Thanksgiving 2010: What We’re Thankful For

Thanksgiving is nearly here and we have a lot to be happy about. Yes, we’re all grateful for good health, great friends and that sort of thing.

But in honor of the holiday, Team GMMR took some time to reflect on what television highlights we’re most thankful for this season.

Keep reading for our lists…

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The TV Spy Game: Which One is YOUR Favorite?

Editor’s Note: As the primetime TV landscape becomes crowded with programs centered around secret agents and clandestine missions, GMMR reader Lou W. Sytsma offered this take on the state of spy shows. Great thanks to Lou for submitting such a thought-provoking piece!

What is your all-time favorite espionage show? With choices like I Spy, Man From U.N.C.L.E., Get Smart, Mission Impossible, La Femme Nikita, and Alias to choose from, it is a difficult question to answer.

Spy shows often stand as counter programming to the more grounded cop shows. Police shows, within the dramatic sandbox that TV shows exist in, play things straight and are bound by the laws of the land. Spy shows invariably go for a more fantastical approach, ignoring or bending those structural conventions. That’s where the fun comes in…

This year, a surplus of spy programs are competing for audiences, specifically looking to attract viewers who have grown weary of traditional procedurals like the Law & Order and CSI franchises. In order to determine which show accomplishes that mission, let’s take a look at the contenders.
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WHITE COLLAR Season Finale: Point Blank

A special thanks to Mary for taking on the weekly discussions of WHITE COLLAR.  So happy that she’ll be back talking about Neal, Peter and the crew when the show returns in the winter.

Wow! It’s hard to believe we’ve reached the end of White Collar’s summer season already, but here we are. Let’s get to it!

Case of the Week

The case of the week wasn’t really a case, although Neal and Mozzie worked hard to make it appear that way. After deciding they needed to find Alex to figure out the music box mystery, Neal comes up with a way to smoke her out.

Mustard, coffee, perfume and imperfect stapling are just a few of the ways Mozzie and Neal “live the file” and make it appear legitimate. It seems a little over the top, especially when Moz hums the Batman theme to get into his role, but it works. Peter picks the Silver Burglar (a.k.a. Alex) file as the team’s next case to work.

• Peter: What do you know about Spanish silver?
• Neal: Do you even have to ask?
• Peter: Oh, for once I wish I did.

[Side note: Really? The FBI is now so caught up and plain old bored that they need to go LOOKING for cases? Is this how it works?]

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WHITE COLLAR: Company Man

It was finally Peter’s turn to do some undercover work this week. Luckily for him, it involved the lap of luxury – and some great espresso.

Case of the Week

“Peter, this IS your office.” With that, our favorite FBI agent was introduced to the tempting world of What Might Have Been . . . and accounting.

[You know, this whole scenario reminded me of the time my CPA friend called me, crying because she had only gotten an eight percent raise. At the time I worked for a non-profit organization and would have done back flips for any raise. Accountants.]

Peter, however, isn’t so easily swayed by the accoutrements of the high life, although he certainly makes sure to keep up his cover with fluffy white robes, Kobe beef and fancy coffee in small cups.

Though the white collar division doesn’t normally work homicides, the suspicion of corporate espionage is enough to get Peter, Neal, Jones and Diana on the case. In order to investigate the death of a tech company’s researcher, Peter poses as an auditor to gain access to the company – and its CEO.

It doesn’t take long for Peter to need Neal on the scene, because while his plush corner office has a good view, it’s not exactly ideal for eavesdropping on watercooler talk. Not surprisingly, Neal is able to bluff his way into a marketing position.

Peter: How’s the marketing department?

Neal: Ah, nice blend of smarmy and suspicious.

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Emmys 2010: Top 10 Moments to Remember

The Emmys may be over, but we’re still talking about what went down Sunday night.

What were our favorite moments of the evening?

