Post by java on May 8, 2015 22:14:49 GMT -5
? It'd be fun to see a little of both tonight! 
Please share your thoughts after the show and savor it because we have a long hiatus before any new episodes. Bah! Humbug!
Can't say I was too surprised about Lanie and Espo. I did find it amusing that she was the one lying about them being engaged when she's been the one that was reluctant to move forward. It just seemed more likely that with two happy couples, there would be an eventual parting of the ways for these two. I wonder if we will see Espo pursuing Tori now, or if his and Lanie's personal lives won't really be part of the story anymore.
Overall, I liked the episode, in spite of that ending. It was another interesting storyline with many twists and turns. Castle's acquaintance with the mobster kinda brought back to mind Castle's "I know a guy" from early seasons. And not that I'm ever very good at determining the killer, but I really wouldn't ever have guessed it was the mob detective.
Overall, I"d give the first half of season 7 an A. I have enjoyed every episode, and the development of the Caskett relationship and marriage.
But like castle88, and probably just about everybody else, I do have to wonder what TPTB are thinking, and how this will affect the show's viewership/ratings.
Dec 8, 2014 23:29:15 GMT -5 @erin9 said:
I loved this episode. Fantastic. The best one since the honeymoon episode, and that one was amazing.Loved Kate having to write a poem for Christmas. "Welcome to the family" indeed.lol I wish we could have heard all of them, rather than just Kate's. Hers wound up being bittersweet.
I thought it was hilarious watching Castle investigate for the mob. I guess it was a bit cliche that the cop turned out to be the murderer, but I still loved the journey to get there. Lots of twists and turns.
It's a little sad Castle and Beckett (obviously temporarily) won't be working together, but it looks like they're going to make it FUN. Castle, a PI? Priceless. I really like that Gates sounded genuinely sad telling him that he couldn't stay on at the NYPD; they've come a loooong way.
I thought Lanie and Espo's story was well-done. Their fake engagement for the parents, especially with Ryan's fake engagement story, was funny and entertaining. I thought they were going to go the route of: fake engagement leads to them wanting to be engaged for real.....instead, they flipped it and decided what they had wasn't enough. Nicely done.
But, what I really want to know is: How does Castle wind up back with the NYPD, since we know he will be? I can't wait to find out.
And: When will he need the mobster's help? I think maybe that wasn't just a throw-away line, played for laughs. Maybe it'll have to do with Castle's disappearance. I hope it wasn't a throw-away line anyway. Rick actually needing the mob's help would be very interesting.
Dec 8, 2014 23:39:55 GMT -5 @erin9 said:
I think shaking things up for a few episodes could be fun.
Dec 8, 2014 23:39:55 GMT -5 @erin9 said:
I don't think this will last more than a few episodes. I enjoyed the episodes where Kate joined the FBI. I expect the next few eps will be fun and interesting too. Plus...how Rick winds up back "home" again should be entertaining. I think shaking things up for a few episodes could be fun.
Also, is there any way Gates would really have that conversation in passing in the hallway instead of having it in her office? This is the life of her best detective and her best detective's fiancé. Just felt rushed, out of left field and OOC.
Dec 9, 2014 0:00:57 GMT -5 @erin9 said:
^^^Fair point about them being separated for significant periods already this season. It's all in the execution. Hopefully, the writers will do a good job with this and not have Caskett spend too much time apart. They are married now, living under the same roof....
Loved the poem.
Loved the plot.
Loved the gangster. Willing to bring Rick in the family and then shoot him in cold blood for insulting his family. " You know a Guy. I know a Guy, Hell, We all know a Guy"...LOL.....Knew he would be Rick's downfall at the precinct. Even the mayor couldn't save him this time. For all the good he does, sometimes Rick just doesn't see the forest for the trees. He just doesn't know when to stop. Again, he does the right thing, for all the wrong reasons. This time, he was humbled. Sad. Very Sad. But he kept it in inside, so as not to spoil Kate's very festive mood and antler dance at the end. Good. Very Good. Love his character. How can you not love him? As the episode ended, my arms were draped around him, giving him the biggest hug I could muster up. He was Christmas. He was the man. And he loves his wife so much that he put his own feelings aside. Tears, lots of tears...but joyful tears. Have a drink Rick, it's on me.
Knew it was the Detective the whole time. Too predictable for a change.
I think in true Castle fashion, Esplanie has reminded us all that sometimes, you can love somebody without being" in love" with somebody. They share something special, but as sometimes, in the real world, they just will not share it with each other. So they move on, but I am sure they will keep a close eye on each other at all times. A kiss on the cheek, better than mistletoe.
Would it have killed Gates to pull Rick inside the office? To sever this very special relationship was bad enough, but how embarrassing it would have been had anyone heard the conversation. She was truly remorseful though. It hurt, She finally likes him.
