‘Leverage: Redemption’ Recap – ‘The Card Game Job’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Six of ‘Leverage: Redemption’.
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One thing that we can all agree upon, is that taking medications on a consistent basis is about as much fun as playing with a bag of rocks. Because there’s just no joy to be found in guzzling down pills, but we understand that they are paramount to our health, so we take our meds and don’t think twice about it, before we go on with our day. But what’s fascinating about that mundane aspect of life, is that it is suddenly something of concern for a great deal of us. Because these days, some of the pills that we need to function, are skyrocketing in price, alongside other medications and well… that’s downright scary to say the least.
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Because no one should ever have to choose between paying rent or paying for medication that keeps them breathing. But thanks to the greed of certain pharmaceutical companies and individuals, here we are, with prices of something as important as epi-pens spiking and what’s scary… is that this inflation trend doesn’t seem to have any end in sight. But thankfully, fiction is always there to give us some kind of comfort and resolution to our woes and it just so happens that the next episode of Leverage: Redemption takes the time to tackle the evil that is big pharma in a beautiful and satisfying manner… by having the team take on one nasty little Pharma-Bro in ‘The Card Game Job’. One that is so greedy and so evil, that he actually jacks the price on an important treatment up so high, that people might die from their affliction because they cannot afford the medication.

Which of course, springs the team to action to figure out how to best bring this monster down and well… as it turns out, the best way to bring down a greedy monster is to find a way to appeal to his greedy instincts. A feat the team accomplishes by making it appear as though a popular card game company that Jim Cordozar has a stake in, has interested buyers, the kind that will pay stupid money to buy it out from under him. And the hope of this particular ploy, was to motivate Jim to counteroffer to not lose part of his empire and once he did that, the bottom would fall out of this fake deal and ruin him in the process. Which is a plan that came close to fruition, until the real owner of the company, Deric Springer, decided he actually wanted to sell his company to Jim. 

A twist that forced the team to take part in the game itself in order to try and convince Deric that selling to such a weasel was a bad idea and thanks to everyone’s efforts, they pulled off that feat and saved the day and even exposed a cure that Jim was hiding. But what matters more, is that it was so wonderful to see the team use honor and integrity as weapons in this instance, since that is what brought about Jim’s downfall. In part because the high road rocks, but also because that sends a message to the viewer that perhaps one of the best ways for us to stop guys like Jim… is to speak up, to really make people question their integrity and their morals in a manner that forces them to rethink their course of action. Giving us power against monsters like that at last. 

Which just serves to remind us of how brilliant this series is and how uplifting it can be and as an added bonus… let’s be honest… that card game finale was just the best. Because it was beyond hilarious to see everyone try and blend in as knights and mages and everything in between and Eliot’s solution to winning the joust was about as efficient as it gets. But in the end, what truly makes this episode so worth our while, is the sheer fact that it hammers home that Dean Devlin and his team are going to examine every corner of corruption and bullying in this world, so that the right conversations take place at last and that truly makes this show quite influential in nature. Because a conversation is often how change begins. Until next time.   

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