Make No Bones About It

Bones is a procedural crime drama on the Fox Network. It stars Emily Deschanel and David Boreanez. You might remember Boreanez from Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel.

The basic facts of the show are that Deschanel plays a character named Temperance Brennan, a brilliant forensic anthropologist who has the people skills of a fence post. She works for the Jeffersonian Institute, an extremely well funded private foundation that can afford to have the newest toys. The Institute must get government funding and must want to promote good will and good publicity, because they help the FBI with particularly hairy crimes. Apparently Brennan is not your average scientist as she is into martial arts and shooting. At some point before the series began, Brennan helped an FBI agent solve a crime, wrote a fictionalized novel about it and it sold very well, so she has an alternate income from writing novels.

The FBI agent she worked with is named Seeley Booth (Boreanez). He is cocky and impulsive to a degree. Booth was an Army Ranger and a sniper before joining the FBI. Much is made of contrasting Booth's casualness, intuition, and people skills with Brennan's cold-hard scientific outlook and total disconnection anything outside her microscope. How anyone this disconnected from people could write a novel that would appeal to anyone outside an anthropology course is never explained. Brennan's robotic attitude is funny at times, but grating at others. Fortunately it evolves and she developes a sense of humor as the series progresses. The interaction between Booth and Brennan evolve as the show progesses too.

This series is loosely based on a series of books by forensic anthropologist and author Kathy Reichs, and Brennan is kind of mixture of the Brennan character in the books and the author of the books herself. The rest of the characters are new.

Brennan's staff make up the rest of the regular cast. Booth nicknames Brennan "Bones" and refers to her staff as "squints". The squints are composed of Zack Addy, a grad student and assistant for Bones, Dr. Jack Hodgins, an expert on particulate, insects, soil, bacteria, ect. and also the labs anti-government and conspiracy theorist. Angela Montenegro rounds out the staff by being relatively normal. She is an artist and computer expert who helps reconstruct facial features.

Eric Millegan plays Zack to nerd perfection. T. J. Thynes' Hodgins is one of the more fun characters. He provides much of the more entertaining dialog and is a very well rounded character, whose screen time increases as the show progresses. Incidentally, Thyne did 3 guest stints on Angel. Michaela Conlin portrays Angela, and she humanizes the squints. Conlin does an excellent job in her character and adds a comedic element to the show. He relationship to Bones, Booth, and Hodgins cement the show together.

The show's mysteries aren't always the backbone of the show. Some are good, and some are weak, but the interaction of the characters and the way they grow and evolve make the show. The dialog is often funny and the actors all do a good job. In the first two seasons, Jonathan Adams portrayed the head of the Jeffersonian, Dr. Goodman. Tamara Taylor was brought on board in season 2 as Dr. Camille Saroyan, a medical examiner and former flame of Booth.

This show has a little something for everyone. It has some procedural and geeky stuff, for fans of that. There is usually some mystery with a few twists for a plot. You have all kinds of sexual tension between Booth and Bones, Booth and Camille, Hodgins and Angela, Zack and a microscope (just joking). There is a back mystery about Bones parents who disappeared when she was very young. Booth is divorced and has a child, Hodgins has a secret in his life. Angela is probably the only one hiding anything. Also, Patricia Belcher has a reoccurring role as Federal Prosecutor Caroline Julian and just about steals every scene she is in. The show has evolved quite a bit since it started. The cast has gelled and it shows. Booth has gone from uncomfortable with the sqints to actual friendships with them, especially with Hodgins.

If you want eye candy, my wife assures me that Boreanez fills the bill nicely for the ladies. Deschanel and Taylor are attractive and Conlin is hotter than a $2 pistol. Thyne is probably less hunky than Boreanez, but is not scary looking and Millegan is there for nerd love. Bones is going strong and Fox would be dumb to mess with it much, but there are rumors of a move to Friday for next season. Let's hope they leave well enough alone.