BONES: The Parts in the Sum of the Whole
April 8, 2010 by Sarah Curtis
First of all, show of hands…Who is glad to know that Brennan DIDN’T lie in Soccer Mom in the Mini Van when she said Booth had no direct knowledge? I know I am.
I LOVED this episode and have been DYING to talk about it with you. Even more important than my opinion are your thoughts and feelings (but don’t get me wrong…I’m about to get all opiniony up in your BONESloving grills). My first impression was completely, mind numbingly…stunned, can’t breathe…just…wow. Wow!
The ‘Case’
The episode strays from the formula, in that there is not a current case the squint squad is working on, but rather, Booth and Brennan approach Sweets with his manuscript. He had given it to them to look over, as a fact checking measure.
Well, Booth and Brennan each found what they considered to be a glaring error. Booth disagreed with Sweets’ statement that he and Brennan are in love with one another, and Brennan contradicted the fact that the Cleo Eller case (which we saw in the pilot episode) was their first case. This isn’t news to us, as in the Pilot, Booth tells the Homeland Security guard that, “Bones here identifies bodies for us.”
But it IS news to Sweets. So he’s mostly horrified as B&B recount how they met and worked together on a case for another young woman, Gemma Arrington. They describe it through flashback, and it’s actually kind of similar to the case FROM the pilot episode, but basically a powerful judge is having an affair with Gemma and kills her. B&B work together to solve the case.
THE SQUINTS:
I so loved the blast from the past of the original squint squad. As I was watching this episode, and seeing how they were weaving each character into the storyline in ways that actually made sense, I was smiling the whole time. This episode was quirky and creative and funny and sad and just BONES to the core, and that means some great SQUINT action.
Angela, Zack & Hodgins:
I loved that we got to see Angela doing her street art and that Brennan was so Brennan-y about it. I love their friendship. I loved that Brennan proposed the first ever experiment, and I thought was just so fantastic that Zack and Hodgins were annoyed with one another at the beginning. Such a contrast to the B&B dynamic in the ep (more on that later). Loved, loved, loved the actual experiment as well with Zack getting hit with the bat. If that was a gift to us from Hart Hanson and company, well…I gladly accept. It was so great to see Zack around, and I loved his scene with Booth.
Cam & Caroline Julian:
I had a feeling Cam was going to be in the episode somehow, but just figured she’d be in the present day stuff, popping into Sweets’ office with some information or whatever. I never, ever would have guessed that we would have seen her as part of Booth’s life at the time. My impression was that they were just friends at this point…what say you? Very interesting is that Cam is the one who recommended that Booth seek out Dr. Temperance Brennan of the Jeffersonian for assistance. Creatively done, BONES writers. Cheers. I was a little caught off guard by Cam and Brennan running into one another at the Hoover building (in contrast to the season two premiere where they ‘meet’ at the crime scene), but I think they played it well enough to still be consistent. On the other hand with Caroline Julian, I thought her meeting and being around Brennan was a little more of a stretch, considering Man in the Morgue, but I’ll also allow it, as there isn’t an actual introduction between them in that episode. Thoughts from you? How fun was it that Caroline has Booth’s future office!
Sweets:
I live the spoiler free life, so I didn’t really know that there was information out in the world stating that Sweets was going to be responsible for a major rift in B&B’s relationship. When I first watched the episode, I didn’t see that at all. I just saw him as being honest with them and then later, Booth took a chance. Then, once I learned that people were ready to blame Sweets for anything bad that happened, I realized that he was the one who told Booth he was the gambler. I’m honestly not sure how I feel about that, but my instinct is not to blame Sweets, because I think that pinning any blame on Sweets lessens the significance of Booth’s actions, and I plainly refuse to do that. For me, Sweets was more about the comic relief, and I liked that he was kind of shaken up by everything they revealed. I also liked how stunned he was that Brennan had slapped Booth in the face. It will be interesting to see if there is any fallout ON the show for Sweets (vs from Pain in the Heart). What are your thoughts?
Booth & Brennan:
I never imagined that Booth and Brennan would get along at first sight. It never crossed my mind. I was imagining major, major bickering the WHOLE flashback time, you know? But I loved it and think it was perfect. From the moment Booth laid eyes on her in that lecture…he knew! It was love at first sight, or fate, whatever he wants to call it. Brennan would never believe in anything like that. But she was hooked for sure. I just thought they were the cutest thing, and I loved her saying she should call him shoes. I love that she basically gives him permission (without even knowing) to be kind of rogue and out of standard issued FBI uniform. While I normally dislike flashback as a device, I thought this worked, because like the most delicious dramatic irony, we, the audience know EXACTLY what it’s like between them in the pilot episode. And so, to see that unfold was amazing. I liked their kiss outside the bar; and I thought that it was in character with who they were at the time. Brennan was sweet and totally into him, but also confident and brainy. Booth was totally into her, and wanted to confess his gambling problem before he kissed her (cause this was going somewhere!). Or did she kiss HIM? Ah! And I love that they both went home, alone. DB told us in the conference call that he was really happy with how that scene turned out, from a director’s standpoint, and I have to agree. Very cool.
But…with about 15 minutes left in the episode, I got this sinking feeling in my stomach that something awful was going to happen. Like I just mentioned, I hadn’t expected for them to get along so well from the start, and it hit me like a ton of bricks that something bad had to happen to get them to the point that they didn’t speak to one another for a year and that there would be a lot of tension between them. I knew it had to be something more than him just firing her, or even more than him getting her (and him) drunk to do it.
But nothing could have prepared me for the fight they had and the way she slapped him on the face. I cried. And when he called her a cold fish and barked out that he wasn’t her father, I could hardly breathe. When she called him a bully, I just felt stunned. It’s hard to completely explain, but for us, having five years of getting to know them, all their issues and family stuff and just all of that, the fight felt so personal. To have them hurl those insults at one another within a week of knowing each other just completely broke my heart. In the 99 episodes we saw before this, they were never as honest with one another as they were in that moment, including right before the tequila kiss just a few scenes earlier. And I wondered if they would ever be as honest like that again.
And oh, darlings…they were. Oh, they were!
I also want to admit that I was wrong about Brennan, at least, somewhat. A few episodes ago, I commented that while several people have point blank told Booth he loves Brennan (and he never once denied it), no one has really called Brennan out on it. And I said that maybe it wasn’t exactly love, but if someone were to confront Brennan with the fact that she wants Booth to be her family, well, that she wouldn’t deny it, just in the same way Booth wasn’t denying anything. Of course, Booth is the one who confronted her, and that changes everything, but from what I see NOW, Brennan, this entire time, has just been holding out on hope that Booth would never express his desire for her, because she knew she’d have to turn him down and cause him pain. That she rejected him to SPARE him pain is just one of the most honest things I have ever seen on television. What I found so interesting was that Booth never mentioned love at all, at least not at the end there, but Brennan knew. She knew just what he was talking about, exactly what he meant.
Now…let me also say this. If this were the final episode of the series, I’d be sad (for a lot of reasons). But, it’s not, and I refuse to believe this is the final word on the matter, as far as them being together romantically. I’m going out on a limb here, but in my opinion, anyone who is angry about what happened wasn’t really listening to what Booth and Brennan were saying. I think there is some level of frustration (and I was COMPLETELY weirded out and turned off by them walking off arm in arm…that was not right. I needed a bit more fallout from that moment. MY heart was practically bleeding to death, and I think they need to be stunned! That was the one misstep, in my opinion.), but to me, Brennan’s reveal of her weakness…something she almost always refuses to do, proves to me that she does love him. She just doesn’t see that she feels the right kind of love for Booth or that she’s enough for him. The very fact that she understands that proves to me that she gets it. She gets him, and understands him, and that’s what love is. That’s what he really wants and needs. She just doesn’t know that she gets it yet, and Booth doesn’t necessarily know that he has to prove to her that she does. I am still holding out hope for these two. I’d imagined hundreds of possible moments between them, and I don’t think I ever thought of Booth breaking and confessing, and then kissing her to PROVE it, only to have Brennan beg him not to continue, for fear of her hurting him in the long run. But now that it’s happened, I just think it’s the most honest way it could have happened. Stunningly genuine emotions. I was so proud of Booth in that whole scene, from taking a risk, (I’m the gambler), and then kissing her at her first denial, proving to them both that they know exactly what they have, and then, even when she said no, he tried to reason with her. And I was also proud of him when he said he had to move on, to find someone who will love him for thirty years or forty or fifty. Though it breaks my heart, I’m just so proud of him for acknowledging that he NEEDS that and that he’s worth it.
