BONES Recap: ‘The Warrior in the Wuss’
April 24, 2012 by Sarah Curtis
Hey BONES fans, how did you like this episode, “The Warrior in the Wuss”? I thought that for the first time in a while, the show focused on the story/life of the victim, and that was nice. It’s also not often that all three parts of an episode (case/lab/BB) have so much drama like this one did. For me, it made the episode a little uneven — almost as if I wasn’t sure which part I should care about most. But I don’t know if that’s a bad thing. Thoughts from you? In the meantime, let’s discuss further…
THE CASE:
The Scene of the Crime: Two men are playing hooky from work for a fishing trip, but the fun ends when one gets his foot caught in the rib section of a skeleton. Yuck! B&B and Hodgins examine the area, and when the victim’s head is not next to the body, Hodgins and Brennan declare that as the experts, they are the best choices to find its whereabouts. Booth, in a hurry to pick up Parker from his four month long stay in England (anyone want to venture why he was there? Foreign exchange program? Pinterest camp? The possibilities are endless…), trips and falls down a small hill and into a puddle. He’s soaked, but victorious, having found the victim’s skull.
The Victim: Tony Cole, a driver for a Spark and Steel company. He was known for being conscious about his height, wearing shoe lifts and forcing his son Danny into karate lessons.
Potential Suspects and Motives: Booth and Sweets question Tony’s wife first, who insists he was a good man. She tells Booth that Tony was being bullied at work by Karl Singler. Booth and Brennan question him, and he admits to wanting Tony’s route, but not to killing him. Brennan tells him the murder weapon was likely a seven inch metal object (note to those solving crimes — don’t announce the murder weapon to a suspect), and Karl’s truck is full of possible weapons.
Sweets tells Booth that Tony was in an argument with Danny’s karate sensei, Hunter Sherman, the day before he died, and he talks with Danny and Mrs. Cole. Danny admits to getting in a fight with the sensei’s kid, to prove to his dad that he could take care of himself.
Booth and Brennan question Sherman. He admits he had an altercation with Tony that he didn’t handle well, but he didn’t murder him. He would never use violence. When Brennan and the J-team realize some of Tony’s injuries were sustained from a young person, Booth and Sweets question Sherman’s daughter, Blake. She admits to fighting Tony, but only in self-defense. She has video to prove it.
The Verdict: With little more than a piece of weapon in Tony’s bone and a worm autopsy by Hodgins, the team is hard pressed to figure out this murder. But when Angela pinpoints that Karl is the one to really spread the video of Tony being beat up by Blake, and Booth thinks Karl’s fishing tool might be the weapon, they are able to make an arrest. Karl insists it was self-defense, but since Brennan knows Tony was stabbed in the back, Booth cuffs him and hauls him away.
THE SQUINTS:
I really liked the way the team all worked together to solve this case, and I also really liked the scene of camaraderie between Hodgins, Angela, Cam and Clark at the end of the episode. I think it’s fair to say that I would be in favor of seeing a Founder’s Day party at the Jeffersonian.
I loved the way Hodgins did the worm autopsy, and I cracked up when Clark and Cam were his assistants. It made me laugh when Angela told Cam she wasn’t going to manipulate Hodgins into giving up any of his purchases, and I also laughed when, after Clark told Brennan her sibling rivalry logic was impressive, she said, “Of course it is.”
But having said all of that, there was something strange about Hodgins and his insistence on all of the expensive gadgets in the lab. It’s not like him to act like that, I didn’t think. Was it strange to anyone else? There wasn’t much of a reason why he WAS like that either. Not that every issue has to have a moral to the story, but I couldn’t quite get to the bottom of why his heels were so dug in on all of it. I guess it was borderline belligerent, which CAN be his style at times, but not usually about things. Does that make sense?
