ABC’s ‘Castle’ season 8, episode 16 review: Rick’s surprisingly sweet three wishes

Ladies and gentlemen, let’s remember here what makes a good “Castle” episode, and what the fans are looking for. This is not a show that needs crazy twists, super-deep mythologies, or major changes in character relationships. What it needs is a good mystery, some fun writing, and some moments that keep the romance alive for Castle and Beckett.

“Death Wish” on Monday night had all of this, and we may go so far as to say that it is the best episode of the season. We had some character development, but at the same time it didn’t come at the expense of what we already know and love about the show.

First and foremost, we got another Rick conspiracy theory in the midst of a murder case about a famed excavator, someone who may have found an artifact with some similarities to Aladdin’s lamp. Was a genie involved? He was (hilariously) convinced, and at one point in the episode that he had even found her and was ready to start making wishes.

This is where this silly concept turned surprisingly sweet. After saving Rick with his first “wish” (call it what you will), he used another one to help Ryan and his wife Jenny, as the two welcomed their second child in Nicholas Javier Ryan into the world after she was having some complications during birth. For his third wish, he really couldn’t think of anything other than going back in time and falling for Beckett all over again. (Aw.) It makes sense, given the guy’s got success, a good family, and apparently a system to have his coffee made exactly the way he wants.

Oh, and eventually the true criminal was found, and they had a fairly expected reason for killing in jealousy and desire. We didn’t really care so much about finding the killer at the end of this, necessary as it was. Our entertainment here came more from Rick’s humor, and then also getting to see more evidence of how much he cares about his friends and his wife. Sure, the genie wasn’t actually a real genie, but the sentiment’s still there and we argue it doesn’t really matter.

Let’s state again what we mentioned at the start of the article: Best episode of the season. Grade: A-.