"Castle" just returned with the second half of the season without improvement in its ratings, putting it in the "steady" category.
According to TVLine, the ABC series had a steady rating of 1.1 in the demo with its midseason premiere. However, the show also garnered a low number of viewers, at 5.72 million, which is 15 percent lower than its fall finale. With these ratings, readers of the publication gave the show an average grade of "B." Will the ratings improve in the future?
The second half of the season opened with a music-themed episode. Before Rick (Nathan Fillion) and Kate (Stana Katic) were called to solve the murder of an ex-con, fans saw them consummate their marriage. It was the first episode showing the pretend estranged couple that they are officially back.
In the next episode, "Caskett" will continue with their charade and fans will catch them sooner this week. The next episode, titled "Witness for the Protection," will air on Feb. 14, but there won't be any romantic Valentine's day-focused scenes, according to the synopsis.
As stated in the Futon Critic, Rick will finally appear in court and become an important witness to a murder that happened five months ago. Elsewhere in the episode, a fresh piece of information will surface and Rick and Kate need to hurry up and use that to prevent injustice.
For the entire eight seasons of the series, episode 10 is the show's first ever episode that features a courtroom drama. The couple has been solving several cases since the first season, but they had never made any courtroom appearance, until now.
Things are bound to get interesting as "Castle" fans all know how unpredictable Rick can be. Besides, it was co-showrunner Terence Paul Winter who teased last month that Rick taking the stand will go "sideways." Co-showrunner Alexi Hawley also added that there will be "fallout" in the episode and both Rick and Kate are expected to do some "damage control."
Catch "Witness for the Protection" this Sunday at 10 p.m. EST on ABC. The show's regular Monday 10 p.m. EST timeslot will resume on Feb.15.
