I love Castle. It is my favorite show on TV. I haven’t been hooked on a show like this in years. So as I attempt to write about the Castle season finale I am perplexed that I find it so difficult. When I sat down to write about the end of 24, words flowed. The cancellation of Flash Forward, not a problem. The drama of The Good Wife or my frustration over Bones, just hand me a keyboard. So why does writing about the show that always brings a smile to my face have me stymied?

Well, maybe because it didn’t. Bring a smile to my face, that is. The season finale was just hard to watch. I don’t think it was bad in any way. Looking back, it was actually very good but still, it was hard to watch. Why? Castle is my happy place. What else could make me smile thinking that the weekend is over and its now Monday? Only a new episode of Castle can do that.

In my humble opinion Castle has everything. It’s well written and has a great cast. There is fantastic chemistry and not just between the two leads but between the supporting cast members as well. The stories are fun and sometimes the cases actually surprise me. More often than not even the guest actors are wildly entertaining. So what’s the problem?

It started with the episode Den of Thieves. Kate Beckett meets Tom Demming. Don’t get me wrong. Beckett deserves to have some fun. If they had to put her together with someone other than Castle at least Michael Trucco as Demming is damn good eye candy. I don’t think anyone can say that their sparring scene wasn’t sexy fun.

As much as Beckett holds Castle at arms length he certainly isn’t without blame. Whenever things turn remotely serious between the two of them Castle quickly makes light of it, turning it to either innuendo or an outright joke. He’s so used to denying that there is anything between them that he actually gives Demming the OK to date Kate. And I love that scene, when Tom walks away and Castle has that look on his face that says “what the hell did I just do?”

Then we head into Food to Die For where Kate gets closer to Tom and Castle takes out Kate’s friend, Madison on a date. Although this episode gave us Madison accusing Kate of wanting to “make little Castle babies” it still felt a bit sad. “The heart wants what the heart wants” was a great conversation. Castle and Beckett obviously want one another. But Kate believes he’ll end up breaking her heart and Castle won’t put his heart on the line if he thinks he’s only going to get shot down.

Even though Overkill was entertaining, it again drove my favorite couple a little farther apart. Castle becomes more jealous as Kate and Tom get closer. Kate seems oblivious to Castle’s feelings but I can’t really blame her. It seems like the intense jealousy really blindsides Castle himself. He doesn’t seem to know how to handle it. The end scene where he sees Kate and Tom kiss is fantastic. Nathan Fillion is outstanding. Castle looks as though he’s been sucker punched. Heck, even the song at the end (Crash and Burn by Lifehouse) was perfect and still puts a knot in my stomach whenever I hear it.

Which brings us to A Deadly Game, the finale. I couldn’t wait for this episode to air. Being a TV junkie, I love season finales. Give me the season finale for my favorite show and I’m practically bouncing off the walls in anticipation. And it was a great episode in a lot of ways. A fun case with lots of twists and turns. There was even an homage to Three Days of the Condor, one of my husbands favorite movies. We got a bit of the traditional Castle / Beckett banter back as Castle invites her to the Hamptons and jokes that “if you are not comfortable in a swimsuit you can just skinny dip.” That scene had me smiling from ear to ear.

When Castle finds out that Kate and Tom are now an official couple and that Kate lied to him so as not to make him feel uncomfortable, Ouch! When he decides to walk away and tells her this is their last case together, Stana and Nathan played that scene perfectly. It was angsty goodness at its best. Esposito telling Beckett that whatever the reason is that Castle has been shadowing her, “I’m pretty sure it doesn’t include watching you be with another guy.” Well, no kidding. Thank goodness somebody finally said the words out loud. Watching that realization play out on Kate’s face over the next few scenes was really satisfying. And with that realization she breaks things off with Tom which is one of the reasons why I love the character of Kate Beckett. The girl has integrity. You don’t date one guy (however great he may be) when you know you have feelings for someone else. It isn’t fair. And Kate Beckett strives to be fair.

The last two minutes just killed me. Watching Kate screw up her courage as she is about to take the chance and tell Castle how she feels only to have his blonde ex-wife walk in? I’ll admit, I was a bit angry. It just seemed so TV cliché. But I’ll also admit that the ending made sense. Castle believes Kate is with Tom and his head is working overtime trying to protect himself from being hurt any worse than he is. That he misses the signals Kate is giving him and that he’s using Gina as a distraction are both within character. Kate shutting down when Gina arrives makes sense too. Poor girl just got blindsided. I can’t look at Stana Katic’s expression at the end of that scene without wanting to cry.

