Castle: In The Belly Of The Beast

By Michael Seese

This was a gripping episode. (I decided to come up with a synonym for "intense.") To give you an idea, I stopped taking notes about halfway through, and just watched.

As I've said in other reviews, you knew that Beckett would get out of it. But how? And I must say, her salvation came from a completely unexpected (to me, at least) source, which made it all the more satisfying. 

Something else that helped flavor "In The Belly Of The Beast." A year or so ago, "Hunt" put Castle out there, on his own. (OK, he eventually had help from his dad...work with me.) "In The Belly Of The Beast" had Beckett alone, and often unarmed. (Aside from her wits and charms.)

Because of the separation, the episode featured fewer lines and fewer looks than normal. But there were a lot of standout scenes. That is, "gripping" scenes.

(Though I did make note Esposito's, "There's more brass in here than a marching band.")

I enjoyed Beckett's giddiness at the prospect of a day off, culminating in my favorite line.

Beckett: "No goals, other than to waste hours on end."
Castle: "Stop describing my day."

The scene where Mr. Harden scanned Beckett for a wire oozed tension. Then, they set up some confusion when Beckett said, "I'm not a threat to anyone," and he replied, "You can just drop the act."

I also loved Beckett's several furtive attempts to phone / text her whereabouts to her colleagues.

Finally, her letter to Castle was both touching and exciting.

One nit-pick: the baddies all knew that Elena Markov was a slash-assassin. So why did Mr. Harden give Beckett a gun for her first assignment?

Finally, no Lanie, no "lividity" this week.

Next week's show (well, two weeks) looks to be back to the fun.

Feel free to share your thoughts on "In The Belly Of The Beast."