So starting on October 29th, we’ll be getting two new writers to cover the Chuck beat, giving you episode recaps and reactions. I’d like to welcome ShoeLin85 (blog name: Undecided) and BDaddyDL to the blog (you can check out BDaddy’s first contribution post here), and we’ll see some great writing tips and other odds and ends from some mystery guests (I hope) soon!
But another show we really like here on the blog is…Castle. Part of it comes from our love of Firefly, but the rest of it is that we think Castle is just a really great show in need of some attention. So mxpw and I put out some feelers to find somebody to write about this great detective/writer duo, and we got a hit.
One problem: he’s British. That’s right. The British have invaded Castle Inanity and they’re bringing their extra “u” words with them. Give a warm welcome to Alris and check out his review of Castle, Season Four, Episode Four, Kicking the Ballistics, after the break while I go run away from the Australians and the Canadians who’ve been sharpening their pitchforks for the last paragraph.
Frea
PS – A “thank you” birthday post is en route!
One thing I won't let slide, however, is Esposito.
Really, Esposito? REALLY? There is NO excuse for a sideways baseball cap under ANY circumstance. This was just a cringe-worthy moment that sticks out like a sore thumb from what was otherwise an outstanding episode.
Yes, this is one of those inevitable filler episodes that comes as part and parcel of modern TV, but can you complain if it was as good as that? (If like our Most Benevolent Overlord, you spent this episode doing crosswords, go back and give it a second chance. I really think you'll be surprised)
Ryan is so often used as comic relief that it’s refreshing to see Seamus Dever at his best. Even Castle’s family took a backseat, allowing total focus on the case and therefore Ryan. The scene in the jail cell with the victim’s ex-boyfriend was powerful and the end scene even had me a little misty-eyed. Anyone else think they should really give Seamus more to do than they have up to now?
Captain Gates felt like a completely different person. There was no writer’s credit given at the start but whoever wrote this episode it feels like it was written with Montgomery rather than Gates in mind.
Lastly, this is not the first episode this season to specifically focus on Castle’s non-cop status, so I think there’s clearly something brewing here
What do you think?
Alris
I'm not a huge R&E fan, but I thought it was nice to see Ryan like this. I liked the jail scene with Finn as well.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the episode was lacking rhythm. And unfortunately it made it boring. I wasn't really surprised by anything. And for once, I thought Beckett was a bit off. Not sure why.
Finally, Gates didn't bother me, as it was a cop issue thing, so I get that she'd be understanding.
Viva la (british) revolution! Castleinanity is going places!
ReplyDeleteWell my point is not that she wouldn't be understanding but that she only had 2 point of contact with the case - once when breaking the news about the murder weapon and then again telling them to back off the triad family, Thats a very Montgomery hands off way of dealing with the team.
ReplyDeleteGates hasn't been acting like that she's been micromanaging the team to the point of second guessing their decisions in earlier episodes
Yeah, that's a good point.
ReplyDeleteThe team hasn't manage the case like they usually do in that episode though.
My read on Gates to this point is that she's ultra-competent, like Montgomery, but motivated primarily by appearing to be ultra-competent. Her concerns about her detectives straying from procedure don't seemed to be based on the concern that they'll miss something or let emotion drive them to make poor decisions; instead, she wants the department (and, by extension, her) to look good. Or at least not be in the news for anything negative.
ReplyDeleteNote her rush to tell the mayor when the case was apparently resolved in 4x02.
She's not merely a glory hound, as her objections tend to have merit, but she's definitely a glory hound. I think it could grow into a good dynamic. I also have a feeling Gates has a relevant backstory to which we're not privy.
Even with your review telling me I should give it a second chance, I found the episode underwhelming and not very interesting. I appreciate that Castle is trying out the dramatic bits more often, but it's too close after we had a whole episode dedicated to the shooting, temporary death, and subsequent healing of Kate for me to be interested. I really missed the humor in this episode, and thought it could have been much, much better written than it was. Like I said earlier on Twitter, Seamus Dever did an awesome job, but he could have been even better if he'd been given better material to work with.
ReplyDeleteAlso: how come this episode gets the dramatic music, but the opener, in which one of the characters is lying on what could have her death bed, gets the chirpy opening music? I did not agree with the music choices at all, including and especially the swelling, overpowering music at the end that just took me right out of the scene.
Things I did like: Martha. I can't help but like Martha. Dever did an awesome job, I like that Kate has kind of picked up on that they need to stay on the boss's good side and was a good team leader, I enjoyed Castle and Kate's talk on the precinct staircase, and the fact that Esposito's not going to abandon his partner, ever. Felt the gun stuff, while very important, was overplayed just solely because of the writing (they could have done a lot better showing than telling in this episode). Overall? This is one I'm gonna skip in the rewatches.
I gotta admit this episode got to me. The helplessness that Ryan showed resonated with me.
ReplyDeleteNot sure if they meant to do this, but when Ryan is outside the precinct near the beginning the sounds filtered out and all that was left with was a bell ringing.
Many years ago when I was training to be a police officer, they had a training video where an officer was killed. In the video, after the shooting they started ringing a church bell. It sounded exactly like the one on the show. Fast forward a few years past the academy, and a guy who went to the academy was killed. That damn bell haunts me because that and taps are all I remember about his funeral. I hate that friggin bell!
Not sure if ill re watch it, but I thought the interaction with Castle and his mom and Becket were the highlight of the episode.
I think people should give Gates more credit. She'd different from Montgomery but I don't think she'd hang any of her people out to dry. It'd make her look bad and as previously mentioned from anonymous, she does not want to look bad. I think she'd go to bat for them and then reprimand when they're alone. Something along the lines of "fix this or there will be consequences and don't let it happen again."
ReplyDeleteThe precinct definitely has a different feel to it this season but eventually when Gates gets to be more lukewarm and not so 'blaze a trail' or we get a glimpse into her backstory (I don't know for sure they'll do it but I would think they would at some point) then things will settle into a nice rhythm. She's gonna run things differently than Montgomery but somehow an understanding will be forged between the team.