Castle - A Deadly Affair

Network: ABC
Time: Mondays, 10:00-11:00pm
Cast: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Jon Huertas, Seamus Dever, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Susan Sullivan, Molly C. Quinn

Summary: Beckett finds Castle at a murder scene holding a gun and is forced to arrest him despite his claims of innocence.

Review: Castle's ratings weren't so hot last season, when ABC was debating whether or not to renew it.  Ultimately, they decided to give it a chance to continue growing... and I imagine this season premiere made them glad they did.

When we last left our heroes, Beckett was finally coming to terms with her feelings for Castle, right before he skipped town with his ex-wife to finish writing his book.  In the season 3 premiere, no one at the NYPD has heard from him since he left.  Ironically, it's not Beckett who's most upset, but Esposito and Ryan, who provide comic relief to Beckett's almost-pining.

While the scene where Beckett finds Castle holding a gun over a dead body (and Ryan almost shoots him) is good, the show really picks up when Castle is released from custody and joins the investigation, against Beckett's wishes.  A summer apart certainyl hasn't dampened the chemistry between them, and Castle is the perfect mix of his normal obnoxious self pushing Beckett's buttons and suitably contrite for not calling all summer.  Yes, he's still with his ex-wife, but she doesn't make an appearance and, frankly, she doesn't seem particularly important in the grand scheme of Castle and Beckett's relationship.

Ultimately, this episode probably won't stand out against other episodes of Castle, but it did what a good season premiere should--it resolved the cliffhangers from the finale and opened the door to a good season to come.  The most important thing is that it should make the audience want to continue watching, to see what will happen next.  They can either do that by adding a cliffhanger at the end, or, in the case of Castle, by creating such engaging characters that you can't wait to see what situations they'll wind up in as the season continues.

The only downside to this episode was that there really wasn't enough of Castle's mother and daughter, just a little taste to remind the viewers that they still exist.  This is an issue I imagine will easily be resolved in the coming months.

Aside from my perpetual disappointment that they chose to move away from the Beckett/Castle coupling, there was much to enjoy about this episode.  I'm looking forward to seeing how the rest of the season will play out.

Rating:
[5] Excellent
[4] Good
[3] Average
[2] OK
[1] Bad

For more reviews like this, check out One DV Rebel's Guide to TV and Film.

For more crime TV news, follow NewarkCrimeTV on Twitter.

Questions or concerns?  Email me at NewarkCrimeTV@gmail.com.