In the weeks that followed after I watched this episode, what I just kept coming back to was the idea that “well, now we know”. Now we know that Booth has been struggling to keep his feelings private. And now we know that Brennan had been hoping he’d maintain the status quo, if only so she could prevent being the cause of pain in his life. And now we know how it all started.
But what we don’t know is how it will end, nor how it will happen along the way. Hart Hanson once said that the UST between Booth and Brennan was the engine that drove this show. IF that is true, then their character development is the track, and I’m so along for that ride. I don’t know about you, but I’m on board for another 100 episodes.
I want every single BONES fan on this site to comment. I’m serious. This isn’t just some piddly episode; this is the 100th episode of a show that you love, so come on…bring it! Did you agree or disagree with me? What was your favorite part? What was your LEAST favorite part? How about our boy David Boreanaz’ directing, yeah?
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Filed under #1 featured, Bones, Posts by Sarah (Seels)
OMG I need THERAPY after that ep! So sad, but it was one of the most beautifully done “breakup” scenes ever. The music was beautiful.
And yes my heart was bleeding too. lol.
I disagree about them walking off arm in arm though – I loved it, and their resignation to what couldn’t be, and their maturity about the whole situation just made the whole thing even sadder.
I KNOW they’ll end up together someday, so I’m in for 100 more eps as well. 🙂
I totally agree with most of what you have said. The only thing I disagree with is your take on the ‘playing’ of Cam and Brennan meeting. If you look at the way Brennan treats the firefighter in The Titan On The Tracks (Season 2 Ep 1) she has met at least 4 times, you can understand how she would not give their chance encounter any notice. [Booth says they know each other and after Brennan says no Cam hesitantly says no…]
I own every season of Bones and have watched every episode in and out of order, I screamed with joy as soon as i saw that look in Booth’s eyes when he stopped her outside, and then in pain and longing when I saw the tears in Brennan’s eyes. I couldn’t concentrate on Fringe for almost 40 minutes after the show, I was pacing and talking and reasoning what had happened and where the show would go from here. I believe this was the perfect way to confront these feelings (I was beginning to wonder where the tension in Booth went after his coma dream). I was worried right away that it was the end, but after talking it through with friends and reading articles like yours I can’t wait to see what happens next.
I loved this episode. I agree- there’s no way this is the end of their story. I think it will have to come to some sort of boil over by the season finale.
The whole bit of B&B on Sweets’ couch reminded me of the scenes from “when Harry met Sally” where the couples are interspersed through the movie telling the story of how they met and fell in love. Very sweet.
i have so many thoughts/feelings on this ep i dont know where to start!
i LOVED this ep. every minute. i loved the bickering with zack and hodgins, i loved that it was brennan who sparked booth ‘showing his originality’ or defiance or whatever, i love that brennan had only met angela a couple months before and that she was comfortable bringing her a skull and saying ‘here, draw me a face’, i just thought that was SO her.
the last scene was heartbreaking. i was breathless the entire time. one thing in particular that was just..amazing…kudos to emily deschanel for the look on her face when she asks if they can still work together…she has to fight back another wave of tears because she just cant imagine her life without him…even if she doesnt think she can love him…she does…and she needs him..and she knows it. and then the way she says ‘thankyou’…beautiful. my heart was breaking for them.
i just wish that booth had tried a bit harder to convince her…i feel like they were so close! and the point that she couldnt change was just wrong! she was wrong. she HAS changed since she met booth. they both have changed each other, she ‘helps him evolve’…ahhh yes im so in for another 100 eps!!
love this show and love your reviews! =]
If this would have been the finale episode I would have been devastated. I am pulling for this mismatched couple and am looking forward to their navigating through this crisis. SN says they are not worried about putting them together as a couple, just want to make sure they do it at the right time so I am hopeful that they will be heading in that direction by this season’s finale. Also David & Emily are spinning that they never may be a couple so that probably means they are closer than we think, at least that is what I am telling myself.
I absolutely adored this episode. I think it was amazingly perfect the way the last scene played out (even the arm-in-arm thing, yes I’m a sap. 😉 ) I bawled after it was over…for ten minutes. It was amazing in the most terribly sad way possible. I can’t explain in words how… I just think this was amazing. Emmy worthy. No kidding, how can we make this be nominated??? I’ll join whatever I have to! And just a little side note to the people who didn’t like it.. Why? I get that it’s been five years and you’re tired of waiting, but in the real world, sometimes people wait longer than that to be with the one they love. Real life isn’t a fairy tale. Everything happens eventually, as said by Mr. Hanson himself. Booth and Bones will end up together. You just gotta stick with it till they do 😉
That was good TV. I laughed out loud with Brennan taking the bat to Zack, got tingles with the first drunken kiss, and had my heart crushed at the end. I’m sure I’ll appreciate the end of this episode much more after the story arch is complete, but for now I’m just sad.
I love your review of this episode. You wrote pretty much everything that’s been going through my head since the episode ended. I’m not even sure if I can accurately convey everything that I want to say. This episode made me laugh, made me smile, and put me on the verge of tears as I was gasping for breath as my chest constricted during those final scenes. I absolutely loved the flashbacks – Booth and Zack being awkward, Hodgins being angry and a jerk, Angela’s street artistry, and everything between. I laughed hysterical as Sweets’ pouted after his theories were totally pulled apart…although I did feel bad for him and all the work that he put into that book. I think he was definitely there for comic relief for the most part. I don’t really blame him for the fall out later on in the episode.
And as far as Brennan and Booth at the end, it was a heart wrenching scene, but I think it was necessary for them to move forward and eventually together. I think Brennan was both protecting Booth and protecting herself. She is afraid of hurting him because she doesn’t think she is capable of making him as happy as he deserves to be. She was also protecting herself…she’s been abandoned so much in her life that it would be difficult for her to easily accept his advances. She’s terrified that he’ll stop loving her and be gone from her life. If they stay partners, he won’t disappear.
Anyways…I’m not really sure if what I’ve said makes sense, but whatever. I think this was a great episode and I trust Hart Hanson and everyone on the Bones crew. I will always be a loyal fan and I will follow the show until the very end. This is not the end of Booth/Brennan. They will get together, and it will be great, and I don’t think it’ll be at the very end of the series.
I love, love, LOVED this episode! Everyone was hilarious, and it was beautiful, and just AH!!!
I loved seeing Zach again. And him being the murder victim (as always) was AWESOME!!
I loved the Angela stuff. When she was doing that flip book thing, I turned to my mom and said: “Ha ha! That’s the early Angelatron!” 🙂
I loved seeing angry Hodgins again. I love Hodgins now, don’t get me wrong, but it was fun seeing him with the rubber band again!
I liked the way they did the Cam thing. It is believable to me that even though Cam and Brennan ran into each other, Brennan wouldn’t remember Cam two or so years later.
I’m still not sure how I feel about the Caroline thing… I know Caroline said she never remembers a squint, but how can you forget Brennan? And I don’t think Brennan would forget Caroline (I mean, how could you?). It was just a quick conversation like it was with Cam. Bren had to actually work with Caroline (somewhat), so that was a bit of a stretch for me.
I’m not mad at Sweets. I love Sweets, and his reactions to the whole thing. Plus, I know (at least I HOPE) that it will all work out in the end. To me, Sweets just kind of gave Booth the nudge he needed, he didn’t necessarily push him (ok, he kind of did, but not too bad). I think the whole thing at the end needs to be out there for them to move forward, because it was going to happen at some point, so why blame Sweets for it? That is what I think.
And now for my thoughts on the last scene… Wow! Just… wow! I went from smiling like an idiot to crying to smiling to crying to smiling again and again in like two minuets. I like that Booth didn’t say I love you. I don’t think that was the time for it. I think he said it with his eyes, and she knew, but I like the way he said everything. I like Bren’s reaction, too. Of course I WISH she had just given in, but I think what happened was very true to her character. Now that it is out there, though, I think they will be able to figure out a way to make it work. They have to. But I think that conversation NEEDED to happen, because i think that is what Brennan has been feeling for a long time. I like that she made it about him. That she was worried about hurting him. I think if she said that she was worried about getting hurt (even if she is), she knows that Booth would be able to convince her that he is still worth it and that he won’t hurt her. By saying that she is worried about him, she is able to tell Booth (with out actually saying it out loud) that she does love him, but she doesn’t trust herself, and he can’t convince her to do that.
