Lights, Camera, Mellie: 'Scandal' Sheds Some New Light on the First Lady We Love to Hate
Perception and reality are completely the opposite of each other.
Look — as "Scandal" fans, we all think of Mellie as the villain, right? She's in the way between and Fitz and Olivia. Even when the show has painted her in shades of gray, she's been one of those characters you love to hate.
I love @BellamyYoung's character. I would never do that to Mellie. I'm not that evil.
— Joe Morton (@JOEtheMORTON) November 15, 2013
But tonight's episode made us realize that for all her political machinations, for all her scheming, Mellie is a real woman, with real problems, with real heartaches, with real tragedies.
OK, we are now #TeamMellie. Inconceivable. Unreal. #ScandaI
— Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) November 15, 2013
Let's just say it: Mellie was raped by Fitz's dad.
It's disgusting. It's horrifying. It's hard to talk about.
And in that vein, she never tells Fitz. She brushes the topic away with his dad the next morning. She just ignores it — to be a good wife, a good candidate's spouse, a good First Lady.
We now better understand why she clings to Fitz, why she doesn't just dump his cheating, uh, butt.
"The least you could do is be my friend." - Mellie to Fitz. Wow. WOW. We're not #TeamMellie or #TeamOlivia. We're kind of #TeamScrewFitz
— Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) November 15, 2013
In our eyes, Mellie is no longer the villain. And in any case, she's the least of the problems standing in the way of Olivia and Fitz — if those two people even belong together anyway.
Some other thoughts on this week's episode:
So, Quinn was basically seduced into joining B-613. She is duped into killing a security guard and now she's in. On one hand, we get it — a handsome guy sweet talks you. On the other hand, though ... he is a killer!
Quinn's naivety is wonderfully seductive and @KatieQLowes acts it so well … and she's wearing fishnets!
— Joe Morton (@JOEtheMORTON) November 15, 2013
We are Jake fans, so we're not huge fans of what he's become: Olivia's personal detective. At least it demonstrates how much better he is for Liv than Fitz. All those Fitz/Mellie flashbacks showed how useless Fitz was. Everything Jake says he'll do, he does.
"SHOW UP FOR ME. SHOW UP FOR ME FITZ." � #Mellie #SCANDAL
— Darby Stanchfield (@darbysofficial) November 15, 2013
OK, did anyone not think Olivia's mother was still alive? Yeah, this is the least surprising development in "Scandal" history.
"Our daughter's been asking about you." - "Eli Pope." MIND BLOWN. We can't EVEN. #Scandal
— Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) November 15, 2013
Watch the full episode:
Bellamy Young talks "Scandal" on "omg! Insider":
"Scandal" airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. on ABC.