That HAT is enough to hate the show. Watching a smug "20something" goof off for an hour seems a waste of time.

The lead star is nothing more than a side-kick!!!

Maybe NBC\USA will work in some "political babble" to remind us all how stupid we are and need NBC\USA form our thoughts!

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

HELLO

The lead is too "pretty" and definitely not a man's man. 20 something women should like White Collar though. I agree with the previous post, that HAT is too annoying, and a good reason to not watch. He just needs a pair of those trendy rectangular eyeglasses to complete the irritating picture.

Silly statement, I'm 64 and I love the show, why would a hat have anything to do with how good a show is, did you not get the part?

I sure wouldn't disregard a show because of a hat, that is just crazy. LOL unbelievable reason to not like a show.

agreed. i'm 14 and i love it too, but i don't know how much you are willing to trust in a 14 year-old's opinion
the show has great writing, it is original (or at least for something i have seen, we must still remember i am only 14), and it is nicely executed
the hat thing is no reason to not watch the show especially with so much else in favor of it.
usa has done a great thing with this show, and you will see(only if your psychic, cause any other way would be just weird) me watching it every friday from now on

You are crazy, the show, concept, characters, are nothing short of brilliant and unlike anything else on television. This going to be another hit on USA Networks belt !!!

Hehe... I considered bashing you, but your sorry excuse for a prejudice is just TOO hilarious. In short, Matt Bomer is no "goof"; he's amazing, and the hat is AWESOME.

I definitely don't think the lead is too "pretty" . Matthew Bomer is ridiculously handsome but not in a pretty boy or underwear model kind of way.
As for the man's man comment. I absolutely adored the wardrobe that Neil's character was wearing. It was very elegant yet masculine.

Oh and I LOVE the hat.

Well, I am a 38 year old woman, and I liked it, and so did my 40 year old husband, and my 17 year old daughter. He has to be 'pretty' looking because he's supposed to be a charismatic con man. A 'man's man' who has a bit of a gut, who paints his beer belly in his team's colors and or is just not that pretty and refined looking wouldn't be very believable as the kind of person who could charm a wealthy older lady into letting him (a felon) move into her home and letting him have all her husband's expensive clothes. You just don't see a lot of regular 'man's man' types who are successful as con men. He's not supposed to be charming or be likable to other men, he's supposed to be charming to women.

Not that I have anything at all against people who would be called a 'man's man', since I'm married to one. I'm expecting hair to sprout out of his ears any day now, and I'd still love him.

I simply do not understand why people have to be such downers and bash something that has just begun. Whoever made the "hat" comment obviously didn't understand the significance even though it was explained during the episode. It was the "rat pack" look. If you didn't get that reference, maybe you should stick to things more appropriate for your age group, like the Disney Channel.

This show was clever and extremely entertaining. It mixed humor with heart and all of the characters were appealing in their own way. I say two thumbs up (again) for USA. Let's leave the blood and gore, serial killers, rapists and child molesters to other shows. Personally, I didn't miss any of it including the autopsy scenes we get too frequently. I watch TV to be entertained. This show entertained me.

Thank you USA.

ETA: To whoever started this thread ------ please make an effort to learn how to spell. It's White Collar not WHITcollar. We may disagree about the show but no one can disagree with the fact that correct spelling is important in the real world. On a forum the many people who do not know you can only form an opinion of you by what you write and first impressions are difficult if not impossible to erase.

You said it perfectly!! And I love the Rat Pack era...fantastic hat

While I respect your right to have an opinion what doesn't converge with everyone else's (said the local iconoclast), it's a shame to make up your mind about a show so early in the game, and on such thin evidence. I suppose people do (I once had a friend take an immediate dislike to a show literally 10 seconds in - I kid you not,) but give it another try. Don't like the hat? Ignore it. It's a small part of the show.

That said, I would tend to agree that the hat will wear thin if they overwork it, but it's very much emblematic of the Rat Pack sensibility, as are the Sy Devore suits. And they had him spot-on: take a look at a cast photo for Ocean's Eleven. All eleven main characters wore Devore suits, as did many of the Vegas singers of the era, including Diahann Carroll's ex, Vic Damone. That first shot of Neil, all in black with the hat, was pure Sinatra suit and Lawford shirt blended together. Love it!

I'm not clear yet why they chose that particular sensibility for Neil, but I'm guessing as we get to know his character more, it will make more sense. It seems pretty apparent that hand-made suits (which all of Devore's were) represent that better life he strove to have, and that his affinity for the Rat Pack will tell us more about the assurance he at least wants us to think he has. Whatever, Matt Bomer carries it off beautifully.

