mistletoe: (wannabe)
mistletoe ([personal profile] mistletoe) wrote2011-03-24 05:03 pm

Echo- o-o-o and Booth's Season 3 Finale

We've made considerable progress, but AOL still has a significant number of backed-up notifications. They're stored and will be delivered as soon as we can resolve the underlying issue.

No help to me there. I don't have many notifications, but having none is infinitely annoying.

Speaking of infinitely annoying we have arrived at a non-Bones Thursday AGAIN and the last two episodes of Season 3 seem to fit the mood.




A BOOTH FOR ALL SEASONS



BOOTH IN SEASON 3  - Flawed
BRENNAN: Whoa! You've been spying on us? More experiments?
BOOTH: What experiments?


There have been a few instances in Season 3 where we've had a closer look at Booth's history and he has proved to be less than perfect. Usually, however, he has more than enough positive traits in the present to make up for his youthful peccadilloes. These last two episodes are the first where Booth is cast in a not very good light and in both episodes I lay the blame at Sweets' feet.

Before I launch into that, I shall finish as I started the Season with a glance at Booth's office furniture.  While there are a couple of changes still to be made, this is just about the definitive collection of Booth's memorabilia.

The back wall:

Apologies for the quality of this picture, but it shows the second ice hockey big picture. There will be a third to come, but this one with the heavy shadows stays for a while. I don't think it is the flying goal scored by Bobby Orr.

There are a number of items on the back table that have been there all season: the missile, the eagle statuette, the photographs. In addition there is another bald eagle, a head of F D Roosevelt and some other stuff that can be seen in another picture.


Here you can see in addition a baseball mitt and a fighter jet on a stand. Out of shot propped against the table is a baseball bat and there is a baseball to the left of Booth and a football a bit further along..

Booth's desk:
Here we have the usual suspects: Stanley Cup, sweetie jar, magic 8 ball, Steelers mug, Flyers mousemat, but there is also a snowglobe behind his nameplate. You can also see the baseball bat propped up. I have no idea why Booth finds it necessary to surround himself with sports equipment except to emphasise he loves sports. I forgot to mention his enthusiasm for motorcycle racing in Man in the Mud and somewhere he practised putting shots in his office while talking to a witness.  He likes his toys and handles his Zippo while thinking or a sumo wrestler stress ball to release tension. He is always using his hands. Other items of clothing and accoutrements that have been set are the Cocky belt buckle and a gold watch. He also affects a handkerchief in his top pocket this season and wears casual clothes more frequently. His other eccentricities include never wearing a seatbelt, never fastening his shirt cuffs and frequently loosening his tie. He also wears the wrong shoes most of the time.


Having put Booth into his milieu let us turn to the two flawed episodes beginning with Wannabe in the Weeds. For me, this is the worst episode so far. It is poorly realised in pace and plot and has Booth completely out of character while doing his job. The poor characterisation begins with Booth suddenly being allergic to grass. He never has been before and he never is again. There is far too much filler when it would have been better to build up Pam's character. The weakest part is how poorly Booth pursues the case and the blame for that I lay firmly at Sweets' feet. Sweets is a very large fly in the ointment. Booth has been consistent in his belittling of Sweets since his introduction, except when it suited the plot. So, he brings in Sweets on the Gormogon case without consulting Brennan, he says he is brilliant when on the stand at Max's trial, but generally he has little time for his theories when Booth believes he knows better. This is exemplified here and really leaves Booth hoist with his own petard.



I really like this picture because it reveals Booth's attitude very clearly. Sweets may be brilliant in his job as a psychologist and a profiler, but if Booth doesn't want to listen, and that is most of the time when it comes to Sweets, then he will disregard what he says. This is OK when it comes to Sweets' comments about Booth's psyche and relationship with Brennan, but when it is case related he really needs to swallow his pride and use his self proclaimed strength which is to listen.

This case suggests that Booth not only doesn't listen but he has lost his skill in reading suspects. There is no doubt Pam is creepy, but Booth does not see any of the signs. Or at least he does, and then ignores them. He recognises that she is a stalker, but as soon as she has an alibi he dismisses her from the suspect list and assumes she would only be interested in stalking Tommy. Sweets believes this is a persistent state in her and tries to warn Booth.

