When I first watched Castle, I had such high hopes for this show. And if watching Nathan Fillion deliver great lines rapid-fire were enough, I might be happier with Castle. But it’s not. Watching the show this week felt like a chore. I found myself thinking, “Why is this show on the air? Does it offer anything new or fresh or different?” The answer is no.
The ability to suspend our disbelief is an essential component to watching television (I don’t watch reality TV, but I suspect it’s important for those shows too). Most shows worth watching will offer you some essential truths about human nature or relationships even if the plots are unbelievable. However, Castle offers neither. I don’t believe a word of the show, so I wonder why the hell I’m sitting there watching it.
How many procedurals have focused their plots around prep school deaths where the students close ranks to protect the perp? Well, I’ve seen this plot on Bones, The Closer, and Lie to Me. Recently. Those are just the first three to come to mind. So, Castle‘s take on the same topic offered nothing new. Even worse, as I said before, the episode was completely unbelievable. So, here’s my list of what I should have been able to believe, but poor writing and a complete lack of imagination made that impossible.
1. I don’t believe for one minute that Castle would be allowed to interview suspects. Especially at the police station. This has never been feasible, but the entire show’s premise hinges on this being allowed and possible. So, it’s a hard detail to get around because it happens constantly.
2. When Castle was watching Beckett interview the drug dealer, another cop is explaining to Castle her techniques. This was blatantly aimed at telling the audience what was going on, but it was also insulting. Who besides eight-year-old children haven’t seen enough television to know what cops do when interviewing a suspect? Who doesn’t already understand this to the point that they have to dissect it like we are morons? And if Castle is the moron, why is he allowed to question suspects?
3. Castle’s mother is just a caricature. She isn’t interesting; she is a cliche.
4. The scene in which Castle’s daughter apologetically and tearfully makes a long confession about jumping the turnstile at the subway station so she wouldn’t be stuck on the streets of New York late at night completely undermined the beautiful scene in which Castle had confronted his daughter about drugs and she reassured him that she was a good kid. For her to be so upset about such a minor incident was disingenuous. She is a smart enough kid to know that what she did wasn’t really wrong, and certainly didn’t merit grounding herself for a week. They pushed things too far with this completely insincere — and untruthful — scene.
5. Once Castle and Beckett had established that the murderer, Brandon, must be a really intelligent kid to have planned so many things ahead of time, they tricked a confession out of him in a stupid way. Also, any kid who was genuinely intelligent to have pulled off what he did wouldn’t have been stupid enough to bait the police the way he did; he also wouldn’t have talked to them without a lawyer. It would have been so much more original and interesting to catch a kid without a tricked confession, a kid who genuinely was as good as the show was trying to convince us this kid was.
I’ll watch the show one more time to see if it gets any better, but then I’m going to put myself out of my misery and delete it from my season pass.
Clacked by Jen Creer
on Mar 26, 2009 @ 18:00 EST5EDT
The whole show is a cliche and it already found its way into the delete season pass circular file. Another big whiff for Mr. Fillion.
Maybe he should let someone else pick his next show.
Harsh!
I mean, I can’t disagree with any of it, but harsh :)
I still like it though. Its not Shakespeare, but I enjoy Fillion and the character. And Static’s character is growing on me, too.
What Dorv said.
I didn’t even watch this episode until you wrote about it. I also agree with everything you wrote but just like Dorv:
The problem is that the writing is contradicting itself. I mean how realistic is it that a homicide detective interrogates someone and the book author gets this explained when later on every real discovery about the case is made by the author and not the detective? It’s as if she’s the tool that isn’t sharp enough that only uses techniques while he’s the one who’s bright enough to understand ruses – then again last week she knew when the perp was lying while he came up with the two passports. So what is it now? On top of that most of Castle’s findings are solely based on conversations with his daughter. It’s as if Beckett isn’t even thinking about the cases at times, then again she is. And then Castle’s thinking about the case – other times he isn’t. It’s kind of insulting the audience. Add to that those two doofuses who work with Beckett who throw around words like “Slam Dunk case” and you’ll really get annoyed.
My personal problem is that I like both Fillion and Stana Katic. I loved that scene in quantum of solace where Bond tells her to tell her agency they got a leak :-)
I also think it’s too early to say that you should delete this – it’s been three episodes. Dollhouse asked for at least six, I watched seven episodes of “Trust Me” (and started the 8th and it annoyed the hell out of me so I’m done with that one I guess) – only “Lie to Me” is so abysmal that I only managed to watch six.
