S07.E01: Driven

[verdana]

Castle Premiere Recap: When the Mystery Writer Becomes the Mystery by Matt at TV Line.

 

He gives a handy recap of what is known in case anyone has got lost in the muddle.

 

So, to summarize what we know for certain:
1) Rick was in the car, but was dragged away after the crash.
2) Rick himself paid for the Escalade involved in the crash to be destroyed.
3) Rick was found two months later, in a dinghy off the coast of Delaware.
4) On Rick’s person was a key stamped “38.”
5) Rick’s system tested positive for Dengue fever antibodies.
6) Rick had been grazed by a bullet a few weeks before he was found.
7) The man who passed himself off as Henry Jenkins (played by Scandal‘s Matt Letscher) and apparently staged Rick’s “camping site” was a phony.
8) Series creator Andrew W. Marlowe said this mystery is rooted in a new mythology that will “open up some really interesting aspects of storytelling for the Castle character.”
9) Nathan Fillion, in an EW.com interview, suggested that this new, Rick-centric mythology won’t be as dark-n-twisty as Kate’s.
10) And just because it bears repeating: Rick and Kate will wed by the end of 2014.

 

 

[Sonik Tooth]

Not arguing about the one way relationship, but I didn't see Beckett acting as someone who wants an apology from Castle. It was Castle who started the conversation asking about how she was holding up the whole time. She got lost in memories and Castle apologized and brushed over her concerns about him... Hence my speculation he knows something.

Edited September 30, 2014 by Sonik Tooth

[McManda]

So of Matt's recap, the thing's that are really indicative of Castle planning the whole thing really don't mean much.
 
- Castle paid for the car to be crushed ... but it could have been under duress, especially if they have mind altering drugs, too. The kidnappers could have known he had taken a large sum of cash out for his honeymoon and acted accordingly. (BTW - who takes $10 grand, IN CASH, on their honeymoon?)

 

- Castle was camping by the lake ... except their witness to that is a fake, and who's to say that stuff wasn't moved there? Castle could have been using that stuff wherever he was held and they just transported it all to the campsite.

 

If I were Beckett/Espo/Ryan, I'd be more concerned that my fiancee/friend shows up 2 months after going missing, in a bullet hole ridden boat off the coast of Delaware, with a healed gunshot wound and Dengue fever antibodies.

 

It was Castle who started the conversation asking about how she was holding up the whole time. She got lost in memories and Castle apologized and brushed over her concerns about him... Hence my speculation he knows something.

 

The only way I see Castle lying about knowing something is if someone was threatened by it. If whoever took him threatened Alexis or his mom or Beckett, that's when I think he'd stay quiet. But I also don't think that he'd keep insisting he doesn't remember, especially if someone didn't ask him directly. I don't see him lying unless he has to, and throwing around that he doesn't remember just seem like something he'd do.

 

That's why I don't know what really to make of it (like I said, this episode felt incomplete), but that's why I don't really think he's "sinning by silence" like he accused Beckett of.

 

EDIT:

 

If the numbers don't adjust (they probably will, given football, but I don't know where football was last night), Castle hit a 3 year high with a 2.4 and 11.3 million viewers. That's incredibly strong.

 

Plus, TVLine viewers graded it a B+, and they're pretty picky a lot of the time.

 

Fingers crossed that the numbers hold - both for this week and for the rest of the season.

Edited September 30, 2014 by McManda

[oberon55]

The problem with this whole new mythology is I know the payoff will end up being ridiculous. Whatever the hell is happening when all is said and done it will turn out to be an elaborate mess full of plot holes you could drive a truck through. It's really hard to get invested in something that you know will ultimately suck.

[verdana]

Can you see my eye roll from there? Can you? I need to know.

I saw them roll right out your head and out the door. Heh.

 

Yeah, Kate, don't kiss the guy you thought was dead and just recovered. Why do that? People might think you love him, and we don't want THAT! Ugh. *Goes back to watch Booth and Brennan in a crisis situation.*

When I saw him there I was certain they were going to make up for the wishy washy hospital scene in Dreamworld but no. If anything it was even worse, I couldn't understand why she wouldn't want to at least give him a gentle kiss him after all this time even on his hand would have been better than nothing.  I realise he was unconscious but surely she could give him more than a hand pat. I honestly don't understand Marlowe's prudish restraint for all things involving Caskett. 

Are they gonna work on it together to figure out what happened or does she do it on her own with whatever bits and pieces show up over the episodes ?

I'm sick of them keeping things from each other, they've done that too many times already, I don't want to see Castle and Beckett regressing as a couple, so if she's investigating I want it made clear to the audience he's a party to it.

 

Rick sure was acting strangely, I can't decide if Fillion was just not at the races that episode or he's been told to play it ambiguous deliberately whilst Marlowe decides if he really want to drop the bomb and have Castle culpable in some way. 

