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White Collar 3x09
Mmmmm .... hmmmm. I think my reaction to this episode may have had something to do with having high hopes for a Keller episode, and then ... I felt like they squandered a lot of potential, really. So I'm not sure if the episode really wasn't very good, or if I was just disappointed in this one because of artificially high expectations. I wanted them to do more with Keller, but in the end, his role in this episode could have been that of any small-time crook who found out about the treasure. Neither his trademark mind games nor his hatred of, and desire for revenge on, Neal and Peter really played much of a role in the plot, and it should have. The whole episode felt like it was building up to something really explosive happening -- everything going horribly wrong at the end -- and then it ... didn't, really. It just sort of limped to a conclusion.
At least they didn't go ahead and kill off Keller, which I thought for a moment was what had happened. I really like him as an antagonist, and I would've hated to lose him in such an anticlimactic way.
And something I'm really struggling with right now is that normally, even when the plots of this show are a bit ... limp, you can usually count on the characters to be smart and competent regardless. This episode -- not so much, really. Neal and Mozzie -- neither of them are bringing their "A" game right now. Granted, both of them were working with only half the information they needed (Neal was lying to Mozzie about the manifest; Mozzie was concealing from Neal that he'd taken out a hit on Keller) but the end result was a lot of flailing at cross purposes that didn't really do either character any favors.
... actually, I think I just figured out one reason why I was less than enthralled with this episode. I love watching smart, twisty-brained characters match wits and cleverly figure out each other's secrets. That's one of the big draws of the show for me. But having the plots hinge upon the characters blundering around because they don't have all the information, and repeatedly getting close and then not telling each other things, is just frustrating. This show has rarely tipped over that line, but this episode, I feel, went too far in that direction for my tastes.
I know that a lot of people on my flist have been bothered by the show's darker direction with Neal and Mozzie this season, but this is the first episode where it's genuinely bothered me -- Mozzie taking out a hit on Keller, when it has a very real possibility of blowing back onto his friends; Neal not only directly lying to Peter's face about not having the treasure (I think this is the first time that there's really no way to explain it away as misdirection or half-truths), but also risking Peter's life by withholding critical pieces of information. And Peter, for that matter, moving so slowly on the pieces of information that he does have about the treasure that he's really just spinning his wheels -- okay, I get that he's dragging his feet because he cares about Neal, he knows Neal's guilty and he's still trying to give Neal opportunities to come clean (I think that's pretty obvious at this point), just as Neal's dragging his feet about leaving New York for similar reasons. But the end result is the characters not really doing much of anything, just keeping secrets from each other and staying in more or less the same place.
There were some things I liked! There was some fun bantery bits, and I really loved Peter's sympathy for Mozzie when his friend was killed (and listening to him immediately, when the other FBI agents didn't). It was nice to see Mozzie being protective of Neal, even if his plan was MADE OF SUCK, and it was also nice to see Sara again and get some closure on her storyline with Neal. (Though it bugs me that she's perjuring herself to the FBI for him -- Sara deciding to keep quiet on Neal's behalf makes sense to me; Sara committing a felony for Neal makes a great deal less sense. I was on board with Sara's protectiveness of Neal right up until the perjury thing.)
All in all, for the episode right before the mid-season finale, it didn't leave me going "Squee! More!" so much as "... I really hope the next episode is better than this one."
I didn't watch the preview for next week and am trying to remain completely unspoiled, so please do not spoil me in comments. Unfounded speculation is welcome, though! :D
At least they didn't go ahead and kill off Keller, which I thought for a moment was what had happened. I really like him as an antagonist, and I would've hated to lose him in such an anticlimactic way.
And something I'm really struggling with right now is that normally, even when the plots of this show are a bit ... limp, you can usually count on the characters to be smart and competent regardless. This episode -- not so much, really. Neal and Mozzie -- neither of them are bringing their "A" game right now. Granted, both of them were working with only half the information they needed (Neal was lying to Mozzie about the manifest; Mozzie was concealing from Neal that he'd taken out a hit on Keller) but the end result was a lot of flailing at cross purposes that didn't really do either character any favors.
... actually, I think I just figured out one reason why I was less than enthralled with this episode. I love watching smart, twisty-brained characters match wits and cleverly figure out each other's secrets. That's one of the big draws of the show for me. But having the plots hinge upon the characters blundering around because they don't have all the information, and repeatedly getting close and then not telling each other things, is just frustrating. This show has rarely tipped over that line, but this episode, I feel, went too far in that direction for my tastes.
I know that a lot of people on my flist have been bothered by the show's darker direction with Neal and Mozzie this season, but this is the first episode where it's genuinely bothered me -- Mozzie taking out a hit on Keller, when it has a very real possibility of blowing back onto his friends; Neal not only directly lying to Peter's face about not having the treasure (I think this is the first time that there's really no way to explain it away as misdirection or half-truths), but also risking Peter's life by withholding critical pieces of information. And Peter, for that matter, moving so slowly on the pieces of information that he does have about the treasure that he's really just spinning his wheels -- okay, I get that he's dragging his feet because he cares about Neal, he knows Neal's guilty and he's still trying to give Neal opportunities to come clean (I think that's pretty obvious at this point), just as Neal's dragging his feet about leaving New York for similar reasons. But the end result is the characters not really doing much of anything, just keeping secrets from each other and staying in more or less the same place.
There were some things I liked! There was some fun bantery bits, and I really loved Peter's sympathy for Mozzie when his friend was killed (and listening to him immediately, when the other FBI agents didn't). It was nice to see Mozzie being protective of Neal, even if his plan was MADE OF SUCK, and it was also nice to see Sara again and get some closure on her storyline with Neal. (Though it bugs me that she's perjuring herself to the FBI for him -- Sara deciding to keep quiet on Neal's behalf makes sense to me; Sara committing a felony for Neal makes a great deal less sense. I was on board with Sara's protectiveness of Neal right up until the perjury thing.)
All in all, for the episode right before the mid-season finale, it didn't leave me going "Squee! More!" so much as "... I really hope the next episode is better than this one."
I didn't watch the preview for next week and am trying to remain completely unspoiled, so please do not spoil me in comments. Unfounded speculation is welcome, though! :D