CASTLE: FLOWERS FOR YOUR GRAVE {SERIES PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
The first in this comedy-drama series about a New York Police Department detective who grudgingly lets a rugged mystery-books author help solve murder cases. In this episode, Richard Castle attends a glamorous release party for his latest crime novel, while elsewhere Detective Kate Beckett investigates the murder of Alison Tisdale, who was shot twice and then covered with flowers. Castle banters with Gina, his "blood-sucking" ex-wife and publisher, who chides him for killing off his main character, Derek Storm, and hints that he has writer's block. Castle chastises his high-spirited mother, Martha, for ratting him out to Gina, and admits to his daughter Alexis that there were "no more surprises" left with Storm. Beckett then hauls Castle in for questioning and explains that Tisdale and another man's recent murders were patterned after scenes in his books. Unamused by his "bad-boy charm," she asks his about his correspondence from fans, but he has little helpful information. He returns home to find Martha entertaining a gentleman and tells Alexis about the murders, wondering why the killer based his crimes on two of his inferior books.
Beckett instructs Detectives Esposito and Ryan to comb through Castle's novels for clues, and they teasingly observe that she is a fan of his work. Castle then arrives at the precinct to "help," telling Beckett that he is there "for the story." He questions her about her decision to become a cop, guessing that she was personally affected by a crime in the past. They then find a letter from a fan containing a drawing of the flower murder scene, and Beckett is annoyed when Castle shamelessly calls in a favor to rush the fingerprint analysis. A third body is then found imitating another of his book murders, and Castle tags along to the crime scene and impresses medical examiner Lanie Parish with his observations. The prints are then matched to one Kyle Cabot, at whose apartment the cops find a wealth of evidence relating to Castle's books and to the three victims, and Cabot is quickly arrested. They learn that he has a history of mental illness and that Alison was his caseworker, and the case seems to be closed, though Beckett seems unsure. Castle attends a poker game with other well-known crime writers and they critique his "self-aggrandizing" new book idea, pointing out the inconsistencies and suggesting that he needs another twist.
Castle gifts Beckett with an advanced copy of his latest book, but she quickly realizes that he stole the Cabot case files and has him arrested. Montgomery agrees to drop the charges, but Castle informs them that Cabot is innocent and Beckett soon observes the mistakes in the staged scenes and figures out that Alison was the true target and was killed by someone who then framed Cabot, knowing of his Castle obsession. Beckett and Castle meet Alison's wealthy father and Castle observes that he is dying of cancer, guessing that his son Harrison killed Alison to double his inheritance. Harrison swears that he was out of the country for all three murders, but Beckett doubts his strangely specific alibi and Castle theorizes that he has a second passport. He hurriedly convinces a judge pal to sign a warrant and Beckett handcuffs Castle to the car to prevent him interfering with the arrest, but he frees himself and spots Harrison fleeing via the fire escape after shredding the telltale passport and other evidence. Harrison grabs Castle as a hostage, but Castle distracts him by asking writerly questions about his motivation for the murders and Beckett is able to arrest him. Later, Beckett rejects Castle's dinner offer and firmly bids him goodbye, but Montgomery then tells her that Castle is now "researching" a new character: a feisty and capable female detective. Includes commercials and promos.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: March 9, 2009 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:56:08
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 105914
- GENRE: Drama, police/detective
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, police/detective; Comedy; Writers
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 2009-2016
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - AT&T cellular services
- TV - Commercials - Arm & Hammer Oxi-Clean detergent
- TV - Commercials - Aveeno Positively Ageless night cream
- TV - Commercials - BlackBerry Storm cellular phones
- TV - Commercials - Boost Mobile cellular services
- TV - Commercials - Chili's restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Denny's restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Federal Student Aid financial services
- TV - Commercials - First Response pregnancy tests
- TV - Commercials - GMC automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Humira psoriasis medication
- TV - Commercials - JCPenney stores
- TV - Commercials - Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Outback Steakhouse restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Progresso Light soups
- TV - Commercials - Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
- TV - Commercials - T-Mobile cellular services
- TV - Commercials - TGI Friday's restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Verizon Wireless cellular services
- TV - Commercials - Victoria's Secret stores
- TV - Commercials - Visa credit cards
- TV - PSA - A Better Community volunteering
- TV - Promos - "Better Off Ted"
- TV - Promos - "Castle" upcoming episode
- TV - Promos - "Desperate Housewives"
- TV - Promos - "Duplicity" motion picture
- TV - Promos - "Grey's Anatomy"
- TV - Promos - "Pinocchio" home video
- TV - Promos - "Race to Witch Mountain" motion picture
- TV - Promos - "The Unusuals"
- TV - Promos - "Ugly Betty"
- TV - Promos - "Watchmen" motion picture
CREDITS
- Armyan Bernstein … Executive Producer
- Laurie Zaks … Executive Producer
- Andrew W. Marlowe … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
- Rob Bowman … Executive Producer, Director
- Jane Raab … Producer
- Howard Grigsby … Producer
- Dean Barnes … Associate Producer
- Suzanne Lauer … Associate Producer
- Robert Duncan … Music by
- Nathan Fillion … Cast, Richard Castle
- Stana Katic … Cast, Kate Beckett
- Susan Sullivan … Cast, Martha Rodgers
- Monet Mazur … Cast, Gina Griffin
- Ruben Santiago-Hudson … Cast, Captain Roy Montgomery
- Molly Quinn … Cast, Alexis Castle
- Stephen J. Cannell … Cast, Stephen J. Cannell
- James Patterson … Cast, James Patterson
- Jon Huertas … Cast, Javier Esposito
- Seamus Dever … Cast, Kevin Ryan
- Dan Castellaneta … Cast, Judge Markway
- Tamala Jones … Cast, Lanie Parish
- Keir Dullea … Cast, Jonathan Tisdale
- Colby French … Cast, Detective
- Brian Avers … Cast, Harrison Tisdale
- Kurt David Anderson … Cast, Kyle Cabot
- Ian Jarvis … Cast, Silver Fox
- Caitlin McHugh … Cast, Receptionist
- Kevin Jiggetts … Cast, Uniformed Cop