Leverage – Star-studded Buffy / Angel reunion

(Season 1, Episode 9 – “The Snow Job”)

Leverage provided another fun-filled romp for us with “The Snow Job,” with a clever con, a glimpse into Nate’s dark side, more crazy Parker, and a star-studded guest cast.

The first flashback we saw tonight was on Nate’s son coding in the hospital, a memory Nate shared when the client said that he knew Nate did everything he could for his son. Something tells me Nate doesn’t believe this, since he took to the drinking in a big way in this episode.

The cool thing about Nate’s drinking — yeah, that’s an insensitive way to write that! — was that even though he was hung over at the meeting and drank frequently during the job — at the bar, in the car — he was never off his game. The team thought that he was, but when Nate kept saying “trust me,” the team really should have. Yes, he took risks (but doesn’t each team member do that during every job in their own way?) and as the team’s rock, that made them nervous. But he had a bigger con in mind and he pulled it off, getting every one of the 400 families their homes back (except the clients, who got the contractors’ mansion!).

So back to my insensitivity: what I mean to say is that the Leverage writers didn’t let Nate’s drinking interfere with the lightness of the show, nor with Nate’s effectiveness as the glue that holds the team together, and I’m glad. I don’t want this show to go to a dark, dark place and have a lot of discord amongst the team members. They showed us that Nate isn’t doing that well, but they didn’t take us down with him. It was just right, with Sophie’s concern, the small tiff with Eliot (duh, Nate, why would you mess with Eliot?), and Sophie leaving us with a little teaser at the end: “Give me a reason to stay.” I take that as a foreshadowing that Nate will clean up his act, not necessarily that they will get together.

The con was a good one, too, and it was kind of fun that the team wasn’t actually in on the whole con … it was all Nate. Conning that family of contractors was so easy, and Danny Strong (of Buffy and Gilmore Girls fame) was brilliant as the brother who was “in control.” But Nate had his own ideas … he wanted it all, as was revealed in the end when he struck the deal with the state police. Very clever, and a nice plot device to get the viewers to trust Nate, even though he was drinking again.

Speaking of Danny Strong (Buffy‘s Jonathan … wait for it …), he wasn’t the only notable guest star in “The Snow Job.” Sam Anderson, currently best known as Rose’s husband, Bernard, on Lost, gave a brilliant performance as the bumbling, gullible, ruthless, greedy contractor dad. There’s a super interview with Sam Anderson about his appearance on Leverage over on TV Addict. Oh, and if you don’t remember, Anderson worked closely with Christian Kane over on Angel — yep, he was the head honcho at Wolfram and Hart. So “The Snow Job” really turned out to be one big Whedonverse reunion last night — always a good thing!

OK, I can’t end my review without mentioning Parker. Man, she’s crazy!

• While hanging from the chair lift, delivered in the flattest voice possible: “Help, Help. How ya doin’?” (to guy riding the lift with her)
• Parker dives from the second floor window of the mansion and Eliot catches her in the nick of time. Eliot says, “How did you even know I’d be there?” Parker retorts, “I didn’t!” with the wackiest grin you can imagine.
• When Nate mentions the con they are going to pull off — Glen Gary, Glen Death — Parker says, “Is it me or is he getting creepier?” When Nate decides to get a cadaver for their con, she revisits her thought: “Oh yeah, he’s definitely getting creepier.”

Other things worth mentioning:

• When Eliot hijacked the office at the resort, he put a box of Toblerone candy on the desk, as part of his cover as a Swiss guy … classic.
• Eliot knew all the fancy brain stuff because he dated a neurologist. It brought me back to the “dated a flight attendant” line from “The Mile High Job,” and I wonder if it will be a funny pattern throughout the series.
• Danny Strong’s character took one look at Parker and bought that she was dying from a brain tumor: “Those dead eyes, as if there’s no soul.” Ha!
• How can someone have a “tell” in Rock, Paper, Scissors? Another example of the Leverage charm.
• I loved Sophie giving Parker acting lessons. I can’t imagine that’s ever going to work out well.
• Hardison’s got a sensitive side, tearing up when they gave the Scott family the mansion. I think I sometimes have those same allergies, Alec!
• One other “guest star” appeared in “The Snow Job” — did you see Jonathan Frakes sitting next to Nate in the hospital waiting room, sporting a neck brace? He’s directed a few episodes of Leverage, and this was a fun cameo to catch if you had your eyes open!

Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Jan 28, 2009 @ 12:58 EST5EDT