White Collar series finale

[sholio]

And so White Collar is officially over. Last episode. No more.

I figured that, since a couple people on my flist have mentioned they were on the fence about watching the last season and wanted to know what I thought of the finale, I'd give you a nonspoilery reaction under a cut, and then do the spoilery, more in-depth discussion under another cut. So, emotional reaction with no direct spoilers under the first cut, then all the spoilers under the second one.



I hated that ending with every fiber of my heart and soul. That is basically the opposite of everything I wanted. Fuck you FOREVER, show. >_>




NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE

That is CRUEL. Peter and Mozzie and everyone who cares about Neal spend a whole year grieving? And Diana is out of White Collar and New York? And Neal is legally dead, can never go home, and furthermore is now robbing the Louvre, i.e. has clearly gone back to a life of crime? And we never even got to see a reunion after Peter FINALLY (after a year of MISERY) figured out that Neal faked his death. NO NO NO NO DO NOT WANT.

(On top of that, for some reason Peter and El naming their son after Neal irritates the hell out of me, because while it's sweet in theory, I always hated it when fanfic did it and, come to find out, I don't like it any better in actual canon! Plus having two characters with the same name is going to be really annoying to write, assuming I write anything that takes this as actual canon -- but I'm really, really not good at selectively ignoring canon.)

AAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHH.

What really burns me up about it is that he had a legal way out. They didn't have to do this. The entire thing with the Panthers as a threat to force him to fake his death is a fucking narrative cheat, and I feel like the show came thisclose to giving me the ending that I wanted most -- Neal gets the anklet off legally, and can come and go as he likes; the whole world is wide open for him -- AND FUCKING GAVE ME THIS INSTEAD.

I had thought the reset-to-status-quo ending I would hate the most was Neal being stuck on the anklet forever, but instead the reset-to-status-quo they picked was Peter and Neal going back to Neal-as-criminal, Peter-as-FBI-agent-chasing-him WITH A YEAR OF MISERY IN THE MIDDLE THERE and turns out I hate that one at least as much if not more! Just. fucking. no.

The one thing I will give the show, regarding that ending, is that it's wide open for sequels and post-canon fixits. Unfortunately, because of the time jump, it's impossible to remove a lot of the elements I hated most without going AU (did I mention THE YEAR OF MISERY THAT NEAL DELIBERATELY INFLICTED ON HIS LOVED ONES and also I HATE WHAT THEY NAMED THE BABY) but hey, the fanfic potential is great! There are absolutely TONS of ficcing potential. I mean, if you look at canon as a springboard for fanfic, they left it in a pretty good place for it.

Unfortunately for me, fanfic is usually secondary and canon comes first, and I am really, really displeased where actual canon left it.

So anyway. Yes. There we are. Tons of fanfic potential, as soon as I actually get to a point where I want to write fanfic because I'm no longer feeling like capslocking about my feelings of annoyance and betrayal all over the place. >_>


ETA: Or maybe I'll just end up writing a long AU version of the finale in which Peter figures out the "faked his own death" thing 5 minutes after the orderly gives him the key (because Peter is not stupid; hell, I knew it was the key to the storage unit as soon as the guy handed it over) and EVERYTHING WITH THE PANTHERS GETS FIXED SOMEHOW and then I'll pretend it's actual canon. /o\

Comments

[veleda_k]

This is definitely what I didn't want, but I can work with it, although that may be because I was expecting something worse. (I don't know what. Just worse.) Peter mentions in his conversation with Mozzie that all the Panthers are only now rounded up, so I can figure that Neal stayed hidden as long as he needed to. Is it a narrative cheat? Oh, yeah, no argument. But I can rationalize it as not being needlessly cruel.

And I figure Neal could still stop commuting crime. Faking one's death isn't illegal, which is what can be proven Neal did, and while the paperwork would be messy, his contract did say he'd go free if the Panthers were caught. Which is not me defending the ending exactly. It's more that I don't think fix-its will be hard. I could easily write Neal trying some heists before coming back, but eventually deciding it's not what he wants. Or, while he wants it, he wants New York more.

