Spoilers, Speculation & All Things Media!

[CastleSeason8]

For me its both. I dont think we needed a separation to "shake things up". I dont understand why its so difficult to write for a sexy, married couple. IF they felt it waz truly necessary, they have done it at the expense of both characters. Character regression, imo, for Kate and Castle comes across as sad and weak. I also feel like they have broken the magic of this couple and i dont see how it can be repaired in a way that Kate can ever be trusted again not to walk away.

[LakeGal]

Hart to Hart made it work.  They were a sexy couple in love that solved crimes.  I don't want to watch the show the way it is now.  They might as well kill off Kate and have a time jump.  Give us single Castle being a PI.  

[oberon55]

For me it is the way they did it. Beckett is being portrayed as a junkie that tossed her marriage aside because of her addiction. I have no faith that the underlying problems will ever be addressed in any meaningful way. At the end of the day they will catch the bad guy & magically Beckett will be all better (until the next time).

[TWP]

Hart to Hart made it work.  They were a sexy couple in love that solved crimes.  I don't want to watch the show the way it is now.  They might as well kill off Kate and have a time jump.  Give us single Castle being a PI.  

 

This would be watcheable TV, but likely many of the fans would turn away, via a revolt stronger than this one.    My theory is that PTB want us to universally hate Kate before they kill her off.  (And I wish Stana a new, successful show, maybe something executed by Marlowe, which I would shun as much as I shun Shondaland. I don't let them burn me twice.)

 

Richard Castle, PI, as a lady's man for a few seasons would be enjoyable.  He just needs a sidekick to be stupid for, while still making the girls swoon.

 

My sole enjoyment right now is watching the dynamics of the fan base, and I have to admit that it's validating.  In past seasons, I thought, wait, why don't people hate what's happening?  Now they really do.  And Hawley/Winters protestations that fans are fine with this are like the Iraqi Information minister saying things were fine as the US tanks rolled in.  The challenge will be to see if PTB actually has anything at all in the bag to make this right for the fans.  Or is this what Castle says is the worst thing:  "A lie in their marriage (with the fans)." At the moment, their promises are the equivalent of Nixon's secret plan to get the US out of Vietnam....or another analogy is maybe, "we'll understand when we're older (aka Episode 8)," LOL.  Yeah right, showkillers (was showrunners).  We want to see it.

 

Side point:  I'm not a warmonger, just found a few good analogies ;-).

 

Are they really going to do something?  Or are they just trying to reel us in, in the hopes that  they can continue the dysfunctional relationship they have with us?

 

And bottom line.  I know they know that if the viewers leave Castle, where they gonna go?  That is the sole reason I've stuck around for the last 3 years.  As bad as Castle is, it's better than some of the other useless crap out there....

 

Talking to myself -> "you have hobbies girl.  kill your television"

Edited October 7, 2015 by TVWithPity

[CastleSeason8]

Bottom line: they just want to put the product out there, they dont care if we are liking it or not

[femmefan1946]

Yep, The product in broadcast television is not the show, it's the eyeballs that are being sold to advertisers, the real customer.

 

 Direct pay networks like PBS, CBC, BBC in older models and Netflix,Crave, ShowMi, Hulu more recently are selling shows to the eyeballs and the eyeballs pay a subscription (or taxes/license fees in the case of publicly owned broadcasters).

 

I thought it was interesting that the clunky placement of a Buick last season indicates that the customer/ advertisers seem to think that Castle appeals to an older  and possibly more prosperous eyeball.

What ads are you guys seeing? WalMart or Norstom? Corolla or Audi? Beer or scotch? Old Navy or Depends?

Edited October 7, 2015 by femmefan1946

[WendyCR72]

But show of hands who is going to stop watching ;)

 

True. But, the thing is, I guess some have, what with the 1.2 it seems to favor.  :-\  Can it improve? Sure. But historically, ratings only lower as the season goes on. But it's early yet.

[CastleSeason8]

I can tell u i didnt watch the whole ep last night. I will try again, but wont be surprised if i dont make it to the end

[KaveDweller]

I'm not talking about people with actual Neilsen boxes...I mean those of us here who post every day and comment every week but say it's unwatchable.

Who of them is going to stop?

When I first got wind of the long story this season I even said I was going to, but I didn't.

 

Well, I'm not going to stop watching, but I haven't called in unwatchable (yet).

 

But I'm very loyal.  If I have watched a show for years I stick with it until the painful end.

