Season six is already off to an amazing and action-packed start! What will they come up with next?
Welcome to the reaction post for episode 6×02, “Return to Sender.” This is the place to post your reactions, speculations, etc. Obviously, there will be spoilers – so if you haven’t seen the episode yet, you may want to avoid reading the comments on this post until after you’ve seen it!
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So, what did you think of ‘”Return to Sender?”
WOW so much love once again!!
The father/son sequence was brilliant. And Peter’s speech about his “son” awwww made me all sentimental.
Loved the Peter-Jones banter about it, and Neal constantly calling Peter “Dad”.
And the caper was fun.
Peter over-reacting about fixing everything before the baby arrives LOL
And freaking out about Keller! *hugs him*
He’ll have to tell El at some point…
also, Peter in a black t-shirt ♥
Keller, oh Keller!
He gives me the creeps. I don’t trust him not to screw Neal over. Are they going to compete to take credit for taking the Panthers down? Or are they both going to get what they want?
Nea seems pretty upset. I understand that he’s upset at the Bureau, but he doesn’t have to be so loud on Peter, who keeps vouching for him all around.
Though at least it’s consistent with his state of mind before the kidnapping. It still makes me a little sad when I think about that “stepping out of the elevator” scene back in season 3…
Peter was loud and jump to the decision to screw the entire operation and incidentally screwing Neal’s chances at freedom. Peter had right to be upset at the news. What he did not have a right was to place his personal reactions over and above the operation and Neal’s personal reasons. So Neal had to be insistent and convincing to Peter. Neal was not that loud and it was needed for Neal to voice his reasons and how Peter’s concerns can be addressed without screwing the operation.
Neal just stood up for himself. As he should. This is Neal’s operation and the FBI gets a huge win. That is good for Peter’s career and gains Neal his freedom for himself.. Neal maturely gave Peter reasons for the operation to continue. He did not just agree and go behind Peter’s back.
Peter is having to adjust to Neal’s growing independence and it is difficult. In a reference to a father . Peter is having to let Neal go. that is hard but necessary.
Awww, well, part of the problem is that Neal doesn’t know all the details about the things Peter did. I have no doubt that Neal trusts Peter and knows that Peter has his back, but like Elr said, the people who are closest to you are usually the easiest targets for your frustration.
Definitely consistent with his state of mind!
I think it would help so much if the boys just had a breather, just a small break to talk and get their bearings. But there’s always something, a case, a complication…aww *pets them*
But the episode – brilliant \o/ My boys are so awesome, I don’t even have words 😀
yeah also Neal is taking for granted that Peter is still here…
Huh? Peter is still there since it is his job to be there. Peter does not take Neal for granted and neither does Neal. The both trust each other this season and I love that.
Of course I wanted to see where Peter explains why he did not go to DC. That would be so awesome.
I think this part is simply someone forgetting to include a very important scene in the episode, because I can’t imagine how Neal wouldn’t be at least a bit curious about why Peter is here and not in DC. So I’m assuming there was that talk off-screen and now Neal knows that Peter is staying in NYC 😀
Fanfics ahoy, heee 😀
LOL!!!!!! @ Jones and his comment about Peter acting like Neal’s father.
Seeing Peter & Neal undercover as Father & Son is priceless. Peter, El & Neal bantering about her being his mom and Neal being their son. : ) : )
Mozzie knows that El is pregnant and saying that he has delivered a baby or two.
Mm..I won’t be able to watch it until tomorrow, at least. I’ll just read comments & recaps until then…Is it still pretty hard to tell which way Neal is swinging? It seems like he spent most of Season 5 being told that he’ll never be more than a criminal, and can’t be reformed- by the very people who had faith in him before. He had come soooo far up until that point. But it’s like everyone stopped believing he could change, so he took 10 steps backwards..and here we are. I really want him to join the good guys in the end, but so much damage has been done by now. I feel for him. lol.
Great ep ! so much fun and also some tense moments …
Neal vs Keller again ! that’s a never ending story !! they both want the same thing take down the PP and get free but only one could do it so this will be interesting …Neal was clear he want make Keller to pay ….and Peter never let him go not after what Keller did to El ..
best moments
Neal calling dad and mom
El saying she is proud to have a son like Neal
Neal “steal ” the stamp …. again he is the best …
Peter as Neal’s dad was priceless …that speech about “his ” son with Bianca remembered me the speech Peter had with the little girl in “All in” he never listen to you … Jones ‘s right Peter plays Neal ‘s dad role for years ….eheheh
and the student now is the master .. no the master is still the master..
Nel’s expression when he met Keller …
It’s strange how Peter , afterNeal’s kidnapping, let him without the anklet on… even when he is at home …. so different from season 5 when he got suspiciuos because Neall was at home not moving for few hours..
