Bones introduces a new Big Bad

Bones has actually had a pretty good history with its serialized story lines. I’m going to call them “Big Bads,” even though they probably don’t exactly fit the definition. But from Howard Epps to the Gravedigger, the show has done fairly well with creating antagonists that haunt the team over the course of many episodes – the whole resolution to the Gormogon storyline not withstanding. Will the new serial killer live up to the expectations? The storyline is only just starting, but I suspect he will.

I’m not sure if I’m entirely sold on the idea, however, that Christopher Pelant is the killer, or at the very least not acting alone. If anything, I’m not sure I wanted to know who the killer was so early in the life of the arc. Plus, it is hard to suss out his motivations – or, more specifically, his hyper focus on Booth, Bones and the rest of the squints. Pelant would have to overcome myriad obstacles to be able to pull off his crimes; from ankle bracelet to his restrictions from owning a computer. And, apparently, be able to bend the rules of technology beyond the boundaries of realism with that whole “computer worm on a bone” thing.

I also find it rather suspicious that the reporter’s face was blown off, and before the team at the Jeffersonian could do a positive ID, the body was cremated. Plus, the way that Wendell was working on the few remains left from the cremation also leaves open the idea that there’s something else to that particular plot thread. If Pelant is in fact the killer, than having an assistant of some kind would certainly make things less complicated for him.

Don’t let these open questions and frustrations lead you to think I didn’t enjoy the episode; in fact it is actually quite the opposite. The Gravedigger had menace and Jacob Broadsky had a connection with Booth, but it hasn’t been since Epps since a superior intellect really seemed at play against the team. I’m looking forward to how this story will play out throughout the rest of the season.

I actually played back the final montage a couple of times, looking for clues. The recipient of the scholarship setup in name of one of the victims was Janet Lin, most likely named after a writer/producer on the show. The article that Booth was circled in was referencing the second episode of the six season, where the killer was a Park Ranger named Gary Nesbitt. The details in the article don’t really match up with what little I remember from the episode, but I’ll be going back through that episode soon to see if there is any real relevance to the new arc.

Did it seem a little weird to anyone else that Jack Hodgins, self-avowed conspiracy theorist and distruster of all things government, would be so connected to his big-military grandfather? I understand that Hodgins has changed in the past couple of years, and that the love of puzzle-solving makes a great connection, but it seemed odd that he would embrace any particular member of his past in that way.

Notes & Quotes

• I guess the story about Lincoln and the Pope has some traction amongst conspiracy theorists.
• “I have a bad feeling about this.” – Cam, channeling Star Wars
• “I’m telling you my grandfather would expect me to know what to do. Did I ever tell you he was a code breaker back in World War II? Huh? Worked for Admiral Nimitz.” – Hodgins
  “Mine worked for Colonel Chicken … What, it’s kind of military: he had a uniform.” – Wendell
• “A set of orders was passed down through channels that even the Almighty himself would need an atlas and a double shot of bourbon to navigate.” – Caroline
• I liked the montage with the newspaper clippings of the team’s previous cases.
• The baby is due in sex weeks, and Booth really thinks they can get that house in decent shape in that time? Yeah, right….

Clacked by Ivey West
on Jan 12, 2012 @ 22:18 EST5EDT