Olivia Pope is a "Side Chick"...In Name ONLY

I recently came across a funny picture on Instagram about my favorite TV show, Scandal:

Chicks be like "I can't stand infidelity" but on Thursdays be like "Awwwww"

I am 100% guilty of this!!!!! There's NO denying that President Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III is married and that his affair with Olivia Pope technically makes her the "side chick". However, if you watch the show faithfully (like me) then you KNOW that's just a technicality.

Fitz does not love his wife, Mellie, and is only with her because he didn't meet Olivia first. He is the President which means that he has been in the middle of a successful political career for some time so he knows what political moves play...and having a black girlfriend does not (let's be frank).

A lot of people say that Olivia Pope does nothing but give side chicks everywhere some hope. However, TRUE "Gladiators" like myself know that there is WAY more to the story than Olivia just being a "side chick". Fitz does not confide in the First Lady the way that he does with Olivia, he doesn't talk to her, have fun with her...NOTHING!

I came up with 5 reasons and included 5 scenes that show Olivia is more than just "the other woman" and I purposefully didn't include any of their steamy love scenes because it's more to it than that. You can't hear my argument by just watching one episode and jumping to conclusions...I need you to see BEYOND the obvious & look deeper.

5) Olivia was pursued by Fitz
Olivia hit Fitz and he NEVER saw it coming. In this scene, you see his immediate and undeniable attraction to her, and it's not just on the surface. She basically told him about himself in front of his entire staff, which prompted him to fire her, only to try to get close to her.



4) They can't deny it, no matter how hard they try...OR move on 
They know it's wrong for them to be together (for now) but it's UNDENIABLE. She tried to move on with Edison but he still calls her late at night from the Oval Office. He even used his Presidential power to spy on her and had the Secret Service kidnap her to bring her to him in the middle of nowhere for goodness sake! He wouldn't have gone through all that trouble for a side chick.




3) Fitz does NOT love his wife
If you've been watching the show since day 1, you know that Fitz and Mellie don't like each other...they don't get along...they rarely speak or talk to each other. Everything between them is a political move. Mellie is so caught up in her own agenda that she doesn't really care that Fitz is having an affair. She is playing her own game and is more worried about being First Lady that being Fitz's wife. He even ponders this in front of Olivia (what man NOT in love would put himself down or insult himself for a "side piece):

"Why didn't I meet you sooner? What kind of a coward was I to marry her and not wait for you to show up?" 

2) They really know each other
Fitz knows that Olivia paces in circles when something is wrong...Olivia knows that Fitz loves the outdoors...These little details in the relationship are how I know that it's more than a fling. In this scene, Fitz asks for "one minute" because he knows that's all they have but it's just what they both need. They can't be together right now so they take what they can get.



1) They belong to each other!!!!! 
They have REAL LOVE and PASSION for each other...If you don't believe me then just watch the clip below:

"Scandal" Star Kerry Washington on Oprah's Next Chapter

On Sunday night, Oprah Winfrey visited the set of my FAVORITE show right now Scandal and interviewed it's star Kerry Washington, as well as it's creator Shonda Rhimes and the inspiration behind the character of Olivia Pope, real-life "fixer" Judy Smith.

Washington is the first African-American woman to star in a primetime scripted TV drama on a major network in over 30 years.

Let me just say that this show is LIFE to me: not only does it have intense plot lines from week to week but it has some of the most complex characters that I've ever seen. Olivia Pope is able to fix everyone else's problems but that is complicated by her steamy love affair with President Fitzgerald Grant. Their INTENSE chemistry and the overwhelming complications that arise (he's the President, and married with children) make for AWESOME TV. It's hard to root for the mistress in any situation but I really do think that Liv and Fitz have a GREAT love, no matter how complicated.

I was happy to hear that Washington was not met with absolute jealousy and hate when she was given the part over other black actresses and she gives some great insight:

Sometimes we buy into this myth of competition that comes from the myth of a lack: that if  I succeed, someone else can't. 

Shonda Rhimes talked about being a successful TV mogul as well as a single mother to 2 young girls. Scandal is her third hit show in a row for ABC, after Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice. She said that she had to take her flagship show back from her fans because they were starting to dictate how they wanted the show to go through social media instead of her as the creator. Judy Smith also talked about her experience as a White House press secretary and becoming a fixer.

Here is a clip where Washington talked about her groundbreaking role as Olivia Pope:

Ms. Washington Goes to Washington

For the first time in almost four decades, an African-American actress has landed the lead role on a primetime television series. Oprah travels to the set of this show, ABC's hit drama Scandal, to talk with the show's star, Kerry Washington. Watch as Kerry reveals why she had no idea her character, Olivia Pope, would be so momentous.