[CastleSeason8]

Thats what i dont get. Most of us here, on fb and everwhere else i look are hating this. Maybe sticking with it out of loyality but NOT enjoying it. Is this the kind of show they want to put out?

[GoGiants]

I have a problem with both the big picture and how they did it. Someone above mentioned the magic of the couple being ruined. I feel the same way. I was able to compartmentalize the FBOW mess/disappearance because they did such a bad job telling those stories and then they ultimately let it drop for most of the season (also because I am a late comer to Castle who came to the show through binge watching. I didn’t have to wait too long for resolution).  I enjoyed much of S7 and Castle and Beckett being together despite my irritation with FBOW/the disappearance.  The current split broke the spell for me in way that FBOW and the rest did not.

 

I find Beckett’s decision to be completely out of character, given where things ended up at the S7 finale. I can’t reconcile her current choice with the character she developed into over the last 3-4 seasons. This is major character regression for unbelievably thin and stupid reasons. I don’t buy it at all. If there was a more believable story on screen, I might be more willing to buy into this storyline. I wouldn't love it but if it made sense, I'd be less irritated. Given this shows poor track record with season long storytelling, I have no expectation that any of the issues from this will be resolved in an appropriate or adult fashion.

 

Their marriage means that it’s not quite possible to recapture the same S1-4 dynamic that they had pre-couple. Their effort to do so looks odd and it is sad to watch. It doesn’t mean there aren’t still stories to tell or fun and sexy (I wish!) times to be had.

 

It’s sad that the showrunners are telling viewers there is no story in a happy married couple solving crimes together. I would gladly watch them solve their COTW and have them be setting up a new serial killer/villain/conspiracy to haunt them this season. Or actually provide a decent explanation for the utter crap that was Castle’s disappearance. I imagine there is plenty of conflict between a high profile and successful couple that they could work through together. I still can’t believe that this was the best they had for their “reset”.

 

I shudder to think what kinds of contortions they are going to put the characters through to bring them back together and somehow involve Lockset and Castles disappearance as well. Castle and Beckett look like pale imitations of their former selves.

 

Don’t want to know what contrived obstacles they will concoct if S9 happens.  I am bummed out but not ready to give up. I’m hoping to still enjoy the show before the end and not completely lose what it was that I found so fun and engaging in the first place.

Edited October 7, 2015 by GoGiants

[Chado]

Wait another month, wait until people get sick of the status quo not changing at all. Another month of Castle trying to win her back and Beckett telling him to go away, that will stop people watching.

 

You won't see the effect of this 1 episode into it happening (post break-up), people are going to get sick of this extremely quickly.

[GoGiants]

 Is there a scenario is which a break up/put them back together would work for you?

 

I think the “break up to keep you safe” scenario may have played better in S6, pre-Veritas. They could have made the Bracken investigation a season long plot point, in addition to the wedding planning that I know some did not care for. I enjoyed the wedding planning/couple moments but I see how a more dramatic lead up to Veritas and the wedding would have been satisfying. I always felt Veritas came out of left field. It seemed like a forgotten plot point they decided to wrap up just because it was time.

 

Imagine a season long investigation, then a 3-5 episode breakup. Beckett goes on the run or into witness protection. Beckett or Castle gets hurt/endangered and they come back together for the final take down of Bracken in Veritas. Then shockingly, they actually get married in the finale and the disaster that was FBOW could have been avoided.  While I would not have loved seeing them split, I think this would have made more sense than the current split and there would have been a real emotional payoff in the S6 finale(instead of what felt like a screw you to the viewers).  And I imagine the writers still could have tacked the nonsensical Castle disappearance onto the end of that to set up S7. And yes, I know this whole idea is crazy talk with Marlowe et al at the helm in previous seasons and the Castle writers inability to do season long stories well. Wishful thinking on my part for sure.

Edited October 7, 2015 by GoGiants

[Castle89]

That fits nicely with my theory that people don't like it because they picture how Marlowe would have written it, I think there is room to be surprised.

I think they've made Kate a slave to this addiction and had others point it out because they intend to go there.

But I get why people don't believe that.

Well yes of course ratings have dropped and that makes people feel justified in their dislike of the show and I get that. However that's actually a whole separate beast.

I'm not talking about people with actual Neilsen boxes...I mean those of us here who post every day and comment every week but say it's unwatchable.

Who of them is going to stop?

When I first got wind of the long story this season I even said I was going to, but I didn't.

 

 

 

 

Sorry, I don't know what I did that made this post so weird. :| So I'm going to erase it and post it separately. 

