Two episodes of Bones are airing tonight—two reruns, this being a holiday week and all, but holiday time may allow you the time to tell me: Why do you love Bones so much? Scads and scads of you write to EW every week, asking for more Bones coverage. The show pulls in strong ratings and its cult seems to grow. I really like its stars, Emily Deschanel (she has one of the loveliest poker-faces in prime-time, and crack comic timing) and David Boreanaz (he was Angel—how could I not like him?)
But… every time I tune in to Bones, I find my mind wandering. Maybe it’s because I watch too many medical, crime, and procedural shows and my brain can’t commit to another one. I can see that the characters of Bones and Agent Booth have a really nice almost-romantic chemistry. Honestly, I want to like Bones, but I’ve never watched an episode that was completely satisfying—in which the plot and the supporting cast (they all seem kind of vaguely wisecracky but not distinctive enough) help lift Bones into the realm of first-class TV entertainment.
Let me be clear. I’m not knocking Bones; I’m asking for advice. Tell me, please, where I’ve gone wrong. Is there a particular season I should rent on DVD and watch straight through? Or: Are there specific episodes you’d recommend to a newbie? (Although I’ve watched about a half-dozen Boneses, I may as well be a newbie, for all the understanding I have of the cast’s chemistry and everyone’s back-story.)
In the spirit of Christmas Eve, could you help a TV critic who’d like to like a show more? Thanking you in advance….
My 'Bones' Problem, Not Yours
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Comments (1-30) of 191 Add your comment
Ironically, Bones is one of the only procedural that DOES keep my attention throughout the whole episode.
I like every character on that show and I think their relationships with each other are interesting. They are almost like a family. It’s interesting to see how each character will react to the case. Also the show likes to balance what’s going on in real-life with the case of the week.
I like how the show bookends each episode with a sweet scene between Brennan and Booth. It’s something I can always look forward to.
strange, i feel the same way. i really like it, but it’s not must see tv for me. i tivo it and watch all the episodes when bored. i have no suggestions.
I’ve enjoyed Bones from the beginning. I don’t know if it’s the chemistry between the two leads or the wise-cracking supporting cast but the show just works for me. I actually find this show better than CSI, which I used to really like but has lost something of late.
I would honestly suggest starting from the beginning. Rent the first season on DVD and get involved with the characters from the beginning. The show really builds on itself over time.
Have you watched the one where Bones and Hodgins get buried alive? I think it’s called “Aliens in a Spaceship.” That’s probably one of their best and most memorable episodes.
Bless your heart. Bones is the best show on TV. You must get the first season and watch straight through. The character development is fantastic and witty to the extreme.
I watch because of David Boreanaz. He is a god – good looking, funny, and a very talented actor. I never warmed to Brennan or the actress.
Bones is one of only 2 must-see TV shows for me. Lost is the other. The show is not in-your-face gore, or sex, or humor. It’s cerebral, subtle and usually full of fun and heart. There isn’t another show like it on TV: it’s got laugh out loud physical humor, witty banter, but most of all there is loads of UST between Deschanel and Boreanaz. They just “click” completely. Almost every scene between them is rewatchable. They are absolutely classic. I disagree that you should just start at the beginning and watch from the Pilot episode as I don’t think they really got into the groove (especially Bones and Booth’s relationship) until Episode 4 of S1. My top 5 MUST WATCH episodes:
1. Two Aliens in a Spaceship (Gravedigger ep)Dramatic and very cool with the science.
2. Man in the Mud – Loads of fun. One of my favorite humorous episodes with Booth and Brennan forced on a “social outing” (NOT A DATE!) by their always hilarious couples counselor Sweets. (Continued next post!)
Start from the beginning and stick with it. It took me a handful of consecutive episodes to get into it, but once I did, I was utterly hooked. Once you get to the episode where Booth rescues a tied-up Bones despite just having narrowly missed being blown to bits, you’ll be in love with the characters.
I never really watched the show until we borrowed Season 1 dvd from a friend. Then all of a sudden, I just could not wait until I had more time to start another episode. I think that I really enjoy the relationships of the characters. They are more real and fleshed out. I think of it more like a cross of House and CSI. Even my husband has now admitted that he likes Bones better then CSI, and that was his favorite for the longest time. I couldn’t even wait to put the rest of the seasons on my Christmas list. I just went out and bought them myself!
