To Love and Die in L.A.

Since "Castle" is shot in L.A., it was logical to actually set an episode on the Left Coast, and under the skillful direction of former B-movie actor John Terlesky this segment was a winner.

Not really the fish-out-of-water formula that helped make Eddie Murphy a movie star, this transplanting of Beckett and sidekick Castle to unauthorized police work in Hollywood was a breezy affair, propelled with some serious back-story of her dedication to tracking down the killer of her cop mentor.

I enjoyed the balance between romance (plenty of innuendo advancing towards the fans' long-awaited Beckett/Castle hookup in the sack, especially as they share a hotel suite), in-jokes (fairly hilarious Hollywood casting of types for their fellow cops Esposito & Ryan in the upcoming Nikki Heat movie, plus fun mocking of "cheesy dialog" associated with La La Land), and action.

Inspired casting of former "Prison Break" icon Dominick Purcell as the hissable villain was a real treat -haven't seen him on screen lately but he's poised to make a splash appearing in two high-profile pictures, remake of Peckinpah's STRAW DOGS and original THE KILLER ELITE, coincidentally the name of another unrelated Peckinpah pic.

Hardly controversial, but it was interesting to see the half arousing/half satirical slo-mo scene of Beckett emerging from a pool in a revealing bathing suit, to impress Purcell (and the fans). It showed literally a different side of Stana Katic, and I'm looking forward to seeing how she does on the big screen in the upcoming thriller THE DOUBLE.

This was an excellent example of how week-in, week-out series television can keep things fresh, even though we know that formula is the name of the game. For example, the coming attraction for next week's "Pretty Dead" episode instantly reminded me how these shows would have certain bases to touch: like a memorable Charlie's Angels plot of them going undercover at a beauty pageant. It will be interesting to see how the "Castle" team handles that trope.

In some ways this episode is a diversion from the usual Castle. I have said in my overall series review that one of the main elements of this show is the family aspect. We don't see Martha or Alexis at all here, as noted in Trivia. You could say the family aspect is included in Beckett's devotion to Royce's memory and with Ryan and Exposito's covering for Beckett, but it is a different flavor from the usual family themes.

The Castle - Beckett relationship gets developed a little. There is a through-the-door device where each character considers crossing the so-far uncrossed line. There are moments that stop just short. Even a line from Royce's letter as noted in Quotes tells Beckett what she has already heard from others earlier in the series that she has something in Castle worth pursuing. But somehow the writers with pull them back from the brink once again in coming episodes.

This episode is set in LA, so some wardrobe is noticeably different so as to fit the location. Katic has had a few smoking outfits prior, but she is usually more modest as one would expect from an on-duty NYPD detective. The scene at the pool is intentionally cheesy, but still hot. In addition Katic is seen several times in very tight tops, which I mention only because it stands out from the usual wardrobe back in NYC.

It was an unexpectedly original idea to revisit Royce, this time as the victim who'd appear for a brief moment in the opening. So was it refresing to see our duo take on the task unofficially, visiting LA.

But didn't such an exceptional story deserve more than a single episode? Yes, there already was one double-size story in this season but this had no less potential than that "bomb in NY" plot.

I was entertained alright and I have no negative comments on how they merged the two original aspects, however I think Royce could have been made better use of, given how important he was for Kate Beckett, and think a Hollywood special would deserve a two-parter for any NY-based series.