This felt like it was a tribute the uber-faithful fans who kept the show going during its turbulent first 2 yrs..until "Still" came along in S5. I've watched my share of black & white 50's & 60's movies as my grandpa was a movie director of sorts & hence his movie craze kind of rubbed off me, and I've got to say that for a TV procedural with one of the lowest budgets on ABC, Castle got everything pretty much spot on, from the accents to the props to those fantastic dresses that Kate & Lanie wore. Excellent plot, superb acting. And even better was the love story unfolding. Stana was just drop dead gorgeous in that blue dress! And THAT kiss at the end..the Castle fandom literally exploded! Kudos to Tamala Jones..who knew she has such great pipes? She should sing more often.
10 Reviews
My favorite Castle, hands down
jfenn5305815 May 2020
A fun episode with an awesome story.
solidsnakeckw3 March 2012
Warning: Spoilers
This episode is really a pleasant surprise and so far it's the best episode in season 4.
The LA Noire-esque setting with Castle and Beckett as Joe and Vera; Lanie as a Betsy Sinclair the night club singer; Esposito as a Cuban hit-man and the funniest of all Ryan as an Irish mobster. I love the part when Catle ask Ryan to say Boy-o repeatedly. And the cheesy dialogs that seems like it's ripped straight from a black and white movie, it's just perfect.
The investigation in present day was kinda meh, but things got interesting whenever the story cut to 1947, and we finally get to see some romantic action between Nathan and Stana but only as Joe and Vera though. But still, here's hoping by the end of season 4, both Castle and Beckett will be together. It's also cool to see Molly Quinn playing someone other than Castle's good (but sometimes emotional and quite annoying) daughter.
And let's not forget the ever so awesome Mark Pellegrino as both Tom Dempsey and Tom Dempsey III. Kudos to the production team for having Mark Pellegrino guest staring in the show.
The LA Noire-esque setting with Castle and Beckett as Joe and Vera; Lanie as a Betsy Sinclair the night club singer; Esposito as a Cuban hit-man and the funniest of all Ryan as an Irish mobster. I love the part when Catle ask Ryan to say Boy-o repeatedly. And the cheesy dialogs that seems like it's ripped straight from a black and white movie, it's just perfect.
The investigation in present day was kinda meh, but things got interesting whenever the story cut to 1947, and we finally get to see some romantic action between Nathan and Stana but only as Joe and Vera though. But still, here's hoping by the end of season 4, both Castle and Beckett will be together. It's also cool to see Molly Quinn playing someone other than Castle's good (but sometimes emotional and quite annoying) daughter.
And let's not forget the ever so awesome Mark Pellegrino as both Tom Dempsey and Tom Dempsey III. Kudos to the production team for having Mark Pellegrino guest staring in the show.
Boyo!
lorivalone9 February 2022
My favorite episode. The boyo banter between Ryan and Castle makes the whole episode. Cracks me up every time. It's a fun episode where the main characters get to play different characters in a late 1940's flashback storyline. Boyo.
My favorite episode yet
larrydearing25 February 2022
I'm amazed at the negative reviews. I think they just didn't get that this is a loving SPOOF! It, like the series itself, is not meant to be taken too seriously. It's humor, mixed with a tribute to old detective stories & films noir. As far as I'm concerned, this is as close to perfect as TV can be. The accents, the costumes, the 1947 setting are all intentionally over the top. I like the way the small things were done, especially "the end." I enjoyed every second of this episode & feel kind of sorry for those who missed the point. Since it has a rating of 9, obviously most people who loved it didn't review it.
Please ignore the bad reviews. This is one of my favourite stand alone episodes in any show.
Devesh_R1 January 2024
The writing is fun but it's also evocative. Without spoiling anything (it's literally the first thing in the episode), the story runs in two timelines, 2012 and 1947 and are related to each other.
The down voters don't seem to get that the "flashbacks" aren't flashbacks at all but Castle's reenacting the events in his head while the facts of the 1947 case are revealed to him. It's stated in the episode itself.
So, all the complaints about cheesy music and the over dramatic acting is just missing the whole point of it. Those parts are supposed to be fun and some people just take everything too seriously in life.
The down voters don't seem to get that the "flashbacks" aren't flashbacks at all but Castle's reenacting the events in his head while the facts of the 1947 case are revealed to him. It's stated in the episode itself.
So, all the complaints about cheesy music and the over dramatic acting is just missing the whole point of it. Those parts are supposed to be fun and some people just take everything too seriously in life.
Possibly my least favorite episode so far.
jeffpmeier24 December 2020
The episode is fun but the mystery story has some serious flaws
acritic12319 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
***************THIS REVIEW CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS *************
This episode is fun with the film noir stuff, but I cannot be satisfied with it when there are so many inconsistencies in the mystery. The major and really frustrating flaw is: How did Stanley get the Blue Butterfly from the safe in Dempsey's office if it was put behind a brick outside the building by Joe and Vera? Joe said Dempsey's prize possession would be under his nose for his whole life and he wouldn't know it. So how could it possibly be in Dempsey's secret safe? This does not make any sense and ruins the whole show. And they carry on with this impossible conclusion when Kate show's Castle the Blue Butterfly (stolen from Stanley by Frankie INSIDE the building) and it is wrapped in Joe's handkerchief. Joe wrapped the Blue Butterfly in his handkerchief and hid it OUTSIDE the building!! This is a terrible detective story.
This episode is fun with the film noir stuff, but I cannot be satisfied with it when there are so many inconsistencies in the mystery. The major and really frustrating flaw is: How did Stanley get the Blue Butterfly from the safe in Dempsey's office if it was put behind a brick outside the building by Joe and Vera? Joe said Dempsey's prize possession would be under his nose for his whole life and he wouldn't know it. So how could it possibly be in Dempsey's secret safe? This does not make any sense and ruins the whole show. And they carry on with this impossible conclusion when Kate show's Castle the Blue Butterfly (stolen from Stanley by Frankie INSIDE the building) and it is wrapped in Joe's handkerchief. Joe wrapped the Blue Butterfly in his handkerchief and hid it OUTSIDE the building!! This is a terrible detective story.
Worst Episode of all Time
ANannyMoose0222 October 2021
I honestly expected this episode to have the lowest rating out of every episode in the whole series. It's the only episode I had to skip full scenes because of the terrible soundtrack and ridiculous costumes and bad accents. This episode just makes fun of the series instead of the series making fun of true crimes shows.
Castle's Funny Accent
dreamchayser11 November 2021
All I can say about this episode is that Castle sounds like how a chicken would sound like if it spoke with an American accent😂. And if you're expecting this episode to be set in the 90's,then you'b be disappointed. Parts of it is just castle reading the diary of a P. I. set in the 40's(hence the 40's theme.)
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