{"id":4388,"date":"2015-01-20T08:00:57","date_gmt":"2015-01-20T16:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4388"},"modified":"2015-01-31T07:18:19","modified_gmt":"2015-01-31T15:18:19","slug":"mark-watches-leverage-s01e02-the-homecoming-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2015\/01\/mark-watches-leverage-s01e02-the-homecoming-job\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Leverage’: S01E02 – The Homecoming Job"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the second episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>, the team assists a disabled veteran when he believes a contracting group caused his injuries. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For discussion of ableism, war.<\/b><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, a lot of what is in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Homecoming Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0is<\/i> how the world works.<\/p>\n

Like the pilot episode, this story tackles something that is very real in the United States and abroad. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily want this show to be a projection of my own personal politics, and I understand that we should also look at the focus of the narrative. While it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s important Corporal Perry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s case is about the poor treatment given to disabled veterans in the United States, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not really the focus of the episode. The commentary here on ableism and warmongering is clever and competent, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the most revolutionary thing imaginable. So I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to cast this show as being perfect or immune to being criticized, but I also want to acknowledge how goddamn satisfying it is to watch this unfold, with the antagonists as people who we\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>should view as antagonists.<\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true that our country has a terrible problem serving veterans, with many veteran hospitals hundreds of miles away from the homes of the respective patients. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also true that there are mercenary firms and private contractors who secure no bids contracts with the U.S. governments (through bribes and lobbying), all to exercise unbelievable power that most traditional armies do not have. These are real things that I urge people to research and familiarize themselves with! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s with this sort of background that \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Homecoming Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d unfolds, casting us into a world of corruption, bribery, and deceit.<\/p>\n

As I mentioned, it really IS great to me that the show tackles lobbying the way it does here, especially since it contrasts it with the sort of crime that the bulk of the team has done. I appreciated that the opening moments of the show confirmed that the team HAD split up to go live their lives, awaiting the next call from Nathan. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re still criminals, and the writers don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ignore that. But note how they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re all\u00c2\u00a0disgusted<\/i> by the treatment of Perry and the actions of Dufort and Jenkins. I know it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a little thing, but I loved that detail. Why? Because it toys with the notion of what we consider a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153big\u00e2\u20ac\u009d crime. How often do you hear news stories about lobbyists and their revolting behavior in Congress? How often are they major news stories or brief, forgettable ones? How frequently does our nation attempt to disrupt the relationship between elected officials and lobbyists?<\/p>\n

But let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s look at this in terms of characterization instead of politics, which I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to focus on for too much time. If these characters are disgusted by this behavior, what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s their payout for a job like this? From the beginning, they all accept that this little \u00e2\u20ac\u0153team\u00e2\u20ac\u009d they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve assembled has been worth it. I mean\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 $32 million? Each? They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re already set for life. But that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the language these people speak, ESPECIALLY Parker. Sure, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing something good for Corporal Perry, but at the end of the day, they want to be paid. So it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s unsettling to them that Nathan already spent all his $32 million, giving nearly ALL of it away to a charity for a children\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hospital. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not something any of them would do. Does that mean they are despicable people? No, but it causes them alarm. It makes them rethink what they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing. As they aim to pit Jenkins and Dufort against one another, all so they can spill their secrets, they have to also accept that the job they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on is one that probably isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t going to get them a lot of money.<\/p>\n

Which is then immediately challenged after they discover that Castleman Security has been hiding HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS of Iraq reconstruction cash in the Port of Los Angeles. (I feel like this is barely fiction; didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t this actually happen in Iraq? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m having trouble finding a story to confirm this, but I recall that we truly did lose billions of money over in Iraq that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s never been recovered.) Yes, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00c2\u00a0incredibly<\/i> funny to watch Parker react the way she does to that container full of cash. But Nathan has to remind them all that the job here isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t to steal the money for themselves;\u00c2\u00a0it is all for someone else<\/i>. He deliberately invokes the use of the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good guys\u00e2\u20ac\u009d justification. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not here to break the law for the sake of it or for personal gain. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the point of Leverage Consulting & Associates. (I LOVE THE OFFICE SO MUCH, THAT PAINTING WILL NEVER NOT BE HILARIOUS.) I have to say this again, but they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re Robin Hood, and the people they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re conning are the Sheriff of Nottingham. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re stealing from the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153rich\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and giving to the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153poor.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d In this case, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re exposing the money laundering perpetrated by Dufort and assisted by Jenkins, all of which benefits from the very war that indirectly led to Perry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s injury. They benefit from the scheme, while Perry and his friends get shot for it.<\/p>\n

So it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s interesting to me to see how Nathan acts as the moral agent for the entire group. Yes, these are not immoral people, but even their own personal sense of gain and worth is tied to a different set of rules than Nathan\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. As they watch the overjoyed look on the faces of the disabled veterans and Dr. Laroque, is this really something they can give up? The world doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t work this way most of the time, and that sort of cynicism is something I appreciate being acknowledged. At the same time, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a joy in watching Nathan say that maybe it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time to change the world instead of just accepting how awful and terrible things are.<\/p>\n

And throughout \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Homecoming Job,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m SO ENTERTAINED. Above all \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the politics, the reversal of a power dynamic between the veterans and the rich men who profit off them \u00e2\u20ac\u201c this is just a thrill to watch. The con was so good that I fell for it. The characterization is so distinct and hilarious that I find myself already getting a grasp for who these people are, and I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even watched two hours of this show. I like that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve consistently shown us that Eliot hates guns. I like that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve introduced Hardison\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s attraction to Parker. I like that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re well aware of the fact that Nathan once had some sort of affair with Sophie. I like that these little moments don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t\u00c2\u00a0feel\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>little to me. They may happen in passing, but I can still recall them in detail. I just\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 I just like these people so much. ALREADY. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a damn wonderful thing.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Homecoming Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/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<\/i>, seasons 2 – 4, and series 8 of\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>.\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":"