The Inkslingers - The Season 5 Showdown!

Turi ray of sunshine wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

dawnsfire wrote:He has worn boxers--and I think this is the major scene everyone who writes him in gaudy ones takes their inspiration from--during Man/Fallout Shelter, while they're getting their shots. He's wearing Christmas boxers. Anybody else think of another time?

My Queen, should that day come I shall screen capture it for you and post the resulting pictue as my review.

That would be a sufficient review all on it's own! "What he said!" would probably be mine.

Season Two, Episode 5 - The Truth in the Lye - he's wearing briefs when he goes to the bathroom after having a nooner with Rebecca. You know I'm suddenly struck by the mere presence of what can only be called an underwear gap. This is patently unfair! Emily hasn't been in her underwear ONCE so far in the entire series while Booth goes about prancing around in his scivvies like some natruist gone wild! I demand equity! I demand parity! We must not allow an underwear gap!

RM

A no-prize for anyone who can guess what movie I am paying an homage to with that last line.

hmmmmmmmmmmmm I think maybe your brain was NOT functioning properly Robert! while they were showing TEiTB! what about the flash of bra? during their supposed love scene?
tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk

Noooo! My brain was functioning perfectly well and that doesn't count - remember HH gave us a fantasy! Nope, I demand Emily in her underwear on a one-to-one ratio with David within the context of all non-fantasy episodes.

RM

DBCrazy wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

dawnsfire wrote:He has worn boxers--and I think this is the major scene everyone who writes him in gaudy ones takes their inspiration from--during Man/Fallout Shelter, while they're getting their shots. He's wearing Christmas boxers. Anybody else think of another time?

My Queen, should that day come I shall screen capture it for you and post the resulting pictue as my review.

That would be a sufficient review all on it's own! "What he said!" would probably be mine.

Season Two, Episode 5 - The Truth in the Lye - he's wearing briefs when he goes to the bathroom after having a nooner with Rebecca. You know I'm suddenly struck by the mere presence of what can only be called an underwear gap. This is patently unfair! Emily hasn't been in her underwear ONCE so far in the entire series while Booth goes about prancing around in his scivvies like some natruist gone wild! I demand equity! I demand parity! We must not allow an underwear gap!

RM

A no-prize for anyone who can guess what movie I am paying an homage to with that last line.

Robert, I think you need to recruit a few more male viewers to the show before anyone's going to take your plight seriously.

Tell me about it - you know that's one thing I don't get. The show's got Tamara, Michaela and the goddess herself - Emily - and yet when I tell folks I'm a Bones fanatic the men all go "Bones? Never watch it, I like House though." and the women all shout "David Boreanaz! OhmyGodhessocutehessodreamyIjustlovehimhessosexy!" while fanning themselves to ward off the vapors. Honestly, I know there are male Bones fans out there...let's call them Boners. Maybe we could start a male fan awareness campaign, how about this: "I've got a Boner for Bones!". Hey, I've got a T-Shirt idea:

Until then you just have to realize that you have chosen to chart your course in a female-dominated universe, with all the incumbant orbital disruptions that may cause you.

Is it wrong that the first place my mind went I read 'incumbant orbital disruptions' had nothing to do with you ladies rolling your eyes?

dawnsfire wrote:The Pilot's pretty close, if you listen to the commentary during your favorite scene. They promised her she wouldn't have to wear that kind of thing either very much (thinking of Wonder Woman; she popped out of that as much as out of the camisole, if you ask me) or ever again. Just another thing for you to get mad at HH about...

Ahhh, the Pilot - black tank top with scoop neck & spaghetti straps, and the tan demi-cup bra...good times. That and the Wonder Woman outfit *sigh* really, really good times. Still it's not enough. One 10 second scene with Brennan in boy shorts and a tastefully lacey demi-cup bra in a dark wine color, something where she has to reach up to get something off a shelf or maybe bend over to pick up a pencil...is that too much to ask for?

RM

Yeah, honestly it's not why I started watching either. I'm a fan of forensics and crime procedural shows. Like Emily I watch TruTV for the real forensic shows, I watch the First 48 for real crime/murder mysteries, I'm a crime junkie in many respects and that's what first attracted me to Bones - the procedural element. What kept me coming back was the tight writing and the dedication to science (in the beginning) - I mean unlike CIS the only real flash in BONES was the Angelator. It wasn't until Two Bodies in the Lab that I really fell in love with the character driven aspect of the show.

