“Driven” was a fast paced episode shrouded with mystery and bad ass Kate emerged once again, reminding all of us that Kate will do whatever’s necessary to get answers especially when it involves someone she loves. She almost broke a guy’s finger!
All the awards to Stana. I got serious chills when she delivered one of her many amazing lines. “After that there’s nine more.”

Not only did Stana get me with that line, she got me at the beginning of the episode when Kate ran towards Castle’s car which was engulfed in flames. I was in tears seeing Kate so hopeless in that moment. It was so painful to watch.

I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one who’s head was spinning the entire episode. The episode is over and I still don’t know what to believe. All I know is that we’re headed towards some new mythology and I couldn’t be more excited. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Kate and her journey of solving her mothers murder but it was time for a new chapter in this tale. I have no idea where the writers are going with this but I trust this Castle team fully!

I’m the worst at transitioning so let’s talk about what the hell happened to Castle?
I seriously have no idea. I think I was in the same boat as Kate. At first I thought there was no way Castle planned his disappearance. Why would he do that to Kate, Alexis, and Martha? But as the episode progressed and the insurmountable evidence was emerging I thought maybe Castle did it to get away from some people? Then I thought I was being ridiculous. I’ll admit it did look pretty bad when video footage emerged showing Castle dropping off all that cash. Oh! About that cash. How awesome was it that Cardano made an appearance? We haven’t seen him since S5EP4 Murder He Wrote. I love when Castle brings back old characters.

Anyways, I was so happy when Kate realized how ridiculous she sounded while talking to Alexis and Martha. I didn’t blame her though with her misgivings. I was feeling the same way. I just couldn’t believe Castle was gone for 2 months. I nearly freaked out when I saw the newspaper clipping of “2 months, no answers.” Of course they had to have a shot of Castle’s empty chair at the precinct. It had me in tears! Then I was laughing when Kate told Castle she almost shot the night janitor because he almost moved Castle’s chair. This is what this show does to me. One minute I’m crying, one minute I’m laughing and the rest of the time I’m holding my breath.

I cannot wait to see where the Castle team takes us next. Who the heck is the guy who was impersonating Henry Jenkins? What did he have to do with Castle’s disappearance? So many questions and the season just started! I’m so excited! Is it next Monday yet?

The post Castle Season 7 Premiere Review: “Driven” appeared first on TVHackr.

So let me dry my tears a bit because I want to start at the beginning, because as much as I want to discuss that crazy ending, there were lots of great stuff during “For Better or Worse.”

First of all, Beckett was already married! Apparently she is not a one and done kinda girl. In her defense, Beckett didn’t even realize she was married. Kate and her then college boyfriend, Rogan O’Leary went through the drive thru of love in Las Vegas as a joke (drunk) and got married.

Beckett then went to find Rogan so she could get him to sign the papers to end their marriage and found out he’s quite a piece of work and not in a good way. First Rogan made Beckett break into the truck belonging to his ex-girlfriend, then Beckett saw Rogan being abducted. Rogan was such a schemer that not even the local police wanted to go look for him.

I thought the whole husband storyline was pretty funny, and I laughed so hard when it turned out Rogan knew the entire time that him and Beckett were married. He had told his girlfriend that his wife was in a coma! Such a schemer! Rogan was using the whole wife in a coma thing as an excuse not to fully commit to Tildy.

I won’t get into great detail about the whole blackmailing a pastor thing since I want to discuss the Caskett wedding but Rogan had photos of the pastor with a stripper. Helping people was the pastor’s calling. I’m sure it was. It was bad enough Rogan had photos of the pastor, but he also had photos of Mickey Barbosa. Barbosa the mob hit man who disappeared a decade before. It was quite the brilliant play that Castle and Beckett brought in the biker gang that Rogan owed money to, to claim the reward for Mickey.

Rogan finally signed the papers and Castle and Beckett could get married! All happy right? Well, not so fast. During Beckett’s little trip to end her marriage, they lost their wedding venue. Ever so smart Alexis suggested they could move the whole party to their Hampton’s house. I thought that was such a fantastic idea. Why didn’t they think of that as their venue in the first place? Ryan’s tux was too small, even though Alexis checked the measurements a ton of times. So many jokes there.

The next disaster (many people didn’t think so) was that Kate’s wedding dress got ruined! Lanie got to deliver the bad news to Kate that a pipe burst in the apartment above Kate’s and the dress Matilda King gave to Beckett in Dressed to Kill S6 Ep14 was destroyed.

“One big sign – ours is a great love story, what’s a great love story without obstacles to overcome. Every fairytale has them . We want the happy ending, we can’t give up.”

