Time for a change. Retrospective: White Collar Season Premiere - “At What Price”

Season 5, Episode 1

Air Date: Thursday, October 17, 2013, 9/8c on USA

Rating: ★★★★★

“I know how to make Peter Burke a free man.” – Curtis Hagen

Irony

While Peter (Tim Dekay) is in prison for the murder of Senator Pratt (Titus Welliver) Neal (Matt Bomer) receives a mysterious message telling him he can help free Peter. Will Neal take the mystery person up on their offer or better yet, can he trust him?

In a recent conference call interview I did with Matt Bomer and Tim Dekay, Matt told us, “This season really gets back to more of the early season White Collar mythology, strong themes of good versus evil and trust and without going into too much detail about Neal’s past.” And you really feel that in “At What Price,” especially with the return of Curtis Hagen (Mark Sheppard), aka ‘The Dutchman,’ whom we last saw in the series premiere. The whole ‘Neal consultant under Peter Burkes watchful eye’ idea stemmed from Peter’s inability to find and capture ‘The Dutchman,’ must not have gone over very well with Hagen who has been in prison ever since.

But the way the writers setup Hagen’s return doesn’t add up. Hagen has strong connections to the Federal prosecutor who is going after Peter. Hagen tells Neal that if he does something for him he will make sure Peter goes free, but there is a catch.

Hagen: “Federal prosecutor is gonna need a good reason to step away and not lose face.”

Neal: “You want me to provide that reason.”

Hagen: “Your old man’s confession should do quite nicely.”

Neal: “If I could find my father, Peter would already be free.”

Hagen: “Indeed, but from one forger to another, we both know there are many ways to create another man’s words.”

Neal: “You want me to forge my father’s confession?”

I absolutely love the idea and the symbolic nature of this stemming back to the moment in season four when Neal tells his father James (Treat Williams) that Peter had been more of a father to him than he ever was. Putting Neal in a position to free the man he considers a father by betraying his real father is mind blowing.

For the last four seasons, we’ve watched Neal and Mozzie (Willie Garson) pull off cons and make forgeries that have passed for the real thing so making a fake confession in James’ voice proves to be an easy task for the two. The recording is played at Peter’s hearing thus ensuring his freedom.

So my question is what did Hagen really do? Hagen’s Federal prosecutor could ignore the recording that was authenticated but nobody else would. Wouldn’t the results have been the same if Neal hadn’t gone to see Hagen? And yet Neal makes a deal and now must do Hagen’s dirty work. Let’s say Neal said no to Hagen and tells the FBI the recording is a forgery after it’s been authenticated. The only way to prove that it isn’t real would be to find James and good luck with that.

It’s powerful watching Peter’s face as the tape plays. You see it in his eyes as his brain tries to process what he’s hearing. I would have liked to see the writers explore more of Peter’s life behind bars, maybe have Neal solve a case or two with Diana (Marsha Thomason) and Jones (Sharif Atkins). Will Peter ever find out it was actually Neal who made the recording?

Planning the next con.

How fun is it seeing Neal and Mozzie pulling off another con? Watching Mozzie suffer as he fights the urge to start spewing conspiracies as he pretends to be a suicide jumper is priceless. I especially enjoy how Molly Price, playing an unnamed officer, keeps going on and on until Mozzie really wants to jump.

“At What Price” is an episode I appreciated, not because of the words the writers used, but for what they explored emotionally. In these past four seasons, we have watched Neal and Peter’s relationship evolve into more of a father and son relationship. But like most father and son relationships, just because they want what is best for each other doesn’t mean they are on the same page. It’s clear Neal feels guilty Peter ended up in jail and was willing to do whatever it took to free him. Neal is at a point where he is tired of lying and hurting Peter and it will be interesting to see how Neal gets out of the mess Hagen created.

Meanwhile Peter, who loves Neal like a son, faces a tough reality which sets up some of the most powerful five minutes we have seen in the series. Peter realizes he can no longer be objective when it comes to Neal. It is like watching Peter have an intervention with himself as he realizes the way to protect Neal is to treat him like the criminal he is yet he is doing it out of love. You see the disappointment in Peter’s eyes, not for Neal but himself, for letting it come to this when he tells Neal, “I can’t risk you going back (to prison).” It is heartbreaking to watch but is done for Neal’s own good. The question is will Neal see it that way?

Change is coming as Neal gets a new handler. While the set up with Hagen is a weak way to get Peter out of prison, I found the remainder of the episode very enjoyable to watch and look forward to seeing where this season takes us.

Tweet me @staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “At What Price.”

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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.