'After the Storm' -- Castle 5x01

A brand new, shiny "Castle"!!

Ok, so, let's jump right into it ... we apparently have gotten right back to Castle and Beckett after they have told each other how they feel. I still think that the right time for this would have been the very last scene of the very last episode, cuz of how horribly wrong the show can go now that the two of them are together. Kind of the whole point of the show up until now has been the buildup between the two of them, them making us wonder if they would actually do anything. But now that they have ... I think that there is a real possibility that the show might turn into something far more lovie-dovie, and be far more about their relationship than it is about anything else ... and that's never been the central part of the show. Sure, that has always danced around the edges, but the real core of the show is Castle, Beckett, Ryan, and Esposito trying to solve homicides (with Alexis and Martha on the sidelines of Castle's life, giving him inspiration when he needs it).

And I will admit that I thought that it was kind of strange that the two of them, after so many seasons of them circling around each other (and everyone knowing that they are in love) that the moment that something actually (finally) happens between them, their first instinct is to hide it ... and not just one of them, but both of them. You would think that after all of this time, the two of them might be a little more willing to admit that what everybody already knew was coming, had finally occurred ... ok, so they didn't need to let everyone know that they had slept together, but what was there to hide about the two of them finally being a couple? Nothing, that's what.

But I do appreciate that even though the gang was in three different places, they all ended up at the same place in the end ... even if I'm not really liking the way that the writers are now making Ryan out like he's a little too jumpy with the gun. The guy was only trying to do what was right, and there was a tense situation happening ... plus, it's not as though he isn't a complete team player. Esposito may still be mad at him for telling on them in the finale of season four, but Ryan did the right thing there, dang it!!

Also, we now have the identity of the guy who was behind Beckett's mom's murder. And it turns out to be HRG ... sorry, I can't be frightened of HRG. He spent far too much time on "Heroes" trying to pretend like he had any idea of what he was doing. In the beginning, he was could have instilled some fear, but after we got to know him a little bit ... nope. And now, he will always be the non-threatening HRG in my mind, no matter what other roles he gets.

But now that we have Castle and Beckett together ... and now that we know who was behind Beckett's mom's murder (and as an aside ... why is it so hard for them to get the same actress to pose for pictures as her mom? Every picture that we've seen throughout the series has been with a different woman, and none of them even look alike) ... so where does that leave us. The main mystery of the show is gone, since we know who the shadowy figure is now. The "will they/won't they" question is over, since we know that they have. It makes me wonder if they're going to be able to keep the show interesting, now that they've started giving us all of the things that they've been leading us on with for so long.