CASTLE: “Scared to Death” recap

I pick nits. I can’t help it, it’s what I do. When Castle called Dreamcatchers ‘Indian Woodchimes’, I had to cringe a little. However, overall, this episode marked a return to the superstitious Rick Castle. The dreamer, believer, ‘my research into the paranormal didn’t comfort me’ Rick Castle.

Also – Perlmutter. I’m one of the few that likes Perlmutter. Yeah, it (usually) means no Lanie, but the interplay between the surly M.E. and Beckett’s team makes me smile.

TPTB aren’t giving us a ton of Caskett sappiness, but I loved the subtle dig Rick made about Kate’s shoe collection, and the discussion about (gasp!) sexy-time picture taking. To me, they seem like a real couple. They definitely show more affection in public than my husband & me. *grin*

I got a little squidgy when it looked like Nurse Lockhart (Romy Rosemont) might be the murderess, I admit. I love her, and I didn’t want to see her as the ‘bad guy’. I’m very glad her character was the quintessential red herring.

“Scared to Death” centered around a mysterious ring-eque video that appeared to be at the heart of several murders. When Castle watches it at the victim’s apartment, he begins to believe he might be the next victim. This plot-point allowed his well-known Bucket List to make it’s appearance on the show. It was originally posted on Rick’s website, and was the source of many fanfics. At the end of the episode, Kate reads it, and realizes just how long he’s been in love with her. *adorable*

After they find the second murder victim, sent the same disc and killed the same way – Rick has Kate very close to convinced that since she also watched the video, they’re both in peril. It doesn’t help that there’s a part of her that knows they may have seen something on the disc that the killer would want suppressed, and that might have the same result.

Castle knows everyone – including the master of horror, Wes Craven. He makes a brief appearance as himself. A throwback to his poker game buddy discussions, he calls Wes to get advice on how to counter the curse of the creepy video. The advice he’s given is to figure out the motivation of the ‘spirit’ and use that information to cheat death.

He turns over some of the stills from the disc to his legion of fans to ‘crowdsource’ clues, and gets a location from the picture of an Inn. Both victims stayed there at the same time, and the innkeeper tells Kate & Espo that they stayed in rooms reserved for people involved in trials. They were both witnesses in trial of a serial killer.

They were pressured to identify the wrong man before the real killer was found, and that man’s daughter was seeking revenge on her father’s accusers. I really should have pegged her right off the bat. She was mousy and introduced near the beginning of the hour.

“Scared to Death” was an inventive homage to all kinds of horror story archetypes. There were overt references to “The Ring” & “Silence of the Lambs”, and many vague hints at dozens of teen slashers. Not to mention the walls of Wes Craven’s house, which were plastered with posters of his movies.

I really dug this episode. It had everything I love about the series. Witty banter, bromance scenes, twisty plotlines, skeptical Kate, and superstitious Castle. The video was definitely creepy, but not over the top. The scene in Beckett’s car with Rick and his talismen was standard “Castle” goodness.

It’s nice to see that the writers & creators are keeping the show on track in it’s fifth season, and I can’t wait to see the next episode. “The Wild Rover” airs next Monday, March 25th at 10pm/9pm Central.