My Quick Thoughts on Castle Season 7

Howdy people of the internet, how’s it going? Since Castle, one of my favourite TV shows is back on-air with the first episode of season 8 currently out, I thought I’d given my quick review/thoughts on season 7 since there was no official review written beforehand.

For my previous reviews check them out below:

1. Season 1
2. Season 2
3. Season 3
4. Season 4
5. Season 5
6. Season 6

With Castle season 7 it was a lot of fun, it was all the usual fun you’d get from the show with thrilling cases and character-driven stories. I have to admit, going into this season I hyped to see more Castle and find out what happened after the season 6 finale, though over the course of this season I found myself getting a little fatigued with the show and that’s not to say that it was boring, but that it had gone on for 7 seasons and really needed to finish strong before it got dull or less engaging.

The quality of this season was good with some interesting revelations about Castle’s disappearance and the progression of Beckett’s career, but the highlight was certainly the return of the 3XK storyline (“Resurrection” and “Reckoning“) which was satisfying for sure. I also loved the episode that focused on Richard’s reason becoming a mystery writer, “Hollander’s Woods“, the Ryan and Esposito-focused episodes (“Kill Switch” and “At Close Range“) were also good and episodes like “Last Action Hero” and “The Wrong Stuff” were fun. What bugged me was the initial treatment of Richard’s disappearance and return, because of his lack of memory and questionable evidence surrounding him, it painted him as the enemy of his own show and put him at odds with not only Kate but his friends and family too. It wasn’t handled the best way, then was swept under the carpet for a while only to be explored fully a while later in “Sleeper“, and while it’s impressive, it’s a little far-fetched too.

At the end of the day what mattered was the relationship between Richard and Kate, and that was still on top form thanks to great work from Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic. Honestly season 7 ended on such a great and strong note, it felt like series finale and I feel like the show should have ended right there and then… But NOPE! This show’s too popular to get rid of so ABC will continue to milk it for as long as it takes, I just hope season 8 is worth it and the show runners have some good material up their sleeve to keep us fans invested.

So have you seen season 7 of Castle and if so what do you think of it? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see you on the next review, laters! 😀

 

Castle Season 6 Review

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen, today I continue my TV reviews and return to one of my favourites with the sixth season of Castle. So with season 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 being totally awesome, it is about time for me to get back to this lovely show and see what epic scenarios would be taking place this time around. So how does season 6 fare? Well, read on and find out.

The plot for this show involves Richard Castle, a famous mystery novelist who is called in to assist the New York police when a serial killer begins committing copycat murders based on situations in his books. After Castle helps crack the case, he then decides to kill off his longtime character and create a new one, named “Nikki Heat,” and research her by shadowing Det. Kate Beckett. And now Castle and Beckett continue to work together on various crimes as they their relationship continues to grow and become deeper.

Story-wise this season is pretty great, the stories work individually, but are also connected throughout not only this season, but also tie back to episodes from previous seasons too. This season definitely knows how to get your attention from the get go and even though the main dynamic between Castle and Beckett has changed a little since they decided to get engaged, things are just as fun, exciting and dangerous as before, that being said, I liked how things didn’t stay in the Washington DC and found their way back to their natural routes in New York with the 12th precinct. One great thing this show does well is that it keeps you guessing, the people behind the show constantly find ways to blindside you with unexpected scenarios that you could never predict, especially when it comes to bringing characters and stories from previous seasons in new and intriguing ways. It is really smart and I love it. In addition to that Castle still has that trademark balance between humour and drama with there being a great deal of serious moments with just a nicely timed joke to balance things out as well.

Episode highlights include:

• Valkyrie
• Dreamworld
• Need To Know
• Number One Fan
• Time Will Tell
• Like Father, Like Daughter (personal favourite)
• Disciple (personal favourite)
• The Good, The Bad and the Baby
• Under Fire (personal favourite)
• Deep Cover (personal favourite)
• Room 147
• In the Belly of the Beast (personal favourite)
• The Way of the Ninja (personal favourite)
• The Greater Good
• That 70s Show
• Veritas (personal favourite)
• For Better or For Worse (personal favourite)

When it comes to the cast they are wonderful, the main cast has been playing these character so well for so long that it feels like their good performances seem like second nature to them, and in addition to that the new recurring characters are pretty nice as well.