[scenicbyway]

Millionaires or half a millionaires take $10,000 in cash on their honeymoon and probably more even.  I don't think it's out of line for Castle have made that withdrawal.

 

The campsite is obviously a setup.  Why keep the tux with him?  That makes no sense.  I could see food and newspaper clippings if he was hiding but the tux doesn't make any sense.

[VinceW]

No wonder the screener reports for the premiere were so different and confusing. I did watch it LIVE, but I changed over once to NCIS:LA for a few minutes after the scene with Beckett and the suspect interrogation. Her actions in that scene reminded me of the pilot episode of BLUE BLOODS where Danny and his partner arrive at a suspect apartment looking for a kidnapped little girl and Danny takes the suspect to the bathroom and dunks his head in the toilet several times and bangs his head hard against the bowl in order to force him to give up the location of the little girl in time. Beckett acting like that was so overdone. After that, I was not sure what was coming next from Amann. I expect that the mythology is just mob related given Marlowe writing the next episode “Montreal”.  That city is a popular haven for mobsters running criminal operations between the US and Europe. I just think the arc will be a mess. I guess the amnesia was needed so that Castle will be able to recall bits and pieces from his ordeal during the season. I can’t imagine the show holding the audience very long into the season after presenting such a contrived story like that. At the end of the episode, I sat there thinking to myself what are they doing with the Castle series. Much the same as I felt after FBFW.

Edited September 30, 2014 by VinceW

[verdana]

Another thing I noticed was that Beckett was distanced from Alexis and Martha. I would have loved to have seen more of them leaning on each other for support, interacting like any other family in this kind of situation. The only time I felt natural warmth between them was when Martha was telling Kate she had better get changed and left with her, but otherwise Beckett seemed disconnected from the family unit. It was made worse by the way they had her physically separated from them at key moments, when the doctor was explaining what Castle's injuries were - she was left hanging back by the door watching on - why not have them all gathered around the doctor? It's so weird how they keep treating Beckett when it comes to Castle's family, it's like she's got the plague.

 

When they discover Castle apparently dropping the cash and Kate's talking to Ryan he asks her where she's going and she suddenly gets very serious and says coldly "to talk to the family" like any cop would say but they're meant to be part of her family now. It would have sounded much better if they had her saying something like "I need to see Martha and Alexis" and giving a worried look to Ryan before she leaves, small things like that can make all the difference to my perception of the characters.  Alexis/Martha/Castle operate in one sphere and then we have Kate/Castle in the other and they very rarely connect in a way that seems relaxed and normal. 

 

Although I enjoyed the way Susan played Martha's response when Beckett asked her had she found out where he'd been. I loved Martha's "back off woman" tone wreathed in a smile, don't mess with a mother when she's worried for her injured son. Susan is so wasted on this show, dump Tory and lets see more of her please. 

Edited September 30, 2014 by verdana

[Sara2009]

But, can you explain why Beckett seems to think Castle OWES her an apology? Wouldn't your response to a S.O. be more like "you were shot, you've been traumatized, I'm worried about

you. Why are you apologizing?" IF you find out

you have been lied to THEN is the time to

expect an apology.

This seems an awfully one way relationship.

I don't think she did. She even said it wasn't his fault.

[verdana]

Ratings: Castle Eyes 3-Year Premiere High, Scorpion, Gotham and Blacklist Dip, Relocated NCIS: LA Returns Down at TV Line.

 

Castle did good. 

 

ABC’s Castle — pending any adjustments due to football preemptions in three markets — on Monday night returned to 11.3 million total viewers and a 2.4 rating, which is up from both its previous premiere (11.5 mil/2.2) and its May finale (10.6 mil/2.1). TVLine readers gave the episode an average grade of “B+.”
If the numbers hold up, that marks Castle’s top-rated premiere in three years and its highest rated episode since October 2011 (Season 4’s “Cops & Robbers”).

 

I wonder how much it will get adjusted down? I figured it would probably be around 2.0/2.1.

[tveyeonyou]

I'm going waaaaay out on a limb here and I know I'm wrong but there's a tiny voice in my brain nagging me that Castle is not really our Castle. Why? I have no idea and no evidence to back this up except for the weirdness of his behavior. And perhaps my obsession with Orphan Black and clones :D

Or, whoever did this has given him some kind of drug or other because I can't wrap my head around an entire hour of senseless weirdness.

 

Again, I have absolutely nothing to back this up and I'm sure I'm wrong but I'm just throwing things at walls hoping something will stick.

[KaveDweller]

It was made worse by the way they had her physically separated from them at key moments, when the doctor was explaining what Castle's injuries were - she was left hanging back by the door watching on - why not have them all gathered around the doctor? It's so weird how they keep treating Beckett when it comes to Castle's family, it's like she's got the plague.

