Official "Castle" thread! Spoilers welcomed!

[Missy1961]

Early Nathan Fillion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AjRAFQlKeA&feature=related

 

[Missy1961]

http://tvline.com/2012/11/27/once-upon-a-time-spoilers-community-true-blood-ask-ausiello/

1 more letter:
Question: Please can we have another letter in the Christmas-themed Castle asterisk quiz — first letter if possible? —Chris Ausiello: You’ll get the last letter, and you’ll like it: *ork.

So it can be WORK, or Dork, or even Fork.

 

[NotUrsula]

It's definitely work; it's in the new TV Guide story. Here's the text (teensy spoiler warning):

Santa Claus is coming to town in Castle's first ever holiday episode, but when a man dressed as St Nick drops dead - out of the sky and into the middle of Central Park - he doesn't exactly spread holiday cheer. "This Santa is complex", hints exec producer Andrew Marlowe. "There's more to him than meets the eye".

The real reason to tune in, of course, is to see Castle (NF) and Beckett (SK) celebrate their first yuletide as a couple."It's an episode about traditions", Marlowe says, "and the pressure of spending the holidays together in a new relationship".

Just getting the two in the same place at the same time may require a Christmas miracle, though. While Castle can't wait to include his girlfriend in his festivities alongside his mom and daughter, a decidedly more somber Beckett tells Castle she has to work in order to keep up a tradition that pays tribute to her own mom. "The episode has some great mythology elements for both Castle and Beckett, where they talk about what Christmas means to them and why", says Marlowe. "It's really lovely". Considering Beckett informed Castle she's a jewelry lover a few episodes ago, might she find an engagement ring under the tree? Teases Marlowe "it would certainly be a surprise". - Shawna Malcolm

So ... no one is forcing her, she volunteers to work, and we're back to the whole "I can't let Mom down" thing again. Interesting, if a bit annoying. (Like the shrink said: "She's dead, Kate. You can't let her down.")

As to the ring tease ... I'm going with no. Way too soon. Fillion is very cautious about making the relationship too HEA too quickly; he would have a fit if they rushed it, and he has a lot of say in what happens on the show because he is the big draw for the majority of fans. Perhaps Rick will give Kate *a* ring to add to her chain of special mementos, but I would be hugely surprised (and a bit dismayed) if it was an engagement ring. OTOH, I can totally see him giving her something like a platinum-plated CrackerJack secret decoder ring from 1972.

FWIW, I've been thinking for some time now that the "big" meaningful gift that Castle will eventually give Kate will be Nikki Heat: he will give her the rights to the books. I don't know how that will happen or when, but I have a gut feeling that it will happen at some point before the series ends, perhaps if only to leave them to her in his Will. (Martha will get an annuity, Kate will get the rights to Nikki Heat, and Alexis will get everything else.)

PS: One comment I read speculated that perhaps he would be asking her to move in with him. I call no on that idea as well, because I don't believe that there is any way that Kate will sign up for permanently living with Martha. She won't move to the loft unless Martha moves out first.

 

[Missy1961]

I'm with you, I don't think he's giving her an engagement ring either. Neither of them is ready for that. Wonder if it the gift will be something that has special meaning for them - a blue butterfly? or a tiger?

And I also agree with the idea of him giving her the Nikki Heat rights. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if he's already set it up for her.

 

[NotUrsula]

I'm with you, I don't think he's giving her an engagement ring either. Neither of them is ready for that. Wonder if it the gift will be something that has special meaning for them - a blue butterfly? or a tiger?
[snip]

Or a tiger with an elephant?

[Someday I hope the Marlowes will explain the elephant thing. They are all OVER the place in this show. "The elephant in the room" maybe? A reference to memory and loyalty? A pun-ish reference to London's Elephant and Castle neighborhood?]