RM

Well, I'm glad to know that our two Inkslingers had noble scientific reasons for watching the show, at least in the the beginning anyway.

As for me, it was Mr. B. all the way!!

And may I say, Rob, just pop around the internet and post that t-shirt pic on some of those football sights and hockey sights ... you'll see those male members start growing immediately. HH might even pay you handsomely on the show's ratings increase!

To the self-imposed king and queen all I can say is that you better bring your A games. As demi-god of the ABY I will not spare you my wrath and verbose responses.

I will say I am looking forward to the duel and I hope there is the equivalent of the SNL, "Jane, you ignorant slut" introduced into the fray.

this is going to be sweet..........while i loved ana and willi..........will be soooooo excited to see the showdown of these two............

Oh, I will await this showdown with anticipation. I did love Ana and Willi's takes every week, but this seems to be a pretty fine selection! I can't wait for INKSLINGER and I cannot wait to watch the episode AGAIN tonight.....I can't say anything though, 'cause I'm a mod, and it would be spoilerish.....dammit!!!

Bella

In the best interest of all of us not loosing the bit of sanity that we all have left; nor the last marble in our heads can I say GENTLEMEN TURN THE PSYCHOLOGY GAME DOWN!!!
I know we all do our best work under pressure; but all this big word usage threats is hilariously intimidating!!
Also I think there should be a pact! IF Canadians are going to get the episode before the US from now on the Inkslingers are NOT allowed to watch the links online more than ONCE before it airs officially in the US! that way if the other can’t watch it but that one time the ‘game will be fair’
What do we think about that?
Food for thought as they say; let us know if Yay or Nay k’?

*brings out her Pom Poms *

GO DAWN :!: :!: GO DAWN :!: :!: GO GO GO DAWN :!: :!:

GO ROBERT :!: :!: GO ROBERT :!: :!: GO GO GO ROBERT :!: :!:

Ladies first

Now GOOD LUCK to both of you!! and let the INK SLINGING BEGIN!!!!!! (well not quite YET but after the episode!)

Thanks Turi, and not to worry. I've already give my Queen and my Chamberlain assurances that though the episodes are available to me I won't watch them until broadcast time in the USA. Wouldn't be Cricket, as they say, of course once the epi airs all bets are off.

RM

Good form, Robert!

Nothing like a little (?!?) pressure to start my evening off!

dawnsfire wrote:Nothing like a little (?!?) pressure to start my evening off!

You'll do fine.

dawnsfire wrote:Nothing like a little (?!?) pressure to start my evening off!

Pressure? My Queen that's how diamonds are made - you will sparkle at this I'm sure. Me? I'm just an ol' lump of coal.

RM

THX1138 wrote:

dawnsfire wrote:Nothing like a little (?!?) pressure to start my evening off!

Pressure? My Queen that's how diamonds are made - you will sparkle at this I'm sure. Me? I'm just an ol' lump of coal.

RM

Who has yet to submit his critique. Get your lumps of coal in a row . . pronto.

jonezn4Bones wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

dawnsfire wrote:Nothing like a little (?!?) pressure to start my evening off!

Pressure? My Queen that's how diamonds are made - you will sparkle at this I'm sure. Me? I'm just an ol' lump of coal.

RM

Who has yet to submit his critique. Get your lumps of coal in a row . . pronto.

The demi-god is restless!! haha.

InkSlinger 1 - The season 5 premier

Harbingers In The Fountain

This was an intense episode and needed to be for so many reasons. First and foremost the sheer weight of dealing with the leftover baggage from last seasons finale made the success of this episode critical. I think it's pretty clear that a significant portion of the Bones fanbase was not pleased with the finale and were looking to this episode with a more critical eye than they normally would have. Thankfully Hart Hanson managed to pull it off. It wasn't a grand slam by any stretch of the imagination but it was a solid double.

The issues I had with the finale were addressed here and not dismissed, the complications (or ramifications as Hanson puts it) are already evident, and we have our three major themes for the season, the dominant one will be Heart versus Brain, or what the heart knows v. what the PET scan shows (does Booth really love Brennan?). I believe the second theme will be 'is this all of me?' as Booth continues to come to terms with what happened to him and face the doubts that he isn't the same man he once was, and Brennan deals with the reality that the man she fell in love with isn't the same man anymore. The third and final theme I detected was "everything old is new again" as the show seemed to be almost an homage to the Pilot of Season One, in feel if not look.