A sign of things to come? Regardless, it was such a sweet, honest moment between Castle and Beckett. He always has the right words to calm her down. The bad seemed to be going away and it looked like we were going to get our happy ending after all. Beckett was wearing her mother’s wedding dress, and looked so beautiful. It was like it was made for her. Even though she couldn’t be there, it was like a piece of her was there to support her daughter. Another moment that made me tear up was between Kate and Martha. Martha thanked Beckett for making Castle so happy.

Martha gave Kate the most beautiful pair of blue earrings. They were given to Martha by her mother to wear on her wedding day and given to her mother before that. “Only women of substance have wore these gems. They’ve been waiting Katherine for you.” My friend pointed out that Martha obviously didn’t think Richard’s previous wives were worthy and I’d definitely agree with that statement. Katherine is an extraordinary woman. It’s not to say Gina and Meredith aren’t special but none of them are Beckett. It was such a beautiful moment between the two of them. I’ve always loved the relationship between Martha and Kate. There’s a mutual respect there.

And now for that ending. I got scary flashbacks from Downton Abbey and I didn’t like it one bit. From the moment I saw that black svu I knew something bad was going to happen and Kate getting a phone call after Castle was an hour late wasn’t a good sign. What a devastating ending. I had such a bad feeling going into this episode, but the way the things were going I thought, “Hey! Maybe they would get married.” I should have known better. The tears started up when Kate got the phone call, and when she ran out of the car to see Castle’s car up in flames they just continued well after the credits.

I can’t even begin to process the ending. I’m sure I’ll have more thoughts in the days to come.  I was pretty sad at the season 2 finale of Castle, when Castle went off with Gina but this is on a whole other level. It was just so devastating seeing Beckett so happy and minutes later her whole world was torn apart. Stana played the scene perfectly. She didn’t even need to say a word. She said it all in her expressions. All the joy in the world and in one instant everything can change. Seeing her crying will be an image that will haunt me the entire summer.

How are we going to survive this hiatus? I have so many muffled thoughts running through my mind. I don’t believe Castle is in the car. How could he? The show is called Castle! He can’t be dead. Could it be that Jerry Tyson kidnapped him? Do you think somehow Bracken is behind this? Or is this a whole new mythology Marlowe spoke about in that interview. What are your theories? We have many months to speculate. This will be the longest hiatus ever! In Marlowe We Trust…

Soundbites and other things from “For Better or Worse”

According to Gates, she ran into a wall and got a black eye before her wedding day.

“He’s got a smile that’ll make your pants fall off” – Rogan’s neighbour

Rogan’s nickname for Beckett was “Kit Kat”

A Captain Castle name plate on Castle’s desk

“You were gonna have naked ladies at your party too?” – Castle

“No, Mrs O’Leary, I’m not okay.” – Castle

Castle screaming like a little girl!!!

“Listen to man parts. Let’s get the hell out of here” – Rogan

“Congratulations Rogan, you accidentally stole photos of a fugitive mobster.” – Beckett

Adorable Lanie and Esposito moment before the wedding.

The post Castle Season 6 Finale: “For Better or Worse” appeared first on TVHackr.

From the moment Vulcan Simmons appeared in this episode, I just knew things were going to get real messy. I just didn’t realize to what degree. Kate had been following this guy Jason Marks since about March. Well, that’s what the close up of her journal indicated. Jason, who Kate and Rick had been investigating in regards to her mother’s murder turned up dead and Vulcan Simmons who Kate saw driving Jason turned up dead as well.

As if things weren’t already intense, it got much worse when Lanie delivered the news to Kate that the one bullet that was found in Simmons came from a pistol registered to Kate. Simmons was killed with Kate’s backup piece that was in her safe at home. I was shaking just like Lanie was when she was giving the news to Kate. I just couldn’t believe it. There was no way Kate killed Simmons. I know Kate, she would never do such a thing. There was only one person that could have set all this up.

Later on, Castle came up with the theory that maybe our old dead friend Mr. Smith wasn’t actually dead at all. Could that possibly be? Well, Smith called Castle’s burner phone, and I’m pretty sure dead people cannot make telephone calls. Did anyone else get the shivers when Castle and Kate met with Smith in the parking garage? Smith told the two that he was close to bringing Jason into the fold but that someone found out and had him killed. First Jason, then Simmons. What was going on?

Intense doesn’t even begin to explain this episode. It was just one thing after another. There were so many heart pumping, intense moments but the swing sets moment definitely warmed my heart. A hooded Kate meeting Rick. Aw, just so awww. Anytime this show brings out the swings you know it’s going to be a great moment. Another great moment was when Espo and Ryan told Gates everything about Kate’s mother’s murder. I thought it was about time Gates knew what was going on. If Gates was going to do anything she could to protect Beckett, she needed to know the truth.

