she starts strumming her pain with her fingers because she understands it all too well.

“You ARE his partner. You are his wife. Some mistress doesn’t change that. You were just stronger than he was. He’s not a monster. He’s the man you fell in love with. You have to bury the man you married. You are his WIFE right to the end.”

Aaawwwww. Liv stands outside and hears it all.

Lose Lose – Abby tells Liv that Anna isn’t signing the NDA and wants more money. David is at his office is pissed that the autopsy is being stopped and he wants to know how Liv did it. His boss tells him he is being REQUIRED to take a leave of absence (aka fired). OUCH!

15 Christmases, 15 Birthdays, 1 Goodbye – Liv goes to see Anna to find out what she wants but she quickly realizes it’s something she cannot have, a legit relationship and life with the Pastor.

“What you want is 15 christmases on December 25th, 15 birthdays, 15 years of sleeping next to him and waking up with him… what you’ve always wanted is to be a part of his life and now he’s gone and you want to be a part of his legacy but you aren’t and you never were.” Well damb! But she also wants a chance to say goodbye.

Goodbye – As people are entering the funeral, Liv pulls Nancy to the side and tells her Anna wants to be there with her son. She says no and is reminded that Pastor Drake’s legacy can be destroyed if Anna steps in front of any of the many cameras around.

The East Sudan Photo is confirmed as fake and all over the media. And then live feeds switch to the funeral of Pastor Marvin Drake. Liv walks in with Anna and her son Vincent and Nancy sees them in the back. Fitz sees Liv and their eyes linger. President Ghost eulogizes the pastor, who counseled 7 presidents. Quinn is at Liv’s weeping.

As the pastor’s casket is being carried out and Nancy stops next to Anna and Vincent. She takes them by the hand and they walk out together. CLASSY.

Forgive Me – After the funeral, Fitz and Mellie are in the limo together and she starts talking about their first apartment together. When he asks her if she has a point, she says she’d like him to forgive her for “living in a perpetual war zone… somewhere in here is the girl you got in the blankets with on Morgan Street.”

Aawww Mellie. Fitz takes her hand for some seconds and pulls her close. He gives her a top of the head kiss, says he forgives her and picks up his papers again and goes back to his side of the seat. Thats ALL the affection he can muster up for her. OUCH!

Whiskey – Huck is at his AA meeting and gets up to talk for the first time. “My name is Huck and I’m an alcoholic. I like to drink… whiskey. I used to get paid to drink whiskey because I’m really really good at it.” It’s clear that whiskey is his code for killing. He misses slaying people for a living.

It Ain’t Over – President Ghost asks for his secure line and calls Olivia as she’s listening to the eulogy he gave earlier. She watches the phone ring. James and Cyrus are prepping for bed and Cy says he can’t have baby because Fitz is his baby. “My baby is troubled and angry and exhausting and brilliant and might actually change the world if I keep my eyes on him every minute and eats his vegetables.” Cy ain’t got TAHM for another. James says the discussion isn’t ober but that little rant (and power) turns him on so they get it on! OWWWWWW!!!

What’s the Deal?– Liv is with Supreme Court justice Verna Thornton, prepping her for her upcoming interview. When they’re alone, Verna asks her bout someone and Liv says she tried to go home. Quinn! “That innocent little girl of ours could bring down this government.” WHOA.

Meanwhile, David Rosen has created an awkward shrine to Liv and Quinn in his apartment. He’s tryna figure out how he lost the case and how Liv keeps trumping him. It’s creepy but understandable.

CHILE!!! This episode. So many questions right now. How is Verna involved with Quinn?? Lemme find out that’s her grandma or something. And David… is he gonna try to get revenge on Liv? He better be careful. But I understand because Olivia keeps messing up his life. We’ll see what happens next week cuz I’m over here like: