White Collar Review

[kriadydragon]

*Happy sigh* Loved, loved, loved this ep :D Are you surprised ;)

Back storyyyyyyy!

OMG Neal has daddy issues! And legit daddy issues! His dad died when he was little and was a dirty cop. And it screwed with Neal's head and self esteem. Oh, Neal *hugs him* Poor boy really is broken. And he was raised by his mom, I totally called that one! :D Unless there was a step dad in the mix. In which case, it must not have gone over well or Neal would have said something, right?

And virtual cookies to all those who called it that Neal's dad was probably in law enforcement. I loved that there was more to it. See, this is why I didn't want to touch Neal's back story, because the possibilities were endless. Though I pondered the idea of Neal's dad being a cop briefly, I totally did not see the dirty cop thing coming. This is what I love about this show - it's unpredictable :D

Neal needs to change his shirt more often :D And make fake diamonds more often ;) Yum!

Mozzie giddy over the machine. He's so adorable.

Awww, Peter helps Neal steal something legally :D I love that we're seeing them work together more. We're seeing Neal becoming more of a good guy, and Peter daring to not only think outside the box but step outside it as well.

Heeeee! Did Neal's mom wear hats. Oh, Peter :D

Hmmmm. Think I'll watch this ep again. And probably again :D

Comments

[irish-twilight3.livejournal.com]

My understanding was that when Neal told Peter "everything" his mom told him, he did exactly that. I think that he doesn't even know his dad's real name, and that's what he meant when he asked if Mozzie has looked into his birth parents, and Mozzie said Peter could be useful -- because Neal doesn't actually know who his dad was or the whole story. He only knows three pieces of information:
According to his mom: 1) he died when Neal was young, 2) he was a cop,
And years later, after he grew up wanting to be a cop and got really good with guns, someone somewhere told him that 3) his father was a dirty cop - I'm assuming whoever it was provided enough information or was trusted enough that Neal believed them (mother on deathbed maybe??), but didn't give enough information that Neal knows who his father actually was.
That's how I interpreted it anyways.

And also, I absolutely LOVED this episode. I love seeing Neal and Peter working together. A lot of people talk about how Neal admires Peter's straight-laced life and wishes he could have it, and this reveal about him being afraid of being a bad person like his father just adds a whole new level.
As far as the online chatter about Neal corrupting Peter now, I see it as Neal having a very strong sense of morals, something he sees in Peter as well, but Peter is sometimes restricted by the law, something Neal doesn't agree with. It's like they're meeting halfway, and I love it :)

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Oh, excellent theory :D I do think there is more to it but maybe along the lines of Neal wanting details about his father. As I've said to others - mostly as an example - maybe his father was murdered and Neal wants to know why. I just get the feeling this isn't the end of that particular plot point (at least I hope not, as there's a lot of great episode potential there).

Neal and Peter are totally rubbing off on each other and I love it :D As you say, they're meeting half way. I think Neal wants to live a straight-laced life but doesn't know how to. At least not yet. And I think Peter realizes this, as well as realizes that, sometimes, Neal's methods do have merit, and as long as it doesn't cross the line of completely illegal Peter can eventually bring himself to just go along with it for the sake of justice.

Something I observed after viewing the episode a second time and that I found interesting was that, in a way, Neal really isn't like his father. Neal's father was good guy turned criminal. While Neal is a criminal turned good guy. Neal's methods may not be legal but, if you think about it, pretty much everything he does he does for someone else.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

What a great theory! I mean, I'm convinced that the only truth about it was the dirty cop part, because everything else was "what his mother told him", but the idea that Neal doesn't even know who his father is, is exciting...I totally believe that the whole father story will be a theme of the next season, when the music box story is (hopefully) wrapped up.