 

Edited October 7, 2015 by Castle89

[Castle89]

Well I stopped watching live and live tweeting about it. I also know very many people who've done the same thing. There are a dozen or more of people who don't know spoilers, but just what's shown on ABC who are now calling the show stupid and a repeat of S4 of lies and have stopped watching and have no desire to do so until Caskett is back together. None of them know my complete obsession with the show, just that I'm also a fan. (These are people in my life, not online in the fandom. They have watched live since S1, and some since S2, and switched over to Blindspot, or NCIS.)

As for your breakup question, I could have bought it if it they pretend they've broken up. Seeing her touch him in public, makes it truly unbelievable that the Ghost is so stupid as to not know that Castle is her greatest weakness, and therefore just kill him. How is she even alive everyone asked. I just don't buy it. Either leave him completely, don't let him work with you and go to crime scenes, or pretend you've broken up.

And the breakup would have been easier to handle this way, if Alexis wouldn't be written as a Detective who is just as good as Beckett. How is she able to go to crime scenes, and undercover as a civilian in a frat house is just mind boggling. Unbelievable to me. That's cause for suspension of Espo & Ryan easily. There are too many illogical points for any of the eps so far in S8 to be believable. Once Hayley is back I'll feel even worse, I'd much rather see Lanie mentor Alexis, then someone who could be a mole at worst and criminal at best.

At this point, I'm watching Blindspot live and tweeting about it. I hope that I can let go of Castle because it seems to me there is a desire from someone at ABC to make Stana/Beckett (I really don't know who at this point) the bad guy, and it reeks of misogyny. But it's my all time favorite show, and it's really hard to stop watching it. I wish I could, I really do. If I could turn back time, I would tell me to stop watching after Veritas, and just watch on YT the vows scene of the wedding. 

Edited October 7, 2015 by Castle89

[FlickerToAFlame]

Just throwing this out there (and I realize it's highly unlikely): wouldn't it be interesting if Stana was filming for Castle while in Paris? Molly tweeted all about her trip to Paris while there in season 5 and tried to make it seem it wasn't for work (but was the reason I wasn't surprised at all by the location reveal). It would make sense as a tie-in to the Hunt/Rita thing.

Or not.

[WendyCR72]

Just throwing this out there (and I realize it's highly unlikely): wouldn't it be interesting if Stana was filming for Castle while in Paris? Molly tweeted all about her trip to Paris while there in season 5 and tried to make it seem it wasn't for work (but was the reason I wasn't surprised at all by the location reveal). It would make sense as a tie-in to the Hunt/Rita thing.

Or not.

 

Maybe, but with older shows comes a lesser budget, more often than not. So if the Paris jaunt was connected to the show, I'd be very surprised.

[verdana]

I won't stop watching, I'm a sucker for punishment and I'll stay to the end unless one of the leads does a runner.

But this story insults my intelligence as a viewer. It's riddled with plot holes the size of the Grand Canyon with characters behaving in OOC ways to enable the story to continue but then it's what I expected to happen as soon as I found out they'd split them up.

I have no expectation whatsoever that they can repair the damage they've done to both characters but especially Beckett (GoGiants explained how I'm feeling on that score) this story is the worst yet. Hawley may be happy to slag Marlowe off but as far as I'm concerned he's pulling the same stunts the old regime did to try and keep the show on the road, they've run out of gas but everyone is determined to stay on the gravy train as long as they can and they don't care how they do it.

There is nothing fresh or bold about what they're doing and they know it, their interviews are hysterical. I fear what's to come now they've taken the initial hit over the separation and ratings seem solid, it will only encourage them to assume the core audience left will accept any shit at this point and stick with it. The sad thing is they're probably right.

Once again a dearth of creativity reaps rewards.

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[Chado]

There is nothing fresh or bold about what they're doing and they know it, their interviews are hysterical. I fear what's to come now they've taken the initial hit over the separation and ratings seem solid, it will only encourage them to assume the core audience left will accept any shit at this point and stick with it.  The sad thing is they're probably right. 

 

Once again a dearth of creativity reaps rewards. 

I think people naturally would want to see how their separation affects the episodes going forward. Now they've seen that (8x03), I think you can expect ratings to adjust in the next few weeks to reflect this.

 

I'm still betting that the ratings drop below 1.0 before we get to 8x07.

[verdana]

The ratings tend to drop any way about that time of year though so I'm expecting a decline regardless.

[Blackrock1]

I think they've made Kate a slave to this addiction and had others point it out because they intend to go there.

But I get why people don't believe that.

