S02.E10: The Work Study Job

[AnimeMania]

After a college professor steals a discovery from his grad student, the Leverage team has to take him down, returning the credit and reputation to the brilliant young woman in the process.
Premiere Date: January 3, 2023

[Prevailing Wind]

I enjoyed this one, too. I liked how Harry wanted to do it legally. Bwaahahahahaha. Like THAT was gonna work. I loved Eliot bonding with Floyd and the rest of the support staff.

[Llywela]

10 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I enjoyed this one, too. I liked how Harry wanted to do it legally. Bwaahahahahaha. Like THAT was gonna work. I loved Eliot bonding with Floyd and the rest of the support staff.

Yeah, this was fun. I loved how Eliot had exactly one brief conversation with Floyd and was immediately just, "I CAN'T TAKE THIS GUY OUT, HE'S A TEDDY BEAR!!!" and then spent the rest of the episode proving that you don't always need to take out the guards, sometimes you can just win them over and get them to work for you. I enjoyed Sophie at the end there reminding Breanna that she has choices and shouldn't feel locked into the path she's currently on, that it's okay to look at other options, that was a nice interaction. And how excited Parker was to get to do crime, after allowing Harry to attempt the legal route first.

And at the beginning when Breanna angrily asked Parker and Eliot to bring the bad guy to her bound and gagged, and they were just totally up for it, no questions asked.

[DearEvette]

30 minutes ago, Llywela said:

And at the beginning when Breanna angrily asked Parker and Eliot to bring the bad guy to her bound and gagged, and they were just totally up for it, no questions asked.

I loved this! Breanna hated that science guy and was all “I want him bagged and gagged and in front of me in two hours” and Elliot and Parker was all in without question -- ready to go gag and bag!

I enjoyed this one since the bad guy was a snotty professor.  Hey, listen, my husband is a professor and he is good people.  But I hate, hate, hate snotty professors with a passion. Those types are just the most awfulest.  I have a couple of them on my list where I work.

Also I enjoyed that he alienated the support staff so much that it didn't take much to get them on board.  Yeah, don't piss off the custodial staff! Also I love it when Elliot bonds with an older guys on these jobs.

The only thing I found a little puzzling was the victim, Emma.  If her social anxiety was so crippling that she could only talk to people in a small group, how the heck does she expect to teach?  I just assumed she'd just want to do the research, but she mentioned teaching.  So it was odd.

[Chaos Theory]

I honestly love the fact that Breanna just has to ask for a dude to be “bagged and gagged” and both Parker and Eliot are willing to do it.

Don’t piss off the custodial staff.

I love that the show keeps incorporating Hardison.  

 

 

Edited January 5, 2023 by Chaos Theory

[Maelstrom]

Another fun episode. With Hardison! I'm squeeing like Parker when he shows up these days, lol. It makes me happy how they still manage to include him in the cons. And his Christmas gift to Parker was a grappling hook, because of course.

The mark was a total piece of crap, an arrogant bully when the balance of power was in his favor, and then a sniveling weenie the instant it wasn't. I've known enough men like that so it was especially satisfying to see him get what he had coming. The line of liars and thieves always thinking that everyone else are liars and thieves too was a good way to sum Gray up.

Sophie worked over the oil guy pretty well! What, twenty minutes with her and he was ready to change his evil lying ways. And her clip-in bangs were strangely fascinating to me, like the hair equivalent of partial dentures, lol.

The storyline with Eliot and Floyd was a really nice one. I always appreciate that Eliot, for all that he's a hitter with a bad temper and quick fist, is willing to look beneath the surface and give people a chance. It was such a fun twist to end up with the entire custodial staff on the crew's side because of how Gray had mistreated them. Never underestimate the "little people". Also love that the League of Extraordinary Janitors had codenames (Butterfly and Caterpillar) during the final showdown.

Not only were Parker and Eliot ready and willing to grab Gray and bring him to Breanna bound and gagged, Parker was visibly disappointed when Sophie stopped them. And I do believe she rolled her eyes when Harry talked about resolving things legally.

I think I remember an episode in the original series that touched on Parker never having the typical college experience herself - the one where the frat boy was psychologically experimenting on homeless people and Hardison had to infiltrate the frat (can't remember the title). Though it's possible I'm mixing it up with the college episode (with the tentacle monsters) of the Librarians where Cassandra talked about never getting to go to college.

Random:

• "Who's locked in there?" "Professor Gray." "Oh, alright!"
• "Let him stew in those diapers!"
• Drs Tennant and Whitaker
• Professor Sophie, PhD of Griftology
• Breanna and Sophie talking about Harry's college days and trying not to picture him playing Ultimate Frisbee in "distressingly tiny shorts and one of those headbands" :D

[Prevailing Wind]

11 minutes ago, Maelstrom said:

Drs Tennant and Whitaker

I'm not a Whovian, but I recognized these names and laughed so hard, it jolted the cat off my lap.

[Llywela]

8 hours ago, Maelstrom said:

I think I remember an episode in the original series that touched on Parker never having the typical college experience herself - the one where the frat boy was psychologically experimenting on homeless people and Hardison had to infiltrate the frat (can't remember the title).

Parker didn't go to high school, either, that came up a few times in the original show. I seem to recall one episode where she made a reference to junior high, though. But Parker's backstory has always been that she dropped out of school and pretty much lived on the streets from a distressingly early age, so would never have had the opportunity to go to school or university.

[blueray]

19 hours ago, DearEvette said:

The only thing I found a little puzzling was the victim, Emma.  If her social anxiety was so crippling that she could only talk to people in a small group, how the heck does she expect to teach?  I just assumed she'd just want to do the research, but she mentioned teaching.  So it was odd.

I was confused about this too. It seemed like teaching would the last thing she would want to do. And I believe she could just get a job doing research which is what her passion is. I also missed how she knew Brianna. Did they say?

Anyhow, I enjoyed this episode but I do feel like it would have been more interesting to somehow have past students (and the team) take him down. As oppose to the usual "amazing business" opportunity. More personal and technicality not illegal would have been interesting. I guess we sort of got that with the maintenance workers being against him. I love how the main one was totally okay with Elliot locking the professor in a closet.

[P2C2E]

This episode made me smile a lot. I loved Eliot's storyline with the support staff. It's exactly the sort of family he thrives in.

And I'm just going to head canon that Emma took a bunch of Ativan before her elevator pitch because I know social anxiety and pep talks do not magically make it better.

But this hit a lot of great notes. I appreciated Harry wanting to do it the "right way" and Breanna pushing back that just because the system worked for him doesn't mean the system works. I think a lot of people nowadays don't realize just how broken a lot of systems are. From college/tuitions, to policing, to the affordability of the housing market, and more. These systems may have worked once, but they're broken now. And the things the previous generations did to succeed no longer work for millennials and gen z. 

I'm glad Darren Nash was willing to listen to and believe Emma. But in my book - if you're a billionaire with a B, you're a bad guy.

[DoctorAtomic]

*Tokamak*, not tomahawk. 
I'm pleased the Thirteenth Doctor made it into the show though! Ten was on the original too. 

tbh, Eliot's entire underground custodial subplot could have been the whole episode for me. Was this the first time the mark basically made the team? 

I don't know why Gray didn't just take them into his actual office, but it was worth it for Eliot's team to run interference. 

Please tell me everyone else was shipping Emma and Breanna. 

On 1/4/2023 at 6:04 PM, Maelstrom said:

The storyline with Eliot and Floyd was a really nice one. I always appreciate that Eliot, for all that he's a hitter with a bad temper and quick fist, is willing to look beneath the surface and give people a chance.

I think that was the counterpoint to 'if you're a liar and a thief, you think everyone else is.' They are, but they aren't. 

 

 

[Chaos Theory]

Eliot is an “old soldier” who sees the other “old soldier” inside others regardless of their actual profession.  Floyd treated the custodial job like it was a military unit and Eliot appreciated that.     He’s helped others with similar souls.   

[Sarah 103]

22 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

Was this the first time the mark basically made the team? 

I am not sure what you mean by this. Can you please explain it? 

[DearEvette]

23 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

bh, Eliot's entire underground custodial subplot could have been the whole episode for me. Was this the first time the mark basically made the team? 

I think Hurley fits this,  He was their original mark in that job but he wasn't the real bad guy and he got pulled into the con at first unwittingly but then for real. 

[Prevailing Wind]

On 1/6/2023 at 10:50 PM, DoctorAtomic said:

tbh, Eliot's entire underground custodial subplot could have been the whole episode for me. Was this the first time the mark basically made the team? 

I'm confused by the word "made" - "Made" as in joined the team?  "Made" as in recognized the team were doing a con on the mark?

[DoctorAtomic]

Made as in - The professor noticed that Breanna, Sophie, and Eliot were all working together when he was talking to the billionaire outside before they went into his lab to talk. He said it out loud. I was surprised because I don't remember that happening. Not the same as an old friend/old foe running their own con and then recognizing the others like with Sophie and the plastics con.

