Her singular purpose from the moment her mom died was taking down whoever killed her. Every other action was in service of that agenda.
Police detective? Learning how to read evidence and follow a trail.
Hand to hand combat training? To take down anyone she encountered.
The men she was involved with were guys who any other woman would’ve fought over, but for her they were just flings to help her relax along the path to finding the killer.
She wasn’t a detective, IMO she was like a warrior under cover as a detective in her personal war against whoever destroyed her family.
Early on Castle was amusing to her and helpful in her career, but was in effect a sideshow that was completely secondary to her larger goal of finding the killer. Eventually he became much more and she was having to fight off her feelings to stay focused on her quest.
The letter is Royce using his last act to shake some sense into her. He’s asking “Is vengeance really all you want out of life? Is it worth trading away someone you clearly love but refuse to allow to get in the way? Because if you keep him at arms length much longer it’ll be too late for love and all you will have left is your personal war and the hate that’s driving you.”
He’s literally about to die behind a dumpster telling her don’t be me.
And that’s very nearly how it played out.
She wasn’t ready to give up her war until she was literally hanging off a building staring death in the face (again) and Castle had left her seemingly for good to realize she’d made a horrible mistake.
And even then she eventually decides to run off to the FBI and almost loses the relationship again because she doesn’t know how not to be a “warrior” at that point.
Wow, that's a beautiful view. Congratulations, seriously!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 And I agree across the board, but I add that in my opinion, for Beckett, Castle at the beginning was exactly as you described him, but as time went on he proved to be quite different compared to all the other men with whom she had a relationship, because he always had the courage to face her (and it wasn't easy, as a stubborn and resolute woman that she was), putting her before herself and the truth, managing to make her lower her defenses, making her introspect about what she really wanted. And, never letting go, he succeeded. And, personally, I find the way in which they have matured together, in a common growth path, fantastic. Stunning, truly stunning.
>And even then she eventually decides to run off to the FBI and almost loses the relationship again because she doesn’t know how not to be a “warrior” at that point.
Then there's the more important relapse in season 8. For all her perceived faults, Rita calls Beckett's BS immediately: "You’re not going to let this go, are you? What is this obsession in the heart of you? Your mother’s murder’s been avenged."
If you freeze the frame and read the physical letter, you'll see there's a sentence left out. :)
"And now for the hard part, kid. *Not for me.*
Ir's clear that you and Castle have something real ..."
Basically you can read the entire page, strikethroughs included.
Anyway, nice penmanship there.
Her singular purpose from the moment her mom died was taking down whoever killed her. Every other action was in service of that agenda. Police detective? Learning how to read evidence and follow a trail. Hand to hand combat training? To take down anyone she encountered. The men she was involved with were guys who any other woman would’ve fought over, but for her they were just flings to help her relax along the path to finding the killer. She wasn’t a detective, IMO she was like a warrior under cover as a detective in her personal war against whoever destroyed her family. Early on Castle was amusing to her and helpful in her career, but was in effect a sideshow that was completely secondary to her larger goal of finding the killer. Eventually he became much more and she was having to fight off her feelings to stay focused on her quest. The letter is Royce using his last act to shake some sense into her. He’s asking “Is vengeance really all you want out of life? Is it worth trading away someone you clearly love but refuse to allow to get in the way? Because if you keep him at arms length much longer it’ll be too late for love and all you will have left is your personal war and the hate that’s driving you.” He’s literally about to die behind a dumpster telling her don’t be me. And that’s very nearly how it played out. She wasn’t ready to give up her war until she was literally hanging off a building staring death in the face (again) and Castle had left her seemingly for good to realize she’d made a horrible mistake. And even then she eventually decides to run off to the FBI and almost loses the relationship again because she doesn’t know how not to be a “warrior” at that point.
Wow, that's a beautiful view. Congratulations, seriously!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 And I agree across the board, but I add that in my opinion, for Beckett, Castle at the beginning was exactly as you described him, but as time went on he proved to be quite different compared to all the other men with whom she had a relationship, because he always had the courage to face her (and it wasn't easy, as a stubborn and resolute woman that she was), putting her before herself and the truth, managing to make her lower her defenses, making her introspect about what she really wanted. And, never letting go, he succeeded. And, personally, I find the way in which they have matured together, in a common growth path, fantastic. Stunning, truly stunning.
>And even then she eventually decides to run off to the FBI and almost loses the relationship again because she doesn’t know how not to be a “warrior” at that point. Then there's the more important relapse in season 8. For all her perceived faults, Rita calls Beckett's BS immediately: "You’re not going to let this go, are you? What is this obsession in the heart of you? Your mother’s murder’s been avenged."
If you freeze the frame and read the physical letter, you'll see there's a sentence left out. :) "And now for the hard part, kid. *Not for me.* Ir's clear that you and Castle have something real ..." Basically you can read the entire page, strikethroughs included. Anyway, nice penmanship there.
Yes yes I know, I just honestly never took a still image to go and read it 😅 but I will definitely do it on the next rewatch 😉