Remember Jay Z’s song “Lucifer”? The one with the great Kanye beat from The Black Album about crime and why we do the bad things we do? Well, it’s pretty much the theme song for last night’s episode—demons are all over the place and redemption seems impossible for just about everyone.
“No Sun on the Horizon” revolves around Sally Langston and her promise to confess her sins on national television. She lost her VIP keychain to Jesus and considers herself “worse than dead” if she doesn’t get it back. Never mind that getting Jesus back into her heart will send everyone to jail. And finally, Olivia lets Fitz in on the truth of it all, which is that everyone has had to do a lot of bad things to keep him in the White House, and it’s about time he snapped out of his innocent fantasy world and accept that there’s no running away. In the meantime, Olivia and Jake pretend to be a couple and reach out to each other from the void of their own dark corners with such sincerity and tenderness that it warms the heart and gives us hope for a better life.
The episode brilliantly begins with Jake sitting in the dark, as if to remind us that everyone on the show is collectively battling his or her own inner darkness. Everyone is carrying a heavy burden and believes, as the Jay Z song puts so eloquently, that they “got a righteous cause for sinning.” There’s a constant pull to do the right thing, even though the wrong thing seems to yield better results. What is clear, though, is that everyone, including Jake, wants desperately to step out into the light. Except he won’t be feeling the sunshine any time soon, since the episode ends with Jake back in the darkness, killing three people, the third of whom—either David or James—remains a mystery.
Here are the top quotes from folks who need a prayer circle.
“No connections, no light at the end of the tunnel, no sun on the horizon. Nothing to wish for.” —Jake to the darkness
Turns out Sally isn’t the only one with demons. Jake sits in the dark and seems to be welcoming someone into B613 while simultaneously telling us his own tragic background. He comes from a troubled home, his family is dead and it seems like those are basically the resume requirements to get hired at Acme Limited.
“They’re all murderers.” —Olivia to Cyrus while laughing hysterically
Laughter is probably the most appropriate reaction ever to all this drama.
“Run away with me, Liv, save me.” —Jake to Olivia
[Passes out. Regains consciousness.] Dear, sweet baby Jesus, Jake is sexy hot. For the love of God, just save him, Liv. Matter of fact, I’ll save him. Give him here.
“I must confess to the world the breaking of His commandment. It is the only way I will hear His voice again.” —Sally to Leo
Now that Sally’s lost her black card to Jesus, she’s going all kinds of crazy. Leo, who’s pretty much the closest thing to the actual devil aside from Cyrus, ain’t havin it, though, and he’s plotting all over the place to make sure she keeps a lid on it.
“You’re a mouse, Cyrus. You’re small. And while I’d love to explain to you how the world really works, I don’t have the time, and you won’t understand.” —Jake to Cyrus
I’m writing this down and keeping it for the next time I want to destroy someone emotionally.
“Olivia Pope, the devil at my doorstep.” —Sally to Olivia
Here we go again with Olivia getting played. Usually, it’s by Mellie, but this time it’s by Sally, who is an actual murderer.
“I did this. I used you.” —Cyrus to James
Cyrus finally has a come-to-Jesus moment. But maybe it’s too late? Even though James wants desperately to forgive him, is it me, or is what Cyrus did basically the definition of unforgivable?
“This is how it works, this is how it’s always worked. There is no clean. Just like there is no Vermont.” —Olivia to Fitz
Ouch. The truth hurts. We’ve always known Olivia and Fitz could never run away and live in that house, but hearing Olivia say it is painful all the same. Everyone wants to stand in the sun, but all anyone knows is the darkness.
Charla Lauriston is a standup comedian and the creator of Clench & Release, a Web series about the frustrations of everyday life in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.