4. Verdict in the Story –Drama here. Lots of Bones character development.
5. Santa in the Slush — Lovely shipper fun. Possibly the most enjoyable “first kiss” I’ve ever seen on TV. Gotta be the only “meant to be” pairing that follows their first kiss up with these comments:
Brennan: It was like kissing my brother.
observer: You must really like your brother!
Booth: She does!
This show is just SO darn likable. Smart, funny, romantic, great characters all wrapped up in a procedural! It refuses to be pigeon-holed and this sets it apart from anything else on TV! You’ve gotta give it another chance!!!
Two words David Boreanaz!
I relate to him and Booth the most. He is amazing. If they toned down wooden Brennan’s ”I’m better than you attitude” then I would like Bones better. The writing is often patchy too.
Oopsie: I deleted my number 3 on the list…
This season’s “Con Man in the Meth Lab.” Poor Booth on his BDAY –things could not go worse for him!!!
I think once you are hooked you can go back and watch from the start but if you are just sampling to see if you like it: the first episodes don’t do it justice!!
I too used to watch CSI, I never missed an episode, but the show went downhill so I looked for something else. I was definitely drawn to the characters in ‘Bones’. I fell in love with Booth and Brennan immediately. I think by that point I was sick of Crime Dramas that saw character development taking such a back seat. I still loved the stories, but I wanted to become invested in the characters as well. ‘Bones’ provided characters I could love and stories that I enjoyed. I too admit that it’s not the best offering that television has put before us, but it’s consistent and I love the characters. For the sake of getting to know the characters and their journeys I too think you need to start at the very beginning.
I love the supporting cast as well. A very diverse and quirky group of people who carry what’s left of the show, admittedly not much, when Booth and Bones are not in the limelight.
It’s light too, which I like.
I do think that watching some of the earlier season 1 episodes would help you with the relationships between the characters — those of us who have watched and enjoyed from the beginning already have all the context that you are missing. I think the Aliens in the Spaceship episode is a good suggestion, but there really are a lot. I do think the episodes that center around Brennan’s relationship with her family are good ones as they give insight into the character, and develop the relationship with Booth on a different level. And Ryan O’Neal as Brennan’s dad is no slouch. I hope you try the show some more and get invested — I always like to see the shows I enjoy gain new viewers/fans.
First of all, it helps to be incurably romantic and love great writing with wit and style. I’m sure the last part applies to you already as you are a writer.
Start with Santa in the Slush because it’s one of the funniest and most romantic. After I saw it, I had to go back for more.
Look into Brennan’s eyes when she looks at Booth, really looks and Booth’s eyes when he looks at her and especially when they lean into each other. You won’t be able to look away.
Then watch the pilot and just go from there.
It’s a show that builds the character relationships and it keeps getting better over the years. More spark, more wit. Enjoy the banter and pay close attention to when Booth and Bones are in that car. There’s a lot of action and love you won’t see in any other crime drama.
And that special moment between Booth and Bones at the end of most of the episodes is addictive.
I gotta say, Bones has hooked me in this season somehow (it being available on Hulu having a lot to do with it), so I’m not familiar with the previous seasons.
But the comic timing and chemistry between David Boreanz and Emily Deschanel is absolutely the engine behind the show’s appeal.
The mysteries are done well enough (and I like that this show is more Law & Order than CSI, which is to say more concerned with solving the crime instead of voyeuristically flashing back to it over and over), but not really out of the ordinary enough to be memorable, and the relatively speed and ease with which they use their various imaging devices and dna analyses strains credulity, as all these shows do.
Continued…
I would suggest a couple of Season 1 episodes to start so that you will be able to see the incredible character development of the entire cast. My choices would be: Man in the SUV, Woman in the Car, Woman in the Garden, Two Bodies in the Lab, and Woman in Limbo. Then you’ll be hooked, trust me!
John Francis Daley (from “Freaks and Geeks”!) is the only member of the supporting cast that can even keep pace with the power duo- everyone else is thinly drawn and stiffly acted (there’s a reason the only one I even vaguely recognize from any other role is the guy that plays Hodgins. Because he’s in a car commercial).
I’m sort of glad I haven’t been following these characters through four years of sublte romantic tension, because it seems stretched to the point of exasperation already, and you wonder how long it can continue. But maybe if they got together the magic would be lost entirely.
Why is there a character limit on these things, anyway?
For me, it’s all about the character development. the cases are fine, but the show is a step above the other crime dramas because I love each member of the team and i enjoy seeing how their characters have grown over the seasons. (and the chemistry between Booth and Bones is amazing).
