Leverage aired its summer finale on August 28th with “The Queen’s Gambit Job,” and for the last new episode for a couple of months, it was certainly a good one. Sterling returned, and it was no surprise he had an ulterior motive for turning to Nate and his crew for help.
Leverage summer finale “The Queen’s Gambit Job” recap: Chess and Sterling
The episode began with the car chase that takes place near the end—Nate chasing and stopping Sterling with the real target. It then went back to Sterling making his entrance at the bar to get Nate on the job. The episode was all about the game of chess—and the first one took place between Nate and Sterling while the latter gave him the rundown on what he needed the thieves to do. The second was between Nate and Olivia, and it was here that Nate realized just what was really going on. The third was once again between Nate and Sterling as the former chased down the latter and it was revealed that Olivia was Sterling’s daughter. There were hints throughout the episode—tapping the chess piece, Sterling’s correction that Olivia was Livingston’s stepdaughter—and it was nice to see some backstory for Sterling. The episode also opened up the possibility of Sterling returning, as Nate has asked him for information on a name (presumably Latimer). The season’s nemesis may not have been present in the episode, but he will be back before the season wraps up, and it was no surprise Nate cashed in on that favor so soon.
Exclusive: Mark Sheppard on the Leverage summer finale Sterling twist
The Nate-Sophie flirtation continued, and they were well on their way to heading upstairs for the night when Sterling showed up. Leverage has handled their situation very well, and while they have finally given into the sexual tension, their “friends with benefits” arrangement has worked out very well in a way that keeps it from getting in the way of their jobs and the team. In fact, the final scene, where Nate skips over her while listening who dies in which of his plans (poor Hardison loses out) was a very nice touch.
Meanwhile, there was a scene that certainly made Parker and Hardison fans happy, as the two danced while the thief got used to walking around with the weighed down boots. The two seem to be making more and more progress towards becoming something more, and it seems like only a matter of time before they give in and take the final step.
Finally, the scenes between Eliot and Sterling were brilliant (and who doesn’t love plenty of Sterling?), and the episode wasn’t short on any Eliot fights either, despite the fact that Sterling was able to put him out of commission for a bit with the drugged coffee. Eliot still got a chance to hit some bad guys, and who doesn’t love an episode where the hitter shows just what he can do with his hands?
Leverage‘s fourth season continues when it returns November 27 with eight new episodes. What did you think of the summer finale, “The Queen’s Gambit Job”?
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