 

Yeah, I did think that was weird.  I didn't mind the way she said she was going to go talk to "the family" at the beginning.  But after the time jump it got weird. Maybe the thing with the doctor was that they were trying to point out she really isn't family and the doctor was only supposed to talk to family? Except then the doctor did talk to her, so that doesn't work.  If Kate was spending all her time searching for Castle, you'd think she'd have updated them.  But then Martha sounded kind of rude when she told Kate not to ask Castle what he's been through.  And Alexis seemed to blame Kate for Castle not waking up when she first got there.

 

Maybe it is a set-up for this Alexis drama we are going to get.  Because everyone loves Alexis drama.

 

I wonder how much it will get adjusted down? I figured it would probably be around 2.0/2.1.

 

There was football in Boston and Kansas City, so probably more than usual.

 

 

 

Hey, how about you act...oh, I don't know...loving toward your man, rather than having him open his eyes to Grumpy McGrumperson giving him dirty looks and demanding an immediate explanation?

 

She was acting loving to him when she first got there (and he was still asleep), it was only after seeing the tent full of his stuff that she got all questioning-y.  But yeah, it seemed like it would be natural that she'd still want to kiss him.

Edited September 30, 2014 by KaveDweller

[Bringonthedrama]

TVeyesonyou, I think that's an understandable reaction. Even if he's not upset right now on his own behalf, he should be furious that his mother, daughter, and fiance Kate were left deeply worried and scared for two months. He didn't even seem to register an emotional reaction to Kate saying she had rituals trying to keep the faith that he would come back alive. He reacted like it was sweet and touching, but I didn't see anything suggesting it was a gut punch to think of his loved ones fearing he's gone forever/dead. I still remember his look of heartbreak during the dirty bomb crisis, thinking he might never see Alexis again when he sent her out of the city. I wanted to see a hint of that same heartbroken look at the realization that those he loved most were afraid they'd never see him again. That's the Rick Castle we know.

[oberon55]

 

It's like everyone totally disregarded everything they know about Castle, plus their logic, and just treated it as if it's believable Castle would fake a car crash, stay on an island alone in a tent for two months, then float along on a bullet-riddled dinghy. Oh, after hs shot at himself, of course.

 

I'm sorry but it's really stupid to have Castle behind it. If he had to disappear for some reason why jump through all the hoops of the burning car? He had to go to NYC to get the marriage license so why not just keep going? That way he would have a several hour head start before anybody suspected anything. Plus he could have saved 10 grand. And he would not have put his family through the trauma of seeing the burning car. If this was his great master plan then he really is an idiot.

[tankgirl73]

I'm unsure about whether I liked it or not.  All the good and bad things have already been eloquently expressed here.  So I'll go on to this:

 

I thought the whole Tropical Storm conversation was some sort of clue planting that would end up being connected to the Dengue fever antibody in his blood. They made a point of pointing out that it was a "tropical" disease. Maybe he discovered something in his research, some big government tropical secret, that he doesn't even know he knows.

 

 

That's where I end up too.  Did it say *when* he worked on Tropical Storm?  How long ago it was?  I'm thinking that maybe he discovered something and he had to be 'hushed up' about it and that's why he stopped working on that script.  The 'phobia' is maybe a hypnosis-implanted thing to keep him away from the truth.  And during those missing 2 months, he was definitely whisked away to someplace tropical that was related to what he discovered.  That's as far as I've got, though.

[Guest]

I bought his actions and seeming disconnect, because I would imagine that he was in shock.  I didn't buy "Oh, it's a video of him dropping off money. He's obviously guilty" by anyone... not even suspicious Espisito.  He could easily have been coerced to do it.

 

Overall, this whole plot is so, so dumb so far. I thought they hit a new low in the season finale last season.  I am pretty sure I was wrong.

[verdana]

Again, I have absolutely nothing to back this up and I'm sure I'm wrong but I'm just throwing things at walls hoping something will stick.

You're in good company because that's what it looks like Marlowe does more often than not when it comes to story ideas.

Edited September 30, 2014 by verdana

[roomtorome]

What a boatload of stupid.  Am I really supposed to think this won't end up just fine after a whole bunch of hooey the writers decide to throw at us.  I can't believe a bunch of writers working on this thought this was good story telling.

 

Kate always acts weirdly distant when Castle's in trouble or danger.  But, I chalk that up to Stana's rather (in my opinion) limited acting prowess.  It's painful watching her try to emote - again, just my opinion!  But then, I'm one who haven't seen any romantic chemistry between these two at all.  