It was only a matter of time before Bracken found Kate and he made his move once Castle left the hotel room to get a car. I loved how Kate told Bracken to kill her if he had the balls to do so. Which we all know he doesn’t. He always makes other people do his dirty work. His two thugs made Kate swallow a pill that would relax her and then proceeded to feeding her booze. They were obviously making it look like some kind of suicide, but not so fast! Kate didn’t swallow the pill and took down both men. Did they really think Kate was going to go down without a fight? Kate did get smashed in the head but Castle showed up just in time and they took off.

I can’t even choose a favourite moment from this episode since the entire episode was incredible but I got some serious chills when Kate had a flashback to meeting Captain Montgomery for the first time. Kate was looking for her mother’s file and Kate didn’t realize it but back then, Montgomery was giving her a clue as to where the recording of Bracken confessing was. It turns out Montgomery gave Johanna the recording! Can you believe it? I was in shock.

Kate and Rick were able to get into Kate’s apartment to look through her mom’s stuff thanks to Ryan and Espo but Capt. Marcus Donovan came busting in before they could get out. The following sequence of events were absolutely brilliant. One of the best moments of the entire series. Kate was going through everything in her head and it donned on her. The famous elephants on Kate’s desk were her mom’s. Johanna used to have them on her desk and she used to say they were a family just like Kate, her mom, and her dad. “D ME w/ family” didn’t mean dinner with family, it actually meant Detective Montgomery, evidence w/ family. The tape was in one of the elephants!!!! Seeing Kate trying to crack open one of the elephants then the tape falling to the ground was so amazing. Even more amazing? Hearing Bracken confessing to everything on that tape.

It was so incredibly satisfying seeing Kate walk through those doors and seeing the complete shock on Bracken’s face. Kate had the honour of arresting Bracken for conspiracy, fraud and murder of her mother Johanna Beckett and all in front of the media. Bracken was going down and it was Beckett who got to deliver the final blow. What a moment for Beckett. Finally! That part of her life can be put to rest.

“I never could have done this without you.” – Beckett

A perfect ending to an amazing episode. I just can’t believe the whole thing. The recording was in the elephant the entire time! I am in shock. Mind blown. The Castle team has done it once again. I must add “Veritas” to the list of all time favourite Castle episodes. Let’s be honest, that list is really crowded, but this one will definitely go down as one of the Castle greats.

I’m just so glad we got to hear LT say a couple lines of dialogue. Go LT!

I’m going to definitely savour this episode a lot more before I think about next week’s finale. I can’t believe the season is almost over. It has been an incredible season, and I’m confident Milmar have an epic finale planned for us.

The post Castle Review: “Veritas” appeared first on TVHackr.

Of course, I totally knew Castle wasn’t going to pick either of them but it was still pretty funny to watch them vying to be his best man. I really loved when Ryan and Espo went to Lanie so she could decide between the two of them. Lanie shot them down because it’s not her decision to make. Seriously guys? What did they think?

In the end, Ryan and Espo confronted Castle and told him he doesn’t have to choose. They’ll both be his best man. Castle told them he was flattered and honored but he already decided on a best man. Castle asked Alexis to be his best man. I just thought that was totally adorable and such a Castle thing to do. Good news though, Castle wanted Ryan and Espo as his groomsmen. I can’t wait to see the shenanigans they get into at Castle’s bachelor party. If they don’t show it, I really hope they at least mention the craziness that went down.

Other awesome wedding news we learned this episode was that Kate asked Lanie to be her maid of honor. I am so extremely happy about this, you have no idea! I really wish we would have seen Kate officially ask her but that’s alright. You gotta love Lanie’s enthusiasm, “The dress is the right mix of elegant and saucy.” I can’t wait to see this dress and I cannot wait to see this wedding!

“Law & Boarder” also showcased Castle’s crazy competitive side which was brought out when him and Beckett were playing Scrabble. She beat him once and of course Castle being Castle couldn’t let that happen again, so he wanted a rematch. Beckett ended up beating him again! I could not stop laughing. Castle was being all confident he was going to win and Beckett busted out the word, Quixotic for the win. I’m not even going to pretend like I know what that word meant before last night.

The last scene won the entire episode for me. Castle wanted another rematch but Beckett had another idea. Strip poker! Oh my little Caskett heart pretty much exploded. I’m just going to quote the entire scene for you and you can imagine it in your heads. Oh, by the way, Kate was in a bra the entire scene. These two will never, ever be a boring married couple.

“Your bet?” – Castle

“I think I’m gonna go all in” – Kate

“Me too, but all I have left to bet with is this shirt” – Castle

“I’ll take that bet” – Kate

“What do you got?” – Castle

“Who cares” – Kate

“This is so much better than scrabble” – Castle

“Yeah” – Kate

Funny lines and other bits:

Alexis and Kate fist bump.

Kate’s gorgeous ponytail. (Why don’t my ponytails every look like that?)

