Sometimes TV can still surprise you

[tj_teejay]

Okay, so White Collar does actually have redeeming qualities. Because after last week's disaster, I wasn't all too keen on this week's episode. (Add to the fact that I'm in a total no-energy-for-anything mood.) But this one was fun. Sweet. Loving. Heart-warming. There's a lot I loved about it, and few things I didn't. I should go into more detail, but, uhm, c.f. no-energy-for-anything.

So I'm just gonna troll the web for what others thought and maybe post something more coherent when I'm in the mood. In the meantime, stay tuned for chapter 1 of my latest fanfic.

Comments

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

It's the other way around with me...I didn't like the episode at all. But if you troll the web, you'll surely find me reasons.

Ganz ehrlich, wenn man anfängt sich für seinen Lieblingscharacter Fremdzuschämen, dann ist etwas absolut NICHT in ordnung mit der Episode.

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

I read your comment in kridaydragon's journal, and I understand where you're coming from. And I guess now you know how I felt like last week. Everyone was squeeing over the episode, while I thought it wasn't very good.

I think I know what you mean about the vicarious embarrassment. This is about the date auction, right? I quite liked the notion that no one bid for Neal, or at least I liked the role reversal idea of it. On the other hand, I wasn't quite sure if that had been Neal's intention all along (which he said it was -- but that doesn't have to mean anything), or whether her really tried and ended up repulsing every woman in the room (which would be quite out of character, actually).

There were quite a few notions and reactions of the episode that I liked, but I'm not saying it was perfect. Which it wasn't.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Well, it was planned...Sara (yeah, she is such an expert con woman) suggested it to avoid that the mark would get outbid. I still think that it was an idiotic plan, for various reasons. (And I think that Neal should have been savvy enough to present himself as an ideal mark - he plays the patsy just fine in "Forging Bonds", after all).

But I admit, a big part of my annoyance is based on the fact that I like to swoon over Neal, and he was so good in being offputting, that he nearly put me off, too, although I knew it was an act. I never ever want him talking about killing fawns again.

And even if all the three "special character" episodes would have been good, I would have been critical nevertheless. Those kinds of eps should happen one or two times in an entire season, not three in a row (and I see more coming) I want to see Neal making his choice!

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

You know, as seasons go, I think the third season is definitely White Collar's weakest. And I wish I could say why, but it's hard for me to pin down. Is it that they added new writers who are bringing in new, unfavorable ideas? Is Jeff Eastin going off tangent with what he envisioned the show's main arc to be like? Did they maybe not even expect for the show to have more than two seasons and are now grasping at straws? Is there something going on behind the scenes (like the network messing with the show) that we're not aware of. I'm afraid we'll never know.

I kinda get the "swooning over Neal" part, but I didn't really have a problem with the whole repelling Texan bachelor thing. I mean, it was just an act. That wasn't Neal, it was a well created alias. I guess I missed the part about killing fawns, but even so, I can't see Neal doing that. All talk and no action. I can totally overlook all that. But just for the record, I hated the bolo tie almost as much as the tux and slicked back hair. (It did go well with the alias, though.) And, damn, I wish we could have heard more of that Texan accent!! (I'm currently listening to the Toys audio book again, and, man, that Bomer voice is fine!)

I think they're going to drag the "Neal makes a choice" out over pretty much the first half of the season, if not the whole season. I'll bet there's going to be some big-bang cliffhanger around that in the winter hiatus finale. And these character driven episodes, I may have a love/hate relationship with them. I'm usually all for character insight/development, but it needs to well balanced. And it can be off-putting if there's too much development that takes the character in a direction you don't really like to see. Which is what I think is currently White Collar's tendency. They're alienating the characters from their fans, which can't be a good thing. And maybe there I have my main reason for why I'm not really liking season three much so far.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

I don't know if you ever watched Numb3rs, but I call it the "Numbers-syndrome". Numb3rs was a great show about a Mathematican helping his FBI-Brother. It was good. It was the first show I decided to buy on DVD. But they kept adding side characters, one brother got religious, and soon the show wasn't fun anymore - because it lost its original concept of using math to solve cases.

White Collar is in danger of loosing its focus. One of the reasons the news that Sara becomes a regular created such a backlash is the fear that all the additional characters weight down the main theme of the show. I liked the Mozzie episode, because they didn't forget to tell us about Neal's inner turmoil and his worry about Mozzie in the ep.

But I wont judge the season until it's over. I think the "choice" theme is a good thing, and I very much hope that they pick it up again and run with it next week. That could salvage the season. Season 2 startet even stronger than season 1 imho and then got derailed. Perhaps it's the other way around this time.

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

Yes, I've in fact watched every single episode of Numb3rs. It wasn't one of my obsession shows, and I didn't get involved in the fandom. I just made sure to watch every week, but that's as far as it went.

