Castle: A Night Of Dance – A Review And Recap

Castle: A Night Of Dance

Well, it was better than the last episode.

Yep, that’s how I’ve started rating Castle episodes. It’s an easy system, really. Only four grades (4 being the worst).

MY CASTLE RATING SYSTEM

4. Lanie’s off the charts. Toss the remote at the TV

3. Filler episode (which, by the way, is almost every episode these days). Ho Hum.

2. Well, it was better than the last episode. Minimal cursing at the TV

1. The Castle we used to love. At least there’s some, however minimal, reference to Castle as a mystery writer. Remember, that’s what this show was about once upon a time.

So, for me, this episode was a 2. It wasn’t all that hot, but it was better than the last episode. But it could be worse. We could all be Brian Dunkleman, right? American Idol will never go anywhere, so I’m quitting. What…a…dummy.

Anyway, the episode wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t all that good either. At least we had Lanie and her nonsense to keep us entertained. More on that in a minute. First, let’s see what Melanie has to say. I can see her all goo-goo-eyed over this one.

Melanie Atkins

The show is finally back after its early March hiatus with A Dance with Death, a classic-Castle episode that begins with a murder on the set of a dancing show titled A Night of Dance. I enjoyed this one. The case was twisty without being too convoluted, at least to me, and the friendly banter kept me watching. We got a little theory building, a lot of smiles, and some goo-goo eyes between our dynamic duo, but no real movement on the relationship front. Although I can’t help but notice how Rick and Kate’s relationship has evolved. They stand closer to each other than ever before, they touch a lot, and those glances are way more potent than ever before.

One of my favorite parts of this one, however, didn’t involve them at all. I’m talking about the ring incident between Ryan and Esposito. Ryan got Esposito to wear his wedding ring while they went to question a stripper to see which detective the woman might flirt with — Esposito, with the ring on, or Ryan… with no ring. And much to Ryan’s chagrin, the stripper still flirted with Esposito more. The worst part, though? Ryan’s ring got stuck on Esposito’s hand. Oops! Took them the rest of the show to get it off, when Kate saved the day with some silky lotion. Hilarious.

I also enjoyed the dinner Martha hosted at the loft to impress an old nemesis: a theater critic who had panned one of her performances back in the early ’80’s. All was well at first, with Rick, Alexis, Martha, and Oona Marconi, the critic, sharing a lovely meal. Ms. Marconi even agreed to visit Martha’s acting school and mention it in her column. Then the woman brought up the old review, and Martha let her ego get away from her. All hell broke loose. Rick and Alexis could only sit back and watch the train wreck. What a hoot!

All worked out in the end, of course. Kate, Rick, and the boys caught the killer, Ryan retrieved his precious ring after it flew across the precinct when it finally came off Esposito’s hand, and Martha smoothed things over with the critic by promising Ms. Marconi Rick would read her novel — a tome that looked to me like it had to be a thousand page book. Poor guy. He just had to open his big mouth and tell his mom he’d do whatever he could to help. Famous last words.

I had fun watching this episode. Nothing earthshaking happened, but it kept me entertained. Yay for classic Castle! Next week, in episode nineteen, the drama returns… and so does the angst when a secret is revealed. From the spoilers I’ve gleaned off the Internet, we’re in for some major relationship movement in the near future — and I’m on the roller coaster, ready for the ride.

Melanie, I’m sorry, but this show no longer has the roller coaster feel to it. I feel more like we’ve been forced to ride with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on a NASCAR track—’round and ’round in left-hand circles with no end in sight.

Of course, “steady as she goes” Lanie never lets me down, and she was flying her true colors last night. Boy, was she ever in rare form…

Let’s see:

“Cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the heart.” I’m guessing Lanie slipped on her x-ray specs so she could see the bullet’s path through the victim’s body. Because that’s the only way she could’ve seen the heart while still at the crime scene, with the victim still fully-clothed.

“Probably a 9mm.” Really, Lanie? Really? You could tell the size of the round merely by looking at a hole in the victim’s clothing? Really?

“She died instantly.” I almost tossed an entire bowl of popcorn at the screen. Really, I did.

We learned a bit of Lanie’s history last night—a ballerina wannabe. Man, I wish she’d gone that route, because an M.E. she’s not. Not even close. And now she got her intern, Alexis, spouting off the same gobbledygook. I’m glad they’re giving Alexis more to do, but this is totally unbelievable. An untrained intern pouring over old case files, discovering something that even a rookie coroner would not have overlooked…GRRRRR………

Beckett and crew went through the usual, boilerplate red herring suspect list. Boring as always, so I’m not going there. Alibi, alibi, alibi. Yawn.

The entire notion that person A would pay person B to undergo surgery so she’d look like person A so person B could do things that person A didn’t want to do—community service, submit urine sample for drug testing, etc., is too far-fetched, even for this show. By the way, did all that person A and B stuff sound confusing? Sure it did, and that’s about how it came across in the show.

Good and bad points:

– The original dead woman, person A, was friends with Suzanne. Best friends from childhood. Yet, Suzanne wasn’t sharp enough to spot the imposter (person B)?

– Espo and Ryan with the wedding ring/married men are invisible to single women thing. For me, this was the best part of the show.