“A reigning champion unable to cope with defeat… that sounds familiar.” – Beckett

“I admit I am extreme… Extremely handsome.” – Castle

“I think catching killers is pretty extreme… and then there’s marrying you.” – Beckett

“I hope not too tired to… you know.” – Castle

“That’s a notion created to comfort those who lose.” – Castle

Thank you Jim Adler! Welcome to Team Castle! After just one episode, I already love you. Coffee, apples, ice cubes, always, rain, swings, handshakes, and now scrabble will never be the same again and I’m perfectly okay with that. My huge smile turned into a huge gasp after they showed the promo for next week’s episode, “Veritas.” Hold on to your seats my fellow Castle lovers, it’s going to be a crazy ride!

The post Castle Review: “Law & Boarder” appeared first on TVHackr.

Warning: if you haven’t watched “Last Forever” turn back now. 

For what was a rather extensive series finale I will attempt to be brief.

The sun finally set on How I Met Your Mother tonight, and with that, The Mother finally gets a name, we saw the famed couple meet, and we learned why Ted was telling his children this epic.  And of course, we got a glimpse into the gang’s future.

The episode traveled through time, beginning back in 2005 right as Robin would be inducted into the fray near the series’ beginning.  Lily sets a rule, as she wants to keep Robin around forever, that neither Barney or Ted may bang her unless they marry her.  Take that bit of information for what you will.

Onto the wedding reception where Ted is ready to leave even though he spots the bassist at Barney and Robins wedding.  Despite Barney’s attempt to play one last game of “Haaave you met Ted?”  Ted insists on heading out, and the five deliver what really is the emotional crux of the entire hour – the goodbyes.  But yet again, things aren’t what they seem, as Marshall and Lily fid Ted in the bar just 24 hours later, apparently having given up on Chicago because he met a girl – the girl.  The Mother.  But more on this later.

This takes us to 2015 where Ted and The Mother’s wedding planning must be put on hold because the couple learns that they’re pregnant.  Meanwhile, Barney and Robin’s marriage isn’t working out as well as we have all hoped – and the two divorce in secret.  Fast forward to 2016 where Lily and Marshall decide to move to a bigger place upon the impending arrival of their third child (plus a bonus visit from the cockamouse!), Barney is back to his old self apparently at the Halloween/farewell-apartment party, and Robin denounces the group’s attempt to stick together.  She notes that they’ve become the married couple she never sees, her ex-husband hitting on girls in front of her, and the man she probably should have married with the mother of his child.  Nothing stays the same.

In 2018 we see the full return of Barney’s womanizing-self, and Marshall’s official becoming a judge – “Judge Fudge” – and making a first ruling: that Barney is allowed to just be himself after declaring that “if it wasn’t going to happen with Robin, then it’s just not going to happen with anybody.”

2019 sees perhaps the only part of the finale that wasn’t seen coming – Barney’s quest for a perfect month (31 women in 31 days) led to a pregnancy.  Cue the arrival in 2020 that is a baby girl named Ellie, the love of Barney’s life.  “Everything I have and everything I am, is yours.  Forever,” he tells her.  Kudos to NPH in this scene.  Such a big event prompts Ted to finally marry the mother – they’ve been just going on engaged for years (a shock for Ted, I know) – and guess who shows up for the wedding?  With The Mother’s insistance: Robin.

Ultimately, the episode becomes a story of loving despite tragedy.  As we all guessed weeks ago, the reason that Ted is telling his children this story is because she’s passed away – however, that happened 6 years ago.  As the kids argue, the story really isn’t about how he met their mother, though their meeting scene is especially charming and successful in compression the years-worth of clues we’ve gotten about who The Mother is: Tracey McConnell, by the way.

In the end the kids urge Ted to ask out Aunt Robin becuase he’s clearly still in love with her.  And while this may seem a giant slap in the face to us fans, it is surprisingly fitting of the hope the show reaches to inspire.  Penny and Luke are completely fine with their dad going for it with Robin, and so Ted shows up one more time outside Robin’s apartment, blue french horn in hand.

But the kids are right.  The entire series as a whole is not about how Ted met the mother.  It’s about this group of five friends and their lives.  Sure, the quest for true love may be the hook and title card, but it’s not the entire hinge of the story.

True, it would have been nice to not have such a rushed ending after a series that was set during one weekend.  But there are always things we’d wish were different in a series finale, and there will never be a “perfect” ending.  To read my personal thoughts on “Last Forever” click here.

Sure, in such a compressed style the finale is far from what it could be.  But given that Lyndsy Fonseca and David Henri filmed their final scene years ago, clearly Craig Thomas and Carter Bays had a vision and they were sticking to it.  In the grand scheme of How I Met Your Mother mythology, the finale was true-to-form.  As I continuously find myself thinking now hours out of watching the finale, a series isn’t only about the ending – it’s about the journey.  And HIMYM has had a pretty great one.

