Olivia really doesn't want to answer the ringing Fitz phone. Maybe she changes her mind because she thinks, this time, Fitz is calling to be honest, maybe even apologize. Since she knew Fitz's dad, I don't understand why she thinks Fitz would do that. Fitz just wants to hear her voice, find out whether Olivia has decided to hate him forever, tell her once again that national security will always trump whatever "love" he feels for her. Olivia does a great job of summing up the last two seasons when she points out that she is surrounded by men who leave body counts, and the strain is starting to get to her.
Look, I can only have so many killers in my life
Fitz begs her to leave the airplane crash alone. Olivia says nothing, and tells Fitz that he's like a stranger to her now. I suppose she's right: when they were campaigning together and having an affair, Olivia must have felt she knew everything about this man. Now, she realizes how much he has to conceal. We learn later that Fitz, out of concern for Olivia, is having her followed by an old friend.
Olivia rallies the gladiators. Jake enters with the rest, sitting at the table with everyone else. Is he officially a gladiator too? Since Josie is speech-writing for a bit, they've got a break from next year's election. But they will not be idle. Olivia explains that the picture of their new client, which Huck and Jake must already know, is her mother. The gladiators will investigate the airplane crash that brought the plane down and killed all aboard. There's just one catch, which only Huck and Jake already know: Olivia places a picture of Fitz up, explaining that he shot the plane down, ordered to do so by B-613, and that the order was given by her own father, who also heads B-613. Wow, those are some serious cards on the table.
Just another day at the office
Mellie's contempt for her own job shines through, even to the reporter who Mellie is escorting around to help repair the image of her marriage. Curating the White House art collection could be interesting, except that Mellie has a law degree and some really unrealistic expectations. Wow, there's a scary moment when the First Lady has to make an executive decision on… china to use for a White House reception in a couple of nights. This episode shows, as if we didn't already see, how disappointed Mellie is in how little her sacrifices have gained her. Mellie and the reporter go back and forth over whether her home is North Carolina, where she was raised, or California, where she and Fitz lived before the Presidency. Mellie, like a good wife, tells the reporter that home is where her husband is.
Quinn is playing shoot-em-up with her new buddy Charlie, pleased at her progress, although it's nothing to Charlie's pretty impressive marksmanship. He tells her he's a PI now, working on a cheating husband case, hoping for more like it. She later actually trails him to his stakeout, where he catches her. And then, for some inexplicable reason, kisses her. Charlie, morbid fascination is NOT sexual attraction. I think.
Abby and Quinn together are doing a lot of grunt work digging on the airplane crash, comparing different reports and sources to find discrepancies. They find a big one- the flight was supposed to be full, but there seems to have been a missing person. Who? The congressional report has no answers, and the gladiators figure out why: Fitz's dad, the late US Senator Big Jerry Grant, headed the congressional investigation of the crash. Hmmmm. Yet another coincidence. The gate agent will know who was taken off the plane. Quinn demands that Huck recognize that she was right about Olivia having huge issues with her Dad. Since Huck knew about it already, it's hard for him to really gush about Quinn's intuition, and she leaves pretty dissatisfied with him.
We flashback to Santa Barbara, about 15 years ago, with Fitz and Mellie actually in love, though we know it won't last. The entire flashback is shot with some sort of filter that makes colors drab, without actually going all black and white on us. Fitz is considering running for the Governor's mansion in California while staying with Fitz's dad for a visit. Fitz's dad surprises them with the news that a major player in California politics won't be running for Governor, opening up the field. He also surprises Fitz and Mellie with Cyrus, with a totally 90s gay guy haircut and an open appraising stare as he assesses both Mellie and Fitz before even speaking to them.
I hate Fitz, but, dude, he's not meat in a butcher shop.