In any respect I do believe this will be a very angst riddled season folks, the course of true love ne'er did run smooth, but for Booth and Brennan it'd be nice if the damn thing didn't look like a footpath through the Rockies.

Now on with the review...

The Case
Freshly returned from Guatemala our favorite forensic anthropologist sits for a tarot card reading with Angela's psychic Avalon Harmonia - ably played by Cyndi Lauper - who soon becomes embroiled in the case of her sisters death when she points the dream team toward a mass grave beneath a fountain. The grave turns out to hold the remains of twelve people from a cult called the Harbingers of a New Day. The casework is pretty straight forward and there's much more dedication to process, procedure, and science than I've seen in a while...a long while. I loved it. From Hodgins deducing that 11 of the victims were poisoned using Ethylene Glycol, to Brennan (and Booth) deducing that the 12th victim was killed from an inside out sharp force trauma to the skull, the whole episode was chock full of good hard science. It also had a lot of good hard procedural police work - arresting on the shift change to lose a suspect in the system for 24 hours, using a civilian plant to gather DNA evidence they otherwise wouldn't have had access to, all solid tactics that we got away from in Season Four. It looks and feels like the old Bones I loved.

The Characters
Well the question here is where to begin because we certainly got a little bit of everyone but I'll start with Angela who should get an award for best revamped character. This Angela was the Angela of S1 & S2, and a little bit of S3. Gone was flighty self involved neurotic Angela of S4, back is the self confident yenta with a heart of gold and wicked fashion sense - Michaela looked HOT tonight. God I hope they keep this Angela, this is the woman I loved as Brennan's #1 sidekick for three years.

Hodgins like wise seems more his old S1 self in that he's smiling, happy, self confident and brilliant. He's also playfully sarcastic and very touchy feely - it'll be interesting to see how long that lasts.

Cam - Love this woman! She not only watches out for her old friend Seeley, but for her friend and co-worker Brennan. Cam has been the most consistent character for the last three seasons and the few appearances she had in tonights episode are why I love her so - smart, insightful, blunt - not afraid to say what needs to be said but not cruel about it.

Sweets - The interesting development here is how attached Sweets is to Brennan now. Last season it was pretty evident that Sweets liked them both but it seemed that he craved Booth's approval and attention more. Now, however, he's become fiercely protective of Brennan. Our little duck has grown, the question is how will he influence the partners behavior? I see Sweets as a real wild card in coming episodes.

Caroline - as always any episode with Caroline is a great episode and Patricia Belcher seems to steal every scene she's in and tonight was no exception.

Avalon Harmonia - Cyndi Lauper's portrayal of the psychic was something akin to a world weary New Yorker visiting the sticks and doling out sage advice to the yokels. That's not to say I didn't like her in the role, simply that her take on what is often a trite and hackneyed part seemed original and refreshing.

Booth this episode was interesting, a mix of old and new, of S1 Booth and S4 Booth. That he loves Brennan now isn't even an issue, he admits this whole heartedly to everyone but her, however the underlying issue for him is - is this love real? There were elements of S1 Booth in his shortness when dealing with the squints, even Angela, there were also elements of S3/S4 Booth in how he apologized to Ange and how he dealt with Cam and how he stonewalled Sweets. I thought DB's portrayal of Booth as a man anxious to prove he's still got something to give to the team, anxious to prove he's still the same man he was before, to be incredibly spot on. This may be difficult for women to get, but men are their jobs, they are what they do, what they're capable of. Booth's drive to solve this case, to get back out in the field in the first place, was as much about proving he was still a valuable member of the team as it was getting back to working with Brennan. David did a great job in that role, giving us a character we've come to know and love yet devoid of the usual brash demeanor, lacking that cocky swagger, he's very much a man who still doubts himself. He's not really back all the way just yet.

Brennan was magnificent. It's too soon to tell if schizophrenic Brennan will return, but the Brennan I know and love showed up for at least one episode and I'm happy as hell about it. Emily played an intelligent, insightful, confident Brennan who still managed to be vulnerable and cautious when dealing with Booth. When he left her at the dig instead of taking her to breakfast it hurt her. When Angela mentioned her book pregnancy it hurt her. When Booth said "I love you...in a professional 'atta girl' kind of way" it really hurt her. This is the Brennan of S3, confident enough in her emotions to feel them yet guarded enough that she still attemtps to control them. Through no fault of his own Booth has hurt her and I think we see why Brennan will try and distance herself from him emotionally, and why she'll pursue a relationship with Booth's boss in coming episodes - she doubts him for the first time, and therein lies the problem because the one man who could assuage those doubts has them himself.