 

I really hate how everyone was quick to jump to the worst conclusion just to gin up some tension - which, it didn't do - it just annoyed me.  If the person I loved treated me the way she treated Castle - I'd walk away.  I think I was supposed to feel something for her; I didn't - even with all the weeping.

[WendyCR72]

Okay, all, PLENTY has been said about Nathan ignoring Stana or not. Let's keep it to the episode itself as the other stuff never leads anywhere good.

 

Thanks and carry on.

[FineWashables]

Either Castle has been drugged or hypnotized into selective amnesia now -- please, please don't resort to that cliche, show! -- or he was coerced into something.in order to protect Beckett or his daughter.  The only other explanation I can imagine is that he's trying to set up a plot for a new novel.  That would be an incredibly selfish thing to do to his family and to Beckett, and fooling the people closest to you would require Castle -- not Filion -- to have enormous acting chops, so I hope that's not what the writers are trying to justify.

 

 

[St. Claire]

I concur with the description of Rick Castle as a pod person last night. If I found out that I'd lost two months of my life, leaving my loved ones wondering if I was dead or alive, I'd be freaking out. He reacted with less emotion than he would if he'd found out that the coffee maker had been stolen from the precinct.

[KaveDweller]

That's because all of the weeping was about HER and her own pain.

 

Is there really something wrong with that? I'd probably cry if I was her.  The guy she loves disappears, people keep telling her he left on his own, they finally find him only to also find a bunch of evidence that suggests he really did.

 

Now, I think it could have been a better story if they had her unwavering and vowing to convince everyone they were wrong.  But I also think it would have been better if they just let them get married at the end of last year.  So, what do I know?

Edited September 30, 2014 by KaveDweller

[McManda]

There is a HUGE difference between doing something even though you have a fear of it and saying, "I'm really rich and have the whole world to choose from to go on a honeymoon. Let's go to a place that triggers my fears!"

I don't know. Nathan's afraid of sharks and has the money to go anywhere, but he still goes scuba diving.

I think there's merit to doing something even if it's an irrational fear. I also think that sometimes the good outweighs the bad - the beach and the vacation might outweigh the possibility of a tsunami for him. I could drive places, but sometimes I fly (even though it makes me apprehensive) because it's faster and easier.

I guess I just don't see the issue. IMO they're irrational for a reason. Chances are you'll be fine, and you can't let those fears rule your life.

(Maybe Beckett really wanted the beach.)

I'm going waaaaay out on a limb here and I know I'm wrong but there's a tiny voice in my brain nagging me that Castle is not really our Castle. Why? I have no idea and no evidence to back this up except for the weirdness of his behavior.

Please, no. I will quite literally take any explanation other than a clone/doppelgänger. That's too Lois-and-the-frogs for me. And it didn't work then, and that was a sci-fi superhero show.

[turnitwayup]

Now, I think it could have been a better story if they had her unwavering and vowing to convince everyone they were wrong. But I also think it would have been better if they just let them get married at the end of last year. So, what do I know?

Yeah I would have liked them to get married in the finale and have Castle kidnap on the way to the honeymoon. Then we wouldn't have any scenes of he didn't want to marry you and more bonding scenes with Martha and Alexis.

[sinkwriter]

 

Did it say *when* he worked on Tropical Storm?  How long ago it was?  I'm thinking that maybe he discovered something and he had to be 'hushed up' about it and that's why he stopped working on that script.

 

I would think it had to have been years ago, because it was a "Storm" novel (as in his former main character, Derek Storm), not a "Heat" novel (as in Nikki Heat). Since he killed off his Storm character back at the start of season 1, there would have been no reason for him to write another Storm novel in these current Castle years. If it was new research, it would have been "Tropical Heat," not "Tropical Storm."

Edited September 30, 2014 by sinkwriter

[KaveDweller]

Yeah I would have liked them to get married in the finale and have Castle kidnap on the way to the honeymoon.

 

Oh, well I meant not kidnapped at all.  But the wedding happening first would be a step up.

[verdana]

Yeah, I did think that was weird.  I didn't mind the way she said she was going to go talk to "the family" at the beginning.  But after the time jump it got weird. Maybe the thing with the doctor was that they were trying to point out she really isn't family and the doctor was only supposed to talk to family? Except then the doctor did talk to her, so that doesn't work.  If Kate was spending all her time searching for Castle, you'd think she'd have updated them.  But then Martha sounded kind of rude when she told Kate not to ask Castle what he's been through.  And Alexis seemed to blame Kate for Castle not waking up when she first got there.

 

I can understand Martha's attitude, Kate sounded a bit snippy when she asked the question and her son has just woken up after being missing for two months, injured, no memory etc. I would be protective if I thought my son was being badgered immediately by his fiance to provide details of what had happened. I understand Kate wants to know what the hell has been going on but Beckett came over as too much the cop in the hospital at times and not enough of the loving, "thank God you're alive!" fiancée. 

