![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
Random White Collar squee
MID-SEASON FINALE TOMORROW EEEEEEE! (Once again, I've been avoiding spoilers as hard as I can -- I'm not 100% unspoiled, but I'm mostly unspoiled, and would like to stay that way. Your cooperation is most appreciated!)
But the actual purpose of this post is a lot of disconnected happy noises resulting from re-watching random episodes (or pieces of episodes) over the last couple of weeks. There's no actual thinkiness or analysis or anything like that, just squeeful comments in no particular order.
First of all: OH SHOW. ♥ ♥ ♥ I don't know why it's gotten into my heart so deeply. I really wasn't expecting it to! I just know that it makes me very happy. Just looking at the characters makes me happy. ♥
- The vault scene in 1x08 still wins all the things forever.
- But the one that I seriously CAN'T STOP REWATCHING is the scene in 2x08 when Peter is poisoned. There is something about the whole thing - Neal's freaked-out face (scruffy hair of emotional distress!) and Peter being all ... dead and just the whole thing that - I just can't stop watching, okay? I think it's right up there with the defibrillator scene in "Doppelganger" (SGA) as far as making me want to put it on repeat and heartflutter at it. (And I don't know how many repetitions it took for me to notice Neal mouthing "Peter" when the paramedics are working on him. See? I'm still noticing new stuff! SQUEAK.)
- Speaking of Neal's face - NEAL'S FACE in 2x10 when Mozzie wakes up from the coma. He's just so - open and relieved and warmly happy, in a way that he so rarely is. Matt Bomer does such a marvelous job in that scene of getting across a rather complicated set of emotions in a pretty subtle way.
- Another point of squee from that episode: in the first hospital scene at the beginning, the way Peter lays his hand on Mozzie's leg when Mozzie's in the coma. There's something about that little passing touch of comfort/concern that makes my heart do a little flip.
- Peter and Mozzie in general ... they fascinate me, I think, because it's such an odd, weird, serendipitous, hard-to-quantify relationship. There are a lot of really neat, oddball friendships on this show (Peter and Neal, obviously, but also Mozzie & Elizabeth, Neal & Diana, Diana & Peter, June & Neal) but what I think draws me to Peter and Mozzie at the moment is that they don't really seem willing to acknowledge actually being friends, whereas most of the others are fairly obvious about it. But I think they are, or at least care about each other quite a bit, but are both in deep, deep denial about it. *g* If you look at what they do rather than what they say, there's a pretty clear pattern of both of them turning up to help out whenever the other one is in trouble, right up to risking their lives for each other in some rather spectacular ways (Peter going up against a bunch of armed mobsters all by himself in 2x04; and of course Mozzie saving Peter's life in 3x04). And there are a lot of little exchanges that make me think they actually do enjoy each others' company, going all the way back to their first meeting, getting drunk together in Neal's apartment. They don't actually seem to seek out each others' company when they don't have to, but they fall pretty easily into what seems to be mutually satisfying banter/bickering whenever a case or other situation brings them together.
- Rewatching 2x04 (the one with Mozzie's girlfriend) and 3x04 (Dentist of Detroit) is also really interesting in terms of how far Mozzie's come at dealing with danger. I really do think he's a lot more self-assured in 3x04, even though his situation is at least as dire.
- I can't believe I've made it this far without mentioning TIM DEKAY'S FACE. XDDDD There are a whole bunch of scenes that I keep replaying (or pausing, or going into slo-mo) because I want to linger on some of his reaction shots. Just ... HIS FACE. It's interesting because on the surface Peter seems like the sort of character who wouldn't actually be that emotive, but in fact, between him and Neal, he's actually the more emotive and emotionally-open one, which is the reverse of what you'd expect at first glance.
- Speaking of which ... this screencap. Well, it's really more the body language than the face, but still - ahahahahaha DYING. *pets them*
- Peter/El are still my favorite TV couple evar. In all literal seriousness, I really do think they are, and the fandom's general cheerfulness about El is the icing on the cake (I don't think I've hit a single fic that bashes her, and the ones that break up Peter and El are truly scarce -- about the closest it gets for the most part is AUs in which she either died or they never got together in the first place).
- Also, Elizabeth helping Peter flirt (in at least two different episodes, no less) will never stop being adorable.
