Characters of the Week: Wild Cards & Leverage: Redemption Taps into Vulnerability in Stellar Episodes

We’re winding down with scripted programming as we’re in the throes of finale time.

But that’s not to say that there aren’t many strong characters emerging out of these installments who aren’t impressing us with their arcs, character development, and resonant performances.

So we’ve compiled our list of Characters of the Week from streaming and broadcast alike.

Did your favorite make the list? Surely, you’ll hit the comments and let us know below.

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Evan Buckley – 9-1-1

As the 9-1-1 world continues to deal with the aftermath of Bobby Nash’s death, 9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 7 dove deeper into Buck’s grief and his struggles with life without his mentor and father figure. 

The hour opened on another flashback, with the 118 laughing boisterously around the kitchen table at the station, which has been a respite for the team during long days on shift. But the memory dissolved to show us Buck, alone at the table, staring at empty chairs that once housed his found family. 

From there, we saw Buck go to confession in an attempt to connect with Bobby, and then later we watched him and Eddie clash, as two men unsure of how to process and move forward from such a tremendous loss.

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Oliver Stark has done great work over the years as Buck has matured and gotten more comfortable in his skin. In this hour, he does an excellent job portraying someone broken and desperately needing a little guidance. 

He gets that guidance during a conversation with Eddie’s Aunt Pepa, who’s the perfect person to talk to Buck in that moment, as someone who can sympathize with his loss and provide a listening ear and wise words to help him deal with his grief.

Watch 9-1-1 Online

Lucia Narvaez – The Walking Dead: Dead City

Narvaez’s introduction in The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 2 Episode 1 immediately marked her as a standout character.

Commanding, complex, and morally ambiguous, her fierce leadership and ruthlessness already make her one of the series’ most formidable and intriguing characters. She adds new layers to the show, including the tension that is constantly beneath the surface of Dead City.

Dascha Polanco enjoys every facet of this role, pouring her all into her performance, which contrasts nicely against the more established characters, especially Maggie.

With her complexities, she’s already emerging as a worthwhile antagonist and highlight of the season.

Watch TWD: Dead City Online

Adam Ruzek – Chicago PD

Chicago PD Season 12 has felt like Burzek’s season in many ways.

And Chicago PD Season 12 Episode 20 highlighted that yet again as we followed Ruzek into a dark trafficking case that had him juggling the job with his constant worry for his father’s declining mental health.

Many moments have captured how much he’s evolved over the past decade. His hesitancy before assisting Frank was that of a man with too much to lose to be impulsive, as it often was in his early days.

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His devotion to his family reflected his desire to see Frank as inherently good because he was a father, as he was when dealing with his own dad.

This quiet hour further established Ruzek’s identity this season as a good man, son, father, spouse, and cop, and the balancing act of holding all those roles.

As par for the course this season, it came together beautifully in his moments with Burgess and also in the final moment with his father as he reconciled with the selflessness and act of love his father extended to him while lucid via a trust for Mack.

Watch Chicago PD Online

Sophie Devereaux – Leverage Redemption

If you’ve followed along with Leverage, you’d know that Sophie has always been this mysterious woman. You never really know who she is deep down behind the mask because she keeps it up to protect herself so much.

Nate was the only person who could successfully see past her defenses for many years, and he didn’t even know everything about her for a while. So, it’s unsurprising that part of Sophie feels a bit untethered since his death.

Leverage: Redemption‘s “The Swipe Right Job” gives us a peek into a version of Sophie who wants to open up her heart again and find someone beyond her tight-knit family. Just when she’s on the cusp of vulnerability, she realizes her date is a scammer.

The hour has her opening up that door and then slamming it firmly shut again, and it’s fascinating to see the conflict Sophie faces and how well Bellman captures that conflict in her facial expressions. Sophie coming to grips with wanting to find love again was compelling, and the slow realization that maybe what she’s looking for is right in front of her eyes is even better.

Watch Leverage:Redemption Online

Cole Ellis – Wild Cards

If you didn’t tune into Wild Cards’ sophomore season, you missed a fantastic season. The series has only improved, finding its rhythm, balancing fun and silliness with angst and drama, and giving us the most delicious slow burn on television.

The season finale was one of the best episodes of the series to date, and that was mainly due to Giacomo Gianniotti’s absolute gut-wrenching performance as this profoundly grief-stricken man willing to put his life on the line as if it dosn’t matter to seek justice for his brother’s murder, and atone for his own guilt.

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Ellis has been barely restrained all season, but from the reckless, “nothing to lose” way he entered the establishment of his brother’s killer, willing to die and throw his life away for any semblance of retribution, to the heartaching breakdown in Max’s arms as he released his guilt, he wrung viewers dry from emotions.

But then, we had Ellis at his lightest, most open, and most vulnerable yet as he quietly succumbed to his feelings for Max. He was a man seeking his own solace and light, awaiting her by that cliffhanger. It was the season of Cole Ellis and worth every second.

Watch Wild Cards Online

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