As far as Sweets goes, I liked him much more in this episode. I thought the scene where he called Booth out on “playing the game” was interesting–we’ll see if Sweets really sticks to not fishing for Booth’s issues from here on out. I don’t need every episode with Parker to be about Booth’s skill as a father, so hopefully that ship has also sailed, but other than that…not bad. What do you think?
BOOTH & BRENNAN:
As for B&B, the main conflict centered on whether or not Parker would accept Christine. I was a little put off by how it turned out to be a lesson B&B had to learn, when I think it would have been more realistic for him to have been jealous of Christine, or at least Brennan’s presence in Booth’s life. I do think it was a good lesson for B&B to learn to just talk to Parker. But on the other hand, he was lying and kind of rude, so…I don’t know. What are your thoughts on that. Sidenote: I suppose it’s a matter of preference, it jarred me a bit when Brennan referred to herself as Temperance with Parker — but, I guess it makes sense!
Having said that, it was sweet that Parker made the mobile. (Though some of those pictures were a stretch, art department! How about some actual photos that the rest of us CAN’T find on imdb.com or something!) More than the end scene (which was nice — and seriously, Christine is the cutest baby on TV right now!), I really liked the way B&B communicated with one another in this episode. There were three nicely subtle BB moments: when Booth thanked Brennan for worrying about Parker, when Brennan smiled and knew Booth would do as he said by talking with Parker, and when Booth and Brennan agreed at the diner to talk to Parker together. It is such a nice change from the beginning of the season with all of the “how will these two exact opposites ever make it work!” hijinks.
Enough from me; what do you think? Were you surprised by the murderer? What are your thoughts on Hodgins and his multiple toys in the lab? Were you surprised by Parker’s reaction? Are you a fan of how B&B handled it? There is more to discuss, and the comments are open!
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I didn’t think this episode was as strong as the most recent ones, but considering how much time was given to 3 different plotlines, I will say that I was surprised that it seemed more or less balanced.
I liked the case elements. Worm autopsy was fun. Kick ass karate girl was great – and I liked how we had Sweets appreciating this aspect of the girl and Booth playing the cop – because both of those reactions were spot on for the situation. I liked how Booth was the one who figured out murder weapon and method – it doesn’t happen as often, which I think is totally fine, but it also makes for a good change-up when it does occur.
I agree that Hodgins seemed a little off – although, he did come through for me on how he decided to use all of the equipment and his “creative” uses at the end of the ep for his own Founder’s Day party. Cam trying to leverage help out of Angela was what is becoming typical Cam – so while I don’t really like this aspect of Cam, I do appreciate that it is also very consistent with her character.
The whole Parker thing was… fair. I figured very early on that Parker was likely concocting a surprise of sorts (because that’s who he is – he is his father’s son), but the portrayal was a little awkward. Sweets calling Booth out in the SUV was good. I kind of agree that the idea of Booth being a good father could be overdone, but I also think that him having a new baby under his full care also can raise issues again for him. I understood Booth’s concern about what was happening with the “evidence” that Brennan brought up; however, I did not like Brennan’s implications of “we have our daughter to worry about”. Is this the same Parker we’re talking about? And the same, logical – and yet compassionate – Brennan? I did not like this reaction. I liked how Booth said “Parker is not evidence” – but also how he reassured Brennan.
There was not enough for me to suddenly think that Parker had become violent, and Brennan herself had said that Parker looked upon Christine with a lot of affection. Ultimately, I really really liked that Booth came upon the conclusion that they needed to speak to Parker together. Should Parker have been given a pass for his lying and rudeness? Maybe not.. but I also think that part could have been resolved if Parker had felt a lot more upset (vs frustrated or angry) about the results, instead. Remorse and redemption go a long way in a show like this.
I was mostly underwhelmed by this episode. It felt like they tried to cram too much into 43 minutes, but I guess it was evenly balanced. And it was I guess evenly balanced in things I liked vs. things I didn’t like, but I don’t think that’s a good thing.