- The renewal of vows at the end of 3x05 - eeeeeeee. ♥ I think the main reason that scene gets to me so deeply, besides just being adorable all on its own, is that it's not just Peter and El - that it's Peter and El and Neal and Mozzie. They're all a very strange, often divided by circumstance, but close-knit little family, and I can do nothing but FLAIL. *flails*
- Another random bit that's so wonderfully subtle and just WONDERFUL is the exchange about the ring at the end of 2x14 (the one where Peter is kidnapped). The hug is awesome, don't get me wrong, but I think their little back-and-forth about the ring is even better, in its way, because of the way that they're expressing their unspoken "glad you're not dead/thanks for saving me" by both being willing to bend in a major way on their usual positions on something like that. Peter is perfectly willing to give back a ring that he knows is stolen; Neal is just as willing to give up a million-dollar ring because it's what he knows Peter would want him to do. OH GUYS. ♥
- The treasure hunt in 3x02, and the sheer ADORABLE of both Neal and Peter's glee in it (but especially Peter) ... eek, I love that episode so much.
- While 2x11 is not really my favorite episode because I'm not really on board with a lot of the backstory (I love that the episode exists, but I wish they hadn't tried to tie up so many loose ends all at once), I adore the whole Neal and Peter framing device because there's something just so wonderfully relaxed and comfortable about the two of them hanging out in Neal's apartment, drinking and talking about the old days. And I like how Peter gets noticeably sleepier and more drunk as the episode wears on (but snaps back to business mode at the end). I like to think that he crashed on Neal's couch at the end of the whole thing.
- This is really, really random, but OH MY GOD THESE CHARACTERS DRINK A LOT. Mozzie seems to be canonically a functional alcoholic, but I keep noticing it with all of them as I write them, because there is just about no scene in the show of the characters having downtime, sitting at home, or hanging out in which they aren't drinking. They all must have livers of pure steel.
- THESE SCENES:
From 1x06 - Neal's face (I know I keep saying that) when Peter first calls them partners:
He's just so completely amazed and delighted. In general, I think Neal and Peter's relationship is more equal than it's often written in fic (at least in season one/early season two-era fic), but there is definitely a part of him that craves affirmation and acceptance from Peter. Which, come to think of it, might be more pronounced in season one (maybe he's a little more confident later on?) but in any case, I think that's really interesting, because I don't think Neal is fond of being forced to be in a subordinate position to Peter, and he's definitely his own person, but there are also some levels on which he does seem to genuinely look up to Peter.
Anyway, then there's this scene in 2x01:
(gnnnn, the grinning, hee!) ... but specifically, Peter's "... what?" at the end of it, because I don't think he's reacting to Neal calling him an idiot (well, not entirely *g*); I think he's reacting to Neal calling him a friend. I'm pretty sure it's the first time Neal's openly acknowledged it.
- I'm not sure if those scenes were actually meant to reflect each other the way they do in my head. But there are really a lot of neat little callbacks to past episodes in the show. Like the dialogue exchange in whatever early-season-one episode it was ("Don't we have interns for that?" "I have something better: I have you.") that is flipped in 2x15 when they switch places.
- I remember![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
kriadydragon saying when I talked about 2x07 (the one in which Peter is on the run; you may notice I can't actually remember any episode titles for this show *g*) that she thought Peter had clued in Bancroft to Neal wanting to see the museum exhibit - basically set it up behind his back. I wasn't so sure at the time, but I actually do think so now. It seems like a Peter-ish sort of way to do it, and it fits a whole lot better than it just being a coincidence; it also works really well with his and Bancroft's body language when they're talking at the end but we can't hear what they're saying - Bancroft points to Peter's ankle and Peter nods. And it fits, too, with the nice little behind-the-scenes gesture that Peter also does for Mozzie before he goes home to El.
I am actually running out of things to talk about! I think most of the recent squee was discussed in recent episode reaction posts. Let's end with some random screencaps of randomness (I really need to get the DVDs so my screencaps don't have the watermark ...).
This entry is also posted at http://friendshipper.dreamwidth.org/365761.html with
comments.
But the actual purpose of this post is a lot of disconnected happy noises resulting from re-watching random episodes (or pieces of episodes) over the last couple of weeks. There's no actual thinkiness or analysis or anything like that, just squeeful comments in no particular order.