Cyrus later talks strategy, telling Fitz to just concentrate on military base areas, right-wing counties, and everyone who loves a veteran. Oh, and run on your war record. You know, like how you shot down a civilian plane once? Fitz, who absolutely doesn't want to run on a career that was forged after the fact to hide his classified work, refuses and walks away, starting a major hissy fit with his dad. Big Jerry is still resentful that his son didn't follow the career path Big Jer laid out for him. Fitz would like his dad to admit that it was right for Fitz to serve his country and stand on his own two feet for a while. Although, if Fitz has really learned how to stand on his own two feet, why is he going to daddy to be made Governor?
Mellie tries to convince Cyrus to stay, asking Cyrus if he'll help smooth things over between Fitz and Big Jerry. Cyrus informs her that that is Mellie's job, because being a closeted gay man with a wife is all his plate can take. "Be the wife", he tells her. Mellie is insulted. She's a partner at a law firm. Cyrus laughs the laugh of the cynical and amused, then tells her she'll have to give that up if she really really wants to win the Governorship, maybe even the White House. So Mellie womans up and tells Cyrus to come back tomorrow, when she will have fixed the problem and the bickering between Fitz and Big Jerry.
Back in the present, the gate agent tells a couple of gladiators, when they interview her, about a strange occurrence before takeoff, while the plane was on the tarmac and cleared for take off. Apparently, the plane was held on the tarmac so a Federal Marshall could remove an Omar Something from the plane at the last minute, and whoever questioned her way back when never bothered reporting on that. She always thought it was odd. Was there anyone else who would have seen this? Sure, the guy operating the stairs to the plane that were used so the Federal Marshall and Omar could leave the plane. Where is he now?
Cyrus and Mellie plot on stymying the Vice President's backstabbing by selecting a hooker to seduce the VP's husband. Mellie prides herself on picking things out, and finds who she thinks will be just the girl. It will be at the reception, the one Mellie just picked out china for. Cyrus then asks VP Sally to go to Iowa, on a glad-handling mission so that Fitz can do important President stuff. Thinking Cyrus just handed her a chance to do more backstabbing, Sally agrees. Mellie tries to sidebar VP Sally to just let her know that a female intern complained about Mr. Sally's hands not being on his own body. VP Sally shoots down the accusation, but later, privately, reminds her husband not to fuck things up for them. Her husband, tired of this conversation the last twenty times they had it, tells her not to worry.
Later, on her present-day marriage image repair crusade, Mellie takes the baby to the Oval Office for some Daddy time, gleefully telling the reporter that Fitz always makes time for the baby, who is cuter than the Defense Secretary. But not today. Mellie opens the door on an empty Oval Office. Mellie is flustered while she reassures the reporter, though it's really her who could use some reassuring. Mellie later will yell at Cyrus, because Fitz is who knows where, demanding that Fitz be at the interview tomorrow. He can't make her any promises.
Olivia, who's taking a back seat while her gladiators work, is getting a report from Abby. Even though Olivia hates personal contact, Abby warns Olivia that she needs a hug, and gives Olivia a good, two-armed embrace, which Olivia appreciates. They'll find the guy who let the Federal Marshal and Omar Something off, and get to the bottom of why the plane was shot down. She hopes.
Back in the past, Mellie is trying to reason with Big Jerry, which is her first mistake. This guy literally thinks he's a great dad because he didn't beat his son, like Grandpa Grant did. Mellie, horrified at Big Jer's complete asshole-ness, gets a full helping when she hears all about Fitz's secret mission to shoot down a plane that would have landed in London with a dirty bomb, and that Big Jer covered it up so the US Government wouldn't get sued by the survivors of the "collateral damage". Big Jer is absolutely contemptuous of anyone who would judge his actions. But Big Jer isn't done. After confessing that he wasn't faithful to Fitz's mother, and Fitz knew, Big Jer then decides he wants Mellie too. She tries to fight back, but Big Jerry is a strong guy, much bigger than her, and Mellie is totally unprepared for just how awful men can be.
