Luna Vargas (Tessie Santiago) was the hidden main villainess of Scandal's sixth and penultimate season. She was the wife of Democratic Presidential nominee Francisco "Frankie" Vargas.
Introduction[]
Luna Vargas first appeared in the season opener, "Survival of the Fittest," during Frankie's victory speech after he won the Presidential Election. Frankie was later shot three times, with one of the bullets striking his head and killing him, with Luna present and mourning the loss of her husband and the father of her children. She briefly appeared in the last scenes of the following episode, "Hardball," in attendance for Frankie's funeral service.
After being shown in flashbacks in the episode, "Extinction" (which revealed Theodore Peus and Samantha Ruland as conspirators, and Eli Pope as the actual shooter), Luna returned in episode 6.11, "Trojan Horse," meeting with Olivia Pope regarding Cyrus Beene being set up as Frankie's killer, and later gave an interview supporting and verbally endorsing Cyrus as the next President following his exoneration. The episode ended with Mellie Grant winning the electoral college votes (thanks to Peus and Samantha's tampering), and in the following episode, "Mercy," Luna gave another interview about the state of the country following Mellie's victory. In the end of that episode, Mellie publicly named Luna as the Vice President, counteracting against Samantha's plan to insert Peus as VP in order to control Mellie.
Heel Turn & Death[]
Luna turning heel in "Transfer of Power"
The season's penultimate episode, "Tick Tock," revealed that there was an assassination attempt towards Mellie, with Maya Lewis, Olivia's mother, as the believed mastermind. With that, the following episode (and season finale), "Transfer of Power," began with plans for Mellie's safety during the inauguration, with Luna stating that she would not bring her children to the event for safety reasons. At the big event, Maya took down one of the gunmen searching for the assassin and pointed the rifle at the area, only to be shot (non-fatally) by Eli. The inauguration, with Luna present, went through successfully.
However, when OPA looked at the seating chart and mentioned Mellie's kids not being present, Olivia realized that Luna's kids were absent on the night of Frankie's assassination, which resulted in the revelation that Luna was the true villainous mastermind behind her husband's murder. Olivia confronted Luna and demanded what her next plan was, but in response, Luna turned heel and admitted her role, while also stating that she was the Plan B that Olivia mentioned. The arrogant villainess reminded Olivia that her approval rating was higher than Mellie's due to being Frankie's widow, and she was needed to make sure Mellie's Presidency was successful, before throwing out Olivia. Afterwards, Olivia visited Maya at the hospital and stated that it was Luna that she was trying to shoot, with Maya confirming Olivia's statement.
In the episode's climax, Luna was confronted by Olivia and Jake Ballard and called out for her agents upon seeing them, only for Jake to reveal that the agents outside were his. Olivia revealed her ultimatum for Luna: she was going to die, either by her own hand or by Jake's. It was at this moment that Luna's entire scheme and motive were revealed; she wasn't satisfied with just being First Lady, and knowing that a Presidential widow would have more power, the evil Luna enlisted Peus and Samantha to have her husband killed. During her confession, Luna compared herself to Jacqueline Kennedy; how she was beloved following JFK's assassination, and Luna revealed her plans to use her own status as a widow to pass an agenda in Frankie's name. Luna originally claimed that she hired her conspirators to make sure her husband lost, but Olivia stated that Luna not having her children present at the victory speech revealed that she knew that he would be killed and that she planned it.
Olivia's order for Luna to kill herself was to make sure that she would be remembered well, because if she turned down the option of suicide, Jake would kill her, after which Luna's heel persona would be fully uncovered in the time after her death. With that, Luna took the poisoned pills and ingested them, and she passed away shortly afterwards, with Jake confirming Luna's death to Olivia. Luna's death was classified as being due to a heart attack in the opening of the final season opener, "Watch Me."
Appearances[]
- "Survival of the Fittest"
- "Hardball"
- "Extinction" (flashbacks)
- "Trojan Horse"
- "Mercy" (named Vice President)
- "The Box"
- "Head Games"
- "Transfer of Power" (Luna's villainous reveal and death)
Trivia[]
- Each of Scandal's seven seasons featured at least one recurring villainess, though Luna Vargas was the only main recurring villainess of the series (without a Freudian Excuse).
- Luna Vargas is similar to Perception villainess Victoria Ryland, as both were ambitious political wives who killed their husbands for power. One difference is that while Victoria claimed another victim during her quest, Luna's only victim was her husband. Also, Victoria directly committed her murders on her own, while Luna had hired guns kill for her.
Quotes[]
- "You can't hurt me. You can't kill me. You need me. I am the Vice President of the United States of America! My approval rating is higher than the President's! I'm the widow of a national hero, an icon! If something happens to me, Mellie's presidency is a non-starter. I don't need a bomb. I don't need another assassin. Me! I am Plan B! Now get out of my house before I have the Secret Service throw you out! (Luna Vargas' arrogant statements to Olivia Pope, following Luna's reveal as a villainess)
- "A president is most powerful the night he's elected and the day he dies. Everything in between is... Frankie would've had to govern. Make compromises. Me? Imagine if Jackie Kennedy had been President. How unstoppable she'd have been. They'd have given her everything she asked for. Medicare, civil rights--things her husband wanted but never got. And all because of those blood stains on her pink Chanel suit. Frankie's ideas would have died on the vine. I gave them a chance to live! I'm not pure evil. Please." (Luna revealing her motive for having her husband killed)
Gallery[]
Videos[]
Olivia, Jake and Luna - Scandal 6x16 Part 1
Olivia, Jake and Luna - Scandal 6x16 Part 2
