I’ve seen the pilot and the third episode of Castle, ABC’s new procedural (yeah, but give it a chance!) starring Nathan Fillion. The news is all good, very good, in fact.
The premise is that Rick Castle, best-selling murder mystery author, has a serial killer copycatting the murders from his books. This is the springboard case anyway, but with Castle’s infinite connections and a fun subplot, Castle ends up “working with” the police department. That wasn’t too spoilery, right?
My prediction is that Castle will be a hit; not just a “hey, that’s a pretty good show” hit, but a “this is one of the best new shows of the season” hits. It’s got a lot of things going for it, but the things that make it really stand out as something special and unique are:
Nathan Fillion
Thank you, television big-wigs everywhere, for finally giving Nathan Fillion a deserving role. Oh, I’m not talking to you, Joss Whedon. You’ve done it three times, more than fulfilling your duty. I’m talking to the head honchos at ABC who finally recognized that a network show needs to actually use Nathan Fillion’s talents by giving him a meaty role with a character that has depth, humor, a weakness and charm oozing out of every orifice.
They’ve done it with Rick Castle, and so far the writing is there to back up the character and help him grow. I’m looking forward to seeing where they’ll take this extremely interesting lead, with Nathan Fillion at the helm.
Rick Castle’s mother
Susan Sullivan plays this role so brilliantly. And you are going to think of Jessica Walter’s performance on Arrested Development; I know you are. In fact, I thought it was the same actress until I looked it up. But c’mon, travel back ten years with me, to her actual role as Greg’s mother Kitty on Dharma & Greg. It’s an honest mistake; they were, after all, nearly the same role.
But I digress.
Rick’s mom adds a fun and quirky dimension that will help make the supporting cast of this show stand out as much as the lead, a recipe for success akin to Frasier, Leverage, The Mentalist (Cho anyway!) and How I Met Your Mother.
The Poker Games
So far there’s only been one poker game, if you want to get technical, but there’s also a reference to one, which gives me hope that these will be a recurring part of the show. I don’t want to get too spoilery about these, but let me just say that famous author Rick Castle has a regular standing poker game with other best-selling authors that is not only entertaining, but it fits so perfectly into the plot of the story it can only be called ingenious.
So writers, producers, Powers-That-Be, consider this a plea for the brilliance of the recurring poker game.
A new trend of procedurals
There’s a new trend of procedurals out there and Castle fits right in. Have you noticed that the best procedurals lately are the ones where it’s not just cops solving the crimes, but “consultants” of some sort? Believe it or not, Psych seems to have started this trend with Shawn and Gus as the Department psychics. The Mentalist has Jane as a consultant, and now Lie to Me is following in their footsteps with a consultant corporation of sorts.
Well, it’s a trend that has been working, since the straightforward Law & Order and the CGI of CSI have become old news. Not by any ratings standards, but when a type of show is doing it right, then a new twist needs to be created to keep things interesting and competitive, right? Castle‘s done it, and done it in spades.
And yeah, that’s a clever reference back to the Poker Games. I know I’ve at least got you curious enough to watch it, right?
Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Feb 26, 2009 @ 16:11 EST5EDT
Seems it borrows a few trends (not saying that’s a bad thing if done well). Writer-consultant paired with murder investigator, mix with sexual tension and banter? That’s Bones. Non-cop aiding cop investigating murders, well, before there was Psych, there was Monk. (Or non-investigator helping investigator, plus the sexual tension and banter thing… Moonlighting.)
And, like young Bruce Willis’ David Addison before him, Nathan Fillion seems to be perfectly suited to the goofball with a heart of gold and brains to match, so long as his partner doesn’t get completely buried by the bigger personality (Eames from L&O:CI, anyone?). Unless she’s just supposed to be his forgettable straight-man. Hope not. The world could use another Moonlighting.
*POST AUTHOR*
Ah, I didn’t even think of Bones because that’s banned from my household (my husband doesn’t think he’s got enough estrogen to enjoy it, but I will convince him to catch up on DVD soon!).
But you’re right, it does have a Bones vibe to it, and I bet the female lead will end up being very Bones-like, in that she’ll loosen up like Bones has.
It’s definitely not Monk-like.
And yes, the world most definitely could use another Moonlighting. That’s another one I’ve got to get my husband into… maybe he’ll do a virgin diary of it while I get to relive it!
You had me at Nathan Fillion, but it’s good to hear that you actually liked the show. I will definitely be tuning in!
Both Fringe and Eleventh Hour could be in the consultant category as well — a “genius” with an FBI handler.
Or, even Numb3rs?
Or, a different spin on the ball — Chuck?
Having seen the first and third episodes of Castle myself, I have to mostly agree with your thoughts. While Castle isn’t a perfect show, it is a very solid show.
Nathan Fillian is perfect for the role and at this point he is the main reason to watch Castle. If you’re a Nathan Fillian fan you need to check out Castle.