I have some optimism about what could be. And, really, as soon as we learned the baby was a boy, I knew he would be named Neal, so I didn't really have a reaction to that.

(I made my mother watch the episode first, then tell me if I would hate it. What she said gave me an idea of what might happen. So I was a bit prepared.)

[sholio]

Yeah, I think I'm getting over it a little bit by thinking about all the ficcing potential -- and it's pretty clear that, after waiting a year, Neal found ways to contact both Peter and Mozzie (I'm guessing the playing card in the storage unit means that Mozzie knows too?) so quite possibly REUNION IN PARIS is in everyone's near future.

This is so totally not what I wanted, though. Still annoyed that it came so close to giving me everything I wanted and then snatched it away and gave me epic heartbreak instead.

But there's loads and loads of room to write fic in. And I agree that from here on out, it's possible to write nearly any sort of ending, right up to Neal deciding crime's not where it's at, fixing himself up with a new identity and moving back to New York as Neal Cafferay or whatnot.

[veleda_k]

Hell, I'm not sure he even needs to change his identity. I mean, I guess you could say he's a fugitive because he skipped town before any of the paperwork was done, but I think in White Collar world at least, the whole "had to fake his death for everyone's safety" could be used to work around that.

My fear was that Neal would never be able to return, and that doesn't seem to be the case. I wanted an unambiguously happy ending, but, well, I imagined much worse than this.

[sholio]

Well, I meant change his identity because of the Panthers still being in play as a threat. But you're right that they don't necessarily have to be. You can in fact make a good argument that, since Neal's now sending messages to his loved ones that he's okay, he doesn't believe they're a threat anymore.

And yeah, it could totally be worse. Heck, I think Peter would pull basically ANY string available to him to get Neal back to New York legally, if Neal wanted to come. It definitely could be worse. I've watched shows with finales that were WAY more depressing.

I'm just frustrated because I really wanted an ending for this show that I liked and felt good about. And I don't like this ending. It's not the worst thing ever, but some series finales have lifted me up on a cloud of happy feelings, and this one just hurt. And I didn't want to have that overshadow my feelings about the rest of the show ...

But it could have been much worse, and there is lots and lots of possible fic to write about it!

[veleda_k]

I guess the thing for me is I knew a floaty happy ending wasn't coming. I have an avoidance of spoilers, but my mom doesn't, and when things make her nervous, she passes them on to me. (Some people in my life have difficulty understanding what spoiler averse means.) So, I saw quotes from Eastin saying that he thought the finale might make fans hate him and suchlike. And while I tried to block it all from my mind, because otherwise it just freaked me out, of course I couldn't forget it. I was afraid it would end with Peter and Neal in full cat and mouse mode, with Neal never being able to return to his New York life.

So, I guess spoilers worked in my favor, because they made me imagine something much worse.

[sholio]

Yeah, and for my part, as much as I thought I was bracing for an ending I'd hate, I think on some level I just couldn't believe the show would do it, because every past season and conflict always worked out well. For a long time, this was one of the few shows I trusted to let me get attached to the characters without completely breaking my heart, and I think that's what's so frustrating about this. I mean, if, say, Orphan Black ends the series by killing off all the clones, I will be SO PISSED but also, it's not like I couldn't see a dark ending coming! It's Orphan Black! As much as I want things to work out well, there's also a large part of me that can't see the show having an ending that's not as bleak as the rest of it is. But White Collar has always had such a strong sense of community/team/family that apparently, no matter how much I tried to prepare myself, I just didn't believe the show would split up everyone at the end.

.... on the other hand, the Sara/Neal potential is off the charts now. He's in Paris! Very close to London! :D What are the odds she starts finding roses on her balcony and such?

[veleda_k]

I think another part of it is I don't see thinks quite as bleakly as you do? As I mentioned, my interpretation is that Neal only stayed "dead" as long as he felt necessary, and he's now reaching out to Peter and Mozzie. And Peter didn't look mad. I mean, undoubtedly there will be some anger, but that doesn't appear to be Peter's major reaction. I guess I see it more as an ending that has some people split up, but implies they'll be coming together soon. (Although I so wanted the person who approached Mozzie in the park to be Neal.)

