metaphor

I feel you, McManda. Been looking forward to this episode for a while, but just felt sad watching it. I wish such a delightful show didn't have to come to an end this way. I guess this tweet from Nancy Kiu confirms that Hanning is done. @nancysan: #Castle fans, you ready to tune in tonight to @RobHanning 's hilarious and heartfelt last episode? Rumor is he just might live tweet... https://twitter.com/nancysan/status/724822681212833792

Interesting. I was just conjecturing before that he might be leaving too, but this makes it seem more likely. It makes sense, given that he's the only one who's spoken up about how sad he is that Stana's leaving. Even the showrunners themselves haven't even put out a statement, which really burns. ABC put one out, NF put one out, one would think they would be allowed to, even for the sake of PR. I'm torn between sticking it out till the finale, because you know, I still like Caskett and Beckett and want to see as much of them as I can, or just dropping out while my last memory of them is a happy one. Luckily, the show is airing earlier in Canada, and someone is livetweeting. I guess I can use those livetweets to gauge what a good time to exit would be. I do find it interesting that between last week's episode and this week's, we've had suggestions of Caskett walking off into the sunset together. The biking across the country, the moving to Paris... I wonder if those are hints being laid out for a possible series finale, or if they're supposed to be a "This is what could have been if they hadn't gone after Loksat... but here, have a dead Beckett instead."

Gotta say, given recent news, the two separate mentions of moving to Paris in this episode had my antennae up. I just don't know. The thought of a Beckettless S9 is just depressing to me, no matter how they write it. I love Rob Hanning's work and he seems to be the one writer left that I can trust to get Caskett right, but I wasn't sure how I felt about the mind-meld thing either. I get they were going for funny with Caskett commenting on it, but after the seeming downplaying of other things I thought were special/important this season, I just feel kind of burned.

Rob Hanning just posted this, together with a picture of him and Stana: Robert Hanning ‏@RobHanning 17m @Stana_Katic Thanks dude. For all of it. You fucking rock. Given these "budget cuts," I wonder if he'll still be connected to the show if it comes back next season.

Finally one sneak peek for 8x19 that includes Beckett. I really should be more enthusiastic about this episode, given that it's written by Rob Hanning, but Monday's news has left a bitter taste in my mouth. So sad that I don't think I can fully enjoy these last 4 episodes of Castle, knowing where we're headed.

I haven't listened to it myself, just read about what she said, but if you're at all interested, the podcast can be streamed here: http://comicbookcentral.net/episode-121-susan-sullivan/ Castle talk, per those who have listened, starts at around 43 minutes. Yep, Jon ran a fan contest in which the winner won lunch with him at Clutch, and he went ahead and brought Stana and Seamus with him as a surprise. I believe this happened sometime last month. So they do hang out outside of work. I'm actually more surprised at how quiet Seamus has been, since I've found him to be even more outspoken than Jon re: work conditions, but maybe he is thinking about his own negotiations and doesn't want to rock the boat. Quite curious about why Hawley and Winter haven't said anything. Rob Hanning is addressing tweets, so it's not like the writers aren't allowed to talk. And despite some vagueness in ABC's official statement, Nathan's tweet pretty much confirms that the departure is a done deal.

I believe so. She also said: @NancyLeeGrahn: Smh. @Stana_Katic fav actor I've worked with on episodic. Again, SMH. #castle https://t.co/LLHtOL1h9v https://twitter.com/NancyLeeGrahn/status/722540979748646913

Yeah, I think the Crazy Days and Nights BI #1 was eventually said to be about Joshua Jackson and Anna Torv, another onscreen couple from another show I loved that seemed to not get along IRL. But at least that show ended with the characters in a good place. Granted they only had to work with each other for 5 years. I also really don't believe that #2 is about Castle. I don't think the writers would have known about this that early. And ABC renewed Stana's contract for a full season after S7 after all. I too hope they don't kill Beckett. At least I can walk away from this show with some degree of peace then. Just pretend that it ended. I wonder what the odds are for at least a semi-happy ending by May 16. I know some others are walking away now, just knowing that it will all end. They don't want their memories tainted by what happens to Beckett in the finale. I kind of appreciate Rob Hanning's voice in all this: I believe that. As watered down as it has been this season, I still wouldn't want to try writing this show without its core. And however TPTB try to spin it, that is Caskett.