The Intangibles
This section is for the little things that don't fit anywhere else like the bumper music - which was stellar this episode, also the scene music with Brennan and Harmonia (at her house) was very good and had an almost movie feel to it. Then there was wardrobe. Okay the wardrobe folks need a kick in the ass because Michaela, Tamara, Emily all looked great, and Sweets even looked dapper, but Booth? WTF is going on here? Since day one they've played games with his clothes, some are understandable but some are just inexcusable, For example, in what universe are those shoes FBI regulation? They couldn't hold a shine if they were dipped in turtle wax. They were practically bedroom slippers for cryin' out loud! Yeesh that really chaps my ass. Other than that I break it down into what I like to call the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly:

The GOOD - Acting in this episode was above par from all players, David and Emily were fantastic, truly fantastic, but the best thing about HitF was the return to the heart of the procedural drama - it was all case work baby! This was the first episode in almost two years where the case was not only central to the show, it was the show - from about five minutes in until the end we were working the case and the relationships were there in tangent, not as a substitute.

The BAD - It's called CONTINUITY Hart! Christ on a cracker it's a million dollar freakin' show and you'd think they could afford ONE person to do continuity checks - or would someone like to explain to me why Brennan was already locking the door before she was told to do so, or where her bandage was in the final scene? Is she now a precog as well as a mutant with super human healing powers? Quick, someone call Professor X, we've got a new candidate for the X-Men (thank God for that because since they lost Kitty Pride they've really gone down hill).

The UGLY - Booth's line: "Sometimes you just have to settle for second best" and Harmonia's comment "...it all works out eventually." was just Hart Hanson's way of giving the metaphorical middle finger to his critics. Classy guy that HH, and if he keeps giving us episodes like this we'll deserve it - but one episode doesn't erase the cluster fuck that was Season Four, so I got my eye on you Hanson, just remember that.

All in all it was an watchable episode that was kept from being a great episode by woefully inadequate continuity and some questionable editing that left some scenes feeling rushed while others seemed to drag on just a touch longer than needed.

For the Story Strength and Case Work I give it a solid:
[Only admins are allowed to see this image]

However Continuity gets only a:
[Only admins are allowed to see this image]

So for overall watchability I give it a solid:
[Only admins are allowed to see this image]

Like I said it's a solid double, not a triple and certainly not a home run. Those come only with something called CONTINUITY.

RM

Welcome to the Queen’s Side of Inkslingers! Pull up a chair, help yourself to a bite--the cake is fresh and the fudge homemade.

Harbingers in the Fountain

Coming off such a lackluster (at the very least) season, I was cautiously hoping for improvement. After all, how hard could it be? I saw some of the promos, read the sides (we’ll talk about the fake-out later), and it all seemed promising. But that can be misleading as everyone who’s ever been lured into a bad movie by good trailers knows.

But…I liked it! (does a little happy dance)

Appearances/Credits/Changes

Just because this is a season opener, I have to touch on some of this. The credits were only slightly changed; they kept the split screen of Booth & Brennan that I liked, added a couple more splits like that for the others, which were nice. But they pulled the one of Booth running (from Aliens), though they did substitute the shot where Booth pushed Brennan against the wall that we all cooed about from last season. And they dropped the elf hat shot of Sweets, for which I can only be grateful.

Cam didn’t seem drastically different, they kept Hodgins’ really close beard or stubble, and Angela’s hair was different, though I can’t explain exactly how. She’s got a new lab coat or redecorated the old one, plus I’ve never seen her in fieldwear before. The dress has to go, as do Booth’s sunglasses, though. And yes, no buckle, plain socks, plain tie for him, but we all know why. Brennan is mostly unchanged on the outside, some minor costuming details is all. Sweets does seems a little older, perhaps because his hair’s been cut slightly. His ties are brighter than Booth’s, I noticed, but drew a blank on what he used to wear.

Jeffersonian and FBI sets pretty much unchanged.