 

As for Alexis and her attitude towards Beckett, I can't decide if it's the writing or the actress which makes me think Alexis has issues with her during certain exchanges. 

[Bubbles]

I concur with the description of Rick Castle as a pod person last night. If I found out that I'd lost two months of my life, leaving my loved ones wondering if I was dead or alive, I'd be freaking out. He reacted with less emotion than he would if he'd found out that the coffee maker had been stolen from the precinct.

I tend to believe that how people assume they (or a reasonable person in general) would react in a traumatic situation often doesn't line up with how people actually react to those kind of situations in real life, so I'm not going to judge Castle's response as inappropriate. It came across to me as though he was in shock and hadn't really processed yet what had happened or what Beckett, Alexis and Martha went through while he was missing. I'm hoping we'll see more of an emotional reaction from him in the next episode or two as things start to sink in.

As for Beckett, I thought the way she acted at the hospital when he woke up seemed more or less consistent with wanting to believe he had nothing to do with it but holding back because of all the evidence suggesting otherwise. She was being cautious until she heard his side of the story.

I had mixed feelings about this episode, but I'm reserving judgement about this "new mythology" until there's a clearer idea of where the storyline is going.

It was nice to see Gypsy from Gilmore Girls though.

[verdana]

Maybe it is a set-up for this Alexis drama we are going to get.  Because everyone loves Alexis drama.

 

Can't wait, nothing like a spot of Alexis drama to enrich my Castle viewing experience. 

[turnitwayup]

Oh, well I meant not kidnapped at all.

Well I didn't want another kidnapping either but since tptb want a new mythology and cliffhanger, a marriage without the whole stupid Rogan storyline would've been slightly better than what we got.

[verdana]

 It's like everyone totally disregarded everything they know about Castle, plus their logic, and just treated it as if it's believable Castle would fake a car crash, stay on an island alone in a tent for two months, then float along on a bullet-riddled dinghy. Oh, after hs shot at himself, of course.

 

It's the tent that does it for me. That bloody tent! It's tiny, I mean he could barely stand up in it surely? The idea that someone like Castle would be happy living in that for two months is utterly ridiculous. Two days? May be but no longer. As others have so rightly said he's a man of wealth, used to the good life who has choices if he should wish to fake his death and disappear. Choosing a tent to live in doesn't ring true. It's so dumb and  he's not meant to be stupid. Richard Castle does not strike me as the kind of guy who thinks a tent is the perfect location to chill out as he hides away from the world.   

Edited September 30, 2014 by verdana

[S55]

I would think it had to have been years ago, because it was a "Storm" novel (as in his former main character, Derek Storm), not a "Heat" novel (as in Nikki Heat). Since he killed off his Storm character back at the start of season 1, there would have been no reason for him to write another Storm novel in these current Castle years. If it was new research, it would have been "Tropical Heat," not "Tropical Storm."

 

Yeah, but he also resurrected Storm recently and was in Chicago at the beginning of Veritas on a book tour to promote his latest Storm novel (and was signing promotional copies at the beginning of FBOW), so I think it's possible this Tropical Storm book research was recent. In fact, I'm betting that's somehow going to come into play more and more as this story plays out. That, in combination with this potential new DS series Milmar are working on, leads me to that theory.  

[GenieinTX]

Oh, and I meant to say - criminal underuse of Jon Linstrom.  I hope he comes back during the season if they have to work with the FBI again.  Love him!!

[KaveDweller]

Castle was only adjusted down to a 2.2 in the ratings.  Which is the same as it got last season, so is pretty impressive.  I expected a drop considering all the complains about the finale.

[verdana]

Castle: Driven – A Good Cop/Bad Cop Review by Lee Lofland

 

Lee is still reviewing Castle for another season along with Melanie, he didn't rate this one much. He's also become rather tired of trying to remember which character has been kidnapped and he's even drawn up a handy "Abduction chart" to keep him keep track of both solo kidnapping and group abductions.

 

On the list below I see he's covered a few things that have been mentioned here:

Adding to the same-old, same old, were the typical:

- searching places without a warrant.

- conducting searches and other police business in outside jurisdictions.

- taking control of investigations in outside jurisdictions

- the ever present FBI agent.

- amnesia (puleeze…).

- the computer person who has access to every single surveillance camera in NYC.

- questioning a suspect AFTER he requested a lawyer (and twisting and tugging on the bad guy’s thumb while doing so).

- Lanie (no need to say more).

- larger than life criminal who has access to DMV and other official records and files.

 

 

Edited September 30, 2014 by verdana

[WendyCR72]

Can I say how much I LOVED this little detail during the whole Pelant sitch? Because there's nothing I like better than an all-knowing-all-seeing criminal who has access to when the main characters he's taunting use the bathroom.

