In Review: Leverage: Redemption (S3 – EP5) The Grand Complication Job

Synopsis: In The Grand Complication Job, Sophie is abducted, forcing Astrid and Parker into an uneasy alliance in a desperate race against time to save her. Their mission: to steal the elusive “Grand Complication” Marie Antoinette watch. Unaware at first that they’re both pursuing the same goal, they each set off on a high-stakes quest to track down the watch—before time runs out.

The Story

When Sophie is kidnapped by Alexandra Bligh—who’s out for revenge against her and the Leverage team for shutting her down—Bligh thinks she has the perfect plan: pit Parker against Sophie’s daughter, Interpol Agent Astrid Pickford. The two young women, who mean the world to Sophie, absolutely hate each other.

But what starts out as a solid plan soon backfires when Parker and Astrid realise they share the same goal, forcing them into an uneasy alliance. Things begin to turn around when Sophie’s old friend, Tara Cole—who once worked with Parker and the team during the original series—shows up to lend a hand. With a little help from Breanna, Tara manages to track down Sophie and help bring Bligh’s twisted gambit to an end.

Acting

The Grand Complication Job focuses solely on the female members of the team and fully embraces the girl power that’s always been part of Leverage. Beth Riesgraf gets a welcome chance to shine as Parker, the show’s most delightfully quirky character, and the episode gives us a deeper look into her strained relationship with Sophie’s daughter, Astrid—portrayed brilliantly by Alexandra Park. Lucy Taylor also delivers a standout performance as the villainous Alexandra Bligh, who first appeared in the season one episode The Bucket Job.

The episode features a guest appearance from Jeri Ryan as Sophie’s best friend, Tara Cole, who previously filled in for Sophie in several episodes of the original Leverage series. Tara proves to be Sophie’s ace in the hole, as Bligh has no idea who she is—or that she has a connection to the Leverage team.

Overall, the performances in this episode are strong across the board, and the comedic scenes toward the end—where we see Parker and Astrid finally beginning to bond—promise to add an interesting dynamic as the series moves forward.

Overall

A great episode that highlights the strong female characters of Leverage: Redemption, while also bringing back fan-favorite Jeri Ryan as the legendary Tara Cole. It was also fun to see the return of Alexandra Bligh from the show’s first season.