What did you think of “Last Forever”?

The post How I Met Your Mother Finale Review: Last Forever appeared first on TVHackr.

After last week’s episode provided such an extensive resolve of the show’s peripheral characters, “The End of the Aisle” had a lot of work to do in allowing the wrap-up of Barney and Robin, and Marshall and Lily’s stories, given that Ted still has to meet The Mother and presumably decide not to move to Chicago.

Both Barney and Robin spend the episode more or less panicked about the whole ordeal – Barney writes novel-length and inappropriate vows, while Robin is well and truly convinced that she is making a mistake.  However, as always, their friends get them through it.

Barney, in a truly not-Barney fashion is completely losing it in the half-hour before the wedding.  It isn’t until Marshall and Lily try to help him write his vows that he seems to have an ephiphany.  But is it a good one?  More on that later.

Remember the locket that Jeanette flung into the river?  As it turns out, Ted dove in after it and has been holding onto it as a surprise for the bride, however, upon seeing Robin so distressed and believing that marrying Barney is a mistake, Ted gives it to his bro to give to her.  But of course, Robin knows immediately that Ted is really the one to track it down.  After attempting to convince him to run away with her, Robin flees on her own…and crashes directly into The Mother.

The still-nameless Mother gives Robin the simple advice to take a few deep breaths, in a way that is sweet and funny as we’ve seen from her character thus-far, and yet was still apropriate in the story as she’s still relatively a complete stranger to the famous five friends.

It is at this point that Barney – who previously seemed ready to jump ship on the wedding – walks in with a confession.  After previously refusing to take advice from Marshall and Lily since they just had a fight, Barney realizes that their biggest problem was Marshall not telling his wife the truth – and so, Barney vows to always be honest with Robin, thus taking a sledgehammer to her fear that he will always be a liar.

The episode also saw Marshall and Lily borrow the alter to revise their vows.  Their talk with the almost-groom opened their eyes that they can’t be perfect, and their vows should be realistic.  This was an excellent subplot that not only bolstered the tone of the entire show, but really served the couple themselves and highlighted how they’ve grown since their own nuptials.

“The End of the Aisle” also gave us the last slap, which, while seemingly  incredibly understated, also felt appropriate.  The fact that it was used to literally slap Barney in place as he’s about to bolt from the alter in nervousness somehow felt right – a way of showing that the series of slaps has led to this moment, if you will.  (Moreso, if you consider that the orginal slap bet was set because of Robin)

And yes – Barney actually got them a ring bear at the wedding.

This episode did a great job of following from last week, and leading into the series finale.  While somewhat gimmicky, as a fan of HIMYM I would’t believe it to be the end of the line if it wasn’t.  Marshall’s ‘vow’ puns were charming (“vow-za!”) and true to his silly character, and I would expect nothing less of Barney than to have a flower gorilla in line behind the ring bear.

But now that everyone has seen the end of their stories – or so it seems – the next and final hour of the show should hopefully actually revolve around Ted and the purpose of the show.  The Mother is still nameless, nor has Ted actually met her.  And of course, we will find out exactly why Ted is telling his children this 9  year-long story.

What did you think of “The End of the Aisle”?  Are you ready for the finale of How I Met Your Mother?  Drop your comments below!

The post How I Met Your Mother 9.22 Review: The End of the Aisle appeared first on TVHackr.

From the moment I saw the promo for this episode I was ecstatic that Salli Richardson-Whitfield was guest starring as Gates’ sister Elizabeth. I’ve been a huge fan of Salli’s since she was on Eureka and these two incredible women were fantastic together. Polar vortex didn’t even begin to explain how Gates and Elizabeth were to each other at the beginning of the episode. You definitely sensed something big happened between these two.

We got some indication early on that something definitely went down between these two and that it was job related.

Gates: “I am not stuck anywhere. I will not apologize for doing my job to the letter of the law.”

We learned later on when Beckett was talking to Gates about Elizabeth, that Gates screwed up one of Elizabeth’s investigations. Back when Gates was the head of Internal Affairs, Elizabeth was trying to make her case and she begged Gates not to mess with her case. Gates chose her job because that’s who Gates is and we love her for it. Things haven’t been the same between the sisters since. I felt so bad for Gates because she seemed genuinely sad about the rift with her sister. Gates was only doing her job, but I could see where Elizabeth would have resentment towards her sister. They were the dynamic duo for goodness sake. Could you imagine the good they could have done together?

I just loved that Beckett and Gates scene so much. Such a beautiful bonding scene between them. Stana and Penny have such great chemistry together. This whole cast does. That’s what I love most about this show. All the actors have such amazing chemistry together and they really do love their jobs and it really translates on the screen.

