{"id":4385,"date":"2015-01-19T08:00:07","date_gmt":"2015-01-19T16:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4385"},"modified":"2015-01-19T01:17:33","modified_gmt":"2015-01-19T09:17:33","slug":"mark-watches-leverage-s01e01-the-nigerian-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2015\/01\/mark-watches-leverage-s01e01-the-nigerian-job\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Leverage’: S01E01 – The Nigerian Job"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the first episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>, I have been given an entire show about heists. No one is more thrilled than I am. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time to start\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s get some business out of the way, first. Then I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll yell. A lot. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a new show on Mark Watches, so I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll remind newcomers of how this all works!<\/p>\n

1) Please do not spoil me or others who are watching this show for the first time<\/strong>. All spoilers are to be cyphered with rot13<\/a>, a tool used by this community so that spoilers can be discussed by those in the know without ruining the experience for the rest of us. Anything that is not revealed or discussed within the episode that I am on is considered a spoiler. This includes your general opinion of future episodes, expressing excitement about me reaching a certain point, or hinting in any way in plain text of what is to come. Please consult the Spoiler Policy<\/a> for more specific examples.<\/p>\n

2) Please respect the moderators and their work here.<\/strong> It is imperative that if this is your first time here, you should read the Site Rules<\/a> and the FAQ<\/a>. My goal is to create a space where fandoms can discuss their favorite works with an eye for critical analysis without having to worry about the shitshow that generally comes with this on the rest of the Internet. Please consider the impact of your words; please avoid using slurs without context or a dire need; please heed all warnings given by the moderators. They know what they are doing. They are easily recognizable by their blue bars in IntenseDebate.<\/p>\n

3) All video reactions are available for $0.99 a piece on this page<\/a>.<\/strong> I watch everything and write my reviews the week before they go up. You can follow me on Twitter<\/a> or follow the folks at MarkSpoils<\/a>, where I announce when videos are ready for download. Each file can be downloaded 10 times, and I encourage folks to give away copies for free. The cost barrier is simply to help me pay for the very expensive cost of video and site hosting. Do not feel guilty giving them away; the system is designed so that those who can afford it can help me, and those who cannot can still get videos for free and without any guilt! SHARING IS CARING, AND I LOVE SHARING. Please consider buying a Video Pass<\/a>, which will give you a discount on buying videos regularly.<\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

Now, I came into\u00c2\u00a0Leverage\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>with the knowledge of most of the cast members: Timothy Hutton, Aldis Hodge, Christian Kane, and Gina Bellman. Otherwise, I actually didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know the general idea behind this show. They all did\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 stuff? Together? For reasons? I do my best to come into pilot episodes of shows with a very open mind, but the beauty of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Nigerian Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is that I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to. I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need to be patient to be given suspenseful scenes, emotional attachment, or humor. The first heist presented to us is ridiculous, complicated, and immensely thrilling to watch, AND IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S JUST THE FIRST OF MANY\u00c2\u00a0WITHIN A SINGLE EPISODE<\/i>. There are somehow 74 more of these to come!!! What have I done to deserve such goodness in my life!!!!!!!!<\/p>\n

There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a fascinating balance between varying tones in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Nigerian Job.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d When we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re first introduced to Parker, Eliot, Hardison, and Sophie, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s through these brilliantly funny flashbacks that all toy with the nature of spy work or tropes concerning thieves in fiction. And yet, Nathan Ford\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s own flashback? Nothing is about it is funny. He watches his son die because his insurance company denied him coverage, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that sort of gut-wrenching realism that grounds\u00c2\u00a0Leverage\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>for us so that we understand the morality at play. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot of talk of Nathan existing in the world of the black king and the white knight at the same time, and I love that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re already deliberately graying the playing field. Nathan used to hunt down the four people brought together by Dubenich, and his priorities have shifted enough that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s had to see them as allies.<\/p>\n

That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s intriguing to me! Even the very organization of the team itself makes me want a billion more iterations of what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s essentially the same formula: heists and cons to help those screwed by the system.<\/p>\n