Case

Fairly basic, despite the psychic aspect. I know that some police and higher organizations have occasionally let a psychic get involved, and some have actually located bodies. I do not know how they avoid becoming a suspect, which actually was pointed out here. Everyone except Angela suspected her at one point or another, and I really thought she’d be neck deep once she convinced Booth to run off like that after Brennan. Mass burial, a little Jim Jones/Jonestown Massacre with the contemporary MCS twist (which I thought was good). That is a valid issue, I’ve heard of that before. The science seemed valid, though I personally would have been standing next to Angela going “huh?” as Cam and Hodgins went back and forth.

And Caroline had to save the day! Even if it’s not murder-related charges. As they did point out, sometimes things aren’t always so clean cut. The substitution of charges did remind me a little of Girl in the Mask, where they had to settle for the one guy and not the one they wanted to pound into the ground. An interesting start--perhaps a reflection of the uncertainty of getting back after surgery and the rest?

Characters

Lionheart! Booth’s middle name is Joseph; a fun factoid, to be sure. I thought he and Brennan worked pretty well together, though you can still see hesitations and uncertainties as he tries to get back into the swing of things. And barring a few little things, a little forgetfulness and so on, he was pretty much in character as well. We also learn that he keeps clippings covering their previous cases--the top picture was from Verdict, I think, but couldn’t swear to it. He was trying a little too hard to get back to things as they were, but that is completely (totally!) in character. And he was so positive about being in love, but is brought down by fairly complementary pieces of advice from Sweets and Cam (why was Sweets so negative?), and in the end is unsure. But really, Booth got what sounded like three different pieces of advice, but they were remarkably similar--be sure before you tell her. Ah, the irony of Booth being told to use his heart!

I’m not sure how Angela could sucker Brennan in such a detour straight back from the airport, and that was typical Brennan during the entire reading. She, too, was working hard to bring everything back to normal, with an extra layer of concern showing in her questions about his socks and tie (but not the belt buckle--hmmm), and her almost frantic inquiries when he scrambled out of the shaft. She wanted him to stay. Otherwise, she seemed in character, if rather stupid at times. Make that rash and foolish--first, she goes to that doctor’s office alone. Fine, that was not automatically trouble. But then she heads over to Avalon’s house and it’s the exact same thing--walking down a hallway, talking to someone she can’t actually see. Yes, she was a little more cautious, but still, not the most brilliant thing. And did anyone else catch that she identified herself at the clinic as Dr Brennan from the FBI?

That was a good fight scene, too, I thought. I couldn’t quite tell where that first slash hit, but she’s just stabbed the once in the arm--and I didn’t notice bandages on her arm after. I don’t know if I missed something or they forgot. And maybe this is the place to discuss the side fake-out. Side indicated that they would actually kiss, on the lips, after he shot the doctor. *buzzer* Didn’t happen, unless I blinked when he kissed the top of her head (which would have fit). And that’s all right with me; I can wait.

They were definitely happy to see each other again and the hug was quite genuine. Also, both of them seemed more open at the very least to accept Avalon’s abilities. Booth more than Brennan, but you could see it on her face as things started to hit home for her. Booth was much more susceptible or credulous or convinced.

Squints: Teamwork was showing, even without an intern. Very smooth, no signs of personal tension or interactions, but there was no time allotted. I will say Hodgins hugging Brennan was unexpected, but only because it is Brennan. Timing on that was good, too, since Cam had made the offer and Brennan had refused. And of course Sweets is still being razzed for his youth. He had a larger role in the interrogation, but it fit in as well. The Angelator is still missing, but has been replaced with those screens, which I haven’t made my mind about yet. Flicker of conspiracy buff Hodgins, too, and the King of the Lab, things that were not much in play last season.

FBI: Baby agents, some of them with a mouth, too. Guess we’ve seen the last of Charlie.


There were definite echoes of the Pilot here, and Angela’s comment about Brennan’s icy exterior reflected Booth’s Iceland comment in End in the Beginning. Someone fixed Caroline’s car for her after Judas, too. GPR has been used, Booth’s seen it used (Man on Death Row).


Scenes of Note

My absolute favorite scene was the kiss issue. “Would you like me to kiss you on the forehead, too?” Of course he would and even leans forward! And my next favorite was in the clinic when Booth’s shot the doctor and is comforting Brennan. Such an instinctive reaction, but definitely deeper than before.

