In a lot of television series involving crime-solving - whether they're police procedurals, psychological thrillers, or something in between - their tech genius is comic relief. Though Leverage puts its characters on the other side of the law as criminals, the series did the same thing at its start.
Alex Hardison begins his time on the show as a young hacker who doesn't have the same level of experience in the field as the team. He's sarcastic, quippy, and has a good heart. Over time, the series delves into more dramatic storylines for him, fleshing out the character and allowing him to grow. When Leverage returns for its revival series, Hardison won't be back full time as a result of commitments held by actor Aldis Hodge, but the audience can still be prepared for him to drop some memorable lines like these.
"I Just Threw Up In My Mouth A Little Bit. I'm A Professional Criminal And I Find That Disturbing."
Over the course of 77 episodes in the original series, Leverage takes on a variety of bad guys. The assembled team of grifters and thieves goes after those in power who take advantage of the less fortunate, and in some episodes, that involves government figures. While listening in via earbud in the second episode, Hardison and the team hear an explanation for what a great investment a congressman is, how easy it is to corrupt one.
Hardison, who can hack into any system, find any secret, and change anything in any electronic file, has a lot of lines he won't cross. A person elected to represent the will of the people enacting the wishes of someone less savory for money doesn't sit well with him - or the rest of the team.
"You're Not Gonna Rain On My Parade Today, Nate. I Made A Bomb Out Of A Menthol Light."
There are a lot of episodes that feature the team having to split up in order to complete their job. When the team goes up against a man who is actually funding an anti-government militia group, Eliot Spencer and Hardison find themselves isolated in the woods and the target of the "soldiers" who think they're a threat. Though Nate "steals them a train" so they can escape the men chasing them, they don't get on it. Instead, they opt to stop the militia members from being able to deliver a bomb.
Nate is a little insulted that they don't take his train and worried about their safety. When he tries to admonish Hardison for not following orders, however, Hardison is still elated that he and Eliot managed to destroy the supplies at the militia's site in the middle of the woods with a cigarette.
"Pretzels? Okay. Well, They're Right Here, When You Want Them."
Leverage fans know that this particular line isn't really about pretzels. In an exchange with Parker, Hardison is the pretzels.
When the team takes on the case of a woman whose sister was killed by an experimental medication, she and Hardison hit it off really well. She even helps Hardison with research. Parker doesn't like that, and though Hardison doesn't initially realize she's jealous, Sophie does, encouraging her to talk to him. Parker, however, isn't entirely ready to say how she feels out loud, so she tells Hardison she's been having weird feelings for pretzels instead. To his credit, Hardison understands exactly what she's saying and doesn't push her. The two become one of the strongest relationships of the series.
"I'm Sorry It Was Too Far Away For You To Punch. I'm Sure That Really Frustrates You."
Hardison and Eliot do not immediately get along when they join the team. There's a lot of tension between them in early episodes, and that's especially true in episode two.
When the team investigates a storage container at the docks that is tied to the villain of the week, Hardison plans to disable the security camera above it by hacking it. Eliot throws a rock at it instead, which prompts Hardison's comment. It takes a few more episodes for Hardison to see Eliot as more than just the team member who punches his way out of a situation, but by the end of the series, they're as close as Hardison and Parker.
"Don't I Die In Plan M... How Many Plans Do I Die In?"
Though Hardison is, arguably, the smartest member of the team, he often finds himself in unfortunate positions on cons. That is to say, he's often the bait. It's a trend that begins in the very first episode, where a "Plan M" is also first mentioned.
The line is played for laughs when Nate mentions that they're not actually using Plan B, but Plan M. Nate even points out that Hardison usually dies in Plans M through Q, which Hardison doesn't take kindly to. It's never really taken seriously that Hardison appears to be the team member Nate is most willing to sacrifice, but the idea does come full circle in the series finale when the audience thinks Hardison doesn't make it.
"You Had To Be Quick Because You Were Alone... You're Not. You Have A Team. You Have Me. And I Got You."
One of the best parts of the series is seeing how much this group of people grows to trust one another and become a family after being used to working alone. Parker and Hardison might become a couple, but Parker is still used to trying to do things solo.
When she has to use weighted boots to get into a vault that reads weight distribution patterns and has a hard time learning the steps, Parker panics and tells Hardison that he's weighing her down, and it will kill her. While she's literally talking about the boot, Hardison understands the metaphor easily and manages to calm her by reminding her that she doesn't have to work alone anymore. It's a great moment between the two.
"There's No Secrets On The Internet. When Will People Learn This?"
Though plenty of the technology used in Leverage is outdated now, the idea that the internet is forever is one that remains. Hardison is able to find out anything and everything about the team's marks.
Hardison makes a great point. Even if a person thinks they've hidden details on obscure websites or in locked files, the internet means everyone has access to everything - and he can get to it.
"We Just Stole A Country. I Want A Souvenir."
When Damien Moreau comes after the team, their fight with the antagonist culminates in the group "stealing a country" right out from under him. In order to do that, they travel to San Lorenzo to help an honest man win the country's election.
Sophie manages to coach the teacher as his fake love interest to win over the people while the rest of the team works behind the scenes. Their candidate wins in a landslide, and Hardison packs a suitcase full of mementos to commemorate the job.
"The Fact That She Thought It Would Work, That Worked."
In season four, the team takes on some of their strangest cases. One involves Hardison posing as a university student while Eliot poses as a homeless man in an illegal experiment hosted by Hardison's fraternity brothers. "The Experimental Job" initially sees Hardison worried that he won't fit in with the cool kids.
It's Parker who talks him up, reminding him of how cool it was that he saved the day with his "pretend friends" in a game online. She details how he won the mission, and Hardison agrees to do the job. When Sophie questions whether that really worked, Hardison admits that it didn't, but the effort that Parker put in to give him that specific pep talk did.
"Age Of The Geek, Baby."
This is the line Hardison repeats most often in the series. Just when everyone doubts whether or not he can get the job done, he pulls it off.
Hardison doesn't just pull off his jobs by hacking. He also makes the team's fake IDs, backstories, creates fake websites for them, and even makes their costumes. Without Hardison being the geek the team thinks he is, they would never be able to get the job done.