As this episode of Anatomy of a Scandal begins, James Whitehouse (Rupert Friend) wakes up Sophie (Sienna Miller) who is sleeping with their kid. James confesses there has been a development because Olivia is lying now. Once Sophie learns about the rape allegation, Kate Woodcroft (Michelle Dockery) grabs her paperwork and heads to the courthouse. Angela Regan (Josette Simon) tells Kate about her smartwatch keeping track of her steps. She wonders why Kate is so meticulous when putting on her makeup and why they still wear these silly costumes. Angela warns her that she doesn’t have a chance with this case, but Kate doesn’t seem worried. When Sophie and James arrive, they’re harassed by journalists.

Sophie is asked what it is like sleeping with an accused rapist. Once they go inside, she is introduced to Angela Regan. In the courtroom, James is informed he is charged with rape. He is accused of intentionally penetrating Olivia Lytton on October 12, 2018, with Olivia not consenting to the penetration. James stands up and pleads not guilty to the charge in question. The judge understands that both sides agree three months should be enough for preparations. They agree that the trial will begin on April 1. According to the conditions of his bail, James will surrender his passport and not contact any prosecution witness.

After that, Kate listens to Maggie talk about the legal definition of rape. Maggie (Kudzai Sitima) suggests juries don’t like relationship rape, but Kate doesn’t think there is anything to like about it. Kate warns her that prosecuting sexual assault is as urgent as it is frustrating. They shouldn’t forget that they live in a country where raping your wife wasn’t legally considered rape until 1991. Maggie finds it odd that Tom Southern (Geoffrey Streatfeild) is sticking with James when he cut ties with several others accused of similar crimes. She believes James looks like a rapist. Then, politicians contemplate whether they should leave James’s amendment to the immigration bill hanging.

The PM is told its postponement lays the ground for thousands of migrants to be left hanging too. Tom stands up to tell Aitkin (Adrian Lukis) he has no such fear because immigration is at the top of the agenda. He says the consideration of the amendment will proceed. Then, Tom is asked whether he still has full confidence in Whitehouse and why. Tom argues that a man accused is not a man convicted. He believes he would be fair-weather and spineless to abandon a man before he is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. On the way out, Chris Clarke (Joshua McGuire) warns the Prime Minister that this could get worse and he doesn’t need it.

He warns Tom that people will begin wondering what James has on him to maintain his support. Chris says it is different now because the road is paved in Me Too landmines. He questions whether James has something on him, but the PM refuses to answer. Ellie Frisk (Anna Madeley) meets with Sophie at the school and talks about how cold it feels. Sophie is looking forward to Saturday and promises no last-minute bailing. Ellie breaks the news that Mark has been pulled into a constituency event so they won’t be there. Sophie says it’ll be a shame that Ginny will have to miss her dance recital, but Ellie says they’ll come up after that.

When Sophie asks if the constituency event is late on Saturday, Ellie admits it must be. Sophie asks about getting together Sunday. Ellie seems hesitant to say yes so Sophie claims she is joking. The kids come out moments later. Sophie is told that Scarlet was talking about daddy going to court today. She reminds Emily (Amelie Bea Smith) they knew people were going to talk, but they have to remember it is a big misunderstanding. Emily reveals people think it is true. Finn (Sebastian Selwood) asks whether daddy is going to jail. Sophie tells him not to be ridiculous before saying daddy has a surprise for them. After they get home, they learn that James has a new puppy for them.

Finn wants to name the dog Velcro and they agree. James declares the dog a Whitehouse and asks what they know about Whitehouses. Finn replies that they always come out on top. Kate gives Ollie (Junior Buron) a pair of shoes. She tells Ali (Liz White) she likes the idea of having her godson all to herself although she used to never want kids. Ali shows her a newspaper article about James Whitehouse and asks whether this is the high-profile case she was talking about. Kate confesses it is before reminding Ali that she urged her to take it. Ali believes James has been doing a good job for a Tory. Kate admits she doesn’t care who he is because the CPS thinks it is a strong case. Sophie overhears James arguing with someone and telling them it was only Olivia.