So let’s start with Nathan Fillion, who is once again brilliant as Richard Castle. Castle is the source of the best humour and moments of inappropriate behaviour, but he has a big heart and care very dearly for Kate, his friends and family, even if it does put him in very dangerous situations. Stana Katic is still killing it as Kate Beckett, she seems more driven and determined than ever due to her job roles, but she also shows a bit of doubt and trouble when it comes to some elements of her work and the engagement to Richard, but she still has some great moments of humour too. Once again Fillion and Katic have great chemistry and I feel like they could just be ad-libbing their material because their characters seem so comfortable and realistic around each other

Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle is still cute and pretty and even though she isn’t around as much, she still has relevance in her father’s life and this is probably my favourite season with her as she is less annoying and gets some good character development this time around. Susan Sullivan as Martha Rodgers, although not seen that much, is still the voice of reason and the source of humour and subtle emotional moments as well. I still have a lot of love for Jon Huertas and Seamus Dever as Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan, as usual both of them have their moments in the sun for great humour, but also great drama and their chemistry together and with Castle and Beckett is awesome. Esposito is still my favourite, but Ryan is still pretty damn cool. Unfortunately Tamala Jones as Lanie Parish is seen a lot less these days, however she is still a delight to watch and is gorgeous, so pretty. At this point I really do think of Penny Johnson Jerald as part of the Castle family as Victoria Gates. Her character is still a by-the-book kind of police person, strong in authority and doesn’t cut people slack when she knows they are on the wrong side of the law. That being said, she does have a heart and in this season more so than than before, she’s had a substantial episode given to develop her and make her a more relatable person which I loved.

So is there anything I didn’t like? Well I have some minor nitpicks, with the crazy scenarios that have taken place in previous seasons, I feel like season 6 was lacking in some innovate and crazy situations, story-wise as there were no stakes that felt as nerve-racking as before. Also the initial move to DC for Beckett feels a bit redundant as she goes back to New York and gets back to her standard job a little while after.

In conclusion Castle season 6 is another good season of this great TV show, as per usual it presents new, exciting and crazy adventures for Castle and Beckett to investigate while also advancing their relationship and personal lives too. While I think that the previous season had a better sense of coherency and fun, this season was still very enjoyable and offered many great twists and turns, cool stand out moments for the main cast beyond just Castle and Beckett and some promising storylines for the future too. Bring on season 7!

Rating: 8.5/10

So have you do watched Castle and if so are you casual watcher or an avid fan? And if not you’re watching this show, then why not? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see you on the next review yo.

 

Castle Season 5 Review

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen, today I continue my TV reviews with the fifth season of Castle. This show has recently taken over my life and this only thing watch when I get home after uni or work, it’s THAT good. So with season 1, 2, 3 and 4 being solid seasons of TV how does season 5 fare? Well read on and find out.

The plot for this show involves Richard Castle, a famous mystery novelist who is called in to assist the New York police when a serial killer begins committing copycat murders based on situations in his books. After Castle helps crack the case, he then decides to kill off his longtime character and create a new one, named “Nikki Heat,” and research her by shadowing Det. Kate Beckett. And now Castle and Beckett continue to work together on various crimes as they their relationship continues to grow and become deeper.

Story-wise this season is awesome, it still does the great balance between seriousness and humour but it does so in a way that’s a lot more inviting than last season and it feels like there is more of a light-hearted feel overall. This season has a lot of episodic stories that either relate to previous episodes or give us new stories to tell and most of them are great and varied. It is crazy after all this time how much more this show can give viewers in terms of new scenarios to experience like Christmas, science fiction conventions, Bigfoot, the world of pornography, reality TV and going overseas for missions is just a piece of the material going on in this show. But beyond the various stories in the centerpiece tale of Castle and Beckett’s relationship which is finally starting to blossom, the great thing is that it isn’t perfect, there are things to iron out, but it does seem like it is real love between them. These two go through some pretty crazy things as usual but it is very much different to what we have seen before for them individually and apart.

Episode highlights include:

• After The Storm
• Cloudy with a Chance of Murder (personal favourite)
• Secret’s Safe with Me
• Murder, He Wrote
• Probable Cause (personal favourite)
• The Final Frontier (personal favourite)
• Secret Santa
• Significant Others
• Recoil
• Reality Star Struck
• Target and Hunt (personal favourite two-part episode)
• The Wild Rover (personal favourite)
• The Lives of Others
• The Fast and the Furriest
• The Squab and the Quail
• Still (personal favourite)
  
• The Human Factor
• Watershed (personal favourite)

When it comes to the cast they are still great, there is not one bad performance from the primary cast members and more so than ever you feel really attached to them, like they are family or really good friends you can’t get enough of seeing.

