Episode Three - The Maggots in the Meathead

Yo! Sup? This week’s episode of Bones was so random ya’ll. In the vernacular, that is of course. In “The Maggots in the Meathead”, the discovery of some bones on the beach leads Booth and Brennan into the heart of an anthropological dream – the Guido tribe. After viewing a “documentary” on television, Brennan has become something of an expert in Guido culture – their customs, ornate costumes, music, speech patterns and dance rituals. Tattoos, fake tan, fist fights, fist pumping and muscles all make for a magical Bones episode where pseudo-reality TV meets murder mystery.

So back to the bones on the beach. The body is decomposing at a rate of knots and contains a whole lot of maggots, so hopped up on energy drinks and male cosmetics, they are literally jumping in the air trying to bite their own butts. Who hasn’t seen the human equivalent of this!?

As the body rapidly decomposes (live fast, decompose fast it seems) our dynamic duo heads to the Jersey Shore to find the killer of “Richie the V”, a fine fellow who met his fate at the end of something concrete (not cement) and covered in yellow plastic.

Much yo-ing, sup-ing and muscle flexing later (look out for Brennan throwing the crab and Booth preparing to throw a bouncer after he gives Brennan a shove – he can be very manly), it turns out our victim was killed over ice, ice baby. Not the rapper and not the illegal stuff. Ice. Water. Frozen. It seems people can go a little ballistic over ice. The Ice Man (no, not Val Kilmer) smacked Richie the V over the head with his ice-smashing tool, in a case of mistaken identity.

The moral of the story – one really never should go out dressed like twinsees, especially if your fashion twin is a bit of a dipstick.

While all this is happening, Hannah is preparing to move in with Booth, but not before Brennan throws a metaphoric crab her way in the form of a well meaning warning not to mess with Booth’s heart. Nice. Brennan also helps Hannah choose a house warming gift for Booth – a retro rotary phone. What a trooper.

There was the potential for this episode to be ridiculous but it was pulled off beautifully with some understated humour, some overstated humour, an endearing support cast and a couple of moments that tugged gently on the heart strings.

So on to my “Five Stars and a Wish”:

Star One

Eureka! A gathering of Guidos! Basically anytime Brennan went all Guido on us in this episode was some pretty fine television. Her “Yo. Sup?”, teamed with the handshake hug, was suitably understated and therefore amusing. Her David Attenborough-esque narration for Booth, of things such as the mating rituals of the tribe, was informative and entertaining. Are we not all just a little bit wiser for knowing that GTL stands for Gym Tan Laundry?!

Star Two

The cat’s out of the bag! The scene where Cam discovers Angela is pregnant was really nice. I always delight in characters being human and for some reason, having to eat always normalises people. For this reason I loved the fact that Angela was lying down eating crackers. What’s more, she was making a mess. Imperfection is endearing. Cam’s reaction to her pregnancy was joyous (I’m really liking Cam so far this series) and it was very sweet when Angela said, “I could be having a little Hodgins. How cute would that be?”

Star Three

Don’t mess with the crab, you might get the claws. The dynamic between Bones and Hannah continues to develop. While friendly, you can still sense the caution with which Bones interacts with the new kid on the block. When Hannah arrived at the Jeffersonian you could tell Bones was confused and I loved her tentative hello. This then provided a perfect contrast to how animated she became when talking about Booth and the fact Hannah should get him a vintage Rotary phone as a housewarming gift. One wonders what Hannah is beginning to surmise from such an exchange? This scene was also golden as we got to see just how much Brennan cares for Booth when she warns Hannah to be careful with his heart.

Star Four

The simple things in life are often the best. Bones is always full of magic moments that you may miss if you blink at the wrong time. From a glance to the way Brennan often puts the back of her hand on Booths arm when she’s explaining things to him, they make a moment memorable. One such moment in this episode is when Booth and Bones enter the Diner together and both reach for the menu at the same time. The familiarity of such a thing is almost intimate. And while we’re on simple things, I couldn’t not mention the cheeky little way the writers managed to get the “F” word in an episode – 4Q. I think it’s self explanatory.

Star Five

I shall take my leave. Bones has long had a lovely tradition of finishing every episode with a scene featuring Booth and Bones together. The tradition has continued this season, with a slightly sadder lilt. The closing scene of this episode was a tear jerker (if you are inclined to jerk tears, which I am not, but even I felt a little sting behind the eye). I cringed for Bones when she and Hannah simultaneously told Booth he was welcome when he said thank you for his gift and I felt for her in the awkwardness of realising she was the third wheel (seriously , Angela, what kind of a friend would have left her there?!). But then good people, the little light in the darkness. Booth followed Brennan to the door. Booth held near his heart the ribbon off the gift. Do I read too much into it to think he knew it was really a gift from Bones? Was he saying more than see you tomorrow? The looks are making a comeback people. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what makes Bones rock!

The Wish

I know this won’t be popular with everyone, but despite Booth’s very pleasing hip to shoulder ratio, I really don’t need to see him tripping the light fantastic with Hannah every episode. I get it. They get down with the rumpy pumpy. Perhaps the writer’s are trying to establish a future point of difference between the relationships – with Booth and Hannah it’s about sex. With Booth and Brennan it’s about intimacy? Whatever the case may be, please spare my ailing heart and soul anymore such scenes!

And that my learned friends is ‘sup!