 

It hasn't been done before, and I'm sure with the crack writing we've seen lately, it will be done totally in a way we haven't seen with any other show. 

 

Am I detecting just a smidge <holds index finger a millimeter away from my thumb!> of sarcasm here?  ;-)

[sinkwriter]

 

Can I say how much I LOVED this little detail during the whole Pelant sitch? Because there's nothing I like better than an all-knowing-all-seeing criminal who has access to when the main characters he's taunting use the bathroom.

 

I know! Of all the things they could "borrow" from Bones, I was sure hoping that would be the plot point they'd use. I mean, the use of Pelant as a villain was brilliant.* 

 

*end of enormous bucketsful of sarcasm

[Elysium1973]

But there isn't any Pelant - at least so far. And while I hated the whole "we can't get married because of Big Bad Pelant", I totally felt the anguish of all the parties involved (including secondary characters like Angela).

I don't feel that same genuine heartbreak here, even though I'm supposed to. I think. I'm really hoping that Castle remembers everything - it would explain his "meh" attitude to the whole thing and would make his character a hell of a lot more interesting. If it all really boils down to Castle as victim and with zero emotional repercussions. And depending on what kind of job Hack does with the next episode will set the tone for the season. Because while I want to return to regular Castle programming I also don't want to see happy go lucky Rick just push his 2 month ordeal to the side in order to do "fun" things like find invisible killers, etc.

And I think the big question is: was this premiere worth that nightmare of a finale?

As a clinician who happens to love pharmacology, I'm trying to think what drug would give Castle amnesia for two months and yet still allow him to be lucid enough to do that money drop. Most meds that cause amnesia only work for a finite amount of time and typically cause severe physical impairment. I'm not going to buy scopolamine again - that was pretty weak the first time.

Interestingly, there is a protein that has caused memory loss in mice, but it's far from the testing stages yet.

http://scienceblogs.com/purepedantry/2007/08/20/the-amnesia-drug-frightening-b/

Edited September 30, 2014 by Elysium1973

[Samantha84]

Review of 7x01, "Driven"

Sums up all my feelings perfectly. A good read. 

Edited September 30, 2014 by Samantha84

[S55]

Castle was only adjusted down to a 2.2 in the ratings.  Which is the same as it got last season, so is pretty impressive.  I expected a drop considering all the complains about the finale.

 

I actually wasn't expecting a big drop for the premiere. I expected that to do well. What will be telling is the ratings moving forward. I imagine next week might do just as well because many will want to see what resolution there is to all the questions we got last night. 

 

An interesting note...it seems folks tuned out a little at the halfway mark per this tweet from a ratings cruncher a Vulture. 

[Elysium1973]

From Babygray's review (thanks @samantha84):

The funny thing is that I’m pretty sure the lack of rewards is completely intentional because they want us to keep watching. I just don’t like that kind of storytelling when it comes immediately after a hiatus. I find it irritating. The scene at the end was especially frustrating for me, for a few reasons. The first, and I know I’ll get hate for this, (I just don’t care anymore), is a problem that plagued the entire episode. Nathan Fillion seemed almost disinterested in what he was doing. Either they’ve remixed the Castle character in ways that aren’t clear yet, and all of this was intentional, or it’s just bad acting. I’m actually not sure what’s happening there. I didn’t connect to Castle’s headspace at all in the majority of his scenes. Even when it seemed like he was trying I felt like yelling “ACTIIIIIING”… maybe I’m just an asshole. I honestly don’t know. Beckett crying in Castle’s lap really should be a dark, twisty, highlight of an episode, but that didn’t come through. Stana Katic nailed the Beckett of it all, but I was left wanting more from Castle.

From another section:

I still felt relatively disconnected from the story happening, despite feeling very much engaged with Beckett. It’s the weirdest thing. In last season’s finale and in this premiere, I’ve felt like they are trying so hard to tell us a story that they’ve totally forgotten the value in writing characters believably. It’s like they’re shoving a story at us, and the characters we love are supposedly telling it, but it’s happening without enough care to make it believable. But then, they’re still the characters we love, so it almost redeems a bad story. It’s so complicated.

Really enjoyed her review. Very thoughtful.

[ParadoxLost]

So I just watched it.  The Tropical Storm thing means nothing.  I don't think there is a clue there.  It serves solely to provide a stepping stone for Castle to make an impassioned speech about how he would never camp there, continuity hand waved with the Hampton's bit.

The detail that pushed me to that opinion is that there was clearly a jokey reference to General Hospital and the Cassadines, super villains who controlled the weather, as the reason Castle stopped writing Tropical Storm.

 

My feelings for Castle  can be summed up as I forgot there was a cliffhanger last season and I'm annoyed that everyone doubts Castle with no good reason but not really surprised.  I'm too the point where I'm not that invested.

