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ABC's Scandal is a juridicially/politically-themed drama, staring KerryWashington.

She plays Olivia Carolyn Pope, a [[TheSocialExpert reputation-fixer]] who works for [[IdleRich rich people needing to be saved from the latest scandal/accident/kidnapping]] that has befallen upon them. She oscilates between her usual incarnation, the ideal GuileHero every DistressedDude and DistressedDamsel who becomes [[WeHelpTheHelpless her client]] dreams of, and the flawed, somehow manipulative master of HannibalLecture, DoubleEntendre and intimidation and cause of [[InnocentBystander Innocent Bystander]]'s FreakOut she can [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope become]] when she [[WellIntentionedExtremist thinks she acts for the best, but misses the point]]. She usually does the right thing, and [[BigDamnHero always is a really tough heroine]], though she is hardly the kind to put HonorBeforeReason.

Her team includes [[TheCharmer Stephen Finch]], [[TeamDad Harrison]] [[RagsToRiches Wright]], [[AmbitionIsEvil Abby]] [[TheConfidant Whelan]], [[MysteriousPast Huck]] [[ShellShockedVeteran With-No-Last-Name]], and [[TheCutie Quinn]] [[HeroWorshipper Perkins]].

The series is notable for being written by Shonda Rhimes, [[GreysAnatomy like a certain well-known medical series]], and being one of the few dramas featuring a black actress as the main character. It is also highly feminist in content, with numerous strong female characters and very little reliance on traditional characterization or storylines. The cast is also very active on social media such as {{Twitter}} and {{Facebook}}, and participate in live-tweets, Instagram pictures, and podcasts about the series.

It was renewed for a second season on May 11, 2012. The show has been renewed for a third season on May 10th, 2013.
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!!! Tropes found in ''Scandal'':
* AbortedArc: The whole thing with [[spoiler:Cyrus being a secret evil mastermind seems to have been dropped in exchange for Hollis Doyle. Cyrus is still morally ambiguous, but no more so (or at least not much more so) than Olivia at this point.]]
* ActuallyThatsMyAssistant: In "Top of the Hour," Abby is mistaken for Olivia by Sarah Stanner. A bit of a Headscratcher, as Olivia was the Communications Secretary of the White House for a while, meaning she talked to the press a LOT. Olivia's level of "fame" is a bit confusing sometimes.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Mellie. She does not take too kindly to Fitz wanting to willingly give up the presidency, demands to be included in security meetings, and there is no love lost between her and Fitz. She also clearly has designs on building a formidable political career of her own once Fitz's term comes to an end. She also falls out with Olivia as she believes the Amanda Tanner scandal could have been prevented if Olivia had not broken off her affair with Fitz.
* AngstComa: Olivia briefly enters one in "Truth and Consequences."
* AntiHero: The whole cast, except perhaps Quinn (who probably qualifies as a ClassicalAntiHero instead), Abby even more so.
* AntiVillain: [[spoiler:Cyrus]], possibly. It's still not clear what his motivations are.
* ArmouredClosetGay: Sully St. James.
* AsYouKnow: Averted and invoked in "Hunting Season." When Cyrus shows Fitz that Olivia and Senator Edison Davis are meeting in public, he starts to say "Didn't they..." Fitz snaps "I don't need a history lesson, Cyrus." Later on when talking to Olivia, Fitz says Edison [[spoiler:used to be Olivia's fiance]]... which Olivia would obviously know.
* TheAtoner: Olivia wants to do right by her clients, but especially the ones who are women caught in infidelity scandals. Those hit a little close to home for her.
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Olivia. On a metafictional level, [[http://zahrawithaz.livejournal.com/35477.html#cutid1 this great thing]].
* BadassAdorable: Quinn eventually gets there.
* BedmateReveal: At the end of "Hunting Season," [[spoiler: David and Abby]]. It is revealed after the two... uh, finish.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Quinn, again.
* BitchInSheepsClothing:
** It takes six episodes, but [[spoiler: First Lady Mellie Grant]] reveals herself as this, [[spoiler: lying to the entire nation about a miscarriage to save her husband's campaign]].
** It is interesting, however, that [[spoiler: the sheep part isn't unnatural for her, as she does have issues of her own, and seems to be more than a little TroubledButCute.]]
* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: Invoked by Olivia to save *both* [[spoiler: David and Abby from Hollis Doyle]] without either of them knowing about it. She had Harrison do it and didn't tell him why. Whether Harrison did it out of loyalty to Olivia, his friendship with[[spoiler: Abby]] or to get a bigger office is nebulous.
* CallBack: In "Enemy of the State" Abby says she would follow Olivia "off a cliff." In "White Hat's Back On" Olivia tells Fitz that her team followed her "off the wrong cliff."
* CallForward: In "Hunting Season" we see Huck has a collection of watches. The importance of this collection is not revealed until flashback in "Seven Fifty Two." [[spoiler:The watches are trophies from people he tortured and/or killed.]]
* CallingTheOldManOut: Fitz attempted this with his father, Big Jerry, in flashbacks about the month leading up to the election. But Big Jerry's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech comeback was much harsher, and part of the reason [[spoiler: Olivia agreed to go along with the election rigging: She didn't want Fitz to feel bad about himself if/when he lost the election.]]
* CasanovaWannabe: Stephen, though he seems to have mostly settled down. He still has an interesting past.
* CatchPhrase : Olivia has two: "Tell the president to", usually followed by something that will be roughly meaning "go screw himself" and "It's my name on that door", followed by something among the lines of a "we'll do what I decided".
* CharacterFilibuster: ''At least'' OncePerEpisode.
* TheConspiracy: It's not yet clear what the nature of this is, but a large part of Season Two's backstory seems to involve one including [[spoiler:Olivia, First Lady Mellie Grant, Cyrus Beene, Hollis Doyle, and Justice Verna Thornton. The conspiracy resulted in throwing the election to get Grant elected, but he appears to be unaware of it, and the depths appear to go much further than that. Quinn's framing appears to have been related to this conspiracy, and it probably is what resulted in her former office being firebombed. Hollis seems to be the TokenEvilTeammate; it is not clear how malicious or how implicated the other members are, but it has been stated that their actions would get them locked up for the rest of their lives. We know Olivia generally has good intentions, but it is possible that she is TheAtoner for actions in her past.]]
* ContrivedCoincidence: It can be argued Huck seeing and recognizing Charlie on a tape falls in this category. This leads to Huck realizing [[spoiler: Amanda is dead,]] as Huck and Charlie were once co-workers.
* CoolOldGuy:
** Cyrus starts out as one, but the trope is actually deconstructed [[spoiler: as he proves himself to be Olivia's ArchEnemy.]]
** The madam in episode 2 is morally ambiguous, but proves herself by the end.
* TheCutie: Quinn and Huck.
* DangerTakesABackSeat: Done in both "Hunting Season" and "Blown Away."
* DatingCatwoman: The beginning of Quinn's romantic relationship with Gideon, a cub reporter who seems on the verge of breaking the Amanda Tanner story.
* TheDeterminator: Olivia : "It's my name on this door, and I don't give up".
* DomesticAbuser: Abby's ex-husband, apparently.
* DrowningMySorrows:
** Both the President and Cyrus do this (sometimes together).
** Olivia has some elements of this, too, considering how often people show up at her door with wine.
* DysfunctionJunction: Everybody on Olivia's team, including Olivia herself. (see HiddenDepths)
* EvilAllAlong:
** [[spoiler: Billy and Cyrus.]]
** In season 2, [[spoiler: Becky, whose real name is Kate.]]
* TheFakeCutie: [[spoiler: Cyrus.]]
* FanNickname: Fans of the show call themselves “gladiators,” after the speech Harrison gives to Quinn in the first episode. Other nicknames include:
** Becky is called “Cocaine Girl” after how she introduced herself to Huck.
** The Scotch that Fitz drinks (sometimes to excess) is called “The Brown Water.”
** Huck and Quinn’s odd friendship is called “Huckleberry Quinn.”
** Senator Edison Davis is called “Pudding Pop” because of actor Norm Lewis’s resemblance to Bill Cosby.
** Jake Ballard’s similarity to Fitz got him the nickname “Fitz Junior.”
** Joe Morton's character, a mysterious man who is often seen sitting on a park bench, is called [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Mysterious Park Bench Man.]]
* FiveManBand :
** [[TheHero The Heroine]]: Olivia Pope.
** TheLancer: Stephen Finch.
** TheHeart: Quinn Perkins and Huck share the role.
** TheSmartGuy: Huck has aspects; Harrison Wright has others.
** TheChick: Abby Whelan (when she isn't an alternate Heart).
* FourthWallPsych: Jake Ballard does this at the end of "Top of the Hour." He appears to smile knowingly at the audience. He's actually smiling knowingly [[spoiler: at the cameras he planted in Olivia's apartment.]]