The scene that really got to me was short but it packed quite a punch. When Gates was working late she opened up her desk drawer to reveal a picture of her and her sister. So much emotion in that moment. If you didn’t already love Gates, I’m sure after this scene you will. Yeah, she’s a hard ass sometimes, but she’s just trying to do her job. Even though she probably wasn’t talking to her sister, she was always thinking about her.

In the end, the team got their murderer and it was someone I didn’t even suspect. Turns out, our victim Peter Cordero took the 25 million from his boss and was going to run away. Stephanie, who was working with Elizabeth at the U.S. Attorney’s office listened to Cordero’s last recording and heard he was going to leave town. Stephanie couldn’t let Cordero do that and shot him. Such a shame. At least Peter donated a large portion of the money he took to rebuild his hometown that was destroyed by the earthquake that killed his parents.

I was so happy when Elizabeth thanked Gates for doing her job so well. The same thing that got between them in the first place. I was glad the sisters could put the past behind them. I really hope we get to see them work a case together again. I thought Penny and Salli really nailed it this week. I just loved how Elizabeth kept on calling her Victoria. Such a change from Captain Gates, or Sir.

Other than the case, we got to enjoy more wedding planning. We learned that Kate will not get married up in space, on a slide or on a ride. I’ll admit, getting married on the Cyclone at Coney Island would be pretty awesome. I kid I kid. Castle and his crazy ideas always make me laugh.

They already have a song, and now they needed to make their list. The amount of people just kept on growing, but to be fair, Castle is world famous-ish. I absolutely loved Aunt Theresa getting mentioned and Castle commenting about what she wrote on Facebook. Hilarious throwback Castle writers. I love when they do that.

How many names did Castle and Beckett have? Like 500? Well, Martha had her own list! Things were getting a little out of hand but Castle and Beckett being who they are and this amazing communication thing they’ve got going on decided to figure this out once and for all. Kate asked, “Why are we having this wedding?” They are having the wedding for them, not for anyone else. I thought it was brilliant to write down everyone they wanted to be there in a minute. After about 2 seconds they stopped to reveal they both wrote “YOU” on their piece of paper.

Okay, everyone on the count of 3 say, AWWWWW. How adorable was that? I can’t even count how many incredibly sweet moments we’ve got between the two of them. Of course after this they started to actually make their list together. I’m not going to make any predictions about this wedding. I’m just going to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

Soundbites from “The Greater Good”

Castle: “Hairy is my middle name. That sounded better in my head.”

Castle: “Castle, you’ve done it again.”

Gates: “Find the truth.”

The post Castle Review: “The Greater Good” appeared first on TVHackr.

First and foremost: Gary Blauman.  When Blauman (played by Cobie Smulder’s real-life hubby Taran Killiam) unexpectedly shows up at the wedding, Robin calls a code red, enlisting Marshall’s help in finding a place for him.  Cue everyone (except for the bride, including Zabka) revealing why they either hate or love the guy.  Ted once believed himself to be in a competition with Blauman for a girl’s affection, Zabka’s all for him because Blauman appreciates his poetry, James reveals that Blauman is the man with whom he had an affair, thus breaking up his marriage (as Ted is excited to learn he was the prize way back when, not the girl), and Lily loves him because he kept her from getting a horribly huge and embarrassing tattoo of Sugar Ray.  And of course, Barney can’t stand Gary Blauman because he once stole an accidental curly fry.

The nerve.

After the confessions, Marshall plays Judge and calls a recess to make his decision – after all, the bride asked him to figure out the seating.  However, though Marshall decided to let Blauman stay at the wedding (“Judged!”) Barney ran off during the faux recess to tell Blauman to leave or Zabka was going to kick his face in.

Once Blauman has left, the gang suddenly realizes that they may never see him again – maybe he’s really not that bad – and it’s a shame that people don’t stay in touch.  And as Future Ted says, when you find someone you want to keep around, do something about it.  Thus begins an incredible parade of previous (and surprise) guest stars with updates on their futures.

Carl is still working at the bar, with his son; Jeanette was arrested and sent to therapy with Robin’s ex Kevin, who apparently sparks up a romance with the psycho; Ranjit hit it big in stocks and owns his own limo service; Patrice has a drive-time radio show (with a caller that sounds suspiciously like Robin); Zabka becomes an award-wining poet; Zoey is still fighting the man; Scooter finally settled down…with Lily’s doppelgänger, Jasmine a.k.a. “Stripper Lily”; The Blitz bests a gambling addiction; James and Tom get back together; Sandy Rivers moves to work in Russia, still his inappropriate self; and Blah Blah…well, her name is Carol!

In the end, Gary Blauman returns.