I remember the point where Don started to tune back into his Jewish beliefs, but I can't remember being very perturbed by it. Then again, I didn't have very strong feelings about the show either way.

So, which side characters did they add that tipped off the balance? Surely, you're not talking about Amita, right? Because I actually liked her a lot. Well, I vaguely remember this chick that Don dated, I don't think I was very fond of her. I know that Larry left midway throught the show for a while (because the actor was doing something else). I wasn't too fond of his whole esoteric "I'm gonna give up my life and find inner peace" storyline.

Agree on White Collar starting to lose its focus. I'm kinda tired of discussing the whole Sara thing. While it's surely created a rift in the fandom between the lovers and the haters, I wouldn't say Sara is all (or even most) of what's wrong with season three. It's an amalgamation of many things.

I'm tempted to send Jeff Eastin a tweet along the lines of: Jeff, you're alienating your White Collar characters from your fans. Please rethink your s3 strategy. But that would be pretty pointless without being able to explain why. And I simply can't do that in 140 character increments.

Did you see they're gonna let the fans decide via poll whether to keep the new title theme? I can't believe that thing cost $50,000 to make... I'm actually okay with the visuals of it, I just wish they'd change the damn music!

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

No, not Amita. There was a lot of hate towards her, but I never had a problem with her character. For me the breaking point was when Meghan left the show. I liked neither of those female FBI Agents (didn't hate them either), and it didn't help that the episodes ended up to be so much about the side characters and the personal problems of everyone that the actual case was cut down to half of the episode tops. Larry's ongoing search for whatever didn't help, I became very aggrevated by the character. In fact, I haven't even watched the last two seasons. I also got tired of Don sleeping with nearly every female agent avaible.

I agree, Sara is a symptom, not the problem. As I mentioned somewhere, I'm mostly missing "Neal the human", and "Neal who does what nobody else can do". My favourite episodes (the season starts and finales aside) are still "The Portrait", "Front man", "Need to know", "Countermeasures" and "Hard Sell".

Yeah, I saw it, and I'm happy about it. I dislike the visuals too, because they remind me too much of Royal Pains and because the plastic feet is creepy.

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

Oh, right, Meghan left. Totally blanked on that one. I didn't like that too much either. I don't exactly remember what season that was, but the one episode that stuck with me was when Don was forced to see a shrink and eventually ended up talking about all his personal issues. I can't help it, I'm such a sucker for angst. And that one was very angsty. In fact, for me the show was always less about the cases and more about the Eppes family.

Phew, if I had to name my favorite WhiCo episodes, it'll probably be the arc-y ones. Like I said above, I like it when things get angsty and personal. My top 5 would be:
1) Out Of The Box
2) Point Blank
3) Payback
4) Power Play
5) Forging Bonds

Yeah, the foot is kinda creepy. I wouldn't mind if they got rid of that particular image.

[swanpride.livejournal.com]

Well, I don't count Out of the Box and Point Blank (love this one) in, because those are season finales/mid season finales. Otherwise they and Free Fall and the Pilot would be on the list too.

The episode with the shrink was in Season 3, and I think it was one of the best of the show. Don was talking with him and parallel everyone else was working on a case. That was character development I love to see. And I didn't mind the Eppes Family, but I also wanted to see math used in the cases (perhaps they were out of ideas), and there were too many special character episode (sounds familiar) for each member of the team. When I watched an ep which was only about the political amibition of one of the new team members I knew that it was time to stop watching.

At the moment I try to decide if I should buy season 4 or not...if I remember correctly, that one was halfaway decend.

[crism79.livejournal.com]

I'm totally there with you on the "no-energy-for-anything" thing... Can you believe that I haven't started watching this season of "White Collar"??? Just... I can't believe it myself. I think I'll curl up this afternoon and have a WC marathon :)))

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

Can you believe that I haven't started watching this season of "White Collar"???
You know, I'm almost tempted to say: Don't bother. Season 3 hasn't been very good. I mean, I'm still watching, but I'm losing the zest more and more. It's a damn shame, that is. :-(

[crism79.livejournal.com]

Really? :((( I haven't started watching it because I've been kinda... meh. I need to be in the mood, I guess, to watch a movie or a tvshow and I just haven't been in that mood I guess...

Oh, maybe things are just picking up and they'll redeem themselves and you'll get the zest again :D

[tj-teejay.livejournal.com]

I don't know, maybe I'm just in a destructive mood today. But White Collar (at least what's on TV) has not been making me happy of late.

I know what you mean about the "kinda... meh". I have two movies lying here on Blu-ray that I bought because I wanted to watch them. But I gotta be in the right mood, which is why they've been lying on my coffee table for over a week now.

Redeeming would be nice, but they would have to make drastic changes to the overall story arc that I can't see happening until at least after the fall/winter hiatus. Then again, I'm the eternal pessimist. But I'm trying hard to keep an open mind.