I appreciated the fact that even though the victim was made out to be a not-so-nice guy, there weren’t the usual Wacky!RedHerring!Suspects! and/or Booth & Brennan acting like this guy deserved to die just because he was a jerk. I get really irritated with the show’s tendency to make light of a victim’s demise, and I thankfully didn’t get that feeling in this case.
Sweets calling out Booth – loved it. And it’s about time. Good for you, Sweets!
Clark throwing back the open/close thing back at Angela – well done. I normally can’t stand Clark, but I loved him in that scene. Very witty dialogue. Other than that though, what purpose did Clark have in the episode? Not much squintern action.
Loved that Booth figured out the weapon. Agree with ProfeJMarie – that doesn’t happen very often.
Hodgins and the Jeffersonian toys – where did this come from? Has he been working with crap for the last 7 years and has just now realized it? Come on. This seemed to be like the writers just pulling a B plot out of their pants. And the man who had to be forced to go to the Jeffersonian parties under threat of termination by Goodman is now suddenly upset about the Founder’s Day party being cancelled? okay.
Brennan and Parker – Poorly done. Very poorly done. This is the same woman who, just two episodes ago, looked at a wound and refused to call it a murder even under peer pressure from Cam & Angela because she didn’t have irrefutable evidence. The same woman who refused to make judgments on Jared Booth after Cam & Sweets confronted her saying, “Evidence. I am comfortable with evidence.” Parker was being quiet and secretive. He wasn’t angry or acting out at all. And yet now she sees her lab coat & some pictures on the floor and jumps to the conclusion that Parker is some sort of sociopath? That she and Booth need to suddenly protect Christine? BS. And congrats writers, that whole crap scene in Booth’s office made Hannah look like a likeable stepmother figure than Brennan.
Booth telling Sweets that he didn’t want Parker to feel like he was ganging up on him, yet at the very end that’s exactly what he did. /facepalm
Parker’s absence being explained by being away in England for the last 4 months? Why? Who cares. The 4 months is the writers’ way of establishing a timeline to let the audience assume that Parker knows about his dad & Brennan being together and that he knew about Brennan being pregnant before he left. Lazy. Writing. Everything happens eventually! No, everything happens offscreen, apparently. And Parker has come back from England as McGyver apparently. Ripping out the motor from his RC truck and knowing how to rig it up to power a mobile? wow. Everyone on Bones is a genius!
Tonight’s episode was so-so. The case was meh. The squint story line was meh. It was nice to see Parker. I wished that he would have actually been jealous and B&B would have to work it together, but I guess we will have a lot challenges and B&B working though them together in the finale and the start of season 8. Best to enjoy the happiness now, even it’s a little too sweet.
I think Brennan is a great step mom. She finds that he’s stealing stuff and cutting up pictures. If I had a step son and I found that he was doing that, it would probably rise a few questions for me too and I would talk to him. I wouldn’t just let if slide just because I want to be the cool step mom and I want him to like me. She cares about Parker and she’s just worried about him.
I agree with Sarah that the B&B communication was nice though. Next week’s episode looks good.
I don’t think Brennan was being judgemental when she voiced her concerns to Booth in regards to Parker. Initially, she didn’t think there was much to be concerned about with Parker’s “behavior”. She thought sibling rivalry was a normal phase of childhood development. But remember, although Brennan would not be forced to say the victim of last week’s episode was murdered, the reason she was worried about Parker, and seemed to “judge” his actions in my opinion really stemmed from her lack of experience with the psychology of “the living”. Meaning, Brennnan saw her lab coat and the destroyed truck and cut up pictures and got scared. A very human reaction. I think many parents would have reacted this way-a child can change during the pre-teen and teen years. The sweetest of children can become secretive and begin to lie during those years-which definitely is a cause for concern. I think Brennan was right to go to Booth and talk to him about her concerns-this showed her to be very empathetic; she was worried and didn’t know what to do. However, Brennan never labeled Parker to be anything negative “a sociopath”, etc. or became hysterical or anything like that, so I don’t agree that Hannah was more “likeable step parent”.
