Instead of making the viewers suffer though a whole off season with a season 7 cliffhanger, the writers of Castle have bumped the thrills and excitement over to the season 8 premiere!
Season 7 of Castle ended in a surprisingly non-cliffhanger end with Beckett deciding on if she’ll become the precinct captain or a run for senate. Meanwhile, Castle had accepted a great writing award, and everybody’s lives were in order without any drama.
Season 7’s finale might have even worked as a de-facto series finale as Season 8 of Castle now has two new show runners, Alexi Hawley (State of Affairs) and Terence Paul Winter (writer on Castle) and the change is immediately present in the first moments.
Gone are the ominous murder scenes with a relatively lighthearted romp with Castle and Beckett as they slowly discover the murderer of the week. Instead, we are given a dark and intense hour of drama and suspense as Castle and the gang chase tiny lead after tiny lead to find a suddenly missing and on the run Beckett.
This new tone plays more like an action spy series than it does a traditional crime procedural, and the new change is refreshing after the brutally stale last couple of seasons. There were few jokes, and even fewer instances of Castle doing something idiotic in the name of being a creative individual. For a while now, Castle was like a nice cup of chicken soup, pleasant and comforting but kind of boring. The Season 8 premiere was like a bowl of firehouse chili that just kept you wanting for more!
My biggest fear though for the season is if episode 3 returns to the brutally boring murder of the week format without any high level arc of impending doom., After these first two episodes that show how enjoyable this show can still present itself, a crash back down to mediocrity is going to be that much worse.
Other Observations
- Castle’s new PI office is awesome.
- Alexis (The stunningly grown up Molly Quinn) is now more or less running his PI firm.
- Iron Gates got promoted to deputy chief while Beckett takes over as Captain.
- No sign of Castle’s Martha or Lanie
- While she didn’t have a lot to say, new cast member Olatokunbo Susan Olasobunmi Abeke Olagundoye plays Hayley Shipton, free-spirited former cop.
- Next week, in episode “XY” we see what happens during this time through the eyes of Beckett.