Definitely a tone deaf response. Seriously. I don't think any of the cast that has tweeted has acquitted him/herself particularly well. Apart from Tamala, I guess. And maybe Seamus. I think it's for the best Mr. Fillion hasn't said anything, because I don't expect it to be any good. I did my bit telling ABC via twitter and email that without Stana they should just give the show a dignified ending this season, but who knows? It's all about the money. I think I'm still sort of in denial about it all. I had sort of expected the show to end after this season, and I guess now it is, whether or not ABC chooses to go on with a very pale shadow.

Actually, it's airing on Sunday again next week on CTV. The network has yet to put up its schedule for the month of May, so we'll see if Canadians get to watch early all the way to the finale.

I thought this particular response of Stana's to an FB question was somewhat pointed: Q: How important is it for the pair of you to have Beckett's character perpetually growing? We are at season 8 and she is still learning new things about herself. A: What new things do you think she's learned this season? :) I do think the character has stagnated this season (oddly enough, the season in which she got a new job) and that the actress hasn't had much to chew on dramatically, though I'm not among those who think it's some huge conspiracy. Just a product of less than imaginative writing. I hope tonight's episode will be a pleasant surprise in that area. As for NF, he had this to say today: Dean Heuman ‏@dheuman @NathanFillion We need to see Castle write again, he has lost his edge, plus he doesn't hang with the interesting and rich anymore. Nathan Fillion ‏@NathanFillion Perhaps watching Castle write isn’t the riveting television you imagine it is? Though it made me laugh, I get what the tweeter meant about the writing. That having been said, the lack of focus on Castle's writing has been there since I guess S3/S4, and in fairness to the this set of writers, there has been a bit more reference to his work this season than in the other more recent ones.

There was originally supposed to be a week's break between 8x18 and 8x19 (Rob Hanning's episode) per Rob. But now, according to Hawley, they will be airing 8x16 straight through to the finale. Yes, and 8x16 is the episode in which Beckett finally comes back home. I'd been enthused that it was airing in March as well; kind of disappointed that it's not to be.

Sneak peek #3: @Castle_ABC: Will Castle be able to find inspiration for his new novel? Tune in to an all-new #Castle Monday! https://t.co/XLZy326jd4

Heh. It's funny because of the perpetually dark shots on the show, but FWIW, that hash tag was in reference to this previous Hanning tweet. @RobHanning: #Castle #819 #BTS My 3 takeaways from set this AM: 1) Bill Roe is pretty darn good at his job 2) Stana is a ray of pure light 3) see 1&2

I think they sometimes indicate that someone might remember Charlie, but it's never paid off till the end of the finale. Speaking of the finale, I was kind of confused about the abrupt shift from Alex promising to stay away from Charlie if he would just live, to their appearing to just continue living as a family with Luke in the flashforward. I wonder if we'll see that addressed in S5. In any case, I really enjoyed S4. It made me more invested not only in Charlie, Alex and their family, but also in Dana, Dawn and Maggie. Looking forward to more of this show, for sure.

2 games without Klay so far this season, 2 games going into overtime. I think it's definitely tougher for Steph without both Klay and HB. Still, he was able to eke out 38 points and a double-double, and the Dubs got the win with a great game from Draymond. The overtime worried me as it going on, given the back-to-back. I'm with you in hoping they have enough in the tank left for one more game before heading home.

I'm a Warriors fan, and I'm very glad the streak continues, but the Pacers outscored the Warriors 40-20 in the 4th quarter. Luckily, a buffer had already been built, but watching the lead shrink was quite worrisome.

