TV – Castle Season 7

Note: This is part of my ongoing reviews of the Castle television show’s seasons, the books written by “Richard Castle”, and some events related to the show.  For the parent post with links to all of these, please click here.  I will have an upcoming review for the latest Nikki Heat novel at some point.  I haven’t read it yet.

Note 2: There are spoilers for Season 6 in this post.

TV and Book – Game of Thrones Season 4

The fourth season of Game of Thrones is based on the last third of the novel A Storm of Swords, as well as parts of A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons – the third, fourth, and fifth books in the ongoing series titled A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin.  Please note that this review of the fourth TV season and fourth book contains spoilers for the first three TV seasons and books.  If you have never seen this show and would like a spoiler-free overview of what it is about and why you might want to watch it, please read my review of the first season and book here.  My reviews of the second season and book can be found here and the third season and book here.

Because the show and the books are no longer in sync with each other, I will only be discussing those parts of books 4 and 5 that were part of the show.  The reason for this situation is that the producers wanted to end Season 3 with the Red Wedding and the fallout from it.  They wanted to keep the further events of book 3 for this season.  Unfortunately, not all characters have enough book 3 plot left to last an entire season without dipping into their future storylines. 

TV – Castle Season 6

Note: This is part of my ongoing reviews of the Castle television show’s seasons, the books written by “Richard Castle”, and some events related to the show.  For the parent post with links to all of these, please click here.  In the coming days I will also post reviews of the latest books.

Note 2: There are spoilers for Season 5 in this post.

This season picks up right where Season 5 ended.  Castle has just proposed marriage to Beckett.  The context at the end of Season 5 was one where it seemed more likely they were going to break up than they were going to get engaged.  It was then surprising for the fans that show runner Andrew Marlowe actually had her accept.  Most fans had grown cynical of Marlowe’s apparent continued dislike for the two of them as a couple.  It’s possible the network had a word with him and told him that they wanted ratings, which meant giving the fans what they wanted to see – Castle and Beckett as a couple, or “Caskett” as some fans referred to them. 

TV and Book – Game of Thrones Season 3

The third season of Game of Thrones is based on the first two thirds of the novel A Storm of Swords – the third book in the ongoing series titled A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin.  Please note that this review of the third TV season and book contains spoilers for the first two TV seasons and books.  If you have never seen this show and would like a spoiler-free overview of what it is about and why you might want to watch it, please read my review of the first season and book here.  If you've seen that, my review of the second season and book can be found here.

TV – Castle Season 5

Note: This is part of my ongoing reviews of the Castle television show’s seasons, the books written by “Richard Castle”, and some events related to the show.  For the parent post with links to all of these, please click here.  In the coming days I will post reviews of the three newest books.

Note 2: There are spoilers for Season 4 in this post, especially the final episode of that season since it directly relates to the events of Season 5.

This season picks up the morning after Season 4 ended.  Beckett had finally admitted her desire for Castle and had shown up at his apartment.  As the season opens Castle wakes up alone in bed.  Was it all a dream?  Nope.  Beckett comes in with a couple cups of coffee.  Castle quizzes her.  Does she regret it?  Was it a one time thing caused by the trauma of almost dying and then quitting the police force?  Nope and nope. 

TV and Book – Game of Thrones Season 2

The second season of Game of Thrones is based on the novel A Clash of Kings – the second book in the ongoing series titled A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin.  Please note that this review of the second TV season and book contains spoilers for the first TV season and book.  If you have never seen this show and would like a spoiler-free overview of what it is about and why you might want to watch it, please read my review of the first season and book here.

TV – Castle Season 1

Castle debuted as a Spring replacement on ABC in March of 2009.  It only had time for a run of 10 episodes, but that was enough for ABC to see that it had something good.  They brought it back for a full 24 episode run the next Fall and that’s when the show really hit its stride.  It is now starting its fifth season.  It airs Mondays at 10:00 PM on ABC.

The premise is that a popular crime novelist ends up helping a New York City police detective solve murder cases.  At the same time he is using these experiences with her as the basis for a new series of crime novels starring a character based on her.  There’s much more to it than that, but that is the 50,000 foot view.

TV – Castle Season 2

This season is the one where the show hit its stride.  The writers and actors know who the characters are and they are able to expand on them.  The show plays up the growing attraction of the two leads.  That really gets fun when Castle’s first Nikki Heat book is published.  It’s titled Heat Wave.  If you have not read the post on the book, please do so now.  You can find it here.

TV – Castle Season 3

At the start of this season none of the detectives have heard from Castle for months.  They think he might still be out of town, but they walk past a bookstore display touting the release of Castle’s next book, Naked Heat, and that he will be there signing it.  They get a call that a body has been found.  They are the first cops on the scene, so they start to go through the apartment with guns drawn.  They discover one person in the apartment with the body – Castle.

TV – Castle Season 4

Note: There are spoilers for Season 3 in this post, as well as a discussion of the status of the Castle/Beckett relationship at the end of Season 4 and the first episode of Season 5.

This season picks up right where last season left off.  Beckett is being whisked into a hospital emergency room.  She took a bullet to the chest from an unknown shooter at the end of Season 3.  After a tense scene, she is going to survive (although it wasn’t ever really in doubt.)

What was in doubt was whether Beckett would remember Castle’s confession to her, just after she was shot, that he loved her and he couldn’t lose her.  She says she doesn’t, but it is revealed in the first episode that she really did.  Her therapist (Michael Dorn) tries to help her address this, as well as the trauma of almost being killed.

TV – Dollhouse (2009 - 2010)

Dollhouse is the most recent TV show that Joss Whedon has had on the air.  His prior shows were Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly.  Please see my separate posts on those.

Dollhouse had a curious history.  It appeared on FOX, of all places.  This was the network that had destroyed Whedon’s last show – Firefly.  The network took control of Dollhouse away from Whedon for a while in the first season, until they had to admit that their monkeying with it was not giving the results they wanted.  They turned control back over to Whedon and he spent the rest of the first season’s thirteen episodes trying to get the show back on track.  By then the ratings were so low that everyone expected FOX to cancel it.  They actually renewed it for thirteen more episodes, let Whedon run it the way he wanted, and the result was a great season of television.  By then it was too late, though.  The ratings never recovered and the show was cancelled.

TV – Angel (1999 - 2004)

Angel was a spin-off series from the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer (aka BtVS.)  After the third season of that show ended, Joss Whedon transplanted the characters of Angel, played by David Boreanaz (Bones) and Cordelia, played by Charisma Carpenter, to Los Angeles.  Where BtVS was about fighting evil, this show was primarily about redemption.

Its concept was that Angel, Cordelia, and another character set up an agency where people could come when they had non-human issues that needed to be dealt with.  By helping these people Angel could continue his redemption for all the wrong he had done in his life.

TV – Castle (2009 - present)

Castle debuted as a Spring replacement on ABC in March of 2009.  It only had time for a run of 10 episodes, but that was enough for ABC to see that it had something good.  They brought it back for a full 24 episode run the next Fall and that’s when the show really hit its stride.  It’s now in the midst of its third season.  It airs Mondays at 10:00 PM on ABC.