I do agree that the writers should have made reference to where Parker has been in previous episodes; why was he in England? Does he go to boarding school there? Is his mom working overseas? There was no explanation as to why Parker was all of a sudden back in Booth’s life; did Booth not see his son for almost a year? Or did Parker know that Brennan was pregnant? Maybe these questions will be answered at some point.
As for Hodgins now wanting a founder’s party-well people change. He’s not the angry anti-social person he was in season one. And maybe he decided to use his clout to buy those expensive instruments to see if he could get away with it-sort of a poke at the establishment. Hit them in their wallets so to speak-so I bought that B story line-it was pretty humorous. All in all, I thought the episode was pretty good. I liked that Booth and Brennan spoke to Parker together in the end. Good parenting; calmly asked him what was going on-no yelling or accusations. Hey, and Parker definitely could’ve made the mobile too. Eleven year olds are pretty resourceful and he’s been around geniuses his entire life so some of their smarts “rubbed off” on him!
^Exactly. ^I agree. I think Brennan response was completely appropriate. Maybe the “I found some evidence” and “We have to protect Christine” was a little much, but if my parents found that I was stealing and lying from them, they would probably react the same way. So I can’t blame her for getting a little worried and talking to Booth about it.
Re: Parker and where was he? I think the implication was that Parker’s mom, Rebecca, has been going steady with a military guy, who Booth once sarcastically called “Captain Fantastic” or something like that. I just assumed that they were on a military base somewhere in England with Rebecca’s hubby. That’s enough for me. Perhaps I’m reading through the lines too much and came to my own conclusions, but it makes sense, right? I don’t think it was terribly lazy to keep Parker away for so long. HH has mentioned that he can’t always get the recurring-character actors he wants because they are unavailable. Speaking of, I would like to see MAX’S reaction to the new BB&B family. Bones, we need us some more Ryan O’Neal!
Worst ep of the season by my book. Brennan pushing Booth to question Parker’s motives. ugh, the comment about Hannah being a better stepmom is hilarious, but true. Booth knew Parker would not hurt Christine but let Brennan influence him, bad Booth. If the writers wanted to break up (horrors) B & B, I could see this the beginning of that process. Hodgins, a big shot, throwing his money around and did they really use the contaminated(medical term) machines to prepare goodies for their party? ugh, let me vomit now. Dont they have a technical advisor on this show.
This was the first ep of the season I have watched live because I wanted to see Parker return (and no HIMYM). I have to say I was really disappointed. Honestly the ending, while sweet, was too Brady Bunch for me. I do realize I m in the minority because most posters and critics seem to rave about the sweetness of the episodes.
I also thought the Hodgins storyline was a bit much, and he is my favorite character after Brennan. His family is the largest contributor to the Jeff so he could allocate funds if needed. Sweets was better last night.
It just seems like every episode is Booth doubting himself as a father and Sweets reassuring him. Brennan and Angela have a brief discussion while standing in front of that screen and Angela s working.
This episode seemed especially rushed. I had to laugh about how concerned they were about Parker being in his room heaven it seemed like mst of the episode occurred the first day. Did they ever have that family dinner because it seemed like Booth worked all night.
Overall, not a bad episode but not one that I would rewatch. I look forward to the finale for some real drama.
People! I don’t think we’re watching the same show. My response to this EP., is BRAVO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@skylark B&B won’t break up. Hart already said repeatedly that they aren’t breaking up. Also, they have a kid and bought a house together, do you really think they would just give up that easily??
@Liz Oh yes!! I can’t wait to see next week’s episode though. Grandpa Max, B&B out in the field looking all sexy with guns…and I read somewhere that we get some more romance between B&B at a crime scene (…also note that there is no slowing down in their sex life:))
I love this season but I do have a few complaints. So happy they are finally a couple and the baby makes it special.