The rest of the show took care of itself. The Romeo and Juliet theme, although common, helped it all to make sense.
Which brings me to the end scene......OK...not going to elaborate....but you writers better clean this mess up fast cause this is ridiculous. Yet another twist in the road. Bad enough you killed the wedding, but come on, this is Christmas. How could you do this to our boy Rick? And somehow Kate is going to be hurt as well. This is "Castle goes to DC and works for the Feds". A private eye? Really? The writers are going to great pains to expose the little boy in Castle. So now, he is going to show them. Whatever. Are we the Mentalist here?
That being said, should be interesting. Is Gates willing to lose Beckett? She could easily team with Rick and take Ryan and Espo with them to form an agency. But Rick has to keep writing. I don't care what else they do, he needs to write. This show ....oy.....this show. I love it.
First half score....B+(wanted the big wedding...sorry, but I did)...lets see what the second half brings.
I found BAD SANTA entertaining, funny, and heart-warming!!! Not all was as I had hoped--but the writing and acting were excellent--and looking back, the outcome well done over more than this episode!!! I am an ESPLANIE shipper; but I suppose that having our show’s three, main couples in happy pairs might appear contrived!!! I have always had and continue to have faith that should that happen, the writing will make the third pairing also natural, real, romantic, and organic!!! Tamala/Lanie and Jon/ESPO clearly care for one another and were “comedically” brilliant as they united, even played “engaged couple” so that the Louisiana, huggers, Lanie’s parent PARISHES, Walter, thoracic surgeon, and Matilda, with her beautiful eyes, would cease worrying about their single daughter!!! ESPLANIE’S common relief and desires for one another to be truly in love and well and truly loving and loved and to be happy, like their CASKETT and RYAN couple friends were palpable, well written and well played!!! RYAN--awesome partner--and quite the proposal raconteur, too!!! I also liked the call back to Rebelbex's poetry slam, for which she missed her prom!!!
The CREASEYS definitely write wonderfully--CASKETT and all--and Bill ROE directed marvelously, too!!! Ditto, Robert DUNCAN'S music, Alfred SOLE’S set design, and Luke REICHLE'S wardrobe--and the makeup pros--again, terrific, all CASTLE team, cast, and crew!!!
There are lots of funny lines!!! A favorite of mine was when Kate asks, "What rhymes with, 'I'm screwed'?" Guest cast did fine work!!! I enjoyed noticing Paul Ben VICTOR, to whom Nathan referred in an interview, as an old friend playing an old friend--a relished reunion!!! The mobsters performed terrifically and "to type," enhancing their roles and the CARLUCCI vs. TESSARO Romeo and Juliet plot and crime mystery!!! Of course, CASTLE’S mob buddy and former source, Dino, loved RAGING HEAT!!!
How I savored and/or chuckled to hear: “You want to hear God laughing, tell him your plans;” “this is my wife Kate BECKETT;” “Omerta;” “I respect the hell out of you;” “Oh, the places we go to follow a lead; if it leads to a criminal, it’s worth it indeed;” and Kate’s own, rhymed contribution to the family, Christmas card!!! Stana/Kate was so giddily pleased and in love with her “partner in crime and in life;” while Nathan/Rick, wonderfully conveyed his distress and his compassion for his wife’s future distress, while already plotting his return to the 12th!!!
What a sweet, touching, corny, sappy, and amusing "thread" about the CASTLE Christmas card!!! As I have fun writing/trying to write "jingles" for family occasions--this plot development was amusing for me to view and to hear!!! The loft, mob homes, and precinct decorations were perfect for each location!!!
The ending was poignant and bittersweet, yet sweet!!! Again, Stana/Kate and Nathan/Rick--outstanding!!! I was happy, too, with the 7x11 promo conversations and tone—on to NYPD and PI!!!
I think Castle will be using that favor later this season when he starts to go after either 3XK or the missing 2 months plot. We will just have to wait and see.
Actually, we don't see that guy at all until now, 7x10. Sure, guys look. We admire. We ogle. We get caught. But does that fit into this story? 4 episodes away from a wedding that almost didn't happen (7x6)? Third times the charm? He should be busy filling jars with penny. Last episode he didn't care for her apartment. This episode he didn't seem concern that she was irritated with his ogling. Where are we going with this?
If they threw in some comedy and Castle said something about getting Beckett similar outfits and Beckett retorted with not wanting to be paid in singles (2x1), I would have been all right with it. Maybe if he deflected with "I was admiring their boots" along with her irritation as some sort of acknowledgment that all coupled have silly small fights. Maybe. But as is it just doesn't seem honest to the story and characters. I'm not asking for a Polly-Anna-ish relationship but I don't need a "Will they/Won't they" separation based on infidelity arc either.