Here's his reaction to Sweets' concerns.

SWEETS: The pathology is clear. She's possessive and amoral.
(BOOTH makes a sound and gesture to indicate that SWEETS should not speak so loudly)
SWEETS: (quieter) Her emotional connections are forged through manipulation and delusion. Once a connection that tenuous breaks-
BRENNAN: So she killed Tommy Sour?
SWEETS: I can't say that, of course, but she is a dangerous person.
BOOTH: (still on phone) Thank you. (He hangs up) Well, her story checks out. She was in Florida when he was killed. Her parents are devastated that their future son-in-law - who they never met - will no longer be her love-monkey.
BRENNAN: Well, Dr. Sweets still thinks that she's the killer.
SWEETS: Dangerous. I think she's dangerous.
BOOTH: I agree.
SWEETS: Thank you Agent Booth.
(BOOTH stands up from his desk and begins to walk around it towards SWEETS)
BOOTH: All those gifts, and taking pictures from a distance, and showing up in the middle of the night in a nighty, it's all very "dangerous".
SWEETS: (clueing in) Mocking will not change my opinion. I've been mocked many many times before...
 
(BOOTH and BRENNAN exchange a glance)
SWEETS: That... came out wrong.
(BOOTH begins to push SWEETS towards the door)
BOOTH: Yeah, that's great Sweets, appreciate your help, but you know what? She has an alibi. See ya.
(SWEETS reaches out to stop the door before it closes behind him)
SWEETS: Well, just be cautious of her. Okay? She's not stable.
BOOTH: Great, thank you.
(BOOTH tries to push the door closed - SWEETS stops it again)
SWEETS: Oh, and remember. Our session on Tuesday's at 4? Trust exercises? Be there?
(He departs)
BOOTH: Ha-ha. See ya.
It's interesting that their session will be about trust because, as far as I can see, Booth does not trust Sweets. In many ways, Sweets is his own worst enemy because of the way he behaves towards Booth and Brennan. By attempting to become their friend he has removed the barrier of doctor/patient. By speaking in the way he does he has removed the gravitas of his pronouncements; by acting like an over excited schoolboy he has prevented any chance that Booth will take him seriously.

In addition, Booth has complete tunnel vision with regard to Pam. Having heard her speak about Tommy he knows that she is delusional. For whatever reason, he then ignores the delusion, to such an extent that he doesn't seem to be overly alarmed when she contacts him. Is he flattered?
PAM: Are you available to meet?
BOOTH: I'm sorry, uh... how did you get my number?
PAM: Your office patched me through. I said I was your mother.
BOOTH: (stunned, then recovers) Yeah, Dr. Brennan and I can meet with you.
PAM: No. Just you.
BOOTH: Well if it's relevant to the case, Ms. Nunan, I think it would be important that Dr. Brennan-
PAM: I can be at your office in a half hour, but you have to meet me alone.
BOOTH: I... I'm sorry, is this about Tommy?
(the camera cuts to an image of the outside of the Royal Diner. We can see the top of a car at the bottom of the screen. The camera moves lower and lower, until we see that it is PAM, sitting in her car, watching BOOTH and BRENNAN, sitting inside the restaurant)
PAM: What else would it be about Agent Booth?
BOOTH: ...Okay. A half hour. (He hangs up the phone)
BRENNAN: What'd she want?
BOOTH: She wants to see me. Without you.
BRENNAN: Did she say why?
BOOTH: Probably because you make her feel uncomfortable.
BRENNAN: How so?
BOOTH: Well because... You're you. You're a well adjusted woman.
He usually spots that something is not quite right about someone but here he is oblivious and I find his justification for Brennan not being there weak in the extreme. If he thinks Pam is not well adjusted why is he agreeing to meet her. What can she add to the case at this point? Why does he not ask for more specifics? Does he feel safe because it is in his office? What could possibly happen?

