White Collar: Most Wanted 7/17/2012

Another episode of White Collar premieres on Tuesday, so to be sure that you’re ready, here’s a recap of what happened this week.

For those of you who saw last season, you know that Neal ran to an undisclosed Caribbean island (one without an extradition agreement with the United States), to escape from FBI Agent Kyle Collins. This week, Peter travels to the island to find Neal and bring him back to New York, hopefully with the same deal as he had in the previous three seasons: to work at While Collar solving cases (with an ankle monitor on at all times, of course) in exchange for not going to prison. But in order for this to work out, they first have to outsmart Collins.

When the episode begins, Neal has been captured, handcuffed, gagged, and put into a cage by Henry Dobbs, who Neal had previously paid off in exchange for protection. BIG MISTAKE, since Dobbs turned out to be in cahoots with Collins.

Meanwhile, Peter is still trying to find where Neal is. How? As Peter puts it: “First, you start with the girl.” So he meets Mia, a local restaurant owner and caterer who Neal has been spending time with. And which beautiful actress plays Mia? None other than Mia Maestro, most famous for her role as Nadia on the television show Alias (2001-2005). While speaking to Mia, Peter runs into Mozzie, and they go to find Neal at Dobbs’s house.

Before leaving, Peter tells Mia, who fears for Neal’s life: “One thing I know about Neal, he knows how to run.” A statement that proves to be a little more difficult than expected. Neal almost escapes from his cage (being the Houdini that he is, he easily removes the handcuffs), but Collins shoots him in the leg and prepares to take Neal back to the U.S. so that he can take him to prison. After a doctor sees Neal about the gunshot wound, Dobbs helps Neal walk to Collins’s car. At this point, we find out that Dobbs betrayed Neal because Dobbs also needs the U.S. law enforcement out of his hair. Why, we don’t yet know.

Once in the car, Collins zip-ties Neal to the dashboard. They are stopped in the road by children who have not-so-coincidentally dropped fruit in the middle of the road—a ploy by Mozzie and Peter. While Collins helps pick up the fruit for the children, Peter frees Neal, and they all devise a plan to get Neal back to New York.

To make a long story short, Dobbs turns out to be Robert MacLeish, a man who is fourth on the Most Wanted List of the United States. In exchange for helping bring MacLeish to justice, Neal will be free to continue his work at White Collar.

They succeed in catching MacLeish with the help of Mia, who also benefits: for telling Collins where Neal is (all part of the plan, of course), Collins gives her half a million dollars.

When Peter and Neal return to New York (Mozzie stays behind, saying: “The world beckons”), all is as it should be. Or so we think.

Because Peter went to find Neal without the permission of the Bureau, he got reassigned from White Collar. I’m sure neither of these men will take this news sitting down, and Tuesday’s episode will see the men trying to get Peter back to where he belongs.

Tune in on Tuesday, July 24th at 9 PM to find out what happens!