Scandal - Season 5

Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington), the nation's most successful "fixer," puts her business on hold and essentially stops fixing her clients' problems in "Scandal: The Complete Fifth Season." Because this season, it's Olivia that needs to be fixed, while the rest of her team and the gambit of White House players pick up her job of solving problems.

The Oval Office blows up when Olivia reveals her affair with U.S. President Fitzgerald "Fitz" Thomas Grant (Tony Goldwyn) to the news media. At the end of his second term, the POTUS has little to lose, so he divorces his wife, Senator "Mellie" Grant (Bellamy Young), and gives Olivia the opportunity to be the First Lady.

Rather than throwing away her career to become America's First Mistress and the President's helpmeet, Olivia decides to maintain her influence at the Capitol by campaigning for the next Republican nominee. And her choice for the role is her lover's ex-wife, Millie.

When the jilted Fitz stands behind his Vice President, Susan Ross (Artemis Pebdani), for the nomination, it's time for Washington D.C. to take sides. Olivia's associates stick with her, and Attorney General David Rosen (Joshua Malina), the Vice President's Chief of Staff Elizabeth North (Portia de Rossi) and White House Press Secretary Abby Whelan (Darby Stanchfield) follow the President.

In a world where the former Vice President becomes a right-wing political commentator, like Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh (and this two dimensional character, played by Kate Burton, is a waste of a fine actresses talents), watch out for the wildcards. People like the conniving sometimes Chief of Staff at the White House, Cyrus Beene (Jeff Perry), and Olivia's conspiratorial father (Joe Morton) plan to maintain their power behind the scenes by pulling all prominent puppet strings they can: Blackmail, seduction, treason and murder. And who knows whose side Jake Ballard (Scott Foley) is on. He's either Olivia's best friend, or her most dangerous enemy.

As always, the photography in this series -- shooting through windows and using out of focus objects in the foreground to fragment the character's faces -- gives the show a remarkable and thematic visual style. And almost every main character delivers a powerhouse dramatic monologue at some point in the season. These are so concise and over the top; acting students should look to teleplays of "Scandal" for new material.

This DVD collection contains all 21 episodes of the fifth season, plus one episode with extended footage and just over three minutes of outtakes (if watching performers mess up their lines, laugh at themselves and use bleeped-out curse words is your thing).

"Scandal: The Complete Fifth Season"
DVD $39.99
abc.com/Scandal