Maelstrom

That’s a great article, perfectly sums up how I feel. Thanks for sharing! 😊

Is Selfie available/streaming anywhere in the US? It was on Hulu for quite awhile but since they lost it I haven’t been able to find it anywhere else. 😢 I’d love to revisit it! I will pray to the tv gods that someday we get a movie or a short-run series or something to properly end this wonderful story. 🤞

I’m glad I’m not the only person who wants to punch something every time either of those two say those words. 🤮

Sooo.... sounds like today's ep is reheated crap. Why can't we have more flashbacks of Finn throwing Peter down the stairs? I never get tired of that. No wonder I can't make any sense of this Nik/Shawn/Hayden shooting BS - they're pulling it out of their butts in one of the lamest retcons in recent memory.

When the Camellia Blooms started strong but honestly it fizzled out for me at the end. Apparently the show was extended by 4 episodes due to its popularity, and boy you can tell. In the final stretch there was so much filler and unnecessary drawing out of every bit of tension (real or imagined) that it kind of killed my interest pretty good. Finishing the last few eps was a chore. I really liked the male lead - his character was a joy to watch from start to finish - as well as some of the seasoned actors playing the supporting characters. But overall... meh. Too bad. Argon is a short, fantastic show about tv journalists fighting to tell the truth in an age of corruption and endless spin. Highly recommend. Sadly, the lead actor died IRL not long after the show originally aired in a freak car accident, but this show is a very strong tribute to his talent. Currently watching Run On, and really enjoying it. The lead actress impressed me in Rookie Historian, and is excellent once again. And though I've never watched the male lead in anything (I've heard only good things about his starring role in Misaeng, which I will watch, someday) he's turning in a wonderful performance here. I'll have to check out Her Private Life! I love finding a drama good enough to rewatch.

I wasn't sure about this one from the little summary, but this was a strong episode, and a fantastic mid-season finale. So many things to love, and I'm sure I'm going to forget a bunch in this post. I ended up liking Fake Nate/Milton a lot, and would love to see him back again. He gave me Hurley vibes, I think because both are "marks" who end up being a generally decent guys caught up way out of their depth by someone indisputably nasty. Having Milton be a former IYS coworker of Nate's was a nice touch to ground the character and his supposed memoir in the heart of the show's history. I did think it was interesting, though, that the others couldn't picture the kinder, gentler Nate that Milton mentioned. But I've always felt that Nate was a very different person when Sam was alive and he and Maggie were still together, so for me it makes sense that Nate could be the nice guy that stopped by to thank him. And, like Milton said, the forensic accounts are the ones putting the pieces together - Nate was smart enough to know to be nice to them. Duchess Charlotte Prentiss! Always nice to see her again. She's one of my favorite Sophie aliases. (Though I think the Truffle Hippie from "The French Connection Job" is still my all-time favorite. I loved that they addressed why Parker stepped back from running the cons to let Sophie be in charge, because I've been wondering about that all season. Parker's grown so much over the course of the larger story, and I've kinda hated seeing her reduced back to just being the thief/resident oddball. But acknowledging that she deliberately stepped back as a kindness to Sophie was an excellent choice, and very believable. Beneath the cons and the craziness, these people really love each other, and it comes through in so many small and subtle ways. Though I'm still wondering what Parker's big problem with being called legendary was, and I had to laugh at Eliot's anger at being reduced to just a mindless hitter. (So of course he goes out of his way to seduce the mark's ex-wife, lol). I wish they could've gotten Aldis for even a video call or something, but I'm happy we had him as much as we did and won't complain. Random: Breanna's vocal fry as the morning show PA was irritatingly accurate, lol, so kudos to the actress for that. I thought this ep made nice use of Harry turning the hired goon against the mark by using his Jedi lawyer mind tricks. Milton's superpower of being boring was put to good use. And Helium Parker was betrayed by the balloon! Miscellaneous hopes/predictions for the remaining eps: Hopefully more Hardison, even a little! I'm guessing we'll have to meet Harry's daughter at some point, since she's been mentioned a few times now. Wonder if he'll track down and help Lucy, the woman from the first episode whose brother OD'd on that sleazeball's opioids. And, in the wishful thinking department, if I could have any of the recurring character from the original run turn up I'd pick Tara, or Agent McSweetin. ETA extra thoughts after rewatching: More bits I loved were Parker's stabbing motions while acting as camera operator during Fake Nate's "interview," as well as her taser instructions to Harry ("point the sparky end at the other guy") And of course Eliot's "I had hair in my eyes, Parker!"