Flashback Mellie, a mess, silently slips into her and Fitz's bedroom, creeping to the bathroom, but Fitz is actually awake and wants to cuddle. Mellie, desperately trying to hide what her father-in-law has just done tries to beg off to take a shower, but Fitz really needs spooning and doesn't notice that she's just had sex anyway, even when he's holding her in bed. He cuddles with Mellie while complaining that his dad has never apologized for anything, or ever even admitted that Fitz did a good job in the military. Instead, Big Jer always just acts as if Fitz never does anything right. Mellie is all too happy when Fitz tells Mel they'll leave in the morning, and try a run for Governor when the timing is better.
Mellie today storms in on Fitz while he's doing super important stuff to yell at him for being a no-show with the reporter, and trying to duck out of tomorrow's interview. She angrily reminds Fitz that this whole exercise in humiliation for her is because of his affair, and to get him back on the re-election track. She tells Fitz that he's like a stranger to her now. This actually gets his attention, mostly because Olivia just said the same thing days ago. The next day, he surprises both the reporter and Mellie by showing up for the interview, defending his wife for staying with him, and aces the reception.
Flashback Mellie tries to eat breakfast alone with Big Jerry, desperate to pretend nothing happened. But, Big Jerry just can't help bringing it up and glossing it over, which disgusts her. She realizes she has quite the trump card just in the nick of time, because she tells Big Jerry just what to say and apologize for when Fitz shows up for breakfast. Fitz is stunned at this total turn in his father, but it never occurs to him to ask why any of this is happening. We see Mellie's first victory in the game of politics, and we see her triumph a week later, when she and Fitz have a secretly-gay campaign manager and a staff and celebrate with a lovely toast. We see Mellie's fake First Lady smile, the smile that refuses to acknowledge any difficulty or insult, 'cause she'll get you back later.
I'm going to crush you all
Team Gladiator almost manages to interview the stair guy from the airplane, but it seems that Charlie has convinced a certain alienated Gladiator that this guy needs to be knocked out so Charlie can break in and do a fun job. Quinn is all to happy to help, using her sweet, innocent, chirpy brunette routine to jab a hypodermic that she obviously didn't examine the contents of into his hand. She's excited as she calls Charlie to tell him he can come in now, only to get no response from the phone. Just a lot of froth and blood out of the guy, and then he dies with his blood all over her hands. Quinn, freaking, runs away to try to call Huck in a nearby alley. But it's Charlie who shows up and shows her a video of the night's fun. He informs Quinn that she's officially on team B-613 now. And the Gladiators will never question the last guy to see Omar Something get off the plane.
But the guy I never should have trusted told me not to worry!
The White House reception goes swimmingly, with Fitz giving Mellie no reason to feel insulted, but she and Cyrus are still disappointed when they're plan with the hooker seducing VP Sally's hubbie doesn't work. Cyrus' husband, James, tries to talk to Cyrus about something, but Cyrus is angry and reminds his hubbie that he hasn't been getting the great interviews because he either lobs softballs or gets taken to the woodshed. James thanks Cyrus for reminding him why he just got fired that day and storms off. Mellie and Cyrus commiserate together, until Mellie sees something interesting. VP Sally's hubbie may not have dug the hooker, but wow, is he into James Novak. Mellie and Cyrus realize they have something better than just marital infidelity, they have a closeted gay man and marital infidelity.
The gay conversion therapy clearly didn't work
Fitz's old friend gives Fitz a report on his tracking of Olivia, telling Fitz she appears to live the normal life of a busy professional. Fitz is still convinced she's in danger, and is looking over the report he's just gotten on Olivia's family. The last page has a very rare picture of Olivia's father, which had to be procured from a former badge from Dad's work at the "Smithsonian". Fitz realizes what Olivia meant when she said she's surround by murderers. She meant Fitz. And her father.
Rowan Pope flashes his badge in a top secret, drab, depressing building and goes to a super secret detention facility, where he tells someone sleeping in a cell that their daughter is asking about "you". Mya Pope sits up in bed, distrusting what her own husband is telling her. How long has she been down there?
Good, I hope she kills you
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