Scandal Season 4 Theory thatâs Probably Wrong, but Still Entertaining to Me:
Iâve discussed some of these ideas with a few people and thought Iâd just write them down. Yes, Iâm well aware that this is written with Olitz lenses. Itâs just me thinking, and most of it is probably wrong (which Iâm used to), but here goesâŚ
I mentioned the other day that I have been enjoying season four, up until Whereâs the Black Lady (411), and had, thereafter been increasingly unsure of where the narrative is going. I actually love 411, but it was the first episode that required me to suspend belief about how the kidnapping of Olivia Pope was orchestrated. It does not sit comfortably with me that Andrew Nichols was the architect of this cabal. No, maâam. And though I could (and did) create an argument for Oliviaâs vehement rejection of Fitz upon her return, in No More Blood (413). But, frankly, it never curled all the way over for me. Not genuinely so. Lastly, I have struggled with post-kidnapping pivot back to the trite B6-13 story line, and re-centering Rowan in Oliviaâs life.
If Rowan is connected to the kidnapping, then all three categories of my dissatisfaction begin to make sense.
How could Andrew, the VP, have the entire Secret Service replaced? How does he know ex-Special OPs guys like Ian? Sure, Andrew had motive to have Fitz trussed up by the proverbial balls for the tenure of his presidency, but why was he so adamant that Olivia remain unharmed (411)? Andrew has absolutely no investment in her physical well-being, nor do I think he was just being kind-hearted all of a sudden. How could Rowan, a man that has claimed to have done everything in his life for Olivia (407), refuse to lift a finger when Jake came to him for help(413)? He said he had no daughter. Six episodes later, heâs a papa whoâs proud of his âgirlâ because she stopped âshiningâ Fitzâs shoes and is âstanding on [her] ownâ (419)?
But then I remember that Rowan knows Special Ops and Black Ops guys. After all, he ordered Fitz to shoot down a commercial airplane in a Black Ops mission (307). Rowan had already infiltrated Secret Service with B6-13 agents (Tom) in order to keep abreast of White House goings-ons (312). So, replacing the entire team: easy. Â And the only person who has ever proffered Oliviaâs physical safety to the detriment of her psychological, and emotional well-being, is Rowan. But why? How could he do that to his daughter?
Actually, this is exactly the kind of thing heâs perpetrated against Olivia for years. All done to toughen her up into some kind of steely, strong black woman archetype, that is only ever subservient one thing: his black patriarchal authority. This is the man who let his 12 year old believe her mother was dead, while he locked that mother away in isolation for her crime, and never let her see any evidence of her daughterâs development. Not even a fucking news clipping (not until she chewed through her own wrists (308)). Â He never let that daughter come back home; he sent her away (301). Sure, she received the finest education and learned a bunch of languages that have come in handy, but she is not OK. Rowan is the guy who, when Olivia was set to see Fitz again after a painful 10 month breakup (post-defiance), had his double agent, Jake Ballard, conveniently intervene in his daughterâs life. Why? To occupy her mind before she was set to see Fitz as Ellaâs christening. I guess he didnât plan on them fucking in a server closet. Woops. He sent his guy in to sleep with Olivia (405 admission), then had that evidence presented to Fitz. The purpose? A misogynistic belief that Fitz sees Olivia as his property, and since the property has been âdefiledâ (310) by another man, Fitz would no longer care for that property. Russell is yet another toy for Olivia to play with, and another means for extracting information in order to stay ahead of her. Rowan is also the guy who allowed his daughterâs name to be leaked by his own B6-13 agent, Tom, (301), when he obviously had the power to quash it. Why? Because it would conveniently allow him to get Olivia away from that âdisappointingâ (310) Fitzgerald Grant. He insisted that she would get on that plane âcome hell or high waterâ (301). Seventeen episodes later, Olivia was checkmated into doing so (318). Bonus points for allowing her to think it was of her own volition. Lastly, Rowan is the guy who killed Fitzâs son for a dual purpose. Doing so gave his daughter another achievement under her belt because Fitz won; and it droveâwhat he hoped would beâa permanent wedge between them. âWhat love could survive thatâ (405), he said, as he built a rationale for the framing of Jake Ballard for his (Rowanâs) own crime.