I like when we get to meet/hear about previous clients that the team has helped in the years since the original show ended, and it makes for a good way to raise the stakes right from the start. They helped Libby and her daughter once already, and they're damn well not going to let anyone else hurt her. Good solid episode for Breanna. I love that even though Hardison's not present it still feels like he's there with them. It helps me miss AH just a teeny bit less, and gives a little more weight to Breanna's journey as she finds her own place on the team. Though I am curious about the maple syrup... Parker scoffing in disbelief that someone would need help interacting with other human beings was pure gold. Eliot and the Marshal reminded me of the other hitter in "Two Live Crew", except more likable. I'd be curious to see more of them should she return in the future. And it was a nice touch to acknowledge that other people besides our crew noticed something was fishy in Small Town, Arkansas. And boy was the mark's software super creepy and disturbing. So, question of the episode: does Eliot still have all those fatwas on his head that he mentioned in "The Studio Job"?

Thank you, DearEvette! I will check them out for sure 😄

Great episode! I agree that this was one of their stronger ones. Lots of fun, some good team moments and plenty of comic relief. Sophie's acting skills are always a treat, especially when accompanied by her teammates' reactions at having to watch her. "Oh, great..." I had flashbacks to her Lady MacBeth performances with that outfit. Poor Eliot and his noble dragon steed 🤣 Was I the only person that somehow got Galavant vibes during the joust, for some reason? At least Eliot didn't have to resort to drugging someone with absinthe to win, though! Just a classic ye olde ass-kicking. Breanna's speech at the end was really lovely, and enjoyed the resolution of Parker's little arc as she realized that being a mentor is a two-way street. The mark totally had a punchy face, and I'm only sorry Eliot didn't get to punch him. (And I say this as a tree-hugging peacenik, lol). I can't even say how happy I am this show is back!

I’m curious, which book series? I’m always up for a good thief story. 🙂

A very "Girls' Day Out" episode, and I loved it! One of my faves so far. Agree that it was awesome watching everyone seamlessly shift gears after the Russian mob reveal. I love how well they work together that they all just change direction without batting an eye. And it's so refreshing that no one freaked out about facing a ruthless hitman without their resident hitter - each of them knows they can get the better of the Wraith solely with their own skillset. And the three of them together? Those guys didn't stand a chance. It was nice though that the younger guy who didn't even want to be scamming people anyway got an out. I always appreciate when the team meets a mark that doesn't want to hurt people and offers them a way out. Breanna's love of Halloween decorations makes Parker's love of Christmas decorations look tasteful and subdued. Glad I wasn't the only one thinking of The Broken Wing Job during this! Also, Tina's hair was gorgeous! It gave my hair inferiority issues, lol.

Good but again not as strong as the first two eps IMO. I get that this was a Harry-focused ep and went a long way to filling in why and how he came to repent his ways and join the team, but still. He jeopardized the job way too much with his omissions, and as I've stated before I'm not the biggest NW fan so that didn't help. Also, I felt that Parker got pushed to the background a bit in this one, which was a bummer (though I know that of course every episode can't focus strongly on every character, but still. More Parker!) Breanna's reaction to watching Eliot's fight was very Hardison - the actress has captured a lot of AH's mannerisms and inflections so it's very believable that they grew up together. It really makes her feel like she belongs on the team, and helps ease Hardison's absence a little. I too got "Pjarker" vibes from 6Days, lol. Also, Breanna's comment about her brain hurting after Parker scoffed at the mark "only" having ten million was exactly my reaction too! (That was this episode, right? I broke my own rule and watched two last night) And of course Parker and Eliot learned Klingon! 😄

Not as strong as the first two, but still lots of fun. Also, opening credits, cool! Parker's dress was everything. It's as though a high school prom dress saw Kaylee's Layercake dress from Firefly and thought, "Too subtle!" Loved Eliot befriending Dennis (who seems ill-suited to security work, lol - hopefully whatever he does next will be a better fit). And I think Eliot's sheer outrage at Parker eating his carrot cake ("Dennis baked it for me!") makes his reaction to The Sandwich seem like nothing. And all those times Eliot complained about Hardison overdoing things, but when he not only has to interview but doesn't get his 401K... somehow Hardison's dedication doesn't seem like too much, does it Eliot? ;) Harry's undercover persona with Sophie was far too much for me, reminded me too much of how Flynn ate The Librarians. I'm hoping they'll keep NW reined in more in future eps. Most of all I loved seeing how "the kids" have adapted and grown over time, expanding beyond their original skills but still putting their own spin on it - Parker approaching grifting with flow chart flash cards instead of as a Method actor, for instance. Good stuff.

