Tim in the Cupid thread mentions Castle, a show I’ve been meaning to mention as an example of how lame so much TV continues to be. The program definately illustrates the single most accurate show biz axiom…it’s all in the execution. Castle has a potentially workable premise…a crime novelist hangs around with police to get inspiration for his books…and a star a lot of people are pulling for, Nathan Fillan of Firefly.
Yet the show just lays there. The main problem, unsurprisingly, is the writing. Castle (gasp) is assigned to a hot but uptight and hard as nails female detective, and she resents his presence but the sexual tension grows increasingly apparent blah blah blah. Again, as cliche as this is, it could work in the right hands, but these ain’t them. Watching the female cop constantly threaten the wise-ass but supposedly lovable Castle with bodily harm while occasionally tossing him romantically appraising glances is really, really dull and something we’ve seen a billion times before. The woman playing the cop is, frankly, sort of a stiff, but it’s a measure of how uninspired the show is that Fillan doesn’t come across much better. He’s a charming guy, but he just doesn’t have a lot to work with here.
Toss in Castle’s wacky mom and typically overly mature and sweet daughter and you end up resenting a show you want to root for. It’s not even entertainly bad, because that would still mean it’s entertaining, which it isn’t. Too bad. I continue to hope that Fillan finds a successful gig, but he might just be one of those guys that never gets there.
