The last time I wrote about Bones on this blog, I had only watched two episodes. Now, two and a half months later, I’m on season 5. I think it’s high time I posted an update.
If you did the math and gathered that I’m watching an average of one episode plus a day, you could assume the truth – Bones has lost none of its initial charm. I love this show.
Most fans of crime drama would agree – it’s not the crimes that keep us watching these shows; it’s watching the characters interact as they solve the crimes. If the team has great chemistry, the show will soar.
Dr. Temperance Brennan and FBI Agent Seeley Booth had chemistry from the first five minutes they were together in episode one. Over the years, their relationship has grown and deepened, but it still remains the core of the show.
Brennan’s knowledge of emotions and intuitive leaps is greater than when the show began, but her preference for rational answers still provides much conflict and humor. It took me a while to realize that Emily Deschanel is the sister of Zooey Deschanel, who I’ve seen as the quirky love interest in many movies.
I like David Boreanaz as Seeley Booth far more than him as Angel. The lionhearted protector role suits him best, and far too often on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel he had to play the angst-ridden dark hero hiding in the shadows and brooding. (Pondering this, Booth reminds me a bit of a grown-up Xander, and Brennan and Booth’s head and heart relationship recalls Xander and Anya.)
Another thing I like about this show is how openly faith vs. science is discussed, especially in the first season. It’s not often you see a Christian (Booth is Catholic) portrayed in a good light on network TV.
Initially, I didn’t like the idea of Hodgins and Angela as a couple – they just didn’t seem to fit right. But by their first date I had completely changed my mind. I’m hopeful they’ll get back together, and meanwhile I enjoy Angela in the role of Brennan’s best friend and the person who can still be shocked by decomposing bodies, and Hodgin with his crazy experiments.
It took me a while to warm up to Cam (Dr. Saroyan) after she “replaced” Dr. Goodman, and she still is my least favorite of the main characters. But I really enjoyed a recent episode that focused on her, so it may just be that the writers haven’t given her enough flaws and backstory to make her as easy to relate to as the others.
I have a huge interest in psychology stemming from my love of personality types, so it’s fun to watch Dr. Sweets analyze Booth and Brennan. And John Francis Daley plays an adorable dork perfectly.
With Zack’s abrupt departure at the end of season 3 (from reviews I’ve gathered that many fans were outraged), the show took what I consider a brilliant approach to filling his role. Every episode rotates in a different one of Dr. Brennan’s grad students, each with their quirks. That way, none of them has to “live up” to Zack, and viewers can enjoy everything from Fisher’s gloomy outlook to Nigel-Murray’s compulsive fact-reciting (in a lovable British accent).
As I typed “Dr.” so many times in this post, it reminded me of another aspect I enjoy about this show – its intelligence. Shows about smart people just tend to be better. I’ve never been a fan of Three Stooges-type humor, or shows that try to be as raunchy as possible for laughs. But I love shows where humor arises naturally from the personalities of the characters, or when hyper-intelligence grates against social norms and moderate intelligence (in addition to Temperance Brennan, Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory and Sherlock Holmes on BBC’s Sherlock come to mind).
I’m trying to avoid spoilers as I hurry to catch up before season 7 starts in September. Unfortunately, I already uncovered two big ones accidentally.
(And just as a note, other than House, this is the only Fox show I’ve watched since Dollhouse was cancelled. Plus, there have been a score of Whedonverse guest appearances throughout the seasons of Bones.)
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