 

ooohhhh. Obsessed Beckett working through all that mess is a story I could get behind and watch.  I loved the PTSD episode because it showed these characters facing actual challenges in their lives. I would also love that they touch on it over several episodes because contrary to S4, PTSD is not resolved in 42 minutes. 

 

Question for Hal: What is your confidence level that in fact they are going to "go there" and flesh this out as opposed to just showing Beckett more and more obsessed, finally getting her big bad, than magically being ok?  Thanks for your insights.  

[Chado]

What do you do with Castle if you spend an entire season dealing with Beckett and her disorder? You can't make him sit there waiting and/or trying to win her back. It's ridiculous and not fair on the character.

 

The longer they spend on the actual obsession, the less time they will spend on the actual fixing of it. Will we even see her make things 'right' with Castle?

[verdana]

They handled her PTSD in one episode (Killshot) which screamed Emmy bait. A lot of fans loved it I thought it overblown and overhyped.

I expect the obsession story to go the same way with one episode headlined to deal with fixing it in some way. Stana given a chance to shine and be the focus of the story I'm sure will enjoy every minute of it.

[cappuccino]

The entire scenario about the SUPER BAD only Beckett can bring down is just boring, stupid and overdone. I didnt buy the Bracken/Simmons/Elephant story and I'm sure not buying that one now or well I was simply bored by it. If they drag a storyline like that out too long and turn everything into sth bigger and badder I'll just check out at some point.

I'm also just fed up with Beckett and what they turned Castle into because of her. She calls all the shots and Castle has to follow like a love sick puppy who gets kicked to the curb every now and then but still licks her face at the end of the day.

I don't even mind the break up now but they should have done it differently. She should have talked to him about it. Be honest and tell the freaking truth and tell him she needs to do this without him and I think if she had talked rationally with him about it, he would have understood. He would have given her space to this. They could have also done the storyline like Castle being ok with going seperate ways for now but at the same time letting her know he'll stick around and proof to her she needs him on this. That he could be a good asset and not a liability.

This entire storyline is stupid because they base it on her wanting to keep Castle save but at the same time, they are still wearing the rings, telling the public they are married, she is petting him in public and I just don't see how the SUPER BIG BAD is simply buying that seperation crap or that he can't use Castle as bait.

In my eyes Beckett lost some points during season 4 and I felt the douchbag arc wasn't as bad on Castle as it was on Beckett. I mean she lied to him and she had more than one oportunity to tell him she is working through stuff. That entire scene where she reveals in the interrogation room that she still remembers everything after she got shot and Castle's weird behavior afterwards was just plain stupid. She should have done the math since she knew Castle was around the 12th and listens in on interrogations. Well that was then but they are hitting the same sore spot with that storyline now and in my eyes her character is just done. Especially in the relationship with Castle. In my eyes that ship has sunk and I can't tell yet if they can redeem Beckett.

I pretty much doubt it since I can already tell they are making up a story in their heads and interviews, I'm just not seeing on screen.

[Cyranetta]

Continuing with responses to Hal's question, to me it's both overall story and execution.

 

The main problem with the execution is that overinflation. It wasn't enough that one of Kate's former team might have been killed as a result of her aciton, it was the whole damn team. How can any normal human being be expected to react to something like that in a funcitonal way? 

 

And as to the breakup, you don't even have to compare it to "Hart to Hart' (which runs the risk of unreasonable nostalgia). There were plenty of issues that could have been part of the "B" story (the difficulty of merging the writer's life and the cop's, for one), that I find the "happy is boring" attitude faulty as a premise. If you want a parallel, the "In Death" mystery books series by J. D. Robb manages to keep its couple interesting, with issues that need to be resolved, but they continue together. The breakup diminishes what made me a fan of the series to begin with -- the sexy banter -- and is happy marriage an automatic death of that? I doubt it.

[oberon55]

At the end of s4 they had Beckett willingly walk away from her mothers murder. She was drawn back in against her will. From all appearances a year of therapy & Castle's influence had finally broken the chain of her obsession. Now we know it just went into remission. We saw it begin to surface when she went after Simmons but that was resolved so quickly she did not have time for a full blown mania to appear. But at least that was still about moms case. This time it almost seems like obsession just for obsessions sake. So my long winded question is what can they do to convince you that once & for all she has gotten the monkey off her back?

 

Will solving the case & then promising to never ever do it again be enough?

 

Does she need to be in therapy or some kind of addiction program the rest of her life?

 

Does she need to prove it by walking away & leaving LOCKSAT to someone else?

