I see where you're coming from w/ the concern about the vision for the show past the S2 finale, though I suppose I can kind of understand it. I think it's probably hard for someone creating a show to invest in thinking too far ahead when so many shows don't even make it through their rookie season. This isn't a show like Babylon 5 where the creator had a 5-season storyline mapped out from the get go. That can be really helpful, and it can make the show better, but it can also be really dangerous - if you don't keep getting renewed through 5 seasons, you end up with the show's storyline amputated part-way through. Also, I've heard JE and the writers saying that they've had discussions about what they will do if they get enough seasons that Neal's parole will be up, and this was as early as Season 1 or 2, so I think that's a good sign, at least. Hopefully they're continuing to work on more long-term planning now that they're more confident the show will last.

Interestingly, I've recently seen quotes from Matt about "nature vs. nurture" and Neal going the direction of what he "thinks he was born to be" vs. being changed by his relationship with Peter, and I'm fine with that. I can accept that Neal thinks he is in some way destined to become a criminal (presumably because of his father,) and I could see him in some way using it to justify what he's done - there's some potentially interesting psychology in there. But Jeff's quote bugs me every single time. I think it makes a lot of what happens in the show kind of pointless, and it's far less complex an interpretation of the character than what the actual episodes give us.