#also who taught alec spanish??? was it his nana? was it one of his foster sibs? i wanna know! can you show me!

[fluffypotatey]

watching Leverage: ep 8

I GOT ME GRAPE FANTA 😎 WE SPLURGING TONIGHT 😚

Pre-game show:

ok so i think i've got it figured out on who i'd be besties with from this show this is of course unrelated to the previous episode. also, let me know which of the crew i'd be besties with! i only know these guys for 7 episodes and y'all have all the 5 seasons, so 1st impressions and after some development?

nathan wouldn't trust me (obvi as i am young and inexperienced with heisting but i am a good strategist! so that should count for something) but eventually, he'd adopt me as one of his heist children

sophie would adopt me on the spot i just know it

alec and i would be besties. maybe i would feel a little intimidated by his hacking skills at first, but he'd be very welcoming and i would laugh at his jokes so yeah

i would be way too intimidated to be near eliot alone just because i feel like he has that aura of "don't talk to me"

unfortunately i don't think parker and i would start off well because i tend to be too polite and not say what i mean and she's a very blunt person

but anyway

it is really weird how they've listed the episodes because the last one being ep7 is super confusing for the continuity. if you watched the horse job before the wedding job like me, it makes no sense for alec to not know who eliot's "girl" was. however, if the wedding job was set before the horse job THAT MAKES SENSE!

SO WHY ARE THE EPISODES LISTED OUT OF ORDER???? WHY DID YOU SCREW WITH THE CONTINUITY LIKE THAT????

also it makes so much more sense that an ep3 nathan would be a little perturbed by heisting the mob and feel a little bitter about marriages because we're just getting to know him!!! it makes no sense for him to be bitter like that at ep7. not after the fucking bank shot job where we see him so soft for sophie???? ugh

this episode, we are watching *checks notes* The Mile High Job, spoilers for the episode will be followed under the cut (obvi 😗)

My Mile High Reaction (not sponsored by grape fanta)

oh dear, this ep is gonna be heavy

they blamed a child's death on her pre-existing conditions???? conditions unrelated to the side effects their fertilizers gives???? oh boy, i am getting pissed and they aren't even real but oh man i wanna hit something

oh they hiding evidence??? that would be important to the case??? corporation sir that's illegale. no that's literally illegal. anything you hold that's important to the case the other side needs to have as well. that's literally *breathes* i will...persevere :)

sophie: not speaking english the security guards: speaking english trying to understand her

to be fair! i am also that dumb

oh so both of them are just gonna hop away from the desk, okay then, keep it together my god lmao

ok i know they're trying to steal the information that the prosecuting team needs (the couple is prosecuting right? i'm assuming bc they have the burden of proof) but i'm worried bc there's a "doctrine of the poisoned apple" that basically means that any info gathered illegally cannot be used in court no matter how integral it is

i am curious to see if they bring up this little doctrine or ignore it (i'd be find with either tbh)

????

what happened with alec???? why does nathan not want them speaking about him???

shit this is a continuity thing huh

ALEC THANK GOODNESS

baby, did you...did you put a whole ass hot pocket in the microwave with no plate??? not even a paper towel??? and you grabbed it??? with your bare hands, dear lord

get a paper towel. sir, i'm embarrassed

*sighs* this was originally episode 4 wasn't it? alec and the crew not being as smooth, alec missing that they had a mission that day and fumbling to help them,

ok so i'm a little annoyed about how the episodes are listed and how janky they are continuity -wise

oh no the crew is about to be caught and this could have been avoided if the guy at the chair was more present in meeting! she says with a straight face. how ever will they get out of this one

yes, mister corporate evil man sir, please tell us everything about how you plan to tank the court case on a phone call where you're not even trying to keep quiet

i love you parker. how did she evade getting caught and exit the room before nathan and eliot? no one knows! but we all fucking love her for it!

"ok i got two for first class" nathan, sweetheart, he didn't even hesitate "ok sophie and i'll take those" yeah, yeah, ok sir, okay

ALEC BRO WITH A STRAIGHT FACE awww newlyweds

eliot....eliot, my dude, where, how???? WHEN? air marshal???? WHOMST???? WHO ARE YOU? WHAT THE FU

omfg alec i love your customer service voice. perfection lmao

awwww she loves fidget so much (that's an adorable name btw the kitty's so cute i wanna nuzzle!)

lmao eliot that flip was so extra, you just needed to stumble my dude

SOPHIE

NATHAN'S SO FLUSTERED HELP

"cuffs are his, wips mind" bro you should be so glad i wasn't drinking right bc i would have choked fr

ELIOT DEARY YOU SOUND LIKE A TEENAGER WHO GOT DRAGGED ALONG THIS TRIP "idiot," he says like sophie's his step mom and he's so embarrassed that he has now learned more info about his dad's sex life than he needed to

alec <3 i love him so much

parker i love you but you almost got punched (not your fault, you didn't know the lady was touchy about the promotion comment)