In light of all of that, kidnapping and war actually fit perfectly with Rowanâs MO.
If Rowan is involved in this kidnapping, it means he forced Fitz into a catch-22, lose-lose situation.Â
Option 1) Not go to war, and Olivia would die. Fitz would forever be blamed & feel guilty for Oliviaâs death (though Rowan would never have actually let Olivia die, just let Fitz think so). Fitz may have even taken his own life over it, and we know he is capable of such an attempt (401). If he attempted to do it after the simultaneous loss of his son and disappearance of Olivia, why would he not complete the job if he had to live in a world where he was made responsible for her death? If so, problem solved anyway, as Rowan sees Fitzâs unconditional love for Olivia, and her loyalty and dedication to him, as a threat to his paternal authority. If Fitz takes himself out, Rowan has his daughter back. Why do I feel like Rowan let that assassination attempt by Verna and Becky ride? Â
Option 2: Fitz goes to war for Olivia, thereby sending thousands of innocent people to their deaths. For three years, Fitz continues to be exploited into actions that make him a wildly unpopular President. Andrew would get to distance himself from Fitzâs administration in some way, without suffering blowback. It would also put him in good standing to usurp Fitzâs position for the next re-election. Olivia stays away from Fitz. But Rowan underestimated his daughter, and her ability to get herself out of tough situations. And, of course, he underestimated the strength of the Olitzâ relationship, and their ability to work as a teamâeven when they have no way of communicating directly with one another (411). They understand how the other person works. All major progress made in 411 was because of Olivia and Fitz.
Knowing Olivia, she would hate that Fitz went to war, sending thousands in harmâs way just for her (413). And she did. Fitz would (and did) claim that he did it for Olivia (413), just as Rowan claims he does everything for her (407,408). Olivia thinks Rowan is a terrible person and has done all the wrong things in her name (407). Rowan, then, makes Fitz into nothing but a man who is just like him: Â "All men are, in fact, just like your father" (419). The kidnapping and war story line paints Fitz as a terrible President, in her eyes. Â He falls in her estimation, and is no better than her father, who kills innocent people in the name of one: her.
Simultaneously, Olivia would also think of Fitz as a man who thinks she needs him to rescue her (something she vehemently rejects (308, 413)), and a disappointment, someone undeserving of the many ways in which sheâs laboured for him (her warped interpretation (413)). She sees him as weak, as the one who needs protecting (308). To protect him (and her, in many ways) after the kidnapping, she puts up a cold front to create distance. She is dangerous for him (a belief she evidences in her 410 dream), but also brings pain upon herself as well, due to her emotional attachment to him.
What I described above was meant to be the byproduct of kidnapping/war. The theories I painted above were meant to lead to an idealistic wedge between our two faves. In some ways the fight, and the subsequent ring toss, in 413 become somewhat of a performance.
I believed Oliviaâs anger, and her right to be angry over what happened to her, but, frankly, Fitz wasnât deserving of it. But who else was she going to take it out on? Itâs because he loves her that she was exploited and traumatized in this way. I maintain that it is the exploiterâs (Rowan, hypothetically) fault, not the fault of the persons (Olivia and Fitz) who love. I donât care how this narrative goes, I will never change my mind about that. Hard line.  A part of me watches that 413 scene, and I can almost see Olivia preparing herself to do something she did not want to do, but it was the only way to get Fitz to stay away from her. It was the only way to ensure there would be no more blood (the title of the episode). No more causing Olivia psychological and emotional distress in order to force her away from Fitz. Already reeling from ASD, Olivia inflicts trauma on herself via the argument she had with Fitz, including the tossing of the ring. And we later see that  in addition to the kidnapping suffering, she revisits that ring toss moment as a traumatic moment in her life (417). Think about it. Having tossed the ring at Fitz (which sent a powerful message of âoverâ to him), she doesnât leave it on the floor, or throw it out. She puts it somewhere safe. And in a panic, she runs to find it, as if her recovery is incomplete without it. They are never over (220).