Another solid episode. I'm sorry to see Hardison go for the present but Brianna's introduction was seamless. And Harry's speech at the end really solidified why he's needed on the team. Corruption has indeed become the law these days, and having someone who helped bend, break and twist those laws to the benefit of the rich makes perfect sense for our crew. Loved the callbacks everyone's mentioned already - I find myself using "it's a very distinctive___" in my everyday conversations - as well as those the characters brought up. (Parker will never outlive stabbing that guy with the fork!) Parker as surrogate parent should be an interesting theme that I look forward to seeing more of. Despite her vehement denials and protests about not being a parent, we already saw her take kids under her wing in the original - the girl in the Boost Job, the client's daughter in the Wedding Job, and others I can't recall at the moment. She's always been willing to be a surrogate older sister - seeing her slip into surrogate mom now that she's matured is only logical. Albeit in her own special Parker way of course. :) Poor Sophie, I hope she brought earplugs. (To quote another clever show, "that's not music! That's EDM!")

I loved this! 🥰 This post will be looong. Leverage is one of my two all-time favorite shows, so when I first heard they were rebooting it I really wasn't sure if they could match the original run. But thankfully with many of the same people back behind the scenes it fits seamlessly. And considering the world has only gotten more corrupt in the last decade, we need the Leverage crew now more than ever. Considering the disturbing allegations against Timothy Hutton, not bringing back Nate made good sense - he was always self-destructive anyway - and IMO actually makes the show stronger. We get to see how the three "kids" have matured, expanding the operation and adapting to the times. And it was interesting to see Sophie after being out of the game for so long, watching her grifter's instincts come right back even as she struggles to make sense of losing Nate. I thought the filming style was perfect, less slick and glossy and more personal and honest. Streaming shows often have a different look to them than regular shows, but I thought it worked here, adding to the tone of the show. My only quibble was the sound mix at times made some of the dialogue hard to understand, but that's a problem for me with a lot of shows so maybe it's my tv or I just have crappy hearing. So many great callbacks, even beyond "Dammit Hardison!" and "Age of the geek, baby!" I love that Parker's propensity for stabbing was touched on ("I haven't stabbed anyone for a really long time! Like a month!") the Boston Museum of Art, Nate's collection of stolen/recovered art, Eliot's love of cooking with his global fleet of meat wagons food trucks. Even the overhead five-shot with Nate's grave was a perfect way to honor the original show. And I also really appreciated that the show acknowledged that time has passed, that the crew has had a lot more jobs and adventures since we last saw them, and that they have grown and matured as individuals and as a team. And of course it makes sense they would update their techniques, like Hardison upgrading his forgeries (the image of him as Bob Ross was a stroke of brilliance). I too had pretty big reservations about Noah Wyle, but he worked better than I expected. Thank goodness he wasn't as manic and over the top as he was on Librarians, and didn't eat the show as I feared he might either. Though I didn't know he was supposed to have a New Orleans accent? As long they keep the focus on our thieves and not on Harry, I'll be happy. Since several others have mentioned Beth Reisgraf's face looking different, I'll touch on it too - she clearly had Botox done on her forehead at some point, since her forehead had that smooth, glassy Botox look to it. And in some scenes she sported those enormous caterpillar eyebrows that Hollywood seems to love in recent years (clearly portions of this episode were filmed at different times). But apart from that I thought everyone had aged so naturally and looked great. Aldis was still basically a kid when they filmed the original run, but now he's filled out and looks like a man. Anyone know how many eps we have him for? I plan on rewatching this tonight (I'm trying to be good and make these eps last as long as I can) because I want to make sure I catch every little detail. Leverage is back! ETA - I watched through Prime and the ad breaks were minimal, brief, and not inserted mid-scene like some services, always a plus!

