(no subject)
All right, I'm doing that Leverage meta I warned you all about because I spent the day unfucking my fic and don't feel like writing anything else, plus it's fresh in my mind. If you haven't watched Leverage, you should. It's pretty much the one TV show that I will shove on anybody as something they should at least try. Great characters, great writing, lots of fun, great acting... Plus, it's basically competence porn all the way through. Also, in the current climate, it's so great because it's people breaking the law for all the right reasons, namely justice for all! WAAAAATCH IIIIIITTTTTT.
Also, I realized when watching the finale that Stirling is the Javert to Nate's Valjean. SERIOUSLY.
One of the things I loved about watching it now was that I could mainline the entire series over a very short period of time, which helps. You can really see the consistencies (and a few of the inconsistencies like the fact that shooting order wasn't the order things aired. *stares at Christian Kane's hair*). Like Eliot's "What?! It's a very distinctive ____" Or Sophie being a terrible actress unless it's part of a con, including the finale. Or Parker's emotional growth. Or how Hardison is so over the top ALL THE TIME, but does get better over the course of the series, and especially after the Russians. Or how Nate finally gets a little bit of closure by finding Sophie and a mature relationship with her, and accepting the rest of the team. (And I love the idea of Nate and Sophie riding off into the sunset together to pull small cons and solve crimes, and maybe having a baby, who grows up to be a super thief, because how could he/she not?)
I also love the little things you see. Like, in the beginning, they all have their own areas of expertise, and they all still do in the end, but they've clearly learned from each other. By the end of S5, Parker and Hardison can take out a bad guy with a well-timed punch. Hardison can pick a lock. Eliot can work a remote (and mess with Hardison while he does so). Parker can grift. Hardison is a lot better at grifting than he was at the beginning. All of them are better. They're better together. They've learned from each other.
I remember watching the finale when it aired, and I wasn't sure about Parker taking over, but it works better when you watch the entire series all in one go. Eliot doesn't want that responsibility, because he's their exit strategy always, and Hardison truly isn't ready. But Parker? Parker has grown the most as a character, and she's good at everything, and good at looking at a problem from all angles. She has the trait that Nate said Hardison didn't: she's pragmatic to a fault, capable of making the hard decisions. By the end of the series, she has the empathy to temper that streak into something that will make her the perfect mastermind. And Eliot and Hardison will follow her through hell and back.
I just wish we'd had a few more years to see that development, because I wanted more time with the whole team, not that I think Nate and Sophie will be able to stay away forever.
And does anybody but me think that the finale is basically Nate's worst nightmare? He lies to the Interpol agent, but the lie is Nate losing his kids all over again. And Sophie isn't a part of that because Nate can't imagine a world without her in it, but he's lost a kid before, so that's doable but also the worst possible thing he can imagine.
Also (OT3 alert!) that he can't imagine any of them surviving without the others because Parker's bullet wound didn't appear to be fatal. Just sayin'. I have never seen a show with a clearer OT3, even if Eliot ends up being the platonic third in the relationship.
Leverage is at least a little bit ridiculous, but it's so emotionally satisfying. It's satisfying in the same way I found Numb3rs and NCIS: LA satisfying, because in the end, you have these characters who want to leave the world a little better than they found it, who care for each other and sacrifice for each other, and who are happier together than they are apart. I could watch all three shows again tomorrow from the beginning and be happy.
I also watched the pilot of The Sentinel today, and I forgot how absolutely ridiculous that show is. I lost count of the number of times I said, "Oh, for god's sake, are you kidding me?!" I mean, I love it, and the goofiness is part of why I love it, but... Seriously, Ellison, where are your fucking handcuffs?! is one of the things I actually said out loud.
At least Richard Burgi looks very nice with his shirt off.
Also, I realized when watching the finale that Stirling is the Javert to Nate's Valjean. SERIOUSLY.
One of the things I loved about watching it now was that I could mainline the entire series over a very short period of time, which helps. You can really see the consistencies (and a few of the inconsistencies like the fact that shooting order wasn't the order things aired. *stares at Christian Kane's hair*). Like Eliot's "What?! It's a very distinctive ____" Or Sophie being a terrible actress unless it's part of a con, including the finale. Or Parker's emotional growth. Or how Hardison is so over the top ALL THE TIME, but does get better over the course of the series, and especially after the Russians. Or how Nate finally gets a little bit of closure by finding Sophie and a mature relationship with her, and accepting the rest of the team. (And I love the idea of Nate and Sophie riding off into the sunset together to pull small cons and solve crimes, and maybe having a baby, who grows up to be a super thief, because how could he/she not?)
I also love the little things you see. Like, in the beginning, they all have their own areas of expertise, and they all still do in the end, but they've clearly learned from each other. By the end of S5, Parker and Hardison can take out a bad guy with a well-timed punch. Hardison can pick a lock. Eliot can work a remote (and mess with Hardison while he does so). Parker can grift. Hardison is a lot better at grifting than he was at the beginning. All of them are better. They're better together. They've learned from each other.
I remember watching the finale when it aired, and I wasn't sure about Parker taking over, but it works better when you watch the entire series all in one go. Eliot doesn't want that responsibility, because he's their exit strategy always, and Hardison truly isn't ready. But Parker? Parker has grown the most as a character, and she's good at everything, and good at looking at a problem from all angles. She has the trait that Nate said Hardison didn't: she's pragmatic to a fault, capable of making the hard decisions. By the end of the series, she has the empathy to temper that streak into something that will make her the perfect mastermind. And Eliot and Hardison will follow her through hell and back.
I just wish we'd had a few more years to see that development, because I wanted more time with the whole team, not that I think Nate and Sophie will be able to stay away forever.
And does anybody but me think that the finale is basically Nate's worst nightmare? He lies to the Interpol agent, but the lie is Nate losing his kids all over again. And Sophie isn't a part of that because Nate can't imagine a world without her in it, but he's lost a kid before, so that's doable but also the worst possible thing he can imagine.
Also (OT3 alert!) that he can't imagine any of them surviving without the others because Parker's bullet wound didn't appear to be fatal. Just sayin'. I have never seen a show with a clearer OT3, even if Eliot ends up being the platonic third in the relationship.
Leverage is at least a little bit ridiculous, but it's so emotionally satisfying. It's satisfying in the same way I found Numb3rs and NCIS: LA satisfying, because in the end, you have these characters who want to leave the world a little better than they found it, who care for each other and sacrifice for each other, and who are happier together than they are apart. I could watch all three shows again tomorrow from the beginning and be happy.
I also watched the pilot of The Sentinel today, and I forgot how absolutely ridiculous that show is. I lost count of the number of times I said, "Oh, for god's sake, are you kidding me?!" I mean, I love it, and the goofiness is part of why I love it, but... Seriously, Ellison, where are your fucking handcuffs?! is one of the things I actually said out loud.
At least Richard Burgi looks very nice with his shirt off.