Castle 2.0. It's a strange new world.
Actually, we don't see that guy at all until now, 7x10. Sure, guys look. We admire. We ogle. We get caught. But does that fit into this story? 4 episodes away from a wedding that almost didn't happen (7x6)? Third times the charm? He should be busy filling jars with penny. Last episode he didn't care for her apartment. This episode he didn't seem concern that she was irritated with his ogling. Where are we going with this?
If they threw in some comedy and Castle said something about getting Beckett similar outfits and Beckett retorted with not wanting to be paid in singles (2x1), I would have been all right with it. Maybe if he deflected with "I was admiring their boots" along with her irritation as some sort of acknowledgment that all coupled have silly small fights. Maybe. But as is it just doesn't seem honest to the story and characters. I'm not asking for a Polly-Anna-ish relationship but I don't need a "Will they/Won't they" separation based on infidelity arc either.
Castle 2.0. It's a strange new world.
. I don't think they are going down the infidelity route. I attribute it to the Creasey's being young and not realizing how odd it was. But, who knows. I thought the whole Esplanie story line was delightful! I loved a sheepish Lanie asking Javi to pretend to be engaged and Javi manning up and saving face for her. They did a nice job of making us think that the couple was headed for a commitment, only to have them honestly admit that they didn't have that deep love that they saw in the Ryans and the Castles. It was so well done IMO! Ryan about stole the show with his impromptu story of how they got engaged.
He seemed to be having a great time too!I have to admit that I suspected something like what we got at the end. When we were in LA for the Castle Con, Andrew Marlowe told the people at our lunch table that they were planning on Castle getting his PI license and trying his wings at that, inferring that something would pull him out of the precinct. Marlowe asked us to keep that to ourselves until after this episode aired. I like that Gates delivered the news with a tone of regret because she's shown that she really does respect him now. It was certainly heartbreaking to see Castle continue to participate in the festivities, despite the burden of knowledge he was carrying. Great facial expressions from Nathan. Personally, I'm looking forward to the fun that this twist will bring. Today I read several interviews with David Amann and he emphasizes that throughout the whole arc, Castle's main mission is to find a way back to working with Kate. I'm sure he will but there's a lot of interesting stuff that could come from this new dynamic. I don't look for it to last any more than 3 episodes at the most.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable hour for me.
. I don't think they are going down the infidelity route. I attribute it to the Creasey's being young and not realizing how odd it was. But, who knows. I keep rewatching that scene and it's clear Beckett is irritated with the stripper for touching Castle - "Really?". She's also annoyed with being there because she thinks it's a bad idea. Is she irritated with Castle for ogling? Is her "two drink minimum" sarcasm from season 2 Beckett because her partner isn't paying attention to the case or from an annoyed wife because her husband is ogling strippers? I'm trying to keep an open mind so I can see how it can be a bit ambiguous. Later when Castle returns he's fully focused on the case. But, yes, I agree that he shouldn't have stood there watching the performance when he's a newlywed and is on wife #3. Don't want that behavior to be part of the explanation for the failed #1 and #2. Don't want Meredith to be prophetic either.
For the most part, the Creasey's got it right. I love seeing Kate at the loft. Used to be we had the murder followed by Castle family time followed by a phone call from Beckett before we finally got to see her when Castle arrived at the crime scene. Nice to see her helping with the Xmas decor instead of coming over as a guest in "Secret Santa". And it could be just me but I love her softer look. In the prior Xmas episode, she looked like she was out on a date with Castle. In the early scene in "Bad Santa" Kate looked very much at home. Okay, I'm probably romanticizing it. Guilty.
I think the Esplanie being just great friends scenario makes sense. First Kevin and Jenny then Castle and Beckett followed by Javi and Lanie would have been a bit much. Gate's would probably be accused of running a dating service. Of course this means Javi and Tory would be a no go if you follow that logic. I know. I know. Jenny doesn't work there.
Favorite scene: Castle putting on a happy face for Beckett after being handed his hat. It takes a lot of nerve and willpower to do that knowing you cannot be a part of the extended family at the 12th. Kudos. Also loved seeing Kate and Lanie dance. Okay, maybe that's my favorite scene.
I keep rewatching that scene and it's clear Beckett is irritated with the stripper for touching Castle - "Really?". She's also annoyed with being there because she thinks it's a bad idea.
On a better note. I think the Creaseys are at the top of the list when it comes to writing Caskett. It is always fun, playful and supportive. My favorite line of the episode was when Ryan told that huge guy "you're in trouble, Ryan trouble" and the guy looks at him and says "I don't know what that means." For some reason, that respinse cracks me up.
Such a super hero!