If you haven't heard by now, Castle has been renewed for a third season with a 22-episode order. Hooray!
I'm not sure if Castle works that well in a fast paced environment chasing a serial killer through twists and turns, and the writers still have a long way to go before their crimes are refined to the point where the twists actually are unexpected. Nonetheless, "Boom!" had plenty of funny quips between Castle, Beckett, and Shaw, which served as a nice counterpoint to straight crime fighting of Criminal Minds. The best quip of the episode, coming after Castle shoots the serial in the hand, was also a Firefly reference. Kate says "Hell of a shot, Castle," and he responds "I was aiming for his head," echoing Jayne.
After figuring every out with who they thought was the serial killer, Beckett receives an phone call. The serial killer is mad now. There's the usual procedural elements, just with increased adrenaline pumping to go with the higher stakes. Shaw starts talking about her daughter and husband, and by then, I'm thinking she will die.
She does get kidnapped, but Castle and Beckett save the day under direct orders not to do anything. "Boom!" was an opportunity for someone to get hurt. Unlike The Mentalist episode "His Red Right Hand," no one died, so heightened stakes and pacing served only to get our blood running for one episode only.
Score: 9.0/10