First of all: OH SHOW. ♥ ♥ ♥ I don't know why it's gotten into my heart so deeply. I really wasn't expecting it to! I just know that it makes me very happy. Just looking at the characters makes me happy. ♥
- The vault scene in 1x08 still wins all the things forever.
- But the one that I seriously CAN'T STOP REWATCHING is the scene in 2x08 when Peter is poisoned. There is something about the whole thing - Neal's freaked-out face (scruffy hair of emotional distress!) and Peter being all ... dead and just the whole thing that - I just can't stop watching, okay? I think it's right up there with the defibrillator scene in "Doppelganger" (SGA) as far as making me want to put it on repeat and heartflutter at it. (And I don't know how many repetitions it took for me to notice Neal mouthing "Peter" when the paramedics are working on him. See? I'm still noticing new stuff! SQUEAK.)
- Speaking of Neal's face - NEAL'S FACE in 2x10 when Mozzie wakes up from the coma. He's just so - open and relieved and warmly happy, in a way that he so rarely is. Matt Bomer does such a marvelous job in that scene of getting across a rather complicated set of emotions in a pretty subtle way.
- Another point of squee from that episode: in the first hospital scene at the beginning, the way Peter lays his hand on Mozzie's leg when Mozzie's in the coma. There's something about that little passing touch of comfort/concern that makes my heart do a little flip.
- Peter and Mozzie in general ... they fascinate me, I think, because it's such an odd, weird, serendipitous, hard-to-quantify relationship. There are a lot of really neat, oddball friendships on this show (Peter and Neal, obviously, but also Mozzie & Elizabeth, Neal & Diana, Diana & Peter, June & Neal) but what I think draws me to Peter and Mozzie at the moment is that they don't really seem willing to acknowledge actually being friends, whereas most of the others are fairly obvious about it. But I think they are, or at least care about each other quite a bit, but are both in deep, deep denial about it. *g* If you look at what they do rather than what they say, there's a pretty clear pattern of both of them turning up to help out whenever the other one is in trouble, right up to risking their lives for each other in some rather spectacular ways (Peter going up against a bunch of armed mobsters all by himself in 2x04; and of course Mozzie saving Peter's life in 3x04). And there are a lot of little exchanges that make me think they actually do enjoy each others' company, going all the way back to their first meeting, getting drunk together in Neal's apartment. They don't actually seem to seek out each others' company when they don't have to, but they fall pretty easily into what seems to be mutually satisfying banter/bickering whenever a case or other situation brings them together.
- Rewatching 2x04 (the one with Mozzie's girlfriend) and 3x04 (Dentist of Detroit) is also really interesting in terms of how far Mozzie's come at dealing with danger. I really do think he's a lot more self-assured in 3x04, even though his situation is at least as dire.
- I can't believe I've made it this far without mentioning TIM DEKAY'S FACE. XDDDD There are a whole bunch of scenes that I keep replaying (or pausing, or going into slo-mo) because I want to linger on some of his reaction shots. Just ... HIS FACE. It's interesting because on the surface Peter seems like the sort of character who wouldn't actually be that emotive, but in fact, between him and Neal, he's actually the more emotive and emotionally-open one, which is the reverse of what you'd expect at first glance.
- Speaking of which ... this screencap. Well, it's really more the body language than the face, but still - ahahahahaha DYING. *pets them*
- Peter/El are still my favorite TV couple evar. In all literal seriousness, I really do think they are, and the fandom's general cheerfulness about El is the icing on the cake (I don't think I've hit a single fic that bashes her, and the ones that break up Peter and El are truly scarce -- about the closest it gets for the most part is AUs in which she either died or they never got together in the first place).
- Also, Elizabeth helping Peter flirt (in at least two different episodes, no less) will never stop being adorable.