1. Ricky Gervais

Really, his little presentation could easily take up half the spots on the list.Was it the joke about angry celebs who shouldn’t be near alcohol? (“Mel Gibson…he’s been through a lot. Not as much as the Jews.”) His passing out beer to the audience? Or perhaps his sheer joy over the name Bucky Gunts — and Bucky Gunts subsequently taking home the Emmy.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zdl3oiwgqg[/youtube]

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WHITE COLLAR: Prisoner’s Dilemma

Last night’s episode was full of finger pointing, pot roasts, safe houses and agents on the run. Let’s dive in.

Case of the Week

We should have known – and most of us probably did – that mayhem would ensue when Peter promised Elizabeth he’d be home for a date night (a.k.a. pot roast dinner) and work would absolutely not interfere with these plans.

How long has he been in law enforcement? Did he really think this would work out?

It turns out that Peter and Neal have been [inconveniently] called into the office on a Saturday because a fellow FBI agent is on the run. The U.S. Marshals can’t find him, and they’ve been instructed to team up with the Bureau.

Neal: Do all the higher-ups do the double finger point?

Peter: They teach it at Quantico.

After an investigation that includes Peter driving his dream car and Neal selling someone else his dream car, the team realizes that the agent on the run, Jack Franklin, might not be guilty of the things he’s been accused. Peter gives Jack’s former informant (and girlfriend) the message that he will listen to Jack’s story with an open mind.

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WHITE COLLAR: In the Red

All right, be honest: who has “The Gambler” stuck in their head after last night’s episode? And do you really think Neal cheated to beat the bad guy in poker? Let’s break it down.

Case of the Week

The episode opened in the middle of an operation. Neal was exchanging a briefcase full of money for a bag full of stolen jewelry, while Peter, Jones and Diana were monitoring from the van.

As soon as Neal asked the woman driving if she was alone, I knew something was up. What I expected, though, was a guy with a gun sitting in the back seat. What we got instead – as Neal hollered “No guns!” and raised a toy – was a little boy, asleep in his car seat.

Neal: Throw a wig on her, and she’s Carol Brady.

Peter: Carol Brady had an affair with Greg Brady.

Neal: Proof that everyone has a dark side.

It came as no surprise that Neal and Peter were anxious to help the mom being scammed by her adoption lawyer. Mozzie, though, was unexpectedly passionate about this case, ranting about adopted children, even though he pointed out that he was in foster care and never adopted.

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WHITE COLLAR: Unfinished Business

Ho-hum. Insurance, blah, blah, blah. You weren’t alone if those were your first thoughts when this episode started; Neal wasn’t excited, either. But it didn’t take long for an insurance scam to turn into something a lot more interesting!

Case of the Week
We quickly learn that Sara Ellis, the insurance investigator Peter and Neal are working with, is the same woman who testified against Neal at his trial. And apparently she’s still upset that he wasn’t convicted of stealing “her” painting, thanks to that jury of his peers.

Mozzie:  Who’s Sara Ellis?
Neal:  You weren’t at my trial. She was.

Their banter was quick and constant throughout the episode, but I just couldn’t quite buy her hostility toward Neal. She was too smiley, I think, which is ironic considering her complaint about his smile meaning that he wants something.

[Hmm . . . if we operate on that theory, I wonder what, exactly, she wants from Neal?]

Neal:  So you’re basically a high-class repo man.
Sara:  I prefer white collar bounty hunter.
Neal:  You should put that on your business cards.

Peter demands that Neal cooperate with Sara on their investigation into stolen bank bonds. Neal reluctantly agrees – even when Sara goads him with a tape recorder and claims that she will prove he stole her painting.

In yet another situation where Neal gets to take off his tracking device, he impersonates Mr. Black, a guy working for Edgar Halbridge, the suspected bond thief.

It turns out Mr. Black has been hired to kill none other than Sara Ellis, which means Neal – as Black – finds himself in Sara’s bedroom, pointing a gun at her. Sara then pulls a gun on Neal, and they’re both saved by a phone call from Peter, who verifies that Neal is not actually going to kill anyone.

Neal:  She put her gun in my face.
Mozzie:  And cocked it?
Neal:  Yeah.
Mozzie:  You’ve come back from worse.