I am strangely ok with them walking away hand in hand. It gave me hope that everything will be ok. I think that it was very in character for Brennan to do that. She wants to make sure nothing has changed (even though it has), and just wants him to be her Booth. I’m not sure that Booth should have taken her arm, I mean, he just got rejected by her (no matter how good her intentions were), he should be a little more upset with her. I think the reason he did take her arm, though, is because in the end, he loves her, and can’t stay mad at her or see her sad.
I have faith that everything will be ok. I trust Hart Hanson, he just better not let me down!!!!
“OMG!!” i cant stop sayin that!
the whole episode was amazing, how everything came together.
i watched this episode spoiler free and found the final scene to be totally unexpected. i am still in shock!!
i broke down when Booth said “im the gambler”. right there we knew things were changing!
i didn’t mind when they walked off linking arms, i found it to be reassuring that things will be OK between them.. different, but still OK (i hope!)
I absolutely loved the episode… Never have I laughed so much during a Bones episode… and never have I cried so hard.
I loved all of the stuff with the past case, and it all made sense to me. It was cool to see how sweet they were together before they started fighting haha.
The first time the tears started was after she waved at him from the taxi and then he TURNED AWAY from the pool hall!!!! AHHH!!! There is such power in their relationship… it’s amazing. It’s beautiful. It’s heartbreaking. I agree about their fight toward the end of the “past” scenes… that was very hard to watch knowing how far they’ve come and how much respect they have for each other.
Kudos to Sweets for finally calling them on the carpet and then jerking it out from under them. I don’t blame him… I think it’s about time that somebody told these two to face the music. Then that moment when Booth decided to take the gamble…. Oh.my.goodness. And the fact that Brennan was vulnerable enough to cry and it was obvious that she wanted to as well but wouldn’t… to protect him. I think it was very telling that on her way down the stairs at the end she was talking about how Sweets said that her parents abandoning her has caused her to think that all meaningful relationships are doomed. Get inside her mind, guys. The woman is deeply scarred.
They were both utterly amazing in that end scene… to the point of perfection. Zoe, I agree with you… I wish that Booth would’ve tried harder. I thought he gave up too easily to have just gone out on that big of a limb. Oh, but I did like them walking away arm in arm… it was reassuring to me that they’re going to be okay, and it also reinforced how much they care for one another.
Obviously, I don’t like the sad way that things ended and I certainly don’t like the idea of Booth moving on. However, I know that both of those things were necessary… but I’m not going to like it. I’m still confident that the season will end with her changing her mind and deciding to take the chance. In my opinion, that’s the most honest way for their relationship to begin and it’s been perfectly set up for that.
We all know our Brennan… she has to process things, and Booth has just given her something HUGE to process. In the words of our boy Booth… Analyze THAT, baby ;-)!
Sooo….I think I need to be enrolled in the mental institution with Zack after that one. I was one angry crying mess after that ending. And I was angry because of this fact: Brennan doesn’t believe she’s good enough for Booth even though he told her she’s his one…and Booth doesn’t tell Brennan she doesn’t have to change for him. Somehow Booth not telling her that just didn’t ring true to character for me. But we’ll see how this ends…my poor shipper heart is broken at the moment but I’m still along for the ride I think. Let’s hope the last stop is somewhere I want to go.
The entire flashback was AMAZING! Just pure gold…Brennan’s her own worst enemy with the experiments because she started it all. If only Cam knew she would probably murder her. 🙂 And the KISS…OH MY GOD! In a million years I never would have expected that one. It was H-O-T! And I’m glad it didn’t lead to anything more than that. Cam popping in and out was brilliant too…I’m glad they found a way to fit her in. And I think she and Booth were just friends by this point so that made me happy too…I like friendshippy Booth and Cam.
So all in all it was a great 100th…the last two minutes broke my heart, but love is nothing without pain. All great romances have their tragedies…and hopefully this one will turn out with a happy ending.
Great Review of the episode! Happy with the outcome because there is so much more to come for these two! At least Booth expressed his true feelings and it is out there. Brennan will get there, little by little!
Everyone’s been so effusive, so I’ll just keep this brief:
The final scene was amazing. I’m with Zoe on Bones and her question in that scene — Booth’s reaction to the rejection was painful, but seeing Bones’ fear that rejecting his love might mean losing him completely — just heart-rending.
Unlike certain other episodes, the gimmick worked perfectly this episode. I can’t wait to see how this plays out over the course of the rest of the season.
I did not really like this episode. I didn’t like the retconning of what we knew as the history of the team, Booth and Bones in particular. I didn’t like a lot of the characterization of flashback Bones. I hated the ending.
A all just felt like a step backwards, even though I can see the perspective of the positive reviews. The upside is that now it’s out there, and Bones can’t ignore it anymore. In my fantasy world Caroline, Gordon Gordon, and Angela stage an intervention and help Brennan sort out her business so we can do this thing already.
I agree with basically everything you said! I was literally jumping up and down on my couch and screaming at the TV the whole episode.
I thought that after season three the show had kind of gotten a little bit off in some areas. Its still and always was great show, but seasons 4 and 5 were lacking the character development and emotion of the first 3 seasons. It became more comical. But this episode totally made up for it.
I loved the look back at their first case. It explained why Bones hated Booth so much in the first episode and I loved looking at how everyone was before they became a team. I also love that Booth wears the cocky belt buckle and the crazy ties because of Brennan. And of course I loved the kissing.
About the end scene…
After Booth kissed her Bones said “I don’t have your open heart” and “I can’t change I don’t know how”. I think that Bones is scared because she doesn’t believe that she is capable of love or that she can change. But she has changed A LOT but she can’t see that yet. All of her other relationships have been mainly about sex and not a whole lot of emotional attachment (with the exception of Sully, and that didn’t work out).
She says (as Booth said) “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome”. She’s scared that their relationship will fail, because of her “inability to change” and because all her past relationships have. She cares about Booth too much to gamble their frendship. Which just proves that she does love him (and is going to love him in thirty or fourty or fifty years). It just might be awhile before she realizes it (and we know Booth won’t really be able to move on).
I didn’t have too many issues with this episode. I guess the very end when they walk away arm in arm was a little weird. but I guess it shows the strength of their friendship.
seeleybaby, could you fill me in on what you’re referring to with the “Who is glad to know that Brennan DIDN’T lie in Soccer Mom in the Mini Van when she said Booth had no direct knowledge?” please? I have NO idea what you’re talking about 🙁
I agree with pretty much everything you all have said, and I have a prediction…okay, maybe it’s just a really intense wish.
I could see Sweets (whom I absolutely love and adore on this show) processing everything B&B told him. I see a montage of him, looking scruffy and as though he’s been up for days on end, pacing, talking to himself, looking frustrated, etc….and sitting at the computer. I see him presenting a new manuscript, completely rewritten, incorporating what he’s learned and how it fits with what he knew about B&B before this ep; however, it still arrives at the conclusion that B&B love one another.
I think this will be the catalyst that gets B&B together – Sweets will present the argument that Brennan is protecting herself b/c of her family/abandonment issues, and Booth is more cautious than he has been in the past b/c he’s learned that gambling leads to losing, and Booth doesn’t want to lose Brennan. Maybe???
I LOVED this episode. It was so powerful and a million times better than anything I imagined (and I was spoiler-free except for episode synopsis and trailer).
I liked how Cam was worked in. I had also assumed that she would be used in the present day scenes, but I like what they did instead and it felt pretty natural to me.
I finished watching this episode about 4 hours ago, but I can’t stop thinking about it. I will definitely be rewatching this one a lot.
That last scene was just so beautifully acted by ED and DB. It was so powerful and very insightful into their characters, especially Brennan. I didn’t think them walking off arm in arm was weird at all. I thought it underlined how close they really are–that they could go through such an intense conversation and when it’s done they just can’t help but want to still be close to each other because that’s what they always do.
While this period of watching Booth possibly date other people while Brennan hopefully figures out that she can be with Booth will no doubt sometimes be painful to watch, I think it will make for some good story-telling. This was a development that is necessary to push their story along and I have confidence it will be worth it in the long run.
Wow. That is an amazing review to an amazing episode of an amazing show.