* GayConservative: [[spoiler: Sullivan St. James in episode 1. Cyrus Beene is revealed to be this in episode 4.]]
* GoodIsNotSoft: Olivia, Stephen, Huck, and probably Harrison.
* GreyAndGrayMorality: All over the place.
* GreenEyedMonster: President Fitzgerald Grant veers HARD into this territory in the season two episode "Hunting Season." He finds out Olivia was talking to Democratic Senator Edison Davis [[spoiler: who used to be Olivia's fiance.]]
* GuileHero: A good chunk of the cast.
* HeroAntagonist:
** Amanda Tanner, at first. Mellie Grant floats in and out of the role.
** David Rosen takes over the role in season two, after [[spoiler: Olivia tanks his case against Quinn/Lindsay]].
* HannibalLecture: Olivia, naturally, deals them out. Starting in episode four, Cyrus starts dishing them out to [[spoiler: Fitz and Olivia]].
* HeadTiltinglyKinky: Senator Shaw's sex tape. Olivia and Abby tilt their heads at the same time, and Abby has already seen the tape four times. [[CovertPervert And wants to see it again.]]
* HeKnowsTooMuch: [[spoiler: Gideon, when confronting Billy and revealing that he knows all about his plan.]]
* HiddenDepths:
** The entire team has secrets.
** Olivia: [[spoiler: Had an affair with President Grant during the campaign and covered up "Quinn's" real identity, even conspiring with a Supreme Court justice to get her acquitted.]]
** Abby: [[spoiler: Was married to a famous U.S. politician until she ran away. Their marriage had a history of domestic abuse and he's still searching for her]].
** Harrison: [[spoiler: Convicted of insider-trading, served serious jail time.]]
** Stephen: [[spoiler: Was a hotshot lawyer, then had a breakdown in the middle of a trial where he was defending a large company that had destroyed a few lives through their chemical manufacturing.]]
** Quinn: [[spoiler: Her real name isn't Quinn, and she didn't exist in that identity until two years ago.]]
*** As season two reveals: [[spoiler: her real name is Lindsay Dwyer, she was framed for a bombing that killed seven people, and the conspiracy surrounding why stretches to not only Olivia, but the Supreme Court and the national security of the United States. This was further explained in "Happy Birthday, Mr. President": Hollis Doyle, the head of Cytron, rigged the explosion to get rid of evidence that Cytron helped orchestrate the rigging of the presidential election in Fitz's favor. He framed Lindsay Dwyer for the bombing. This did not sit right with Olivia, so she and Huck spirited Lindsay away and gave her a new identity as Quinn Perkins.]].
** Huck: [[spoiler: His dossier is apparently thicker than most spy novels, most of it is redacted, but he has CIA/espionage/military training as an assassin and Olivia trusts him to break a dictator's wife and children out of the embassy with only five minutes' leeway. He's also spent time homeless and suffering from PTSD, begging on the DC subway, which is when Olivia found him.]]
** There's also the surprising [[spoiler: and villainous]] depths to Cyrus Beene - he's [[spoiler: a GayConservative, and married to a much-younger man]].
* IdiotBall:
** Quinn, when she dated a reporter that she got to know when he wanted information that she had. [[spoiler: Her surprise after he died that he was still working on the case was especially baffling for someone who apparently has so many secrets herself.]]
** Speaking of him, Gideon was hit with his BIG time in episode 6 - [[spoiler: When confronting the person behind the majority of the shadiness in the story you're investigating, it's always best to do so in a public place or even to not let them know all that you know. But should you do both of these things DON'T TURN YOUR BACK TO THEM! It can only end one way.]]
* InnocentBystander: Amanda Tanner.
* IntrepidReporter:
** Gideon. God help you if you get in the way of his scoop.
** James picks up the mantle in Season Two. As with Gideon, he's initially not sure where the story is taking him.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Horribly demonstrated once.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: [[DeconstructedTrope The trope is deconstructed]] by [[spoiler: Huck]], who was forced to practice this. He uses it horribly.
* KnightInSourArmor: Olivia and Cyrus, who both do/condone horrible things in service to clients and the President, respectively.
