After the fall finale, I didn’t think I’d be able to make it to the end of February to see another Scandal. The holidays and Olympics helped, but I was very happy that February was finally over and we could see what was happening to Olivia and her motley crew. I’d been a bit concerned that Scandal was going to be too extreme after the finale (the bad spy mommy storyline had me thinking that the show was taking an Alias-like turn that it didn’t need) but this week it showed me that it’s focusing again on what it does best: completely dysfunctional romantic relationships.
[SPOILER ALERT – I DISCUSS THIS WEEK’S EPISODE BELOW]
Ironically, Olivia’s relationship with the president is the healthiest relationship on the show right now (even if he is a petulant rich boy used to getting his own way). Quinn is apparently unwilling to leave the dark side (I still have concerns about that plot idea), the new vice president is pining after Mellie (love that storyline!), Harrison’s nemesis showed up with a fantastic but twisted reveal, and the current vice president apparently has a co-dependent relationship with a demon. Plus Jake is going to let his heart be broken again because of his loyalty to his country and his president (and speaking of Alias connections…)
But none of these compare to the most messed up relationship at the moment: that of Cyrus and his long-suffering husband, James. And apparently James is fed up of with how Cyrus treats him. So now he’s secretly tape recording Cyrus, trying to bring him down for his role in the murder of the vice president’s husband (legal question: can you conspire with a demon?). Unfortunately, his tape recording violated D.C. law, which requires that at least one party to the conversation consents to the recording. I’m old enough that James’ conversation about the law with David Rosen immediately brought back memories of Linda Tripp and her bff, Monica Lewinsky (ahh, the good old days of the ’90s). And I’m assuming that, much like Linda, James is now going to secretly record his conversations with Cyrus, in the hopes of bringing down a presidency. Of course, as Linda Tripp discovered, tape recording laws vary from state to state, with some states, such as Maryland, requiring the consent of all parties to the recording. So James had better be careful.
James has bigger problems, however, than just breaking the law. As he himself knows, Cyrus is a monster and isn’t afraid to do some pretty awful stuff (with Olivia’s father being his only true equal in the realm of evil). But Cyrus is the first big bad that I’ve rooted for since Darth Vader. They’re both bad guys but you love to watch them, so I doubt Shondra will let too much happen to Cyrus!