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"Bones" put a lot more thought into Japanese subcultures than the actual crime this week. I can forgive that when there are decent character moments. On that score, we got some sweet Booth/Brennan interaction, one relatively rounded guest character, one featureless guest caricature, and a whole lot of nothing for the lab rats to do.
Booth gets a call from a friend and fellow cop in Japan -- my sister is missing! She has been in DC for a few months, and suddenly she stopped calling! Booth tells Nakamura ("Nake with the sake!") not to panic, but that's exactly what he should be doing -- Booth and Brennan find a severed head wearing an anime-inspired mask in a salt marsh. Examination of the skull suggests that it's Sachi.
Nakamura brings some expert help, forensic anthropologist Dr. Haru Tanaka. Tanaka follows a subculture that values androgyny, and is gender-indeterminate. "Hilarity" ensues.
But we'll get back to that. First, the crime!
The evidence:
- The head was found in a low salt marsh, but bird vomit on the head came from a bird species that stays in the high marshes, miles away (I imagine the bird heard some of the squelching noises the show was reveling in, and lost its lunch.)
- Decapitation didn't kill Sachi. There's an exit wound in the skull, possibly from a gunshot.
- Scratch that -- no striations, so no bullet. However, liquefying the brain (Ew!) revealed a sliver of bamboo.
- But THAT didn't kill her either -- her lungs were full of water.
- The water didn't come from the marsh -- it came from a water feature
And then there are the suspects:
- Micah Strutt, a photographer who told Sashi he could make her a model. He took some racy photos of Sashi and her roommate, Nozomi. Those pics were an ad for...
- Bruce Takedo, the proprietor of tea house that catered to anime girls and Sweet Lolitas. He didn't ask for the ad -- in fact, he didn't approve of it at all -- and fired the girls when he discovered they were working for...
- James Sok, who runs Elegant Escorts. It's a legitimate business! he insists. He hadn't seen the girls since Nozomi had an appointment with client ...
- Volger, a banker who liked to play rough with the girls he hired.
We get a couple of feints -- Takedo brandished a cleaver! Strutt took stalker-esque photos of Sashi! -- but eventually the team figures out that Sashi's head was put on a bamboo stake, and the head wound was made with a marine knife. Hey, Sok lives on a boat -- and he's a scumbag! They bring him in, but there's no blood on the knife. There is blood in the sheath... but that just proves he cut Sashi's head off. Drowning is what killed her. And Sok refuses to reveal the killer unless they cut him a deal. After some angsting on the parts of Booth and Nakamura, they offer a deal, and Sok gives up Volger. Sashi never worked for Sok. She caught Volger beating up Nozomi, and threatened to call in her cop brother if he didn't stop hurting her. Volger drowned her in his koi pond, and paid Sok to dispose of the body. Sok cut off her head, put on Nozomi's anime mask, and left it for Nozomi as a warning to keep her mouth shut. Charming.
Booth and Brennan
We start out on a high note in Booth/Brennan relations -- she decides to consult with him on who she hires for her new assistant. "I'm making an effort!" she says. Booth seems touched.
Nakamura gives us another perspective on Booth -- they met when Booth was doing an exchange program in Tokyo, and he was the only one of the Feds to listen and be respectful of their Japanese brethren. Plus, they got rat-assed on a gallon of sake and "borrowed" a police boat, so that's always good. Booth alternates between softly sympathetic and understanding and harshly direct with Nakamura, giving him what he needs to hear. It's well done.
Nakamura is also guest number 19,842,037,928,364,738 to pick up on the bond between Booth and Brennan, even if Brennan herself is oblivious: "You're a lucky woman, Dr Brennan." "To work with Booth? I know." Yeah. That's not what he meant.
Brennan sees how hard hit Nakamura is about the death of his sister, and wonders whether the potential pain of losing someone offsets the benefits of loving them. Yes, Nakamura replies. But Brennan still isn't convinced -- if we can't get over a loved one's death, doesn't that mean there's a "fault in the design?" "What are we, coffee pots?" Booth replies. Yes, it's worth it, no mater how scary it is. It's worth it. We'll see if Brennan ever gets that.
The Lab Rats
Tanaka takes the place of the NotZacks this week, and the rest of the lab rats are deeply unsettled that they can't figure out Tanaka's gender. They debate it at some length, even though Sweets tells them to get over it. Cam ends up staring at Tanaka appraisingly over liquefying brains. When Tanaka asks her what's up, Cam says she likes Tanaka's shirt. Yeah, Hodgins has been doing the same thing, Tanaka says. "It seems many people like my shirt." Heh.
