Leverage is set to return to our television screens on December 12th! Many Grifters (the name given to Leverage fans) have been anticipating this event as we may get answers about the mysterious Damien Moreau. In honor of the show's return, let's look back at three fan favorites from each of the seasons. So, yes, it's a Top Nine List!
Season One
"The Wedding Job" (1.07): When a man takes the fall for a mob boss, his family is promised money in compensation. Sadly, that never came to be and now the team must pose as wedding planners to provide some leverage to the situation. Aside from the fact that this episode introduces us to soon-to-be-favorites McSweeten and Taggart, we also get a glimpse at just how talented Eliot is in the kitchen. I love a man who knows his way around a meal.
Eliot Spencer: Look, hold a knife like this, cuts through an onion. Hold a knife like this, cuts through, like, eight yakuza in four seconds. Screams, carnage.
"The 12-Step Job" (1.10): When an investment broker swindles money from a charity, it's up to the team to get it back. They trick the guy into entering a rehab facility to make the play, but we soon learn more about the inner-workings of both Parker and Nate's heads, as well as the true reasoning behind the broker's dirty dealings. Parker on medication is quite a sight, but moreso is the image of Nate going through detox. He's got issues and we're getting a warning that his addiction may cause problems later.
Alec Hardison: Whoa, whoa. I haven’t slept in three days. I had a showdown with two different gangs, who, now by the way, know my face. I sat on a bomb. And all this could’ve been avoided had you gave the man a taco?
"The First David Job" / "The Second David Job" (1.12 / 1.13): Okay, so I'm cheating and combining these two, but they're supposed to be together! The CEO of Nate's former employer, also the man responsible for the death of Nate's son, is the target of this heist. The team is going to steal his Michelangelo maquette and sell it back to him as a second version. All is well and good until the much-hated Sterling shows up. After the break-up of the team at the episode's end, they must reform to go up against Sterling again and hand out some forgiveness along the way. I could say that I love these episodes simply because of Sterling, and I do, but we also get a good glimpse into the man Nate used to be and how his past has affected him.
Nathan Ford: Are we still unclear? I'm a functioning alcoholic, you know? And the trick is not to get hung up on the alcoholic but celebrate the function part of the sentence.
Season Two
"The Tap-Out Job" (2.02): A fighter gets hospitalized after a dirty fight, so his father calls in the team to take on a corrupt fight promoter. Aside from the fact that we get Sophie trying to learn the inner-workings of small town America, we also get to see Eliot fighting and showing that the team should never lose sight of what's really important; to see justice done on behalf of the client.
Alec Hardison: Look, you know what I can do? I can re-task a satellite. I can get a level-3 NSA security clearance. But I can't hack a hick.
"The Two Live Crew Job" (2.07): An elderly couple asks the team to retrieve their stolen painting. Seems like a simple enough job, until another crew beats them to it and steals the painting for themselves. When Nate decides to take on the second team, we get a great mirror rendition of our beloved team with a female version of Eliot, Chaos as Hardison's rival, and the show's on-set thief Apollo Robbins as Parker's twin. And we also get to see Sophie's funeral, as does Sophie since she's in attendance.
Alec Hardison: Yeah, I analyze it, I monitor comms, I scan for all police frequencies, I... you had no idea I do all this, did you? Does nobody respect the van? The van is important!
"The Future Job" (2.13): With Tara joining the team, they decide to take on a fraudulent psychic who has been bilking people out of their money in the hopes that they can talk to long-dead loved ones. While casing the guy, Parker gets targeted and told intimate information about her dead brother. The team comforts Parker and explains how the psychic was able to read her in order to tell her such truths. One rule of the team is you don't mess with Parker, so that was reason enough for me to cheer the team on as they took down the slimy psychic.
Parker: He who looks for hidden money shall find it. If he is also a thief.
Season Three
"The Inside Job" (3.03): When her mentor, Archie Leach, asks for her help, Parker goes in on a job for him. Unfortunately, she goes missing as a result and it's up to the team to find her before it's too late. What we get in this episode is a bit more into the background of Parker; her connections and her décor, as evidenced by her warehouse abode. And we get to see the devotion this team has towards what has become their family. If that weren't enough, the amazing Richard Chamberlain takes a turn as Archie Leach. I'd say that was a winning combination all around!
Nate: Okay, let's go steal ourselves a Parker.
"The Studio Job" (3.06): When a corrupt country record executive takes advantage of a rising star, it's up to the team to make things right. Even more importantly, it gives Eliot (by way of Christian Kane) a chance to show off his vocal talents. This episode was the highest rated of the series and it's clear to Kaniacs (fans of Christian Kane) why that is. We love it when we get to hear him sing and we love it even more when we get to discover yet another of Eliot's hidden talents.
Eliot: Some roads you start down, you can't turn back. I'm about a hundred miles down one of those right now.
"The Rashomon Job" (3.11): Five years ago, they all tried to steal the same rare artifact, which is once again missing. The problem is, they all have differing memories of how the heist actually went down. And thus we get the makings of a fantastic episode where perception can warp reality in some very weird ways. Also, prior to this, I would have never said Christian Kane and Riley Smith looked anything alike, but anything is possible when you are telling a story.
Sophie: You really can't tell? Americans! All accents sound the same. Please go on. I sound like one of the dwarves in Lord of the Rings, but continue.
So with that look back completed, we look forward to the future. What are some of your favorites from the show? And what do you hope the future holds for the Leverage crew?
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