This is a good show, I’m sure of it. Hey it made me start watching “Bones” again and I watched 70 episodes in five days of that one and the bogus science didn’t even bother me.
The writers are the problem on Castle and I sincerely hope they got their act together. You should give it two more tries at least, if not three and then decide. I wholeheartedly agree that they are trying to pull of the team routine too early, that they didn’t fletch out the characters enough for an episode like this and that they are asking us to believe things that aren’t believable while over the top music is playing in the background but this isn’t “Drive” and it’s not “Daybreak” I really think that this show can work if only the writers had more feel for the characters and the show.
I mean I’m not nearly as disgusted about this show as I am about “Chuck” and I keep trying it out and hating myself for it. “Chuck” is like junk food, this is a good piece of meat that’s just not cooked right. Try some more. Please :-)
I agree – I want to like the show because of the actors and the premise but I feel that I have to suspend my disbelief a little too much. One reason I think Law and Order has lasted as long is that is true to the process – other than going to trial so quickly.
I have also noticed the growing trend of strong female agent paired with kooky male expert, ie Fringe (which I love and can’t wait until it comes back), Eleventh Hour, Mentalist (another good one) and now Castle. The only character I don’t “buy” is the blonde on Eleventh Hour.
I will continue to watch because of Nathan Fillon, but I hope they improve the writing.
I almost wrote a very similar post to this. I have a problem with Castle being so easily, willingly and quickly allowed to not only tag along with the investigations, but actually participate in them. I get this is fictional (really, I do!), but in the “real world,” I wonder if cases could be thrown out of court and result in mistrials if evidence or crime scenes were visited and handled by unofficial personnel?
Also, when does Castle actually, you know, write? And what is all of this supposed to be helping him write? This show would make a lot more sense if, instead of a crime-of-the-week, Castle was tagging along to watch an investigation into a serial killer — just ONE set of related crimes. What kind of book is this going to be if it’s riddled with different crimes and criminals?
I can’t disagree with a single point, either, but somehow I still enjoy Castle, if only a little. Should all your well thought out points be addressed by the producers, I would enjoy Castle immensely.
I hope they read CliqueClack, Jen!
OK, I disagree with everybody. If you want another boring CSI show with intricately researched details… go watch CSI. I have watched them, they are good when I don’t have anything to do… but I don’t rush home to watch them. I don’t spend hours talking to my friends about them. I don’t sit down and try to write my own stupid fan fiction mystery because of them. Castle is fully of quirky characters doing what I would like to do if I had a chance. It is what entertainment is supposed to be about. I am a computer professional, but I can accept someone walking up to a computer with a unique user interface and seeing someone type a few codes and get instant access and immediately know how to control the most secure areas of any system… It is called entertainment! I think Castle is absolutely perfect. Everybody that I have talked to that has seen it loves it… even this cantankerous guy I work with gave it a shot and loves it. This writer, Castle, seems to be everybody’s favorite guy and that makes it believable to me that he would get some leeway that other rookies would not. He has signed a waiver for his personal safety and is buds with the Mayor. Also, he has contributed to several solved cases and he has good insight, but even without that… I don’t care, I just love it, because it is entertaining! I love the 1 hour of fluff after 1 hour of 24 (I know they aren’t the same network, but that is my schedule :-) Chuck, then 24, then Castle…. Fun, stress, fun!!! NBC, Fox, ABC… where is CBS? I don’t care on Monday… I am going to give Harper’s Island a go on Thursday for more Stress after Supernatural (more Stress, but fun also)…
“For her to be so upset about such a minor incident was disingenuous. She is a smart enough kid to know that what she did wasn’t really wrong, and certainly didn’t merit grounding herself for a week. They pushed things too far with this completely insincere — and untruthful — scene.”
She wasn’t really upset, in fact, she was brilliant, her confession was merely to set the stage for her request to go on that field trip. (Which was granted) In fact, it merely shows how smart she is and is perfectly in character considering what she would pick up being with her father all the time.
No wonder Jen finds the series unappealing. Jen does not seem to be able to see past the surface of the characters and their actions. Throw in pessimism, and even the suitability of Castle’s mother [the character] is lost on Jen, cliche or not.