- The renewal of vows at the end of 3x05 - eeeeeeee. ♥ I think the main reason that scene gets to me so deeply, besides just being adorable all on its own, is that it's not just Peter and El - that it's Peter and El and Neal and Mozzie. They're all a very strange, often divided by circumstance, but close-knit little family, and I can do nothing but FLAIL. *flails*
- Another random bit that's so wonderfully subtle and just WONDERFUL is the exchange about the ring at the end of 2x14 (the one where Peter is kidnapped). The hug is awesome, don't get me wrong, but I think their little back-and-forth about the ring is even better, in its way, because of the way that they're expressing their unspoken "glad you're not dead/thanks for saving me" by both being willing to bend in a major way on their usual positions on something like that. Peter is perfectly willing to give back a ring that he knows is stolen; Neal is just as willing to give up a million-dollar ring because it's what he knows Peter would want him to do. OH GUYS. ♥
- The treasure hunt in 3x02, and the sheer ADORABLE of both Neal and Peter's glee in it (but especially Peter) ... eek, I love that episode so much.
- While 2x11 is not really my favorite episode because I'm not really on board with a lot of the backstory (I love that the episode exists, but I wish they hadn't tried to tie up so many loose ends all at once), I adore the whole Neal and Peter framing device because there's something just so wonderfully relaxed and comfortable about the two of them hanging out in Neal's apartment, drinking and talking about the old days. And I like how Peter gets noticeably sleepier and more drunk as the episode wears on (but snaps back to business mode at the end). I like to think that he crashed on Neal's couch at the end of the whole thing.
- This is really, really random, but OH MY GOD THESE CHARACTERS DRINK A LOT. Mozzie seems to be canonically a functional alcoholic, but I keep noticing it with all of them as I write them, because there is just about no scene in the show of the characters having downtime, sitting at home, or hanging out in which they aren't drinking. They all must have livers of pure steel.
- THESE SCENES:
From 1x06 - Neal's face (I know I keep saying that) when Peter first calls them partners:
He's just so completely amazed and delighted. In general, I think Neal and Peter's relationship is more equal than it's often written in fic (at least in season one/early season two-era fic), but there is definitely a part of him that craves affirmation and acceptance from Peter. Which, come to think of it, might be more pronounced in season one (maybe he's a little more confident later on?) but in any case, I think that's really interesting, because I don't think Neal is fond of being forced to be in a subordinate position to Peter, and he's definitely his own person, but there are also some levels on which he does seem to genuinely look up to Peter.
Anyway, then there's this scene in 2x01:
(gnnnn, the grinning, hee!) ... but specifically, Peter's "... what?" at the end of it, because I don't think he's reacting to Neal calling him an idiot (well, not entirely *g*); I think he's reacting to Neal calling him a friend. I'm pretty sure it's the first time Neal's openly acknowledged it.
- I'm not sure if those scenes were actually meant to reflect each other the way they do in my head. But there are really a lot of neat little callbacks to past episodes in the show. Like the dialogue exchange in whatever early-season-one episode it was ("Don't we have interns for that?" "I have something better: I have you.") that is flipped in 2x15 when they switch places.
- I remember
kriadydragon saying when I talked about 2x07 (the one in which Peter is on the run; you may notice I can't actually remember any episode titles for this show *g*) that she thought Peter had clued in Bancroft to Neal wanting to see the museum exhibit - basically set it up behind his back. I wasn't so sure at the time, but I actually do think so now. It seems like a Peter-ish sort of way to do it, and it fits a whole lot better than it just being a coincidence; it also works really well with his and Bancroft's body language when they're talking at the end but we can't hear what they're saying - Bancroft points to Peter's ankle and Peter nods. And it fits, too, with the nice little behind-the-scenes gesture that Peter also does for Mozzie before he goes home to El.I am actually running out of things to talk about! I think most of the recent squee was discussed in recent episode reaction posts. Let's end with some random screencaps of randomness (I really need to get the DVDs so my screencaps don't have the watermark ...).
This entry is also posted at http://friendshipper.dreamwidth.org/365761.html with
no subject
no subject
no subject
3x02 - Peter approximating the angle of the sun at a certain time of year using a sextant and no paper - doing it in his head. That's... hot. This was one of the coolest episodes in the season, and I particularly loved how Elizabeth got to join in the treasure hunt. Plus, how determined Peter was to have a nice lunch with her - he is always putting her first - and she recognizes that he was just itching to be out treasure-hunting with Neil. They are so awesome together.
