SCANDAL: WHITE HAT'S OFF {SEASON TWO PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
One in this drama/political thriller about the Pope & Associates crisis management firm in Washington D.C.
Mellie tries to plan for the upcoming baby, but President Grant is frustrated by what he sees as political maneuvering on her part. She insists that the child is “America’s baby” and reminds him of his infidelity, trying to get him to take advantage of the situation. Meanwhile, Olivia and her team confer with defense lawyers on behalf of Quinn, revealed to be Lindsay Dwyer, a woman accused of being a serial killer nicknamed the “Molotov Mistress.” Her trial begins and David prosecutes, claiming that Quinn mailed a bomb to her cheating boyfriend’s office as revenge, killing him and several of his co-workers. Olivia and her staff work to shore up Quinn’s defense, but their motion to deny the indictment due to insufficient evidence is denied. Quinn explains to Olivia that she went on the run due to the police surrounding her apartment. They do not fully believe her story, but doubt that Quinn could have been responsible for the bombing. She claims that after she went on the run she was knocked out in a hotel and awoke in Washington DC with the “Quinn Perkins” identity, complete with passports and official identification. David continues to attack the defense attorney’s case, including a thorough dismissal of Quinn’s alleged psychological problems. During his argument David requests that Quinn be given the death penalty for her crimes.
Olivia discusses the media attention surrounding President Grant’s attempts to recover his public image with Cyrus. They also discuss an increasingly dangerous situation off the coast of Sudan involving American aircraft carriers; President Grant is deliberating on a decision to invade the country, and Olivia advises against it. Cyrus wants Olivia to regularly consult President Grant but she notes that she should move on; she notes that Stephen quit her agency and moved to Boston to marry Georgia and live a “normal” life. She and her staff attempt to determine what to do about Quinn, but they are interrupted by a summons on behalf of Jacob Shaw, a Congressman from Rhode Island, who claims that there is a problem in his office that requires their attention. President Grant discusses the situation with the baby and the Sudan situation with Cyrus; he notes that while it is callous to waste American lives, his approval ratings are flagging and he requires something to recapture the faith of voters.
Congressman Shaw invites Olivia and company in, revealing that he discovered camera hidden within his office’s desk clock. Olivia theorizes about who could be responsible and what illicit activity they were attempting to monitor. He reveals that he had a sexual encounter in the office earlier that night which he would prefer not to be disclosed to the public. They investigate and determine that the other person in the encounter was Jennifer Price, a young lawyer he met at a fundraiser earlier that evening. Abby interviews Jennifer and determines that she was not responsible for placing the camera. Huck discovers a likely culprit in the form of a notable right-wing blog which could have reason to discredit Congressman Shaw. Mellie and Cyrus confer on President Grant’s reluctance to invade Sudan despite the benefits it would bring to his administration. Investigations into Quinn’s background continue, but Abby interrupts to confirm that the blog obtained the footage of Congressman Shaw having sex, and that they plan to go public with the information the next day. Olivia asks Harrison to demand an injunction to try to stop the tape from being released, and asks Huck to do some hacking to try to obtain the tape. Olivia discovers that Quinn has hired another lawyer to get her a plea deal, and Quinn “fires” Olivia. She speaks to Quinn alone, who expresses her frustration that Olivia has not been dealing honestly with her and says that she is getting desperate. Olivia says that she knows that she can win Quinn’s case and asks her for her trust. Quinn comes to trust Olivia again and she undoes the plea deal despite David’s concern about the matter.
Harrison argues before a judge that the camera used to record Congressman Shaw could be considered government property, and thus the recording would fall under the purview of the government as well; according to this definition, distributing it would be considered copyright infringement. Huck obtains the sex tape and Olivia discovers from Abby that Congressman Shaw has a history of promiscuity, and has been seen with a number of his partners in hotel lobbies. He is single and believes that no legal problems will ensue, but Olivia points out that the media will get the wrong impression about him and it will ruin his political career. Harrison is unable to secure the injunction and the tape is set to be released. President Grant and Mellie are interviewed by a talk show host, wherein the gender of their upcoming baby is revealed: it is a boy. During the interview Mellie takes the opportunity to advocate for an invasion of eastern Sudan, making it more difficult for President Grant to refuse such an action. This sudden outburst meets with Cyrus’s tacit approval. After the interview President Grant is angry about her opportunistic display, but she points out that the attention surrounding the broadcast and increasing support for his decisions are exactly what he needed at that moment. President Grant snaps at her, claiming that her opinion is unimportant with regards to his presidential decisions and that she has overstepped her boundaries. Mellie is hurt by his outburst and says she gave up her law career to help him get elected, and says that he can’t get Olivia back no matter how much he misses her. He apologizes to her and they share a quiet moment with each other.