Of course, this entire episode is a story that Ted is telling to the Mother, rather than to his kids.  Out on their first date, three days after the wedding, the two intend on dining at a Mexican-Scottish fusion resturant (complete with Mariachi Bagpipes) yet end up walking around as Ted tells her the story of Gary Blauman.  Along the way they spot the Mother’s ex – who’s proposal she just turned down the day before the wedding.  Realizing that she’s in too weird of a place, and not ready to date, Ted takes her home.

Instead of pulling an early HIMYM Ted, he actaully does let her go, feeling that it was going to work out.  He turns and leaves, but – the Mother calls him back and goes in for the kiss.  When she asks what he’s doing standing there and not following after she suggests walking around more, he answers: “Remembering this.”

Aww.

I have to say, this may be my favorite episode this season.  Not only did the episode serve the HIMYM mythology incredibly well both with the recap on guest stars as well as the episode’s set-up and style, it served a larger purpose.  I’ll admit that going into this episode I wasn’t sure what to expect: I honestly completely forgot that Gary Blauman already existed in the show’s past, and I was more than a little nervous that this episode would be too much of a “filler” show than we should get in the remaining two hours of HIMYM.

But, Blauman’s relatively minor character was used pretty handily.  For one, by having the characters explain why they did or did not want him at the wedding, the show was allowed to dip back into these characters’ pasts, however ridiculous those moments were (with the exception of James’ confession on the man).  And inversely, in having a change of heart and deciding to let Blauman stay Future Ted got to give a sweet little speech on the importance of keeping such people around, and gave us that catch-up on past friends and otherwise.

While we didn’t really need this sort of flash forward, it does add a nice wrap up to characters that while seemingly irrelevant, are relevant in the big picture.  I actually found myself excited to see these returns once they actually began.

And of course, Ted’s remark on keeping people like Blauman in your life is a great little piece of foreshadowing to Ted’s commitment to the Mother.  Unfortunately, while it is great to see scenes like Ted and the Mother’s date (Radnor and Milioti have clear chemistry and are undeniably charming in their roles), it still stings a bit to realize that the entire season could have been used to showcase their future instead of just the build-up.

What did you think of last night’s How I Met Your Mother?  Are you ready for the final three episodes?  Keep in mind, a lot still has to happen before the show signs off for good.

The post How I Met Your Mother 9.21 Review: Gary Blauman appeared first on TVHackr.

I’m always game for Castle’s crazy theories and this episode provided us with yet another classic from Castle. I loved how adamant Castle was that the killer was a ninja and even I was starting to believe his crazy theory. I was happy I didn’t decide to make a drinking game out of this episode because if I had to take a shot every time somebody said ninja I would have gotten plastered.

I could go on and on about the ninja action but I’d rather talk about all the other Castle goodies this episode offered. First of all, Kate in the opening scene was hilarious. She was supposed to get together with an old friend named Carly and Kate said something I never thought would ever come out of her mouth.

Kate: “Last thing I need is to watch someone from my past trying to seduce my fiancée while talking about the goddess that lives in her hoo-ha.”

Hoo-ha! Kate Beckett, why I never! Stana was awesome tonight. In fact, she’s always awesome. She was definitely on fire with her great lines and facial expressions. I rarely comment on this, but how amazing did Stana look? I love when Stana’s hair is down, but she looked absolutely amazing with her hair up in that ponytail and I loved that blazer she was wearing towards the end of the episode and those leather pants! Hot damn!

Other than the hoo-ha moment, Kate and Espo eating cronuts was awesome and it made me really want one. I just love scenes where characters are eating. To me it makes them even more human. It drives me nuts on shows when we never see characters eat. I can never accuse Castle of doing that.

How great was the Japanese Hostess Club scene? Kevin doing karaoke was hilarious and I loved how uncomfortable he was when they first got there and made sure to tell the ladies that he was married. He even pointed to his wedding ring. Things got quite interesting when one of the ladies took Castle back to a private room to give him information about Jade. Unfortunately Castle was busy and ignored his reminder to call Beckett. It wasn’t for nothing, but the evening did cost him $6,000!

I nearly laughed myself off my bed when Castle tried to expense the $6,000 bill and Gates crumpled the bill right in front of his face.  Did Castle really think Gates would allow him to expense that?

After getting the death stare from Gates, Castle was treated to a pissed off Kate. Kate was mad at Castle because he didn’t call her when he was supposed to. He was too busy having his little private session. Obviously Kate’s frustration wasn’t all about Castle not calling. Beckett was expecting her friend Carly to have these amazing stories but instead she was boring. Carly said she was bored in her marriage. She was complaining there was no romance in her marriage. Kate was afraid marriage would change them. Kate didn’t want to get bored with Castle, and she didn’t want Castle to get bored with her. Castle was so adorable telling her they could put it in their vows. “Even though we’re married it doesn’t mean there’s no more romance and we will never ever be boring.”

Kate: “We’re not gonna become one of those couples that go to the same two restaurants and only have sex on national holidays.”

