Castle and Beckett awakened in his bedroom ready to explore a panoply of wackiness in the
twenty-four episodes of season 5. There were four serious episodes. One involved Senator
Bracken, the man behind the conspiracy to murder Beckett’s mother; two dealt with the
kidnapping of Alexis, featuring actor James Brolin as Castle’s father; and one starred Seamus
Dever. It is difficult to categorize any episode because there was always so much going on.
Reviewers classified the remainder of the episodes as emphasizing catching criminals or having
fun with cultural icons.
Alex Navarro, Tv.com reviewer, commented on two episodes. He enjoyed the takeoff on
storage locker shows in “Castle ‘Secret's Safe With Me’ Review: Yuuuuuuuuup!” However, he
disliked “Scared to Death” (5.17), a spoof of horror movies, even though its guest star was Wes
Craven, the author of the slasher movie Nightmare on Elm Street. Navarro groused that he
wished the writers would stick to solving crimes (Review).
Fillion is at his comedic best when his character is upset or obsessed, which is most of the
time. There were a multitude of quirks, bumps, and diversions to overcome as Castle and Beckett
journeyed toward commitment. The crime-fighting couple decided to keep their new intimate
relationship secret thus offering writers endless opportunities for situation comedy. Yet, there
was new depth to their relationship. Castle counseled Beckett not to be upset with the filming of
a documentary at the precinct in “Swan Song” (5.7). He told her the cameras were not going
away and he wanted them “to see what I see” about her (5.7).
Beckett blurted out the words shippers wanted to hear ” “Rick, I love you” in “Still” (5.22).
Morrison observed, “As a Caskett shipper, I can’t help but say, IT’S ABOUT TIME” (Moving
Forward). Beckett accepted Castle’s proposal of marriage and a diamond engagement ring in the
last episode of the season, “Watershed” (5.24). One shipper, May, wrote, “God, it was amazing!
I spent so much time squealing my voice is all messed up now” (Mitovich).
Season 6
This season took viewers from marriage planning to a devastating fin ale. Ratings remained
high, averaging 12.63 million viewers for the year (Castle TV show). Castle was a top 25 show
every year since its very first season. The plot grew in a logical way during the twenty-three
episodes, except for Kate’s new job in Washington D.C. Why give her another partner when she
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