By Michael Seese
I liked "Room 147" ... up until the last five minutes. For most of the show, it played out like "typical" Castle. A murder whose obvious explanation seems completely implausible though, in this case, implausibly easy.
SPOILERS!
As Castle and Beckett start to peel back the layers, the implausible suddenly makes sense. But then they veer off into a motive which, IMHO, felt contrived.
Really, now, SPOILERS.
My main beef with the explanation was that it seemed too convoluted.
- If Pam wanted revenge, why didn't she join Eternal Horizons Inc. as an employee, and look for dirt to expose Bauers?
- Why didn't she join and shoot him? After all, he said he makes a point of meeting each member. Yes, she goes to jail. But she could plead that she was brainwashed.
- Though, I will give kudos for her rant at the end.
OK, so let's ignore that last five minutes.
Quick aside #1: As a nice twist on the ever-present reference to the victim behaving strangely of late, it was fun to hear the "murderers" say things had been fuzzy in the past two weeks.
Quick aside #2: I thought it was a very good touch when Ryan and Esposito looked at Anita Miller's computer, found that the previous two weeks had been deleted, and that those two weeks were indeed those beginning February 3 and February 10. In other words, good attention to detail.
On to the lines...
Beckett: "I think we all just kick-started our day."
Beckett: "A single shot to the chest?"
Lanie: "One is all it took."
Quick aside #3: After missing it last week, Lanie used the term "lividity" once again.
Castle: "I'm man enough to admit I'm completely theory-less."
Castle: "This is now officially outstanding."
Quick aside #4: I liked the psychologist. It's nice to know the UBS guy was able to calm down and find another job.
Carruthers: "I need to confess."
Beckett: "Yeah, take a number."
Carruthers: "Seriously? I killed someone and all you care about is a van?"
Castle: "You didn't even have to drug me."
Beckett: "How do you know what I do when you're sleeping?"
Not much in the way of looks, other than Beckett's discomfort when Castle said there must be another reason Alexis isn't coming home.
So on to next week. My wife opined that it has a La Femme Nikita look to it.
Feel free to share your thoughts on "Room 147."
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.
