I’ll be the first person to admit and agree that television doesn’t need another buddy comedy. Especially another male buddy comedy. However, that hasn’t stopped me from watching and enjoying USA Network’s delicious new White Collar.

Matt Bomer (Neal Caffrey) is so good looking, there should be a law against walking around with a face like that. I’m sure USA counted on that fact to lure in viewers like me. Then they lined up the show with a terrific ensemble of characters that kept me coming back for more. (I’m not going to watch a show week-after-week if the lead is an idiot and the ensemble is vapid, no matter how good he looks). Read the rest of this entry »

White Collar fans, we have not forsaken you! In fact, the show is so popular amongst our writing staff that I was only able to hold onto my review gig for a few weeks. Unfortunately, the show is so good as to have rendered most everyone else speechless. That’s without speech, people! So now that you’re all caught up….

I continue to enjoy the recognizable faces that the show casts in small parts. How great was it that Artie Bucco (John Ventimiglia) got the chance to be on the other side of the meat cleaver for a change? This is separate from the show, but it would be nice to actually see him in action as a mobster … doesn’t he deserve it? Read the rest of this entry »

What was it, Castle, and Eleventh Hour before it, that recently had murders during one of the fashion world’s biggest parties? Have you ever seen some of those designs? I could see the models killing one another to not be forced to wear them, but other than that, it would seem like a coked-up, but non-violent crowd.

Sadly, I think this might be the last episode I get to watch early; I think USA Network only decided to pre-screen two episodes for the media (yeah, that’s right!). On the one hand, it’s fun to sit down with this show before anyone else gets to see it — as I’m writing this, you’ve all only had a few days to digest the pilot — but on the other hand, it would be nice to watch the show on a much larger screen. I know, it was my choice … but would you sit on White Collar if you had the chance to see it early? Read the rest of this entry »

I think by now we’ve established the fact that USA Network knows how to cook a mean character. Each and every original series that the network’s produced is a hit on one scale or another — including Monk, which I otherwise can’t speak to because I don’t watch it.

Within the last week, I’ve enjoyed two episodes of Psych from last season (finally caught up!), as well as the pilot of White Collar (twice), the new and extremely exciting series that premiered last weekend. And the latter included commercials for the upcoming season of Burn Notice. All of which actually got me thinking that, if not for the atypical situation of my being behind on one series, and a new one premiering, I might be spending long stretches of time with no USA Network whatsoever.

Now I’ll grant you that that’s not so strange, considering that the major networks take summers off (well, used to … and still should, judging by their offerings), and that USA offers only a handful of original programming. But what about the fact that I want what I want? Read the rest of this entry »

I’ll be honest: I’m feeling a little apprehensive about singing the praises of White Collar too loudly, for fear of being disappointed were this show to somehow fail (plus Kona’s got that covered). Not that I imagine it will, but I’ve been burned before.

The truth, however, is that I’m not sure it’s possible to oversell this tremendous new entry into the USA Network family. Besides how well it fits into the group, it’s just a really great show. I enjoyed it so much that I sat down to write this review of the pilot as soon as I finished writing my preview of the show, almost two weeks ago. So let’s get right down to it. Read the rest of this entry »

White Collar is premiering this week, and to kick it off, CliqueClack is giving away prizes to three lucky winners*.  Our Grand Prize Winner will be receiving a White Collar Ultimate Gentleman’s Bag, while two runners up will be receiving a White Collar Gift Bag. Now, just because the grand prize says “Gentleman’s” in the title, doesn’t mean that ladies shouldn’t try to win too. I received a similar bag when I went on my White Collar set visit, and with the exception of perhaps the cufflinks, I can use all of it.

All you have to do is leave any comment related to White Collar here anytime between now and 11:59 PM on November 19. We’ll pick three recipients completely at random and alert them after the giveaway ends (make sure your spam filters aren’t blocking mail from @cliqueclack.com!). Only one entry per person, and you must have a valid U.S.-based mailing address. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents of 18 years of age or older only. Not following these guidelines voids your entry.

More information on the prizes, including the contents of the gift bags, after the jump!

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Recently, USA gave me the opportunity to go to New York and do a set visit for their upcoming series, White Collar. Along with a dozen other writers, I was crammed inside of a conference room in a Catholic elementary school, of all places, where we met with the stars of the show (Aryeh’s posted a preview of White Collar not long ago). We were able to do interviews with Matthew Bomer (Neal Caffrey), Tim DeKay (Peter Burke), Willie Garson (Mozzie) and Tiffani Thiessen (Elizabeth Burke).

White Collar is a show that’s heavy on the cool. Main character Neal Caffrey can put on a fedora with such flair that it looks as though he was either born knowing how to do it, or he spent a month in front of a mirror just practicing. But that’s what’s interesting about Caffrey: You never know which one it is. Even when he has escaped prison and is completely on the run, he looks like any other privileged New Yorker out for a weekend adventure. Although, the truth is, Caffrey grew up with nothing and spent his entire life working on making it seem like he has everything.

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