sg_lab2

Under the cut is a little about the White Collar Pilot and a lot about the second episode of season 2.

Awhile ago there were some pictures put up on whitecollar_tv of the various sets used for the USA network show White Collar. One of the pictures was of Peter Burke’s diploma. It said he graduated from Harvard but executive producer Jeff Eastin said in one of the s1 commentaries that was a mistake. Although he didn’t comment on the year it says Peter graduated from college (1997) but that’s another story for another time.

The reason I mention this was that when I saw the pictures saying he graduated from Harvard I was confused-not because it had been mentioned in the show where he had graduated, but because of his apparent attitude towards Harvard graduates in the pilot episode. Then I thought maybe I had miss-remembered his attitude until I watched it again last night. Yep I was right, not a big fan of ivy league graduates.

I noticed when he’s standing in front a of a bank vault he asks the young agents around him who had graduated from Harvard, most of them raised their hands. I also noticed Diana Barrigan was not in the room when he asked the question. At the end of the episode when they’re entering the bad guy’s warehouse Peter asks the Harvard graduated agents about exigent circumstances he doesn’t get an answer right away and promptly directs the question to Diana who answers directly and confidently. Awe I missed Diana. No wonder Peter likes Diana. Although to be fair Jones graduated from Harvard Law and I’m pretty sure he likes him too. :D

This week’s episode was Need to Know. Another episode I enjoyed. It wasn’t very heavy on plot with regard to the case, it was more character driven.

Neal had to go undercover as a fixer (basically someone who takes care of problems that could make the politician look bad) for a dirty politician. The FBI had to create an identity for Neal because he didn’t have one for this kind of job. They have him as a valedictorian where in Neal reveals he was not valedictorian because he didn’t graduate from High school.

This is news to Peter but he doesn’t say anything. I always like it when a show can insert something about a character within the flow of a scene. It doesn’t disturb from the main plot but it is something new and interesting to learn about the character.

Neal’s identity for this case also graduated from Harvard law wherein Neal calls it pedestrian. And Diana warns Neal with a grin not to tell Jones.

In the process of the case we get to see some unusual interactions. Diana has to act as a prostitute leading her and Neal to spend a few hours together in a hotel suite. We learn a little about Diana. She was the daughter of diplomat and she tells him about her body guard who was like a father to her who died saving her life. She also shares a secret about hotel rooms with Neal that not even he knew; the paintings on the walls often having art behind them on the walls created by previous patrons of the hotel.

Neal shares with her about his first date with Kate wherein they conned their way into a rich guy’s hotel room and ordered five 1 thousand dollar burgers. He talks about a bridge they could see outside that hotel window that while broken down he thought was beautiful. He opens up some more and tells Diana he should have been on that plane. At that time Diana was probably the best person to tell that to. She took it calmly telling him she didn’t think Kate would want him to think that way just as her body guard would not have wanted Diana to blame herself of his death. Telling that to Peter or Mozzie probably would have pissed them off.

Meanwhile Peter is following Mozzie around being put through a scavenger hunt to obtain ten thousand dollars that Diana can give to her “boss”. The escort service she’s working undercover for is connected with the corrupt politician.

The Peter and Mozzie scenes are rather amusing, while the Diana and Neal scenes are interesting and enlightening. We even learn a little something about Peter during Diana and Neal’s scenes. Peter used to have a mustache. Neal’s reaction to that is disbelief and then he says just to see that he’d have broken out of prison.

In the end Diana showed herself to be quite the badass shooting her “boss” at her escort service in the shoulder when he threatened her. Peter comes in with backup and guns raised. Diana looks up smiling and says “Ah you were worried”. Peter shakes his head and says “nah not about you, what you’d do to him though”. That exchange is really all in the way Marsha and Tim delivered their lines though. It was cute and amusing. Peter very deadpanned in the way he delivers jokes sometimes.

I’m tempted to say Marsha Thomason has way more screen presence than Natalie Morales who played Lauren Cruz in season 1, but in only a few episodes they’ve really given Marsha way more material to work with and that includes the pilot episode.

Peter and Diana have a good friendship as well. During this episode they’re working on the mystery of the music box. And they confirm that Diana and Peter are colluding together with the music box. He doesn’t want Diana to tell him where she has it though because as he says to her it would be safer for him not to know. Peter is dealing with keeping this from Neal. Diana asks him if he wants to tell Neal but he’s afraid of opening up a healing wound for Neal before they have anything solid. I’m not entirely sure when Peter is going to tell Neal. At this point Neal at least is pretty sure Peter is investigating Kate’s death although he doesn’t know they have the music box.

The last scene is a lighthearted moment where Diana has managed to find a picture of Peter when he had his mustache. It’s a funny moment as Neal goes through the bullpen teasing Peter about the picture. Diana tells Peter it was payback for having to flirt with Neal.

And a mystery man revealed at the beginning of the episode is still a mystery at the end of the episode.