July 11, 2012

Quick Thoughts: WHITE COLLAR, "Wanted"

White Collar made its fourth season debut by continuing one of the most interesting arcs the show's ever put together, and "Wanted" was a fine return mostly because it wasn't your typical episode.

I was pretty upfront about my indifference towards the latter half of Season 3 since it steered away from the stolen treasure arc and focused on Neal's pending freedom. I'll admit that the tail end made up for some rather lackluster episodes, and the idea of having Caffery on the run while Peter chased after him yet again was extremely intriguing since it meant we wouldn't be forced to watch more case-of-the-week outings. So, it's pretty easy to see why I liked "Wanted" so much because it was a nice payoff for the cliffhanger we got at the end of "Judgment Day."

Obviously, watching Peter do everything in his power to make sure that Neal was safe was a highlight of the episode, but I think I got more enjoyment from the Neal and Mozzie moments because we've been getting fewer and fewer of them as the show's gone on. While I love the Neal/Peter relationship, we need to remember that Mozzie was his first. I also loved it that Peter was the reason why Neal was put into danger to begin with. Sure, it was extremely telegraphed, but it still felt organic.

"Wanted" had other elements that I really enjoyed, i.e. Mia Maestro. Yes, she's a nice bit of eye-candy, but I thought she had some good chemistry with Matt Bomer (who apparently didn't show off his abs enough during Magic Mike based on his opening shot). Maya wasn't as interesting as Alex or Sara, but she was a nice enough distraction. While I'm usually not the biggest Mekhi Phifer fan, I got a kick out of his non-stop manhunter.

My only reservation about the start of Season 4 is how limiting the "Neal on the run" arc feels. "Wanted" had some great moments, and I'm sure that they'll spill over into episode 2, but I'm not going to be surprised when White Collar goes back to business as usual which will be a little disappointing.

Shortsightedness aside, "Wanted" was a fun way for White Collar to make its return, and it was good to have the show back

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