Later, President Grant calls Olivia, and she answers him with some trepidation. They have a brief conversation as Olivia tells him that he shouldn’t be communicating with her. They discuss the news broadcast, and President Grant notes that he no longer needs Olivia’s advice about what to do. She gives him advice anyway, telling him to somehow reason an excuse not to invade eastern Sudan, and not to be pressured by anyone, even Mellie. They hang up, and this conversation gives Olivia a spark of inspiration as to Congressman Shaw’s case: she decides to release the sex tape herself ahead of schedule in as a means of “controlling the narrative.” They begin by sending it to relatively benign sources such as celebrity gossip programs, and using this as a platform to help Congressman Shaw discuss issues of interest to him, such as deficiencies in the nation’s healthcare system. This strategy appears to pay off as Congressman Shaw parlays the media attention surrounding him into a more constructive purpose. Olivia and her staff return to Quinn’s case, and the prospect seems increasingly dire: Huck is unable to find security footage of the person who kidnapped her, and Harrison’s assessment of the jury indicates that they are strongly considering ruling her guilty. Harrison visits Quinn and feebly tries to grant her a measure of reassurance.
The defense team moves for an acquittal for Quinn due to circumstantial evidence. The judge grants this motion, shocking the entire courtroom, even Harrison and Quinn. David is incensed at this development and demands to know the reasoning behind this development; the judge simply replies that she agrees that the evidence has been circumstantial and that the government has been unsuccessful in proving its case. The case is declared closed despite David’s loud protestations and the confusion of the courtroom. David speaks to Olivia alone in the courtroom after the trial. He is outraged at Olivia’s manipulation of events and is determined to find out exactly what she did to change the outcome of the trial. President Grant orders Cyrus to make it seem as though Mellie’s statements were of his own design and leak the information to the press as part of an elaborate public relations campaign. He admits that this is nothing but a measure to give him time to devise a solution to the situation in Sudan. He accuses Cyrus of being responsible for the recent string of leaks and misinformation around the office, and says the decision to go to war is his and his alone. Cyrus accepts President Grant’s offer of a “time out” and deduces that his plan was actually formulated by Olivia.
Abby and Harrison are disturbed by Quinn’s sudden acquittal and want to know what Olivia is up to. Olivia simply insists that Quinn is going to live, and says that this news should be sufficient for them. In private, Abby notes that Olivia is concealing much from them, and they are all suspicious about the outcome of the trial. Huck, however, is perfectly willing to follow Olivia’s lead and put his trust in Quinn. Two years ago, Quinn (then Lindsay Dwyer) hides in a motel room and watches a news broadcast about the bombing on television. In accordance with her story, an unknown assailant enters her room and knocks her unconscious with a drug administered via a syringe. Quinn exits her hotel after waking up with her new identity. Unbeknownst to her, she is being followed by Huck. In the present day, Huck finds security footage of Quinn exiting the hotel and finds that he has also been recorded on it. He secretly deletes the file before anyone else can see it. Two years ago, Huck reports back to Olivia, who turns out to be the one who orchestrated the creation of Quinn’s new identity. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: September 27, 2012 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:42:34
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 109544
- GENRE: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SUBJECT HEADING: LGBT Collection - Drama; African-American Collection - Drama; Drama, mystery/suspense; Politics
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 2012-2018
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Mark Wilding … Executive Producer
- Betsy Beers … Executive Producer
- Shonda Rhimes … Executive Producer, Created by
- Judy Smith … Co-Executive Producer
- Jenna Bans … Co-Executive Producer, Writer
- Scott Collins … Producer
- Merri D. Howard … Producer
- Heather Mitchell … Producer
- Tom Verica … Director
- Chad Fischer … Music by
- Kerry Washington … Cast, Olivia Pope
- Columbus Short … Cast, Harrison Wright
- Darby Stanchfield … Cast, Abby Wright
- Katie Lowes … Cast, Quinn Whelan
- Guillermo Diaz … Cast, Huck
- Jeff Perry … Cast, Cyrus Beene
- Joshua Malina … Cast, David Rosen
- Bellamy Young … Cast, Mellie Grant
- Tony Goldwyn … Cast, President Fitzgerald Grant III
- Gregg Henry … Cast, Hollis Doyle
- Jackson Hurst … Cast, Jacob Shaw
- Jillian Armenante … Cast, Moira O'Donnell
- Wendy Davis … Cast, Kimberly Mitchell
- Jimmy Kimmel … Cast, Himself
- Adria Tennor … Cast, Brenda Swan
- Stephen Hornyak … Cast, Gary Olverman
- Charles C. Stevenson Jr. … Cast, Judge Milton Kalev
- Pilar Holland … Cast, Jennifer Price
- Liz Torres … Cast, Federal Judge
- Maura Soden … Cast, Psychologist
- Biff Yeager … Cast, Norm
- Chris Allen … Cast, Young Congressional Aide
- Erica Shaffer … Cast, TV Newscaster
- Mel Fair … Cast, Field Reporter
- Malika Williams … Cast, Guard
- Reece Rios … Cast, Reporter #1
- Dinora Walcott … Cast, Reporter #2
- Heather Ayers … Cast, TV Reporter
- Randolph Adams … Cast, Slimy Tabloid Reporter
- Jay Jackson … Cast, Local Newscaster