* KickTheDog:
** Albeit accidental, as she thought Amanda was a manipulative FakeCutie, when she reminded her rival (Amanda) of her mother's psychotic break and menaced to use it to end her career, the result was a really creepy Olivia.
** [[spoiler: Cyrus]] has plenty of those moments [[spoiler: even before he proves to have been EvilAllAlong]].
** If the first two episodes of season two are anything to go by, David's the new target of Olivia's dog-kicking.
* {{Kneecapping}}: Olivia, apparently, to Abby's abusive husband. With a tire iron. Yay!
* LadyInRed: The president's wife, twice.
* ManipulativeBastard: Olivia is one, and most of her team live on the verge. Fitz refuses to be one, Cyrus is proud of being this, and Mellie Grant has shown herself quite capable of it.
* TheMcCoy: Quinn and Abby both serve as this for the rest of the team.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone?: Huck in "White Hat's Back On," after realizing he may have [[spoiler:trained Quinn too well.]]
* NaiveNewcomer: Quinn, so very much. She [[CharacterDevelopment becomes less so]] as the series progresses, however.
* NeverMyFault: Episode 3, with [[spoiler: the rich guy.]]
* NotEvilJustMisunderstood: Amanda Tanner. Olivia's third client (not counting the little girl herself and her earlier clients, which includes the president) when accused of murder.
* NotSoStoic: Abby Whelan.
* ObliviouslyEvil:[[spoiler: Cyrus, probably]].
* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: In the Pilot, Olivia and the gang uncover two "secrets" - the gay soldier who wanted to run for Congress and the President's philandering. Since the soldier was meeting with his lover in a public place (bar/restaurant) ''and'' they enlisted the help of a security guard to get a tape of the two of them, it didn't seem very hard to uncover the "secret" or that it's likely to be secret very long. Similarly, the President starts making out with Olivia in the Oval Office having just pointed out there's a camera in the ceiling and is then interrupted by his Chief of Staff. If the President is that careless, how exectly has he not been caught before (the [=CoS=] makes it clear he ''didn't'' know)?
* PetTheDog:
** Olivia asking David not to fire his secretary.
** Fitz and Olivia's secret phone calls, where they comfort each other about whatever the current crisis is.
** Gideon being {{Adorkable}} by cooking to comfort Quinn, proving that their relationship is genuine.
* PoisonousFriend:
** [[spoiler: Cyrus can be this to Fitz, but he does have moments of true friendship.]]
** Olivia's becoming one to David in season two.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain:
** [[spoiler: Cyrus]]
** [[spoiler:Hollis Doyle]] even more so.
* PsychoForHire: Charlie, a former co-worker of Huck's. He even says his name is "like Manson."
* PutOnABus: Henry Ian Cusick (Stephen) for season two.
* TheQuietOne: Huck.
* RagsToRiches : Harrison's {{Backstory}}.
* RealLifeRelative: Katie Lowes' real life husband, Adam Shapiro, appeared in flashbacks in "Truth or Consequences."
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Mellie gives an epic one to Fitz in "Snake in the Garden".
* RedHerring: [[spoiler: You had to have thought that CIA Director Osbourne was the mole they were searching for. "Snake in the Garden" has the character get killed off at the end, and it's revealed that they got the wrong guy]].
* RoomFullOfCrazy: David has this to see why Olivia is helping Quinn. So far he's figured out [[spoiler:Quinn was framed for the bombing]], as Olivia uses her powers for good instead of evil.
* SacrificialLion:
** [[spoiler:Amanda Tanner]]
** [[spoiler:Gideon Wallace]]
* ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem: Olivia : "We don't vote, we take her.".
* SequelHook: Quinn's [[spoiler: real identity and backstory are about to be revealed.]]
** The end of season two: [[spoiler:Olivia gets into a car with Huck's former boss and Jake's current boss and says, "Hello, Dad."]]
* ShellShockedVeteran: [[spoiler:Huck]] reveals himself to be this, due to [[spoiler: his CIA black-ops training. He and his other operatives were conditioned to torture enemies and eventually grew to like it. Huck wanted out and was trying to "get sober" while living homeless when Olivia found him]].
** The season two episode "Seven Fifty-Two" reveals that [[spoiler:he has a wife and child, but after torture and sensory deprivation by the CIA he is no longer sure that his memories of them are genuine. He does, however, apparently remember seeing them while living homeless at a subway station; his son gave him money, with neither his son nor his wife apparently realising it was him. The episode title (which Huck repeats for almost the entire portion of the episode set in the present due to shell shock from a recent attack he suffered very similar to the sensory deprivation to which the CIA subjected him) refers to the time when this occurred.]]