First off the season is to short. My biggest complaint they very seldom touch each other. They never enter or leave with a slight kiss with loving eye contact. I haven’t seen Booths hand on Bones back while they are walking. Booth has done that from the very beginning. Now that they are a couple why would he stop doing it was always so Boothy.. I’d like to see Booth putting his arm around Bones smiling saying let’s go home. A big hug like their guy hugs would be nice. Their special Bones & Booths thing excluding all others around them it’s like the writers have forgotten who Booth and Brennen are.
Tonight’s episode is a perfect example. When Brennen was waiting n Booths office when he saw her he rushed to his desk & looked at her like she was interrupting his busy day. Booth has always been glad to see her he could have at least stopped and looked at her with maybe one of his smiles. When Booth was reassuring Bones about Parker, that he would take care of it. I would have liked to have seen him get up and put his hands on her waist and look into her eyes and then tell her he would take care of it. When they were putting Christine in the crib it was such a tender moment. It would have been a perfect time to have Booth & Brennan look at each other with love in their eyes. I’m disappointed when the episodes are over with two exceptions the one with the birth of Christine & the one where Booth gave Brennen a present and they are kissing on their way up the stairs. Sorry it’s to late for me to look up the names of the episodes I liked. I don’t want them to be kissy kissy but I do want a little bit of the old spark between them.
I liked this episode, thought it did seemed a bit rushed.
I thought Brennan’s reaction to what she found in Parker’s closet was spot on. If I found pictures, my coat and a toy truck destroyed, I would have been worried to. I don’t think I would have gone so far to think he would hurt his sister, but still, destruction, lying and sneaking around are all pretty big warning signals for a parent. I know in the end, Parker was just trying to suprise his dad and Brennan with something nice he made, but I still think the reaction was right.
I disagree with E’s point about Booth doubting himself, he has always doubted himself when it comes to being a father. He is so afraid he will end up like his dad, so that doesn’t seem out of place either. And now, he has a new baby, who is with him full time, that has to double his anxiety about being like his father.
As for Hodgins, I didn’t care for him this episode, which is rare because he is one of my faves. I just didn’t like all the gadget stuff, and really, no one would be able to buy stuff without the boss’s permission!
Next week should be good!!
@ JO, I do agree that some times, there isn’t the spark that one would expect for a couple, but, I think they might be trying hard to keep their distance when they are in work related situations. I met my husband at work and we worked together for 5 years and you do have to be careful. You can’t touch or comfort or anything like that when at work. So while what you suggest with Booth comforting Brennan in a more physical way would be nice, it doesn’t seem like their style and it might feel inappropriate, as he was at work and on a case.
But I do agree, like when Christine was born, I so wanted them to kiss, but I actually read that DB had a cold, so Emily was like “you are not kissing me!” I felt like he still could have kissed her hair or temple or something though!!
Samantha, yes I understand that he has issues, they just seem to focus too much on it for me personally.
The episode where DB had a cold has not aired yet. It was the decision in that episode not to have a kiss. I agree that a kiss on the forehead would have been great, especially since they were alone.
Wow, I always enjoy reading the comments, and I know I’m not in the majority but I enjoy the ride that HH and Company take us on………… These are their characters and their 43 mins that they have to make EVERYONE happy. YOU don’t like how Bones reacted, but YOU loved it, YOU thought Booth shouldn’t have done this, but YOU thought Booth was right on.
They can’t make everyone happy, they just can’t……..someone will always have some thing to complain about (and we are entitled to our opinions, it keeps the show alive), but for me whether everything was perfect in my eyes or not I say ENJOY THE RIDE EVERYONE, it’s THEIRS to take us on!!!!
I think that it’s time for a wedding so we can have more of the romance of the married kind aka the bedroom kind.