[Samantha84]

I thought it was a wonderful and thought provoking review as well. 

I just felt disconnected from Castle and from Nathan's performance and I don't know if that was how TPTB wanted me to feel or what.  Nathan might be first on the call sheet and the star and the highest paid but, in my opinion, Stana Katic carries this show on her shoulders .. and has for quite a few seasons. Right or wrong love or like it .. she has. And she carried it in this premiere. Nathan is top dog and star then the acting is gonna have to show it b/c thus far? I'm not convinced. 

[Samantha84]

PS: Esposito is a dick! Sure Ryan had doubts but didn't jump, 2 seconds, into the 'Castle faked all this shit' boat. It didn't come across as him feeling pissed that Castle hurt is friend but came off as Espo acting like a man who has feelings for Beckett and taking the first opportunity to plant doubts about her love.  Esposito is supposed to be Castle's friend, too, right? W. friends like him, and Lanie, who the hell needs enemies. Espo and Lanie were just like they were in Probable Cause. Like really? They believe that Castle would crash his car, and let his mother and daughter, believe he dies of a fiery death THEN make them realize he's still alive but stay missing for 2 months?!?! Really? All this to not marry Beckett? When he could, I don't know, tell her he didn't want to marry her? If he got cold feet and did this, he'd still love her but would put her through all this?!? Also Beckett believing that Castle is lying or faking the amnesia? This man is a best selling author and gifted writer .. he wouldn't weave a better, more grand, story than that?! The fuck?!?  

PS: Alexis wasn't her usual bitchy ass self so there's that! 

[oberon55]

In my opinion this show is ok at building up to the big over the top moments. Not great but ok. Terrible at the payoff (but that's another topic). But when it comes to the small things they usually fail. They really don't show any honest friendship between any of the characters. Esposito & Ryan are just the cliche partners you see on any cop show. Lanie is nothing but a sounding board when Beckett needs one. Beyond angsty looks & subtext I really can't remember many scenes where Beckett & Castle sounded like 2 people in love having a normal conversation. That's why we get Castle living in a tent because they don't have a clue how to portray them without having some bullshit conflict going on.

[Ticketyboo23]

I didn't share the outrage about the non-wedding (that's tv) & was interested to see where they went with the Castle kidnapped angle. Unfortunately having seen the episode they went with lame. Hated it. Overall have no idea why Castle wouldn't ditch Beckett & NYPD & get with his life.

Firstly so much so the 'season of Castle'. Seemed all Beckett centric business as usual & our 'exceptional' detective manages to leap to the possibility that her future husband is actively involved because he does a money drop solo. Really? If you ignore the fact this must mean he hired someone to run him off the road & therefore planned this in advance,why wouldn't he use the hired help to make the drop? Wouldn't coersion make more sense? Katic's attempts were sorely wasted on me as I wanted to give the character a good shake for most of the episode, culminating in the reunion scene where she stood at the bottom of the bed like a wife who had just found lipstick on her husband's collar. This was all about her, ignoring what Castle might have experienced including being adrift in a bullet riddled boat after having grazed by a bullet & somehow exposed dengue fever, and oh yeah, run off the road & dragged from his car to start it all off.

On the subject of actor's efforts I see once again NF is getting the flak for Castle's muted reactions, the script obviously gave him loads to work with & I'm sure the director let him make all the decisions about how it was played. I remember the flak he took for the proposal when in the end it turned out he told to play it that way deliberately to generate tension. It's hard to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. I'm hoping, probably in vain, that this time it's because whilst Castle might have a 2month memory blank, he has an idea of the who & why he has it but can't reveal it yet.

[cappuccino]

Review of 7x01, "Driven"

Sums up all my feelings perfectly. A good read. 

 

Anyway. Back to the scene at the end. I thought it had a weird and almost awkward vibe but not in a way that felt intentional. It almost felt father/daughtery, which I only put together when it made me wish Jim Beckett had been in the episode. Seriously. I was sitting there and I felt like Beckett was being comforted by her father, not by her lover (I hate the word lover but it’s in here now). I’m not saying they needed to make out or have a sexy reunion or anything like that. But I do think that scene lacked intimacy, and it didn’t lack it in a way that made me think that that was their intention. I’m having a hard time putting this one into words.

I think some awkwardness, some tentativeness, and some, for lack of better word, mistrust, was to be expected when we first saw Castle and Beckett alone together after everything that happened. For me, that scene didn’t actually achieve that goal. It just felt off to me and I honestly can’t totally figure out why. Maybe if Castle had actually looked at Beckett while she was burying her head against his chest or kissed the top of her head, or told her he loves her, or that he wants to marry her, or something, it would’ve been better.

