Castle Review: The Caskett Wedding (Season 7 Episode 6)

Well, it’s about time. “The Time of our Lives” was an entertaining episode, and Castle and Beckett finally got married. But after over six seasons of courtship, their wedding, and this episode, left me a bit disgruntled.

Sure, I understood the sentiment of the episode, and even though I tend to reel against these sort of “alternate reality” episodes in shows, I think it had some great moments.

As Castle and Beckett work to solve a case, Castle bumps his head after finding an ancient artifact, and he dreams of an alternate reality in which he and Beckett had never met. In this reality, he’s not rich and famous, but rather a struggling writer who still lives with his mother. Alexis lives with her mother instead of him, and Beckett is captain of the precinct. In this world, no one is quite as happy as they should be. Even Beckett, who has clearly become successful, admits that she misses being a detective.

The alternate reality made way for nice comedic moments that Nathan Fillion played well (as usual). He eventually starts using his knowledge of everyone’s lives to his advantage, poking fun at Ryan and Esposito along the way. And even in a world where he isn’t Beckett’s partner, he still manages to help her take down a suspect by tripping him as he tries to run away.

The point of the episode, of course, is that Castle and Beckett were destined to meet, and that their lives are better off with each other. And I think that is a perfectly good way to lead up to their wedding– but only if the wedding had lasted longer than a few minutes.

After last season’s cliffhanger, it absolutely makes sense that there wouldn’t be another big wedding episode. And in fact, I think that was a good choice. But especially after their first wedding was ruined by Castle’s abduction and two-month disappearance (complete with memory loss), their wedding should have been more fulfilling. A bit more lead up as the both prepared for their impromptu ceremony or a toast from Alexis might have made all the difference. Beckett’s father was there, at least, to walk her down the aisle. But that’s all he did. And Beckett’s outfit — with pants instead of an elaborate dress — was much more suited to her character.

Overall, it was a beautiful, intimate wedding, and that seems fitting. The vows made me tear up a little, with both Castle and Beckett saying the other had made their lives “extraordinary.” And the dance was a nice touch. I just don’t think enough time was spent on any of it. I’m usually a blubbering mess when I watch a good wedding episode, and I didn’t even need to break out my tissues on this one.

We waited so long for Castle and Beckett to get together, to stay together, and to get engaged, that the wedding scene being done so quickly was anticlimactic. Hopefully, next week’s honeymoon episode will make up for it.

Ashley Bissette Sumerel

Ashley Bissette Sumerel is a television and film critic living in Wilmington, North Carolina. She is editor-in-chief of Tell-Tale TV as well as Eulalie Magazine. Ashley has also written for outlets such as Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, and Insider. Ashley has been a member of the Critics Choice Association since 2017 and is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. In addition to her work as an editor and critic, Ashley teaches Entertainment Journalism, Composition, and Literature at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.