Okay, so I didn't love The Broken Wing Job as much as I expected to, considering what a huge Parker fan I am, but it was still solid. And I know why I wasn't as into it as I expected to be - I love watching the team work and the interactions between the team and the ridiculously complicated plans and there was almost none of that. I also love the competence porn aspect, and very little of that occurred, either. Parker got to use her burgeoning masterminding, but it wasn't really a super complicated job to plan or execute, so it didn't even utilize that skill fully. Quick rundown of stuff that stuck out:
Amy is, indeed, a gem. Junior Leverage member all the way. Recovered quickly from a kidnapping, followed directions well, and was perfect dealing with Parker. A+ work, Amy.
Poor Parker. Even after 3+ years, she is still afraid that the team will decide they don't need her at any moment. And worse than that, you really got the feeling that Parker was not just worried about her thief skills not being needed, but that if her thief skills weren't needed, she'd lose her family. Her entire life has ingrained in her that people only keep her around when she can be useful to them.
I did like the reveal that Parker is FAR more "normal" than she sometimes lets on. I mean, all of her scenes were *quirky,* yes, but it really seemed apparent that she plays up the blank expression and not getting references and human interactions much more than she really does. I mean, I'm pretty sure it's not all a ruse, but a coping skill where she magnifies already existing traits. If people expect her to understand *nothing* about human interaction, they're going to be pleased when she follows 50-75% of interactions, rather than annoyed that she is not following 100%.
I love watching Parker mastermind. I wish we'd gotten to just see a Day in the Life of her at her warehouse between jobs, eating cereal, planning heists, etc.
I also loved the throwaway French and the smug little grin "Not as long as they thought."
The gun thing! I started out thinking she was pissed for Eliot's sake that they had a gun in her bar, but I came to the conclusion that she really has internalized the whole "guns are wholly bad and unacceptable" thing.
Sophie and Nate romantically burning down a hotel (room). Bwah! Or burning something big in a hotel rooom? You know a good 10% of their dates end that way.
Amy is now Parker's only non-Leverage friend, I think. Peggy is Alice's friend, and I actually agree with Parker on how that makes her only kind of Parker's friend. Liking the Alice part of Parker is not quite the same as liking and accepting actual Parker. And I was surprised to hear Amy mention Parker's brother. Even though she didn't seem to know anything about him, just the fact she knows he existed is huge.
Those were absolutely horrible kidnappers. How did they not notice the cameras before? Why were there four of them? How did it take so many days to actually grab her, and why were they planning the kidnapping *right in front of the person they were kidnapping?!* Kidnapping 101, people.
Also, why were the other two kidnappers changing their coffee orders every day? That's just plain weird. Who changes the number of creams and sugars every day? They got burner phones for the coffee orders, basically. (And the abort/go, I guess.)
"Hey, wait!" "What?" "I'm gloating." I literally loled for so long I had to pause. *That* is Parker's takeaway from working with Nate. That tracks.
Is it just random coincidence that Hardison found a brewpub right between a bank, a jewelry store, and a pawn shop? 🤔
"You're in way over your head!" Aw. I almost feel sorry for the stupid kidnapper. Except he brought a gun, so not so much.
Parker's cold eyed kung fu with the crutch. Eliot would be proud.
Episode MVP: Amy. Parker technically did more, obviously, but it was all stuff she could do easily and was accustomed to. But Amy went from "Is this legal?" to being kidnapped, hunted by men with guns in the dark, to bonding and watching movies with Parker (arguably just as hard), all within about 48 hours. That takes skill. And fortitude.
Least useful: Nate, just for how he dismissed Parker on the phone. If she were at 100%, I wouldn't have counted it against him, but she was down most of her physical skills and, as far as he knew, maybe on painkillers. He could have been a teensy bit more careful. On the other hand, maybe he really does have that much confidence that Parker can handle anything thrown at her, even down a leg and possibly drugged. It's a mild quibble. The real Most Useless were the godawful kidnappers.
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