I just want to begin by stating the disappointment I have been having in other fans these days. By all means have your opinions, but to state them in such a disrespectful and harsh way is uncalled for. (this is not in reference to the people who made any of the above comments, just some fans in general) Speaking as an artist, I can relate to the writers, creators, and producers of the show. To tell the people whom, if not for them you would not have ever fallen in love with these characters in the first place, how to run their show is so utterly disrespectful. Please, if you don’t trust them enough to take care of the show and characters that they created, respect them enough to acknowledge that its their “artwork” to do with what they want. Or at the very least, state your opinions respectfully.
As for the episode itself, there were many moments that I had to stop and rewind just because they were so endearing. I must have replayed the last scene at least five times. It was a beautiful episode from all aspects. From the writers room, to the actors, and into the editing room it was all just done very well. It all came together in such an authentic and real way. After an episode like that, there should be no doubts in anyone’s mind about how the show made it to 100 episodes. Bones is a show that makes you think and feel at the same time. That is intelligent TV. Bravo.
I enjoyed reading your review. I agreed with most everything you said. I feel like you read between the lines and see not just what they are saying or whats happening, but see the meaning behind it all.
I am undoubtedly looking forward to the finale.
I loved this episode. I really tried to stay spoiler-free and I’m really glad I did.
I love Booth & Brennan.
I love how all this went down. It opens up the possibility for so much more than will-they-won’t-they.
I feel totally and completely satisfied. Can’t wait to see what’s coming next!
And this was an awesome review of an amazing episode. Sigh.
Can’t wait to rewatch it! Love that the show is still so fantastic after 100 episodes. I was clutching my face there at the end, but I have faith. They are just too perfect together!
When I first watched it I didn’t know whether to love or hate the episode. Loved the episode up til the last heart-wrenching 5-minutes. Sigh.
But, it was such a well-acted scene, no? When Booth was pleading and Brennan was just holding back. So emotional!
Ah but all in all, Bones is awesome and this was a phenomenal episode! Can’t wait for the 200th episode! 😉
Just a small correction of the review above. In the “case” section–the judge wasn’t having an affair with Gemma, she caught him snorting cocaine, right?
Otherwise, spot-on!
I loved this episode and can’t wait to watch it again this weekend. It was a tough one to take — felt a bit like a blow by the end. But I agree with you, Seeleybaby — Bones is going to come around and this will be a couple that’ll live happily ever after in TV history.
My favorite part was the moment of truth between B&B at the end. It was roughly emotional, but the honesty of it was so beautiful. I loved that they were so wracked by having held back they’re feelings for so long that they were both weeping and devastated by the end. Hard, hard stuff.
I think my least favorite part was Hodgins’s hair. Very icky, but funny, anyway.
I needed, for the first time, to read reviews of Bones. This episode encapsulated the whole series for me. After reading many web sites, I’ve book-marked only yours. A more complete and balanced analysis would be hard to imagine.
The texture and depth of the show is unparalleled. (Maybe not quite true, but you see my affection for this series.) Fiction’s greatest pleasure is not the surface, but the way it suggests a world behind it. For example, we feel we know these fictional characters better than most of the people we know in real life. And I would give anything to be able to read Sweets’ manuscript!
this episode should be nominated for Emmy’s. the actors (Deschanel and Boreanaz) gave their all and it paid off. although it was very painful to watch (because they are both crying and hurting inside), i was very satisfied with what happened. because i know, eventually, they will be together. it will just take time. this is a monstrous 100th episode and kudos to David who directed it. it was very emotional episode and i can’t wait to watch this over and over again. i know it’s a torture, but i just want to feel the emotions.
im looking forward to the next episode. i really really love Bones!
p.s. what can we do about nominating this episode at Emmy’s?
Better than anything I could have imagined!! Seriously, the writers, crew, cast, etc hit it out of the park with this one! How can we let them know how much we loved it??
I don’t even know where to begin…
*I loved that by retelling that story to Sweets (another great ep for JFD) it made Booth realize that he is a gambler (in the best sense) and needs to tell her…it brought up all those first time feelings.
*I LOVE that Booth confesses that he knew she was the one! So powerful!
*The end scene utterly blew me away. That scene can be dissected on so many levels. The fact that Brennan wants to be with him was so obvious, the tears she shed as she was telling him that ‘she can’t change, she’s a scientist’-aaaahhh!! She was hurting herself just as much as she was hurting him. And I fully buy into the notion that she is scared of abandonment, she’s afraid he’ll leave her, which is why it’s much easier to keep him as a partner.
*I think that they will continue to work together- but only until one of them realizes that it is impossible to continue that way. I think that will be the catalyst for her realizing she can and must change. I think losing him as a partner, in some way, will push them forward.
Flashback-wise- I stinkin love how into each other they were and how honest they were about it. Never saw that coming!
Did anyone else catch the quote they showed on the wall as they were walking down the stairs at the end? It was very telling, adding some forshadowing maybe? Adding some hope?? I know that quote was not put in the scene randomly!
As any other shipper, I obviously freakin’ LOVED this episode, but unlike some other shippers, I am not worried about B&B’s future.
What I wanted the most from B&B was progress, and I received just that. Sure, they are still not the romantic couple that fans want them to be, but they are now, officially, out in the open, in love. And that, my friends, is MAJOR progress.
Things can only go forward from now on. =)
Additionally, I felt that the reasons Brennan gave for turning Booth down also gave lots of hope to the viewers – she wasn’t surprised by Booth’s confession, meaning that she already knew that he loved her. And she didn’t give some wimpy “we work together” as her excuse. Her excuse was that she was trying to protect Booth from herself, so that gave me hope. And she never denied that she cared about him and loved him also. Once again, more hope.
But I agree with all you guys – that end scene WAS heartbreaking. When she said “Please, don’t look so sad!”, I thought I was gonna lose it.
Sighhh. Can’t wait until the next episode!
I absolutely LOVED it. Hands down the best episode so far.
Awesome recap! The episode had me wide eyed the whole time and then just devastated at the end! I love Booth and Bones!!!
I liked the ep till the last minutes and these ruined the whole show for me (and I´ve been a fan from ep.1). I always loved the show bc they didn´t do it the usual way but this ending was so distustingly soapy , now she suffers and he suffers and the audience is supposed to watch them suffering, bleww. If I wanted to watch soap I´d watch greys.
I’m still trying to figure out all of my emotions after seeing the episode last night. Like someone mentioned above, I was so anxious at the end of the show I couldn’t settle down enough to focus on Fringe. Initially, I felt a deep, wrenching sadness for Booth because he took the risk to be vulnerable about his feelings and Brennan refused to accept them. I am still imagining what that must have felt like to Booth. Although I am beginning to have empathy for Brennan now, I must admit that last night I was angry that she is unwilling to take the emotional risk of admitting her love for Booth. I do see how her reaction is absolutely true to her character. I just wish she was able to move beyond past pain to celebrate what she has with Booth.
So . . . In the light of a new day, from my desk at work, I am left with an overwhelming sense of awe that the creative team that brings us BONES can compel me to invest this much emotional energy in the happenings of a fictional universe.
BONES is wonderful, painful, joyful brilliance and I will keep watching until the end.
Amazing episode, it felt so honest and unlike what someone above said – it didn’t feel like retconning AT ALL to me. I thought every interaction that was had reflected so easily into what we already knew.
And the ending. *sigh* It totally made me cry, but I feel it was one of the most perfect things a show has ever done. I didn’t think it was soapy like someone said, I felt the opposite, that it was one of the most realistic and honest moments on television. Booth has been struggling all season with his feelings for Brennan, and I felt it’s been building up to him just blurting it out. And her struggle with the reaction – well, as heartbreaking as it was, I think the writers would have done the fans an injustice if they had done it any other way. It has to be this way for now – otherwise, I feel their relationship won’t be the 30, 40, 50 year thing Booth really wants – but that once Brennan can overcome the fear that she will lose her current relationship with Booth and that there is an even better one beyond that – then I think this of course will be revisited – I mean of course it will…we all know they will end up together!
and of course TV wise, once the couple gets together, things tend to go downhill or get boring – so putting them together when we know there’s at the very least another season – would ruin the dynamic I think.
Great recap Seelybaby!
Saw the last half now have to go back and watch the first. DVR screwed up. What I saw was great. Absolutely fantastic.
Okay, Seeleybaby, I love your recaps and this one was the best. In my opinion. I have just a few things to add that I don’t think have really been touched on yet…
I can’t help but wonder why Brennan was so intent on having sex with Booth while they were in the bar, but as soon as he confesses his gambling problem because he feels like “this is going somewhere” and they share that AMAZING kiss, and then she runs away. She no longer wants to sleep with him. I think that he loved her from the beginning, and in her own way, she knew that Booth was not a man that she could casually sleep with like she does with other men in her life. I think that was a very in-character, telling moment for her.