That was very well said and a good insight into the Rat Pack persona. I'm not sure why they chose it either but it may have more to do with Diahann Carroll's backstory than with Matt Bomer. She gave him the clothes which were her late husband's and I'm betting we'll hear more about that story in the future.

I think the episode did pretty well in establishing exactly why Neal is so intrigued by the Devore suits. Like you pointed out above, he explicitly references the Rat Pack, and it's pretty clear that he can identify with them. The Rat Pack fellers were known to be cool, suave, and lavish - something that Neal clearly wants to emanate. Yep, he's totally got the charming Peter Lawford thing down, as well as Sinatra's blue eyes.

In other words, I really enjoyed the first episode.

Oh yeah, and LOVE the hat.

I love the whole rat pack vibe of the show. I noticed with each show on USA they sort of have this era theme to it. Psych has the 80's referances and relaxed cali vibe. Burn notice doesn't really have a specific time because it sort of goes over different spy moments in history when explaining something but it defieitely has the whole Florida, miami vibe. And now White collar has the classic rat pack. I mean it was always about the clothes back then, Burke has HIS suit and Neal has his sort of classic air about him. I mean even the name Neal Cafferty. It even sounds like a name that you would hear in the credits of ocean's eleven (the original with Dean Martin and Sinatra). And the city is just its own character. Also with the whole I hate White Collar, I totally dig everyones opinions, its kind of rude to just say flat out that a show sucks this early. I mean I've seen shows that suck out loud, but just say its not my thing; don't go and kick it in the shin. I know that is a really bad saying but I mean come on have you been kicked in the shin before, it hurts like H-E-Double Hockey Stick.

Oh, true enough, but I don't see this being about Diahann Carroll's story and Damone was among his lesser clients. This is all about Neil, and she was a believable means to an end that frankly would have been far more believable if they were in LA. I guess what I'm wondering is why the Rat Pack (which were pretty much a Las Vegas/LA phenomenon) and Sy Devore (who left NY for LA in the 20's) in particular? This isn't the understated use of vintage you see on "The Closer". This is a very esoteric choice to establish the RP connection with those suits. They're not the off-the-rack menswear and Hathaway shirts the "Mad Men" types wore. These clothes were very cutting edge fashion for their day. Devore took cuffs off trousers in the 50's, and by 1960's RP time, he'd innovated the super narrow ties, narrowed lapels, and put some of them in the very narrow-legged trousers (notably Lawford, Darin and Sammy Davis Jr.) that Neil was wearing. The suits were all hand-made to measure and very expensive. Maybe I'm over-thinking it because they're such an interesting choice of wardrobe, but it intrigues me, and judging by the preview, Neil's wardrobe doesn't get any more ordinary in the next episode.

OK. You convinced me. And thanks for relating the Devore history. I did not realize he was responsible for starting those trends with his work. I do agree that it is an interesting choice of wardrobe and totally fitting with Neal Cafferty's image.

Sorry, I didn't mean to go so historian, but it's interesting. I can remember Devore's store (now gone) in Beverly Hills, and the branch in Palm Springs that followed the retired RP'ers out there. The other bit of history that's important is that Devore would credibly have dressed Byron in the 1950's and 60's, as he did Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis Jr. I'm not sure if that came as a package with Sinatra's business, as was the case with the Vegas hotels who had to allow black entertainers before Sinatra would perform there, but my sense is that Devore didn't make a distinction based on his own convictions.

They so rarely make men's clothes key to characterizations in the same way they do women, aside from shows like Miami Vice and films like "American Gigolo", and this has me hoping for something interesting to come. The use of the music from the same era has me hopeful.

You joined under another name to back up your first comment posted didn't you , ha, ha that's rich ? Looks like your thread was a dud . Show is entertaining enough to keep my attention and I think will get better as it goes on .

Well stated, Summer Fun. The hat is 'classic Rat Pack'. I think Matt Bomer looks hot in those clothes.

The hat is amazing! His whole character's wardrobe is great! Matthew Bomer is not only a good looking man, he is a great actor also. The first show I saw him in was Tru Calling - I was devastated to see his character die and the show to ultimately be cancelled. White Collar is great, yes I am 18 and close to the "20 year old girls" range, but the show is not to directed towards just this age group. It is an interesting show, and I can't wait for the next episode.

Also: If you do not like White Collar then why even go though the trouble and write how much you hate it?

I don't care about reliving the Rat pack days as long as the writing stays good. This show is off to a great start.

I love his hat and all wardrope. A man, who dresses himself like that cannot be totally boring. I cannot believe, that somebody quits watching the show just because of hat....