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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Hunt”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 03/03/2013

Nathan Fillion in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Hunt" | ©2013 ABC/Richard Cartwright

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: Andrew W. Marlowe Director: Rob Bowman Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: February 25, 2013 Did we or did we not call in last week’s episode of CASTLE, “Target?” Now, in “Hunt,” we are vindicated – Alexis (Molly Quinn) was, indeed, the target in the double kidnapping. Yes! Better yet, the circumstances were totally unexpected and there was only one loose end left dangling. Okay, it may have gotten picked up, but I didn’t hear that part. So just as the Feds were telling …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Target”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 03/02/2013

Molly Quinn and Karen David in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Target" | ©2013 ABC/Richard Foreman

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: David Amann Director: Bill Roe Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: February 18, 2013 As much as I watch CASTLE because I enjoy its frivolity and silliness, I do generally love the more dramatic episodes because they tend to be the better crafted overall. Alas, not so with “Target.” This first of two parts feels like the writers had too much story for one episode, but not quite enough for two, since much of the episode involves Castle (Nathan Fillion) mooning about once everyone realizes …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Reality Star Struck”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 02/25/2013

Penny Johnson Jerald in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Reality Star Struck" | ©2013 ABC/Ron Tom

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: David Grae Director: Larry Shaw Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: February 11, 2013 Let’s be real. Nobody, but nobody is watching CASTLE for the clever mysteries (because they frequently aren’t) and the realistic depiction of police work (because it’s anything but realistic). We watch CASTLE for the relationships between the characters and the sheer fun of it when the writers take off on a parody trip. And we’ve got both in “Reality Star Struck.” The only reason the episode didn’t get a higher grade was …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Probable Cause”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 11/01/2012

Michael Mosley in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Probably Cause" | ©2012 ABC/Richard Cartwright

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: Andrew W. Marlowe Director: John Terlesky Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: October 29, 2012 After watching last week’s tease, I was seriously afraid I was going to have to slap the CASTLE producers for “Probable Cause,” this week’s episode. After how many years of jerking us around with the relationship between Rick Castle (Nathan Fillion) and Det. Kate Beckett, I was so sure that when Castle got arrested for murder, they were going to have Beckett and him breaking up or something. Nope! …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Murder He Wrote”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 10/17/2012

Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Murder, He Wrote" | ©2012 ABC/Eric McCandless

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: David Grae Director: Rob Brown Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: October 15, 2012 We’re still in light and fluffy mode on CASTLE, with “Murder He Wrote” not really involving any writing – that’s just what author and dilettante detective Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) told his NYPD buddies he was going to be doing on his weekend at his place in the Hamptons. The real reason he told Detectives Ryan (Seamus Driver) and Esposito (Jon Huertas) he was going to the Hamptons to …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Secret’s Safe With Me”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 10/10/2012

Molly Quinn in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Secret's Safe With Me" | ©2012 ABC/Richard Cartwright

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: Terence Paul Winter Director: John Terlesky Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: October 8, 2012 One of the great things about CASTLE this season is now that the producers have resolved the big tease between author Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) and Det. Kate Beckett (Stana Katic), the show can now focus on the mystery part – and the mysteries have been getting better. In “Secret’s Safe With Me,” yeah, there’s a couple things you see coming, but the plot actually had some interesting twists. …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “Cloudy with a Chance of Murder”

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 10/03/2012

Nathan Fillion and Jodi Lyn O'Keefe in CASTLE - Season 5 - "Cloudy with a Chance of Murder" | ©2012 ABC/Vivian Zink

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: Elizabeth Beall Director: Kate Woods Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: October 1, 2012 For all those who have complained (with some reason) that their light-hearted whodunnit had been co-opted by the drama monsters the past few season, the old CASTLE is back with “Cloudy with a Chance of Murder.” But it’s even more fun now that author Rick Castle (Nathan Fillion) and Det. Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) are lovers. The only problem they’re having is trying to keep it quiet. See, Kate is …Read On »

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Interview: Paget Brewster and Warren Leight talk LAW & ORDER: SVU

By ABBIE BERNSTEIN 09/26/2012

Paget Brewster in LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT - Season 14 - "Lost Reputation" | ©2012 NBC/David Giesbrecht

LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT, aka LAW & ORDER: SVU, premieres its fourteenth season tonight in a special two-hour episode beginning at 9 PM. Paget Brewster guest-stars as New York district attorney Paula Foster. Brewster is just coming off playing FBI Special Agent Emily Prentiss on Seasons Two through Seven of CBS’s CRIMINAL MINDS, which begins its eighth season tonight at 9 PM. Brewster and her character both had a somewhat strange last two years on CRIMINAL MINDS – Emily was seemingly killed off in a heroic manner in Season Six, but then it was hinted at that she …Read On »

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TV Review: CASTLE – Season 5 – “After the Storm” – Season Premiere

By ANNE LOUISE BANNON 09/25/2012

Stana Katic in the Season 5 premiere episode of CASTLE - "After the Storm" | ©2012 ABC/Vivian Zink

Stars: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Tamala Jones, Seamus Deaver, Jon Huertas, Penny Johnson Jerald Writer: David Amann Director: Rob Bowman Network: ABC, Monday nights, 10 p.m. Original Telecast: September 24, 2012 Think of “After the Storm” as the part two of last season’s CASTLE finale “Always,” which you may recall I was decidedly miffed about. And still am. Yet, despite teases from the network, it does look like we finally have a couple working out their relationship rather than the whole will they/won’t they routine. And this is one jam-packed episode. I speculated last spring that the planned hit on Det. …Read On »

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DVD Review: CHUCK – THE COMPLETE FIFTH AND FINAL SEASON

By CARL CORTEZ 05/27/2012

CHUCK - THE COMPLETE FIFTH AND FINAL SEASON | ©2012 Warner Bros. Home Video

Stars: Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Joshua Gomez, Adam Baldwin, Vik Sahay, Scott Krinsky, Mark Christopher Lawrence, Ryan McPartlin, Sarah Lancaster Suggested Retail Price: $39.98 (DVD), $49.99 (Blu-ray) Distributor: Warner Home Video Release Date: May 8, 2012 If NBC didn’t have the kind of executive and management woes it’s had over the last five years, perennial bubble series CHUCK would have not made it past its second season, let alone reached five seasons total. Yet, amid all of NBC’s internal turmoil, there was a solid fan base for CHUCK that fought for it to the end – including letter writing campaigns and sponsorship saviors like …Read On »

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