White Collar Review

[kriadydragon]

Diana will break Neal's arms, but you know she has a soft spot for him ;)

That's right, Peter, apologize to poor Satchmo. You knew from the first time you got him that his favorite snack is anything crime related - cuff keys, federal files... ;)

Bwhahahahaha! Oh, Neal. When all else fails, ask Elizabeth :D Neal is totally the human version of Bugs Bunny. Wascally con ;)

Neal needs to sing more.

Elizabeth proves that, once again, she is teh awesome.

I think the real reason Neal hates guns is that they're always being pointed at him pretty much every episode ;)

Oh, poor June. Ford wasn't there for you after all :(

But Neal is! Putting Ford in his place then dancing with June *heart melts into happy goo*

Neal needs a happy ending like Byron. That should be Neal's "last big score."

Next episode is intense and we have to wait two weeks? :S Noooooo!

On a selfish note, still crossing my fingers for a bit 'o Neal whump. I will confess I will be a mite peeved if we get more Peter whump. What can I say? I'm a Neal whumper.

Comments

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

well, at least we got "kidnapped Neal"....I hope, they will repeat that with a long time kidnapping some time...

I loved the suspense in this episode...it started small and somewhat funny, and ended up a nail biter....

Mozzie has a hairdryer????????

And why do we have to wait two weeks?????

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Argh...damnit! I shouldn't have rewatched it! Now I'm asking myself: Did they forget Neal's tracking anklet?

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

They didn't take it off when Neal first went undercover but take it off later. There's a scene of Peter holding the tracking anklet and talking about how bad things wold have gotten if it was discovered Neal was wearing it.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

There is? Okay, I have to rewatch...(I mean, they did search Neal the first time around...but perhaps not good enough).

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

The two week thing made me bristle. I hate it when shows do that.

I loved the intensity of this, well balanced, as always, by awesome humor :D

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

What's the reason, btw? I thought it was some sort of american special day thingy, but appearantly it's not....

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

I think it's just something networks do to prolong the season. I know with some networks they'll show two new episodes then skip a week, then show two new then skip a week - sometimes even skip two weeks - especially during the second half of a show's season. It's really obnoxious.

[wildcat88.livejournal.com]

Bwhahahahaha! Oh, Neal. When all else fails, ask Elizabeth :D Neal is totally the human version of Bugs Bunny. Wascally con ;)

I almost fell off the couch when she answered the phone. The look on Peter's face when she said Neal's name was so priceless. He knew what was happening and was powerless to stop it.

What's up with the two week wait? Grrr...

I love the writers for having Neal question his past choices. Soul searching is good. (And I'm a sucker for the slightest hint of angst.) Though I'd really like to know how Neal snuck those plates out without anyone catching him.

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Neal and Elizabeth are dangerous when they team up ;) I loved that scene to no end. Serously, if I could have hugged it I would have :D

And I love the change we're seeing in Neal, how he's leaning more and more away from his life of crime.

Two weeks... oi. Don't know if I can wait that log :P

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

You know what? Thinking back to this episode, I now know exactly what kind of woman Neal needs: A younger June! Someone, who takes his shenannigans in stride, but does not encourage him (too much).

And my favourite part of this one is now Peter, acting all the proud daddy in the van (if Neal could hear him there...oh...great fic idea...) and Neal opening the door before the FBI can barge in (cliche avoided!).

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Yes! I was thinking the same thing exactly. He needs his own June :D

[ladyniko.livejournal.com]

Bwhahahahaha! Oh, Neal. When all else fails, ask Elizabeth :D Neal is totally the human version of Bugs Bunny. Wascally con ;)

As my friend said when I described the scene to him - it's the play the parents against each other scheme. You don't get the answer you want from dad, you go and ask mom before dad has a chance to give her a heads up. *cackle*

Like you, I'm hoping we get more Neal whump next season, since the one trailer I saw looks to have some major Peter whumpage.

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

You don't get the answer you want from dad, you go and ask mom before dad has a chance to give her a heads up. *cackle*

So true :D

This has been a rather Peter centric season, I think. Peter whump, Peter being cool, now next week's ep in which Peter is kidnapped. Which is awesome for Peter fans, but - though I like Peter - I'm not as big a Peter fan as I am of Neal.

More than that, though, I don't like it when a show or story seems to want to make its hero seem untouchable, or try to avoid a violent aftermath. The more a character comes out of a dangerous situation unscathed, the less tense we feel the next dangerous situation around, because we already know that the hero will be all right. A little whump here and there, though, can go a long way in ensuring that those tense situations remain tense. It doesn't have to be major whump, just something to remind us that the hero isn't untouchable after all.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Actually, I'm not so sure about that...in a sense, the first season was more about Peter than Neal (although we got to see more of Neal). Musicbox-arc aside, it was mostly about Peter learning to see a little bit more grey...at the very beginning, he thinks very much in terms of black and white. Neal is the one who teaches him to go a little bit grey...first by turning a blind eye to some of Neal's activities which benefit him (ie. looking for the bible, ), later by overlooking some of Neal shennanigans. Admittingly, the process just ended...in "Company man" he made his peace with his life, in "Burke's seven" he clearly draws the line at how far he is ready to go (con/sting yes, but nothing illegal). But overall, the second season was more about Neal's development. In the first season, he was fairly set...it was clear, as soon as he finds Kate, he is gone. He accepted Peter's rules, but he had no understanding for them. In season two, with Kate gone, the FBI really becomes an option, and we see him easing into the idea of a honest life...Need to know and Copycat Caffrey are both episodes about what good he can do with his abilities and what the consequences are when he makes the wrong decicions. In "By the book" he constantly tells Mozzie to involve Peter (which really shows that he begins to trust in his methods). "Company man" and "Point blank" are about him deciding between revenge and justice (in Burke's seven he finally settles for justice). And I think, in the near future we will see more episodes about the question how honest Neal can be.

I mean, I'm with you, that I missed Neal for a while, but that was because "By the book" was more a Mozzie-episode, than came the two episodes highjacket by Sara (And there I see the real problem of the season...those two episodes were definitly the weakest), followed by the Peter-episodes (which were important, but have worked better with more Neal and less Sara beforehand). But we just got three Neal-Episodes, we should be happy, right?

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

I wasn't talking about Neal centric episodes, I was talking about whump. We've gotten Peter whump, but not really Neal whump, and next week's ep could very well end up being another Neal whumper.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the NEal whump was really too short...they don't even show him putting the anklet on anylonger (I love this reminder of his situation).I had hoped for a little bit more emptional whump overall...but I think, we will get this one in the finale (*looks hopeful*)

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

*Slaps forehead* I meant Peter whumper, not Neal whumper. Anyway...

but I think, we will get this one in the finale (*looks hopeful*)

I'm definitely crossing my fingers that the finale is everything the show is hyping it up to be.