Scandal Season 6 Episode 9 Review: Dead in the Water

This Scandal review contains spoilers.

Scandal: Season 6, Episode 9

For the past two weeks, each Scandal episode has played that devastating scene of Huck getting shot. First it was the actual moment in which Meg tried to kill Huck, then last week when the scene replays at the start of the episode, we go back in time to see Abby’s part leading up to that moment. Then finally this week, we got to see what happened after Meg’s massive deception.

Huck and Jennifer

Meg got the bright idea to dump both Huck and Jennifer’s body’s off a cliff into flowing water. However, little did she know that Huck had survived his gunshot wounds and thought of an escape plan to get out.

A moment of Inception-like scenes played out as we are put into an almost dream sequence of Huck’s as the gladiators help him figure out a way to escape. This was my favorite scene of the night, watching Huck go all Good Will Hunting on us as he prepared a math problem that would help him escape. His algorithm, however, fell short when the door of the car hit against a large rock in the water. Huck’s suffocating is mirrored with an image of holes popping through the windows of Pope and Associates, water plunging through them as Olivia and the rest of the team try to cover them with their hands.

Then enters Papa Pope, assuring Huck he had all the “tools” to survive. That’s when Huck starts banging the end of his headrest into the window and finally broke free.

I loved the poetics in this scene. We were still right in the thick of it with Huck, but we almost got to see the inner workings of his mind and just how much of a role his friends play in his life. He wasn’t just the one in his “dreams” figuring out how to escape. His friends were there right by his side, rooting him on. Even Rowan was too, in his own condescending way. The last couple of episodes made Huck question his willingness to let people in his life; to help and take care of people. However, the people in his life (the good ones) are what give him the strength to survive.

Huck’s character arc is moving along this season, which I appreciate with only one season left of the series. Perhaps my once-favorite character might redeem himself enough to be back on my “favorites” list.

Speaking of redeemable characters…or, not so much.

Huck and Abby

Olivia, Quinn and Charlie definitely got down to the bottom of what happened to Huck. Quinn and Charlie were able to find a back-up computer with information about Meg on it that Huck had stored while Olivia realized Abby played a huge role in Huck’s attempted murder. While it seems Abby was totally unaware and devastated that Meg tried to kill him, this did not put her off the hook with Liv. In a way, Olivia even threatened to kill her if they didn’t find Huck alive — or at least let Quinn at her. Quinn was a force to be reckoned with this episode and proved that her killing days are long from over.

Huck and Quinn

Meg attempted to get ready to go on the run, dyeing her hair blonde. But Quinn and Charlie got to her first. Of course, Quinn pulled out all the “torturing” stops to get Meg to tell them where Huck was. But, for some reason she thought making a wise crack and spitting in Quinn’s face was the better option. It was clear she wasn’t going to be saying anything if she said that after Quinn took one of her fingers off.

That was the final straw for Quinn and she killed Meg instantly.

Liv was pissed when she found out Meg was dead. While Quinn seemed disappointed in herself, this didn’t deter her from trying to attack Abby when she found out this was her fault. Marcus and Charlie managed to hold her back, but Quinn still told Abby she would kill her. Liv would need to find another way to find out what happened to Huck. Thankfully with the help of Marcus, Jake, Quinn and Charlie…she was able to do that.

Huck and Liv

When they realized they could track Jennifer Field’s body with her cell phone, Liv and Jake ultimately found Huck’s body on the shore.

Throughout Huck’s “dreams” or hallucinations, Olivia was certainly one of his guiding lights. I would argue Huck is the same for Olivia. The two of them have an undeniable connection that when that connection is tampered with or threatened…there is no stopping them from mending it.

After an unpromising report from Huck’s doctor in the hospital about his condition, Fitz pleads with Liv to forgive Abby just as Fitz and Liv had forgiven each other for so many horrible things they had done too (and there are many). He actually managed to get through to Liv in one of the few interactions of this season and she managed a quiet moment of reconciliation with Abby.

So maybe Abby wasn’t as horrible as I thought. Well, at least not horrible enough to kill one her friends to get what she wanted. Especially when it had to do with freeing Cyrus, a man who may have not killed the president-elect, but still was guilty of a number of heinous crimes that all deserved prison time. Abby’s determination for atonement may have been more damning than her original sins.

I am so impressed with this season of Scandal, especially these last few episodes which have allowed for an opportunity in some stylistic storytelling devices to allow us deeper into these characters’ lives and storylines.

Next week is the 100^th episode of Scandal. It looks like we can expect a “what if” scenario that would have changed the Scandal series entirely.

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