I love how they’re having such realistic conversations with each other. What a difference a season makes. Last year, Beckett had no idea where their relationship was going and they hardly ever spoke about the future. Now that they’re engaged they communicate and voice their concerns. Castle and Beckett are just too adorable together and we are so lucky to get the cutest Caskett kisses. Moonlight curse be dammed! This show has gotten a million times better since Castle and Beckett have gotten together. Just because a couple gets together doesn’t mean everything is all puppies and rainbows. They now get to face adversity together and work through their problems the way real couples do.

So, back to the ninja goodness. It turned out Jade, our victim was hunting down the Green Dragon that killed her family. Ah, your classic revenge story but unfortunately things didn’t end well for Jade. The woman who was impersonating the consulate officer earlier in the episode was actually Jade’s sister, a police officer herself. Both Jade and her sister survived the attack that killed their parents.

From the moment we met Jade’s boyfriend Dean’s father I knew something wasn’t right with him and I was right. Randall Bedford was the Green Dragon.

I have to say, it was quite the episode. Intriguing case and great character moments. This show has so many layers, it’s what makes it so great. That’s what I love about this show. It’s never one thing. You can have an intense moment followed up by a funny one and then a sad one. There’s not too many shows I can go from laughing to crying. Castle is definitely one of a kind.

Soundbites from “The Way of the Ninja”

Castle: “The Great throwdini.”

Castle: “Our killer is a ninja.”

“No I’m not a ninja. I’m Korean not Japanese, way to racial profile.”

Kate: “Our course we can’t let facts get in the way of a good story.”

Castle: “And you’re afraid we’re going to become boring?”

What did you guys think of this week’s episode? Sound off below! After seeing the promo for next week’s episode I am definitely super excited! Salli Richardson-Whitfield, my favorite from Eureka is guest starring as Gates’ sister! It should be a good one, like always!

The post Castle Review: “The Way of the Ninja” appeared first on TVHackr.

While Robin was dealing with the terror her mother inspired by explaining her relationship with Robin’s father – something which bears a striking resemblance to Robin’s own with Barney – said groom was out with the boys.

Out with the boys because Zabka lets it spill that he saw Lily rushing into a quick mart and speed away in a strange car.

Remember how Lily ran off after her fight with Marshall in “Unpause”?  Tonight we found out where she went.

To the Captain’s.  (It’s the “AHOY” license plate that reveals it.)

The boys, including Zabka and Ranjeet, floor it to the Captain’s place in Farhampton, find him dating “Boats, Boats, Boats” (Robin’s ex-co-anchor: Season 6, “Canning Randy), and learn that when Lily arrived that fateful night, she spent an awful lot of night in their powder room.

Ted instantly jumps into detective mode to figure out why, and after lining up a rather supportive trail of ‘evidence’ determines that Lily had to have been smoking, as she always does when she and Marshal are apart for long periods of time.  Zabka must have seen her running into the store for a fresh pack, then off to the Captain’s for a safe place to have just one more cigarette.

He reaches into the potted plant from the bathroom – a Daisy – expecting to find ashes, but pulls out…a pregnancy test.

A positive pregnancy test.

So, naturally the boys rush back to the hotel where all is revealed.

Lily: “Told you guys I could keep a secret.”

Flash forward in the episode tag to Italy, after Marshal convinced Lily that they were going to live her dream (she’s giving him his, cue the “aww”).  The two argue in Italian over Funyuns, Lily’s dad and Marshal’s mother walk in with now toddler-aged Marvin and an infant in a stroller – Daisy.

The episode, obviously is very Lily/Marshal heavy.  Which, really, for this amount of sweetness is not a problem.  It helped to tie up their future now that we’re really down to the final episodes, and really served to remind us that there can be couples like the two of them who will make anything work so long as they can be together.

Though seemingly less of an important storyline, Robin’s mother (Tracy Ullman) succeeded in not only terrifying her daughter about the man she’s about to marry, but then also reminded her that as long as she has someone to come home to who she can count on, the insanity is worth it.  And as Robin tells her mother – she does.

“Daisy” was really an enjoyable episode.  There was plenty of actual humorus moments mixed in with the serious and sweet.  “Kind of insane how much happened in a day and a half” – really Ted was just voicing what we’re all thinking.  And I’m not going to lie – I got a good kick out of the Captain’s musical greeting to his staff.  I thought this was a great way to transition to the actual wedding as well as add some other closure to the series besides how Ted meets the Mother.  It wasn’t overdone, stayed in-character, and let the story matter most.

At this point, I’m ready to see how everything ties up (though I’m not sure I’m ready for there to be no more HIMYM).  Only three episodes left, people!

What do you think will happen before the big finale?

The post How I Met Your Mother 9.20 Review: Daisy appeared first on TVHackr.