Leverage--The Carnival Job
I loved this episode for the most part. I'll get to what I didn't like in a bit. For now, let's squee:
First of all, Eliot bonding with a snarky kid. Way to make my ovaries explode, show. I love their chemistry, and I love seeing Eliot let his guard down a little. His little attempts at lectures on hard work and his demonstrations about how to win at carnival games were so precious. And wow, he was indulgent! He just handed over an earbud.
Nate seemed more together this episode.
The whole Parker 2000 thing and Hardison getting an earful all episode about it was cute until the end scene. More on that later.
I loved the fight scenes, of course. Eliot has the distinction of being the only person I can think of who was knocked out in the middle of a fight with a carnival ride. That HAD to hurt. He seriously got his ass kicked this episode, and I loved it.
And when Eliot fought with his eyes closed? I WAS SO TURNED ON! YOU GUYS! THAT IS ONE OF MY KINKS! (It really is. It goes back to the time when Cyclops of the X-Men fought six guys blindfolded and kicked their asses.)
Oh, and I loved the banter between Eliot and Hardison when Hardison was telling Eliot how to make the explosion. "Give me a little warning next time." "What did you think 'run like hell' mean?" LOL! He had a point, Eliot.
Okay, so what didn't I like about the episode? The end. Two things. ONE: They just HAD to end the episode with a damn cutesy couples scene. I'm not going to go into it or argue about it, because I don't want it to turn into a thing. A lot of other people seem to be in love with the romantic crap. But dammit. Parker is becoming one-half of a cutesy couple, and I don't like it.
The other thing, though. And this is the BIG THING: Eliot got the shit knocked out of him, and still, the writers have him walk away like it's nothing. Ha ha. He goes off with his hot nurse. This could have been an opportunity for the rest of the team to recognize what he goes through during the job and realize that he can get really hurt sometimes. I wasn't asking for a big dramatic scene or anything, but it would have been nice if they'd done more than play it for laughs.
This might well have been the perfect episode if it hadn't been for the hand wave ending. I guess I'll just focus on the rest of the episode and ignore the ending. In my head, I'll believe that the chick was a friend who is driving Eliot to his private doctor, and his personal sense of pride wouldn't let him admit weakness to the team. *nods*