Of course, a show that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s essentially a high-tech\u00c2\u00a0Robin Hood<\/i> is going to be right up my alley. The fact that the pilot episode demonstrates the callous nature of an insurance company\u00c2\u00a0and\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>a greedy, racist business owner is EVERYTHING I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122VE EVER WANTED. But you know what? There are about a thousand things in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Nigerian Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d that would fall under that category:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Heists. HEISTS. HEISTS.<\/b><\/i>\u00c2\u00a0<\/b>How many times do I need to say that I love heists? You will tire of me saying it, and I could not care about that.<\/li>\n
  2. The hacker\/computer nerd is a black man. Look, I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even think of another example of this, and I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a big fucking deal. This character is almost always played by a shy or socially awkward white man, and I find it particularly refreshing and exciting that the hacker in this show is an outgoing, hilarious black man.<\/li>\n
  3. Parker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s character is so unusual and unexpected as well; you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d expect someone like Eliot to be the outlier, the one who is the most intimidating of the bunch, but nope. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the blonde woman with a killer smile, and she consistently does things in this pilot that no one else would ever dream of.<\/li>\n
  4. I know this may seem silly, but when do we ever see the hard man wearing glasses or being the first of the bunch to offer up empathy\/sympathy? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Eliot who makes the first significant strides towards friendship with Nathan. Despite that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s spurned, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that negates the attempt.<\/li>\n
  5. SOPHIE. An actress who is only good WHEN SHE IS BREAKING THE LAW. How? How are we allowed to experience this?<\/li>\n
  6. The show completely acknowledges the idea that breaking the law DOES NOT MEAN A PERSON IS IMMORAL. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not because the show ignores the reality of law enforcement or the legal system itself. Hell, the team are arrested in the first episode! (And that particular escape was just\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 my own heart cried tears of joy. SO BEAUTIFUL.)<\/li>\n
  7. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m also into the idea that the narrative inherently validates anger and the need for revenge, especially since it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about gaining revenge within a system that might normally ignore injustice. On a larger level, I wonder how Nathan will ever deal with his anger towards the insurance company he used to work, as I suspect we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll see that at some point. But within \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Nigerian Job,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Nathan is enraged by the fact that Dubenich came to him and crossed him in a way that exploited his \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good\u00e2\u20ac\u009d side\u00c2\u00a0and\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>the death of his son. The revenge that he enacts on Dubenich is never questioned here, and in the end, Pierson gets their own form of justice as well.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s certainly a whimsy here that is completely unlike virtually everything I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m watching or have been watching for this site. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s different, and I enjoy it. I enjoy being able to laugh so much at this show, to feel a sense of genuine joy because this isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t the saddest thing I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve ever seen. Which doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean I dislike the stuff on\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i> or\u00c2\u00a0The Sarah Connor Chronicles<\/i>, because that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the case. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 I get recommended to watch and read things because they have a maximum sense of emotional devastation to them, and that translates really well to what I do. While I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not saying that\u00c2\u00a0Leverage\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>will avoid being serious (come on, Nathan\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s son!), I got to feel a happiness here that wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ironic or unfortunate. Goddamn, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, this was a lot of fun, and I just want to see these goobers interacting with each other forever. FOREVER.<\/p>\n

    The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Nigerian Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for free until I finish the first season of the show! After that, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s available in my store for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Mod note: Mark is watching the DVD order of this season, which is different from Netflix or airing order.\u00c2\u00a0 The Master Schedule has episode titles so you can check which episodes Mark will be reviewing on which days.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

    – Mark Does Stuff is now on Facebook<\/a>! Feel free to Like the page, which I’m running myself, for updates and SILLINESS.
    \n– If you would like to support this website and keep Mark Does Stuff running,     I’ve put up a detailed post explaining how you can!<\/a>
    \n– Please check out the     MarkDoesStuff.com<\/a>. All Mark Watches videos for past shows\/season are now archived there!
    \n– My     Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features will be\u00c2\u00a0The Legend of Korra<\/em>, seasons 2 – 4, and series 8 of\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/em>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/b>
    \n– The 2015 Mark Does Stuff tour is being announced!!! Check     my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page<\/a> often to see if I’m coming to your city!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In the first episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Leverage, I have been given an entire show about heists. No one is more thrilled than I am. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time to start\u00c2\u00a0Leverage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[625],"tags":[626],"class_list":["post-4385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-leverage","tag-mark-watches-leverage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4385\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}