Oliviaâs Distance and Coldness:Â
Olivia has been keeping her distance and acting cold because itâs the only way she can keep herself (and Fitz) safe, so long as her father is still alive and free. Until she can get justice. Remember that bringing Rowan to justice is what Olivia was trying to do before Rowan decided to leave (409). Shortly thereafter, the woman gets kidnapped (wouldnât be surprised if the plan was in place the moment she returned to DC. Rowan told her he didnât tell her she could leave (401)). This return to B6-13 and Rowan would make sense to me if Rowan is tied into the kidnapping. Otherwise, episodes 410-413 feel like a bizarre sweeps attempt.
Olivia has pushed everyone away. She wasnât returning Abbyâs calls (415), and the rebuilding of their friendship has been a pre-kidnapping, season 4 highlight. Instead of bringing Abby back into her personal confidences, sheâs kept her work-adjacent (415, 416, 418). I mean, Abby is the woman who was instrumental in bringing Olivia home (413).Â
Oliviaâs pre-kidnapping dick-in-a-box , Jake, has been sidelined to strictly B6-13 related business (418). Even that relationshipâthe one filled with convenienceâhas become too complicated for her. She has rebuffed his attempts to comfort her (414, 419). Â âJuliaâ was an identity of the past, so she invented an even more âuncomplicatedâ one, âAlexâ (419). Â Everyone is being kept at emotional armâs length. That makes her recovery that much more difficult, but maybe in Oliviaâs world she justifies it as necessary. She can only deal with work-related drama right now.Â
The Return to B6-13 Shenanigans:
I have been feeling like Olivia is steely, lacking any kind of warmth, and even more emotionally guarded that usual. Sheâs more aggressive and angry than sheâs ever been. Of course all of that makes sense. Look whatâs sheâs been throughâall alone. She killed a guy (410). She shot another, and then beat the shit out of him for the ways in which he tormented and hurt her (413). Olivia is still not quite herself, and why should she be. The ASD flashbacks attest to that. But itâs more than that.  The lack of painted, manicured nails is a small, but important, detail in this regard. As of 420, they remain unpainted. The missing warmth of which Olivia complained in 403âdespite admitting to having Jake (lol, heâs her pet)âis very real post-kidnapping. (Olitz angst music plays as she and Rowan talk about this absent pieceâthe emotional lacuna.) Post-kidnapping Olivia still has Jake, yet chooses not to bring him in close. Â
This is not a woman who reaches for personal help. For her career, sure. In some ways, Olivia canât make a full emotional recovery while instituting a Cold War with Fitz. That coldness and anger are taxing on the body and mind because they take work to maintain. But itâs a sacrifice to freedom and justice. Olivia cannot be the woman she wants to be, or command control of her life while Rowan remains free to inflict all manner of violence and abuse in her name. Â She cannot fully recover, or have anything with Fitz (the person who knows her best on an emotional level), while Rowan remains unpunished. He will destroy it. Â If the kidnapping is any indication, he will truly stop at nothing to make Olivia into the woman he thinks she should be. Whoever that woman is supposed to be, she isnât to be with someone Rowan finds threatening.
Because Olivia and Fitz have been a part for much of this season (and entirely so post-kidnapping), my instinct is to say that this Foxtail business will bring them together in the final hour to fight a mutual enemy: Rowan.  I just canât see Olivia burning Fitz, when, in my eyes, sheâs been protecting him all this time from her father. (It saddens me that Oliviaâs own father is actually her worst enemy, but he insists on running her life at all cost). B6-13, Rowan, and Foxtail need to come to a close. Olivia and this show cannot move forward so long as this narrative centers around those things. They loom too large and have too much authority. I donât want to watch that. I want to watch Olivia navigate new things in her life, not the same trite shit against which sheâs repeatedly been told sheâll lose.
So, thatâs what I thinkâs been happening this season. And if so, it ties most things together (there are always outstanding questions). It certainly makes the âjusticeâ theme of this season workable. Of course, Iâm fully prepared to be disappointed. Lol.
ellievsbear
areudirty
dailybridgerton
theartofmadeline
gracieabrams
