Last week White Collar returned for season 3 and introduced a new element of deception that will shape this season. Neal (Matt Bomer) and Mozzie (Willie Garson) are in possession of the treasure from the Nazi submarine and intended on leaving with it, that was until their escape vehicle had to be used to save Jones (Sharif Atkins) from certain death. The plan is to still leave with the treasure but funds are limited meaning that they will have to sell some of this art that they have acquired. Sounds simple enough but unknown to them a partial inventory of the treasure from the boat has been recovered and is in Peter's (Tim DeKay) hands, so he will likely know when the stolen art will be sold.
This is the story that will be the thread of the entire season, there is no big enemy but there will be a battle of wits between the leads who we are accustom to generally being on each others side. This new conflict between the two men will heighten the tension as they both know the other so well after years of playing cat and mouse.
Tonight's episode will see the pair try to put aside their differences and resume the truce that they agreed on last week (though Peter is still not convinced of Neal's innocence, rightly so), and try to solve a case that begins as a treasure hunt that leads to a kidnapping case. The treasure hunt starts after the treasure map is found hidden in a forged will, the inheritance is the treasure and can only be found with the map and clues. Neal and Peter start the hunt but the stakes are raised when the beneficiary's daughter is kidnapped by those who also want to get their hands on the bounty. It is a classic race against time story that I am so fond of on shows such as this (The Good Wife is another show that has done some great cases with limited time deadlines), it immediately ups the ante and means that Peter and Neal will have to work together fast. It also looks like Peter will bring in his wife Elizabeth (Tiffani Thiessen) to help them get through the clues quickly and find the treasure in time. The dynamic between these three characters is always fun and I'll be glad to see Elizabeth get more screen time this year after Thiessen's real life pregnancy reduced her role last year.
White Collar performed rather well in the ratings last Tuesday; 4 million viewers with 1.6 million of those being in the all important 18-49 bracket and 1.7 million being in the 25-54 one. This is encouraging to see and this show really has found it's stride in regards to having a charming central pairing of characters and having great stories to match them. With this new direction that the show is going in in regards to Neal actively choosing the root of deception, I'm very much looking forward to how this story will play out and how it will put a strain on the fantastic Neal/Peter relationship in the long term.
What do you think? Where you happy to see this new direction the show is going in? How long before Neal and Mozzie sell a painting that is on the list? Let us know in the comments below and check out the promo for this weeks episode below.
I love it when Elizabeth is featured more! :D I absolutely love how all of the characters interact together! <3 I'm very happy to hear that we will be seeing more of her this season!
Elizabeth really does make an excellent addition, wish she was on more.