Castle: Hollander's Woods (7x23)

This episode was a bit strange, because it had to serve as a potential series finale, as well as just a season finale. We know now that there will be a Season Eight, but it wasn't guaranteed for a long time, so I guess when this episode was first written and conceived of, they had to make it work as a wrap-up.

Castle and Beckett work on a case that hits close to home for Castle. Thirty years ago, when Castle was just a kid, he encountered a masked man in the woods. This man had just killed a woman, and Castle had seen the body. The masked man threatened him, and by the time Castle called the police, the body had been moved. It was never found. Years passed, and Castle started to wonder if he'd just imagined the whole thing. But now, it looks like the mysterious masked killer has struck again.

Castle's obsession with this figure runs deep - it was because of this first unsolved mystery that Castle wanted to become a mystery writer. They find a suspect pretty quickly, and it looks like the case is wrapped up. But then Castle hears a man's voice, and flashes back to the man in Hollander's Woods all those years ago. He knows he's found the real killer. Esposito, Ryan, and Beckett are all a little skeptical, since the suspect they have in custody seems just right for the crime. However, Beckett agrees to support Castle.

Castle and Beckett find the murderer's shed, with the mask, and pictures of his victims. The murderer shows up and nearly kills Castle, but Beckett manages to get a gun to him from underneath the locked door, and Castle shoots and kills him.

Meanwhile, Beckett is waiting to hear back the results of her exam, to see if she can make captain. She is called to a meeting to discuss her future, where she is attacked for being unprofessional in regards to her relationship to Castle. When Beckett angrily stands up for herself and for her husband, the committee tells her that the verbal attack was just a test - they wanted to see if she would defend herself. They think she might make a great candidate to run for state senator.

There were a few brief subplot moments, such as Alexis freaking out because she doesn't know what she wants to do with her life (I'm with ya, girl), and Martha hoping to snag a great apartment that just became available due to the death of a friend's father. Esposito and Ryan were having their 10 year anniversary as partners, so that was cute as well. Castle has been honored with an award for his writing. The episode ends with his speech, in which he thanks Martha, Alexis, the people at the precinct (especially Ryan and Esposito), and finally Beckett.

There were a few moments that I thought were kind of strange in this episode, but overall I did enjoy it. The idea of Castle getting too obsessed with a case and the others doubting him just felt too similar to the episode where we finally found out where Castle was when he went missing. It was the same setup - Castle has a crazy idea, he gets sucked in, Beckett doubts him and then later supports him, and then it turns out that Castle was right. I don't know... it was just a little too repetitive for me.

Also, the very end of the episode didn't ring quite true to me. I loved Castle's speech, but afterwards, they're all sitting around at a table at the awards ceremony, and Beckett gets a call that there's been a murder, so they all get up to leave and get back to work. I felt like they were trying to give you warm and fuzzy feelings, like... here's our gang of close friends, going back to work. But... it's a murder, guys. Somebody just died. That's not really the way you want to end an episode, is it? Much less a season? Much less the whole show?

But I did like the way this episode tied every character together and gave different relationships a chance to shine. Martha is still on her quest to find a new apartment, and I loved the fact she was going the ruthless New Yorker route and went to go scope out an apartment that just became available because somebody died. Alexis is scared because she doesn't know what she wants to do with her life. I loved the supportive speech that Castle gave to her, because honestly it's something I really needed to hear. Lately I've been stressed about that too, given that I'm graduating from undergrad.

Beckett's future is looking bright! I love the fact that we ended this season with two really great and interesting options in front of us. Beckett as captain, or Beckett as senator? I'm not sure that Beckett would be good in politics, but I do think it would finally be a way to lift Beckett up and do something interesting with her character. However, the same could be said if she made captain. I'm just so proud of her! I knew immediately that the interview thing had to be a trap. Nobody would dare be so cruel in a professional setting like that. And I was proud of Beckett for standing up for herself and for Castle. It was actually rather sweet to hear her say that she was proud to be Castle's wife and partner.

Then there's Castle's speech - I'm glad he gave special mention to the most important people in his life. Ryan and Espo, Martha and Alexis... and then especially Beckett. Ultimately this episode shone the strongest when it showed us the love and respect between our two leading characters. They encourage each other and always have each other's backs. There aren't many relationships I can think of on TV where there's such a feeling of equality between a married couple.

I guess there's where I'll leave things. Honestly, I would have been okay with saying goodbye to this show. I love it, I do, but I've been feeling like it's sort of directionless without a focal A-plot. This season's A-plot didn't really work for me. Castle's disappearance and the reason behind it were not very good. But maybe next season, with new show runners, we can get a fresh start. I'll definitely tune in to see what comes next!

8/10