I think at this point Peter wants Neal to have his freedom and he knows Neal wants his freedom, so the current deal and their common goal makes the tracker less important. Neal said he would deliver PP for his freedom and Peter trusts him on that 🙂
I just saw a video of Matt at a Meet & Greet in Italy. He said, as we all know by now, that the end would be pretty shocking, but “also, maybe what we would expect from Neal.” So..I’ve changed my thoughts a bit. To me, the only right ending would STILL be for Neal to happily work w/ Peter post-anklet. But that’s not who Neal is anymore. What he wants most in life is his freedom. And I think that in the end, he’ll get it~ just not through the FBI. They showed a clip of him impersonating a pilot; I can visualize him leaving that way. Or maybe faking his own death. What Matt said would make sense that way. After all the close bonds he’s formed & the progress that he’s made, it WOULD be shocking if he just disappeared into thin air. But it’d also be what’s expected from him. I’m STILL not going to like if that’s what happens, though. lol.
And it’d be even MORE shocking if Neal left with Keller or joined the PP’s, but I think that’d be going a little…too far.
I’m very late to this party, but better late than never…I’ve known about WC for a few years, but only recently decided to binge-watch the first five seasons, staying awake nights to get caught up before the s6 premiere. All I can say is wow. Just, wow. It’s probably a good thing I didn’t watch this show in real time, because I might’ve lost five years of my life obsessing over it.
I’ve read as many interviews as I could find from Eastin, King, and cast about s6, and the overall impression I have is that, while there will be surprising plot twists along the way, as has always been true of WC, the ultimate “end” to this journey will be a satisfying one for all involved. To me, that means Neal wins his freedom from the FBI in a legitimate way by taking down Keller and the PP (and I wouldn’t be surprised if Keller lost his life in the process). For Neal to go rogue now, particularly as Keller’s partner, would destroy Peter, and it would completely negate Neal’s growth as a character. Further, it would imply Peter’s failure as an agent and as a friend, something this heroic character doesn’t deserve, and could never lead to a satisfactory end to this chapter of the Peter/Neal story.
Having said that, it is probable the end will actually be a new beginning, albeit for fan fic. Probably the most common point of reference for the Peter/Neal partnership is Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the film depicting that legendary partnership ending in a very open and ambiguous way. For WC to end in a similar manner would be fitting, and a memorable springboard for imaginging Peter and Neal into the future. I’m not saying they will walk outnumbered into a can’t-win gunfight, but trying to take down the PP is basically the same thing. I think Peter and Neal will manage to take out a crucial component in the organization, but they’re also setting themselves up as targets. If Neal flips on the PP, he may earn his freedom (I don’t think the FBI can renege on their agreement now without losing all credibility), but he and everyone he loves will be a target for retaliation. I can easily imagine a scenario in which Neal rationalizes the only way his family–for the Burkes, Mozzie, and June ARE Neal’s family–will be safe is if what remains of the PP thinks he is dead. Neal will run again, but this time it won’t be for himself. Rather, he runs for the people whose safety and happiness he has come to value above his own. Of course, Neal’s thinking is flawed and a little irrational, and he doesn’t fully consider how his ” death” will affect those he leaves behind, but running is what Neal does when he feels boxed into a corner. It’s also plausible that his fake death is a FBI-sanctioned ruse to get him into witness protection.
This is all totally speculation, but I started considering this possibility after reading an interview with Eastin in which he stated that what we see with Neal is how he begins to realize that his choices affect other people, and that what transpires between him and Peter this season will be a bookend to season 1, filtered through the love story that has developed in the years since then. Neal’s relationship with Peter has had a profound effect on him as a man, and maybe it’s time for Neal to grow up.
Which isn’t to say it will be easy, and that’s what the story will be for the remaining episodes, how Neal and Peter transition into a new phase of their relationship. TDK said recently that he couldn’t imagine Peter and Neal not being in each other’s lives, that they could never say goodbye to each other, but how that is managed is an open-ended question.
I loved so much about 6.02, but the father/son ruse, played for light comedy but rich with subtext, was the highlight for me. That, plus the gorgeous final scene in which Peter tells Neal about El’s pregnancy. That final scene is a top 5 Peter/Neal moment, right up there with their Yankee Stadium moment in 3.15, their phone call in 4.01, etc. that so purely show the depth of their love for each other. Those moments are, for all the capers and adventure, ultimately why we watch.
Hey Jatg! Welcome to Team DeKay, and the White Collar fandom! 🙂
Interesting ideas. I agree with you that Neal going rogue wouldn’t be satisfying. I’m not sure I really like the “faking death” scenario though. And if he does take down the panthers, he has no reason to fear retaliation, if they’re behind bars. (None of the gazillions of other criminals they arrested went after him for it, except Keller…). And he might actually put all the blame on Keller.
I don’t know. But I still hope for something a little more upbeat. I’m okay with an open ending, but I don’t want it to end on a sad note.
I feel too, that Keller might die somewhere… The show seems to like that easy road to get rid of serious baddies.
I guess we’ll see! 🙂
Ohmygosh, Jatg. Your scenario sounds like a real possiblity…and one that I might actually like…It’s still hard to believe that this season is it. 🙁 It’d be cool if a different network picked it up, but that probably doesn’t happen very often.