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Castle: The Fast And The Furriest

“It all adds up to one thing. She was killed by Bigfoot.”

This was an episode that tried hard, but missed and missed badly. What should have been a really entertaining episode about what we believe in had only moments of fun. Overall, it was dull and, sadly, all too predictable.

I understand that five years is a long time and that story lines are going to begin to feel similar to stories we have seen before. But, almost every part of this story felt like a re-tread. I was bored through the vast majority of it.

Let’s get the bad out the way. We had the Mulder/Scully divide again, with the same two on each side of the issue. We know that Castle and Ryan are the believers and that Beckett and Esposito are not. Instead of following this blueprint, it might be fun to shake up either the believers or the pairings.

I love Perlmutter, but it is now clear that he is brought in whenever the cases are going to be freaky. It is he who does the autopsy on the nitrogen frozen chef, the zombies, the laser blaster, the evil DVD and now Bigfoot. I’m not complaining too loudly as I love his interactions with Castle, but seeing his names in the credits is now a dead giveaway about what the episode is going to be.

I knew who the killer was because he was the first person that Caskett talked to and then we never saw him again until the end of the episode. The writers really need to come up with something a bit more original. The scene with Caskett in the trap felt an awful lot like their being handcuffed in the cage, only with Bigfoot instead of the tiger. Did anyone really not know who Bigfoot was going to turn out to be?

Alexis stealing food and lying about it? The least said about this the better. That snapped my suspension of disbelief completely. Likewise, I am a huge fan of Stana Katic’s, but she phoned this one in. Her delivery on what should have been the line of the show (“you are ruggedly handsome”) was painful and her shouting at the various suspects felt forced and off.

What did work in this episode and what I wish we had seen a lot more of was the various discussions about what people believe. The weakest bit was Alexis, but it is nice to see a young woman who has had her life handed to her appreciate it. I would have loved to have seen that dinner; Dad, daughter and hippy friend at Le Cirque. The comedy potential is obvious.

The scene that kept this episode from being a total disaster was the scene in the bedroom. I like how comfortable Caskett are with each other, and I loved the discussion of magic. A long time ago, Castle told Beckett that if she could not believe in even the possibility of magic, she would never find it. Well, she has found it in the simple joys of every day living. What a lovely character beat.

I liked Castle’s speech as well. For a man who writes mysteries, he is determined to find some in his reality. As everything that can be has been explored, Castle finds magic in the things that cannot be explained. He does not need to be able to see, hear or touch them to believe.

Of course, the ultimate magic is just what Beckett says. These two people, with their wildly differing views, have come together and created something even better. Too bad the writers couldn’t do the same this week. Two out of four Smurf faces.

Tidbits:

-- The next scheduled episode deals with a bombing. Due to the recent issues in Boston, ABC has switched this episode with the next. Next week, therefore, will be what should have been episode 5.22, then the following week will be the bombing episode, 5.21. Many of the cast have tweeted that there will be continuity issues.

-- A pitbull named Badass. Really?

-- When the trap went off, Beckett went after the intruder with a crystal statue. Where was her gun?

Soundbites:

Beckett: “I believe in the everyday magic of life. I mean, things I can see and touch, like the green shoots that pop through the snow in February, or the Flatiron building, or the way that I feel when I hear Coltrane.”

Castle: “Ah spork. They all laughed at you.”

ChrisB is a freelance writer who spends more time than she ought in front of a television screen or with a book in her hand.

5 comments:

  1. Agreed. This episode wasn't firing on all cylinders. Would have loved to see the dinner with Alexis and the hippy friend.. Her smurf face was kinda funny though. Some cute Caskett stuff but not enough of a good case to go with it.
    Anna

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  2. My mom had the killer pegged too. I banked on it being the wife of the bigfoot expert for no other reason than she had no reason to be on the screen at all. This episode was a MESS. It had its funny moments but it was so unfocused. The guy with the hook for the hand? Why was here there besides to kill time?

    Also, HUGE plot hole. Hook guy said he saw the victim making the Bigfoot tracks she was dumped near. How did the murderer know where to leave her? Or did he make his own Bigfoot tracks? Urg.

    On the bombing episode thing: there are some odd similarities between what happened in Boston this week to last season's "47 Seconds." I've been thinking about it all week. The police are asking for cell phone pictures and videos from everyone nearby and wasn't that part of the way the case in "47 Seconds" was solved?

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  3. Oh! Also, it's completely unrealistic that Alexis would give away all of her money. She's a generous person, but she's also smart. I could see her giving a lot of her money away to her friend, but not all. Plus, isn't she living on campus? Shouldn't she have a meal plan of some sort?

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  4. Good catch on the "47 Seconds" episode, sunbunny. Yes, it was the cellphone coverage that helped solve that particular case.

    The whole Alexis story line this week made me crazy because it was so ridiculous. I was much, much snarkier about it in my original review, but I decided to edit a bit. For someone who lives on campus, she is home a lot and the whole idea that she would sneak into the house in the middle of the night to eat was absurd.

    One bit of humor, however. Molly tweeted that it took her two days to get all the blue off her face.

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  5. Shame on me. I confess that I believed that IT was THE Bigfoot for a few seconds when castle looked up...

    A red hair blue face ? Priceless. Indeed, this one could have been better. Oh heck.

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