Parker, Sophie and Elliot to return full time, Hardison to be recurring (because of other commitments), apparently Noah Wyle to take over as the new mastermind. Dean Devlin executive producing with John Rogers and Chris Downy (all from the original series) consulting producers, the day-to-day showrunner (according to Rogers) is Kate Rorick. I would have loved the whole team to be back, but this is good enough for me. The perfect time for a show about bad guys being the best good guys taken down the real bad guys to return to screen. (even if, in the current climate, returning to the screen might be a while away )
I’m not a fan of Wyle. I pretty much detested him in the Librarian movies/shows especially during his more manic moments. I’ll still be watching for this.
I’m all for some more Leverage. As comfort food television goes, that show was pretty satisfying. I can’t say I’m the hugest fan of Noah Wyle, but I don’t particularly despise him either, and since Timothy Hutton was the least-interesting member of the original team anyway, it’s kind of a wash for me. Speaking of Hutton, do they kill his character off? Given what’s been going on with him recently, I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to do just that, with Sophie deciding to reconvene the team in the wake of his death. And would Parker, who ended the original run having become the new leader, just go back to being the thief? And would we get more Sterling? I don’t see how that’s negotiable.
One thing not made clear to me about Noah Wyle in the new show, has the character “Nathan Ford” been recast with Wyle replacing Hutton in the same role or is Wyle moving into an entirely new character with a new name and backstory? I hope very strongly that it’s the latter.
Season one is available through iTunes. We seem to be out of luck for season two.
I don’t know if I want a Leverage without Hardison as a regular. I’m happy that Aldis Hodge has steady work but he was by far the best character on the show closely followed by Parker and Elliot.
Hardison: Age of the geek baby. We run the world.
Parker: Does this smell like chloroform to you?
Elliot: It’s a very distinctive [insert anything having to do with any military]
The new series dropped today (the first 8 episodes, anyway) on IMDB TV, a free streaming service.
Can’t wait to watch it tonight. Bummer about Hardison being only a recurring character, but I gotta have my Parker fix. Plus, anything with Christian Kane is a must-watch for me.
I don’t think this is really spoiler territory, but just in case:
In the first episode, it’s revealed that Nathan Ford died a year ago. Noah Wylie plays a completely unrelated character who, through a Series of Unfortunate Events, falls in with the gang. There’s some similarity in the characters’ backgrounds, but they play different roles in the gang - Wylie is the Fixer, while Sophie has taken over the role of the Mastermind.
I watched the first episode, and I’m cautiously optimistic. I loved the original series. I didn’t think the first episode of this new reboot quite managed to recapture the magic. But even if it doesn’t improve, and it remains a slightly dimmed version of the original, that still puts it above 95% of what’s on now, for my personal entertainment value.
I’m with you, but Aldis Hodge seems to have gone on to a bigger career than the others. I’m glad to have Hardison back even as a recurring character. He’s a main character in the first episode, the only one I’ve watched so far, and like the rest of the actors, he seems to have slipped back seamlessly into his role. I’m a bit apprehensive about how Hardison’s sister will fit in. I thought Hardison’s interactions with Parker and Elliot were vital to the chemistry of the original. They’re already missing Nate and adding Noah Wylie’s character. Still, after one episode, I’m cautiously optimistic.
Yes, it is. It was created by Dean Devlin, one of the co-creators of Leverage, and has a similar sort of balance of action, adventure, humor, and a bit of drama, albeit with somewhat lower production values. And Christian Kane being Christian Kane. I personally didn’t find it particularly compelling - I didn’t think it was bad, it just didn’t hook me. But if you’re a big Christian Kane fan, I think it’d be right up your alley.
Magic Tech is basically Hardison’s whole schtick. You either accept that the show takes place in a sci-fi universe where Hardison has access to Clarke’s Law levels of technology, or you don’t buy the show.
Beyond that, I’ve seen it described as “competence porn”, which is a pretty good description. Sophie’s gift for grift and cold-reading is magical. Elliot is Captain America in a world of Hydra goons. Parker has super-human agility. And they all have utterly ridiculous levels of knowledge related to their specialties.
They’re super-heroes. Pretty much literally. Since I enjoy super-hero shows, I enjoy the hell out of Leverage.
Three episodes in, and, so far, they’ve all been mid-level Leverage episodes. Maybe even slightly below. But, again, I loveLeverage, so I’m perfectly happy with mid-level Leverage.
Harry’s New Orleans accent seems to come and go from scene to scene. Which kind of makes sense - he’s a corporate lawyer, so maybe he’s deliberately suppressing his accent and affecting an “American Broadcast” accent, but isn’t always successful? But I’m pretty sure it’s nothing that ambitious - Noah Wylie is trying for a subtle New Orleans accent instead of a broad caricature, which is a good call, but he doesn’t seem quite able to hold it.
Having two new members of the crew allows the show to put in a lot of organic exposition, with the old hands explaining things to the newbies (and not incidentally the audience). So far, they haven’t abused it - they’ve been using it pretty seamlessly.
It’s pretty clear that much if not all of the filming was done under COVID restrictions. Every scene has only a handful of actors. Even scenes, like a pop-up rave or a casino heist, that should have dozens or hundreds of extras. It’s usually not too noticeable, but it’s occasionally glaringly and distractingly obvious.
I still chuckle over the time when he drilled a hole in the wall, stuck a cable in and tapped into the fiber optic system of the building. Not the most egregious thing ever on the show, but having been a cable tech myself, I really did wish that such technology existed.
Watched the first 3 so far. Entertaining, though I’ll agree not quite up to the original.
The soundtrack has changed a bit too, there was the little ditty as they went back over the heist from a new perspective in the old one that seems to be a bit different now.
I never thought of it that way, but you’re right, I think. Ex-supervillains turned good, anyway.
We watched the first two last night. They were fun, and I didn’t really miss Nate much. Not quite up to OG standards, but still pretty good. We’ll see what the rest bring.
I think the writers are trying too hard with the group chemistry. It’s almost like they’re trying to force it, especially with Breanna (Hardison’s cousin). I think she’s doing fine and that she will develop further. But I feel they’re forcing it. The chemistry with Eliot, Parker, and Sophie is still there and strong.
I think Noah Wyle is going a very good job as Harry Wilson.
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