By the end of the episode, the lab rats still haven't figured Tanaka out. So Angela decides to be Angela -- she marches up and hugs Tanaka for MUCH longer than is comfortable. When she gets back to the group, she tells them "It moved. He's a guy." I'm not sure what I object to more -- Angela AGAIN getting all up in someone's personal space without permission, or the suggestion that the mere touch of Montenegro will make trouser snakes stir. Unless the movement she felt was the poor guy's testicles retreating into his body cavity out of fear...
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Zap2it Twitter Talk 
There is something about this show that has bothered me from its inception and that is if Dr. Brennan is so intellectually confused by the worth of love and other human interactions, how is she able to write books and make the characters believable? Doesn't one have to have a grasp on the human psyche in order to write a book that includes people's motivations, thoughts, and feelings? I do love this show and look past the simplicity of the storylines for some of the lines are cl***ic (isn't that what we vote here on after every show?) as well as the acting. It is obvious that this season the writers are filling out Brennan's emotional repertoire and that is good, but it has been very hard to ignore her lack of social skills in combination with being a best selling author.
"Unless the movement she felt was the poor guy's testicles retreating into his body cavity out of fear...
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Ok, whew, had to wipe the tears outta my eyes on that one!
Hey, it's Bones, and I love it, even when it's lame.Of the 4 eps we've gotten in the past 2 wks, I think this was the weakest of them all, but still some good points.
I like hearing some tidbits of Booth's past, no matter how small. And I love seeing Booth and Bones taking these baby steps towards one another. It's just very sweet.
On another note, tho. What was up with the Asian Mullet?? I AM Asian and that hair-do just totally kicked my whole race in the nuts.
I have also wondered how Bones could write best-selling novels if she is so stunted emotionally herself. Also, it seems to me she would have more awareness of pop culture from research, writing, book tours, etc.
Also, she was suprisingly good at getting rid of the brother so he wouldn't see his sister's body -- the way she took the comments from Dr. Tanaka and then turned it around, giving Nak an "out" seemed more emotionally perceptive than I would have thought.
Was I the only one that was sure Dr. Tanaka was a woman?
I figure Bones' books are akin to CSI episodes? But yes, "Bones" Brennan is an observant person who understands a great deal of how things work, but does not care why. She can figure out, psychologically, what motivates a person, what makes them feel a certain way, and how to make them feel otherwise (that m***euse was a quick learner, btw). Being a character on paper is completely different than being a character in person. Which makes it sound like Emily Deschanel is acting as Tempe Brennan the investigator who is playing "Bones" the detective who is do***enting their book-life?
Back to this episode, it pretty much hinged purely on Booth's past police-buddies, which was still a good thing. A solid episode where Tempe was a large presence, but wasn't the main focus.
And I kept staring at Dr. Tanaka as well. I thought they had more masculine features (square cheeks, thicker fingers), but there were times when speaking, they were making squeaks in a MUCH higher octave. (Nice touch with the scarf covering the neck.)
And I actually liked the "coffee pot" analogy for human beings.
I thought it was great. I liked how Take comminted about if he was willing to give his life for his sister, how could it not be worth having her in his life to love.. or something like that... Which I hope got Bones to thinking.
Alos loved Sicko is a technical term from the half time review
I am for Clark as a Dr. there (he has been called a Dr on the show and is an expert) and Wendell both!
I think the ending was very telling. Booth and Bones are spending alot more time together and he again was explaining the 'mystery of life - that love matters even though that loved one may leave you. It is all worth it'. Brennan's expression tells me that she is getting it and she has these feelings for Booth that she is just discovering. Meanwhile, Booth is consiously (sp)teaching her about life and love and that he wants that life and love to be with him.
Hey Allie2, you weren't the only one convinced that Dr. Tanaka was a woman. The writers were messing with us ... I just looked up the episode on IMDB and the character was played by (ironically enough) Ally Maki - a WOMAN.
CCB: I forgot about the half-time recap! I wish more shows had that (though I wish it was Close-Captioned).
Did anyone else notice they were using the Dollhouse set when they were at the photograhers
The Booth/Brennan moments were the saving grace of this episode. I especially liked when Nake told Brennan she was lucky to have Booth and you totally could tell what he meant, even if she didn't.
I have to admit, like Hodgins, I thought Tanaka was a woman also. But Angela is getting a bit annoying, isn't she? Funny, funny Sarah, that comment about Tanaka's balls. LOL!
As for the NotZacks, I still would prefer Zach back, but since we can't have that I prefer Clark or Vincent. Wendell is too normal and it'll destroy the dynamic of the group. We need another person on there with quirks, like the other two. Otherwise it'll be just Brennan and Hodgins against everyone.