White Collar Review: Welcome to Paradise?
The FBI's most "Wanted" man and his eccentric and lovable right-hand man have returned for what promises to be an exciting fourth season of White Collar.
Neal and Mozzie may have escaped to paradise in Cape Verde, but it didn't take long until their safe haven became a hunting ground.
When we left Neal at White Collar Season 3, his commutation hearing appeared to be going extremely well, with the exception of Agent Kramer's relentless attempts to prove that Neal was still a criminal, leaving no stone unturned.
Unfortunately, Kramer found that damning stone, and Peter gave Neal the signal to run, leaving fans everywhere wondering just what would happen next.
And now we have the answer: Neal and Mozzie took refuge on the non-extraditing island of Cape Verde, living a lavish lifestyle in a seaside villa. Of course, we expected nothing less, but what a sad, sad thing it was for us to see him have to flee it... or at least attempt to do so.
It looks like they had made friends, one being Hector, the little guy with a fruit stand that Neal and Mozzie both seemed affectionate toward; and the beautiful Mya, who apparently stole Neal's heart. They'd even found a man whom they could pay to assure their anonymity and isolation from the outside world, as long... as that world didn't include the United States government we found out later.
Things were as exciting on their end as it was on Peter's. Set on finding Neal, Peter had his own investigation going into where Neal and Mozzie had escaped to.
But his search became even more urgent when Agent Collins from the Office of International Affairs entered the fold. Peter seemed to think that Kramer was likely behind Collins appearing at the New York bureau, and it wouldn't't surprise me one bit if it's true.
Collins, much like Kramer, is a askin to a bull running through a china shop, and neither will stop until they've taken out every plate, or every conman, in the room. The only reason Kramer isn't pursuing it himself is likely because it's out of his jurisdiction.
Jurisdiction, stateside or otherwise, certainly wasn't a problem for Collins in Cape Verde, as he willingly and loudly placed a bounty on Neal's head upon arrival. If Peter ever had a reservation about the lengths to which Collins was willing to go to get the collar on Neal, he no longer has any doubts. Mekhi Pfifer is a perfect fit for this role and fits naturally into the cast.
One good thing that came of this whole encounter? Peter finally getting to connect with Ellen Parker, who we got our first glimpse of in "Judgment Day." Thanks to Elizabeth, Ellen realized that Peter really was looking out for Neal's best interests, giving him the critical link to uncovering his whereabouts. I have no doubt she will continue to make appearances this season, perhaps revealing more about the years before he turned 18.
Other highlights from this episode:
- Neal's sand-rendering of the view from his New York apartment, complete with lighting.
- Mozzie's alias, Barry Satoro.
- Neal's use of Hector as a means of gaining Mya's affections.
- Peter being placed on leave, giving him the ability to track Neal down.
- Mrs. Suit offering to emulate Neal's unruly behavior during a stakeout to make Peter feel better.
- Diana and Jones working with Peter off the grid to help Peter find Neal.
What did you think of the season four premiere, Collars? How will Neal get out of his latest predicament?
C. Charles is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.
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February 13th, 2013 11:38 AM
The awesome paternal hug Peter gave Neal alone made this episode so awesome! There was other great stuff too of course. The phone call being one of them. All in all great episode that shows the lengths Peter would go for to protect Neal.
January 21st, 2013 11:11 PM
(my last comment probably exceeded the caracter limit)
I can imagine those are hard to find in the US, but they could have hired african-american people to pose as the quiet natives and only a couple actors who spoke Portuguese. I know that is not impossible, since the producers from Touch accomplished that.
Well, if the viewers and the alleged REviewers don't care about any verisimilitude, why would the producers?
January 21st, 2013 11:07 PM
Worst episode as far as I watched. Actually, the worst location/culture depiction I have ever seen.
As other people commented, Cape Verde's official language is Portuguese, not Spanish. I wonder why would the producers wasted time researching about Cape Verde's Portuguese colonization (and screenshooting Diana explaining it to Peter and Jones) and yet wasted more time writing lines in Spanish.
They even had Peter circle the archipelago's location on a paper map (showing that it is NOT in Central America), as if Google Maps hadn't been invented yet.
Wouldn't it had been easier if they just came up with a fictional Central American Island as we've seen in other shows such as Chuck's Costagrava (Cuba parody) since they couldn't afford to hire African-american-portuguese-speaking actors? I can imagine those are hard to find in the US, but they could have hired african-american people to pose as the quiet natives and only a couple actors who spoke Portuguese. I know that is not impossibl
August 25th, 2012 11:48 PM
They speak Portuguese not Spanish. Last episode for me.
August 20th, 2012 8:49 PM
My wife and have watched this show over the years and now have deleted it from my DVR. Im very fed up with the gay and lesbian issues being pushed to us through the TV and shows. I'm done with this show and all like it. TV is not like it used to be
August 13th, 2012 6:03 PM
love season four so far. Maya and Neal love them I hope she stays thank God sara is not permanent personally I do not know how I will get through the episodes she is on.
July 25th, 2012 4:43 PM
Cape Verde=Portuguese and creole, not spanish! That means for the imbeciles at usa, the people there are caucasian and african. What an embarrassment.
July 25th, 2012 3:41 PM
Cape verde people speak Portuguese you imbeciles!
July 18th, 2012 11:25 PM
In my opinion, this was one of the most disappointing and poorly thought out episode in the series. Burke saying they 'need to bring Neal home' destroys the entire foundation that the series is built upon - their unique friendship. Burke is the one who gives Neal the signal to help him escape, and now he wants to bring him home to what? Being imprisoned for life? And to think that Burke figuring out Neal's whereabouts is the sole reason for Collins to find him as well.
July 14th, 2012 11:59 AM
very poor episode imo. If Collins really wanted Neal that bad, why did he go to the island alone and even b4 that i find it hard to believe that
1. peter would circle the location on the map
2. peter found out his location by church bells and thunderstorms
3. collins had probable cause to search Peter's home
And I don't see how the writers can explain
1. isn't Hughes sitting in Peter's office?
2. how Neal will avoid jail