Neal:  She has a gun.
Mozzie:  Is it still pointing at you?
Neal:  No, I think I convinced her I’m not trying to kill her anymore.
Mozzie:  Well, you are a charmer.

The team decides to fake Sara’s death and move her into the FBI office until they can determine why Halbridge has hired someone to kill an insurance investigator, of all things.

I think it was a stretch for Sara to insist on living at the Bureau instead of a safe house, but it provided opportunity for some fun interactions between the various characters. Peter and Neal’s back-and-forth about playing nice cracked me up. Their rhythm was great, and I rewound and watched it a couple times.

Peter:   Right now we’re on the same team, so play nice.
Neal:  She —
Peter:  No.
Neal:  I’m —
Peter:  Don’t.
Neal:  Fine.
Peter:  Good.

Neal and Sara had a little picnic on the roof, where they seemed to declare a tentative truce. Then Peter and Sara had a heart-to-heart after Elizabeth nudged Peter into playing therapist with the investigator. Both conversations started out light but moved into more serious territory, with Sara kind of freaking out that nobody seemed to care much about her “death.”

Sara:  Neal came by. We had a nice little chat.
Peter:  Is he in one piece?
Sara:  Yes, I left him whole.
Peter:  Good, I prefer him that way.

Eventually the team realized that the hit had been placed on Sara five months earlier, when she was investigating one particular building Halbridge owns. After visits from Mr. Black (a.k.a. Neal) and Peter, Halbridge started to move. A dead body was dug up at his building, an identity theft was discovered and he was arrested – with bonds in hand – by the whole team.

The actual Mr. Black snuck back into play, though, and almost took out Sara and Neal at her apartment. Peter and team burst in to save the day, but Sara and Neal (mostly Sara) had the situation under control.

And why was Neal in her apartment, anyway? Oh yes, Kate.

Music Box Mystery
Mozzie and Neal managed to sneak into the hangar storing the plane that blew up while Kate was on it. Neal’s face and even his body language as he first took it all in was just devastating.

He recovered in time to convince the FAA guard to send him a copy of the plane’s black box – courtesy of Sara Ellis. They mailed her a copy, but when she was supposedly dead, her mail piled up on her office desk while she bunked at the FB I office. To get the recording, Neal offered her a ride home after Halbridge was arrested, knowing she’d want to stop at her office to pick up her mail. (“She’s a workaholic and everybody likes mail.”)

Somehow, though, in all the excitement of foiling Mr. Black and flirting with Sara, Neal couldn’t quite manage to lift the envelope. I’m not sure I buy that, considering he took Halbridge’s guard’s gun earlier in the episode and Peter’s fancy pen in the last episode. If there’s someone who can lift an item, it’s Neal.

And yet, he left evidence of Kate’s murder in Sara Ellis’s apartment. Interesting . . .

All right, White Collar fans, what did you think about this episode? Do you think we’ve seen the last of Sara Ellis? Are you missing the new friendship between Mozzie and Peter yet? And how badly did you want to hug Neal when he saw that blown-up airplane?

Mary is a soon-to-be PR freelancer, a wife and a mom to a toddler who she describes as “VERY two.” And while you might think her busy life would get in the way of an ambitious TV schedule, she’s way more organized [AHEM, addicted, AHEM] than that. Also, a clean house is overrated. Mary blogs about an imperfect life at Giving Up on Perfect, writing about family, faith, books, food, celebrity look-alikes and chick flicks. You know, the important stuff.

WHITE COLLAR: By the Book

Mozzie has put a lot of effort into creating his mysterious persona, but this week’s episode threw him in the middle of the action. And in the process, we learned a little bit about our favorite “little guy.”

The Case of the Week

After some banter about his orange ascot, Mozzie left Neal and headed to his favorite diner, where he’s apparently developed a crush on his waitress, Gina. They talk cute about books and Gina recites Mozzie’s regular order, but the flirting ends suddenly when a couple of unsavory characters walk into the diner.

