The trial and conviction of Whitey Bulger was well after the season's storyline was set, and by and large, John Connelly had become a footnote - so I doubt that this was on Eastin's mind when he was working on this season's arc - but it was so prescient.

Since I first read about John Connelly, I wanted to write something about how that agent's actions affected Peter. And then canon gives me almost the perfect setup.

Which is, in part, why I'm loving the developments this season. No, S5 isn't the fluffy bromance, but it's a hell of a lot more real.