Thank you tessaray! I’ve been very concerned and very confused, lol

I apologize for asking such a stupid question, but will I be able watch this through my Prime account, or do I have to pay? Or watch ads? The more I hear about this the more excited I get, but this whole IMDBtv thing has me all confuzzled, lol. Wasn't super thrilled when I heard Noah Wyle would be joining the show, since I didn't care for him on Librarians, but fingers crossed that he'll be reined in a bit and his character won't detract from our crew. Also, I cheered when we got a "Dammit, Hardison!" in the trailer. 🥰

Hey, don't be so hard on poor Rafe. He's finally found his intellectual equal! The bear is arguably a better actor than the guy who played Ford, so it might still be a step up. Besides, I'd rather watch a Duke-centric story than yet another go-round of Krazy Kristen or this bs with Dimera Enterprises. The only thing worthwhile about having to listen to all those entitled assholes sneer down their noses at Jake the Mechanic was getting to see Hot Shin Jr. again.

Definitely lost some respect for Benji after this one. I can understand him being embarrassed about being in AA and not wanting Victor to know about it (or find out the way he did) but being so rude to Victor right after was unnecessarily hurtful. He could've - and should've - found a better way to communicate those feelings to Victor that would've helped them become stronger as a couple, rather than putting distance between them. And I call BS on him bitching about being tired of every milestone since coming out is a big deal to Victor. He KNEW what he was getting into when he decided to be with Victor. And even if it's harder to deal with dating than he expected, no need to be such an asshole about it. Isabel, just stay for the damn meeting! Sorry to see the end of Lake and Felix, as they're surprisingly adorable, but I can understand how it came about. They've done a good job of Felix's story, it adds a nice depth to the show.

Getting ready to start The Pen Pal but I won’t be able to watch it without thinking of one of my favorite Galavant songs: ETA - just finished watching, and this was actually a lot of fun! It was entertaining enough to hold my interest throughout without just making me think about Galavant the entire time. Mallory and Joshua had great chemistry, no doubt from their Galavant days, and I loved that each of their characters got to grow and mature a little. And I liked the friendship between the three ladies, and that the other two got their own little stories instead of just being there for the lead to talk to. The scenery was beautiful as well, especially the chateau. Overall I’d say this is a cut above the average Hallmark fare, and one I can see myself happily rewatching.

Currently watching When the Camellia Blooms, a small town slice-of-life/thriller mix-up that’s really, really good. It has a different feel to it than a lot of dramas - no overly glammed up leads, and a hero who’s not actually a petty, immature jerk to start with - which has made for a refreshing watch. Definitely worth a look!

DanaMB, you’ll probably save yourself a lot of mental frustration if you do just stop and ditch it. The scenery is really the only thing remotely worth watching for. (and the purple sneakers 💜 )

I'm still catching up on episodes so I'm a little behind the times, but... The sad thing is CS was really good back in the day when she was on AMC. Seeing what she's done to herself with surgery is such a shame. :( Well, he only gets it once every decade, so he's going to make the most of it while he has it!

Glad to help brighten your day a little, bankerchick :D For our fan-written Hallmark project, I would venture to add *gasp* non-romance storylines too! Sibling relationships and platonic but still meaningful friendships - heck, I'd go out on a limb and include some sort of buddy comedy storyline. There are so many potential ideas that still wholesome enough for Hallmark beyond just straight HEA romances. At least it would add a little variety to their cookie-cutter movies.

MST3K = Mystery Science Theater 3000, aka a show about people (and robots) making fun of old, terrible sci-fi movies to hilarious effect. A taste: Isn't it just! :D Yup, pretty much all Hallmark movies from at least the last five years would greatly benefit from being MSTied. I agree that ALWHI won out in the lead actors department by far, but also had a much, much better script than HDU. There was a believable, not completely stupid premise to ALWHI and believable obstacles that took a little doing to resolve or overcome. But the basic story of HDU was so poorly handled that it made the movie drag after about twenty minutes, and combined with an unlikeable lead actress and a serviceable lead actor, only left the scenery and the purple sneakers to hold this viewer's interest. The obstacles were all so contrived and just plain stupid (even for a Hallmark). Seriously, they could've ended this movie after a half hour and it would've been an improvement. Could no one think of having all the townspeople pool their money to potentially buy the cafe since it's such an important landmark for some reason? Could Aussie chef/construction expert not have agreed to do the repairs in exchange for her handing over ownership to him? Could she not just GIVE the cafe to any of them? She inherited it, it's not like she was trying to recoup the expense of buying it. Couldn't Spatch the dog have barked out a solution ala Lassie and told all those idiots what to do? Why didn't anyone have half a brain? Why I am putting so much thought into this damn movie when it's clear the writers didn't! Yeesh.