Another telling moment that hasn’t been discussed much is right after she drove off in the cab and went home alone, he decided at that moment to not go in and play pool. He says that he was getting the gambling problem under control, but I don’t think he really was until right then. She makes him better. He makes her better. If I were Sweets, I would take that 5 minutes of their relationship and conclude that is where it all began. That was the catalyst for their relationship and why their relationship is what it is and has got in the trajectory it has.
Loved this episode. Absolutely love the show. The writers are pure genius. DB is an amazing director and I thought that this was an amazingly asthetically beautiful episode. That opening shot inside of the opera house was like artwork!
I adored this episode, all the touches you pointed out…right up to the moment when Brennan was a coward. It’s not Booth she’s protecting, it’s herself still, and I’d really thought she’d progressed a lot further than that, with Angela’s tutelage and Booth’s over the past years. I really thought she’d learned to take that leap of faith with him. It’s particularly ironic in light of this being a flashback to her first meeting with Booth. She’s come so far since then, and so has he, obviously, since he took the right gamble this time.
I’m so disappointed in her, but even more so in the writers, who are obviously making the same mistake the X-Files writers did–they think by postponing endlessly they can maintain tension, but in fact, eventually that thread of tension will simply attenuate into disappointment and disgust on the part of the viewership. I’m almost there. At this point I am sincerely hoping Booth will really move on and find someone else; he really does deserve to be loved, to have those 30 or 40 or 50 years, and she’s wasting them with her cowardice.
Btw: weren’t Cam and Booth in a previous relationship? I wasn’t at all surprised to see that they knew each other as far back as this flashback.
BONES pals, you totally rocked this week, not just because of your comments, but because BONES pulled in almost 10 million viewers. Well done!
I got a brand new phone this week, which is a different story altogether, but it also was kind of glitchy so, I’m sorry I am just now able to reply to you all. I loved all of your comments and how honest you were in them. You guys showed me a thing or two as well. You are more evolved than me! Haha.
1. Chinie: I am glad to know I wasn’t the only one bleeding! Haha. And as far as the walking off together, the more I watch it, the more I’m getting to be okay with it. Not that my opinion is the best…I just think I was SO stunned and so heartbroken, that the idea that…what, they were just going to go to the diner like always? Booth has pie and she has a salad, and that’s just is how it was going to be, and they were OKAY with it? I couldn’t take that at the time. I was too messed up. Haha. But I’m glad you liked it.
2. Alaina S.: You are right about the idea that Brennan was not bothered to know/recognize Cam. It makes me laugh even more now that Booth is like “Yikes” in the season two premiere. Poor FRINGE. You guys will have to check out Gretchen’s review ( scroll either down or to the side to see a list of recent GMMR posts. You can click on the link to hers) and let her know what you think. She’s a BONES fan (I’m pretty sure), so I know she would like to hear your thoughts.
3. Cherios: I know! When I re-watch this ep, I just can’t get over the sweet little smiles that pass between B&B while they are sitting on the couch. Of course it just makes Sweets all the more mad.
4. Zoe: I know what you mean, but as far as Booth trying harder to convince her…maybe he will in the future. But I guess I want him to be able to have a ‘stunned, heartbroken’ moment, too, you know? I’m torn, because I think out of anyone in the world, he’s the only one she WOULD believe, but I also don’t want to make it HIS responsibility to make her see. Does that make sense?
5. Dovepage: Interesting! I will have to be on the lookout for that. I remember in the season one DVD commentary with ED and DB…I think it’s in Two Bodies in the Lab, (where Booth is kind of jealous of the character David) and ED teased and asked DB if Booth is jealous, and he’s like “Yeah, that’s my girl.” Or something like that (I could be mixing up interviews). I have always thought that kind of pinpointed how DB felt about B&B.
6. McKaylaBug: Everything Happens Eventually! Thanks for reminding me! I don’t know about Emmys, but I’ll look into it, I guess. I think that the shows (or maybe the actors or networks) submit their own work for consideration and then there are nominations. And then people vote? I have no idea!
7. Sparkles: Sad is so true. Like I mentioned in the 99th review, I watched this episode the day before my Gram’s funeral. So I was already sad, and after this, I was just so stunned. I think I was totally numb by the end of that whole day.
8. SherlockBones: Hey pal! YESSSS to Booth and Zack being awkward. I loved that. Seriously, I think I could have written another 2000 words about this episode, and I know I didn’t give enough time to how all the squints were used in the flashbacks. Doesn’t Zack say Booth is dumb or something? AH! Booth’s blood pressure just keeps going up and up and up… and in the Pilot, doesn’t Booth tell Brennan that “That weirdo assistant of yours never returned my calls” or something like that. Hahaha!
9. Tori: As far as Sweets…I agree with you. What I am interested in now is whether B&B will tell anyone about this conversation. I am so glad that the end scene fell into the ‘what goes on between us is ours’ pile of scenes. Not that I didn’t love Sweets’ reaction that time when Booth asked if she wouldn’t have coffee with him, or stuff like that, but it just needed to be between THEM (and us, of course! Yesssss). So Sweets really has NO idea that he may have caused a fall out, and I’ll be interested to see if his role in all of that comes back into play.
10. Jennifer: I know. I know! Ah! “I’m the gambler”. Even BRENNAN knew, right? In the days that followed, all I could say was “Booth told her. And he kissed her”. Of course, I was just saying this into a mirror, because I couldn’t tell ANYONE! It broke my heart, all the speculation and judging that went on due to some spoilers about it, because I just loved Booth’s risk there. Loved it.
11. Ashley…I know you were nervous, based on your comments from the week before, so I’m just SO pleased that you are pleased. I worried you wouldn’t be. I agree that Brennan will now have to process it. When I just re-watched Goop on the Girl the other day, I was struck by the idea that for all of Brennan’s series long angst (for lack of a better word), her life is going pretty well right now. Max cares about her, her work is good, her partnership with Booth is good. HE was the one who was lonely, and she reached out to him, right? So for awhile, the show hadn’t really touched on the idea of her really having abandonment issues (not since the season three finale, mostly). There were some touches, but not in full force. This is way different than Booth being not really dead and her having to compartmentalize, then reassess, etc, right? She will have to process this, with him around. This is not the same as Booth having a brain tumor, and she has to process, right? This is new for her, and so I’m interested to see if she closes up some, and concentrates on her work.
12. Bookworm: I so trust your reviews, and I know exactly what you mean. One thing I noticed as I re-watched this morning was that after Booth tells her he has to move on, and he’s explaining it to her, she says, “I know”. oh, that is what makes me cry the most. I mean…she’s so resigned. She’s known all along. She also never looks him in the eye after that moment. Oh, the pain! Ah! I think that is why I was so confused about them walking off arm and arm together. It’s not that I don’t like their friendship, it was just that I was SO floored by what had happened, and I couldn’t understand how they weren’t. I kind of thought Booth’s ‘so let’s go for a different outcome’ was his way of saying, “ I just want you, all of it.” I am still torn, because he didn’t say it that way, but then again…if MY heart was breaking, what was happening to his? I know it does feel slightly OOC for him not to get really fierce in that moment, but as a gambler , I think he ‘knows when to hold em and knows when to fold em’, you know? How much rejection is he SUPPOSED to take?
13. Tina: Thanks! I agree that Booth’s feelings being out there is a good thing. Brennan now must deal with that. Yes!
14. K: Never worry about saying too much; as you can see, I can’t stop talking about it! I am curious to know what other certain episodes you are talking about. I have a feeling we might agree!
15. Amanda: Caroline, Gordon Gordon, and Angela in one room! Watch out B&B! haha, yes I would love to see that. Caroline vs Dr. Wyatt…I would pay to see that conversation! As far as the past stuff…I don’t want to say I didn’t like it, because I did, but I was totally shocked. I thought we were going to see a lot of bickering, and maybe even Brennan hunched over some skeletal remains in the heartless, pristine lab examination room…very cut off from society and normal human interaction. I really thought that! And that Booth would kind of charm his way into asking her for help, which she would deny and then…it would begin. Is that what you had in mind too? I am curious to know what parts you didn’t like about Brennan’s past character. But, I was surprised by how she acted too, but I didn’t not like it.
