On the surface, Castle may look a lot like Bones. In fact, most people have compared it to Bones at one time or another, as both shows involve a cop working with a civilian out in the field. However, that is where the similarities end.
The premise of Castle is simple: NYPD officer Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) teams up with a famous crime novelist named Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion). Together, they solve all the crimes, not without a healthy dose of sexual tension and humor. The show is unique due to Castle's perspective. After all, you see all those cookie-cutter cop shows, but how often do you see it from a crime novelist's perspective? Castle is like the forensic psychologist and walking encyclopedia all rolled into one.
And another thing that makes Castle such a success is that the show's writers aren't afraid to advance the relationship between the two leads. I mean, really, there are certain crime shows — ones that I shall not mention by name — that take six seasons for the guy and the girl to get together, and it all happens without much buildup and then suddenly, the girl is several months pregnant . . . what the hell, right?
In the three-and-a-half seasons of Castle which have aired so far, there's been a steady building up of Castle and Beckett's relationship, from secret glances to sharing coffee to even a kiss some time in season three. When Castle and Beckett get together, it will be completely expected, which may seem like a bad thing, but trust me, you haven't experienced a bad "your favorite pairing finally happens" moment until you realize you're sitting there scratching your head and going, "Wait. What . . . why . . . how . . . what just happened?"
"The Blue Butterfly," which aired on Monday followed a different track than the normal Castle episode. Rather than the usual "dead body appears followed by crime solving followed by catching the criminal" formula that the show usually employs, Castle and Beckett investigate a modern-day crime by reconstructing a crime that took place in the 1940s by using a diary for clues as to what happened back then.
And the way they reconstruct the crime is by having the cast members portray the characters from the 1940s crime in a sort of flashback-type show-within-a-show gimmick, with Castle narrating the events.
Let me tell you right now that it was incredibly strange to see the normally workaholic Detective Beckett all decked out and speaking in seductive tongues to a private investigator version of Richard Castle. And don't even get me started on Alexis Castle (Molly Quinn), normally Castle's daughter, and her new role as the villain of the 1940s story. Completely unexpected, but completely awesome. Each actor or actress played their role to perfection, especially Katic and Fillion, who had to switch back and forth from modern day Castle-and-Beckett to 1940s Joe-and-Vera.
The modern-day crime wasn't something to scoff at either. It managed to surprise all the viewers with a twist at the end as to the identities of two people whom are introduced in the episode, connecting the 1940s to 2012 in more ways than one. If I get any more specific, I'll spoil it for everyone who reads this column, so for now, I'll just say that I heartily give this episode five solid stars and highly recommend it to everyone who likes crime, watching actors play two completely opposite roles or the 1940s.
As a side note, I also recommend it to anyone who likes to look at Nathan Fillion's face.
Castle airs at 10 p.m. EST on Mondays. The next episode will air on Feb. 13th.
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