– The butler did it. One last ditch at yet another suspect before revealing the killer.

Well, guess what? It wasn’t the butler. Big surprise there. No, it was another guy we’d barely seen with absolutely no clues pointing to him. But the lack of clues is a good thing in this show. Simply watch for the guy in the background, the guy who does nothing, says little, and smiles. There’s your killer.

I just wish they’d bring back the original Castle, but I’m afraid they’re too far gone now and can’t turn back. At this point, I’m not even sure they’d know how to get back on track. But I do know this, I watch the forums and message boards and there are a whole lot of unhappy, diehard Castle fans out there. Sure, they’re still hanging on, but you can hear the sound of war drums in the distance. I’m also seeing the word “filler” on every page. Fans don’t especially care for the so-called filler episodes.

Why are there filler episodes, anyway? Is it that difficult to deliver your best each and every week? Don’t the fans deserve the best? ‘Cause, you know, the show wouldn’t be what it is without the fans.

You know, you can only take advantage of a fan’s loyalty for so long before…

10 replies
  1. Richard
    Richard says:

    This is my first visit here Lee. Saw your name mentioned on a message board, came over and glad I did. I am happy to still have a functioning tv after this season of Castle. Thank you for your critiques on Lanie! I thought I was alone. And Alexis??? God please go off to college! Thank you for making me smile Lee. Haven’t smiled much lately after watching my favorite show go down the drain.

  2. Sally Carpenter
    Sally Carpenter says:

    A show’s in trouble when the best part is the banter between the supporting characters. The wedding ring scenes were hilarious!
    What’s disappointing is that the episode opened with such a great set up–the TV dance show–that was immediately dropped. Dancing was hardly mentioned in the rest of the show, except for a couple of brief interviews with people from the dance show. The story could have been placed in any setting and stayed the same.
    I wanted to see Rick/Kate go “undercover” as contestants on the TV dance show to smoke out the killer. Let’s see a show of hands of viewers who want to see our heroes dance a smoky salsa together! During rehearsal Kate could complain to Rick about stepping on her toes, and he would get dance pointers from Martha. The dance show premise had so much potential but, as always, the show veered off course into something less interesting.
    The stolen identity idea was great in theory but, really, who in the world would have plastic surgery done just so they could do someone else’s community service, no matter how much they were paid?

  3. Raphael Salgado
    Raphael Salgado says:

    It’s funny how I go into each show now with your website and possible thoughts and rants in the back of my mind. Does make the hour more entertaining… “Oh, he’s not going to like this… LOL”

    Out of curiosity, and I don’t know if you’ve been asked before, but have you tried to contact the writers/producers of the show, and/or are they aware of your site and reviews to the point where a meeting of the minds could happen? I know it’s probably late in the game as they have the rest of the season’s scripts completed and prepping to go, but if we’re going into season 5, better late than never, right?

    Of course, while this episode was filler, what really got me going was the sneak preview of next week’s episode. Kate slips and reveals that she remembers everything. I hope Castle’s epic reaction and confrontation unravels everything!

  4. Maryann Mercer
    Maryann Mercer says:

    So who was the writer who thought that having a DWTS clone on a Castle episode immediately following the first show of a ‘new’ season was brilliant? I’m not sure I’d want to take credit for that bit of ‘synergy’…funny it wasn’t. It could be just me, but ever since Mr. Cannell left the building things have not been the same. And I was so not amazed by Lanie’s “shot through the heart” that it scared me :o) Last night, Ryan and Esposito were the best part…and when I tell you I want Gates back you know I’m disappointed in the way things are going. Sigh. Yes, Castle and Beckett are getting closer, but when the secondary stories are what make me chuckle or gasp, I think the writers need to regroup and give us some twists and turns, not suspects we can tell have no business being in the room. Castle used to be wittier and Beckett a bit more biting…part of the fun of opposites attract. Thanks, Lee. You were right on the money.

  5. ~Tim
    ~Tim says:

    Lanie obviously determined the bullet was a 9mm from the size of the hole in the mirror, not the hole in the victim’s clothing. 😉

  6. thumper
    thumper says:

    i totally agree with you lee. filler episodes are such a waste of time. and when alexis stole lanie’s dialogue… i just couldn’t wait to read your comments the next day, and you didn’t disappoint LOL.

  7. Lee Lofland
    Lee Lofland says:

    You’re absolutely correct about the mirror, if she was close enough to it, and I believe she was.

    I don’t know how’d they tell if a silencer was used. There could possibly be some sort of foreign residue found on the body, but that’s iffy, I’d think.

    Sure, officers could check to see who owns a legally licensed 9mm. But that would take quite a while and, it would only turn up a list of who’d purchased the pistols legally.

  8. MigalouchUD
    MigalouchUD says:

    Lee I agree with you the episode wasn’t bad, just boring. Quick questions though with some things I noticed from a procedural aspect.

    First wouldn’t the mirror in the dressing room that had a bullet hole in it be covered in blood from the exit wound?

    Second is it possible to determine that a silencer is used based upon evidence on a body? And even if not shouldn’t they have been doing more to see who owned a 9mm or do cops just generally assume everyone had access to that type of firearm?

    Great write up like always!

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