Leverage, Flawed People Done Right
[ movies/television ][ characters | leverage ]
[ February 19th, 2009 ]
[ by: Alvan ]
I can’t emphasize how much I love Leverage. A heist series that goes from one heist to another, not sticking around with big boring plot lines. Instead it builds a lovely thematic canvas from the characters through what the continuity is built. It’s a wonderful example how an old-school show that has one or two plots per episode can still hit the viewer in this age of Lost-alikes that won’t forgive if you’re missing five minutes of the show. The two-parter season finale just started this week and will reach a conclusion next week, so it’s safe to talk about things they’ve been building this season.
And to be honest, the real gem of the show are the characters. A true rogues gallery – the Mastermind, the Socialite, the Brawler, the Computer Kid and the Thief. The Mastermind is an old insurance agent, who has moved from “White Knight to Black King”, selects the “jobs” the group performs and cordinates the effort. The Socialite is an old opponent of his, a con-woman extraordinaire who can sell any personality she decides to, to anyone she’s chosen as her mark (except the Mastermind, of course). The Brawler’s true to his description, capable of taking down anyone he comes across in hand-to-hand combat. The Computer Kid hacks cellphones, CIA databases and security systems with no problems at all. And the Thief is held back by no acrobatic feat or a lock that she comes across. A perfectly balanced and diverse group for any sort of a heist. Just like they should be.
But they’re built as flawed, each one. The Mastermind is an alcoholic and hell-bent on the death of his son. The Socialite is in love with the Mastermind and let’s her delusions of being a great actress on stage as well as off it take the better of her if the opportunity arises. The Brawler has a dark past where bad things have happened. The Computer Kid loves things like Star Wars and internet. And the Thief is something of an Aspie. What is done well about these flaws is that they’re not overplayed.
The Mastermind is a functioning alcoholic, and like he says “the trick is not to get hung up on the alcoholic, but to celebrate the functioning part” – it is a flaw very much present, but in the end, it doesn’t make him a trembling mound of flesh, hovering over the latest bottle. His son is the ghost that pushes him forward. The Socialite’s relationship with the Mastermind and her obsession with her acting are things that make her quite sympathetic, distracting from the fact that anyone in her role must be a bit of a sociopath. The Brawler and The Computer Kid neither are socially incompetent, in fact both can be quite the charmers. The Brawler is a very warm character with surprising insight and intellect, the dark past just a thing that comes to haunt him sometimes, but he’s not trapped in it. And the Computer Kid. Well, it’s the age of the geek, baby. The fact you understand Star Wars or World of Warcraft doesn’t mean anymore that you can’t interact with the opposite sex. To be honest, the Computer Kid is probably the best Fast-Talker in the group, which is something the archetype would never normally be associated with. The socially awkward one is the Thief, but instead of a geek she’s displayed as eccentric and childlike, a very likable character. And with her overbearing focus in life being money and thieving instead of something we wouldn’t be interested in hearing about, it’s a very working angle on her.
To put it simply, each of the characters is one step away from being a dull stereotype. The show’s creators have pretty much taken the archetypes and given them an attribute or two that somehow humanizes them, instead building them with some that would make them look even more badass version of their base model. And then they’ve made sure that the quality isn’t too overbearing. And the formula works brilliantly. The characters come off as human. Food for thought for the next time you’re thinking of writing characters.
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Tags: characters, leverage
February 19th, 2009 at 13:11
Interesting how you didn’t talk about the A-Team in your post, as far as I can tell Leverage is a modernday version of the A-Team. They also had a mastermind (Hannibal), a brawler (BA), a charmer (the Socialite as you call it: Face) and Murdock well he doesn’t quite fit as the computer kid but then they didn’t have that many computers back then. They also were onces the “good guys” (vietnam soldiers) who helped people with tactics law abiding people couldn’t use.
Also you say about the mastermind: “White Knight to Black King”. The more I see from his former collegue makes me think that his old job was much more “evil” then his current one. so I’d say he went from a Black Knight to a White king… or at least a Gray one.