As any OG [original gladiator] knows, it can be difficult to keep up with the fast-paced world of Pope & Associates. So, now that season three is in full swing, let’s take a look at the key moments from last week’s season premiere to help us prepare for yet another intense episode.
Disclaimer before you start reading what’s below:

Recap: 3.01 “It’s Handled”
1. Olivia Pope’s dad is a badass

Now we know where Olivia gets her fierceness from! Did anyone else want to cry when he was yelling at Olivia? In light of Fitz and Olivia’s relationship going public, Papa Pope tried to send her on a plane to an undisclosed location, but Olivia fought back and told him she was going to stay. 
At the end of the episode, Rowan shows Cyrus a folder that contains the truth about Operation Remington, a mission that Jake Ballard and Fitz went on during their time in Iran. Until now, the details of the mission had been under wraps, but it sounds like something may have gone terribly wrong. If the “Scandal” writers are nice, we’ll find out what’s in the folder during tonight’s episode, but we know they’re not very nice.

2. Fitz leaked Olivia’s name to the press…sort of

Fitz revealed that he asked a secret service agent to leak Olivia’s name so that Mellie wouldn’t have the opportunity to leak it herself while trying to get revenge.  In Fitz’s words:  “As long as you had her name in your arsenal, Olivia was at your mercy. Now she’s free.”
3. Liv and Fitz’s Operation: Tell the Truth

Wasn’t this the most awkward threesome in the history of television!? The dynamic trio met in a bunker to discuss how to move forward and Olitz decide telling the truth is the best way to go. Mellie seems to reluctantly agree to stand by Fitz as he reveals to the world that he had an affair, but we later find that she had something else in mind.
4. Pope’s associates + Mellie + Cyrus frame someone else (“Are we gladiators or are we b*tches?!”)

Since Mellie thought that Fitz leaked Olivia’s name because he had an elaborate plan to one day bringing her to the White House as his wife, she decides to sabotage Operation: Tell the Truth. Mellie recruits Cyrus, Harrison, Quinn, Abby, and Huck to help in leaking a video of Jeannine Locke, a young White House aide, as she drunkenly professed how hot she thinks Fitz is, labeling her in the press as the new alleged mistress.
5. “WHAT. DID. YOU. DO?!”

You’d think that Olivia would be thankful that her name was cleared, but that wasn’t the case. Since Olivia always wants to be the one wearing the “white hat,” she feels bad that Jeannine Locke is being framed. In a ridiculous turn of events, Fitz’s actual mistress decides to help clear the name of Fitz’s fake mistress.

Preview: Episode 3.02 “Guess Who’s Coming  to Dinner?”

In tonight’s episode, there’s a scene where Olivia is on the phone with the President as she says “I am going to attack the White House and I am going to go for blood,” to which the Fitz replies, “go for the jugular.” This means war!
A few questions that are hopefully answered in tonight’s episode: Is Jake Ballard still alive? What’s the shocking, top-secret, information in the Operation: Remington folder?  Will Cyrus find a way to kill of Janine?
Watch the preview below and tune in to “Scandal” tonight at 10 p/9c on ABC:

(Gifs: Scandal Moments)