2.02 The Double Down

Summary and spoilers

The full moon brings out a parade of crazies, including a murderer who scrawls grammatically incorrect warning on the face of their victim. This victim is Ashley Cosway, a couples therapist; logic points to one of her patients as the murderer. There is another, possibly related murder nearby on the same night – a retired middle school math teacher. Cosway’s girlfriend shares information that Cosway had trouble with someone – assumed a patient – and wanted to take out a restraining order. A patient with priors is found and becomes the lead suspect. This suspect has an alibi, but he heard the previous patient, Evan Hinkle, arguing with Cosway. Hinkle wasn’t there that day, but Cosway’s husband was.

Just to make things more interesting. Esposito and Ryan take the case of the murdered school teacher, and a wager is made with Castle to see who can solve their case first. But if Kate finds out about the wager, she will shoot them – or worse.

Comments

Since Kate and Castle pinpoint the husband as the most likely suspect at around the halfway point in the episode, we know – as has always happened before – that he can’t be the killer. So this points us back to the girlfriend. But no – this is one of the best – and most difficult to solve – mysteries ever presented on Castle. The show has definitely improved incrementally in season 2.

I would be remiss if I didn’t make light of the essential element that allows Castle and Beckett to solve these cases. What were the odds that these two murder cases would end up being handled by these two groups working so closely together? And if they hadn’t decided to have a competition about it, they still never would have made a connection. The forensic connection was paper-thin.

Castle Quotes

Kate: Her husband calls before six, and the food’s picked up at 6.02. She knew who she was having dinner with.
Castle: Someone with bad grammar.

Esposito: Hey, uh – warm milk nightcap, with your lady. That is sad, bro.
Ryan: It helps her sleep.
Esposito: How ‘bout the sound of your voice – works on me.

Ryan: Loser also shaves his head – or are you chicken?
Castle: You’re on – honeymilk.

2.01 Deep in Death

Summary and spoilers

Kate and Castle are still working together, but only because Kate’s boss – and the mayor – want it that way. Kate is still very angry that Castle investigated her mother’s murder, and she’s turned others in the department against Castle as well.

They need to put their squabble aside to solve a murder. A man is found dead in a tree, thrown from a nearby building. The plot thickens when armed men wearing balaclavas stop the van on the way to the morgue and steal the body.

Comments

Season 2 of Castle feels more confident and self-assured, and with more of an edge. The cast chemistry is intact; the occasionally overbearing background music is gone.

I’m not sure if it’s such a good idea for Castle to jump out of the back door of the unmarked surveillance van – in Chinatown – when he is about to go undercover in Chinatown. He should have approached from a completely different direction than the van.

I noticed Rene Echevarria name in the credits as EP. It’s good to see this talented Star Trek alumni still getting work.

Memorable Moments

• Castle having a go at competitor show CSI
• Writer Stephen J. Cannell at the poker game (the guy’s a damn good actor, too!)

Castle Quotes

Esposito: [after watching a scantily-clad model leave the room] Hey, Beckett, how come you don’t wear a uniform like that?
Kate: ‘Cause I don’t wanna get paid in singles.

Martha: They remade Fame and A Christmas Carol; has Hollywood totally run out of ideas?
Castle: Well, they just optioned, uh, Asteroids, the Video Game, so my guess is yes. But Ryan Reynolds is playing the Wii Triangle, and he’s good.

"You want me to put on some music? Whenever they do this sort of thing on CSI, they always do it to music in poorly lit rooms. Kinda reminds me of porn."
- Castle (watching Dr. Parish trying to get a fingerprint from the inside of a glove)

Stephen J. Cannell: You must really like her.
Castle: Who?
Stephen J. Cannell: That police detective of yours. Look, Ricky…there’s only one reason that you’d be dumb enough to go down there and that’s to impress a girl. Why don’t you cut yourself a little slack and just buy her some flowers?

Kate: [in Russian accent] Sometimes when I am bored I go to Gleicha Café in Little Odessa and pretend to be Muscovite.
Esposito: Now, that’s kinda hot.

"Is it just my imagination, or did you change?"
- Castle (after seeing Kate dressed as a tramp girlfriend)

"You dredged up my past for you Castle, not for me, and you’re too selfish to even see it."
- Kate

1.10 A Death in the Family

Summary and spoilers

A body is found in an illegally parked car a week after the actual murder took place. The victim is Dr. Leeds, a young plastic surgeon who was just about to be married. Initially, Leeds appears squeaky clean, with no enemies or secrets. But Ryan and Roy discover that Leeds had just done a clandestine operation for the Government as part of the Witness Protection Program. Organized crime killed Leeds while trying to find the whereabouts of the witness whose face he changed. Now, Kate and Richard have to find out the identity of that witness and catch the killer.