It becomes even more so when you watch it a second time. At least for me. Sadly I have to agree on that one.

Edited October 1, 2014 by cappuccino

[Sonik Tooth]

Of course Katic (very well, no doubt) carried the episode. Who else? It was heavy on Beckett the investigation and her feelings towards the situation. Castle didn’t have that much screen time and their dialogue mostly centered around her doubts and needs for a reasonable explanation. Castle was mostly in an apologizing, reasoning and defending mode, except when he shortly talked about the landscape.

 

What was the actor supposed to do with his lines to make you feel better? Not to mention that director and editor might have an opinion as well (as Ticketyboo23 mentioned).

 

And generally speaking, I don’t really see how Fillion could carry an episode as Castle the way he is mostly written. If it is a fully comedic COTW sure, but most of the time I see his role being similiar to a supporting character (with a rather large role) bringing the fun to the precinct or reacting to a distraught Beckett when it’s time for her mother’s case. Unless there is an episode, that focuses on him being involved in something like NOF or Target.

 

 

I'm hoping, probably in vain, that this time it's because whilst Castle might have a 2month memory blank, he has an idea of the who & why he has it but can't reveal it yet.

I watched the episode that way. And I surely hope it will play out like that! Otherwise I would question his sense of self and reoccurring inability to stand his ground. As my reaction would have been a WTF? How about we talk  about me being shot at or my infection with the Dengue Fever or my feelings of fear and insecurity because I just lost two bloody months of my life, and there might still be a thread because I seem to have somehow escaped in a boat… I’m really not in a mood to talk about a tent I barely fit in!

 

That’s the conversation they can both move on from. As in we love each other, you give me crap, I give you crap, we call each other out on our crap, and then we move on, more aware of our feelings and with balance :-)

Edited October 1, 2014 by Sonik Tooth

[Ticketyboo23]

Personally I didn't feel in any way connected to Beckett or Katic's performance. Don't blame Katic herself for that, ultimately what makes the screen is down to the writer/director/editor/producer. They seem to be focused on the 'badass' & the result is the character is inconsistent & derivative. The big scenery chewing emotional scenes don't do much for me. I think a scene with Beckett's face falling as she wakes alone or Martha forcing her to eat as she spends all night making international calls would have not only more effective but demonstrated character growth.

Overall they should have had the courage of their convictions & made the scene where Castle tells Beckett he can't remember the end of the episode. Between that & cutting every scene Eposito said anything would have given time to the investigation, along with some reaction from Martha/Alexis. I really hope they give Castle/NF something to do as they have said. They cetainly have done little worthwhile with Beckett.

[Betweenthisandthat]

Overall they should have had the courage of their convictions & made the scene where Castle tells Beckett he can't remember the end of the episode. Between that & cutting every scene Eposito said anything would have given time to the investigation, along with some reaction from Martha/Alexis. I really hope they give Castle/NF something to do as they have said. They cetainly have done little worthwhile with Beckett.

 

 

That's why the events as they happened on screen didn't bother me much but the execution did. Castle is missing for months and comes back and can't remember what happened. That should be dramatic for both characters and it wasn't.  They could have spent the episode with Kate flashing back to her moments before the wedding, missing Castle, the family missing Castle, Espo and Ryan concerned about what might have happened to him or angry because their friend is out there and they can't do anything to find him, and then show these characters bonding these last two monts over missing him and being so confused about where he might be.  I like Stana just fine but I would have rather see less of Kate being badass and angry and disappointed in what Castle might have done and more of her sharing the screen with Lanie, Martha and Alexis, being supported by them and allowing them to support her.  I've seen other shows this week prioritize letting their characters lean on each other emotionally, even for a few short scenes and Castle writers didn't do this or use those scenes to their advantage. If these characters supported each other and then found Castle bewildered, lost and unsure of what has happened to him, that could have been great to watch.

 

What we got didnt let me really connect with Castle or Beckett or anyone else.  I don't blame the actors for this.  There weren't any scenes that let us see Beckett lose hope or miss Castle desperately or that showed Martha and Alexis really and truly in any kind of pain, anger, confusion, or anything resembling human emotion.  Castle was just as muted like everyone else. The emotion, other than anger and confusion, was absent in this episode from everyone. 

 

Maybe they shouldn't have gone down the road of suspecting Castle so much.  You could have those questions remain but it was strange to watch everyone except Martha and Alexis suspicions and/or angry at Castle without showing much additional concern and Martha and Alexis weren't giving us much else to work with but muted concern and then happiness at seeing Castle again.  Everyone's emotional response was uncomfortable to watch.  I didn't hate the episode but it was an uncomfortable episode to watch because I didn't feel the love between any of the characters at a time when that should have been evident.

Edited October 1, 2014 by Betweenthisandthat