 

Will the fact that Castle has pulled his own shenanigans offset & somehow cure her?

 

Do you even care if they bother to address this at all?

[FlickerToAFlame]

One of the major problems in the story is they haven't been clear on screen why she left him. They made it seem like being physically separated was intended to keep the bad guys from finding and killing him. But that makes no sense because they still see each other and work together regularly. So the audience is majorly confused.

I think (and could be wrong) we are supposed to believe, as she told Vikram, she left Castle because if he doesn't know what she's up to, he can't play hero and get in the middle of it, getting himself killed (like her secrets have ever kept him from inserting himself into her work in the past). She believes he's safe because these "ethical" baddies will only hurt Castle if he makes the first move. But that may not be the case if they use him to get to her, defeating the whole purpose and rendering her plan pointless.

The showrunners are relying too much on their after-the-fact interviews to make sense of this jumbled mess, and an already annoyed viewership is getting more and more pissed.

Edited October 7, 2015 by FlickerToAFlame

[Chado]

Will solving the case & then promising to never ever do it again be enough?

Does she need to be in therapy or some kind of addiction program the rest of her life?

Does she need to prove it by walking away & leaving LOCKSAT to someone else?

Will the fact that Castle has pulled his own shenanigans offset & somehow cure her?

Do you even care if they bother to address this at all?

They are good/interesting questions.

 

Will solving the case & then promising to never ever do it again be enough?

Solving the case has nothing to do with Beckett's actions. Solving the case will stop her obsession (for the time being) but does nothing to address her actual issue. Her promising not to do it again means very little either, because her behavior and actions suggest that her words will only be true until a similar situation occurs. How would Castle trust her when she says something like that?

 

Does she need to be in therapy or some kind of addiction program the rest of her life?

The writers need Beckett to perform an action that goes towards it not happening again, whatever that may be. I'm not sure how they get themselves out of this hole to be honest. I get the feeling they will just have a near death experience bring them back together and ignore her issues entirely. I really do feel like they need to address it properly, not just tacked on in the last 5 minutes of their 'reunion' episode.

 

Does she need to prove it by walking away & leaving LOCKSAT to someone else?

It's the easiest way to prove it, in terms of her realizing that she is wrong. I'm not entirely sure it will be enough to allay Castle's fears of a repeat performance if the decision takes 1-2 months for her to decide.

 

Will the fact that Castle has pulled his own shenanigans offset & somehow cure her?

It won't 'cure' her, he may do something equally as terrible to try and 'balance' the anger towards her from the fans.

 

Do you even care if they bother to address this at all?

They have to address it. You can't get them back together without clearly explaining why it won't happen again. A near death experience that brings them back together (like in Always) isn't enough of a payoff for putting the fans through a season of separation.

[verdana]

Do you even care if they bother to address this at all?

I do care but I'm not sure that I should, feels like a waste of my time especially if the show gets another season. I expect the writers to make up some new dumbass contrived drama out of her life that will kick start the destructive cycle all over again wiping away any good work that might have been done with her rehabilitation.

 

Beckett has always been the driving force for drama on this show, we've had the initial investigation into her mother's death with Coonan, her shooting then Bracken appears, her move to DC and now this latest big bad.  At every juncture they use these events to propel the Castle and Beckett relationship forward in some way, I expect the last big milestone event - Kate's pregnancy - will follow on from an angst filled trigger event they'll be nothing normal and serene about it.  The showrunners have already made it quite clear they consider a stable, happy Castle and Beckett boring and lacking sparkle, they need obstacles to overcome and I expect them to keep using Beckett for that purpose sadly often to the detriment of the character. 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[readster]

 

 

Will solving the case & then promising to never ever do it again be enough?

Solving the case has nothing to do with Beckett's actions. Solving the case will stop her obsession (for the time being) but does nothing to address her actual issue. Her promising not to do it again means very little either, because her behavior and actions suggest that her words will only be true until a similar situation occurs. How would Castle trust her when she says something like that?

 

 Yeah because if something related to the case happened again like here it was with Bracket. All they need is to have someone kill her father or super spy mother-in-law and away we go again. It would be like trying to make a new copy cat killer off of 3XK. They would be unburying yet another retired plot just to get a story when even the previous show runners said they were done with the story. The angle with Locksat works because as I and others have mentioned the connections that Bracket had with the military never rung true. Having someone who has those connections who helped with Bracket's dark secrets when he went to Washington. That made sense but I agree, who ever Locksat is, he never was involved with the death of Becket's mother but she feel she has to hunt him down to make him pay for helping Bracket all these years and killing former members of her team and shooting up the police department. 