Or is he making the same mistake as Tommy in that he doesn't love Pam either but he will play along. Tommy probably did it for the money; Booth seems to be acting out of politeness.Yet even when she follows the same pattern he has observed in her with regard to Tommy, he still doesn't cotton on.
PAM: I brought you something.
(PAM brings out a small wrapped bag from her purse and hands it to BOOTH, who begins to unwrap it. He pulls out a pair of green socks)
BOOTH: Okay...
PAM: I know you've got a thing for socks.
BOOTH: How did you, uh...
PAM: I noticed them last time. On the outside, you're this big tough FBI guy... but really you're just like me. Unpredictable. Like Tommy was.
BOOTH: ...Please...
PAM: I know. We shouldn't talk about our old flames. Especially when we're just getting to know each other.
BOOTH: Ms Nunan, (he puts the socks down on his desk) you said you had information about Tommy Sour's murder.
PAM: Really? I have faith you'll find out who killed him. And Tommy wouldn't want me to grieve forever. (her eyes wander) Look at all these commendations... You're really great at your job, aren't you? (she bends down to pick up the socks, and hand them to Booth, moving closer) It's one of the reasons I'm drawn to you.

BOOTH: (backing off) Ma'am, this is way inappropriate.
PAM: (laughing) Ma'am! That is so cute! I can't wait to tell my mom you just said that. Well. Bye for now.
Come on Booth! Calling you Seeley, asking a bunch of personal questions, giving you gifts, comparing you to Tommy, talking about old flames, saying she's drawn to him. Nothing. He is just stunned. At the very least he should have warned her off in no uncertain terms.

It is up to Sweets to put him right. Really? Booth has never had a woman come on to him? He has no idea what the gift of socks means? Pffft.
SWEETS: Wait, you saw her again?
BOOTH: What's the big deal Sweets? She just gave me a pair of socks!
(BRENNAN laughs)
BOOTH: What? It's not funny.
SWEETS: It's not funny.
BRENNAN: Why did I laugh?
SWEETS: Pam Nunan controls your emotional agenda through seeming vulnerability followed by generosity. It's classic manipulation.
BOOTH: Then I'll just mail the socks back.

And that's an end of it as far as Booth is concerned. Considering how the only times we have seen Pam she has appeared somewhat strange I cannot believe that Booth thinks it's that simple just because Sweets tells him she's dangerous and manipulative and he thinks it's just a crush that will end when the case is over.

Clearly it doesn't as Pam turns up at the Checker Box armed and ready to remove her scarecrow love rival. Needless to say, Booth does not allow that to happen and ends up getting shot before he can get a shot off himself. Likely.

The whole case has seemed trivial to Booth, which is very unlike him. He has no time for Broadway musicals (Aliens in A Spaceship) or singing wannabes which is pretty ironic considering his desire to perform Hot Blooded in The Rocker in the Rinse Cycle under similar circumstances and his knowledge of American Idol. By considering the people in the case trivial he trivialises the danger that Pam represents to Brennan and himself which is very unlike him. I have never seen Booth so dismissive of danger before, particularly in relation to Brennan. I don't want to say that it is because Pam is a woman and his ego won't let him think he can't handle her, but another conversation with Brennan leads me to that conclusion.

BRENNAN: The need to stand out from the crowd is innate.
BOOTH: (scoffs) It's obnoxious!
BRENNAN: You were the best sniper when you were in the army!
BOOTH: I was just doing my job, okay? Well.
BRENNAN: And that set you apart from the others.
BOOTH: Bones, we're talking about singing some nightmarish Broadway songs.
BRENNAN: Booth, It doesn't matter. Whoever is best has the status and power... and becomes the superior mate.
BOOTH: Yeah, well I tell you that some of those people are not going to be mating, that's for sure.
BRENNAN: But they will have the power and prestige. You enjoy it because you are a superb agent.

BOOTH: You think?
BRENNAN: Yes, of course. Since I am the best in my field, it would be self destructive for me to work with someone who's beneath me.
BOOTH: Oh. Okay. Well that's good. 'Cause, um, you know, I have to be honest here. Sometimes I think that you think you're better than me.
BRENNAN: Well, objectively, I am more intelligent...
BOOTH: There you go...
BRENNAN: In certain areas, and in others... I understand my limitations, and I... admire your expertise.
BOOTH: Huh. You admire me?
BRENNAN: ...In certain areas of expertise.
So having his ego boosted (at long last) may be why he reacts in the way he does to Pam when she calls him at this very moment. He has just been told he is a superb agent with admirable expertise. Pam then tells him the same thing and I have no doubt he is flattered. Pretty shallow though to need approbation from Pam.

