Friends and Family Plan. Review: White Collar - “Master Plan”

Season 5, Episode 5

Air Date: Thursday, November 14, 2013, 9/8c on USA.

Rating: ★★★★★

“Neal is a very bad influence on you.” – Peter Burke

Patrick Wolcott (Zachary Booth), a young runaway, returns after 15 years to spend time with his dying father William (Richard Thomas). But Elizabeth Burke (Tiffani Thiessen) isn’t convinced the young man is the same little boy she used to tutor. Neal (Matt Bomer) is sent in as the new butler to try to figure out if Patrick is who he says he is or someone who wants the massive trust fund Patrick is set to inherit.

OK ladies, let’s get it out of your system before continuing—yes, Matt Bomer looks great in a butler uniform; yes, I am sure you ALL would love for Matt to be your own personal butler, and yes, this season Matt has worn more stripper type outfits on White Collar than he does in his movie Magic Mike.

I asked actor Zachary Booth, who plays Patrick in “Master Plan,” what his favorite part about filming the episode was, and he jokingly replied, “Tiffani Thiessen. Duh.” Hard to argue with that logic as we get a very Elizabeth-themed episode, which is nice since she has been missing most of this season. We also learn a little more about her character’s past, including her maiden name—Mitchell.

“Master Plan” is a very safe episode in that you can take and place it in any season, and for the most part, have it fit right in. Things like Hagen (Mark Sheppard) being free and Agent Siegel (Warren Kole) being murdered do not exist in “Master Plan.” Thankfully, safe does not mean boring as this episode is fun to watch—especially the scenes between Elizabeth and Neal who often don’t have many scenes together. One scene in particular comes to mind when Neal dons his butler uniform and Elizabeth comments, “Nice uniform, slick.” Something about Thiessen’s expression as she says it suggests to me how much fun she is having as an actress. That made me enjoy “Master Plan” even more. How ironic is it that in the last episode, “Controlling Interest,” Neal told Mozzie (Willie Garson) “I’ve been serving too many masters,” and here, in the very next episode, he is undercover as a butler. Did he speak too soon?

It’s interesting to see Peter (Tim Dekay) off his game with the flu. I’m not sure it was necessary for him to be taken out for the episode for it to work but it does provide for some comic relief when Mozzie makes a potion to cure him. Apparently, Peter had forgotten what happened the last time Mozzie made one of his secret recipes and gave it to Neal. I really like the awkward relationship between Mozzie and Peter and would have enjoyed seeing more scenes with them together since Elizabeth and Neal are off doing their own thing.

Speaking of Mozzie, has anyone else felt the small but growing frustration Neal has with Mozzie? Is it simply roommate indifferences now that Mozzie has moved in or is it a build-up to something more? Besides, can’t Mozzie afford to move out now since Neal gave him the two million?

“Master Plan” has many fun little moments in an episode written by Alexandra McNally. Things like:

– Neal trying to get Peter to take the case based on reliable information … Peter’s wife.

– Neal teaching the Burkes PDA (Proximity Diversion Attention).

– Mozzie in his beekeeper outfit.

– Elizabeth steaming the mail open.

I really enjoy some of these standalone episodes where everything, from beginning to end, fits nicely within the storyline. I would much rather see Neal and Peter investigating cases that aren’t caused by something Neal does or has created. But as fun as “Master Plan” is, the White Collar writers can’t keep ignoring the elephants in the room—namely Hagen and Siegel. If the writers do not want to resolve these issues right away, at least give us glimpses that things, like Siegel’s death, are weighing on the characters’ minds, rather than ignoring them for several episodes, and then going back to them out of the blue.

The only thing that bothers me about “Master Plan” is the action at the end, which seems to be competing with a product placed car commercial. I was waiting for Neal to start describing how nice the car felt to sit in while pointing out things like the cup holders and dashboard display. Product placement should blend flawlessly into a scene, giving it more of a realistic feel instead of being forced upon the viewers like this felt (especially since Tim Dekay already does a White Collar themed car commercial that runs during the show).

This continues to be a very strong season for White Collar but I can’t help but wonder whether “Master Plan” is the calm before the storm, or whether things are about to pick up and Neal’s past actions will come back to haunt him.

Tweet me @staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Master Plan.”

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.