Leverage Waffle

[olivermoss]

Aldis Hodge filmed two separate projects with conflicting shooting schedules to season 2. The first conflict was unavoidable. But the second conflict? Not sure.

Now John Rogers has said he only did half a script for season 2.

JR is right when he says it's important to have new blood in there. People often over-estimate how much of OG Leverage is him. But he also has a very specific style and intellectual underpinning to his writing and I hate to lose that.

One of the best episodes ever was The Unwellness Job which he was not a writer on. The show being amazing and true to that Leverage feel can happen without him, but I don't like him having a scaled down role. Makes me worried the show will get off track.

Basically, I see him as both essential and not essential. Amazing eps can happen without him, but some serious character and theme shifts could also happen. Him being so uninvolved kinda makes the show a different thing. It's possible he's had a strong hand as a producer, but, we'll see.

I feel like there is a clearer way to express this, but my brain just can't find it right now.

Comments

[muccamukk]

I don't mind not having JR, but not having Aldis is a huge blow to me. It's just not Leverage without him. Which is not a knock against any of the new characters, who are great, but...

[olivermoss]

I love the new characters, but Aldis not being in the 100th episode party pics was a bit worrying. His most recent film project was kept secret while filming because Joe Keery's in it. It possible that was also a lingering contractual thing, but I worry that Leverage just isn't a priority with him... which is fine because it's his life, but it's sad for Leverage fans.

[mistressofmuses]

I think I get what you're saying. It's one of those things that could be fine... but two big shifts, one on camera and one behind, that kind of change the makeup of what makes Leverage what it is... it could be fine! Or it really could be a sign that the series could go off track.

It's a wait and see thing, but I can understand it being kind of nerve-making.

[olivermoss]

I think when IPs get all new people writing it, it's a different thing. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's a thing. I think the new people are certainly capable and can do great. But there are a lot of things that the show/characters should never do, jokes they shouldn't make, and understanding that is complicated.

Without Hardison to bounce off of, it's hard to do the typical Eliot comedy beats. He can't get comically frustrated at Breanna like he can at Hardison.

[mistressofmuses]

Yeah, I think that's definitely it. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but it is sort of by definition a *different* thing, and when something has worked so well... I don't want it to be different! It changes the dynamic for the characters for one of them to be gone, and while other writers MAY understand the series well enough not to make it something it shouldn't be... there's no guarantee.

All we can do is wait and see, but it's unfortunate that it's likely that it WILL change it to some degree or other.