* SomethingTheyWouldNeverSay: [[spoiler:How Director Osborne's wife knows he wasn't the mole: he never used her full name.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: Olivia and Fitz
* SympatheticAdulterer: [[spoiler: President Fitzgerald Grant]], perhaps. Sometimes the audience feels bad for [[spoiler: him and Olivia]], but other times, it's clear his infidelity is causing more problems than it's probably worth.
* ThatManIsDead: In "The Other Woman," [[spoiler: Quinn comes to terms that her life as Lindsay Dwyer is over. Huck even tells her that eight people died in that bombing, not seven. In "Hunting Season," she becomes very insistent that Abby calls her Quinn, not Lindsay.]]
* TheBusCameBack: [[spoiler: After roughly a season of not being seen, [[EvilAllAlong Billy Chambers]] is revealed towards the end of season two to have been "Albatross", a mole that has been causing the Grant administration problems for most of the season.]]
* TheUnreveal: A minor example on episode 2.16 with PatientOfTheWeek Sarah Stanner, who had an affair with Supreme Court nominee Murray Randall when he was a Harvard law professor fifteen years ago. Later, Sarah admitted to her husband that she slept with Randall two years prior, right around the time they had a second child, which infuriated him enough to demand a paternity test. When Olivia gave the husband the results, sealed inside an orange envelope, she told him that the results changes nothing. His marriage will need time to repair, and the knowledge of who's the biological dad won't erase that he's his second child's true father. Olivia's advice [[HeartwarmingMoments convinces him to rip up the envelope]].
* ToBeLawfulOrGood:
** Olivia's team will bend the rules all over the place but will generally refuse to break the law. They do seem to make an exception as far as Huck's hacking is concerned. However, in the season one finale they can't TakeAThirdOption and have to make a choice [[spoiler: whether to destroy evidence in order to protect Quinn]].
** In 2.01, Olivia's last-ditch choice of [[spoiler: getting Justice Verna to shut down Quinn's trial]] may have consequences.
* TortureAlwaysWorks: Apparently, it even works if you keep the subject's mouth duct-taped shut until he's past the point of being able to form coherent words.
* TreacherousAdvisor: [[spoiler: Cyrus, though he does have good intentions at times.]]
* UnresolvedSexualTension: Abby clearly has this for Stephen in spades.
* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans:
** [[spoiler: Cyrus's speech to defend himself is full of this, which makes him either a ManipulativeBastard, either ObliviouslyEvil in acts.]]
** [[spoiler: Billy Chambers has his girlfriend sleep with the president]] and follows it up with blackmail and murder so the 'right' person can become president.
* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The show is based on the career of real life GeorgeHWBush deputy press secretary/crisis manager Judy Smith, though obviously with plots far from the reality of the Bush 41 presidency meant to appeal to 2012 audiences looking for dramatic tension.
* VillainProtagonist: In all honesty, Olivia is actually this. She is the protagonist and she did [[spoiler: agree to have the election rigged so that Fitz would win and become President of the United States]]. By the end of season 2, it will all come back to haunt her.
** AntiVillain Protagonist, maybe. She's clearly TheAtoner as well.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: ... enough of a good reputation to be president of the United States.
* WhamEpisode: "Defiance": [[spoiler: President Grant and the press secretary get shot.]]
** "Nobody Likes Babies": [[spoiler: President Grant finds out the truth about the election rigging from Verna... right before he murders her, breaks up with Olivia, and more-or-less reconciles with Mellie.]]
* WhamLine: The final line of "White Hat's Back On."
-->Olivia: [[spoiler: Dad?]]
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: As explained to Quinn in the first episode, sometimes we don't get all the answers. In the first episode we never did learn who the real killer was.
* WhatTheHellHero:
** It's a show about people's dirty secrets coming out so you get this a lot.
** Cyrus gives the President an epic one when he sees that the President is more worried about preparing a speech rather than preventing the coming scandal.
* WideEyedIdealist: Quinn, which will perhaps lead to [[TheScrappy annoying side effects]].
* WomanInBlack: Abby, quite often.
* WomanInWhite: Olivia, frequently.
* YouAreNotAlone: Olivia, to Amanda.
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