Ryan and Esposito’s partnership was strained... Beckett moved out more of her stuff ... and Rick and Mia provided the laughs and sweetness in Castle Season 8 Episode 5.

Below, TV Fanatics Stacy Glanzman, Robin Harry, Jim Garner, and Christine Orlando are joined by Jennifer from A Possibility of Joy a Castle fan forum to debate their favorite laugh out loud moment, Ryan shooting Esposito, and whether shirt sniffing is a romantic gesture in "The Nose."

Did you have a laugh out loud moment with Mia, aka The Nose?

Stacy: I definitely laughed out loud at Castle's "are you a wizard?" Their interactions throughout the episode were all really funny.

Robin: I had lots of laugh out loud moments with her. She had some cutting one-liners that were just fantastic, and she made such a good pair with Castle. I think my favorite scene was her amusement at Castle's "Assposito" joke. She was so tickled by that, and she was cute.

Jim: I loved Mia and Castle gloating over catching the guy in his own trunk. Of course the best line of the night was the Assposito joke. I'm not sure that one will go away anytime soon.  

Jennifer: I would say the whole decontamination sequence proved to be the most comical followed by an honorable mention for her initial interactions with Ryan, Esposito, and Kate.

Christine: I loved the decontamination scene because of Castle’s hair. Have you ever noticed how it’s always perfect. One minute it’s getting blown around in decontamination, the next he steps out and, like magic, it’s perfect again. I want his hair styling products! I had to laugh at that.

Hayley returned and Alexis was MIA as a P.I.. What are your thoughts?

Stacy: I liked seeing Hayley again and I don't feel like Alexis needs to be in every episode. I liked Hayley and Beckett at the end. 

Robin: I'm okay with both. Like Stacy, I don't think Alexis needs to have an active role in every episode. She was there in the opening scene at Castle's loft, that's enough. Hayley is fun, and this episode used her just the right amount. 

Jim: I agree with Stacy and Robin. Alexis was there in the beginning, so we know she's around. I adore Hayley, so I was thrilled to see her turn up again!  

Jennifer: As far as Hayley's return I really didn't have a thought one way or the other. It was interesting watching her interactions with the team but, that's about it. No Alexis. Similar vein, I didn't miss her character in anyway.

Christine: I found Hayley less annoying than in her previous appearances but I’m still not a fan. There are other characters I’d like to see more than her.  As for Alexis, I prefer her as part of the Castle family over being a P.I.. To me, her P.I. arc just doesn’t fit. 

Which was more shocking: Ryan not passing the exam or Ryan shooting Esposito?

Stacy: Definitely Ryan shooting Esposito in the butt. I wasn't shocked that Ryan didn't pass. He's had a lot on his plate and plenty of sleepless nights. I'm not sure how he even found time to study with only one week's notice. 

Robin: Neither of those was particularly shocking. I'm more surprised at how much tension has been building between them this season. These two have always had each other's back, but things keep coming up to make them distrust their partnership. The theme of this season seems to be contrived conflict. 

Jim: Amen Robin, I thought the exact same thing!  I'm more shocked at the writers for putting our favorite detective-duo into this weird and unnecessary situations. There is no way Ryan would fire blindly at a shadow, he wasn't in any danger and we've seen them run down dozens of people without ever taking a shot at them. 

Jennifer: I would say Ryan shooting Esposito. I had a feeling one of them wouldn't pass the exam but, I did not expect to see Ryan accidentally shooting his partner. 

Christine: Ryan shooting Espo made no sense. What veteran detective fires blindly at shadows? I know they were going for comedy and the actors did a great job pulling it off but the premise was eye roll worthy. 

Did you find the ending with Rick and Kate smelling the shirts romantic or depressing?

Stacy: I thought it was cute. Kate leaving the shirt for Rick was a gesture, I think, to let him know she still thinks about him. 

Robin: At this point I'm gonna sound like a broken record, but as with previous episodes, I think it's absolute BS that Beckett gets to keep holding Castle on a string. "Hey Castle, I'm coming to the loft to pick up the rest of my things because this separation is real, but I'll leave my shirt here as an emotional tether." Whatever. I'm so done with Beckett.

Jim: I've made it pretty clear in previous weeks how I felt about this stupid artificial drama the writers are trying to create. As someone who's first wife left him abruptly, when she came to get her stuff she took ALL of her stuff and a good 1/3 of my stuff for good measure. Leaving a "sniffy" shirt behind would be awesome if she was on assignment but just plain f@#$ stupid when she's leaving her husband!  

Jennifer: Leaning towards the depressing here. I imagine the writer's might have wanted it to feel more romantic but, it just didn't fully translate that way for me. 

Christine: If this was Castle Season 3 or 4 and they were still working on being a couple, something like this could have been romantic…but this is Castle Season 8! They’re a married couple and the wife has chosen to live elsewhere. No matter what Beckett’s reason, the whole thing is just lame an no amount of shirt sniffing is going to help.

Was their anything in “The Nose” that disappointed you?

Stacy: Honestly, not really. I was sad Ryan didn't pass the exam, but it gave us plenty of humor and it creates conflict between him and Espo. I'm sure he'll retake it and pass. 

Robin: It annoyed me every time Beckett touched Castle, or called him "babe", or when she left her shirt. It's so unfair to him. The man deserves better than this. 

Jim: Two things. First, Freon for AC is a GAS when not compressed, it would not dribble down the side of the wall in thick green drips, that's anti-freeze (at best) you nit-wits! GEEBUS could we get a new fact-checker on this show! Second, everything Robin said. I want to slap Beckett when she calls Castle "babe". Clearly none of the writers have been through a real breakup...   

Jennifer: I would say not having any major conversation concerning Kate's seemingly finality of leaving. She is basically taking the last bit of herself from the loft and the only thing we get is a broken "okay" from Castle. 

Christine: Jennifer, yes! Where is the Rick Castle we know and love? The man who always wants to know the story. How is it that his wife moves out and he’s not asking questions and searching for answers? How is it that a man off the street can come to the loft with a gun because he knows Castle is married to Beckett but somehow she feels her moving out is protecting him from bad guys with far more power and knowledge? The worst thing about this story arc is that it makes absolutely no sense!

What was your favorite quote or scene from this episode?

Stacy: Gosh, that's so hard, there were so many. I was cracking up at Ryan in the beginning talking about the small back seat as Beckett was bent over in the car. I also loved the decontamination scene. 

Robin: Man, there were so many scenes that were gold. Castle farting in Mia's house (yes I find fart jokes funny), Castle and Mia making fun of "Crack-Shot Ryan and Assposito" and Ryan later accidentally saying it. I also loved all the heartfelt moments between Rick and Mia. I loved that he saw through the wall that she put up, and allowed her to live and have fun. This is why we love Rick Castle. 

Jim: I loved Rick's heartfelt "the world is better place with you in it" comment to Mia. As Robin mentions above, Rick and Mia's scenes were actually some of the best in this episode. 

Jennifer: Wish I could say I had one but, the episode left me a little underwhelmed and unable to make a definitive choice. With that said, I suppose I can give an honorable mention to the decontamination scene, which at least made me chuckle.  

Christine: Castle bringing Mia the paper flowers and tickets to Martha’s show. It reminded me of the sweet, considerate things he used to do for Beckett in the version of Castle I actually couldn’t wait to watch. Those were the days. 

Check back on Monday, November 9, 2015 for our review of Castle Season 8 Episode 6 and if you want to see this season or look back at happier Caskett times, you can watch Castle online here at TV Fanatic. 

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