Castle Episode 3 Review
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It may be only three episodes in, but Castle is starting to become a little predictable. This isn’t so much a complaint solely aimed at Castle, but police procedurals in general. There’s a murder, the detectives investigate, a suspect emerges, the case seems solved, until a fault in the investigation is discovered and the detectives are right back where they started.
Castle is a faithful follower of this storytelling structure, and while the series has a lot of potential, it makes for a decidedly unspectacular affair that is redeemed only by the comedic grace of Fillion and the dense nature of the murder investigation that ensues.
Boy Found Dead On A Boat In Central Park
The murder of the week in episode three concerns the body of a young man, Donny (Drew Van Aker), found on a rowboat drifting on Central Park’s lake. Donny has taken a bullet to the chest, but there’s a suspicious lack of blood which means he was shot somewhere else. Detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) and murder-mystery author Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) are sent to investigate.
Their investigation leads them to Reading, the prestigious prep school which Donny attended. While questioning Donny’s parents, Beckett and Castle discover his parents lost all their money and Donny was kept on at Reading on a scholarship alone.
Further questioning of Donny’s school-friends uncovers more evidence. Donny was supposedly dealing drugs to make ends meet. The police capture a drug-dealer Donny’s school-friends claim was his supplier and the man who shot him, and the case is seemingly solved.
Prep School Secrets
But it’s obvious Donny’s friends are hiding something, and Beckett and Castle persevere in their investigation. But Donny’s friends are loyal to each other and surprisingly disciplined, able to offer up multiple alibis to prove their innocence. It’s only when Beckett and Castle turn their attentions to Brandon (Nolan Gerard Funk), the most arrogant and nonchalant of the group, that the cracks begin to show in the group, cracks which soon become fissures that Beckett and Castle can exploit.
Overall, this week’s investigation was much more compelling than the last. It’s predictable, yes, but there’s enough depth and intricacy to the murder that means its formulaic structure doesn’t matter much. The plot zigzags between multiple suspects, until finally concluding, somewhat anti-climatically it must be said.
Richard Castle Worries About Alexis
What was most successful about this episode is how relevant the murder was to Castle himself. Seeing these kids, not much older than his daughter Alexis (Molly C. Quinn), becoming embroiled in drugs and murder, made him increasingly nervous about how Alexis was living her life.
For all his jokes about disapproving of her sensible lifestyle, Castle is in fact relieved she’s so mature for her age. Alexis admitting the only crime she’s ever committed was jumping a turn-stile and seeing Castle’s relief wash across his face was very funny, as was Alex grounding herself as a result of her father being too lenient.
Kate Beckett Excels
While the past two episodes have seen much of the focus fall on Castle, this episode saw it split evenly between himself and Beckett. She did a good job this week of driving the investigation forward, and showed how resourceful and wily she can be as a detective. From convincing Donnie’s friends she too went to prep school and understands their dilemma, to eventually tricking a suspect into confessing, Beckett proved she’s far more capable than she’s let on.
One aspect of the series Castle has suffered from is the lack of genuinely funny characters other than Castle, and a proper antagonist. Thankfully, this episode had both. The drug-dealer’s defence attorney provided Castle with some comedic competition, and Brandon made sure there was somebody the audience could hate whose inevitable downfall they could enjoy watching.
Castle Episode Three Verdict
The third episode of Castle was enjoyable and added some much needed ingredients to the formula. Hopefully, future episodes will follow a less obvious route towards solving the case.
Stana Katic as Kate Beckett
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