16. Kim: Yes…out of everything that I watched from this episode, the fact that Booth is a “Freespirit rogue rebel” because of Brennan’s encouragement was the stuff I thought was the best! That was what was hardest for me to keep secret. Kissing, awesome, confessions, great…but Booth being BOOTH because of her…ah, perfection. Oh, yes…
17. Natt: In Season Three, Booth’s old mentor Sam tells him that “She must be really good in bed, otherwise, I don’t know why you keep her around”, or something like that (I didn’t go back and check). And Brennan butts in “I am. Very good. But Agent Booth has no direct knowledge of that” (again, paraphrase). So, there was some speculation that B&B HAD slept together during their first case and we were going to find out about it (kind of like Chandler and Monica on Friends). And to me…that just would have ruined things, or at least spoiled them. Even the idea that maybe she’d been bad in bed and so he didn’t have ‘direct knowledge’ of how good she was (drunk sex or something) made me cringe. I would have felt very cheated if in fact we now had TWO sex scenes that were out of context. Thankfully, Brennan wasn’t lying, and they didn’t sleep together, and now we just have the ‘presumably’ flash forward from EitB. No one else ‘raised their hand’ so maybe I was the only one worried about that! It happens. I do worry 🙂
18. Melissa: Interesting! I remember in a conference call, someone asked HH when he was going to give Sweets a break and let him see that he’s been right all this time (as far as B&B always denying things, but then when they are alone, WE get to see how much they care about each other), and HH just laughed and said Sweets will get his chance but that it’s so much more fun to torture him. So, that would be an interesting dynamic. Because the writers have already set up the ‘baby duck’ idea, so could B&B protect THEMSELVES at the expense of Sweets falling apart? Interesting indeed! I think Sweets would be MORE stunned and self-loathing (for lack of a better word) if he found out that Booth took a risk and Brennan rejected it. At that point, I don’t think he would be worried about the book; he’d care more for B&B’s reactions and feelings.
19. Stephanie P. : I know how you feel about this ep being more than you expected. I was kind of dreading it, as I don’t really like all the ‘big name’ BONES eps, as I think they are too fancy or whatever. So I was nervous that I was going to not like it. about fifteen minutes into it, I turned to my sister and was like “this is good. This is GOOD.” I was so happy!
20. Xmas: Thanks, pal! If you are the ‘Xmas’ I think you are, then I am wondering how your angst-loving heart is doing after this episode!
21. Corie: Hey pal, long time, no talk! Hope you are doing well. I was just thinking the other day that the opposite of love isn’t hate…it’s apathy. You know? So…people who hate things (in this case, this episode, or the show or whatever), really…that’s just an extension of love, is how I like to look at it. Each of us has reasons why we love this show so much, and so to see it move away from those reasons would be heartbreaking. For me personally, the show has never moved away from the reasons why I loved it in the first place. But I can see how for some other people, those reasons aren’t the same as mine, and they are hurt. I guess that if I get to say whatever I want to, then they should be able to also. But having said that…yes, it also breaks my heart when people are very harsh toward the actual people involved with the show. It’s a two sided coin, I think, for me at least. Because there are times (and I think in season four, I felt this way more) where I was kind of cocky about the show and I was like “oh, I deserve this. FANS deserve this and that” or whatever, and I had to step back and be like, ‘wait a minute…’. I mean, for example, almost 10 million people tuned in to the 100th ep. So 10 million people (at least, and I know some people watched in Canada, etc) have to be taken into consideration? In my heart of hearts, I don’t like to think about BONES in terms of 10 million people. I like to think about it in terms of ME and what I WANT! And I think that is how some people feel. But it’s not realistic that we are all happy with every move. But to say that I DESERVE to have the show work out a certain way is just not realistic. So I totally agree with and appreciate what you said. For me personally, I had to take a step back and say, “I don’t own these characters” and once I did that, I was able to relax a little bit more. Not that I don’t complain sometimes…because I totally DO! But it’s when people are like, “Oh, Bones…yeah, that show is okay, I guess,”, I’m like WHAAAAAAT????!!!? I don’t get apathy toward it. But that people are so FIERCE about the show… I get that. As Hodgins said (I think! Again, a paraphrase)… “I’m okay with the hate”. But like you said, it’s no reason to be nasty toward the real-life people involved.
22. Jana: (I will reply to both of your comments here). You put it so perfectly here “It opens up the possibility for so much more than will-they-won’t-they.” I so agree. I’m glad they didn’t have sex, but I’m also glad that it’s not about sex now. This isn’t about a hook up, it’s about ‘a single life shared’, you know? Also…oh gosh, yes you are SO right about the Gemma case. I feel so dumb, because I knew that, and when I was writing, I just must have…not confused the two necessarily, but in my haste to state that this case was sort of like the one in the pilot, I mis-stated the idea. Thanks for mentioning it. and THANKSSSS for the shout out to the spoiler free life. I am biased, of course, because I also try to be, but I just so think it’s worth it to let the show tell its own story.
23. Michele: Keep the faith! I was the same way…just sitting there, like…ah! I didn’t even sleep that night hardly, after I watched it. I watched it around midnight or whatever, and didn’t go to bed till like 5 AM. And I remember waking up the next morning and it was just like ‘something’s different’ and it was because Booth had taken that risk. AND THAT they had kissed in the past. The whole thing was so stunning to me.
24. Ri: I know, I know! I remember people asked if I liked it, and it was impossible to say yes or no. it’s not a matter of ‘liking’ in my opinion…it was just something to be experienced, you know? Like…okay, so…now…we have to deal with this. Life is like that; not everything fits into a pile of ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ and we just have to experience it. BONES has always been true to life, I think (for the most part).
25. Stacey T: Haha, Hodgins hair! Hahahahaha! I was wondering what was going to happen with that. As for the B&B scene you mentioned, yes, beautiful is a great word for that. Sometimes that can be sad, you know? and sometimes happy. Like this season at the end of Plain in the Prodigy…it was so haunting and sad, but just right!
26. Sarah Jane Jarvis: Oh, wow…that is a high compliment! I appreciate your kind words. And you are right about the texture and depth of this show. What kills me (and I think HH and ED and DB and the others on the show) is that this is still called a procedural. I mean, I guess the formula is still there, but…from the start, this was a show about heart and characters, and this episode just encapsulates all of that. I know that it’s just hard to classify it anymore, and sometimes it is too comical for my taste, but to call it a straight up drama is unrealistic too, and I think that is why the show is sometimes overlooked come awards season. There is no ‘romance’ category (in the classic definition of romance…like Ivanhoe, not Harlequin, haha). I know what you mean about the ‘knowing the characters better than people in our real life’ stuff. I am definitely a fan of the show more than a writer about it, if that makes sense. I write about it as a fan, not for my job. Some people DO write about it for their job, and that is cool for them. If someone wanted to pay me to write about BONES, I would not say no. Haha.
27. Dyan: I will look into the Emmy thing and find out. At the least, I guess we could find out maybe who votes and try to write to them? Like I said before, I think that the show (or maybe the actors themselves) submit scenes, so it’s up to the show to see what will be submitted for them, but yes…I think this episode is full of moments that are award worthy. And YES to David Boreanaz’ directing. So much heart poured into it, I think. I loved it.
28. Beth: Well, I’m no expert, but I would guess you could write to the director of programming at Fox to let THEM know how much you loved it. Hart Hanson is on Twitter, so you could tell him there. But while I think they would enjoy the compliments, writing to FOX is better because it proves to them that the show has loyal fans who appreciate it. For FOX, it’s about the bottom line, and they have to feel as if they are getting their monies worth. A show in its fifth and soon to be sixth season is not cheap. Not at all. So to show FOX that we love BONES is probably the best bet. I’ll look into that and get an address for us to write into. And the QUOTE! Haha. I am not the biggest fan of the season four finale (as it kind of feels like one giant weird misleading spoiler, and you know I hate those!), but yes, that quote. SO not random! Maybe HH was just trying to soften the blow that was to come five seconds later!
29. Hey Dilara, I agree. Progress. I think a lot of us have been watching season five (and more) and just thinking…okay, now what?!? Not in a dissatisfied way (at least not me personally), but there has just been this hum of anticipation and at some point, it had to break. And exactly right again on Brennan. It was almost like she had that speech prepared (not the quoting Booth part, she couldn’t have known he was going to say that earlier), but she’s known how he felt and was just hoping not to have to hurt him.
