Castle Season 2 Finale: Thoughts from the Bunker of Rationality
*peers out from the Bunker of Rationality, which is reinforced against nuclear strikes/rabid fans*
I had some thoughts about the season 2 finale and I wanted to discuss it with sane people. Are you guys out there? :-) Had a ridiculous amount of thoughts, actually. Aside from "Stana Katic broke my heart with her acting skillz"-I think we can all agree on that one.
First, the case. I thought the live-action game was cool. I'd actually run across an article about a live-action game a few months ago; it's a fascinating read. Loved seeing Walter freakin' Skinner again. Great casting, especially when he subverted his tough-guy image in the jail cell.
As for the rest ... the relational part of the finale was painful, even if you don't ship Castle/Beckett. If you care about both these characters at all, what happened in the last few minutes was disheartening because they both took several steps backward. It was also disheartening because it was so cliched.
Castle: boy, where do I start? After his little competition with Demming last week, Castle was trying so hard to be mature. The way he smiled at Beckett after overhearing her weekend plans was so sad-you could tell he was hurting a little but had decided to accept it and move on. I was talking with some other fans about this and I think it was Fialka who said that if he'd really been mature, he would have laid it out for her: "I know you like this guy. But I like you too. That's why I'm inviting you to the Hamptons." Instead, he was setting himself up to be all martyred and angsty after Beckett turned him down ... which, hell, I could have dealt with that, but then he had to go bring in Gina.
Now, I do think he's perfectly within his rights to find another woman. Beckett turned him down and had plans with another guy. I don't think Castle has the fortitude or self-respect at this point to stay single and wait around for her. He's been rejected, so why not salve his pride by finding another girl? Gina seems like an unlikely choice, but we know Castle's gone to the easy well of the ex-wife before. (More on that choice in a minute.) Bringing her to the precinct was kind of a jerk move-Beckett's happy with her guy (he thinks); he wants to rub the lie fact that he's absolutely fine in her face, that he can get another woman to replace her any time he wants.
I think fans could have forgiven Castle for that if he'd made a better showing in the last five minutes. That's where Castle seemed most OOC: in not recognizing Beckett's underlying feelings for him/ what she's really trying to say in that final scene. He's a best-selling crime writer; he is supposed to notice details. Not to mention the fact that this is the woman whom he's been studying for the past two years. She's his muse and his friend; he should have made more of an effort to listen. Instead, he retreats to his ladies' man image in some fashion and runs away.
All that to say I was extremely disappointed in Castle. I don't hate him, I'm just sad. Is he an ass or a coward? Probably not consciously. But he still hurt Beckett, and now they'll have to start over next season.
Beckett: I have less to say about Beckett because her actions were more easily understandable to me. My main comment is that I just wanted to reach through the screen and hug the woman. After a season of watching her come out of her shell, of enjoying being with Castle, of admitting that to him, and of having an uncomplicated relationship with a man who made her smile (as bland as I found Demming at times, I liked him for that reason), she finally decides to trust Castle with her heart-and gets rejected herself. Now she doesn't even get a summer of having fun with Demming. We all knew that breakup was coming, but I would have preferred it to happen offscreen (although it was played beautifully). Not sure how else they could have worked that, though; maybe with Beckett not breaking up with Demming before talking to Castle, but leaving us with the implication that she's not completely satisfied with her relationship. On the other hand, I think she would have been further demonized by the fans for settling.
It was agonizing to see her fling caution to the winds, break up with the safe guy, and then be rejected by the guy who's not safe but who makes her feel alive. So sad to see her belief reinforced here. Castle's going to have to win her all over again next season and she won't give in easily.
On the Gina WTFery: in the post-ep discussion, none of us wanted to believe that Castle was actually going to sleep with Gina. We were hoping she was simply there in a professional capacity as his editor. She knows Castle's tendency to be easily distracted. It makes sense for her to be there in person while he's finishing the book. They can sit down and hash out edits face-to-face in much less time than it would take over email, and she can keep him on track.
