Leverage – Never underestimate Eliot

“Eliot, I’m going to ask you not to do anything violent.” – Nate, as Sterling walked into the bar
“What are you talking about? I only use violence as an appropriate response.” – Eliot, just before he beat up Sterling

You suspected it was going to be a good episode of Leverage when Sterling (Mark Sheppard) walked into the bar. You knew with no level of uncertainty that it would be an outstanding episode when a moment later, Eliot beat the stuffing out him. Add in Maggie (Kari Matchett), Nate’s ex-wife, and Leverage just offered us the best cold open of the season, as well as one of my favorite episodes in season two.

This episode was full of twists, surprises and bigger-than-life scenes — and we’ll get to those — but perhaps one of my favorite scenes was when Sterling presented the mission to the team, Nate style, in Nate’s apartment. It was so surreal and subtly funny, and it was spot-on Sterling to say,”I like the old place better.” He’s so delightfully annoying.

The way this story played out was masterful. The team suspected Alexander Lundy from the start, and when Nate found out Maggie was involved with him, it took on a deeper urgency to get him and get him good. I loved Nate’s line: “Most thieves aren’t nearly as smart or good-looking as they think they are.” Even with all of Alexander’s confused facial expressions, I still didn’t see the twist with his assistant being the guilty one coming. Well done, Leverage.

As always, Team Leverage got their mark in the end, with a number of clever switches that kept surprising me:

• Parker switched the bomb and the egg through the elevator shafts
• Hardison delayed the countdown on the elevator numbers so Sam wouldn’t suspect anything
• Tara switched the plates off the embassy car
• And somehow, Sterling ended up in the trunk, a hero as always and promoted to Interpol. I can’t wait for his next guest appearance!

Eliot’s no slouch in the brains department, but because of the way he looks, and because he’s a “retrieval specialist,” we can sometimes forget that he’s easily capable of masterminding plans to get the bad guys, which is exactly what he did tonight, while everyone else was busy suspecting Alexander. Maggie said it best:

“You know, people underestimate you, Eliot.” – Maggie, when Eliot explained how he figured out it was Sam and not Alexander
“That’s kinda the point.” – Nate

Other things worth mentioning:

• Parker timing out the heist that would have had to have happened for the egg to be stolen, and Sterling hadn’t even noticed her in the room before that.
• Nate’s “intercom voice”
• I’m really liking the dynamic that’s developing between Eliot and Tara. It started with their fight scene in “The Runway Job” and has elevated to where they could con a guy out of his Zanzibar Marketplace invitation wordlessly. I loved that scene.
• Wasn’t it a riot when Hardison kept sending feedback into Sterling’s earbud so he’d shut up?
• It was so good to see Matt Keeslar, since I’m still bitter about the cancellation of The Middleman. I didn’t know he could cry like a little girl, but then again, the first bomb is the worst.
• “I hate this guy.” – Tara about Sterling, when his career was boosted yet again because of the Leverage team’s hard work
  “Now you’re part of the team.” – Eliot
• Nate’s drinking is still going to figure in big to the final episodes of the season as well as Sophie’s return. Even Maggie called him out on it this episode, in such a simple yet poignant way: “I meant what I said before. I really like the man that you’ve become. Too bad you don’t.”

I’m really looking forward to the last three episodes of the season, and since I have the screeners (yes, I’m giddy!), check back soon for some teasers.

Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Jan 28, 2010 @ 11:30 EST5EDT