I love Leverage, but I freely admit that a big part of why is that I'm comparing it to SGA. They've gotten a lot of points from me for a) the EP not being an asshole, b) having women on the writing staff, c) keeping it an ensemble show instead of "Guy We Like and Some Other People", d) having a diverse pool of extras, and the big one, e) not making the character of color into a walking, talking stereotype. I'm willing to forgive an awful lot for being able to watch a show where I can look at one of the main characters and go, "That's my people!"

I honestly don't mind the heartstring-tugging, especially not with eps like "The Homecoming Job" that are very thinly-veiled takes on real-life events. I've watched that episode multiple times, and each time I get a visceral thrill out of seeing Blackwater Castleman brought down. There are few entities I loathe more than insurance companies, so the idea that Nate's doing what he does because the company he worked for screwed him is easy for me to buy because they're doing something I wish I could do.

It doesn't hurt that the Alec/Eliot was obvious to me in the first ten minutes, and that the EP is quite clear when he's throwing in the fanservice that he knows about the slash and it doesn't bother him.