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Thursday 29 November 2012

Scandal 1.6 "The Trail" Review

                                            
The President (Tony Goldwyn) arrives at Olivia's (Kerry Washington) continued from last episode as we now get a series of flashbacks, he even tells her he only slept with Amanda (Liza Weil) cos he was nursing a broken heart over her.  He also gives Olivia, shall I call her Livvie, the sex tape sent to Cyrus (Jeff Perry).  Which we now know is of him and Olivia and not of him and Amanda.  Cue flashbacks.  The Governor, as he was then is now on his campaign, laments the ratings in the New Hampshire primary, so along comes Olivia to bail him out, brought in by Cyrus.

Her solution he and his wife, Mellie (Bellamy Young) must show more affection for one another in front of the Press.  Things don't go smoothly there and as Olivia wants to leave cos of a remark made by Cyrus, the man has no diplomacy, yet he's meant to be his number one man.   Cyrus calls the Governor a "sausage" which is for his you-know-what, the Governor, I should just call him Fitz,  rushes after her and they share moments of intense staring and oohing, well they could probably out stare each other.  We also get our first glimpse of Amanda who is at an event for the opposition, as pieces of the puzzle fall into place.  She was used to set up the President so that the opposition will win when his big scandal is revealed.  That's why she didn't want to go any further with the deception and was killed.  Also why the President was adamant she wasn't having his baby.

Rosen (Joshua Malina) and his assistant, Alissa (Brenda Song) put together pieces of who Amanda could have slept with at the Whitehouse.  As she goes through photos coming up with possibility, one she overlooks is Billy (Matt Letscher).  He was shifty, never liked him the way he 'smarmed' (that's my word now) after Olivia.  Also he told her about Cyrus and his investigation on her entire team.  Proving he couldn't keep a secret to save his life.  However Rosen and co give up on finding the real 'daddy.'  Even after he used the phrase "baby daddy."   He was investigating her murder and yet he just gives up on the father's identity, do your job man!

Okay so the episode we were waiting for, the one where Gideon (Brendan Hines) gets it and after he was just naked with his grilled cheese with Quinn (Katie Lowes), but work calls for this up and coming journo, at least he had a last moment of pleasure!  Anyway he gets out that video again and we get flashes between him watching the video and The Presidential campaign.  Olivia convinces him and wifey to become a perfect couple for the benefit of the unsuspecting public and the press.  They come out of their children's school, kiss, eat ice cream, cuddle and everything couples do, except Governor wishes he could be doing all that with Olivia.  In one scene on the bus he tells her he shouldn't have been a coward and should have waited for her and not marry Mellie (yeah Smelly Mellie).  Much to the chagrin of Sally Langston (Kate Burton) who is a Senator and Vice President.  Billy is her aide.  Aide to getting up to no good that is and yes politics is a dirty world but he wired the Governor's room, just to get dirt on him.

SO why did when Fitz, aka, Governor, Aka President, tell Olivia his room was that way in the hotel and she went to his room, instead of inviting him into her room, don't think Billy would have had the nouse to bug her room, unless he bugged everyone else's room too.  Mind you, Olivia was lucky she didn't say anything when he told her "take off your clothes."  Ooh Olivia wears lacy undies, erm, yes well the press would have a field day with that.

Anyway, the polls look good and Cyrus finds there's a story going round about Mellie having an affair.  Billy wants Olivia to make the Governor take the Vice President place instead but Olivia isn't finished with her job yet.  Langston wins New Hampshire.  Olivia brings in her ace, it's Huck (Guillermo Diaz) underneath a mass of hair and going back to the story where he told Charlie he was homeless and she rescued him.  Huck tells them about Mellie being followed and photos being snapped of her.  Once again if this was the case why were Governor and Olivia so free in their conversations and actions, of course there'd be other such snooping people out there.

The so-called man Mellie was having the 'affair' has associations with some Adult movie company and was being paid by them.  He's convinced to declare he's not having an affair.  The Governor and Olivia share a moment where they just watch each other "for one minute."  Women voters seem to not like this Governor so Mellie makes up a story of a miscarriage and it's lapped up.  He tells Olivia the story was fake.  At the press conference he later talks about Mellie and the woman he's in love with, but that's Olivia as we know.

As said, the interlude between Governor and Olivia was being taped and Amanda passes on the USB to Billy, who wants to convince Langston to use it, but she's already accepted to be his VP.  Billy is angry and we find he's Amanda's killer and Amanda's boyfriend.  Cos you see between the flashbacks, Gideon worked out Amanda had a boyfriend and after a few calls finds out he lives at Logan Circle.  The Trail, as in the title leading back to Billy.  He confronts Billy with this knowledge, foolish boy and even tells him about Amanda being pregnant and having the coroner's report.  Er, didn't anyone ever tell him, not to meet someone alone with news like this.  Gideon tells Billy this is his story and Billy finding the whole thing too much grabs scissors from Gideon's desk and stabs him in the neck, blood dripping everywhere.  Poor Gideon in agony and we shall see him no more!! Which is a shame.  What was this, Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M For Murder, stabbing with scissors.

Billy was also the one who provided Gideon with the breaking story about Amanda and the President, he figured this dumb reporter wouldn't be able to put two and two together.  Yet Billy wasn't even aware who the President was really with, so he took the opportunity to provide him with the Amanda scandal, as he sent her to sleep with him.

Olivia and the President have their moment together, present day as they say goodbye and have "one more minute" which turned out to be more than a minute, okay even if it was meant to be a "TV minute."  So Quinn had nothing to do with Gideon's demise but she still has secrets, we don't know her background yet, so I may be right about her after all.  Pity pretty Gideon was killed, he would have made a good associate for Olivia to hire since he was the one who worked out the real truth about Amanda and who was behind it.




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