7x13 - "I, Witness" Review

‘Castle’ : Facing A Hard Decision

By Lisa Caputo

2015-02-02

Castle’s latest case makes him question whether or not to continue his work as a private investigator when a murder investigation hits too close to home

The new year has brought a new storyline for the Castle team to explore, with Castle attempting to make it on his own as a private investigator after being banished from working with Beckett and the NYPD. While some fans may have been tentative about what this new angle would cause for the newlyweds and their working relationship, the Castle team has done well so far to keep the story fresh while also finding interesting ways to keep the Caskett partnership very much alive and well, even using their new working situation to spark some added romance between the two. But with a storyline that most agree could only be taken so far before the time will come to see Castle return to the fold as part of the NYPD team, Monday’s episode seemed to pave the way for his return as Castle began to doubt whether or not he should continue his work as a private investigator, especially with his case hitting a little too close to home.

Penned by the tag-team of newcomer, Amanda Johns, and longtime Castle guru, Terence Paul Winter, and directed by series regular, Thomas J. Wright, Monday’s “I, Witness” was perhaps the final installment in Castle’s storyline as a private investigator, forcing the titular character to face the darker side of his chosen field of work. With an interesting and Hitchcock-inspired case, wonderful and meaningful interactions between the various characters involved, and a much more personal tie to the case than we typically see, this was an episode that truly captured a fantastic array of storytelling elements all in a very entertaining and captivating hour. It was also a testament to the Castle team’s ability to cultivate new scriptwriters and introduce them to the television viewers with memorable first-time outings, something they have done seamlessly in the past just as they did again with Monday’s episode with Amanda Johns knocking her first episode out of the park.

The case itself was perhaps one of the most intriguing of the season, with a stellar combination of an interesting premise, a very meaningful personal investment for Castle, and plenty of shocking twists and turns to keep the audience guessing. It was also perfectly crafted to once again facilitate Castle and Beckett working together on the case despite their not officially being allowed to work together at the NYPD, yet it took on a fresh new approach to achieve this, something that made it more believable. With Castle having witnessed the murder of his client, a former friend from his past who hired him to get the goods on her cheating husband, he and Beckett worked alongside the local authorities in order to solve the case and find justice for Castle’s friend.

It was that personal investment for Castle that made the storyline all the more interesting, along with making it much more serious in tone. While the past few episodes have been more comedic in nature, the tone of Monday’s episode was much more intense and serious, perhaps the perfect stepping stone as we approach the long-awaited two-part event that will start next week and will surely bring us back to that incredible combination of suspense, intensity, and drama that only a Castle two-parter can deliver. The more serious tone of Monday’s episode also allowed Beckett to come forth as Castle’s protector, doing what she could to help him despite the case being out of her own jurisdiction, and supporting him as any loving wife would do for her husband as well. Together, the two worked the case alongside of one another, with Castle even being allowed back in the precinct since he was the only witness to the crime, and while they were often limited as to how far they could take things, they always found a way to get past the obstacles in their way and find the truth.

With the more serious nature of the case itself and Castle’s personal involvement in it, Ryan and Esposito provided the often-needed comic relief, something the Castle team always does well with to keep an episode balanced between the drama and the comedy. In the aftermath of his breakup with Lanie, it seemed as though Esposito had yet to throw his hat back in the ring in the dating pool, something that prompted his best friend, Ryan, to do it for him. With Jenny’s help, Ryan secretly set up a profile for Esposito on a dating site, essentially to help the bachelor find another love just in time for their upcoming couple’s retreat. But when Ryan’s attempts to set Esposito up with a friend of his and Jenny’s, Esposito discovered the truth about the dating site and used his friend’s secret to find the perfect woman to shake up their couple’s weekend and get payback on Ryan and Jenny for their meddling. Jon Huertas and Seamus Dever were absolutely perfect in their roles throughout this portion of the episode, walking the line between betraying one’s trust and truly looking out for one’s friend, as despite the severe invasion of privacy involved, it was clear that Ryan was doing what he thought was best for his sullen friend. Whether or not this will kick-start Esposito’s emergence back into the dating world and bring him back to his usual bachelor ways remains to be seen. After all, with his two best friends now happily married, perhaps Esposito is looking for something more than just a fling these days.

But the Ryan/Esposito bromance was not the only relationship on full display in Monday’s episode. Even though Castle and Beckett were focused on solving this extremely important case for much of the episode, they still found plenty of time before and after their work to let their chemistry be seen, even delivering a whole new connotation for the word “nap”. But while there have been some flirty and fun moments between them in the past few episodes, what was seen between them in this current installment was much more grounded and serious, something that fit the tone quite well and reminded us that marriage is about far more than finding new ways of keeping your love life full of spark. After all, the vows they exchanged this season expressed their commitment to each other, and such a commitment requires husbands and wives to be there for one another through their dark times as well as their good times. That was in full force in Monday’s episode as a concerned Mrs. Castle stood by her husband, both to support him emotionally through the turmoil of witnessing his friend’s murder and to support him in solving the case despite her not really having the authority to get involved. Even at the precinct, as she kept a watchful eye out for Gates, she was more concerned about what this case was doing to Castle than what her involvement in it could do to her.

In the end, Castle and Beckett were able to solve the case and bring Eva’s killer to justice. Yet even when Castle felt that he had come to see that being a private investigator may not be the right thing for him, Beckett stood by his side and urged him not to let this one case determine his decision as she understood that she, too, has had cases that have taken a personal toll on her. But the purpose of what they do is worth far more than the devastation of what they have to endure to achieve justice sometimes and Beckett wisely prompted Castle to consider everything before making a decision. Of course, Castle may have been on to something as he did attempt to sneak up on a potential murderer's car with his headlights blazing, then chased the killer into the woods with a beaming flashlight in his hands, and later parked just a short distance away from his suspect to spy on him with a very visible set of binoculars, all clever signals that perhaps Castle simply is not cut out for investigating cases on his own and without the proper training. While it seems as though this storyline may have given Castle the motive to give up his work as a private investigator, it may be their next case that gives him the means to walk away from that world and walk back into the NYPD as Beckett’s partner.

Either way, this new twist for this new portion of the season has served a great amount of good. It has given Castle and Beckett a new perspective on their relationship and their working partnership, made them cherish what they had much more than they perhaps even realized, and gave them a new challenge to test their newlywed status and force them to live like a somewhat normal couple for a while. It was an entertaining, enlightening, and enjoyable few episodes with this new storyline and if Monday’s installment was, in fact, the last step in that journey, it certainly was quite an ending.