Gina ask Moz if he truly has friends in the FBI, leaves a few cryptic clues and then leaves. It turns out that’s all it takes for Mozzie to darken the doors of a federal building.

• Neal: Why are you in a federal building, dressed like Truman Capote?

Though Mozzie has to remind him that he never asks for favors, Neal agrees to help his friend quickly. They use Peter’s research team to track down Gina’s address, because though Mozzie has developed an entire file on her, he draws the line at finding her unlisted address.

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SMALLVILLE Comic Con Panel 2010 – Watch Now

SMALLVILLE has some really cool fans. But right now, I’m not sure anyone is cooler than Lily, who hooked GIVE ME MY REMOTE up with her great video of the SMALLVILLE panel at Comic Con.

Watch and enjoy! And be sure to share the best moments from the panel in the comments below.

(Be sure to hit the green button to begin playing.)

WHITE COLLAR: Copycat Caffrey

Neal Caffrey is a man with an ego. I’m not sure he could be a career criminal without a certain level of self pride. As such, Neal is a man who wants his “accomplishments” to be admired. It’s part of why his friendship with Peter works so well. Because while Peter [usually] stands firm on the legal side of the line, he still appreciates the skill – and let’s be honest, the style – involved in Neal’s schemes.

• Peter: Would you pay $4 million for that?
• Neal: Pay…?
• Peter: Yeah, you’re the wrong person to ask.

The Case of the Week

Did this week’s case remind anyone else of the movie, 21? I loved that movie. And while I’m not calling this a copycat episode, the plot was similar enough that I wonder if the writers of White Collar also loved that movie.

A painting was stolen – a “slash and grab,” if you’re looking for the technical term – and Peter’s team figures out pretty quickly that the culprit is a criminology professor and a few of his students. (Although Peter wondered briefly if Mozzie could be the thief until Neal pointed out that he’s too short to actually slash and grab a painting off the wall. Ha!)

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WHITE COLLAR: Need to Know

Note: Poor Mary! Not even a storm that knocked out her electricity to hold her back from sharing her thoughts on this week’s WHITE COLLAR. Thanks, M!

Well, well. This episode was full of plot and character development, wasn’t it? I think I’m going to split these recaps into two parts: Case of the Week and Music Box Mystery. Let’s get to it, shall we?

Case of the Week

Neal goes undercover as a political consultant to help Peter figure out if a senator on the campaign trail is dirty. Of course, he is. As Neal put it: “Politicians were the original con men.”

The whole team was involved in this case, with Peter making the senator nervous with his “bad cop” routine, Mozzie going on a scavenger hunt to find $10,000, and Diana pretending to like men as a prostitute.

We got plenty of time with my new favorite White Collar couple, Peter and Mozzie, as well as an interesting new friendship between Neal and Diana. I like how we’re seeing the characters play off each other in these new couplings. Even the conversations between Peter and Diana were nice.

Pretty soon, they’ll all be one big, happy family. Or not…

Neal: Is this doing anything for you?

Diana: Not a damn thing.

Neal: SIGH.

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WHITE COLLAR Season Premiere: Withdrawal

Hellooooo, GMMR Readers, Mary here! I am so excited to join you for the second season of White Collar. (Almost as excited as I am to have Matthew Bomer’s blue eyes back on my screen!)

Tuesday night’s season premiere picked up shortly after the finale’s explosive ending (yes, that pun was intended), with Peter being questioned and Neal back in jail. Thanks to USA’s nonstop promos over the past month – and the entire premise of the show – I wasn’t too worried that our main characters would be kept apart for long.

So it wasn’t surprising when Neal rejoined Peter in attempting to prevent a bank heist. Within a few minutes, life was back to normal.

As normal as it gets with a tracking device on your ankle, that is.

