Let’s be honest, when you’re a new Scandal fan like myself, you haven’t got time to focus on any other villain but Eli Pope. This guy is so bad, so awful , so untrustworthy, that it almost makes me want to stop watching the show. I get get angry every time I see him, and I keep waiting for the episode where he is no longer a threat. Regardless of how much I hate him, he’s still one down right scary man, mostly because of the level of reality that there is to Mr. Pope.
For those of you who, for whatever reason, are not completely obsessed with Scandal, let me explain a bit about who Eli Pope is. On the show, Elijah, also known as Rowan, Pope is the commanding officer of B613; the most elite, secretive, scary, and dangerous division of the CIA. B613 brainwashes people in the military to be assassins within the United States, killers trained to target the more average enemies of the US. Those who belong to B613 pretty much have no hope of ever being normal. By most, Eli is known simply as “Command”, and his real identity is mainly unknown by those who work for him. He has more power than pretty much any one in the country, even the President doesn’t work above him. He is powerful, he is dangerous, but most importantly, he is the father of the show’s main character, Olivia Pope.
Here’s the deal. Eli is scary because he is probably real. In the United States, there is most likely something very similar to B613, and so there must be a Command like Eli Pope, running things behind the curtain. That’s what makes his character terrifying. Eli Pope goes beyond the screen. Our great nation has a lot of lovely little secrets, and somewhere in there is an Eli Pope calling the shots and running the show. It’s the spookiest. 
Despite his greed for power, his stubbornness, what is most dislikable about Eli Pope is how terrible of a father he is. First, he more or less abandons Olivia emotionally as a child after her mother dies. Then, it’s revealed to Olivia that his whole life has been a lie to her, and that he is actually the most powerful man in the country, who has virtually ruined the lives of her friends. Then, it’s revealed that Eli was actually behind accident that killed her mother. Then, it’s revealed that she’s actually alive and that Eli has been keeping it from Olivia all these years. Sheesh. After all that, he has the nerve to force Olivia to meet him for dinner every week to act like everything is fine. Time and again, Eli is not there for Olivia, and has all the wrong ideas about what is in her best interest.
Eli Pope is the biggest, meanest life ruiner there is. In the Scandal universe, there is no one more wicked, no one more evil, but there is also no one with more power. Sigh. One day, Eli Pope will get what he deserves, and if that episode has already happened please don’t tell me because I’m a season and a half behind. In the meantime, down with Eli Pope; The biggest jerk ever.
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