[blueray]

^then no. This has happened in multiple episodes. Either at the end when they get them (actually that's most episodes). But if you mean during the con, then the one where Hardison ends up being buried alive would count.

[DearEvette]

Yeah I feel like they get made quite a bit or something happens to blow their cover and the mark figures something ain't right.

One I can think of off the top of my head is the one with the cars.... the Boost Job where Hardison/Parker are Nate/Sophie are working two separate marks.  H&P are working the chop shop guy and N&S are working the front man in the car dealership who sells the cars.  They never are seen together by either mark,  but the car dealership guy figures out that Nate and Sophie are conning him and H&P are part of their team.

[andromeda331]

I love Eliot and Parker where going to go get the Professor and bring him back bound and gagged. Too bad Sophie nixed it. That would have been fun to see. 

I loved Floyd's reaction to finding out it Eliot locked Grey in the room. And how much the staff hated Grey. Grey was such an ass it was fun watching him get taken down. 

Harry trying to do things the legal way and finding out it didn't work. Parker happy when it didn't so she could do illegal way.

[chaifan]

With all the conversation about Breanna thinking college was a scam, and then, well, maybe she does like college, could see herself going to a place like that, etc. etc. etc...  I am thinking they are setting up a potential exit for Breanna for the next season.  If AH is willing/able to return, it would not make sense to have both Hardison and Breanna there.  So I see this as setting up a plausible reason for Breanna's absence if Hardison does come back. 

Edited January 12, 2023 by chaifan

[DoctorAtomic]

Far be it from me to discourage one from going to college, but I don't know what she'd learn. I certainly would argue against being a scam. 

I suppose if she wanted to go legit and form her own white-hat company, getting a degree and the CISSP would be an option. She could do serious work as an NSA subcontrator. 

[Mabinogia]

14 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

I loved Floyd's reaction to finding out it Eliot locked Grey in the room. And how much the staff hated Grey. Grey was such an ass it was fun watching him get taken down. 

I love how the janitors/guards seemed to have so much fun sending him away from all the areas. That was a great day at work for them for sure. So satisfying. 

[Cthulhudrew]

On 1/3/2023 at 9:22 PM, Prevailing Wind said:

I enjoyed this one, too. I liked how Harry wanted to do it legally. Bwaahahahahaha. Like THAT was gonna work. I loved Eliot bonding with Floyd and the rest of the support staff.

TBH, I was hoping that Harry would actually be able to (writers would) have them correct this one through the system this time. It would have been a nice switch-up from the usual formula. Plus, I am an academic at heart so I guess I'm biased.

This was one of the most enjoyable episodes of the season for me so far. Loved the "blue collars banding together" storyline for Eliot. This season has been weaker than last for me, but I liked this episode.

[Cthulhudrew]

On 1/7/2023 at 5:28 AM, Chaos Theory said:

Eliot is an “old soldier” who sees the other “old soldier” inside others regardless of their actual profession.  Floyd treated the custodial job like it was a military unit and Eliot appreciated that.     He’s helped others with similar souls.   

I don't know that I'd say this has so much to do with Eliot's military background per se, but just a general acknowledgement by Eliot (and others) that underlooked professions, "blue collar workers", are just as worthy of respect and acknowledgement as the higher-profile jobs like professors, CEOs, etc. out there.

As someone who is probably looked at as more of a white-collar professional nowadays but who has a long history of blue-collar jobs and was brought up to respect merit and achievement based work over nepotism, "fake it till you make it", and other spoils-based systems of recognition, it is one of the things that I love the most about this show.

[Mabinogia]

10 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

TBH, I was hoping that Harry would actually be able to (writers would) have them correct this one through the system this time. It would have been a nice switch-up from the usual formula.

I would love to see an ep where they do it Harry's way, through the system. I get that one of the big themes of the show is that the system is broken, and while there is truth to that, it's kind of a depressing truth. 

For years Harry has used the system to the advantage of bad people. It would be greatly satisfying to see him use those skills against them now. I want at least one con where he is able to do it legally. How fun would Parker's reaction be to doing things legally? lol

[Sarah 103]

14 hours ago, Mabinogia said:

I would love to see an ep where they do it Harry's way, through the system. I get that one of the big themes of the show is that the system is broken, and while there is truth to that, it's kind of a depressing truth. 