The story arc over the last four episodes was great, but still hard to watch. Castle’s strong point is flirty banter. When our favorite couple is at odds that tends to disappear. Don’t get me wrong. A little angst is a good thing. Think Sucker Punch or Tick, Tick, Tick. But I prefer angst that brings my characters together not pulls them apart. These episodes were great for character development and both characters have now acknowledged their feelings, at least to themselves. Those are huge strides. Castle and Becket have gone from antagonists, to partners, to friends. In season three I want to see them move towards coupledom. My worst fear is that the season finale leads us to Beckett and Castle denying their feelings and we end up back at square one. That dance gets boring quickly and it would break my heart to be bored by Castle.

My hope for season three is that we see them slowly explore their feelings for one another. I don’t want these two falling in to bed any time soon but I want forward momentum. Some say that getting them together will kill their chemistry. I say stalling this relationship will kill it quicker. Give Castle fans the dance. Nothing would make this loyal fan happier.

So what do you think? Agree? Disagree? Let us know here Sorry! We've had some difficulties with our comments. If you get an error please send your comments directly to proudtvjunkie@gmail.com and we will post them. Thank you.

Comments:

Joni (6/15/2010 - 9:19am)

-The show made me crazy but I loved it. They need to get these two together for season 3.

******************************

Beckettfan (6/15/2010 - 10:01am)

-Castle was an idiot to walk away with Gina. I still can't believe he couldn't see what was all over Beckett's face. They better make up for that next year.

*******************************

Kyo (6/15/2010 - 11:59 am)

-That was it. It wasn't only the last show it was the last four as Beckett and Demming started dating. It just got harder and harder to watch. They need to get Castle and Beckett back together in the fall.

*******************************

JoyBagg (6/15/2010 - 3:34pm)

-The summary and feelings posted by ProudTVJunkie is the best recap of the Castle Season II Finale I've yet read.

Yeah, I'm a big fan of the show, and I appreciate it on two levels: My response as an actor/writer was one of "Ooookay, I can see why they did that" ("Sure, lots of possibilities to explore through the first half of Season III are now on the horizon; I can begrudgingly play along"); However, as a fan, I was thoroughly depressed for at least a week ("Will someone please slap these idiots across their foreheads with a 2x4 so they can see the light of day? This is more pathetic than one of my relationships!"). Admittedly, re-TiVo-ing the Season II finale two or three times a day for the next week didn't help the situation any, nor did the fact that my own relationship impacted upon the rotating oscillator. I've heard all the scuttlebutt about the possibility of Castle and Beckett never getting together, but that would be so unfair to the fan base: I'm enough of an optimist to hope that the finale to Season III will be a deep kiss from Castle to Beckett and a quick cutaway before we find out her reaction. That would be a much better way to spend a summer with a big grin than reliving miscommunications that result in walking away.

Admittedly, while it is nice to know that the viewers are obviously more intelligent than the principals involved (with the exception of Esposito, who always is a step ahead of both Beckett and Castle), this finale did hurt ("Course of true love never did run smooth", and all that).

But has the show lost me as a viewer? No.
Did it twist my innards? Yes.
Do I trust the writers to right ("write"?) this wrong? I hope so: It was a gutsy move, ripe with potential, but the entire premises of Castle is based upon the bantering verbal dance between Castle and Beckett: What brightly sparkled in Season I has been notably lacking in Season II: Please restore it ASAP and return that Monday night viewing grin to my face.

******************************

dmcwin (6/15/2010 - 5:05pm)

-This really echoes my feelings about the last 4 episodes of Castle's second season. Fabulous acting, but I hated the angst driving Castle and Beckett apart. I can't wait for the fun and banter to return. Here's to hoping season 3 sees these two enjoy further happy developments in their relationship!

*******************************

fossie (6/15/2010- 9:08pm)

-I like the way you pinpointed the issues from each of the last 4 episodes. I would have paid money for the writers to have ended this story arc differently.

*******************************

NathanFan (6/16/2010 - 9:23pm)

-I really enjoyed your article and I think you did an excellent job of tracing the Demming arc through the last 4 episodes. Your take on the finale was spot on! Some of the best acting we've ever seen, but so darn painful to watch. I also appreciate that you didn't lay blame on either Beckett or Castle. I honestly believe that Marlowe intended it to be a tragedy of bad timing and not the fault of either of them. I, too, am VERY anxious to get back to episodes that leave me smiling with a happy heart!

Tags: Castle