So let’s start with Nathan Fillion who is still just the best as Richard Castle. Castle is still super funny and weird, but he has his useful sides and still proves to be an asset to the police and Beckett in solving crimes. This season we also get to see how much he loves Beckett just in the way he is around her which is a little more caring now that they are together. But this season also presented a few scenarios for him which I have wanted to see for ages and seeing how it rocked Castle’s world and brought him to darkest and most troubled of places was incredible and really showed off Fillion’s acting chops. Stana Katic is once again a delight as Kate Beckett, now that her and Castle are together I feel like Beckett has finally let her hair down a bit and become more fun, but she’s still sassy and driven and has some work from previous episodes to deal with as well as life-changing scenarios on the horizon too. Together Fillion and Katic have the best chemistry ever especially because the experiences that they have shared together, their now ongoing relationship and the different individual stories that bring these two closer together on many occasions.

There is a lot less of Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle mainly because of her life at university but when se is around she is very good and this season might be her most important one for a while now. Susan Sullivan also takes a backseat to the rest of the cast as Martha Rodgers, however she is still as relevant as ever and her advice to Castle is still as important as ever. I’m still loving Jon Huertas and Seamus Dever as Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan. Both of them have their individual quirks and whether their together or just making general conversation with Castle or Beckett, it’s a good time. While I think Esposito is my favourite of the pair, Ryan definitely had his moment to shine this season and I totally loved him for it. Tamala Jones is given a lot less screen time as Lanie Parish, but Jones still plays the character well and looks beautiful as usual. I’ve also really started to take a liking to Penny Johnson Jerald  as Victoria Gates, she’s still serious and all about getting the job done, but now she feels like she belongs because she looks like she cares about the team.

So is there anything I didn’t like? Well there were a few things I wasn’t overly keen on. This season felt like it lacked a certain level of danger and excitement that previous seasons had, also even though I didn’t expect Castle and Beckett’s relationship to be completely solid from the beginning, I was a little troubled with the way the writers kept giving us viewers reason for the relationship to fall apart only after it just started. Oh and one more thing, there wasn’t enough Lanie in this season, boo. 😛

In conclusion Castle season 5 is great season that really pushes the envelope in terms of story and character development by presenting fresh and interesting scenarios for the viewer to become invested in. There was a whole new dynamic brought on by Castle and Beckett’s relationship but luckily it felt forced or boring, it was still fun, exciting and there was multiple emotion moments for us to be invested in. This season felt more like the show I loved in season 3 and I’m really interested to see what happens in season 6, bring it on yo!

Rating: 9/10

So have you do watched Castle and if so are you casual watcher or an avid fan? And if not you’re watching this show, then why not? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see you on the next review yo. 😀

 

Castle Season 4 Review

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen, today I continue my TV reviews with the fourth season of Castle. I have pretty much been addicted to this show for the last two weeks and have bleeding through it faster than most shows I watch these days. Season 1, 2 and 3 especially have been some of the best TV I’ve seen in a while, so I knew season 4 wouldn’t be too far behind. So how does season 4 fare? Well read on and find out.

The plot for this show involves Richard Castle, a famous mystery novelist who is called in to assist the New York police when a serial killer begins committing copycat murders based on situations in his books. After Castle helps crack the case, he then decides to kill off his longtime character and create a new one, named “Nikki Heat,” and research her by shadowing Det. Kate Beckett. And now Castle and Beckett continue to work together on various crimes as they their relationship continues to grow and become deeper.

Story-wise this season is very good, however it goes in a much more moody and serious direction than before, this is obviously due to what happened to Beckett last season, but even beyond that there is a lot of dramatic and emotional things going on throughout. There’s still plenty of moments of humour and super strange material and that’ll make you laugh and think a lot when they come, however they aren’t as frequent as before. This season’s themes are all about healing and change, this not only heavily applies to Castle and Beckett, but also to Castle’s family, the people at 12th precinct and even some of the episodic stories themselves. By the end of the season finale all I could say was THANK GOD and that’s because after some heavy drama, the one thing I want to happen in this show finally happened and the satisfaction was there in full force.