OH THEY FAKE DATING!! FAKE MARRIAGE

oooooooh nathan you in deep shit

oh man my brother would hate parker as a flight attendant

the pilot does not sound that clear on the intercom, leverage! really you hear more static than the pilot and it's way too loud and everyone just nods like they understood

mood eliot

madam, if parker said there's a system, then there's a system! do not mess with it!!! ma'am it ain't that hard to wait. if you really feel queasy, the bathroom is right behind you

ALEC MY BOY

yeah ok he could speak spanish to me all day. he sounds like a man who's so happy about his job! alec, you making me fall for your persona

lmao for a second i though the guard was going to look at the camera

"hey is there room in [the elevator that alec is making sure to take up every bit of space]" alec: idk bro you tell me

i know i say this so much but....alec i love you

"i bet you think we all look alike" I CAN'T BREATHE HELP I CAN'T I LOVE HIM

NOT THE SENSITIVITY SEMINARS

I CAN'T BREATHE

wait what are the playing on the plane? there's a movie playing. it looks western. eliot what are you watching????

yes eliot, let's just rummage through all the carry on bags. that's not suspicious

i mean.....parker's got a point. dying on a plane is pretty low. more people die in car crashes, but people feel more confident driving than flying

can't tell if that help the lady or not, but parker's delivery was hilarious either way

hands off sir that's a married woman! a fake married woman but still!

oop trouble in paradise

alec <3333333 my tall WoW geek, he's found his people

back the FUCK up nathan 🔪 leave him alone!

his little smile when he said "the meeting's starting!"

oh that better be fake alec!

oh thank goodness

lmao of course the accountant is the one who wanted ginger ale

nathan, sweetie, sweetheart, deary, pumpkin, gumdrop......you are so bad at pretending to be mad at sophie you whipped son of a bitch

OH????? THE ASSET IS THE ACCOUNTANT!!!! HAHAHAHA YOU HAVE TO SAVE HER NOW PARKER LMAO

so sorry but i was distracted (by eliot's voice) for a little bit but we good now

aww parker got her ginger ale to soothe her anxiety (didn't help but it's the thought that counts)

poor steve (derogatory)

i love cheryl. i'd die for her

oh shit he got a knife!

FUCK HIM UP ELIOT

you're gonna leave the knife in there??? with the unconscious hitman??? what if he wakes up what then?

oof you're gonna go that route? after 9/11??? ok then

good, good eliot got the knife

honestly i feel bad for that flight attendant. this must be one her worst days on the job

oh they got a countdown!

oh dear they cutting close on time

just curious: was there a content warning that was placed just before this episode aired? i know this show came out in 2008 but 9/11 was still fresh in people's minds. so to air an episode where a plane gets hijacked to crash, i feel like there was a warning placed for viewer discretion.

NOOOOO ALEC BABY HE SOUNDS SO DEFEATED :( HE THINKS HE'S GONNA LOSE THEM T^T HIS NEW FAMILY NOBODY TOUCH ME

HOW HIS VOICE CRACKS WHEN HE REALIZES HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO AND HE IS HELPLESS TO THEM NO

ohhhhh stressedstressedstressedstressedstressedstressedstress

AH OKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOOOK

THEY GONNA LAND ON THE HIGHWAY

THEY DID IT

ok but is alec still in the boss's office? or is he back a HQ? how had no one found him? oh dear wait

ok nvm we got comedy all good

fuck off steve

aww we got soft sophie/nathan

haha she still won. love her

General thoughts

ok i have no clue why the episodes are mixed up like that because this episode feels like an ep4. it's just after the wedding job and the team isn't as solid yet. tbh this could even work before the wedding job but i wanna say no bc nathan was too up his ass in that one.

alec, my boy, you shined beautifully in this. i don't care if he wasn't the best team player! this was his episode and i loved it. i love that we got to see him geek out about video games and even about coding stuff that only he understands. i like how he is such a great people person! alec just met cheryl and yet he knows exactly how to work with her and make her believe he has worked at this place since forever. and maybe i'm hoping that he found her on WoW and they became internet besties

anyway, good episode, i enjoyed it. i laughed, almost cried, got stressed toward the end but all turned out well!

[intcthatgoodnight-a2]

Bios for the Leverage team

Nathan Ford - the Mastermind

Born and raised in Boston. His father was a bookie and fixer for several mob families.

He is Catholic. When he was younger he wanted to become a priest. He went to seminary school but left before he finished.

Formerly an insurance investigator for IYS insurance. He recovered stolen items, and was one of the company's top guys, saving the company millions of dollars. Was well known in the criminal world.

His son Sam became sick (it’s never said what he had, only that it was “stage four” when discovered). IYS refused to pay for his medical treatment claiming it was “experimental”. Sam died when he was eight, in the hospital, his parents with him. (Nate still has trouble being in hospitals since)

After his sons death Nates life fell apart. He lost his job, he became and alcoholic, and his wife Maggie divorced him.

A few years later he is recruited to lead a team of thieves. After being double crossed, the team decided to con the guy who hired him. Nate recruited Sophie to join the team.

Nate and Sophie knew each other from his insurance days. He chased her across several countries. While they never had an affair while he was married, they both clearly had feelings for each other.

Nate plans the cons and leads the team. He convinced the group of thieves to steal from the corrupt rich and give it back to the people it was originally taken from.

