On this week’s episode of CASTLE the issue of immigration was brought to the forefront. When a manager of a pet store is murdered and the only clue is a text message threat, Castle joins the team as the resident English language expert.
The text had some syntax errors and specific qualities that led Castle (and the team) to believe the suspect was also a foreign national, which lead them to an English as a Second Language Class the victim had been attending. Going undercover, with a poorly executed French accent and all, Castle become Jean-Claude to try and look for clues. Eventually they found enough evidence to interrogate one of the students from England, but his rather strong “Jordy” accent meant Haylee was called in to translate. Eventually Esposito and Ryan were able to determine that the reason that the “Jordy” had sent that angry text is because the victim drove one of his taxi’s and the night he was murdered he had brought it back riddled with bullet holes.
The taxi had only made one stop that night, and Beckett goes to check it out — discovering that the victim had apparently stumbled on a conspiracy theory going back to his homeland. After getting their hands on some footage, the team saw a janitor and a businessmen who both had earwigs in: deducing that an FBI team was wrapped up in Eddie’s murder, therefore discovering the conspiracy theory that may have gotten Eddie killed.
A plan is put into action, but because NYPD can’t interfere in an FBI mission (in this case, a protective detail/tail of a high powered judge) Castle and his new friends at the Language School take over. Creating distractions and diversions, the international students were able to get Haylee and Castle in a room alone with the judge where, thanks to a fake bullet and some acting skills, Castle pretended to get shot in order to prove that Haylee (playing a friend of Eddie’s) was serious. The judge was in the middle of a confession about “the enemy of my enemy” when he realized the rouse and left the building.
Going off what the judge said, the team went back to old enemies from El Salvador that Eddie could have brought back to the States. This led them to the brother of a young man who they believed Eddie was tied up with. They bring the brother into questioning and he says that Eddie didn’t kill his brother, but rather helped him, brought him to class and helped him adjust.
It is this link back to the English class that sets off light-bulbs. Castle goes back to school but, this time, asks to talk to the teacher. Apparently he had been giving out information about his students (particularly the illegal ones) to different interested parties and when Eddie found out he was killed for it. With the case solved Martha and Castle host a big international dinner for all the student’s with one theme: America is a country built on immigrants where anyone and everyone is welcome.
It is the closing moments of the episode, though, that will probably have the biggest impact on the season moving forward. Castle has been having flashes from his 8 missing weeks when his memory was wiped. The Chinese food he ate jogged something in his memory and he remembered a brief flash where he was in Korea Town, in downtown LA. Decidedly saying to Beckett in bed that night, they need to go to LA to sort out the mystery of those 8 blank weeks.
Don’t miss an all new CASTLE on March 6 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on ABC!