I have to think Castle loved Gina (if he ever did love her) for her mind. We know it was his most sexless marriage. She's Meredith's complete opposite. Ex-wife one: batshit crazy, great sex. Ex-wife two: whip-smart, no sex. I'm clinging to the hope that he won't try anything with her because they don't connect physically, only mentally. They can just talk writing and sleep in separate rooms. :-D
Pulling back to more of a meta level: I could blame the writers for using the usual TV cliche of Character A subtly tries to tell Character B about his feelings for her; B turns him down, then later tries the same thing; but A's moved on. (I thought xashtheartistx summarized this cliche accurately.) However, ultimately the responsibility rests on Andrew Marlowe's shoulders. I'd thought he would do better at subverting the same plot device we've seen on television so many times before, because under his guidance the show's been good about turning cliches sideways. The drama this one generates is ridiculously artificial. All of us know what the writing is doing here and I don't think many of us like it.
But! I'm going to play devil's advocate a moment. I think the writers recognized that Castle and Beckett have been getting too comfortable together. As a fan, I've missed the sharp-edged banter that they exchanged in season 1. Even though I was happy to see Castle and Beckett reaching a place of friendship, it felt like something has missing lately (I don't just mean during the Demming arc; it's been the whole second half of the season after the two-parter). I'm not looking forward to Beckett being back in her shell in season 3, but it might give the show that original energy again. I don't think it'll take Castle too long to figure out that something's changed between them when he comes back in the fall. It'll be good to watch him seriously trying to woo Beckett and make amends when she's closed off.
As disappointed as I was in this episode and in Castle as a character, Stana and Nathan knocked it out of the park. Their performances were perfectly nuanced-Stana's especially. The secondaries were all great; the looks on everyone's faces as they watched through the window were telling. Even Trucco came through in his last scene. Demming looked crushed.
The discussion over the summer should prove interesting, if not downright divisive. At least we didn't get a cliffhanger. If the writers had gone for that easy cliche, I would probably would have torched the Bunker of Rationality and gone gibbering off into the mountains.
I had some thoughts about the season 2 finale and I wanted to discuss it with sane people. Are you guys out there? :-) Had a ridiculous amount of thoughts, actually. Aside from "Stana Katic broke my heart with her acting skillz"-I think we can all agree on that one.
First, the case. I thought the live-action game was cool. I'd actually run across an article about a live-action game a few months ago; it's a fascinating read. Loved seeing Walter freakin' Skinner again. Great casting, especially when he subverted his tough-guy image in the jail cell.
As for the rest ... the relational part of the finale was painful, even if you don't ship Castle/Beckett. If you care about both these characters at all, what happened in the last few minutes was disheartening because they both took several steps backward. It was also disheartening because it was so cliched.
Castle: boy, where do I start? After his little competition with Demming last week, Castle was trying so hard to be mature. The way he smiled at Beckett after overhearing her weekend plans was so sad-you could tell he was hurting a little but had decided to accept it and move on. I was talking with some other fans about this and I think it was Fialka who said that if he'd really been mature, he would have laid it out for her: "I know you like this guy. But I like you too. That's why I'm inviting you to the Hamptons." Instead, he was setting himself up to be all martyred and angsty after Beckett turned him down ... which, hell, I could have dealt with that, but then he had to go bring in Gina.
Now, I do think he's perfectly within his rights to find another woman. Beckett turned him down and had plans with another guy. I don't think Castle has the fortitude or self-respect at this point to stay single and wait around for her. He's been rejected, so why not salve his pride by finding another girl? Gina seems like an unlikely choice, but we know Castle's gone to the easy well of the ex-wife before. (More on that choice in a minute.) Bringing her to the precinct was kind of a jerk move-Beckett's happy with her guy (he thinks); he wants to rub the lie fact that he's absolutely fine in her face, that he can get another woman to replace her any time he wants.
