But by the final season, the show found its way back to its original DNA as (spoilers ahead) the gang worked together to take down the biggest bad of all and save themselves from a life in jail in the process. As the series came to a close, we knew not everyone would make it out alive—that David Rosen scene was rough—and that Fitz and Olivia were the romantic endgame all along. But given the twists and turns that Scandal has always been famous for, it was incredibly unclear where Rhimes would eventually leave us.

Turns out, it was a pretty satisfying place. While it took place in D.C., Scandalwas never really a show about politics like, say, The West Wing. But when the series did hit on issues, it was often in the service of some wish fulfillment. That was all too clear in the series finale as the first female President Mellie Grant, a Republican, signs gun control legislation. Or when the press helps take down a corrupt faction of the U.S. government.

Read the full story on Glamour.com