Cast: · Timothy Hutton · Christian Kane · Aldis Hodge · Beth Riesgraf · Gina Bellman · Goran Visnjic Grade: A+

Tweet

This is the night the whole third season of Leverage has been building toward -- the long-awaited confrontation with the mysterious Damien Moreau (played by Goran Visnjic). But it will take more than one con by the team to bring down this international, untouchable crime lord, starting with "The Big Bang Job" and culminating with "The San Lorenzo Job." Both of these back-to-back episodes feature moments that will have fans talking excitedly long into the night on Internet forums.

First up, the "Big Bang Job." This one has all the action in it -- explosions, fights, and a complex infiltration of a top secret government contractor -- all to stop Moreau's plans to sell a very big bomb to some very bad people. One big reason to watch this episode is because it once again provides an opportunity for Hardison (Aldis Hodge) and Parker (Beth Riesgraf) to work together on a part of the con, a situation which requires Hardison to engage in some Parker-esque actions in order to keep up if they plan to successfully pull off a classic "great train robbery." But that pales in comparison to what Elliot (Christian Kane) has to pull off in an elegantly choreographed, jawdropping scene. It seems that every episode has Kane upping the ante, and there are bound to be repercussions echoing in future episodes.

After the little battle with Moreau, Nate (Timothy Hutton) decides to administer the coup de grace. Moreau may be beyond the reach of the law, but not beyond the reach of the Leverage crew. So it's off to San Lorenzo, to attempt to take down Moreau with the most classic of American con jobs. This one's all about Sophie (Gina Bellman) who really gets to show off her people-reading skills. In fact, she's key to the whole con, and though fans will continue to talk about Elliot during the commercial breaks, they'll drop it immediately to talk about Sophie when they see the last few seconds before the credits begin to roll. And no, it's not what you think, because it has nothing to do with discovering her real name. Fansites better rush for more bandwidth, because the boards are going to light up like the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree!

Leverage, "The Big Bang Job" airs December 19 at 9:00pm/8:00pm CT, followed immediately by "The San Lorenzo Job" at 10:00pm/9:00pm CT, on TNT.