First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Caskett on a horse and carriage….
I honestly have way more love for undercover episodes than I should and “Once Upon a Time in the West” did not disappoint!
As usual we have our show opening meeting of our victim, but unlike most, our victim still has some clues to provide, whispering out the word, “Diamondback” before surrendering to a fit of convulsions. Whatever could that mean? “A password for murderous underground snake handling fight club”, perhaps? More crazy Castle theories to follow, but first an announcement!
I loved the reaction scene! Ryan, although hurt, looks genuinely happy for them, Espo’s, “You guys suck.” was hilarious, and Lanie’s tirade was the reaction I never knew my life was missing! I for one really want to hear the wedding song, but according to sassy Ryan, “NO. SONG. FOR. YOU.” Maybe in the DVD extras..?
It is really the little things that the writers throw into each episode that keep me falling for this show time and time again! The “Mrs. Castle/Mr.Beckett” exchange, along with “our place”, and Castle acknowledging that they finally did it, they got married, was wonderful!
Castle, true to form is back to coming up with his crazy theories, based on the dying words of our victim. With only the word “Diamondback” to go on, Castle is able to spin up, “A password for an underground, snake handling, fight club.” or that her death was caused by a Marvel© super villain. But thanks to our biter, party of two, we discover that Diamondback is a dude ranch in Arizona.
With local law enforcement being less than helpful, Beckett and the team are at a loss of what to do… insert another crazy Castle theory: Honeymoon while on the case! We’ve already tried a Bachelor Party while on the case! With Gates’ blessing that Beckett’s “husband” might be correct, Castle and Beckett are off to the old West, posing as a newlywed couple (That’s going to be so tough!)
Rick’s excitement over their assignment/honeymoon, is truly a thing of beauty! And most of the dude ranch scenes are the perfect examples of why I see the hashtag, #two idiots in love, all the time! I love the throw back to cuddling, and who wouldn’t have wanted to see them try to even sleep, let alone anything else in that twin bed!
Even with leaving New York, they can’t seem to get away from the naked cowboys, at least this one was gossipy and entertaining! Ultimately, Tobias was one of my favorite characters of the episode and he happened to be a wealth of information for the case!
So with the clues that Tobias provides, and the info that Ryan and Espo are able to track down, Kate and Rick are able to track Whitney’s movements to the Yavapi Indian Reservation. Given the new direction of the case, they are able to uncover what Whitney had been looking for, which leads them to some old letters and some new suspects. And as we know, in the Castle fandom, every legend has a little bit of truth, and the legend of the “Peacock Boys” is no different!
Castle in search of answers is always a joy to watch, but Castle in search of answers and gold…. that is true comedy gold! (I think he is forgetting that Kate made him give back the half-dimes from last season!) Ryan and Espo uncover that the man that wrote the letter was Whitney’s father, giving her a more personal connection to the case. Unfortunately, Clyde is found with a bad case of blunt force trauma to the head, just as Whitney found him earlier in the week. Which is why she was in such a hurry to get back to New York City, she sought to confront who she thought had killed her father. It was none other than her financial benefactor Philip Dagmar. With the mine uncovered and a body to be put to rest, Beckett and the Sheriff head off to close at least one case, leaving Castle to decompress with the proprietor. Javier and Kevin were still trying to get information from Mr. Dagmar, and information they receive! In true Castle tradition or fashion, the case is solved by the emergence of a third man, and unfortunately, one that is armed, aware, and alone with Rick.
Side note: How many phones has Castle gone through in 7 seasons….?
Even as a documented good shot, it has never been proven that Castle is a quick draw.If Castle is still keeping that tally list of the times they have saved each other’s lives, he had better put another mark in the Beckett column! Thank goodness he is married to the “fastest gun from the east”!
I think that my favorite character development sequence had to be the last couple of minutes of the episode. It is so great to see Gates not only accepting, but defending Rick and Kate’s relationship and decisions. I appreciate that she called the boys to the mat over their behavior. It seemed to be a call out to fans too. Unfortunately, it was to that more than vocal minority of them that cannot seem to be happy about anything. This one read loud and clear. Instead of criticizing how it happened, just be happy that Rick and Kate are together and that they are happy! I love that she is able to convince them to give away some vacation days as a wedding gift, seeing as in the search of Castle, Kate exhausted all of hers. And it is good to see that Kate’s lessons at the dude ranch came in hand, not only can she sling her six-shooter, but she can also lasso her man! I wonder how they are going to use those 4 days?? (Insert winks here…)
All photos and gif content courtesy of ABC Studios. Gif credit to drinkingcastleskoolaid.tumblr.com
I love that they throw us episodes like this, it reminded me a lot of “That Seventy’s Show” from last season and the “Blue Butterfly” from season 4. I appreciate how the whole cast throws themselves into it wholeheartedly and learns what ever is asked of them. BTS revealed that it was indeed Stana doing her own gun slinging in this episode!
Did you love it, hate it, what did you think about the ep? Drop me a line in the comments, tweet me @camifaith_fn and on tumblr at drinkingcastleskoolaid.tumblr.com!
Tune in tonight, for “Kill Switch”. Can the team get Espo out alive, only if they can get him out in time! Find out at 10/9central! Come join the liveblogging conversation on Twitter!
