{"id":4617,"date":"2015-04-22T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-04-22T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4617"},"modified":"2015-04-13T17:30:41","modified_gmt":"2015-04-14T00:30:41","slug":"mark-watches-leverage-s05e03-the-first-contact-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2015\/04\/mark-watches-leverage-s05e03-the-first-contact-job\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Leverage’: S05E03 – The First Contact Job"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the third episode of the fifth season of Leverage<\/i>, I LOVE THIS EPISODE SO MUCH. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Leverage<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For gaslighting<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

This episode was made for me. THIS EPISODE IS WHAT I HAVE LIVED FOR. How? How do I talk about this? How can I begin to understand the beauty that is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The First Contact Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d? THIS IS TOO MUCH.<\/p>\n

Everything That Ruined Me In This Episode<\/b><\/p>\n

\n
Before I talk about a lot of the sillier aspects of this episode, I wanted to open on a more serious note. I loved that this con featured Nate fucking up. He misjudged what the client wanted and set up a con that didn<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t<\/i> make Orin Metz satisfied. When he realized this, he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t abandon the con he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d set up. He changed <\/i>it. He took responsibility for not listening to the client, and he got the man\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reputation back. GOOD.<\/li>\n
There are certainly a lot of absurd and ridiculous things planted throughout this episode that reflect on the relationships between the characters, but I am just so thrilled<\/i> that after four full seasons of watching these people try to figure out how<\/i> to be romantic, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re finally getting it. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like the slowest serialized arc in the universe, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m totally fine with it. Why? Because this is the reward.<\/li>\n
Oh god, where do I even start with this fucking episode??? Oh, I know: TWO GOOD OL\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 BOYS. BEHIND THE WHEEL. CHASIN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 DOWN BAD GUYS. IN LUCILLE.<\/li>\n
I won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get over that scene<\/li>\n
I refuse to<\/i>.<\/li>\n
I know that explaining something that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s funny or cute can suck the fun out of it, but I adore<\/i> that after Eliot angrily charges after Hardison, we get a scene of them enjoying the company of one another like this. Truthfully, Eliot is a hardass, but he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one who deeply cares about those who he trusts. Seeing that affection come out is so pleasing to me, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. Every once in a while, Hardison actually wins him over with his little schemes and gadgets, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s adorable.<\/li>\n
Parker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ET voice. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so terrible and creepy, and I wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have it any other way.<\/li>\n
Eliot as Willie Riker. (How the fuck did I not catch that reference to William Riker, oh my GOD. RIKER ACTUALLY DIRECTED THIS EPISODE.) It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my absolute favorite grift he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ever done, hands down. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s perfectly weird, and there are all these little moments where Eliot himself can be see within the character. Bravo, Leverage<\/i>.<\/li>\n
On that note, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s really fantastic to see how Sophie\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s influence affected Eliot\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s performance. I actually would love to see her act well outside of the job. I think she could do it some day.<\/li>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We have liftoff!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d BLESS YOU FOREVER, PARKER.<\/li>\n
Okay, Parker and Hardison in matching Men In Black<\/i> suits\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 whew. I WASN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T READY.<\/li>\n
Parker and Hardison\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s bets. Like, this is some #goals type shit, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. Pulling off cons\/heists for bets? And the bets are what the next date will be? And they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing shit like bungee jumping from a hot air balloon or picnics under the stars? Okay, this may be the single most unfair detail of the entire episode.<\/li>\n
I appreciate that the change in setting allows the show to incorporate subtle details from Portland. Like, for example, Sophie\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reference to being outside in the rain again. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nice. I APPRECIATE IT.<\/li>\n
The sheer brilliance and dedication it took to pull off this specific con deserves a bullet point all on its own. Because y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, this team faked a signal from deep space. They also made it alternate the numbers of pi. THEY ALSO CONNED SOMEONE INTO BUYING A SATELLITE. <\/i>A satellite! That you put in space!!!!<\/i> I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even deal with the thought of the alien abduction. IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S TOO MUCH. (Well, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also a little disturbing when you do<\/i> think about it. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one of the more extreme ways in which the team has gaslighted someone, no? I mean, they construct a super elaborate reality in order to traumatize Kanack, and then they show up at his press conference in order to make him question that reality. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 really fucked up, isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it?)<\/li>\n
Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t notice that Doctor Who<\/i> reporter in the press conference. I SAW THEM.<\/li>\n
This episode is just a joy <\/i>to watch, and ultimately, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why I felt so good about it. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so much camaraderie amongst the characters at this point, and I know it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s because they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve spent so much time with each other. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an entirely different dynamic from where they were at in the beginning of the show. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not an easy thing to convey over time. Admittedly, the way<\/i> in which I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m watching this show makes that easier to spot, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still there. I think Leverage<\/i> is a perfect example of a show that I can love that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not<\/i> heavily serialized, despite that that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what I normally watch.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The First Contact Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n
– The Mark Does Stuff Tour 2015 is now live and includes dates across the U.S., Canada, Europe, the U.K., and Ireland. Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often. My next Double Features for Mark Watches will be the remainder of The Legend of Korra<\/i>, series 8 of Doctor Who<\/i>, and Kings<\/i>. On Mark Reads, Diane Duane’s Young Wizards<\/i> series will replace the Emelan books.
\n<\/b>– Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a> I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!
\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!
\n<\/a>– Please check out the MarkDoesStuff.com<\/a>. All Mark Watches videos for past shows\/season are now archived there!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the third episode of the fifth season of Leverage, I LOVE THIS EPISODE SO MUCH. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Leverage.<\/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-4617","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\/4617","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=4617"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4617\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}