Villainess Review: Gwenn Harwin (Castle)

The holidays are upon us, and it is always a festive time of the year. Even the crime shows celebrate the holidays, but they do have its share of grinches, and as a holiday episode of Monk proved, some of them are female. Another example came from Castle, as the holiday-themed episode, "Secret Santa," centered on the shocking murder of a professional Santa Claus.

The slain Santa's real name was James Edmund Smith, who was in business before suddenly working as a Santa Claus. Edmund's widow, Gwenn Harwin, appeared at the precinct and was interviewed by Richard Castle and Kate Beckett, with Gwenn mourning her husband's death and mentioning that someone riding a motorcycle was following him. A look into Edmund's past revealed that he was a bit of a grinch in his own right. Five years prior to the events, Edmund and his business partner, Michael Case, had masterminded a greedy scheme to put people in expensive mortgages that they had absolutely no chance in paying, and they would lose their homes as a result.

Among the many victims of this scheme was Beth Cabot and her son, Tim, and the debt resulted in Beth's husband (Tim's father) taking three jobs to pay the mortgage. The patriarch was killed on the way to one of his jobs, leading to the Cabot suing Edmund's company, Suncove Building. The episode also revealed why Edmund was working as a Santa: guilt. He had become remorseful over his greed and turned over a new leaf, which included leaving Gwenn after watching the classic film, It's a Wonderful Life, one Christmas Eve.

The episode also revealed that Tim was the one following Edmund, and he became an easy suspect, as his motive was pretty large. However, Castle and Beckett's confrontation with Tim saw another surprise revelation: Edmund was actually helping Tim and Beth in their lawsuit. That information led them to a new suspect: Michael Case, Edmund's business partner. Case, however, denied killing Edmund, but said that he knew who did it, as she was at the party on the night in question. Very specific pronoun, and it led to the only possible person: Gwenn.

Everything was revealed during Gwenn's confrontation: Edmund approached his wife and told her about the lawsuit, and that he was helping his former victims win the case. On the night in question, Edmund gathered the proper files and was about to enter his helicopter on the roof, only to be encountered by Gwenn, who suddenly shot her husband to death. Gwenn's motive was simple; Edmund's greedy deeds funded her lifestyle, and the lawsuit (as well as Edmund's selfless act) would prevent that from continuing. The cold-hearted villainess claimed to be hurt by Edmund and that she was happy to see him...before she shot him.

"Secret Santa" was the ninth episode of Castle's fifth season, and aired on December 3, 2012. Canadian actress Leslie Hope played villainess Gwenn Harwin; an absolute treat, because I had always wanted to see Hope playing a villainous character, and she definitely delivered with this role. Behind every greedy villain is an even more money-hungry villainess who is willing to kill to keep her lifestyle, and that was definitely Gwenn Harwin. A loving wife would take pride in her husband being willing to make amends, but this was not Gwenn. Gwenn saw her husband's redemption as an obstacle in her lavish lifestyle, and she resorted to killing her husband to maintain it. Gwenn was cold-blooded and cold-hearted, and Hope portrayed that part of Gwenn's evil demeanor very well during her reveal.

Leslie Hope has appeared on many TV programs, including Law & Order: Criminal Intent, NCIS, and Suits, but she is best known for portraying Jack Bauer's ill-fated wife, Teri, on 24. Hope has also done her share of TV films, most notably 2003's Lifetime film, An Unexpected Love, which also starred fellow 24 alum Wendy Crewson.

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