tj_teejay | What Happens in Burma...

So, what happens in Burma? Gemstone thefts, apparently. Mmm-kay. While that part of the episode was entertaining enough, it wasn't what I enjoyed most of his episode. However, I should start off with saying that this was a first. The first time that I watched White Collar live on TV as it aired. In a hotel room in Raleigh, North Carolina. I must say that I enjoy my usual way of watching better, because that way there are no annoying commercial breaks.

I did miss maybe five minutes of the episode because H (my colleague) decided to knock on my door around 10:30. I was like, "Go away, Matt Bomer is eating my brain!" She just laughed and I invited her in anyway. Her visit also coincided with an upcoming commercial break, and I threw her out after that. ;o)

So, what did I enjoy most? The fannish, insider parts, of course. The back story and little character tidbits. I took a few notes as I was watching, actually. *looks at hotel notepad sheet*

"If I'm not my father's son, who am I?"

First of all, I have to say, thank you, thank you, thank you, Jeff Eastin!! Thank you for getting a (canon) glimpse into Neal's family history. And a pretty big one, to boot. So his dad is a cop, huh? A dirty cop. Wow, don't think I would have figured that, but it makes a certain kind of sense. Now, people may rant about how it's so cliché that they're slapping another "father issues" stamp onto a male TV show character, but I personally don't have a problem with it.

At least this'll hopefully put a stop to all those Neal-had-an-abusive-father childhood fanfics. Never been too fond of those. We also learned that his dad died when he was two years old and that Neal grew up wanting to be like his father (until he learned that he was dirty). Of course you could debate whether any of what Neal told Peter is actually true, but I'd like to think it was because Neal made a pretty big deal about never having lied to Peter. And apparently Peter doesn't know much about Neal before his 18th birthday.

Uhm... Mr. Satchmo? LOL! Way to improvise, Neal.

And, OMG, two for the price of one! We got both Shirtless!Bomer and Wifebeater!Bomer in one episode! Add DorkyGlasses!Bomer on top, and you're near perfection. I liked the glasses, actually. Better than his real glasses. A little less dorky, somehow. But who am I to judge? He can certainly wear them and still look great.

A few more favorite quotes that I jotted down during the episode:

Peter: (re: Diana) "You're barking up the wrong tree in so many ways."

Peter: "Let's talk 'deal'."
Neal: "He makes a good one. Trust me."

Peter: "Savor this moment."
Neal: "I'm already savoring."

The Burmese guy also played the bad guy on Prison Break, right? Was that the same actor? Talk about type-casting, but it's hard to imagine someone with a face like that playing a loveable guy...

And I can't believe three episodes of season 2.5 have already gone by and I haven't done a single "What Have We Learned?" write-up. It's not for lack of trying, I've just been so busy with preparations of this business trip. But since I'm back in Germany now (on a train from Frankfurt to Cologne at the moment), I'm planning on a reaaaaally slouchy weekend dedicated to sleeping, TV watching and fandom indulgences. Well, some laundry would have to be thrown in as well.

And now I need to figure out a plan how to stay awake for the rest of the day. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep on the overnight flight. Though I have to say that I don't feel all that tired. I'm sure that'll change over the course of the day, though.

Caffeine, here I come!

In other news, I made the cut for