Episode Two - The Couple in the Cave

In the second offering of Bones’ sixth season we are treated to a tale of love, and crime, and death, from the pen of Stephen Nathan. But at the heart of the episode is love. In quick summary, the tale went a little like this...

A couple of hikers in the National Park get side-tracked and end up in a cave. Sadly, this bickering pair do not become the victims. They do, however, stumble across a couple entwined in each other’s arms and very much dead.

A few snide remarks from Brennan later and with the help of the Jeffersonian brainiacs, the pieces of the puzzle lock nicely into place. Turns out the couple were from different sides of the track, socially and economically (an anthropological anomaly), but had seemingly forged a bond so strong they would rather die together than live alone. Mr Nathan goes all “English Patient” on us when it turns out the dead man would probably have been able to go for help, but his lady would not have made it and he would have been leaving her to die alone. Or should that be anti-English Patient?

The upshot is a misguided Park Ranger pushed the pair, who met through AA, off a cliff after recognising the male victim as the man who supplied his underage niece with the alcohol that ultimately led to her death in an accident.

Oh, and did I mention that we get to meet Hannah? Booth’s ball and chain makes a surprise appearance in Washington, after discovering she didn’t like waking up alone (luckily Bones fans have a well trained gag reflex!). Brennan takes Hannah’s arrival in her stride like the true emotionless stall-wart that she is – or does she?

While The Couple in the Cave may be a little light weight in terms of the case (even I worked out who the killer was in the first few minutes, and I never work out who the killer is), it was heavily laden with subtext about love – that crazy little thing! Throughout the episode, one can’t help but draw parallels between the dead couple in the cave and the burgeoning relationship between Booth and Burley (Hannah) and the tried and true relationship of Booth and Bones. I found myself reading meaning into every line every character uttered.

So on to my “Five Stars and a Wish”:

Star One
Brennan Gets Her Crank On – There were a couple of instances in this episode where we got to see some cracks in Brennan’s normally level-headed demeanour. Early in the episode she has a couple of little digs at Booth about him not really being in love with Hannah, but the most poignant scene is when she lays into newly returned intern Clark. On the surface one might accept Brennan’s explanation that she was just trying to spur Clark on and make him a better scientist, but Cam (and the viewer) knows better. Brennan was clearly experiencing emotions that were unfamiliar to her, and was channelling her frustration at not being able to control them, toward Clark. (There is actually an interesting sound that plays behind the transition shot from Booth and Hannah together at his apartment to the shot of Brennan in the Jeffersonian. If I can quote The Princess Bride, it sounded a little bit like "ultimate suffering". Am I taking my analysis too far here?!). On the flip side, it was nice to see Brennan laugh off Cam’s interpretation of the situation. “It’s actually quite amusing to think that Hannah could ever affect my work”. Her laughter is so rare (remember Caroline saying to Booth, “I did not know she could laugh” in The Verdict in the Story?), it’s like a gift; even if in this instance it masked a darker feeling.



Star Two
The Imagination Runs Wild – After discussing the seemingly unlikely pairing of the victims, given their wildly different backgrounds, Brennan admits that while in Indonesia, she imagined herself and Booth together. Now there’s some dream sequences that would be worth seeing. And we all know, nothing happens unless first a dream.



Star Three
A Friend in Need’s a Friend Indeed – Lots of people had lots to say about Booth and Brennan in this episode. Cam thought they’d be together when they returned from Maluku and Afghanistan. Angela offered up that they were already a couple, albeit a couple who didn’t have sex. Even Clark couldn’t understand why they never got jiggy with it. Naturally Sweets was in the mix too trying to say his piece while still maintaining his bromance with Booth. But the most touching scene was when Brennan and Angela were discussing people’s lives turning out in a different manner to what they expected. Brennan commented that she was the only one living the life she expected. When Angela asked her how that was working out for her, Brennan’s sadness and regret was undeniable, despite her smile and comment that it was as she expected. I’ll probably say it every week, but it’s a testament to the acting genius of Emily Deschanel.

Star Four
Love is in The Air – There was so much rich dialogue in this episode about love it had my head spinning – it was enlightening, confusing and contradictory at times. It was bold of Brennan to talk about what happens to acts of love if someone falls in love with another (subtle as a poke in the eye with a stick) and it was nice to hear Booth say his acts of love for Brennan remained acts of love despite the fact he was now with Hannah (that’s me reading between the lines of course). The line that had me asking the most questions though, was one that came toward the very end of the episode. As Booth and Brennan debate the value of love versus the human imperative for survival, Booth says, “He couldn’t leave her. That’s what love is”, in reference to the victims staying together. What does this mean for his relationship with Hannah, who he left? Or his love for Bones, who he (sort of) came back to?

Star Five
Alone at Last – While not a happy scene, the final scene of this episode gave me hope. As Booth and Hannah headed off to dinner together it was heart crushing to see Bones left all alone at the bar. She put on a brave face and everyone was very friendly and socially polite (Hannah inviting her to go too, Bones politely declining). What this scene effectively did was show that the writers are going to handle the whole Burley/Booth/Brennan situation very well. We are going to feel every ache Brennan feels, we’re not going to be able to hate Hannah no matter how much we may like to and we’re going to see Booth....ummm, I’m not sure about that one yet. Let’s get to the wish...



The Wish
My wish is that eventually we get the point where during such a final scene (if it were to happen again in the future) as Booth and Hannah leave together, we see Booth looking back at Brennan, recognising her loneliness, pain and regret and wishing it was her he was leaving with!

It’s all about the looks people!