| 3XK | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Season 3, Episode 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Air date | October 25, 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Written by | David Amann | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Directed by | Bill Roe | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Episode guide | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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3XK is the sixth episode of the third season of Castle, and the fortieth overall.
Summary[]
When a woman's dead body shows signs of an old killer's handiwork, Castle and Beckett discover that the Triple Killer, a murderer who vanished four years prior, may have returned. Meanwhile, Alexis has a secret admirer.
Recap[]
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
- Nathan Fillion as Richard Castle
- Stana Katic as Detective Kate Beckett
- Jon Huertas as Detective Javier Esposito
- Seamus Dever as Detective Kevin Ryan
- Tamala Jones as Dr. Lanie Parish
- Ruben Santiago-Hudson as Captain Roy Montgomery
- Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle
- Susan Sullivan as Martha Rodgers
Guest Stars[]
- Lee Tergesen as Marcus Gates
- Michael Mosley as Jerry Tyson
- Brian Klugman as Paul McCardle
- Anne Marie Howard as Angela Russo
- Joe O'Connor as Cal Townsend
- Ping Wu as Dr. Lee
- Mark Berry as Warden John Peck (uncredited)
Quotes[]
- Castle: You heard the man! Put your hands in the air and get on your knees while you're at it!
- Beckett: Tell me something, Castle. Why did he let you live?
- Castle: To punish me. Make me pay for ruining his plan. Now he’s going to kill again, all because I couldn't stop him. And I feel so …
- Beckett: I know the feeling.
- Castle: I know you do.
- Montgomery: ...The Feds say he's a white male, 25 to 35 years old...
- Castle: Could be me
- Montgomery: ..with a dysfunctional relationship with his mother...
- Castle : Still me
- Montgomery: ..he has a menial, unimportant job...
- Beckett: Definitely you
- Castle: Just for that I base my next book on Esposito
Featured Music[]
- "Without You" by Derek Evry
- "A Million Ways" by Uncle Lucius
Trivia[]
- The episode is primarily inspired by the case of serial killer Dennis Rader, better known as "The BTK Killer".
- The copycat crimes meant to secure the real 3XK's escape are inspired by Veronica Compton, an attempted murderer and copycat of the "Hillside Stranglers" on the instruction of one of the killers, Kenneth Bianchi, to cast doubt about their guilt.
- Foreshadowing: Beckett writes Tyson's name down after talking to prison officials about Gates's known associates. Castle mis-reads her handwriting as "Jelly Tyson" and before leaving to meet Tyson, he corrects the spelling on her pad. This foreshadows Castle realizing the mistaken identity of the Triple Killer.
- The seedy motel where the police have housed Jerry Tyson has a pool. While common in L.A., where Castle is filmed, this is almost unheard of in New York City, for reasons of climate and real estate expense.
- It was never explained where Jerry got the $100,000 to pay for Paul's operation.
- Each of the people questioned on-camera in this episode is guilty of at least some of the Triple Killer murders: Paul McCardle, Marcus Gates, and Jerry Tyson.
- Castle's cell phone image of his mother is a publicity still of her from when she was much younger.
- Beckett holds hands with Castle to comfort him. This is the first time they've held hands. She also brings him coffee for a change.
- Ryan's gun, stolen in this episode, reappears in "Kick the Ballistics".
- Lee Tergesen (Gates) co-starred with Jon Huertas (Esposito) in Generation Kill. When they pick up Gates, Esposito is wearing a camo shirt, likely a nod to his former show.


