Kate Beckett: She's Armed, He's Dangerous

Today we are taking a jump into the future.  I have done a couple posts and both have been in the past when the world for women was a very different place.  Today a lot has changed for women.  They are allowed to have careers, they are allowed to stand up for themselves and speak what's on their minds.  Relationships can be equal between men and women.  In the media alone we see a lot more of the men being the screw-ups and the women pulling them out of danger. This is seen on comedy's such as According to Jim, Psych, and even on Crime shows such as Castle.


I started watching Castle in 2009.  I was basically bored one day and saw it on Hulu.  I watched the first episode and was just ok with it.  I knew Nathan Fillion from great shows like Firefly and Dr. Horrible but the leading lady bugged me.  This Kate Beckett was unattractive, poorly dressed, and was so-so on acting.  I didn't see this going very far but noticed it had been picked up for a second season.  At the time I was coming off the depression of having two of my favorite shows, Cupid and Eli Stone, cancelled on the same network so I figured if this was getting a second season why not give it a real chance.  This was probably one of the most surprising obsessions of my TV days.  A show that began so-so took off in the second, third, and fourth season to become one of my favorites.  More than that a leading lady who began boring and unintelligent has grown into a woman who we walk with each week digging as deep as she does in each case.  Kate Beckett: a woman for us.

Lets back up though.  In season one, like I said, we had a socially awkward character that worked far too much and let no one inside her emotionally (or physically, just saying).  She put the job first all the time.  Enter Richard Castle, New York Times best-seller, sensitivity of a twelve year-old, but easy on the eyes.  He decides to choose her as the inspiration for his next set of books.  The character is Nikki Heat.  A lady cop who is "smart, very savvy,  haunting good looks, really good at her job . . . and kinda slutty."  Well at least this is how it begins but as we delve deeper into Kate Beckett, the character of Nikki Heat also evolves.  This comes as we learn about Johanna Beckett's murder.  Beckett's mother was murdered when Beckett was in college.  She came home to find Detective Ragland.  There was nothing taken nor was it a sexual assault.  They attributed it to gang violence.  It changed everything in her life.  It's the reason she became a cop.  It haunted her for years.  Suddenly this character had some depth.

Season 2 brought a new Beckett.  Hair was slightly longer, style slightly better.  More than that as the writers of the show directed the character in a direction the actor, Stana Katic did a much better job of portraying the character.  She was strong-willed but slowly let her guard down more.  She became less of a boss and more of a partner, which is what the show needed.  She saves Castle's life multiple times and, more surprising, he also saves her life a few times including pulling her out of her burning apartment.  They go into her mother's case more and we see sides and emotions of Beckett that we haven't seen before.  We see her get angry with Castle and at times grateful that he's around.  She gets brave, almost confessing her feelings for him.  Still the most growing and change comes in season 3!


Beckett's hair is longer, her character is fully developed and the cases are even better in season 3.  The tension between her and Castle is strong.  They like eachother, that is clear but neither can say anything about it.  Beckett is still obsessed with the work but it is less about the work and more about the people.  We learn more about her philosophies in life whether it be with time travel, magic, or even aliens.  We get to the point where we think she is really at her best self when all shatters and she gets shot.  The last thing Castle says to her is that he loves her.

Fourth season starts with a bang (literally).  Suddenly this calm, sensable cop who has always done what is right for the case goes into a tailspin.  She ignores Castle for months after being shot.  Then she breaks every law in the book going after her mother's killer.  She lies telling Castle she doesn't remember anything about the shooting when she does.  The season is about secrets and recovery.  Beckett has to figure out what she is ready for and what she can become ready for in her job and in her life.  In the season opening she freezes when a gun is pointed at her.  During a sniper episode she breaks down harcore.  She is seeing a therapist.  All this work she's done with her mother's case is beginning to overwhelm her.  She works to overcome all of these trials put upon her.

Well I wish I could tell you how this all works out but that is as far as we are in the season.  Things aren't looking good for Castle and Beckett.  Still I think in the next few episodes things are going to start looking up.  We know Beckett is ready for something . . . perhaps a relationship?  We know that her mother's case is going to come up again before the end of the season too.  I'd say we have a lot to look forward to on the front of Detective Beckett.

Let's take one more look at the evolution of Kate Beckett.  We started with this closed off work-driven know-it-all with bad fashion sense and no personality.  Through the development of the character both on and off the screen we now have a beautiful woman who has depth, beauty, and compassion.  She still works, she still is case-driven but it's more about the cases than anything else.  It's about bringing peace to the families of the victims.  That is who she is and that. . . is why we love her.