Castle: Dressed To Kill

By Michael Seese

This was a busy episode. Generally speaking, I consider any character who is named -- but NOT not named Castle, Beckett, Ryan, or Esposito -- to be a suspect. By my count, there were eight. (And I'm not even including the victim's roommate.)

That's a lot of people "Dressed To Kill."  

First and foremost, I thought Stana Katic absolutely radiated joy when she looked at herself in the wedding gown. To me, it was one of the high points of the episode.

Second and next-most, I thought Matilda King made a great entrance. "No, no, no, no, no. I won't take no for an answer. You must join us on the yacht. Giorgio will show his new collection. Gordon Ramsay is cooking. Lady Gaga is performing." Then to top it off, to tell her new assistant, "I'll learn your name when you've earned it." As an aside, her recollection of Beckett's experience with her was a nice touch.

Otherwise, though, a "standard" Castle episode. A lot of suspects. A lot of really plausible suspects. A lot of tense interviews. And a lot of, "The person you should be talking to is..." And then (minor spoiler) the murderer turns out to be one of the background characters.

Oh, and what do you know... the victim had "been stressed lately. A little more that usual."
 
"Lividity" watch update: Lanie said it again. "Based on lividity, between 12 and 2 a.m." That's three in a row.

On to the lines...

Martha: "I think I went to a party there. Of course it was the '70s, so I can't be sure." (Accompanied by a great wide-eyed look by Castle.)

Castle: "You've never heard of Matilda King?"
Esposito: "I'm betting that most real men haven't."
Castle: "If by real, you mean unrefined."
Esposito: "Whatever."

Castle: "Blue hairs. So she was killed by a little old lady or Katy Perry."
Lanie: "Animal hairs, dyed blue, Castle."
Castle: "Or a Dr. Suess character."
Beckett: "I don't recall any of them being homicidal."

Beckett: "Stare all you want. Well... no."

Castle: "She's La Femme Nikita, and her job at Modern Fashion was just a cover."
Beckett: "She's not La Femme Nikita." 

Esposito: "Beckett?"
Castle: "And Castle."
Esposito: "Sure."

Esposito: "Just Yumi. I guess if you don't have a last name, you can charge more."

OK, a few nitpicks:

1. How convenient that the victim's apartment had poor cellular service, which necessitated Ryan's use of the landline, which led to the discovery of the bug. 

    1a. Do you think anyone who is under 30, living in an apartment in New York City, has a landline these days?

2. Why did Marcus Conway (the lawyer for Couture Chic) feel compelled to maintain a digitally recorded copy of the conversation with Ella Hayes?  At least New York law allows a person to record a conversation without telling the other party; I was prepared to bust them for that.

3. OK, so Beckett is a homicide detective. She solves murders. Still, I can't believe that she would just sweep under the rug her knowledge that Matilda King has bugged her employees' homes.

4. Exactly how did the package get into Beckett's living room?

I suppose that's more than a few. Oh well. 

Feel free to share your thoughts.  

Castle: Limelight

By Michael Seese

Busy week, so we didn't get to watch Castle until Friday.

I wasn't too thrilled with "Limelight."

(SPOILERS!)

Perhaps it was because the victim (or would-be victim) was such a self-absorbed snot that I wanted to see her murdered. (And may even have considered doing the deed myself.)

Or perhaps it was because there was a huge logical hole, which then dragged down the rest of the episode. (More on this later.)

Or perhaps it was because Alexis is going to break up with Pi. (No wait... that's a good thing.)

Anyway, my overall rating was "meh."

Quick aside: kudos to my wife. She tabbed the killer in the first 15 minutes. 

There were some good moments.

Lanie said "lividity" again.

I thought the interrogation of über-fan Ken Castor was great. He did a fantastic job of portraying a stalker's creepy sincerity. "She needed to know someone cared."

The scene with Alexis pouring out her heart to a bored-to-death Mandy was precious.

And then many good lines...

Beckett: "So you weren't gazing lovingly into her [Castle's ex-wife's] eyes?"
Castle: "She had spinach in her teeth. That's just...no."

Castle: "It took me less time to write the last Derek Storm novel and, although both are works of fiction, at least that one was believable." 

Castle: "Does it say we're getting married in space?"
Beckett: "Not going to happen, babe."

And looks...

Castle's shocked look when Pi said, "You're a perfectionist. Like me."

Castle's crestfallen look when Mandy said, "Who are you?"

Beckett: "Do you believe everything you read in the papers?"
Esposito: "No. Except for that thing about Castle and his ex-wife." (Mischievous grin.)

Beckett: "I do realize you're somewhat famous."
Castle (incredulous): "Somewhat?" followed by Ryan's and Esposito's synchronized "little bit" finger gesture.

OK, the thing that ruined it was Sam (the bartender) sending Mandy a text.

1. She's dead! Why would anyone text a dead person?
2. Why would Mandy call back, even as Alexis is warning her against it?
    2a. And why didn't Alexis grab the phone?
3. But then, when Mandy says (paraphrasing), "He's probably working and can't hear over the noise of the club." Yes, that's probably why he texted you. So text him back!

Oh, well.

Feel free to share your thoughts on "Limelight." And let's gear up for "Dressed To Kill" tonight.