Behind the scenes, Richard has tasked his friend the forensics expert with finding out more information about the murder of Kate’s mom. When Martha finds out, she insists that Richard tell Kate that he is pursuing this. Kate makes it clear that he must stop or "we’re through," but Richard continues anyway. Richard’s friend discovers that her murder was made to look like that of a crazed killer – except the first stab wound was lethal and the others were just for show. What’s more, there were three other murders around that time with the same MO. As the episode ends, Richard is just about to give this information to Kate.

While all this is happening, dad Richard has to watch his little girl trying on dresses and growing up. Alexis is going on her first date – to the junior prom.

Comments

Considering Kate’s negative reaction to reopening her mom’s case, Richard probably was right to stick to his original plan to look into the case behind her back, rather than asking her for her permission, getting a ‘no’ answer, and then continuing anyway. In any case, we will wait to see how Kate reacts. Obviously, she is not going to enforce her "we’re through" verdict, or the TV show would be over.

It was nice to see that quite a few arcs are being following throughout the series. Alexis is growing up, Martha is more than a cardboard character there for humor, Kate’s mom’s unsolved murder is an important plot point, and Sorenson reappears as the former lover.

Star Trek alumni Robert Picardo guest stars as Richard’s forensics expert friend.

Memorable Moments

• Richard’s initial plan for initiating Alexis’s prom date
• Richard’s Christopher Walken imitation

Castle Quotes

Richard: It’s her first real date.
Ryan: And you’re worried he’s a serial killer? You should be more worried he’s a teenage boy

Richard: Why don’t you want to investigate it?
Kate: Same reason a recovering alcoholic doesn’t drink. You don’t think I haven’t been down there? You don’t think I haven’t memorized every line in that file? My first three years on the force – every off-duty moment was spent looking for something someone missed. It took me a year of therapy to realize if I didn’t let it go, it was going to destroy me. And so I let it go.

Kate: What is it with men and boobs, anyway?
Richard: Biological. We can’t help it.
Kate: But doesn’t it bother you that they’re so obviously not real?
Richard: Santa’s not real; we still love opening his presents.

Richard: Used to be all she needed to feel beautiful was a pink tu-tu and a plastic tiara.
Martha: We spend out whole lives trying to feel that way again.

Richard: I know a guy who owes me a favor.
Kate: You know a guy? What is this, a Mamet play?

Alexis: Dad! No – no severed heads!
Richard: That’s – I – it’s time honored!

Richard: [as Christopher Walken] Hi, Detective Beckett. I’m so glad you called. Regale me.
Kate: Castle?
Richard: It’s my Chris Walken, what do you think?
Kate: Needs work.
Richard: In all fairness, part of it’s visual.

Richard: Did you have fun?
Alexis: As a matter of fact, I did. This dating thing’s kinda nice.
Richard: How was Owen? Don’t worry; I closed my eyes for the kissing part.
Alexis: Yeah, me too.

Castle Renewed for Second Season!

The TV Guide and others have reported that ABC will renew Castle for a second season!

Click here to read the full article at TV Guide

1.09 Little Girl Lost

Summary and spoilers

A two year old child is abducted while his painter dad is next door in his studio. Beckett (and Castle) are called in; complications ensue when Beckett has to work with FBI agent Sorenson, a former lover. There is pressure for Beckett and Sorenson to avoid the result of their last child-abduction case, where they got the perpetrator but the child was already dead. For a time, Castle is excluded from the case, but his role becomes vitally important when he is nominated to make the ransom drop.

At the same time, the investigation is ‘enhanced’ by Castle and Sorenson’s competition to solve the case and vie for Beckett’s affections.

Comments

This more serious episode is another step up for the show. I prefer the somber mood episodes over the flippant ones. There’s that feeling that things could go terribly wrong – even if they never do.

Fatherhood and parenthood are important recurring themes on Castle; the relationship between Richard and Alexis is an important backdrop to the case of the week. This week’s case, involving a loveless marriage and a neglected child, works well against the healthier family relationships on the show.

Castle Quotes

Kate: Six months.
Richard: Six months what?
Kate: We dated for six months.
Richard: I didn’t ask.
Kate: Yeah. I know. You were not asking very loudly.
Richard: I know, I’m like a Jedi like that.