  Which really messes up with the break up because Ryan and Espo could be helping since they were there and Espo is former military. Plus, Ryan's former use in narcotics would tie into some of the smuggling in NY. Of course that would be well written character use and we can't have that.

[verdana]

Castle 8.05 “The Nose” HQ stills

 

Castle - Episode 8.05 - The Nose - Promotional Photos at Spoiler TV 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[pepper]

I honestly DO like that Castle/Beckett are separated because it brings back the longing. I just wish the explanation had been Beckett going into Witness Protection instead of the thin one the writers came up with.

This.

 

Unfortunately, they needed to still have them work together and they lacked the talent to come up with a third option, so here we are. I'm hitting the gym hard to do curls and push-ups since I will be hand-waving a lot of shite before this storyline ends. But hand wave I will, because I love the longing and refuse to let crappy plot ruin it for me... *sigh* 

[verdana]

Castle - Episode 8.05 - The Nose - Promotional Photos at Spoiler TV 

 

CASTLE - "The Nose" - When a priceless work of art is stolen and its transporter murdered, Castle and Beckett must work with the key witness to track down the painting and sniff out the killer. With special guest star Stephnie Weir ("MADtv," "The Comedians").

 

Seems like Castle's in trouble again this time at home with an unwelcome caller, the security is so lousy at his house! 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[madmaverick]

Well, curls and push-ups are always good for you. :P

 

Nathan and Alan Tudyk on Last Show with Carson Daly. Never watched that show but I like this kind of more relaxed interview format and they have great chemistry together.  As usual, Nathan looks better lit and better dressed in all black on another show than Castle.  The mystery continues.

 

Indiewire interview with Nathan and Alan.

 

"Castle"  in an NZ accent in an interview on NZ TV with Nathan with clips from this season's premiere.  He doesn't say much beyond saying the show evolves this season.  But I'll take that over "DNA", "obsession", "mythology" etc. ;)  Criminovelist, I like it.  They should steal that on the show.  I do agree that we have to handwave to get on board with the idea of a crime novelist working with a detective in the first place, in much the same way we have to handwave a college student working as a part time PI.  Characterisation issues are harder to handwave, I admit.  But at least the storyline is generating more energy and more longing to Caskett scenes, even if yes, I wish we didn't have to go this route to get it.

[KaveDweller]

Beckett's not in the winter finale?

[verdana]

Stana has been in Paris with her hubby she's been sending lots of pictures. 

 

What great timing though, a Beckett-less episode featuring the return of Slaughter right before an extra long hiatus.....smart move guys. For once I may just give that episode a pass. 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[KaveDweller]

I know, I just figured they were compressing her scenes into a day or two, like with XY.

[turnitwayup]

Also this Alan and Nathan interview from Decider.
 

Did the money you raised on Indiegogo wind up being the entire production budget, or did you have to raise additional private investment?
ALAN TUDYK: The budget was fully raised on Indiegogo. We made our budget early on in the campaign, and then we continued putting goals out there. There’s a comic book. There’s a book — the first chapter of the book that [science fiction author] P.J. Haarsma and I had written. There’s a game in production now. These were all ideas that we had prior to crowdfunding. Since the fans were so responsive right away, we thought that maybe we could do it all right now. We’re in production on all of those things. It’s a very busy time.

Do you think crowdfunding is a transitional model for funding projects until the studios catch up, or do you think there is a real future in funding projects this way?
NATHAN FILLION: This is an entirely new business model. I have had mentors in the industry tell me that what I’m doing right now with Castle is the end of an era. There aren’t going to be a lot of shows to have the same kind of journey that I’m having right now. This is the new business model.

[verdana]

Yeah that's what I thought too. 

 

Could be an interesting test run for what Castle PI would look like for those who say they don't mind if Beckett disappears. 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[FlickerToAFlame]

Maybe they're killing her off for the second half of the season.

ETA: I know she's signed for the whole season, but so were Patrick Dempsey and Josh Charles when killed off their respective shows.

Edited October 7, 2015 by FlickerToAFlame

[FlickerToAFlame]

No no, I'm just kidding around. I figured she'd be in the Cool Boys episode little if at all. I guess even she didn't want to be around the polarizing Baldwin lol

[FlickerToAFlame]

Not to go off topic, but it's amazing how a guy as radical in his views as Baldwin would still be well liked (at least in perception) by such liberal fellow actors like NF. However, I'm sure Baldwin has burned many bridges in his day.