Peter and El really are the best couple on tv right now! <3 The only other couple that I have loved as much as them is Sheridan and Delenn from Babylon 5.
no subject
... actually I could make a WHOLE HUGE LIST of favorite smart!Peter bits from the show -- playing "dumb American" for the women in Chinatown so that he can record what they say behind his back, playing the part of a wine snob when he's just admitted to Neal that he hates that whole subculture, or remembering enough bits of horse and horse-person trivia from his childhood to pretend to be a horse-racing aficionado on the spur of the moment ...
If there's one single thing that draws me to a character (or a real-life person, for that matter) it's intelligence. Smart and sarcastic is my kryptonite. *g*
And yes, putting El first -- I love how a recurring theme in the series is how often they both try to make time to have lunch together, or "date night", or the show itself just makes space to show them doing something domestic (putting away dishes from the dishwasher, say). Prior to White Collar, I think the top of my "favorite TV couple" list was Wash & Zoe on Firefly, and for similar reasons, I think -- because they were funny and sweet and had a great rapport, and they were partners at work and play, and each others' best friends.
no subject
Yes... I'm so with you on the intelligence thing! I love characters who are smart - and writers who know how to write smart characters. As for smart!Peter - I love how this show consistently subverts the "dumb FBI agent" trope, and that Peter never has a moment where Neal or Mozzie or any of the weekly antagonists has the advantage of him in knowing more than he does. They might have bits of knowledge that he doesn't, but Peter can always put those bits into the context of the bigger picture, and it takes him less than a second to assimilate them or to point out an angle that neither Neal or Mozzie has considered. He is up on everything - wine, THE TANGO, he cuts Mozzie off when he's about to explain what IRC is, all of that. The man has a mind like a trap, and the best part is that Tim DeKay knows how to sell the smart!Peter persona like whoa. My delight in this show, I cannot express it enough. :D
Can I also say, one of my other favorite bits of the show was El talking to Mozzie when Moz in The Dentist of Detroit, confessing to two arrests in her life. And Moz reminding her to never confirm guilt. :D So which of the two "alleged" offenses does Peter know about? The streaking, or the fake id? I think he only knows about the streaking. This question actually keeps me up at night, and if I'm ever at a con with the show writers, that'll be my question for the panel, haha.
no subject
As for smart!Peter - I love how this show consistently subverts the "dumb FBI agent" trope
I know; I think that's one of the things I love most about Peter (and the show itself!), is that the show is very much aware of the trope, and steers clear of it while also playing with it a little bit. Peter himself plays with it, as in the Chinatown episode, taking advantage of people underestimating him. And there are a few moments when even Neal falls into the trap, like in the episode where Peter does his "wine snob" impression.
Tim DeKay has said in interviews that he thinks Peter is probably a guy who comes from a background where he didn't like to flaunt his intelligence; it wasn't the social norm of the people he grew up around, and he felt embarrassed about being book-smart in a way that his father wasn't. And I think that comes across in the way he plays him, and that it's really consistent with the way Peter's written. Actually, in general I think the show is very consistent in the way that they write Peter's unique complex of traits. He picks up knowledge very readily by listening to people talk or observing what's happening around him -- and of course he's also the sort of detail-oriented person who would probably have stayed up 'til the small hours before the wine show teaching himself as much as possible about wine. (Partly, perhaps, just to see the look on Neal's face. *g*)
Neal is also crazy smart, of course, and a self-made person in much the same way Peter is, though he took it in a completely different direction. And that's the neat thing about the two of them, that they can keep up with each other, and they're so different and yet so similar. I really love the back-and-forth that they have, and the fact that both of them have these steel-trap minds and are really good at picking up clues, synthesizing information, and changing plans on the fly.
As a matter of fact, I've noticed that they're harder to write than characters in some of my previous fandoms because they're so smart and competent, and canonically portrayed that way. In some fandoms I can get away with plot shortcuts that I can't in WC, because there's no way to do it without writing the characters as less competent people than they're shown to be in canon.
no subject
no subject
no subject
And hee to the rewatching - something about this show & these actors is very rewatchable; I remember getting obsessed with a few scenes myself (the vault scene, definitely, and while 2x08 hadn't aired yet at the time, definitely think that would've been one of them ^^)
no subject
I haven't been rewatching a lot of whole episodes (for the most part, it's too recent, though I did really enjoy watching those episodes with you and
no subject
And now I so want a fic where Mozzie and Peter work together to save Neal :D