Castle airs its final episode of 2012 tonight, an installment titled "Secret Santa" that doesn't appear to be especially uplifting. At least not based on the following set of clips.

In the first, Rick is confused and depressed, as Martha and Alexia both reveal alternative Christmas plans, breaking the long-time family tradition:

In the second, Espo is wearing cologne as work, prompting Lanie to address her wanna be holiday hookup and pretty much shoot him down on the spot:

Finally, Rick and Kate interrogate a murder suspect, someone we typically think of as fat and jolly, not armed and dangerous:

Return to TV Fanatic the moment "Secret Santa" concludes for our detailed review!

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.