For years Harry has used the system to the advantage of bad people. It would be greatly satisfying to see him use those skills against them now. I want at least one con where he is able to do it legally. How fun would Parker's reaction be to doing things legally? lol

I could actually see this working well and being a fun episode. I don't have all the details figured out, but here's what I have so far. Based on the con the team is trying to pull off, they need the trial to happen and for Harry to be the lawyer or one of the lawyers on the case in the courtroom. For the con to work, Harry doesn't need to win the case, he just needs to make sure the trial lasts for a certain number of days. However, Harry does end up winning and Brianna is completely and totally shocked that the system worked. 

[DoctorAtomic]

It could also be that they have to get a witness to the courtroom. 

[P2C2E]

9 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I could actually see this working well and being a fun episode. I don't have all the details figured out, but here's what I have so far. Based on the con the team is trying to pull off, they need the trial to happen and for Harry to be the lawyer or one of the lawyers on the case in the courtroom. For the con to work, Harry doesn't need to win the case, he just needs to make sure the trial lasts for a certain number of days. However, Harry does end up winning and Brianna is completely and totally shocked that the system worked. 

They did basically this plot in the OG Leverage in The Juror No 6 Job with Hardison playing the lawyer.

I feel like we have seen Harry use his lawyering skills in ways to help the team already. He used the contracts against the couple with the high rise apartments building and there have been other examples as well. It's just been mostly expository lines. The system isn't designed to work for the little people. It's designed to work for the rich and powerful. 

All that being said, we've been hit over the head with the idea of Harry going back to being a lawyer full time so you may get your wish if they plan to keep the character involved.

 

[DoctorAtomic]

Hardison was faking it though. I think the point was an episode that has a real, legitimate trial that Harry is working. 

[aradia22]

tbh, I wasn't excited about the case when we first met Emma. But there were some advantages to the con (like being in a situation where you can't draw attention to yourself by beating people up). And I loved how Eliot making friends with Floyd the security guard actually helped with the con.

I feel like a physics scientist who would go on TV and argue that kind of stuff is more likely to be employed by a think tank than a university. But I liked the actor they got. 

I liked that moment when Sophie clipped in those bangs. More onscreen quick changes.

Hilarious that they managed to work in Hardison being in space into the con. Complete with floating orange soda.

Emma magically being ready to explain her theorem to the billionaire is not how CLINICAL ANXIETY works. It takes more than a pep talk if it's really that serious.

The set up was obvious but I do like that they managed to work around to Breanna deciding maybe college wouldn't be the worst thing. While I would like Hardison back more often, I'm also open to rotating members of Leverage International.

[aradia22]

Quote

Anyhow, I enjoyed this episode but I do feel like it would have been more interesting to somehow have past students (and the team) take him down. As oppose to the usual "amazing business" opportunity. 

I thought this was where they were going when Eliot was driving that student in the golf cart. It would have been great if they somehow found all of the students he had stolen from to appear and throw him off his game of explaining the research (rather than just stress him out because he couldn't find a quiet, empty room). 

Quote

But this hit a lot of great notes. I appreciated Harry wanting to do it the "right way" and Breanna pushing back that just because the system worked for him doesn't mean the system works. 

Quote

TBH, I was hoping that Harry would actually be able to (writers would) have them correct this one through the system this time. 

Breanna didn't acknowledge it but they found an in-between solution. Gray's downfall is not that he wasn't able to sell the research but that he was discredited in front of the dean who was forced to abandon him. There have been other jobs where they just make a mess of someone's life. Gray goes down because he loses institutional protection. Also, Breanna concedes at the end that there is something to an academic life even with all the institutional problems though they play it off as a joke about ultimate frisbee so Harry doesn't get a win. Breanna isn't wrong but the writers have fashioned her as a morally superior, uncompromising idealist. 

[Mabinogia]

7 hours ago, aradia22 said:

tbh, I wasn't excited about the case when we first met Emma.

I really didn't care for Emma and agree with you about her sudden pep talk induced "confidence" is not her level of anxiety works. It really made it seem like the whole con could have been avoided if someone had just told her "you can do it!" from the start. 

That said, I did love this ep for all the other parts of it, like Elliot and Floyd, the quick changes while walking down the stairs (it's been a while since I've seen the ep but I think that's where that happened) and the security and maintenance staff blocking Evil Prof as he tried to find a place for his private meeting.

Don't screw over the people you think are less important because 1) they aren't and 2) you might need their help some day. They're far more important than you think. (that's not you, aradia22, that's you as in the Evil prof.) That is one of the theme's I always liked about this show, that the "little guy" is just as, and sometimes more, valuable/important than the rich and mighty.