I think fans could have forgiven Castle for that if he'd made a better showing in the last five minutes. That's where Castle seemed most OOC: in not recognizing Beckett's underlying feelings for him/ what she's really trying to say in that final scene. He's a best-selling crime writer; he is supposed to notice details. Not to mention the fact that this is the woman whom he's been studying for the past two years. She's his muse and his friend; he should have made more of an effort to listen. Instead, he retreats to his ladies' man image in some fashion and runs away.
All that to say I was extremely disappointed in Castle. I don't hate him, I'm just sad. Is he an ass or a coward? Probably not consciously. But he still hurt Beckett, and now they'll have to start over next season.
Beckett: I have less to say about Beckett because her actions were more easily understandable to me. My main comment is that I just wanted to reach through the screen and hug the woman. After a season of watching her come out of her shell, of enjoying being with Castle, of admitting that to him, and of having an uncomplicated relationship with a man who made her smile (as bland as I found Demming at times, I liked him for that reason), she finally decides to trust Castle with her heart-and gets rejected herself. Now she doesn't even get a summer of having fun with Demming. We all knew that breakup was coming, but I would have preferred it to happen offscreen (although it was played beautifully). Not sure how else they could have worked that, though; maybe with Beckett not breaking up with Demming before talking to Castle, but leaving us with the implication that she's not completely satisfied with her relationship. On the other hand, I think she would have been further demonized by the fans for settling.
It was agonizing to see her fling caution to the winds, break up with the safe guy, and then be rejected by the guy who's not safe but who makes her feel alive. So sad to see her belief reinforced here. Castle's going to have to win her all over again next season and she won't give in easily.
On the Gina WTFery: in the post-ep discussion, none of us wanted to believe that Castle was actually going to sleep with Gina. We were hoping she was simply there in a professional capacity as his editor. She knows Castle's tendency to be easily distracted. It makes sense for her to be there in person while he's finishing the book. They can sit down and hash out edits face-to-face in much less time than it would take over email, and she can keep him on track.
I have to think Castle loved Gina (if he ever did love her) for her mind. We know it was his most sexless marriage. She's Meredith's complete opposite. Ex-wife one: batshit crazy, great sex. Ex-wife two: whip-smart, no sex. I'm clinging to the hope that he won't try anything with her because they don't connect physically, only mentally. They can just talk writing and sleep in separate rooms. :-D
Pulling back to more of a meta level: I could blame the writers for using the usual TV cliche of Character A subtly tries to tell Character B about his feelings for her; B turns him down, then later tries the same thing; but A's moved on. (I thought xashtheartistx summarized this cliche accurately.) However, ultimately the responsibility rests on Andrew Marlowe's shoulders. I'd thought he would do better at subverting the same plot device we've seen on television so many times before, because under his guidance the show's been good about turning cliches sideways. The drama this one generates is ridiculously artificial. All of us know what the writing is doing here and I don't think many of us like it.
But! I'm going to play devil's advocate a moment. I think the writers recognized that Castle and Beckett have been getting too comfortable together. As a fan, I've missed the sharp-edged banter that they exchanged in season 1. Even though I was happy to see Castle and Beckett reaching a place of friendship, it felt like something has missing lately (I don't just mean during the Demming arc; it's been the whole second half of the season after the two-parter). I'm not looking forward to Beckett being back in her shell in season 3, but it might give the show that original energy again. I don't think it'll take Castle too long to figure out that something's changed between them when he comes back in the fall. It'll be good to watch him seriously trying to woo Beckett and make amends when she's closed off.
As disappointed as I was in this episode and in Castle as a character, Stana and Nathan knocked it out of the park. Their performances were perfectly nuanced-Stana's especially. The secondaries were all great; the looks on everyone's faces as they watched through the window were telling. Even Trucco came through in his last scene. Demming looked crushed.
The discussion over the summer should prove interesting, if not downright divisive. At least we didn't get a cliffhanger. If the writers had gone for that easy cliche, I would probably would have torched the Bunker of Rationality and gone gibbering off into the mountains.