When the call ends, he claims it was Chris Clarke confirming he is going to keep a low profile. Once James says Chris wanted to make sure there weren’t more surprises from his past, Sophie suggests he should be focusing on Olivia Lytton. James says they have a relentless QC named Kate Woodcroft. Sophie hates Olivia for trying to destroy him and lying about it. She believes Olivia is just upset over a fling. James is encouraged to rally the troops and reach out to Tom to make sure he is really on his side. She says he doesn’t have to be seen together. James meets with Tom in private and promptly denies raping Olivia. He warns Tom that Chris believes they’ll dig into their past.

Tom doesn’t think they’ll find anything besides photos of posh lads behaving badly. They already published those when he became PM. James worries that they won’t stop digging there this time. Chris believes the case against James is weak so Tom is confident they’ll get through this. Before Tom leaves, he says Omerta of the Libertines. During a flashback, the boys say the same thing as Tom argues they shouldn’t drink the alcohol. They say they’ll waste it, drink it, and piss it up the wall. He pulls out his privates and waves them around. A young James is told they’ll be able to say they were rich enough to pour their Bolly away. When the waitress comes in with more alcohol, Tom (Jake Simmance) gropes her from behind while telling her not to be shocked.

James apologizes to her and offers to reimburse her for the damage. In the present, Kate talks to a colleague about the case and the fact that James held power over her. She believes the hard part is that Olivia fancied him. Kate tells her friend what Maggie said about James looking like a rapist. She confesses it might be nonsense, but she likes Maggie anyway. Things have changed since he was her pupil because they’re more skeptical and confident today. He agrees to come home with her since Felicity is away. When James returns home and finds Sophie sitting in the dark, he tells her that Tom was steadfast. Sophie believes she made a mistake by giving up her career.

She was invested in children’s literature, but James doesn’t remember it that way. He thought she was frustrated at Macmillan. Sophie says she was frustrated with the preschool division though. She could’ve stuck it out and moved on to YA. Sophie confesses she didn’t love it like he loves his job, but she still got a degree from one of the best universities. She believes she could get hired so she might look for a job when all this is over. James says that is a good idea. Then, they begin discussing Sophie being at the trial every day. She isn’t sure she can bear it or that she’d be of any use. However, James argues not being there would tell people that she believes he is guilty. If she believes him, she’ll be there.

Sophie believes him, but she wants to see how she feels in three months’ time. Before James walks out of the room, he promises he didn’t mean to imply that she wasn’t a serious student. In a flashback, a young Sophie talks about Sir Gawain who was the youngest of King Arthur’s knights. Holly is asked whether she agrees with Sophie’s analysis. She believes things get more interesting when the Green Knight picks up his own severed head.

She says Gawain is a womanizer who has to choose between loyalty and courtesy. It elevates and rubbishes the whole idea of chivalry. Sophie catches up with Holly later to say she is clever so they should divide and conquer the Anglo-Saxon translations. There are so much to read and so many fun things to do. Holly believes King Arthur’s knight would’ve gone for Sophie because she would be his type. Sophie meets up with her at the library later to see if she finished it. She admits she hasn’t read her party although she is getting an essay from her friend Ned later in exchange for two beers. Holly gives her the notes she wrote down. In the present, Sophie goes out on her rowboat.

When she returns home, James tells her he is leaving at half-past. She goes with him to the courtroom later. The judge tells the jury that they may know the man being tried, but they should be impervious to whatever they’ve heard or read. He wants to make sure that the case is tried solely according to the evidence. He instructs them to stay off the Internet and not conduct their own research. Furthermore, they should not discuss the case outside the jury room. Kate introduces herself and Miss Regan who will be defending James Whitehouse. She tells them about James being a government minister, his family, and his parliamentary researcher Olivia.