And, really, when I think about, this is the most optimistic season finale ever. As it should be, since there's no next season to fix everything. But season one had Kate die in front of Neal, season two had Peter suspecting Neal of stealing the u-boat treasure (and then Neal finding the u-boat treasure), season three had Neal fleeing the country to get away from Kramer, season four had Peter arrested, and season five had Neal kidnapped. Now the vital difference is that all those things got fixed, whereas here we're more left hanging. But I personally don't have a hard time imagining things going well. I want things to go well. I need this to happen.

Ahaha, Sara would be so pissed to think Neal was dead then find out he was actually alive. She'd forgive him, because she always does, but there would be groveling!

[sheron]

The one thing I find deeply reassuring is that there may be more Sara/Neal fic :D

[veleda_k]

Oh, I already have ideas. But, man, forget being pissed. After her sister's disappearance, the death of her parents, and losing Neal once at the end of S3, pissed isn't even going to begin to describe Sara's feelings.

[sheenianni]

Agreed.

She might forigve him in the end, but it would be a long road - and honestly, I don't know if Sara would want tobe with Neal after this, knowing he is still causing people all this pain (even though supposedly for good reasons). Hmmm, I need someone to write me a Neal/Sara fic where they do just that and eventually get their happy ending.

[sholio]

*nods* Yeah, I think I need some time to let my feelings about the finale settle in before I'll know how I really feel about it. I guess right now I'm emotionally overinvested in the characters *g* -- I'm just feeling terribly upset on Peter and Mozzie's behalf because of the emotional hell they've had to through, and awful for Neal because he's all alone in Paris, and just sort of generally pissed because this is not the ending I wanted. >:(

But give me some time to get used to it, and I may feel a lot more optimistic about it. Nobody's dead, and I agree that Peter's not mad at all; I think both Peter and Mozzie's main reaction to seeing Neal again will be relief and joy. And now that Peter knows (and Mozzie, based on the card in the storage unit, presumably knows) they'll surely get back in touch with each other.

I guess half the problem here is just that I want to see all this stuff onscreen. For me, fanfic isn't a substitute, and looking forward to the anticipation of everyone meeting again in Paris isn't the same as actually seeing a reunion onscreen. Right now I guess I kinda feel like we got all the grief and none of the catharsis, which is why I'm in such an emotional tangle about it!

On the other hand, there have been a lot of shows that have left my favorite characters in a far worse place (dead, say). So it could definitely be worse!

[veleda_k]

Well, it's not like you're wrong to be upset. It's a subjective emotional response. And Peter and Mozzie's grief did shred me. Especially Mozzie's breakdown in the morgue.

I totally get wanting the catharsis. I guess for me, Mozzie and Peter discovering that Neal's alive is the beginning of that catharsis, but I understand why you'd want more.

But, well, nobody's dead (except Keller) and nobody's on the run from the law, and the latter was what I was especially afraid of.

[sheron]

For a long time, this was one of the few shows I trusted to let me get attached to the characters without completely breaking my heart, and I think that's what's so frustrating about this.

I felt this way until the last episode of the previous season 5... At that point I suddenly realized I can't trust this show which was a real kick in the gut and the reason for my subsequent decision to watch the new season after I know how it ends. :\

That feeling of betrayal is worse than a sad ending because I feel like the first 4 seasons were setting things up for something else and then it was like the authors changed their mind and decided no, these characters are not going to get all those things that we've built them up to want.

[sholio]

Yeah, I .... I just don't know how I feel about the show right now! I'm not sure if I'm going to get over feeling betrayed by it, and go back to enjoying it and write fixits for the ending, or if I'm just gonna cut my losses and jump ship to other things which are giving me joy.

[sholio]

I also hope that my bitterness isn't bringing you down!

[violetemerald]

Is it really not illegal to fake your death? I was under the impression that it was.