I'm definitely still watching, and I've actually enjoyed the last five episodes a lot. I find it interesting that they always seem to be threatening to remove Maggie from the show, first with the job offer and now with her life seemingly in danger in the two-parter. Enjoying Dawn and Dana's storylines. The newbies are just okay. I thought it was weird how Dr. Curtis suddenly disappeared and now we have Dr. Bishop in his place. I've always been Team Charlie, so I'm relieved that Charlie/Alex seems to be going strong. They're such a solid family with Luke that I was actually taken aback when Alex referred to herself as Charlie's girlfriend a couple episodes back. I'm glad Alex's reluctance to deal with Charlie's taxes hasn't been a huge source of angst (thus far?).

In fairness to Roum, Castle knows about LOKSAT. They discussed it while working together in 8x02.

Couple of other similar post-mortem interviews here and here. After reading all of those interviews, I must admit that I don't understand why the fake break-up couldn't have been the storyline they went with from the beginning. I feel like most of the same dramatic and comedic beats could have been hit without the frustration and confusion regarding the characters' actions that this first third of the season has brought about. For all the writers have said in the past, I don't feel after watching 8x08 that this has all been worth it or that I have learned new things about the characters that have made me believe in them or their relationship even more. But onward and upward, I guess.

Apparently, Castle and Beckett are gonna get trapped at sea with a killer in the fall finale.

Well, they're definitely filming in a courtroom for this episode, at least.

I really enjoyed this episode. Three eps in and I am hooked. It's nice and light and the characters are mostly endearing. I was particularly amused by Paget's character's taking that Which Friend Are You test, and how appalled she was to be repeatedly identified as a Ross.

Nathan gave TVLine some soundbites about Season 8. “First of all, I asked them if they were high,” Nathan Fillion quipped to TVLine on Saturday night, at The Paley Center for Media‘s Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog reunion event. “Second, they reassured me that what was going was they wanted to get back to a time when people were rooting for the couple, rooting for them to get together, to do something.” “People had a desire, a wont, for them to fight for something,” Fillion observes. And in finding this way to restore that dynamic, “I think [the showrunners] did a really good job.” “One of the things that Terence and Alexi are really big on, and I agree, is they don’t consider Castle to be a drama,” Fillion said. “It’s never been much of a drama; it’s far more a comedy with dramatic and heartfelt moments. And they wanted to bring it back to a time when it was funny, when it was great, when it was the lighthearted show that everybody fell in love with.” I don't really know about that last part. I liked PhDead well enough, but I don't think an emotional break-up and an ongoing investigation into a Bigger Bad were key to getting Castle back to being a lighthearted show. I was watching S2 eps earlier today, and a lot of the funny came from more interesting COTWs and sharper character interactions revolving around investigating them. Ideally, they could have gotten back to that formula without breaking up the central pairing. I think they're bent on bringing the comedy from ep to ep despite the overarching separation/Loksat storyline, but there's definitely the risk of emotional discontinuity/whiplash there.

Yep. I don't mind "honey" either. He started with it last year, and I like it better than "sweetie." As for "Rick," I think Beckett tends to use it in more serious moments. See: "What about you, Rick?," "What am I supposed to do, Rick?," and most recently, "Rick, do you trust me?" So maybe we'll be hearing it again over the course of this arc. I have a feeling they're not comparing Castle's initial disappearance with Beckett's choice to leave, but more Castle's choice (should they paint it as such) to stay away for those six unaccounted weeks and Beckett's choice to stay away from him now. Maybe they'll even tie the A storylines in together; Hawley seemed to be intimating such in one of the many interviews the new showrunners gave. As to whether the comparison will be acceptable to viewers, I guess we'll have to wait and see. I do agree that a healthy end to this separation should involve both parties taking responsibility for their actions and making amends and rebuilding trust, and not just sweeping Beckett's choice and all the pain it caused under the rug because hey, Castle made a choice that brought her pain in the past, too.