Yeah, even though Nate was a prick half the time, without him there, the dynamic is off. Having Hardison gone as well just doesn't work as well. No, I think the writing isn't as good overall for LevS2. Maybe the writers thought they had to change up the dynamics because of Nate and Hardison (and Harry is more a dupe than a member of the team), or they wanted the team to "grow up". The cases aren't as fun, or they're more depressing as a reflection of the world. Maybe that's it? Maybe the writers tried to adjust for the crappiness of the modern world and found out that a team of super-thieves wouldn't be as effective? Or, they were just trying to be cooler than previous seasons but it's falling flat? I don't honestly remember if I actually finished S2. I think I did, but I don't remember it. I recognize the scenes you mentioned, but the audience had to do a lot of hand-waving disbelief to get some of the cons to work.