"Sweetheart, as your life coach, I have to urge you to say nay to your inner nay-sayer."
- Martha to Richard

Richard: What are you doing up – stressed about finals?
Alexis: American Lit’s today; I was having nightmares about Hester Prynne.
Richard: Ah…the irony for you is not getting an ‘A’ would cause you shame.

Richard: Nice guy. I can see how it wouldn’t work, though.
Kate: Really.
Richard: Sure. Handsome, square-jawed, by the book -
Kate: And that’s a bad thing?
Richard: He’s like the male you. Ying needs Yang, not another Ying. Ying-Yang is harmony. Ying-Ying is…a name for a panda.
Kate: Any more wisdom, Obi Wan?
Richard: Nope. That’s it for today. What say we celebrate by going out for a drink?
Kate: I can’t; I got a date.
Richard: A date? You date? Who?
Kate: That’s why it’s called a private life – because it’s private. Unlike you, I don’t live my life on page six.
Richard: Well, you’re a mysterious woman, Detective Beckett.
Kate: Maybe there’s a little more Nicki Heat in me than you think.

1.08 Ghosts

Summary and spoilers

A married woman is drowned in a bathtub full of motor oil. But she’s no ordinary wife. She’s an FBI fugitive who’s been on the run - and living under an assumed name - for years. Cythia Dern, the fugitive, took part in the environmental protest bombing of an oil tanker that left one of her co-conspirators dead and the captain of the ship paralyzed. Recently, she had hired a ghost writer to publish her memoirs prior to turning herself in. But someone from her past caught up with her before that could happen

Comments

I found myself interested in this week’s story. Cynthia’s backstory - that she planted a bomb to blow up a unmanned tanker as a protest against the Exxon Valdez spill - and that she tried to back out when she found out that the captain was still on board - made her a somewhat gray area character.

Castle Quotes

Richard: Did someone say ‘murder’? Hold one, I’ll get my coat.
Roy: Look at him all excited.
Kate: Yeah, like a kid at Christmas.
Ryan: With a dead body under the tree.

“Look Who’s Stalking.”
- Richard

Kate: If you’re looking for a happy ending, you’ve come to the wrong place.
Richard: Next time I’ll just try that massage parlor on Second Avenue.

Richard: Now we’re even, so what do you say to a little showdown? Head to head; toe to toe; winner take all, mano e mujer.
Kate: Hand to woman?
Richard: Whatever it takes.

1.07 Home Is Where the Heart Stops

Summary and spoilers

A series of home invasions and high-end jewel heights have been perpetrated by a dark thief who tortures and/or kills his targets. Kate takes a more personal interest when the daughter of the last victim gets emotional about losing her mother. There seems to be no connection among the four targeted families until Kate and Richard discover they have all attended the same organization’s charity function. Going undercover in black-tie dress, Kate and Richard discover an inside man who is feeding detailed information to the real killer.

Comments

Castle is sticking to its formula of not revealing the murderer ᾦquot; and also not revealing any meaningful clues as to who the murderer is ᾦquot; until the final third of the episode. There’s no point in trying to solve the mystery, so you can just sit back, let your mind relax, and enjoy the slowly burgeoning relationship between Kate and Richard.

The death of Kate’s mother at the hands of a murderer is once again worked into the plot. Kate takes a special interest in the latest in a series of home invasion crimes when the mother of a young daughter is murdered. Kate is not only passionate about solving the case, but she also offers consolation, guidance, and friendship to the victim’s daughter.

Memorable Moments

• Richard and Kate walking the red carpet
• Richard using the windshield wipers to knock a baddie off the hood of the police car

Castle Quotes

Richard: [fires gun, misses target] Shot too soon.
Kate: Yeah, well…you know, we could always just cuddle, Castle.

Esposito: Man, these guys are guilty of tax evasion, not home invasion.
Ryan: [sees Kate walking down red carpet] Yeah, well…appearances can be deceiving.
Ryan: Nice dress.
Esposito: Yeah, what there is of it.
Kate: I’d let you borrow it, Esposito, but you stretched out the last one.

Kate: Did you know that they call you ‘the white whale’?
Richard: The white whale?
Kate: Uh-huh.
Richard: Not Moby -
Kate: No.

Richard: What happened to the dress?
Kate: You didn’t think I was gonna interrogate him in it, did you?
Richard: We were kinda hoping.

Joanne (victim’s daughter): How do you get over it?
Kate: You don’t. Well, one day you’ll wake up and you’ll find you don’t mind carrying it around with you. At least, that’s as far as I’ve come.