[princessofgeeks]

Now that I've watched it, what I can't figure out is why Neal felt he had to fake his own death at all.

They got the Panthers clean. Just Keller being able to stalk Neal wasn't enough to make him hide.

Did he really think the Panthers' threat was that enormous?

I can't figure out why they felt this was the solution they needed…. Neal going to ground.

I agree that Neal had that bottle of wine left at the Burke's to spark Peter's thought processes.

There is no way Mozzie was in on it. The actor played his grief beautifully.

I have no idea what is supposed to happen next in the minds of the writers.

Maybe Neal indeed hid as long as he felt he needed to and now he has a new identity.

I thought it was plausible that Neal would continue a life of crime, but I have no idea what Peter would do with that information. I think that was left intentionally ambiguous.

Interviews with the writers now that the episode has aired will be interesting if there are any.

Basically I'm looking forward to a rewatch so I can understand it all better. Season 6 I mean.

I'm sorry you felt so bad. I was a little more distanced from it all, mostly because I am unable to watch stuff in real time 90 percent of the time, so my emotions are usually a bit insulated.

[sholio]

I've been thinking about this, and I think the episode stabbed me in the heart so hard at least partly because the rest of the show was overall so optimistic and sweet. Even when they had dark stuff happen, everyone bounced back and things ended on a light note. There have been a lot of canons I've absolutely loved that had dark, painful stuff happen and dark, painful, ambiguous endings, but I guess I always thought White Collar wasn't going to be one of them, and let my guard down.

Oh well ... it is what it is, and like I posted in another journal post today, I've found a way of looking at the finale that hurts less. I still wish they'd given us a little more closure at the end, or at least that we'd gotten to see the characters reunited.

But I've loved shows that have had much more tragic endings, or endings with much less space for fanfic to fill the gaps, so there is always that.

[violetemerald]

Everything you said here in this comment, sholio... just... YES. " I think the episode stabbed me in the heart so hard at least partly because the rest of the show was overall so optimistic and sweet. Even when they had dark stuff happen, everyone bounced back and things ended on a light note. There have been a lot of canons I've absolutely loved that had dark, painful stuff happen and dark, painful, ambiguous endings, but I guess I always thought White Collar wasn't going to be one of them, and let my guard down." That's exactly how I feel too, and I think that's also why the Chuck series finale hurt me so badly. You can't have a show that has bright colors and the most adorable smiles and cute family moments end on a note of such GRIEF. That's not a "happy ending" and this was a show that left me EXPECTING a happy ending. ALL of the season premieres tied up their HUGE problems with the sweetest happy resolutions. Why did they have to hurt me so badly with this one? I wrote this: http://archiveofourown.org/works/2844806 but I still feel like all my thoughts about the finale aren't out yet.

[muccamukk]

I think I'll probably watch the finale out of context because I'm an utter sucker for faked deaths (favourite trope ever!), though I like them with a little more resolution.

[sholio]

Yeah, I think that's what I'm having so much trouble with in this case -- I LOVE the presumed-dead trope, love it to pieces, but I mostly love it because all the angst ends with heartwarming catharsis, and here I got all the angst without my catharsis. :P You might love it, though, who knows!

[beck_liz]

Haven't watched it yet, because I was in the midst of packing for a trip, but I saw the reactions flow across Twitter. Not best pleased about this ending, because I always wanted Neal to earn his freedom and then continue working with Peter in some capacity, not to return to a life of crime. And certainly not to make Peter, Mozzie and El think he's dead for a year! Argh.

Or maybe I'll just end up writing a long AU version of the finale in which Peter figures out the "faked his own death" thing 5 minutes after the orderly gives him the key

That would be lovely. I find it hard to believe it took Peter a year. Sigh.

[sholio]

Yeah, I think all my problems with the finale would be averted if they'd just had Peter figure it out a lot faster, and/or be involved in the planning process with Neal. (What happened to "lying to me is never protecting me" from season four?!)

I guess it could've been worse, because no one is dead for real and it's still wide open for all kinds of fanfic sequels. I still feel a little stabbed in the heart, though.