Now that Caskett are back from their honeymoon, the writers chose to shine the spotlight on another character. Javier Esposito is worth spending time with.
Throughout the hour, we explored three facets of Esposito’s character; his ability as a cop, his relationship as a best friend, and his relationship as a boyfriend. Each showed us how much he has grown since we met him in the pilot.
We have always known Esposito to be a great cop. He is fearless (sometimes to a fault) and he has an uncanny ability to stay calm in any situation. As he answers to Beckett in the 12th’s pecking order, we usually see him doing what she or Gates has asked him to do.
In this situation, he had to take charge. He did so beautifully. He was able to get Jared to talk to him and he was brutally honest about what the repercussions of Jared’s actions were. He was lovely with Marisa, making her smile and getting her onboard with what his plan to disarm Jared was. As I watched that subway car filled with terrified people, I knew that Esposito would take care of any situation that arose and do it with grace. This is a man who has proven his worth many times, but never more than now.
Ryan and Esposito’s friendship has been one of the touchstones of this series. It has grown along with them. From playing video games on a couch they found on the street, these two are now moving through the next stage of their lives. I loved the conversation between the two of them in the car, especially when Esposito couldn’t help but make a joke at the end. These two are best friends, but they are not touchy-feely.
Ryan is married and raising a child; Esposito thinks he’s ready for that as well. Unfortunately, Lanie may not be and it is clear that Esposito is worried about where this relationship is headed. I thought for sure that Esposito and Marisa were going to end up together in some manner as she is more like him than Lanie is. It was a good call on the part of the writers to have her be the one to send Esposito back to Lanie. It made me like her even more than I already did.
The case surrounding Esposito was not all that original, but the guilty party at the end surprised me. As Jared became more and more sick, it became clear that he was going to be shown to be a patsy. Just how much of a patsy was a good twist on a stock tale.
This episode wasn’t bad. The story was trite, but I enjoyed exploring Esposito in more depth than we have in a while. Three out four lab techs who can put a shredded piece of paper together in record time.
Tidbits:
— Jared hacked into a bank and released its emails, “which reflected poorly on their business practices.” With everything that’s happened over at Sony since this episode aired, this is not as far-fetched as some Castle plot points have been.
— Pineapple, olives and double jalapeño pizza? We all have our quirks.
Soundbites:
Castle: “Turner and Hooch aren’t even married.”
Beckett: “Yeah, but you still remind me a little of Hooch.”
Not the best allusion to the early days. The better one was Castle buying drinks for everyone at The Old Haunt.
Marisa: “I know what this is. I’m just a transit cop. You gold shield guys, always acting like you’re better than us.”
Esposito: “We are better than you.”
Marisa: “Who you think of in that moment — it has weight. Don’t trade what’s real for something that isn’t.”
Castle: “Come on. We’ll take the subway. Too soon?”
Esposito: “Too soon.”
Castle, holding up a subway token: “Please take this as a token of my apology.” He laughs. “Am I on the wrong track here?”
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.
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