Scan barcode
A review by lizardgoats
The Con Job by Matt Forbeck
2.0
Okay, I love Leverage and I was very excited to see tv tie-in books (3 total) but this first book was a bit of a disappointment. The idea of running a con at comic con was fun. And having Wil Wheaton's character, Chaos, be an antagonist is super clever (esp since Wil Wheaton is also a character, tho the two never meet "in-person" in the book).
But idk. Sometimes reading these official tie-in novels feels like I watched a completely different show than the author did.
Here are my main examples (SPOILERS):
Eliot talking about killing people when it's his pov. It's canon that Eliot left his assassin days behind him and does not kill people anymore (with the exception of the season 3 finale). There's also a point where Eliot is dressed up as a stormtrooper and is threatening to beat up some hapless teen for wanting a picture with him. Like, yes, he and Parker are trying to get somewhere, but it's so out-of-character. Eliot's got a huge soft spot for kids. It's like the author heard the "appropriate response" comment in the show and just...didn't understand what Eliot meant at all.
Then there is Parker. She also needs a costume for the con and what does she pick? Leia's slave bikini outfit. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!? What's that Margaret Atwood quote on male fantasies? Because Parker is canonically not sexualized on the show. That's an important part of her characterization (also it's gross. Even femme fatale grifter Sophie isn't sexualized like that). She would absolutely never pick the Leia bikini outfit. Leia's normal white gown--yes, 100% that.
That being said. I didn't hate the book. It was a fun premise, even if I took issue with a lot of aspects (more than the above mentioned). It just often felt out-of-character. I did appreciate a lot of the fandom references. As shows, Leverage and Trek had a lot of crossover. Jonathan Frakes was a director on a number of episodes and there's a bevy of post-Trek actors who guest starred. So all the references were like happy little easter eggs for me to spot. I can appreciate that.
But in many regards the comic con in the book was the male-dominated no-girls-allowed clubhouse version--as much as the author made concessions that that isn't the case. It felt like lip service (tho in-character for Hardison) because the plot didn't really hold that out.
Two stars. It was an okay read. But it didn't hold a candle to the show and I would've prefered a novel written by the actual writers on the show.
But idk. Sometimes reading these official tie-in novels feels like I watched a completely different show than the author did.
Here are my main examples (SPOILERS):
Eliot talking about killing people when it's his pov. It's canon that Eliot left his assassin days behind him and does not kill people anymore (with the exception of the season 3 finale). There's also a point where Eliot is dressed up as a stormtrooper and is threatening to beat up some hapless teen for wanting a picture with him. Like, yes, he and Parker are trying to get somewhere, but it's so out-of-character. Eliot's got a huge soft spot for kids. It's like the author heard the "appropriate response" comment in the show and just...didn't understand what Eliot meant at all.
Then there is Parker. She also needs a costume for the con and what does she pick? Leia's slave bikini outfit. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!? What's that Margaret Atwood quote on male fantasies? Because Parker is canonically not sexualized on the show. That's an important part of her characterization (also it's gross. Even femme fatale grifter Sophie isn't sexualized like that). She would absolutely never pick the Leia bikini outfit. Leia's normal white gown--yes, 100% that.
That being said. I didn't hate the book. It was a fun premise, even if I took issue with a lot of aspects (more than the above mentioned). It just often felt out-of-character. I did appreciate a lot of the fandom references. As shows, Leverage and Trek had a lot of crossover. Jonathan Frakes was a director on a number of episodes and there's a bevy of post-Trek actors who guest starred. So all the references were like happy little easter eggs for me to spot. I can appreciate that.
But in many regards the comic con in the book was the male-dominated no-girls-allowed clubhouse version--as much as the author made concessions that that isn't the case. It felt like lip service (tho in-character for Hardison) because the plot didn't really hold that out.
Two stars. It was an okay read. But it didn't hold a candle to the show and I would've prefered a novel written by the actual writers on the show.