Sunday, November 13, 2011

Will They Or Won't They?

…Catch the bad guy ;)

As most of you know I grew up loving detective shows, but the clever detectives weren't the only thing I loved about them. The shows I adored the most always had a "will they or won't they?" arc going on. 

So… "Hi my name is Laura, and I'm a shipper"


My first detective show ship was Remington Steele's PI duo Remington Steele and Laura Holt. However the "shipping" didn't start until years after I first saw it. I wasn't even born when this show originally aired, and since I was about 5 years old when I saw the first reruns I didn't fully grasp the concept of UST (unresolved sexual tension) yet. But during a little DVD marathon yesterday I realized something: my first TV ship has a lot in common with one of my current ships…in fact they might even be the same people:



Yes I'm talking about Castle's Richard Castle and Kate Beckett. And being named after the (romantic) lead is not the only thing these two shows have in common:

Remington and Castle are both sharp-witted (sometimes cocky) guys, and their partners in crime, Laura and Kate, are the more serious (but nevertheless very flirty) part of the duo. And all four were (or in Castle's case are) too afraid and stubborn to make a move.

RS, however, is the more campy show of the two. With the exception of a few episodes it was a lot more lighthearted than it's modern day counterpart.  There seemed to be less at stake, and the characters shared their first kiss in the third (!) episode. On Castle it took three seasons to get to that particular milestone. Okay, so technically both kisses weren't even real (we know they were, but the characters themselves might deny it), but that is just another thing the couples have in common.

So RS might be ahead in the speed category, but when it comes to continuity I prefer Castle's slow but steady approach. At least we know where the couple stands, and even it is very frustrating at times the big relief will be worth it.  And until then I always have my RS DVDs if I'm in need for some serious fluff.

Another funny tidbit is that Brosnan was actually offered the role of James Bond 10 years before he first played 007, but couldn't take the part because of his commitment to RS. And wasn't it Richard Castle who happily turned down the offer to author the next Bond novels just so he could continue writing about his favorite NYC detective?  Coincidence or not, I leave that up to you…


Peace, Love and Sunshine
Laura 

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4 comments:

  1. Yet another awesome post dude :D xo

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  2. The similarities are quite striking haha.<3 Great post, deary.<3

    Now, make the Castle ep come sooner. :'(

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  3. "Hi my name is Casey, and I'm a shipper"

    I've never seen RS but I think I might have to now!

    OMG you are better than google when it comes to this trivia! Thats actually a really cool coincidence! I would have loved to have seen Brosnan in more Bond films, he'll always be my favorite!!!

    Great post!!! Love it!!!

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  4. Hello --

    Your blog post turned up on my Google feed. I'm happy to see another Castle fan discover (re-discover) Remington Steele. Regarding your comment about Castle showing more continuity than Steele on the relationship arc, that is certainly true.

    But keep in mind that Steele was inventing something new with its relationship arc -- shows in the early '80s (outside of soap opera) didn't develop long character arcs -- the conventional wisdom was that audiences weren't interested in following those subtle changes across episodes. Steele was at the forefront of a group of shows in the early '80s that turned the conventional wisdom around, blazing a trail that leads to Castle (and many others).

    JLR

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