What Happened On 'White Collar' Season 5?

I have a lot of questions going into the White Collar Season 6 premiere on Thursday night. The first being how in the world am I supposed to focus on what's happening when I'm so busy thinking about how White Collar Season 6 will be the series' final season. (While I'm blinking back tears, of course.) And, obviously, the second is how am I supposed to focus on anything other than Matt Bomer's face. (It really is quite nice and deserves all of our appreciation and then some.) White Collar is ending, people, after a six-episode final season, which means that we don't have enough time to be confused while watching the Nov. 6 premiere, "Borrowed Time." So, here's your crash-course in where the White Collar Season 5 finale left off.

White Collar's 13-episode fifth season was a big one for the series, in the sense that it pushed Neal, Burke, and the rest of its characters to what might've been their breaking points. Neal sold his soul to clear Burke's name after he was released from prison and faced a raging psycho-stalker named Rebecca, Mozzie delivered a baby (I mean, what?), and Burke finally pushed for Neal to be released. But it was the Season 5 finale's final moments that set White Collar up for its biggest mystery yet: What's going to happen to Neal Caffrey? And, with the shortened sixth season ahead of its fans, there's no time to waste wondering what exactly I mean by this question.

So, in the interest of you not getting conned, here's what went down during White Collar Season 5:

Neal's Got A New Handler Now

The Season 5 finale cliffhanger is going to be a huge factor in White Collar Season 6 — I mean, did I really even have to tell you that? NEAL WAS KIDNAPPED. Like, thrown into the back of a van, blindfolded, and tied up kind of kidnapped. White Collar didn't reveal by who or why or any detail whatsoever about why Neal Caffrey was plucked from NYC — though I'm still convinced it might've been Benjamin Gates because Neal proved himself to be so good and decoding complicated and ancient codexes in Season 5.

Rebecca The Psycho-Stalker

Remember when Neal started romancing that pretty, redheaded museum curator just so he could get his hands on that Mosconi Codex? If yes, then you also remember how that was the worst decision of his life — like, even worse than becoming a criminal and ending up with an electronic anklet. Rebecca turned out to be a raging maniac who drugged Mozzie, tried to shoot Neal and Burke, and ended up escaping from prison and then getting caught again. But I have a feeling this won't be the last we see of Rebecca — she escaped from prison once, she could definitely do it again.

The Burkes Have Gone Long-Distance

The third biggest point of Season 5 was Burke's job offer in Washington, DC and how that quickly went down the drain. In the final moments of Season 5, after Burke had put in the request to get Neal's freedom, he got a call from the FBI that told him that Neal would never be free. Why? I mean, he'd done such great work and been on such good behavior this entire time — well, that's exactly why. Neal's become such a huge asset to the team, that they won't let him have his freedom. And, just like that, Burke sent Elle off to her new job at the National Gallery and he stayed behind in NYC to fight for Neal's freedom. That doesn't mean we'll be seeing less of Tiffani Thiessen in Season 6, right?

Images: David Giesbrecht/USA Network (3)