The two [White Collar] musketeers.

[aragarna]

Ok, my turn.
I've read "a few" posts and comments about the 2 opening episodes of season 4. And while I do admit the nit-picks are valid, and plot-holes exist, to tell you the truth, I don't care. - Wait, there was one thing that did bother me: the Spanish/Portuguese confusion. It drives me crazy, because it's the kind of mistake so common on US tv and films....
Anyway, that was not my point. My point was, I don't care. I could argue a few points, but I don't care. Because my boys are back and that felt sooooo good !
I mean, seriously, it was like I realized that, without White Collar, I felt so much like Peter without Neal.... But finally, here they were, back for new adventures ! Whatever happened, it didn't matter, I felt the whole time like Peter when he hears, then sees Neal again... If only I could have hugged them... I would have.

And for our reunion, they offered the perfect cocktail of sexiness, tribulations and emotions !
One of the main reasons why I love White Collar is the way they explore the character's psyche. And once again, the writers and the actors did a wonderful job...

You know, when I was a kid, my favorite book was The Three Musketeers (and its 2 sequels). It was written in the 19th century and back then, the word "bromance" had not yet been invented. But today it is, and now I can finally sum-up that big trilogy in a simple sentence: This is a bromance story.

Peter and Neal, to that respect, remind me so much of the 4 heroes of my youth. They are not always on the same side, they are not always in the same library. But they would switch side and move Heaven and Earth for each other.

Now I understand it, I've always loved bromance. This, is why I love White Collar.

__

Comments

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Oh, I totally don't disagree there...I actually liked the Nazi-Treasure story-line, because of the friction it caused. But (big but here), I felt that they didn't spend enough time on it. I liked every single episode which was about Neal and Peter and how they deal with the treasure problem. That was white collar at its best. But there were way to many "special character" episodes, which caused one of them sidelined for a big part of the episode. I think they really scrapped the bottom when they trapped Peter in domestic bliss to give Neal an opportunity to be off investigating with Sara. I certainly don't watch the show to see Peter acting in some sort of sit-com, while Neal is off doing something else. I don't need harmony between them, but I do need seeing them the center of the episode, and that was way too often not the case last season. "Scott Free", The beginning of "Taking Account", "Deadline" and "Pulling strings" were especially bad in this regard.

[aragarna.livejournal.com]

I don't mind a little focus on the other characters, though those "other character"-centric episodes were not all equally good. The only real problem for me is that they shouldn't have had ALL those special episodes in the same season. One, maybe 2 each season is ok. But more is too much.

As for Peter not being much in Pulling String, that was because Tim was prepping for the next one, that he was directing. Surprisingly I didn't mind Sara in this one. I like her when she actually does something (as opposed to just smooching with shirtless Neal...)

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

I don't think that you need to make a whole episode about a character in order to flesh him out or give him a moment to shine. A good example is Diana. Diana had the one scene with Neal in the hotel room in "Need to know". In this one scene we learned that she is a diplomats daughter, that her bodyguard more or less raised her, that he died in the line of duty protecting her - all this by letting it stay connected to Neal's grief about Kate. What did we learn in "Deadline"? That she meet Christie during pottery class. It's not about the screentime, it's about the way the screentime is used.

"Dentist of Detroid" also was a special character episode, but one of the few which really worked. For one, because it was the right moment to learn more about Mozzie, in order to understand why he acts the way he does concerning the treasure. I think I would have developed a dislike for him, if I hadn't known why he was pushing Neal to leave. Plus, even though the episode focussed on Mozzie for large parts of it, it was also about Peter and Neal trying to protect Mozzie. They weren't shoved aside, they were part of the story.

Yeah, I heart the "he needed prepping for directing" explanation before, but I don't buy it. They could have easily added scenes in which Neal keeps calling Peter for one reason or another, they could have every member of the team finding a reason to show up while the parents were there. The way they handled it, the episode had two seperate story lines, and none of it was truly used to it's full potential.

I think the only episode in which I truly liked Sara in every scene she was in is "Judgment Day", because it's the only episode in which her presence seems to fit in every scene she turns up. I certainly don't miss her.

[aragarna.livejournal.com]

That's very true, and I do agree. Though there are also people who likes the other characters and are pleased to see them more (my boyfriend loves Stachmo and Jones... so he is still waiting for a Stachmo-centric ep ^^ ). But I do agree that it is better to give more screentime from time to time to a character than having him/her shine once and for the full episode.

And yes, Dentist of Detroit was indeed the one that worked best.