#og leverage

[raointean]

Alec Hardison: I’m going to start a false crimes podcast where I explain crimes that never actually happened

Parker: I’m going to do those crimes you explain, forcing you into having a true crime podcast

[mcdubs42]

I’ve seen the Leverage episode “The Double Blind Job” (s3e5) like 3 times now.

And every. Single. Time. At the exact same point in the show. I go “is that Katie Lowes?” and then one second later her name appears on screen LITERALLY on top of her torso as part of the credits. And it is in fact, as always, Katie Lowes.

And because I’m nothing if not predictable, I think to myself “huh asked and answered.”

Not only is it a delightful bit of TV timing, her name popping up right on top of her character, but hilarious to me I do the same thing every time.

[average-background-character]

Here is the thing, because I'm rewatching Leverage and I've just finished the Order 23 Job. There is a way to make a character care about kids, without making it out like they were abused when they were younger. I mean, in the literal next episode, Eliot remarks that he's uncomfortable using a kid to get to a mark, he's great at teaching/working with kids, and he's also willing to keep his fighting quiet when Widmark's on stage (in part because Sophie asks, and in part because I think he also wanted to give Widmark a chance to shine). There was no need to have the subplot in Order 23, if you weren't going to make him a victim of child abuse. Fuck, if you wanted to have a similar subplot, just have it be a child who has a bad injury/illness, or who doesn't have parents to take care of them, or who's just having a generally bad time. But you can't tell me a whole crew of people wrote that subplot, directed it, had a test audience watch it, and no-one was like 'hey boss. Getting abused vibes here. We might want to change a few things around.' But whatever, *kicks rock down the road with my hands in my pockets* it's literally fine.

[ohgriftwearereallyinitnow]

Listen ok Eliot is protective like whoa and that doesn’t just mean in the dangerous way; he’s mom friend, he’s the older sister you never had, he’s your actual mom, the “have you eaten today?” friend. All that being said, he routinely takes down private security teams, in his head, on his day off. Once he said he only sleeps 90 minutes a night and I’m not so sure he was lying - it’s half probably unnecessary hypervigilance and something he picked up when he needed to keep watch for two weeks straight with a team of three and four months of constant attack.

Alec Hardison is thirsty for someone to be close to. He had a great homelife (relatively) and he knows what it’s supposed to be like but he’s actually a classic computer nerd and has never been with someone past his fantasies of what romance should be like. Which brings me to my next point which is he’s a classic romantic. I think Hardison had a real job at some point, like he was a tech guy or he worked at a cybersecurity company or he hacked like garcia. Anyway he knows basic stuff. He’s the emotional one of the bunch, the one who experiences emotion like a typical person Like Eliot, can sense when someone isn’t telling the truth or isn’t being true to himself through high level CIA training but lacks the emotional intelligence to deal with it gracefully. Which is where Hardison comes in

Then there’s Parker. She keeps everyone at arm’s distance, to the point where it’s actually shocking if she touches you. She takes extreme risks because she’s incredibly impulsive. She doesn’t lie, doesn’t even know how or why she would because she always has an escape route. She hates hospitals because she spent her entire 7th year in one after a beating so bad she almost didn’t walk again. But she’s not adverse to romance and friendship, it just takes her a very long time to suss out whether you’re going to hurt her or not. She’s gullible about real world knowledge bc she has a very specific set of skills. A bizarrely blazeh attitude until helpless children being exploited or respect for Good dead men gets brought up, basically she knows what the right thing is but she needs people to point her in the right direction.

Eliot and Alec really do use that to their advantage but would rather kill each other and themselves before hurting her. Thus even though they fight, they really do go well together.

[therandomfandomme]

It's so sad how you can see the set up for season 6 so clearly in season 5, bc they have a new base in a new city, Nate has gotten his revenge and is moving on and settling down with Sophie, Hardison and Parker have found their groove, Eliot is following his passion in the brewpub.

Like they're settled and strong and it's time to up the stakes and go after the big guys, they were gonna end the season with a hit list for the next one, a hit list Jim Sterling, Nate's rival is tied to. It was probs gonna focus more on that rivalry, one the whole team has gotten into, and how they navigate working down that list, which is probably when that CIA agent they pissed off was gonna come into play, bc they know the black book is gone and suddenly those people are being targeted, so they would have big league people on their heels

You can see the set up so clearly and it would have been epic as fuck, but it just got cancelled :(

[raointean]

Eliot Spencer: The file is on your desk. So is a muffin, orange juice, and coffee.

Nathan Ford: What would I do without you?

Eliot: Starve, I imagine.

[raointean]

Alec Hardison: What happens to the car if you press the brake and the accelerator at the same time?

Parker: It takes a screenshot

Eliot Spencer: Get the fuck out of my truck, both of you

[raointean]

Alec Hardison: I hope you get run over. 

Eliot Spencer: Hoping is all well and good, but ultimately, it gets you nowhere. Be the change you want to see in the world... Get in your car and run me the fuck over yourself. You coward. You lazy fool.