30. Stephanie: The show just gave us amazingness, didn’t they!
31. Sarah: Thank you! I was also very wide eyed. I can’t wait for more!
32. Unicorn: I am so glad you spoke up and mentioned that you have been a fan since episode one. I started watching in season three and went back and caught up and loved it, and I’m really curious to know how people who have been watching since 2005 felt. I’ve never seen Grey’s, so I can’t comment there, but you are right in that the show has never really done things in the normal way. Now…here is what I think. I still think they are setting it up as not normal. Hear me out. Like I said earlier, the show is kind of a romance, in the classic sense. Good vs. Evil, heroes, rescues, etc. As the series started, it seemed pretty clear…okay, Brennan has issues…Booth is steady. He’s going to take care of her. One day she will see that he loves her and that love is worth it and they’ll live happily ever after. To me, THAT would have been the normal way. But…that hasn’t happened. And…I will be honest, when B&B were walking down the steps at the end and Brennan said that Sweets was wrong about thinking her parents’ abandoning her has something to do with it, and Booth said Sweets was wrong about his white knight complex…well, I’m not convinced. I’m not convinced on several levels. I think B&B are lying to themselves when they say that those things are not issues. I think that if the show is trying to tell US now that those two things are not issues, then they are wrong (haha, just my opinion, but I do feel that way), and so…I’m not really sure about all of that. While that might not be everything, and we do feel kind of like Sweets, that in some ways, the rug has been pulled out from underneath of us, I feel like it’s more of just a matter of shedding new light on things. It wasn’t a secret that B&B knew each other before the Cleo Eller case. Sweets was dumb for not doing more research. I find it hard to believe that he never once asked them about their first case, if that was a main point to his book, you know? But the whole idea of Sweets’ book is a completely separate issue anyways. The point is that…I don’t feel like this is ‘normal’ at all. In fact, though ED and DB have double billing, the show IS called BONES and so Brennan’s character development is what is really going to drive the rest of this series. She has been presented with Booth’s feelings on the matter and now must deal with them. Not that I don’t love Booth, but basically, his feelings for her have somewhat become a plot point in her character development. His family issues and past and all of that are there for us to see as parts of BRENNAN’S relationship with him. It’s really all about her character. I think HH is just totally in love with her character and feels that is the main part of the show. So…in the end, yes, I still think this show is different than others (dramatic procedurals, or soapy shows, like you mentioned, or even sitcoms) and I stand by my ‘romance’ label. But I think in the end, Brennan will be the one who saves Booth. But I am also jealous of you for having been a BONES fan since day one. I wish I could say that. And I’ll also admit that I often wonder about how I would feel about the show if I had been watching from day one (for example…I watched THE OFFICE from day one and now never watch it).
33. AprilDBFan: Hey. I know what you mean. And here is what really makes me blink twice about it. Remember in Dentist in the Ditch when she looks him right in the eye and says that she believes him about love??? Or even in Cinderella in the Cardboard when she knocks on his door and tells him that she wants to! I am not ready to declare judgment on that, as far as the writers kind of jerking us around, but I still do feel as if it’s hard for me to reconcile those two issues (and there have been more) compared with her now, when Booth actually DOES say something, rejecting his words. I don’t know if she panicked, or what. All of it still feels right to me, even though they are contradictory to one another. But on the flip side, we have Booth’s feelings and reactions, and I also feel for him as well. It’s very very amazing that the show has created these points of view. “wonderful, painful, joyful brilliance” is just about the best way I have heard anyone describe it.
34. Tanya: I think the part that gets me the most…what haunted me in the days and weeks after I watched and will forever haunt me, is the way Booth (and David Boreanaz) says “thirty or forty or fifty”… Oh my gosh. To me, I think that is just so, so, so honest (ha, I’m crying right now as I type this!). DB told me that he doesn’t think one of Booth’s goals in life is to get married, and perhaps I just worded my question wrong, but I just don’t buy that. Or at least, maybe Booth doesn’t feel like he has to get married, but he IS the kind of man that wants one woman for life. Fifty YEARS! So honest…I loved that. It’s interesting that you say that this is the way it has to be in ORDER for that 50 years to be able to happen. One of my other BONES pals mentioned that she thought if B&B had gotten along from the start, then they wouldn’t have made it either…that it would have been too soon. Ah…so interesting! I’m so curious for the way this will all play out.
35. Drew: Well…??? Did you like the first half, too?!??!
36. Angie: Hey! Thanks! And thanks for your additions. After your comments, I went back and watched that scene, and I think you are right about brennan sort of knowing as well. Once Booth makes that confession (and just LOOK at his eyes…I am pretty sure no one has ever looked at Brennan like that before, and I think she knows it), she knows it’s not a one night stand. When you say ‘runs away’, I assume you mean literal running to the cab, and not emotional distancing right? That Booth runs after her is awesome and when he asks if she means he would have regrets and she says “that would never happen” I LOVED that. So Brennan! And yes…I think the beginning part of the episode where Booth is playing pool and gambling proves that he in no way had that under control, and doesn’t Cam kind of get a dig in on him about that? And so, yes, I think that we get to see that while maybe even when he confessed to her that he was working it out, he might have even been sort of lying at that point…once he really thinks about it, he doesn’t want to lie to her. It’s like, well, he told her he was getting help, so now he has to. Because Booth is not a balker! Woot!
37. Arrow: It’s so funny that you mention Angela, because at this point, I don’t see how her opinion has much weight, based on the evidence of her own romantic life. I can see Brennan taking Angela’s words into consideration and then watching Angela’s actions and Brennan making choices based on the evidence of the consequences of those actions (for example, the awkwardness between Angela and hodgins in their working environment). As for the rest, I am glad you adored it! You are right that she is still protecting herself and not just Booth (although I will buy that she thinks she honestly is protecting him from herself). It’s like in the season five premiere when Avalon tells her to believe that Booth is dazzled by the TRUTH of her…not her beauty or her brains or the way she helps him with his job…but the TRUTH of her. So, I don’t know that she has come to terms with that already. I’m not disappointed in her necessarily, as I feel she was very honest. As for the writers, well…you are right, they had best make good on all of this, and so far…it’s a really, really really long thread. I remember the first ep I watched, Santa in the Slush… and I thought…ooh, these two are in love. I am sure they will tell each other soon. And yeah, it’s been over two years later. And after I watched that, and then watched all of season one and two and three, there were moments, where I was like…okay…AND NOW WHAT?!?! Haha. And even this season, with Bond in the Boot…I kind of thought, alright, Booth, tell her. But it didn’t happen that way. I never watched X-Files, so I can’t comment on that, but I do think Sweets was WRONG when he said they missed their moment. I don’t know if on X-Files, there was a ‘missed moment’ or series of moments, but with B&B, I’m not looking for a “MOMENT”, I’m looking for a lifetime of moments. You are so right about that 30,40, 50 years thing & Booth deserving it. We all want that for him (and so does Brennan. The ways she says ‘I know’…oh, it killed me). That is what I keep coming back to also. And like with Conman in season four…I was so shocked at what seemed like Brennan’s disregard for the four+ years she’d known him when she kind of went for Jared for awhile. I think that it goes both ways though. For one thing, she SHOULD appreciate his steadiness more, but on the other hand, there have been a few cowardly (if we are using that word, and I’m not convinced on that) moments on Booth’s part. He has his own insecurities just like she does. That you mention that Booth deserves the 30, 40, 50 years and BRENNAN is wasting them with HER cowardice is interesting to me. I read that as Brennan having control over Booth’s happiness. And what I would say is that…well, no, I think Booth…well, if he has given her the control over his own happiness, that’s his issue, not her responsibility. Now, going forward, if he continues to pin his happiness on her and she gives nothing in return, then he’ll be a crazy person. But up until the moment when he told her how he felt, there was a status quo level that they were BOTH willing and very, very quick and eager to maintain. Booth has said “we’re just partners” more than her (I think, didn’t officially count). WE see some of the things he thinks and feels (like in season one, Woman in the Garden with that gang leader or in season two when he watches her kiss Sully in her office), but he doesn’t always let Brennan see those things, so she can only be judged based on what she has seen. Not that she doesn’t have examples of him caring for her, but she has to take his words at face value as well. And his “there’s a line”, “we’re just partners”, “I love you, in a partner way” “Someday”, “eventually” all of that…well…Brennan is just so literal, and so she’s not going to read into his meaning. In fact, even in this episode, I thought we were going to get another one of those moments. Brennan tells Sweets that they are not in love with each other, and Booth gets this LOOK on his face…but she didn’t see that (and interestingly enough, the camera didn’t shoot to Sweets for his reaction like I thought it would). So she trusts him and if that is what he is saying, then she trusts him that that is how he feels. To say, “well, she should KNOW how Booth feels” is unrealistic in my opinion. But NOW she knows. So now, all of her actions and reactions can be judged on that. So it will be interesting to see if Booth moves on, and what her actions and reactions will be. As far as the Cam appearance thing, I guess I just didn’t word it right. I knew she and Booth had been friends for a long time (I think Cam tells us in season four that it’s been 15 years she’s known the Booth boys?), I just didn’t realize that they worked together on cases and things. And when Booth told Brennan that he was seeing someone casually who didn’t like his hours, I wondered if maybe it was part of his casual thing with Cam, but my impression was that it wasn’t, and he was talking about someone else. Not Rebecca…maybe Tessa? Maybe that redheaded lawyer from season one? Who knows…and I’ll go crazy trying to analyze that, haha. The point was that I was just surprised (pleasantly) that Cam’s part in the episode was from the past as part of the case, and that she was the one to recommend Brennan to Booth. I just kind of thought she was always in New York and there was another way she and Booth kept in touch. I was glad to be wrong about that!