Aliens in a spaceship is a classic and mummy in the maze is pretty funny.
It really boils down to the fact that it’s one of the few (only?) crime drama that has a serialized feel. You care about the characters, it’s less about the crime-crime-crime and more about those that are solving them. Also, they manage to keep it funny in the face of some gross circumstances. Everyone else is right- Booth+Brennan have excellent chemistry and if I had to point to one thing that drives the show, it’d be that.
Someone may have already said this, but in the spirit of Christmas Eve you should go back to season one and watch THAT season’s Christmas Eve epi where everyone avoids the office Christmas party, and then the two doofus boys get them all quarantined in the lab for Christmas Eve, plus a confused robot. After watching that episode you don’t entirely adore every single one of those cast members, as well as wonder why on earth they got rid of the Jefferson’s director, then you should give up trying – it just ain’t going to happen.
Besides it starring David B. (and the awesome casting of John Francis Daley), what I like about the show is that it seems to be the only one where a character talks about his faith–and the writers made it an important part of Booths’ character. Booth is Catholic, and I enjoy the discussions between Booth and Bones–one side believes in a higher power and the other believes that science can answer all. I haven’t seen too much of that on other crime dramas. I’m not saying all shows must have a religious affiliation, but once in a while, when it’s done right, it’s kind of refreshing.
Besides it starring David B. (and the awesome casting of John Francis Daley), what I like about the show is that it seems to be the only one where a character talks about his faith–and the writers made it an important part of Booths’ character. Booth is Catholic, and I enjoy the discussions between Booth and Bones–one side believes in a higher power and the other believes that science can answer all. I haven’t seen too much of that on other crime dramas. I’m not saying all shows must have a religious affiliation, but once in a while, when it’s done right, it’s kind of refreshing.
I don’t watch, but my wife does. From what I’ve seen, it’s funnier and has more enjoyable characters than the other procedurals, none of which interest me. The crimes and corpses are horrible, but they keep a darkly comic edge on it all.
Here’s my advice: forget it’s a procedural. The crime elements exist merely as a pretext for showcasing the wonderful character work. If you go into it looking for compelling crime stories that tie together in a neat bow by the end, you won’t get it. If you just appreciate it for the amazing chemistry between Deschanel and Boreanaz, the incredibly smart dialogue, and the way the supporting characters are actually developed, rather than merely decorative, you will have a much more rewarding experience. CSI: DC it’s not. But it is GREAT TV.
I would add that if you come to Bones expecting a CSI type solve-it-in-44 minutes procedural, you won’t really appreciate the show’s nuances as you should. I find myself asking “Wha?” a lot more with CSI than with Bones. The crimes are well written, well thought out, and not hard to follow. However, they aren’t always figure-it-out in the first 10 minutes, either. It’s a great balance between crime and personal interaction. I don’t laugh much watching CSI, but I laugh my head off during some episodes of Bones. I think Seasons 1 and 2 are required to get a sense of the story on each character. I’d start with Man in the Fallout Shelter from Season 1 to get you sucked in to the Bones family story vortex. Then, you can work from the beginning with anticipation. Seeing how Bones and Booth gel as partners, how they were acrimonious in the beginning and have really grown to love and respect each other is great TV! Season 3 fell apart after the writer’s strike, just ignore the Zack fiasco.
Yes, “Man in the Fallout shelter” that is the Christmas episode I mentioned. I agree with everyone else about CSI vs. Bones. Bones is ABOUT their personal lives. CSI is ABOUT the crime. I didn’t watch during the whole CSI Grisson Georgia thing, which sounded dreadful, but until then and in all the spinoffs, when they attempted to touch on the team’s personal lives it was terrible. Too little to mean anything I guess. However, Bones even makes fun of itself in this respect. See Clark’s roll of the eyes all through this season. I LOVE it when shows make fun of themselves.
I agree with Vicky. That’s the one that really got me.
Somebody already mentioned the spaceship episode which I think sums up a lot about the show nicely, so I will second that idea. Although, I really think it is the continuous viewing that makes Bones stand out as a must watch. Everyone I have introduced to Bones has thought it was ok, but after I let them borrow my DVDs and they see the characters from the beginning they fall in love. Just like any relationship, the back story matters and it makes you feel like you really know these characters. Give it a good effort, Bones is worth it!!
where you’re going wrong: if all of the episodes you’ve seen are from this season.
they’re still doing great work, but the show was at its best when it still had zack instead of the rotating cast of interns. start from the beginning and you’ll grow to love it in no time.