Episode highlights include:

• Rise (personal favourite)
• Heroes and Villains
• Kick the Ballistics
• Eye of the Beholder (personal favourite)
• Cops and Robbers (personal favourite)
• Heartbreak Hotel (personal favourite)
• Kill Shot (personal favourite)
• Cuffed
• The Blue Butterfly
• Pandora (personal favourite)
• Linchpin (personal favourite)
• 47 Seconds (personal favourite)
• The Limey
• Headhunters
• Undead Again
• Always (personal favourite)

When it comes to the cast they’re really back in full force with the returning cast being even better than before, while newcomers make a good effort to get stuck in. Again these are all relatable and developed characters who you really feel attached to.

So let’s start with Nathan Fillion returns again as Richard Castle and he’s still the best man ever. Castle is still absurd, silly and hilarious, but also very insightful and courageous. Outside of his light-hearted side we see Castle again growing up and becoming more sensible as he adjusts to the changes in his life and how he starts to accept them. Seeing him in a more serious and caring manner really makes him a great character to get behind and root for. Stana Katic as Kate Beckett once again is amazing in this role. This season we see Beckett at her most vulnerable and emotional levels yet, after the season 3 finale the woman has to not only recover physically and mentally, this makes for some incredible scenes with Beckett not being broken and trying to rebuild herself. Beyond that she is still the wonderful, head-strong woman who still has secrets and still doesn’t want to come to terms with the way she feels about Castle. Together the chemistry of Fillion and Katic is hotter than ever, anytime they are together it is either fun, hilarious, dramatic or romantic. These two seem to be in more and more dangerous situations where they could die at any time and it just interesting to see them evolve and strengthen their partnership.

Molly Quinn is once again good as Alexis Castle. Here’s growing even more, starting to live her own life and getting ready for university, all of these factors build her character up and make her more adult and seeing how Castle has to deal with her father’s feelings about her growing up and drifting away from him was really interesting and emotional. That being said again I’m finding myself less and less interested in her. Susan Sullivan is awesome as Martha Rodgers, she’s definitely becoming more than just the stay-at-home-mother, she’s started acting classes and becoming more active outside of her son’s activities with the police. And while she’s still funny and witty from time to time, she also has some really great scenes with her son, talking to him about his relationship with Beckett and giving him some much-needed advice.

Jon Huertas and Seamus Dever still can’t seem to do anything wrong as Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan. As a pair they really kill it offering great moments of comedic timing but also being great emotional support for Castle and Beckett. However I feel like these two have developed more again with Esposito showing off more of his loyalty, while Ryan also showed some levels of devotion to his friends but also being having to make tough calls and follow police protocols. Tamala Jones is still great as Lanie Parish, again its always nice to see her around, but even better was that in this season it showed her and Beckett talking about relationships and how Lanie was giving advice to Beckett about Castle. And then of course there is the new addition of Penny Johnson Jerald who is really good as the new captain, Victoria “Iron” Gates. From the moment she steps on the scene she’s mean, serious, does things by-the-book and takes no sass from no one, especially Castle. Honestly I hated this character at first, but I did start to like her eventually once she started to show a little appreciation for the good work that Beckett and co. were doing. I also want to give shout out to Tahmoh Penikett (Dollhouse) for his appearance in this season as it was so brutal, cool and totally and unexpected.

So is there anything I didn’t like? Well after the season last season finale things changed in the dynamic between Beckett and Castle, especially when it comes to their relationship. However after a few episodes we go back to the whole “will they or won’t they?” scenario and that was kind of frustrating. Thankfully the people behind the show rectified that issue by the end of the season but god, the lead up to it was SO painful. Also because of the more serious nature of this season I kind of missed the more light-hearted and humourous side that came with the last few seasons, I know that there was a great deal of dark subject matters to deal with, but it also took out a lot for some melancholy TV which wasn’t as fun to watch this time around.

In conclusion Castle season 4 is another solid season for this great TV show. There’s a lot of change in the air and things get a lot darker, more serious and murkier not only in the individual stories but also for Beckett and Castle. It is great to watch a show that is so engaging, fun and dramatic and knows how to rectify its problems quickly. While not as great overall as last season, it is definitely has its moments that make it stand out.

Rating: 8.5/10

So have you do watched Castle and if so are you casual watcher or an avid fan? And if not you’re watching this show, then why not? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see you on the next review yo. 😀