Nate continues to suffer from alcoholism throughout the series.

For a while he continued to say that he was not a thief, he just worked with them. He refused to see himself as a criminal. It wasn’t until after a few years of working with the team, when he allowed himself to get arrested to they could get away, that he admited to himself that he was in fact a thief.

Known languages are: english, spanish, serbian, russian, italian, turkish, and latin

Sophie Devereaux - the Grifter

Not much is known about Sophie's past, other than she has several secrets in London which is where she began her criminal career. She has gone by several aliases.

Sophie is not her real name. Her real name is never revealed in the show and is one of the shows biggest secrets, as she kept it secret even from Nate.

She is an aspiring actress, but she is horrible at acting - when it’s acting on a stage or for film. When she is grifting she is able to convincingly play a variety of characters of seemingly any background/ career / or nationality. As Nate puts it: “Sohpie Devereaux is the best actress you’ve ever seen...when she’s breaking the law.”

She and Nate met ten years before the events of the show. They have a seemingly romantic relationship, both aware of each others feelings. However they don’t act on them for various reasons - first because Nate was married, and then later because Natein an unhealthy mindset. They have a ‘will they, won’t they’ things throught the series.

She is considered one of the best grifters in the world. At one point before the series, she stole the Second David from the Vatican.

Known languages are: english, spanish, mandarian, french, german, japanese, russian, hebrew, serbian, italian, as well as multiple other dialects.

Alec Hardison - the Hacker

Raised in the foster system. He and his foster siblings call their foster mom “Nana”. Has a foster sister named Breanna, who he taught hacking to.

He was raised a Jehovahs Witness and was made to go door to door to speak to people when he was young. Currently considers himself “religious but non denominational”

A prodigy and genius. He was able to crack into the Pentagon servers when he was only 12.

He played the violin until he was 14.

Used his hacking skills to attend the Oscars every year since he was 15.

He is wanted in Iceland - he spent his prom night hacking into the Bank of Iceland who he made pay his Nanas medical bills.

Once hacked into the White Houses emails because he was bored.

Other than hacking his skills include: inventing and engineering, some pickpocketing skills, improvisation, bomb making, forging, created CIA level cover stories and aliases.

Eliot Spencer - the Hitter

United States Black Ops soldier turned retrieval specialist.

His father ran a “hole in the wall” hardware store and wanted him to take it over. Eliot had other ideas and joined the service at 18.

In high school he dated a girl named Aimee, who he later said was the closest he ever got to settling down. He gave her a promise ring. It seemed like the thought she would wait for him when he left for the army, but she couldn’t

Not much is known about his time in the military or his retrieval work after.

Highly skilled in multiple areas. Some of the fighting styles he is shown to use are: boxing, muay thai, jujitsu, krav maga, kickboxing, eskrima, panantukan, kenpo karate, and aikido. He’s a fixer, and can play the “inside man”. He is a weapons expert. A skilled swordsman, and marksman - however he does like guns. He’s familiar with hostage negotiations.

Doesn’t like guns. Won’t use them if he doesn’t have to. Fights hand to hand, or with knives.

He’s a gourmet chef, as well as a singer and guitar player. He’s a flirt. Can ride a horse. He’s very protective of kids. And doesn’t like hitting cops.

The creator of the show originally intended for him to be cousins with Shawn Spencer from Psych. However this idea had to be scraped. But I say it’s true.

Known languages are: english, arabic, german, russian, and farsi (he doesn't speak it but seemed to understand it)

Parker - the Thief

She was put into the foster system when she was very young. Bounced around from foster home to foster home, most of which were abusive in some way. In one foster home, her foster father took her stuffed rabbit and told her she had to become a better thief to get it back. She stole it back and blew up the house.

At some point when she was very young, she taught her younger brother. Nick, to ride a bike. Later, while riding the bike, he was hit and killed by a car. She blamed herself and never told anyone.

Before she was 12, she was a getaway driver. Sometime after, she met a boy in foster care named Kelly, he taught her how to boost cars.They worked together as a team until they boosted a bait car. He escaped the police, leaving Parker to serve 6 months in juvie.

In 1998, Archie Leach, a master thief, caught her attempting to steal his wallet. He saw her potential and decided to train her as his apprentice, becoming a mentor and surrogate father as he trained her to be the greatest thief in the world. He never brought her home to his family though, telling Nate that she would have never fit in with a real family.

A few notable achievements are: she performed a heist of the French National Bank. Stole "the Caravaggio", in Paris, in 2003. At one point during the show, she stole the Hope Diamond only to put it back, because she was bored.

She was wanted in nine countries, including Brazil and Yemen

Parker is a gifted thief, deft at security circumvention and picking both locks and pockets. She has incredible gymnastics skills, flipping and weaving her way through laser grids with ease. She's also a formidable opponent in hand-to-hand combat due to her excellent upper body strength and acrobatics. She displays a very high level of spatial intelligence.

She has poor social skills, and different emotional responses. She can appear to lack visible empathy or other people, and has a hard time recognizing emotions.

While it is never said in the show, the creators have confirmed that Parker is autistic.

Known languages: english, spanish, and possibly french.