I did not like Sweets and the PET scans. And speaking of which--didn’t care for the I love you scene. Mostly because the shipper in me wants so much more… But it was her reaction to the clown scene that made him second-guess himself, and I can see that. There will be so many fics off that, I’m sure!

The Good
The entire episode was good, fit back into that comfortable groove. Caroline’s always a pleasure.

The Bad
The clown was a little over the top, even though it played up some of Booth’s changes. Not like we didn’t already get it, you know?

The Ugly
Actually, I don’t really have any ugly at the moment. It felt some of the better episodes from S1-3. I didn’t flinch away from anything Brennan said or Booth did.

I give it overall:
[Only admins are allowed to see this image] / 5

So, here’s to better days having arrived! (fingers crossed)

dawnsfire wrote:Welcome to the Queen’s Side of Inkslingers! Pull up a chair, help yourself to a bite--the cake is fresh and the fudge homemade.

Cake and Fudge? What do you think you're doing?! You can't feed them - they're like ants my Queen, the buggers will never leave now...Oh, I get it. Never mind.

My absolute favorite scene was the kiss issue. “Would you like me to kiss you on the forehead, too?” Of course he would and even leans forward! And my next favorite was in the clinic when Booth’s shot the doctor and is comforting Brennan. Such an instinctive reaction, but definitely deeper than before.

I loved both scenes, the first for Brennan's playfulness as well as the fact that Booth was checkin' out her ass as she walked away - back me up here guys. The second because as he cradled her in his arms and dropped that littl kiss on her head you could hear him saying "I got you baby". That was swoon worthy ficcy goodness right there. In fact I swore a couple of times that HH stole ideas from a few of the more popular fic writers tonight.

I did not like Sweets and the PET scans. And speaking of which--didn’t care for the I love you scene. Mostly because the shipper in me wants so much more… But it was her reaction to the clown scene that made him second-guess himself, and I can see that. There will be so many fics off that, I’m sure!

Sweets and the PET scans are significant for only one reason - Sweets has now put Brennan into the role of his surrogate sister/mother and is protecting her from Booth who he sees as selfish and short sighted. What gets me is sweets isn't a Psychiatrist, he's a Psychologist, so he's not qualified to read those scans nor deduce that Booth wasn't in love prior to the surgery. It's very likely that the tumor's placement, which was actually near the VTA and Dorsal Caudate Body, put pressure on those areas causing the PET scans to deliver erroneous information. A Psychiatrist would know this since he's a medical doctor, but a psychologist wouldn't neccessarily have the background.

RM

Feel free to brib--er, offer hospitality next week, O King!

I did blink, didn't I? Damn! Ah well...

Psychologist/psychiatrist? What would you like to bet that someone's counting on the audience at large not knowing the difference? I only know there is one, not what it entails.

Your comment about Sweets being attached to Brennan--yes, I agree. Wonder why, exactly, since before I would have said it was more Booth he wanted to measure up against (think of him wanting to call her Bones, for example--be like Booth). That was fairly protective, him pushing Booth to keep his mouth shut about love for Brennan's sake.

Here's a thought--the 2 people telling Booth to be careful and be sure before he says anything are the two newest members of the team. They didn't know Brennan or Booth from the beginning and neither of them are who they were when 1st working together. If they see her as so guarded still...?

And yes, those shoes! Wonder when they're going to let those disappear. But as I pointed out in another thread, sometimes in S1, he wore tennis shoes. Check out Superhero in the Alley, but there are other instances. Once we knew about his feet, I figured it was a comfort issue on bad days.

And your comments about a man's perspective, Rob? That's why we need you in this position, give the side we don't always get to see!

Reading these reviews is as good as reading fics. So many interesting angles and details, and even bringing stuff up to the surface that I kinda noticed but that was pushed out by the next scene.

I really enjoyed the episode and I am so glad that you both did too. As much as I'm not the science/forensic girl, I think that the science is what made this one a really, really good episode. I enjoyed the Squints being squinty instead of odd.

Rob, I enjoyed your prediction for the major themes for the season. We'll see how you did, but it sounds very plausible to me. And the man's POV on Booth's observation as Brennan walked away, another thing I sort of noticed, but it took someone else putting it into words for it to become a cognizant thought. Booth's shoes is another something I noticed, fleetingly.

Dawn, your observation of the irony of Booth being told to use his heart! That's so true. And no, I didn't catch that she identified herself as FBI, even still! I agree about the clown being odd, but moreso because Booth didn't freak out by being sprayed like that. That's something that I'd have karate chopped someone for, and I don't know any karate!