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37 Reasons Neil Patrick Harris is Awesome… and Legendary Too

We’ve loved him since he was but a young boy in Hollywood, but today, on Neil Patrick Harris’ 37th birthday, we toast a man, and tell him exactly why we think he’s tops…

1. He’s been killing it since day one: NPH garnered a Golden Globe nod for his very first film role. If you haven’t seen the kid sporting oversized glasses and a sweet Jamaican accent in CLARA’S HEART, Netflix it right now.

2. He’s a visionary. As Doogie, he made blogging cool, way back in the 80s.

3. He’s a magician, yo. NPH serves on the Board of Directors for Hollywood’s esteemed Magic Castle.

4. He made Old Spice commercials cool before the this dude did:

5. He’s not ashamed of his love of reality TV, stopping by the BIG BROTHER house, guest judging AMERICAN IDOL, sitting in the audience of a REAL HOUSEWIVES: WATCH WHAT HAPPENS after show and excitedly accepting an actual immunity idol from SURVIVOR: CHINA.

6. While we love Reege, when NPH fills in on LIVE, we kind of feel like Philbin should retire.

7. He steps into the role of “Fairy” with swagger.

8. He looks damn good in a suit.

9. He’s a superhero, having played Peter Parker (SPIDERMAN), Barry Allen (THE FLASH), Dick Grayson and the Music Meister (BATMAN). Oh, and he’s also a member of the Evil League of Evil (DR. HORRIBLE), no big deal.

10. He got us to root against Nathan Fillion. Not easy.

11. Unlike some breakout stars, he remembers where he came from and is totally cool with it:

12. When he’s hosting, he has us actually tuning in to watch awards shows… and he keeps our attention when they go long.

13. Even when he’s not hosting an awards show, he’s asked to do the opening number.

14. He took on Simon Cowell and lived to tell the tale.

15. He’s not afraid to play an ass, a la his HAROLD & KUMAR character.

16. He manages to make misogyny likable.

17. He has us wanting to make out with his face. All of us. Everyone’s in agreement here. Even the straight dudes.

18. How many other guys break into LES MIS during a talk show appearance? (You know, other than Jason Segel)

19. He’s the mastermind behind this: http://accomplicetheshow.com/

20. He’s the reason we watched Prop 8: The musical.

21. His birthday wish list includes a map to One-Eyed Willie’s treasure, a giant labyrinth hedge maze, a goose that lays gold eggs, a working (and authentic) fortune teller booth, plus Danielle Staub’s sex tape (Blu-Ray only). Oh, and some socks.

22. His weapon of choice is song. Whether he’s up against Will Schuester in that epic “Dream On” battle or taking on Captain Hammer in “A Man’s Gotta Do,” he’s a warrior.

23. He gave little boys everywhere an excuse to rent STARSHIP TROOPERS, telling their mom it wasn’t because of Denise Richards.

24. He’s our favorite Mr. Sandman, enough said.

25. He’s the only person we know who might possibly be able to pull off a RENT stage show starring Vanessa Hudgens.

26. He’s going to make THE SMURFS cool again…

27. He has us daydreaming about carrying his children. Seriously. Even some of our moms have expressed interest.

28. He jumped on Twitter and, in 24 hours, acquired over 60,000 followers. Current total: 554,348

29. He roots his peers on, instead of being all petty and competitive:

30. Disneyland still does it for him.

31. He’s not shy about accepting gifts as his current bio reads: It’s my birthday on Tuesday, June 15th. I will be very old, yet rakish. Send gifts to: 9000 W. Sunset Blvd. Suite 709, West Hollywood, CA 90069

32. His smile.

33. That hot partner of his.

34. Dude, he’s an 80s child star, yet not in jail, nor dead!

35. He’s blazed a major trail for gay actors, proving it IS possible to be out and proud and still play whatever sort of roles you please.

36. He’s clearly soaking up his success and enjoying this ride.

37. At just 37-years-old, the kid is already legitimately legen — wait for it — …yeah, you know where this is going.

Happy Birthday, NPH…

~Kath, Korbi, Marisa, Erik and the entire GMMR team.

Follow GMMR, KorbiGirl, Marisa and Erik on Twitter for all your up-to-the-minute TV news and commentary.