Wow!  For the first time all season, our round table team was happy to be watching a brand new Castle! 

Our TV Fanatics Stacy Glanzman, Jim Garner, Robin Harry, and Christine Orlando are joined by Glo from A Possibility of Joy, a Castle fan forum, to share what they think about Caleb Brown, whether they’d want to be a hero or a villain in one of Castle’s books and where they’d rank Castle Season 8 Episode 10.

Is Caleb Brown a monster, a good guy, or both?

Stacy: It might be a little bit of both, but I think he's mostly a bad guy. I don't think it was a coincidence that he ended up on this case last minute. He also seemed to know an awful lot about Castle's history, which makes me wonder if he could have something to do with his disappearance. That was a lot of information to learn in one day. 

Jim: I hadn't thought about it, but Stacy makes a good point. How would Caleb know so much about Castle in the space of one day? I also agree that he may be a bit of both monster and good guy.  

Robin: I honestly can't say. On the one hand, he seems to really be passionate about his job as a defense attorney. On the other hand, there's his connection to LokSat.  Castle is a public figure, so it's not uncanny that he would know that much about his eyewitness in a short period of time. I don't really know what to think of him.

Glo: Both, I think Caleb is a lot like Bracken. A man who only sees the final outcome of things and not what he has to do to get there. We haven't seen it yet, but it's the vibe I'm getting. In the long run though he is a monster that covers illegal activities by doing good.

Christine: Caleb was not what I expected, which was a nice twist. I did think he learned a lot about Castle’s history rather quickly, but being that Rick was the prosecution’s star witness, that’s not improbable. If Caleb is the monster Kate believes he is, then he’s a pretty complex guy. 

If Richard Castle were to name a character after you in one of his books, would you want it to be a hero or a villain?

Stacy: I think I'd want to be a hero, but honestly if Castle was naming a character after me I would not be too picky about who it was. 

Jim: If I got to pick, I would say hero, but I'm sure it would be more likely that a random pizza guy or ticket agent would be named after me.  

Robin: I'd want a villain. I'm a goody-two-shoes in every sense of the word in real life, so it'd be cool to see my fictional namesake be someone completely different.

Glo: A hero, because my character would get to work with Nikki Heat and Rook. Besides I wouldn't want my character to go to jail or die.

Christine: Oh, a villain. Villains have all the fun, and I’d love to see my character do things that I’d never do in real life. 

Out of the ten episodes so far this season, where does this one rank for you?

Stacy: It's my favorite of the season, with Castle Season 8 Episode 5 coming in at a close second. This one was really well done and came at a time when we all needed to see the show get back on track, but "The Nose" was hilarious. 

Jim: Agreed Stacy, this is the first episode that I wasn't rolling my eyes at some over used trope, I really had no idea who did it until the very end. 

Robin: Easily, by a mile, the best of the season so far. I enjoyed everything about it, and this is the show that I have been missing. It didn't even feel like the same show that we were watching last fall.

Glo: I would say in the top three. I have to watch the rest of the season first.

Christine: Definitely the best of the season so far. Can we just erase the first nine episodes and start from here because episodes 1 through 9 felt like I was watching a different show and I didn’t like it. 

Should Castle have changed their “I love you” signal?

Stacy: Does it really count as a signal if Beckett couldn't even remember that's what it was supposed to be? It kind of defeats the purpose if you have to keep telling the person what it means. He probably should have picked something that she would actually pick up on, but you have to love Castle's silly antics. 

Jim: Yes, first, the current one is horrible given how unsubtle it is. Second, Kate didn't even remember it, and finally, it should be something others won't start thinking he has a cold or cocaine habit going.  

Robin: I thought it was cute, if a little too effusive. If he had done it a little more gently, it would have been perfect. Also, I wish Kate would have just appreciated it without making him feel silly. 

Glo: OMG every time he did it I cracked up laughing. He should have changed it because it was weird, but I'm glad he kept it.

Christine: It was silly, but it was just so very Richard Castle that I couldn’t help but smile every time he did it. There’s a fine line between goofy/cute and goofy/stupid. Thankfully the I love you signal was goofy/cute. 

Was there anything that disappointed you in this episode?

Stacy: No, not really. I thought it was a great case. Not too predictable and it showed our main characters all working together to exonerate an innocent woman. Plus it had all the Castle humor we know and love. Even the underused Lanie made an appearance. 

Jim: Nope, as mentioned above, this one was pretty good on all sides. 

Robin: The final courtroom scene was a little too cliche, but I enjoyed the whole episode anyway.

Glo:  No, it felt like early Castle episodes. With banter, a case with twists and funny moments. The kiss at the end didn't hurt any either!

Christine: I could have done without the appearance of Vikram, other than that I found it a lot of fun. 

What was your favorite quote or scene?

Stacy: I think I have to go with the gang all discussing Castle's testimony and Espo telling his story about the 75-year-old woman who still taunts him. That whole scene was hilarious! 

Jim: I enjoyed Rick getting himself thrown into a holding cell way more than I should have, but the reference back to the murder cases at the collage was pretty well timed.  

Robin: I loved Castle's first testifying scene with the flashbacks to the scene. It was intense and really held my interest. I could feel the tension in the room and could feel Castle's anxiety and confusion over his own testimony just unravel. That was one of the best scenes this season.

Glo: Best quote and best scene was Javi's retelling and Ryan's comment about the 75 year old woman who feeds the birds at the park, and tells the story about how she got one over on Javi.

Christine: I’m torn. Castle testifying and Kate looking on and not being able to help was one of the best scenes of the entire season, but I also loved watching Castle, Beckett, Ryan, and Espo eating takeout Chinese and swapping stories while working the case. We haven’t seen that kind of camaraderie in a long time, and I’ve missed it.

Check back tomorrow for our Castle round table for Castle Season 8 Episode 11 and then check back next Monday for our review of Castle Season 8 Episode 12. 

If you can’t wait for more, you can always watch Castle online here at TV Fanatic. 

C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.