Two of my favorite scenes in this show both included Avalon. One was Booth's quaundry about going to Brennan as Avalon is commanding him to go. This is a scene that rang perfectly true to me. The other was Avalon and Brennan in the scene of "he knows the truth of you and he is dazzled by that truth..." Emily's portrayal of Brennan was perfect.

dawnsfire wrote:Your comment about Sweets being attached to Brennan--yes, I agree. Wonder why, exactly, since before I would have said it was more Booth he wanted to measure up against (think of him wanting to call her Bones, for example--be like Booth). That was fairly protective, him pushing Booth to keep his mouth shut about love for Brennan's sake.

I'd say the pivotal moment in S4 was Mayhem - Brennan's admission of abuse in the foster system was so shocking and out of the norm for her that it had a profound effect on both Booth and Sweets. Until that time Sweets had envied Booth, but following that he seems to shift decidedly into Brennan's camp. In a way he still wants to be Booth, now one might conclude that his overprotective nature toward Brennan is a manifestation of a crush he's developing on her.

Here's a thought--the 2 people telling Booth to be careful and be sure before he says anything are the two newest members of the team. They didn't know Brennan or Booth from the beginning and neither of them are who they were when 1st working together. If they see her as so guarded still...?

Except Cam has known Booth for 16 years and dated him once before, also her first impressions of Brennan are of an argumentative cold rational ice queen. Even Sweets saw her as hyperrational at first. Rather I'd say that Cam has grown fond of Brennan and still considers Booth a good and close friend, so she's councelling caution because she wants them both to be happy, while Sweets is reacting from a personal committment to Brennan. You can spot the difference in that Cam is generally positive "You love Dr Brennan!" and Sweets is decidedly negative "You didn't love Dr Brennan before the surgery...it will fade in time"

And yes, those shoes! Wonder when they're going to let those disappear. But as I pointed out in another thread, sometimes in S1, he wore tennis shoes. Check out Superhero in the Alley, but there are other instances. Once we knew about his feet, I figured it was a comfort issue on bad days.

Yep they had him wearing black Chuck Taylors in some scenes back in S1, but by S2/S3 he was wearing dress shoes unless in scivvies. Now he's wearing slippers? I just don't get it, but it is reminiscent of S1 isn't it?

And your comments about a man's perspective, Rob? That's why we need you in this position, give the side we don't always get to see!

Well then I'm honored to be that guy.

RM

@THX1138
Awesome review! LOVED your comments about continuity!

THX1138 wrote:Through no fault of his own Booth has hurt her and I think we see why Brennan will try and distance herself from him emotionally, and why she'll pursue a relationship with Booth's boss in coming episodes - she doubts him for the first time, and therein lies the problem because the one man who could assuage those doubts has them himself.

Loved the review, from both of you actually You both summed up my own impressions of the episode very eloquently, however, I have one issue, please please be careful with what you say, spoiler wise. Anyone who knows me here, knows I do my absolute best to stay spoiler free, so I hate accidently stumbling upon some information like this. Maybe it's common knowledge, in the same way everyone knew there was going to be a baby storyline by the end of last season, (though I even managed to avoid that one for ages!) but maybe not.

Please just bear this in mind in future reviews (which I am looking forward to reading!). Thanks!

sadhbh wrote:

THX1138 wrote:Through no fault of his own Booth has hurt her and I think we see why Brennan will try and distance herself from him emotionally, and why she'll pursue a relationship with Booth's boss in coming episodes - she doubts him for the first time, and therein lies the problem because the one man who could assuage those doubts has them himself.

Loved the review, from both of you actually You both summed up my own impressions of the episode very eloquently, however, I have one issue, please please be careful with what you say, spoiler wise. Anyone who knows me here, knows I do my absolute best to stay spoiler free, so I hate accidently stumbling upon some information like this. Maybe it's common knowledge, in the same way everyone knew there was going to be a baby storyline by the end of last season, (though I even managed to avoid that one for ages!) but maybe not.

Please just bear this in mind in future reviews (which I am looking forward to reading!). Thanks!

Good point, das. I get so used to spoilers that I tend not to even notice them a lot of the times. I imagine it will take a bit to manage, but these two can do it I'm sure!! The same would go for others posting in here too. Now I have to go back and look at my posts!!