What Is Leverage?

Leverage is a US television show on the channel TNT about a group of thieves who band together to help the downtrodden from the rich and powerful. It is an Ocean's 11 meets Robin Hood show with clever writing, excellent cons, unique characters, and background music you can't get out of your head for days. The show just finished its second season with steady ratings and a growing fanbase, and it was renewed for a third season which will start airing Summer 2010 on TNT. If you have managed to miss both seasons of this amazing show, the first season is already out on DVD and the second season will be out this year. Both seasons are on Instant Watch on Netflix.

Leverage is about four brilliant criminals and one honest man. Nathan Ford (Timothy Hutton) used to work for insurance tracking down thieves to save his company money. When he needed their help, however, they refused to foot the medical bills his son needed to stay alive while suffering through an illness. Nate lost his son and went into a serious down spiral which led to him divorcing his wife and losing his job, his purpose, and his identity. It was only when he was conned into working with four notorious thieves that Nate started to wake up again, and when their first job went sour and they were double crossed, the team banded together to get revenge on their betrayer. After that they decided to keep working together, but Nate's moral code insisted that they only work against evil corporations who menaced or abused innocent people.

The other members of the team include the hacker Alec Hardison (Aldis Hodge), the hitter Eliot Spencer (Christian Kane), the thief Parker (Beth Riefsgraf), and the grifter Sophie Devereaux (Gina Bellman). Hardison is a fast talking geek that provides support for the team in technical cases, and he often bumps heads with the gruff Eliot, who hates guns and loves to cook. They are both baffled by the bizarre and mysterious Parker, who doesn't seem to understand human emotion or connect to people easily, except she is very close with the elegant and motherly Sophie. Sophie is the best actress ... when she's breaking the law, but on the stage she is completely awful, a fact she never seems to get. She has a past with Nate and possible a future ... if they both could ever stop conning the other and be honest for once!

Every episode involves a new client and a new con that needs to be pulled off neatly by the end of the hour. The team works together smoothly with only a few hiccups along the way. The first season was about the team bonding and working out what they wanted, while the second season has gotten more personal and developed the characters we've grown to know and love. Nate struggled with his alcohol abuse, we learned all about Eliot's complete control of his violence, Parker has a hidden painful tragedy, Hardison got nabbed by Russians, and Sophie left the team to find herself.

Leverage season three is still some time away, but it's not too late to get caught up on one of the best shows on television!