In the twelfth and penultimate episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>, Sophie sets up a con that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll give Nate the revenge he desires on his old employers, and then EVERYTHING BECOMES A DISASTER. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Leverage.<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Trigger Warning: For discussion of alcoholism<\/b><\/p>\n
HOW IS THIS SHOW SO GOOD.<\/p>\n
This is such a powerful follow-up to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The 12-Step Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d because it helps explain the underlying problem with Nate\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s experience in rehab: he still hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t dealt with the original motivation for his drinking. Not everyone\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s alcoholism is related to experiencing trauma, but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s definitely the case for myself. So at the outset of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The First David Job,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d we get a clear portrait of what is to come. Sophie brings Nate a con that is\u00c2\u00a0too<\/i> good to resist. (Which was a clue to the big reveal at the end, HOLY SHIT.) She knows that Nate\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s drinking started after the death of his child, so she offers him the chance to get revenge on the very person who denied his son\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s claim, Ian Blackpoole. (Who is played by Kevin Tighe, eternally known to me as the scumbag that is Locke\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s father on\u00c2\u00a0LOST<\/i>. AND HE\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S JUST AS HORRIBLE HERE.)<\/p>\n
Because this show unfolds in such specific ways, I knew something was going to go deeply wrong with the con when it was going so well in the first ten minutes. NOPE.\u00c2\u00a0NOPE<\/i>. And I love that\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/i>s writing staff knows we know this, so they build tension through that expectation. We await the complication because we know it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s implicit, AND THEN MAGGIE IS STANDING THERE AND ELIOT WAS HITTING ON HER AND WHAT THE FUCK, I WAS NOT READY FOR MAGGIE TO BE THE OTHER SHOE. And holy shit, does this episode get complicated. Obviously, the con is made hopelessly difficult by her appearance, especially since she was an art expert as well. However, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an emotional aspect that made Nate distracted. Sophie was jealous of the attention, but Nate was conflicted by the fact that he\u00c2\u00a0did<\/i> enjoy working with her.<\/p>\n
AND THEN THE SHOW HAS TO GO AND REVEAL THAT MAGGIE HAS NO IDEA WHAT IYS DID TO THEIR SON. Why? Why must you hurt me in this way,\u00c2\u00a0Leverage<\/i>??? Did I do something to you??? CAN I REPAY YOU SOMEHOW??? I jest, but this really does feel too personal for these characters. Of course, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the point. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why Sophie pursues this specific con. She knows that Nate won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be able to say no, but she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also hiding her ulterior motive. This case means a lot to\u00c2\u00a0her<\/i>, and I thought it was a clever (but heartbreaking) way for the writers to remind us that even if the team is full of good guys, four of them have pasts full of thievery and pain and violence. Sophie doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t suddenly become a new person because of her role on the Leverage team. Part of the fun for her is her ability to straddle the lines. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that moment back in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Miracle Job\u00e2\u20ac\u009d where she remarks that half the fun of her time with Nate was knowing he was the good guy and she was not. So, while the reveal here that she wanted to steal the Second David was terribly shocking, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not surprising in terms of her character. She still likes to steal. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s almost a compulsion for her, and the idea of getting to complete a collection quite like hers was too irresistible for her.<\/p>\n
But at what cost? It was distressing to see the dynamic of this con shift so dramatically in favor of Jim Sterling, whose appearance FUCKED ME UP. As I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve said in past reviews, his very presence upsets any narrative flow. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a terrible variable, and when he and his men arrive in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The First David Job,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d it was upsetting to watch. It really seemed like Sterling had finally bested the Leverage team, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d done so\u00c2\u00a0specifically<\/i> to prevent Nate from ever getting revenge on IYS. He has a monetary interest in preventing Nate from sinking IYS; I won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t deny that. But it was also clear that he just wanted to stick it to Nate, that he wanted to disrupt him and ruin him and force him to disappear.<\/p>\n
It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 well, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cruel. Sterling wanted to break Nate.<\/p>\n
He doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t quite get to. I loved that the team re-thought their options and did what they could to get Sterling to look the wrong way while they covered their tracks. I loved the callback to the pilot episode when Sophie is the one to utilize rappelling. I love that Hardison\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s value is made explicit when technology saves everyone in the Leverage headquarters. BUT I DID NOT EXPECT THAT THE HQ WOULD BE DESTROYED\u00c2\u00a0THIS EARLY INTO THE SHOW<\/i>. What other choice did they have? As I said, Sterling wanted to destroy these people, so much so that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d never be able to run another con again. By destroying headquarters, nothing can be tied to them. At the same time, in yet another reference to the pilot, they realize that Sterling\u00c2\u00a0has<\/i> negatively affected their livelihood. Their cover has been blown, so the con against Blackpoole is useless. What do they do now?<\/p>\n
They go their separate ways.<\/p>\n
I DON\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T UNDERSTAND HOW THIS ISN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T A SEASON FINALE. It felt like one! And yet, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s another episode left to go, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122M FRIGHTENED. Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, this show is\u00c2\u00a0so good<\/i>. Can I also just take a moment to acknowledge that Parker is the literal best? SHE IS SO INCREDIBLE. Look at what she does when she steals the First David! WITH ITEMS FROM A BUFFET AND A MAKE-UP BAG. Also\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Hardison and Parker making out????? IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S TOO MUCH.<\/p>\n
The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The First David 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. In the twelfth and penultimate episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Leverage, Sophie sets up a con that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll give Nate the revenge he desires on his old employers, and then EVERYTHING BECOMES A DISASTER. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to … Continue reading
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