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USA celebrates White Collar debut
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White Collar debuts Friday, October 23 on USA.
When I first heard the premise of USA’s latest series, White Collar, my mind immediately went to the old Robert Wagner TV series, “It Takes a Thief,” which ran on network television for several years back in the late 1960s. The basic set up seemed almost identical – an exceptionally proficient thief eludes seems unstoppable, until one federal agent with the smarts and stamina brings him to justice; but in an unlike twist of fate that same federal agent discovers he needs the thief unique skill set to accomplish his purposes. The only way to make it happen is for the agent and the thief to become uneasy partners.
In both cases the thief is smooth, suave and sophisticated. Wagner played the role to the hilt in “It Takes a Thief” while Matt Bomer (ABC’s “Traveler”) fills the charming conman shoes in White Collar. In both cases the federal agent (Malachi Throne in Thief; Tim DeKay in White Collar) is uptight, uncool, incredibly intelligent and not very trusting of their fellow man. But that’s where the similarities end.
White Collar, which premiers Friday, October 23 at 10 PM (9 Central) on USA, adds some tasty twists that make it one of the most enjoyable new series to hit television since Burn Notice. Bomer’s character, Neal Caffrey may be a thief, but he is also a man in love – a man in love with a woman who may have left him, or who may have been forced to leave him. DeKay’s character, FBI agent Peter Burke, is also a man in love – a man in love with a gorgeous, devoted, and long-suffering wife named Elizabeth (played fetchingly by Tiffani Thiessen). Agent Burke, who is single-focused to a fault, finds Caffrey to be a wealth of information, not only about how to catch a thief, but also how to woo his wife.
Bottom line: White Collar is a hit for me. It’s witty, well-acted, well-crafted, well-written and just a lot of fun to watch. It is refreshing to see a married couple portrayed as actually being in love and willing to struggle through the hard times without being made fun of for it. Also refreshing was a virtual absence of expletives making it appropriate viewing for families (and with that going for it, I still can’t figure out the time slot – makes me wonder if the family-friendly aspect was a fluke in the pilot episode). White Collar is a buddy cop show you can feel good about. Where else do you get to root for the good guy AND the bad guy at the same time?
Matt Bomer talks about White Collar
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