 

[Missy1961]

Marlowe's comments on 3XK:

http://www.wetpaint.com/castle/arti...tm_medium=fnpg-castle&utm_source=facebook.com

 

[Missy1961]

Jack Wagner:

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Kecks-Exclusives-Jack-Wagner-Castle-General-Hospital-1056980.aspx

 

[Missy1961]

Just was looking at TV Guide.com. They will be repeating "After The Storm" on Saturday, Dec. 8th at 10 PM. Then on Monday, Dec. 10th they are repeating "Cloudy with a Chance..." so at least we won't be going Castle free for all of December.

 

[Missy1961]

Christmas episode spoilers:

http://tvline.com/2012/11/30/once-upon-time-castle-mentalist-shield-spoilers/

 

[NotUrsula]

Jack Wagner:

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Kecks-Exclusives-Jack-Wagner-Castle-General-Hospital-1056980.aspx

And they named the character Billy Piper? Are they courting the Whovian fanbase now?

(For those who don't follow Dr. Who, Billie Piper is the actress who played the Doctor's most popular modern companion, Rose Tyler.)


PS: It's good to own the DVD's -- that way I can get a good fix whenever I want.

 

[Missy1961]

sneak peek:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWQwqV07wjo&feature=em-uploademail

 

[Missy1961]

more sneak peeks:

http://www.spoilertv.com/2012/12/castle-episode-509-secret-santa-sneak_1.html

 

[Missy1961]

all 3 sneaks together:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_ZST021qAE&feature=em-subs_digest&list=TLIDsNXoOxJes

 

[Missy1961]

Marlowe on Castle 2013:

http://www.tvguide.com/news/castle-dad-scoop-1057063.aspx

 

[NotUrsula]

Marlowe on Castle 2013:

http://www.tvguide.com/news/castle-dad-scoop-1057063.aspx

Interesting. Fillion has been quoted several times as saying that the actor he is lobbying for in that role is veteran OLTL soap actor Bob Woods, who was Fillion's mentor when he first started acting professionally.

My personal top choice would be Robert deNiro (who looks a LOT like Fillion and is great at doing the comic spy thing), but I don't think that the show can afford him, LOL. My more realistic choice would be Armand Assante, who is also a soap veteran, and who does take occasional television gigs. (He also looks a bit like Fillion, and he certainly can do the "international man of mystery" thing very well.)

It's a shame that Robert Vaughn is really too old for the part; he would be great in it! (Though I suppose it isn't unreasonable that Martha might have been swept off her feet by a suave and mysterious older man. This is Robert Vaughn in the early 70's, he was about 40 at the time. Vaughn is just about exactly 10 years older than Susan Sullivan):

This is deNiro at that time, at about age 30:

And Assante, also at about age 30 (he is younger than Susan Sullivan by a few years):

BTW, for a look at Fillion's IRL father, see photo here: http://www.wetpaint.com/castle/arti...ies-finale-of-abcs-desperate-housewives-photo

 

[Missy1961]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DPbeGbf0NM&feature=em-uploademail

 

[NotUrsula]

The main stories about what Christmas meant to Rick and Kate were laid out pretty obviously in Secret Santa, but the subtext, which I think was VERY important, but which was only mentioned tangentially, is that Castle's over-the-top Christmas traditions are mostly relatively new; he didn't start them until he was an adult and had come into his own in a financial sense.

We know that Martha is not a hugely successful actress except in her own mind; she has had some good parts, but mostly she loses more roles than she gets, and we know that at one point she spent a lot of time traveling in small parts in touring companies and dragging Rick along. Beckett has now gotten a glimpse of Castle's childhood that confirmed that it was sometimes rough in a material sense, with young Rick and his strapped-for-cash single mom Martha making do with celebrating by listening to a (cassette tape?) of the Nutcracker Suite in whatever tiny living space they occupied at the time. How much do you want to bet that he spent a good part of his boyhood sleeping on a fold-out couch?

Also, the soap-watching "nannies" that he was frequently left with were probably more often than not just older ladies who lived down the hall. Maybe Martha was temporarily in funds when she sent him off to boarding school, or maybe he won a scholarship -- either way, not having to have a large enough living space to house an adolescent boy in NYC would have let her live more cheaply. This in part explains why he didn't fit in too well at boarding school if he didn't have as much money as most of his fellow students.

