Is Castle Getting Too Dark For A Dramedy TV Show?

It has been a few weeks since the season 3 finale of the ABC’s hit show Castle aired and I believe we all had time to process everything that happened in “Knockout”. It is mostly a consensus that the episode was easily one of the best of the series so far – the very best, in my opinion – but it was a departure from Castle’s usual dramedy tone. That, honestly, is no surprise because the episodes that deal with Beckett’s mom’s murder are usually more dramatic and intense.

However, after I posted a review of season 3 a week after the finale had aired, the comments area was immediately overflowing with people’s concerns about the show choosing a too dark path and that it would be hard to keep the consistency of the original premise if it suddenly became a full out drama. “Knockout” was obviously a very different episode and it was a lot more emotional than the previous ones. Captain Montgomery was revealed to be a traitor and ended up getting killed in an attempt to redeem himself and save Beckett’s life. In the end, his sacrifice didn’t really do anything as Beckett was shot during his funeral, which prompted Castle to declare his love for her, leaving us with one hell of a cliffhanger.

I do agree it seems like a dark outlook for season 4. This particular group of fans that think Castle is getting too dark argues that what they love about the show is how lighthearted it is – even when it’s dealing with gruesome murders – and episodes like that just take away that aspect of the show. With the way season 3 ended, it seems like we are about to dive into the drama aspect of the Castle even further.

While I agree with their argument to some extent, I have to say that they are jumping to conclusions here. Beckett’s mother’s murder is the main plot that has permeated every season so far, but what people seem to be forgetting is that out of 24 episodes a season, only two, maybe three are dedicated to that particular storyline. If you count the more dramatic episodes in season 3 – “3XK”, “Knockdown”, “The Final Nail”, “Setup”, “Countdown” and “Knockout” – that only accounts for ¼ of an entire season. So I honestly think there is nothing to worry about.

This is purely speculation on my part, but I think one way that season 4 could play out is that Castle will keep those files to himself (and I am sure he is the one Montgomery sent them to) for as long as possible. Marlowe has said recently that the significant others storyline is played out and that sometime around midseason we will get something satisfactory on the Castle/Beckett front.

So here is my take on it: They will get together eventually and I think they’ll give it a shot sometime halfway through the season. All is fine in the Castle/Beckett world until for some reason those files will come to surface and Beckett will feel completely betrayed by the fact that Castle has been sitting on valuable information about her mom’s case for months and never bothered to share that with her. With her trust issues and everything, this will probably lead to another heart wrenching episode and Beckett telling him they are over again. But this time she means it.

Even if it does play out like that, we have to keep in mind that there will be at the very least half a season in which all the dramedy aspect will be emphasized and will come into play. After all, given the past three seasons, we know that those intense episodes only come a handful of times during the season.

So chill, guys. We still got a long way ahead of us to be stressing about this already. I may be biased because I love the dramatic episodes, but I honestly think we have nothing to worry about.

What do you think, Castle fans?

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