Whew…that was twice as long as my review! Bones brings it out of me, I guess.
I loved this episode. I want B&B to be together, but it just can’t happen yet can it? Ugh!
so first of all, love your post. this one & all others Bones related. i’ve never commented before but as you said, it’s the 100th episode! it’s a big deal. plus, after reading your posts and everyone’s comments i don’t feel so weird about my Bones obsession. 🙂
but back to the episode. looooved, loved, loved it. everything about it. i haven’t stopped thinking about it/analyzing it/replaying it in my mind since i saw it 5 days ago. if that isn’t the mark of a good episode (or TV show for that matter!) i don’t know what is. from hodgins’ hair, to zach being the victim again, their first case, sweets being incredibly frustrated- awesome. i don’t understand the people who hated it. i understand that they’re frustrated because 5 seasons have basically been building towards this moment & things kind of came crashing down, more or less, but i think it would have been totally out of character for brennan to respond in any other way than she did. i was actually expecting her to be more scientific about it, i.e. ‘your evidence is anecdotal’ etc. but i totally agree with what you’re saying about the fact that she recognizes he needs protecting from her (and that she even knows he was trying to protect her in the first place!) is basically admitting that she loves him, but can’t love him the way he needs her to (even though we all know she can). i was stunned by this reaction. her character has come soo far since the first episode, or even their first interaction. its stuff like that that is the best part of Bones for me.
also, some of the best acting from DB & ED in that scene. her facial expression after she asks him if they can still work together–so subtle & heartbreaking (crushing)! but i also disagree with what you were saying about them walking away together arm-in-arm. i think in that moment, they were both so broken & sad they kind of needed each other, & in any other circumstance where they felt that low they would have turned to each other in that way.
there are so many more aspects that i loved, but i’ll just leave it at that.
anyway-thanks for the post! keep ’em coming 🙂
I spend a good time thinking why I´m so dissapointed by the ending of the ep. (to get this clear: I really loved the flashbacks, didn´t mind the minor inconsistencies and ED and DB acting was great).
The scene that get me hooked in the first place was the shooting-range scene in the pilot. I loved the strong female who didn´t flinch who was aware of her expertise. She was awkward in social situations but had a steep learning curve and was keen to learn. She was selfconfident and now she is a weepy picture of misery. She is supposed to be a genius scientist and states: I cannot change – that´s so unscientific (“stagnation is death”) and the opposite of a fast learner.
Bones was once a strong female charakter and now she is a weak and whiny.
And Booth reaction to her “I`m not good enough for you” ? : “Oh, that´s sad, I´ll look somewhere else.” — wtf???
btw: I don´t watch Grey´either – two eps had been enough drama for me. I don´t do soaps ;o)
Hi, I’ve just started reading, but he federal judge did NOT have an affair with Gemma ! She saw him taking drugs. The affair thing was in the pilot …
I loved this episode. It has been a very long time since I’ve felt such intense emotions after seeing a tv show. My “heart muscle was crushed” watching that last scene. Brennan’s response was perfectly in character, even if I wanted to reach out and shake her.
I continue to be hopeful for the rest of the season…keeping the ‘dream’ alive 🙂
The episode left me shell-shocked. I was crestfallen for at least 3 days afterwards. The funny thing is….I loved it!! When Booth confessed, it reminded me a little of the time he attempted to confess in Harbingers….and I love how on BONES they’re not afraid to “let things happen”. He really went for it! And she shot him down…but A+ for effort!!
The flashback bar scene was and is probably the most romantic scene I’ve seen on television. But like you said, there was always this feeling in the back of my mind that it was all crash and burn at any time (and OH NO!).
The fight scene shook me. Especially the dialogue. That was some brilliant writing. BRILLIANT with a capital B.
I do agree VERY MUCH with you about them going “arm in arm” at the end. Um…..hello? Where are the repercussions of that “collision”?
But then….as I watched a few more episodes afterwards…I’m thinking that B/B are entering a “cold war” stage where everything’s in stalemate. Can’t wait for the pot to boil over though!! I see hope over the horizon 🙂 🙂
As for the non-B/B parts of the episodes….seeing Zack back was “calming” in a way I can’t explain. Seeing Brennan smack Zack with the baseball bat reminded me why I really like her!! 🙂 🙂 Hodgins with his hair almost made me choke with laughter LOL!!
I saw this episode and i must say this episode is the best episode ever. And i saw all the episodes from season 1 to season 5
Having just watched 100 episodes since just after Thanksgiving (Canadian not American so don’t hurt your brain with the math) I was completely floored by this episode. I think it’s the first time that an episode finished and I didn’t want to watch the next one. When *spoiler alert* we find out that Zach killed someone and was working with the killer, I wanted to watch another because it didn’t sit right with me. I couldn’t believe he would kill someone, at least not in that way. This time, I feel that it is right but I am so sad about it. I understood Brennan walking away holding onto Booth. She is so torn up about hurting him and doesn’t want to lose his presence in her life. She literally holds on to him to try and reassure herself that he will still be there. She also wants physical comfort and seeks it from one of the very few people she would ask for it from. We saw in the first episode of Season 5, he is one of the few people she can instinctively respond to physically and hugs him.
I really agree with everything else you said about this episode, Sarah. I’ve enjoyed reading what you wrote about these past two seasons (for me, so far) while I watch it at my own pace to catch up. My best friend also loves the series and we have once discussed it (after I finished Season 3) but she doesn’t live nearby and we’re both busy so when we do talk it’s about our personal lives. It’s great to have this analysis after I enjoy an episode. I hadn’t posted a comment especially since I would think it’s a mute point since most people will have already watched, read and commented on this all years before. Thank you Seelybaby for all that you’ve done with your recaps, they are so much more. Thanks GMMR for keeping previous posts so I can read after I watch! 😀 I’ve been a fan of the site for many years and used to comment on other posts but not for awhile.
Now that I am actually reading other people’s comments I remembered something that bugged me when it first started happening. How could Hodgins’ character have undergone such a complete change? I accepted it as the result of him falling in love and developing meaningful relationships with the people in his life but I like and found it funny that the writers threw in that he just needed to get laid.
Also to add to the first paragraph in my first post I think that above everything else Booth wants and needs to comfort Brennan. We saw that in the scene (in Mayhem on the Cross) where they go see Sweets after his past abuse has come out. She speaks about her own past abuse and he only can see her and the pain that she is going through. He is moved to speak about something that I think he wouldn’t have shared with Sweets otherwise but he can only think of making her feel not alone.
I agree with everyone who found this earth shattering. THIS is the admission I was waiting for all these years, and that’s how it ends??? I was heartbroken, I bawled my eyes out, and felt that I was rejected right along with Booth. Why can’t they just be together? They wouldn’t lose any audience members, that’s what most of us watch it for!! The ending was unnecessarily cruel, they should think of new plot devices to keep us watching if dangling Bones & Booth’s possible love in front of out faces is all they have left. So sad & angry right now… 🙁
The ending DID NOT have enough meat to it, not enough emotion, not enough passion. I mean after FIVE dang years and that was all we got?!! It was lacking and I expected more regardless of whether the show is ready or not to put them together! I sure hope they do a better job when they actually do decide to give it a go otherwise all this waiting would have been FOR NOTHING!!!