Olivia started working for James in March of last year while their affair started by May. The consensual relationship was ended by James on October 5. Olivia kept working for Mr. Whitehouse. On October 12, James allegedly raped Olivia in a lift off the committee corridor in the heart of the House of Commons. There is no dispute that sexual intercourse took place, but the nature of it is in dispute. The defense claims it is an act of passion while the Crown says it was a violent rape. The Crown believes what started as a yes quickly turned into a no. Kate asks the jury to consider three things when deciding the verdict. First, they must decide whether penetration took place. She says yes since that isn’t in dispute.

Second, they must question whether Miss Lytton consented at the point of penetration. At the point of penetration, did Mr. Whitehouse reasonably believe that Lytton was consenting? Kate insists it isn’t any more complicated than that. Sophie watches intently as Olivia Lytton (Naomi Scott) takes the stand to be sworn in. Soon, she begins answering Kate’s answers. She started working for James in March. Olivia liked her work because it allowed her to put her education to use. She went to Cambridge, got a degree in political science, and studied public policy as a postgrad. When asked to describe the culture in the office, she uses the world collegial.

Olivia goes on to say they worked long hours and felt like they were in the trenches together. They all liked and respected James. She never called him James and instead called him Minister until later. She would sometimes go for a drink with Patrick and Kitty who also worked there although James never did. In a flashback, Patrick (Iwan Davies) and Kitty (Kathryn Wilder) talk to Olivia about the immigration amendment. Olivia takes up for the amendment and says James is a talented politician. She says his cocktail eyes don’t hurt. When Kitty tells her he is old and married, Olivia says she is just referring to his ability to secure the electorate.

In the courtroom, Olivia says James didn’t join them for drinks because he had a heavy workload and he needed to go home to see his family. Their relationship changed when they went for a drink together on the 18th of May. She had already been drinking with friends earlier. She went back to the office to pick up her gym bag. She ran into him, stumbled, and he helped her. He had never touched her before that.

James let go of her arm once she managed to put her shoe back on. Then, he asked her if she wanted a drink. She remembers his exact words were “Do you fancy a drink, Olivia?” She knew she probably shouldn’t, but they went to Terrace Bar anyway. Olivia tells James she likes working for him and in his office. She has learned how to lie for the right reasons and redirect attention to more favorable facts. James confesses he likes a woman who likes her whiskey. He claims he is not a liar before telling her she always smells so good. When asked whether they talked about anything else, Olivia remembers asking James if his wife was wondering where he was.

James didn’t answer so Olivia repeated the question. He eventually said that his wife trusts him. Nothing happened until a week later on the 23rd of May. James booked a motel where they drank, talked, and slept together. The relationship lasted for five months until James broke it off on October 5. On that day, James invites Olivia into his office. She tells him that Mary and Roger are still managing constituent emails a few meters away so they should be careful. He breaks it off with her while offering to let her keep her position or transfer her elsewhere. She insists they’re fine and there is no need to change positions. Olivia has a few line edits for the amendment that she thinks will help push it through.

Kate offers to let Olivia take a break, but she says she is fine. Once James have broken it off, Olivia couldn’t process the words coming out of his mouth. She confesses she didn’t want it to end because she was in love with him. As Sophie begins freaking out, she decides to leave the courtroom. She storms outside where she hails a taxi and returns home. She remembers what James said about being weak and Olivia meaning nothing to him. She sees them making out in the lift as Olivia tells James she is still in love with him. Sophie imagines falling and crashing to the ground as the episode ends.

 

Anatomy Of A Scandal Review

While Anatomy Of A Scandal isn’t bad in its own right, the episode made it feel like the show is getting weighed down by its own ambitions. The series is trying to tackle too much while attempting to be too stylish and revolutionary. For instance, the camera movements are difficult to stomach and just unnecessary anyway.

There might be too many characters such as Maggie, Patrick, and Kitty. The show regularly drifts from the path with scenes that may not add any value to the story in the long run. I also worry that six episodes are two or three too many since the pace has already slowed significantly. On the plus side, the acting is pretty good from the main characters and the story is decent when the show sticks to the script.

We’ll just have to wait to see how it plays out. The episode scores a 6.5 out of 10. Recaps of Anatomy of a Scandal are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support us at this link.