Castle (TV Series) After Hours (2012) User Reviews

Not my favorite but several high points

[VetteRanger · 7/10 · 26 January 2023]

The episode starts out with Castle hosting Beckett and her father for dinner, along with her mother. A series of conversational miscues turns what should be a relaxed evening into a tense, but very funny mess. Then Castle and Beckett are called to a murder scene and have to leave the parents alone with their growing antipathy. And of course, that threatens to spill over into their own conversation.

Most of the episode is a midnight chase through the Bronx, with Castle, Beckett, and a supposed witness being hunted by a man with mob connections and his soldiers. It seems like ever series wants to do one of those eventually, and they're never my favorites. The writers have to ignore too many possible "outs".

However, a scene with Castle and Dolan (the crime boss) are very well done.

Emergency call from i-Phone

[zaqzaq131 · 8/10 · 20 November 2012]

the episode is very nice I like to mix between the crime investigation and their personal live, Kate's dad and Castle's mother, it is kind of simple smile and fun. We have in Australia Emergency call 000, it is free from any net work provider, from any mobile brand i-Phone, Nokia, old or new, 1G 4G, we don't need even SIM card, and even if the mobile was LOCKED, no need to unlock the mobile to make emergency call, So why castle was trying to unlock the mobile to call 911? In NY they don't have emergency free call system??? Leo! he was waiting for Dolan to kill him, so why he wasn't ready for them? No guns didn't expect them or prepared in anyway to finish his plan

The Hunters Became The Hunted

[MichaelSeese · 10/10 · 27 November 2012]

LOTS OF SPOILERS. Do not read if you haven't seen it...

With all apologies to the Monty Python players, this episode of Castle was defined one chief thing: tension. Tension, and an overriding sense of doom. TWO things: tension, and an overriding sense of doom. And claustrophobia. Three! Three things....

I really enjoyed "After Hours," because it was a radical departure from the norm. Beckett and Castle, usually the hunters, became the hunted. As I've said before, yes, we all know they're going to get out of it. Still, I was on the edge of my seat. This entire episode reminded me a lot of the last five minutes of "3XK," when Castle realizes that he's alone in a motel room (Ryan having been knocked out) with the killer. And in both cases, a carefully worded phone conversation served as the SOS.

I'll admit to be taken completely by surprise when it was revealed that Leo was the killer, and a smart criminal to boot. If I may pat myself a little on the back, I did figure it out when FBI Agent Lucas said Dolan was not the bad guy, but rather a state witness; but that was about 30 seconds before Leo revealed himself.

Two bits of insight I will take credit for: when Castle said, "It's a Vatican conspiracy," I knew a Da Vinci Code reference was coming; likewise, when Castle started tinkering with the CB radio, I knew the word "MacGyver" would follow.

Along those lines, a few other noteworthy lines included:

Castle: "How about we dive into this dessert? Because honestly that death thing is sounding pretty good right now."

Castle: "I'm just saying there have been worse dinners." Beckett: "Like what?" Castle: "Well, the dining scene from Alien comes to mind."

Ryan: "Catholic school is like combat. Unless you've been there, you don't know." (I've heard a lot of people say that.)

Castle: "Dude. Where's your car?"

They even gave one to Leo: "I may be safer outside."

Above and beyond mere "looks" were scenes full of looks: the entire dinner party; Beckett's and Castle's bickering after the dinner party; and Ryan's body language from merely thinking about -- let alone being in the presence of -- a nun.

My only picky little complaint: Castle's speech to Dolan about not shooting Leo being what Father McMurtry would have wanted was nice and touchy-feely; a more direct disincentive would have been Beckett saying, "I'm a cop. If you shoot him in cold blood, I have to arrest you for murder."

All in all, though, I thought this was a great episode. Next week's looks to be a little lighter.

Too many plot holes

[WI-classics-fan · 2/10 · 22 September 2018]

First of all, a priest would never leave "in the middle of Mass." That's just sloppy writing; the nun could have just said that he left in a hurry after Mass. Second, KB would never have let her guard down in such a bad area; the car is one thing but letting the thugs get the drop on her is inexcusable. Third, as pointed out in a "goof," the thugs never enter Leo's apartment but when Esposito gets there he can just walk in. Fourth, another goof about not being able to use the cell phone to call 911. Fifth, the ending is rushed; a hit man would have shot at his target, not an empty SUV. Finally, once it's revealed that Leo is the hit man, his "concern" for our heroes' relationship seems utterly contrived.

All that being said it does have its moments. The scenes with Dolan are quite good, especially the last. KB's comment about being "just a cop," while coming at an extremely unlikely time, fits with her occasional self-doubt which humanizes her character. But it also cries out for Castle to remind her that she's anything BUT "just a cop;" that was a missed opportunity. Also good to see the development of the parents' characters.

Too Many Things Wrong With This Episode

[ANannyMoose02 · 1/10 · 12 January 2022]

You don't need a password to make an emergency call on a cell phone. Why do they spend half the episode trying to hack the phone to call 911? Beckett runs to a cab and says "I'm a cop", she doesn't show her badge. The guy says something sarcastic and she says "it's true, I'm a cop", she still doesn't show her badge. There's about 50 more things wrong with this episode but I don't need to say more. Anyone who's seen this already knows how bad the episode is.