Thanks for the info, Hal. Does this mean NF will at some point get a similar vacation while an episode films?

[verdana]

I'm confident it will be explained and make sense for the story. It's part of that deal though with Stana's time off, they had to do it.

It's not that dramatic. Now I'm sorry I brought it up, I thought everyone figured it out with her off in Europe and knowing what episode they were filming.

Even if it makes sense for the story, I predict a whole lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth after that episode, it won't make any difference to some, they'll hate it. 

Edited October 7, 2015 by verdana

[TWP]

Even if it makes sense for the story, I predict a whole lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth after that episode, it won't make any difference to some, they'll hate it. 

When the stars -- of a show that has been (IMHO) wayyyyy tooooo focused on just two characters -- don't want to be around for every episode, it's time for the show to either get them all the way out of the picture or for the show to end.

 

I hope the episode with Baldwin (who I can't stand in real life) will be a huge ratings performer.  It won't, but I can hope.  Let's spin this into a new show with Nathan only.

Edited October 7, 2015 by TVWithPity

[madmaverick]

Is there a scenario is which a break up/put them back together would work for you? Is it the entire big picture, or the way they did it?

 

I never fathomed a break up was possible in their future after seeing how solid they were after they got married in S7.  It didn't make sense in their journey.  But this is dramatic television where writers can throw in really sucky curveballs that no one saw coming, and a break up is just about the most dramatic and popular device writers like to use on relationship shows.   So, character wise, no, a break up doesn't make sense to me in any shape or form.  But intellectually, I can see that the writers never ruled it out of their arsenal.  (Parenthood had a completely loving and supportive couple.  But in the last two seasons, the writers there decided to 'shake things up' and put that couple through a harrowing separation and near divorce, and turn them from loving into dysfunctional.  And that was on a show that aimed for more realism than Castle.  The writers clearly needed to find that couple something to do in their storyline and being happy families together didn't cut it for them either.  They too found the struggle more interesting than happiness, which was boring to them as well.)

 

Beckett's decision and walking out on Castle is a stain on the previously perfect marriage to me, I won't lie.  Castle's joyless proposal as written by Marlowe was also a stain on that relationship milestone to me.  But you try to ignore the bad and focus on the good moving forward.  We've done that so many times on Castle already, I feel almost well equipped to do it this time with what Beckett did.  And we have yet to see how they write them coming back together, how they show that they've overcome this immense challenge to their marriage to date and breakdown of trust.  One can only hope that lessons will be shown to have been truly and permanently learnt going forward.  Only then, will a reforging of their marriage feel authentic.  To answer the question, it's both the entire big picture and the way they did it (unnecessary regression of Beckett and illogical protection of Castle via separation).  The break up wasn't the only way to keep the Caskett love story interesting, but they did it and here we are.  Doesn't mean everything's been ruined forever or there can be no redemption in the end.  Jim Beckett was an alcoholic and he got his life and daughter back after coming to his senses, so anything's possible.  If Beckett can apply her commitment to justice seeking to her marriage, that would be a start.  Being married means sharing and staying for starters.  The path to hell is often paved with the best of intentions.

 

I hope that I can let go of Castle because it seems to me there is a desire from someone at ABC to make Stana/Beckett (I really don't know who at this point) the bad guy, and it reeks of misogyny.

 

Sorry but I really don't know where this line of thought is coming from.  If every time a character makes a questionable choice on screen and did something that made him or her unlikable to the fans meant that someone behind the scenes had it in for that actor, well, that would mean lots of people have it in for all actors on all shows.  I really don't understand the brewing narrative that Stana is somehow a victim in all this.  She signed a contract for hundreds of thousands of dollars to do another year of a television program. I bet she was very happy to do so.  She's getting a substantial storyline this season plus enough time off to have fun in Europe.  How is she the victim of misogyny in this regard?  Is her deciding to wear a wig on screen also a result of misogyny?

 

Not to go off topic, but it's amazing how a guy as radical in his views as Baldwin would still be well liked (at least in perception) by such liberal fellow actors like NF. However, I'm sure Baldwin has burned many bridges in his day.

 

I don't think Nathan or even Joss Whedon talk politics with Baldwin.  Or maybe they can have more civilised conversations off twitter, who knows.  Not a fan of Baldwin's politics at all, and I don't think anyone in the Firefly cast agree with them, but that hasn't stopped them from being friends on a personal level.  They do get to see the personal side that we don't on social media.