For all the Bones fans out there, you need to check out Castle since it is a lot like Bones. Rick Castle is like a mix of Bones’ intelligence and Booth’s personality. Instead of using knowledge of bones, Castle uses his knowledge of murderer’s tendencies (gained from writing his novels) in order to help solve the cases. Meanwhile the female lead has a personality very similar to Bones.
Not being a huge fan of crime dramas it was actually kind of surprising that I liked Castle as much as I did. While the show can work on some things, I think in time the show should be able to work through them.
This Cari is with that Kari…you had me at Nathan Fillion. He is so awesome. Good looking, sexy, great sense of comic timing. There is nothing that he is in that isn’t worth watching. Fingers crossed that others are as interested as we are!!
Hubby needs to give Bones a try. My ex (and watching Bones is not why he is an ex) started watching it after I told him to give it a try, and he still catches it now that I’m gone. There’s enough testosterone on that show to keep both sides happy.
*POST AUTHOR*
I think he will. It was a few seasons ago and he told me I had to choose between Bones and Grey’s, and that was actually a good show back then! Now I regret my decision…. ;-)
Actually, the “Amateur detective working with police” formula started with Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. Or even with Sherlock Holmes, in a couple of Conan Doyle’s stories. And it’s certainly been used in a million TV shows since then. In fact “Murder, She Wrote” was about a mystery writer too, although there wasn’t a formalized consultant relationship.
Not to mention “Highlander: The Raven”… Okay, sorry, let’s not mention that.
Anyway, this show sounds like fun.
yay I’m getting so excited (the only words it took to convince me of this show months ago was “Nathan Fillion” – add to that the trailer for it with the oh so Captain Mal-esque lines about him having a police record for stealing a horse while naked, and I’ve been praying for March to come practically all year)
Glad to hear it sounds like its got a real chance!
While I haven’t seen the pilot, I have read the script. I agree that this could be a great vehicle for Nathan Fillion, I’m not as confident as anyone else…
My concern is for his opposite, Stana Katic. Don’t get me wrong, I like Katic. I think she’s been great in some of the guest star work I’ve seen her do (Heroes especially (Hanah Geitelman quickly became a favorite of mine, despite only having been in two episodes), but 24 and the Unit are memorable as well), and I can’t wait to see her do more things, I just think she’s miscast in this role. In fact, on paper, I think Kate Beckett is the weak link of the show. I think that Richard Castle will be such an over the top character that you’ve got to have the perfect foil, and I’m not sure that Katic/Beckett is it.
I’d been planning on submitting a script review for the Pilot for a couple of weeks, but hadn’t because I wanted to answer the question of who I would have cast against him, and despite all my trying, I could only come up with one name (of actors available), and kept coming back to it no matter how much I tried. Gina Torres is 100% who I’d have cast, and less because of Firefly, and more because of her work on the much maligned Standoff. I know its too “cute” of an idea, but its what I got.
And Debbie, every once in a while you say something that proves Keith is off of his rocker. Bones is a _great_ show, and is certainly not a “girl” show. Seeley Booth is a man’s man, a chivalrist to the end. There is quite a bit in that show for both of you, I promise. (And you picked Grey’s over Bones? Bad call, my friend, bad call. I say this as a big fan of both, but Bones is the superior show by a long run).
I *thought* I felt my ears burning. I will say that I was getting sick of of silly technology on Bones and how these people were supposed to be scientists, not investigators, so why are they going on criminal investigations?
I hear it got better, so we plan to try to catch up sometime. I *hate* Grey’s and would gladly give it up.
Alright, I’m another guy who can testify that “Bones” is, as Dorv said, a great show. In fact, it was me, the only man in the house, that got my wife and girls started on the show, not the other way around.
Oh, and to answer your question about why these scientists are investigating crimes: because that’s what they do on TV. Please don’t tell me you watched “Scooby Doo” and asked why a bunch of kids were running around in a hippie van investigating crimes!
Just watched the pilot and I loved it. I’m a big fan of Nathan Fillion and seeing the previews for the past few months was very intrigued by the show, and it definitely met up with my expectations.
But the fact that I liked it means it is doomed. Everything I’ve really enjoyed has lasted at most a season and a half on ABC of late. Sorry all. I must be a jinx.
I love Fillion but this show was rubbish. It trotted out just about every police cliche known to man. His partner was over the top, the attempt at sexual tension was poorly done, his ex-wife was a stereotype and his Mom is another cliche. About the only thing I liked in the show was his discussions with his daughter. The actress playing her was excellent and those conversations were well written and acted. The rest of the show? Toss it in the dumpster. I’ll give it one more viewing before deleting the season pass.
i luved the show i thought it was great. i hope there’s a second season cuz i really luv it. nathan is so cute and i think stana katic plays the role of kate very well, so i like her. ♣♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ para siempre