It is the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Scandal and yet another stunning gown from Olivia Pope. Olivia is caught between not only her father and her sanity, but between two different campaigns as both the Republicans and Democrats vie for her services. As opposed to the huge nine costume changes last week “More Cattle, Less Bull” focuses on fewer looks and we get to see all the sides of Olivia’s style with work wear, fancy gowns and at home attire.
First up is Olivia in a white Dior jacket as Olivia interviews for the role of Josie’s (guest star Lisa Kudrow) campaign manager. This is pretty much standard Olivia Pope and it keeps with the image and color palette of Olivia at work; it is essentially Olivia’s uniform.
It’s easy to see why this Rubin Singer dress has been talked about all week as it’s a show stopper. It’s a really interesting looking gown and the geometric shapes in black and white aid the swagger walk that Kerry Washington has nailed for Olivia. This is Olivia’s entrance to the WHCD and she looks incredible. Jake doesn’t look too bad either in his tux and you can see why she asked him to be her date, even if she does run off to have a secret rendezvous.
It’s not who Olivia is expecting and she is greeted by Mellie instead, who after getting off one cheap shot asks Olivia to rejoin the Fitz campaign. Olivia is hostile to Mellie at first and the cut of this dress provides a striking visual with Olivia’s long black gloved hands on hips. There’s something a little superhero couture about this pose and hairstyle. It contrasts with Mellie’s J. Mendel burgundy gown and for once despite her usual manipulations this feels like an honest Mellie.
Mellie is very good at faking happiness as demonstrated in the photo above and she is every inch the perfect First Lady at this event even with the many jokes about Fitz and his keeping it in his pants problem. Fitz like Jake also suits this look, but Jake wins the prize thanks to his tux having military flourishes.
The volume of Mellie’s hair might be an indicator of how unhappy she is and how much she is faking it. In this scene it is at an all new high as is the forced smile.
They’re feeling the heat thanks to the very likable Josie Marcus who manages to sidestep her very own scandal thanks to Olivia – they need to make “We Got Poped” buttons, tees and bumper stickers. At the debate Josie is wearing an American flag pin but with a twist as hers is shaped like a star instead of the standard flag. So who is Olivia going to chose? It seemed like an easy answer thanks to Mellie’s pleas but the news that Jake and Huck have uncovered will make Fitz the less favorable choice. Oh and Huck is totally Team Olake.
This basketball scene gives both Jake and Fitz fans something to cheer about and gives Fitz something other than a suits to wear (he also gets some pj time later in the episode).
You know who loves to wear something fancy? Yep it’s Harrison who gets to lead the team in Montana and he questions Olivia’s judgement later as she hesitates to take Josie’s offer. It feels like conflict could be brewing between Olivia and Harrison. The tie/shirt power clashing is the standard Harrison work attire and we also get a glimpse at his supper snazzy polka dot suspenders too. Abby is once again rocking the leopard print Diane von Furstenberg blouse that she wore last week and I like it when shows like this includes repeat outfits.
Looking a little more casual without a tie, Harrison wears another pattern clashing shirt and suspenders combo all while not looking freaked out by the ram skull on the wall behind him. Instead he is giving Abby grief telling her that she’s “got issues.”
These issues are to do with Abby’s renewed romance with David and it hits a slight bump thanks to Abby lying to David about why she can’t go to the WHCD; it turns out her ex-husband is also attending. They’re still in the early stages of being a couple again and after all the deception it’s easy to see why it causes this issue. It’s ok as Abby turns up to David’s apartment looking very Old Hollywood in this Ralph Lauren gown (with a hint of Julianne Moore) and the pair smooth things over. This mention of Abby’s ex suggests that there is more to come about Abby’s past soon.
One of the things I love about dressing up is when you get home and can change into all the comfy clothes. Olivia does this too and thanks to Mellie’s chat she’s totally into the idea of a Fitz re-election campaign and this leads this old campaign tee and digging out a box of memories. This shot is also a hint of what we can expect in terms of the careful placement of objects if they don’t write Kerry Washington’s real life pregnancy into the show.
TV Ate My Wardrobe 