 

Baldwin's a rare conservative in Hollywood, but I'm sure they still exist there.  Wasn't sure if Susan Sullivan was mocking or not when she referenced Charles Heston doing something about the NRA from heaven.  Wasn't he super into guns and other controversies as well?  Yet he still had a career as a leading man.

Edited October 7, 2015 by madmaverick

[KaveDweller]

I just learned what an ass he is in real life! Makes me want to vomit. But she didn't get to pick the episode or the timing she had to be flexible. So I'm guessing they worked it out so she could take this trip and whatever they do need her for will inserted while filming the next episode.

Adam Baldwin's an ass in real life? Sigh. And I know what you're thinking, actors are all awful and I should have no expectations....

I hope they aren't doing something too over the top and have her go missing/rouge again. Because that would just make her look incompetent, and how can she keep her Captain rank at that point? And I don't really want to sees storyline of her totally screwing up and getting demoted either, I want her to come to her senses before anything ridiculous happens.

[westwingfan]

When the stars -- of a show that has been (IMHO) wayyyyy tooooo focused on just two characters -- don't want to be around for every episode, it's time for the show to either get them all the way out of the picture or for the show to end.

 

I hope the episode with Baldwin (who I can't stand in real life) will be a huge ratings performer.  It won't, but I can hope.  Let's spin this into a new show with Nathan only.

The way the ratings have started this season, a Fall finale that is Beckett lite and includes Baldwin hardly sounds like the episode to revive things, more likely to be the death knell. Most likely event during the hiatus I would have thought is for ABC to announce the show will end after S8, and I would have thought, thankfully, that a spin off is not on the cards because aren't they normally launched off the back of a successful, thriving parent, which Castle hardly is at this stage. Doesn't look like Nathan will get his wish for the show to go out on top. Good luck to Nathan in his next project but it will be successful without me as I won't be watching. I can't imagine anyone else playing Castle, and I'm grateful for the enjoyment the show has given me but I have no interest in watching anything else he does in the future. The way this season is progressing then the S7 finale will sadly become my series finale.

[madmaverick]

I'm not even sure Nathan follows Baldwin on twitter.  Most people would have to mute him for their own sanity. ;)   That said, as an outsider looking into America, it seems like there's still a big faction who do not support more gun control despite the countless tragedies.

 

I remember the previous film editor on Castle got into a twitter and/or on set war with Baldwin over some political issue.  Not the wisest thing to do if she engaged him in the workplace in my opinion.  

 

Hawley wrote the Headhunters episode with Baldwin.  So I'm not surprised he's re-visiting that and during sweeps.  It's like Marlowe being all into that Senator Beckett idea.  Don't all showrunner episodes basically end up in key periods?

 

NF does not, he wanted a lighter work week not breaks in filming. Although he may get it anyway I guess if they do a Beckett heavy episode like they have in the past but it's not guaranteed to him.

 

So was Stana's added time off a specific condition written into her new contract?  Or just a honeymoon perk given to her by tptb following her marriage, hoping to butter her up for any future negotiations as well?  How much time off is it exactly?

 

Lastly if the writers were going to have fun any of the casts expense, trust me it's going to be Fillion.

 

What do you mean exactly?  Tell me more. It can be the equivalent of a love button for the previous post. :P

 

Completely agree that it's insulting to a strong, intelligent person like Stana to say she was somehow hoodwinked into this season and this storyline.  

Edited October 7, 2015 by madmaverick

[pepper]

 

I hope the episode with Baldwin (who I can't stand in real life) will be a huge ratings performer.  It won't, but I can hope.  Let's spin this into a new show with Nathan only

Ugh. I didn't know he was coming back. Must adjust my settings so that episode doesn't record. And sorry, you can be conservative without being an @sshole. That's a choice. The Castle producers can hire him, but there is no way I'm going to watch him.

 

A new show with Nathan and Molly Quinn as the Goofy PI with his trusty sidekick Nancy Drew/Mary Sue... It's a thought, but not when I have Blind Spot and the like waiting for my attention. I'll check the boards to see how it goes.

[verdana]

When it comes to friendship the way I see it you accept the person as they are and that's it, you should never have to justify why you have that friendship which is personal and special to you.  

 

I love Adam and Nathan together when they're at cons etc they make me laugh, they seem to have a great rapport and obviously enjoy each other's company. It's great that they've maintained a solid bond since they met all those years ago. 

 

I don't follow Baldwin at all so I remain happily oblivious. When it comes to Castle I didn't like the Slaughter character so I can't say I'm looking forward to an episode with minimal Stana and Castle teaming up with that him again.