Beckett, OTOH, grew up in a middle-class home with parents who were both lawyers who had steady, albeit not huge, salaries, and until her mother's death, she probably never really went without a conventional celebration of plenty at Christmas. Not so for Castle: while celebrating Christmas in a big way does mean love and joy and magic to him, the "traditional" trappings also mean prosperity. His celebration is the kind of an equivalent of the radishes at Tara -- sort of "as God is my witness I will never skip Christmas!" (Unfortunate rhyme notwithstanding, LOL.)

It will be interesting to see if this information begins to change Kate's mind about how much different they are in terms of background -- I believe that she has been thinking of him as always having had a fair amount of money behind him, which she now knows isn't the case at all.

 

[Missy1961]

Just some quick impressions - haven't had a chance to go back & re-watch.

Overall, I really loved the episode. It was neat that everyone got a nice moment.

First: wow, the art department earned their salaries and more! The loft looked awesome, even that office looked fantastic.

Loved Gates talking about her MIL. Too funny!

Felt bad for Javi. He was feeling his single-ness in that episode, especially when Kev has to tell him that their tradition was going to change. But--loved when he was dancing with Jenny's present, loved when he went to arrest a suspect (the fight with the giant candy canes) and the final scene when he returned the clock.

The title sequence--with the candy cane replacing the pen--was awesome.

I knew Kate was overdoing the "no presents" thing. I wonder if he really did have a present for her, or if he'll make it up later....

Loved Rick telling Kate why he loves Christmas so much.

Loved the scene between Javi & Kev when Kev tells him he & Jenny are going to try for a baby. Kev expressed real life concerns--"I come to work. I watch the news. It seems that the world is falling apart" And Javi's great response: "the world's always falling apart.....but having kids....that's what keeps it together" and the final word: "go home and make a baby". So sweet.

I was a little disappointed when Kate lied to Rick about working....but at least he talked to her and found out why she lied, and she did tell him the truth. That's what they've been doing this season. I can imagine her thinking she could change and celebrate with Rick, but being overwhelmed a bit.

And of course, I loved it that he realized things should change, and was going to her, and that she came to the same conclusion & went to him. And then the sweet kiss by the tree & the "Merry Christmas"...perfect.

So no new episodes until Jan. 7th. I'll be re-watching "After The Storm" Saturday night even though I've seen it about 100 times already!

 

[NotUrsula]

I don't know -- I thought that "Go home and make a baby, bro" was a bit off. (But then, it ALWAYS bothers me when people talk about "trying" in this context -- IMO that process is too intimate a subject to discuss with anyone but your spouse.)

I'm personally not a fan of super-busy holiday decor; and I thought that the loft looked rather like the staging area for the Macy's Parade threw up all over it. At least it appeared that they only put the decorations up a few days prior to Christmas -- there was barely room to move in there, and living with it for a month or more could make a person crazy.

Overall I did like the episode and as I said in my previous post, I think that there is precedent there to bring out more of Rick's history, which has been lacking up to now. His life has been painted with a broad brush, but it's the details that explain who he really is.

I'm looking forward to "Significant Others"; the promo looks like there will be a lot of dumping on poor Rick. I have a suspicion that Meredith is going to be up to some mischief while she is there, and since we know that Rick won't tell Kate what really happened when M left him, I rather hope that Martha goes postal on Meredith somewhere where Kate will overhear them. I am also guessing that Castle has been financially supporting Meredith very generously since their breakup, which is something that Kate would find repellent for all kinds of reasons, not all of them having to do with her jealousy. (Speaking of which, the roiling jealousy is annoying now. It was kind of cute when she had no real claim on him, but now that they have been lovers for over 6 months you would think that she would dial it down.)

PS: Speaking of After the Storm, what's your opinion? Did Smith fake his death? (The assassin had just died when it happened and would have had no way to let his handler know that Smith had been found alive and taken to the hospital. All of the cops directly involved were also already dead. So if he didn't fake it, who killed him?)

 

[snapppyd]

I see I have a lot of catching up to do!!