Leverage Review: Back in The Groove
Our holiday season was made a little brighter this week with the return of Nate Ford and his Leverage team in "The Experimental Job," the first of three episodes over the next few weeks.
When we last saw the squad back in August, ir had just helped Jim Sterling recover his daughter. While there was no mention of Sterling or how much time has passed, it didn’t take the team long to get into the thick of it again.
I’m on the fence about Mr. Conrad of the CIA. My instincts say he will not be a fan of Ford’s but, at the same time, I could see him using Nate and his unit to get things done outside normal channels.
The question then becomes what would it take for Nate to do a job for Conrad. That’s where it could get interesting. We'll soon find out.
One thing I didn’t get in this episode was the police detective. By the end, she was clearly in on the con, but at what point did they recruit her? Sophie went from European author to police office at the same time, as proven when she did most of the talking when they had Travis in the room alone.
On the flipside, Hardison are Parker were as cute as ever! It really showed with her attempts to show he was cool by bringing up when he took down a dragon in a video game.
She must love him, because only someone who really loved a gamer would pay enough attention to her boyfriend to know what he was doing overall (even if she was thin on the details). Then again, she also stepped up and did his homework.
Of course, she also saved his ass (again) when the frat boys were starting to beat the crap out of him... though we did get to see some of Eliot’s training come out as he was holding his on for a short time.
Overall, it was a decent story. I would have enjoyed a few more “how they pulled it off” scenes to explain a few more pieces of the puzzle, but at least we have Mr. Conrad. Will he be friend or foe?
And, more important, what would you recommend Hardison get Parker for Christmas?
NEXT WEEK... Leverage makes like The Office. See what we mean in this promo.
Jim G. is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow him on Twitter.
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Rank: Staff Member
December 4th, 2011 8:20 PM
I stand corrected on my last comment
It seems my information was slightly off. There are three more episodes this year (not this season). There is "The Girls Night Out Job" and "The Boys Night Out Job" that are actually the same caper from two different angles and then "The Lonely Hearts Job" airing on Christmas Day of all days.
Aldis Hodges also referenced to episodes coming back in January in his interview last week with our Editor, but I don't have any details and IMDB doesn't list any currently.
Rank: Guest Star
December 3rd, 2011 5:49 PM
This show can do no wrong (call me a Stepford). Loved Parker with the shock device. I felt sorry for the guy on the other end. Still funny as heck.
Rank: Staff Member
November 30th, 2011 10:46 PM
Hi Sally,
Dean Devlin (@Electric44) tweeted back in August that this season had 3 more episodes during the holidays.. So unless you have a tweet or post from him say otherwise, there are only 2 more episodes this season.
Jim
November 29th, 2011 8:45 PM
I thought this was a great ep, and I have to say, I've been a little disappointed with this season. The first ep was fantastic, but there was a lot of potential that I don't think they used to full advantage. I think this ep was getting back to par - and I loved the 'whumpa' conversation. Very excited for familiar faces to come back over the next few weeks, but Jim, there are actually 7 more eps left this season, not 3. Love this show!
Rank: Staff Member
November 29th, 2011 5:09 AM
LEVERAGE 1001,
For quotes I try to keep it under 3 lines, 4 at the most.. more than that and they become work to read..
But your right, that was pretty good interaction. I had thought about getting the middle lines starting "what do you mean" but it just didn't look right without the rest of it :)
good catch!
Rank: Guest Star
November 29th, 2011 1:11 AM
@gastonevan
if you really think about it direct torture may not be as effective as some believe, for the reasons given in the "monologues for shows like Burn Notice and Criminal minds"
under duress yes the captive is more likely to give "AN" answer but not necessarily "THE CORRECT" answer.
Take the scene where Eliot was beating the interrogator to gain information. The interrogator could have just as easily told Eliot misinformation and once Eliot left made an escape
Rank: Regular Character
November 28th, 2011 6:14 PM
I agree with the review.
Rank: New User
November 28th, 2011 3:09 PM
good to see the show back......we're back to S1 re-runs on FX in the UK. good ep and some good moments.
November 28th, 2011 2:14 PM
I thought the "here we go" between Nate and Elliot at the end was the start of a season arc where they would take down Conrad for supporting the whole thing. I don't see him being an ally at all.
Rank: Regular Character
November 28th, 2011 1:39 PM
I loved having Leverage back just because I love the show. It has more dark undertones then it used to,but I think its realistic and due to the amount of time theyve been playing robin hoods. They get deeper and deeper into things and there are definitely more repercussions being faced the longer they keep it up. Like this CIA development and how easy it was for their covers to be blown. I think the trick is to still keep the show just light and funny enough, healthy balance.
Loved seeing Hardison play frat boy,something poignant with him going undercover as something he would probably be if he had a normal life.I like him broadening his repetoire because it speaks to the family vibe, he&parker are like the kids and the others are always teaching the things,almost like leaving a legacy.The marine stuff was great,loved Eliots role.Hardison&Parker moments are always a plus as well.the case was a bit confusing and the con wasnt really explained well w/ the flashbacks.solid enou