Anyway, we leave Booth dying in a karaoke bar looking like he has thrown his life away because he didn't read a character right: Pam, Sweets and, apparently, himself.


The final flawed episode, The Pain in the Heart, has so many things going against it I'll just concentrate on the remit of Booth and what we find out about him. The most flawed aspect of Booth seems to be his  tendency to take the blame for things, or to do something without seeking recognition. However, he does something  that the Bureau asked him to do, and, as a result,  takes the blame here for something that is patently not his fault and deflects the blame from its true recipient: Sweets.

Until now, some of Sweets' activities have had some psychological basis that was justifiable, but what he does here is without justification. What is even more irritating is that Booth never finds out what his motives were and he ends up the fall guy and made to feel guilty by Brennan for his use of protocol as the reason behind her ignorance of the truth of his faked death. She ends up being justified in her behaviour and Booth is made to appear selfish, thoughtless and uncaring. Grrrrr. Sweets. What did you hope to prove? I'll come back to you.

I knew Seeley Booth. He was a good man who earned my respect and affection. And I don't like many people. Booth had a selfless commitment to his work, first in the military and then the FBI. Two weeks ago, he made the ultimate sacrifice – giving his life to save his partner. And in the brave act, he showed us what greatness we are all capable of.

This eulogy from Caroline is well deserved and focuses on the Booth whom we have seen. When he appears at the funeral and takes out a man who was a danger to Booth in the past, Brennan is not relieved or pleased; she is totally self absorbed and angry.

BRENNAN: I knew I shouldn't have gone to that funeral. It was a complete waste of time, just like I said.
BOOTH: Wait a second, you thought that my funeral was a waste of time?
CAM: I thought it was a lovely service, Booth.
BOOTH: Thank you. You know, I expected to see more people though.
HODGINS: I always imagined a lot of ex-girlfriends crying.
BOOTH: Yeah, me too.
ANGELA: You guys are pathetic.
BRENNAN: Just know I won't be attending your next funeral.

BOOTH: Bones, I'm telling you. You were supposed to know that I wasn't really dead. I swear! That's why I thought you weren't crying!
CAM: Informed by who, exactly?
BOOTH: I gave a list of people to the bureau to inform that I was not really dead. You know what? They didn't tell you, it's not my fault.
SWEETS: Dr. Brennan's actually upset because she had to face strong emotions that she'd rather deny. Striking Agent Booth, indicated the depth of your feelings for him. It was a very passionate act.
BOOTH: (to Sweets) Thank you! (to Brennan) Did you hear that? Passion!
BRENNAN: Yes, passion, because anger is a passion! Anger at being manipulated!

Here we have the three of them in their positions: Booth saying it's not his fault; Brennan angry because she has been manipulated and Sweets pontificating she hit Booth because she loves him. Sweets is feeling smug; Booth confused and Brennan doing her me, me, me act.

Booth is on the defensive from now on and Brennan really does cross the line.

Booth's bathroom.

We have seen Booth's bedroom and a door leading off it to the bathroom so it's nice to see inside. Very nice bathroom Booth. Freestanding tub, rack for toiletries and strategically placed shaving mug, rubber ducky and a record player white tiles and plenty of chrome: a very masculine room. Clearly a place to relax complete with cigar, graphic novel and beer hat. This is the most guylike we have ever seen Booth and, why not in the sanctity of his own bathroom? Well Brennan doesn't believe in that sort of boundary. I really did not like her in this scene.

BOOTH: Okay, what the hell do ya want now, Bones? Okay? Cause I'm not really feeling too relaxed.
BRENNAN: You should have told me that you weren't dead.
BOOTH: I already explained this to you. The bureau has to vet everyone when there is a security issue. I was just following protocol.
BRENNAN: Protocol!?
BOOTH: Yes!
BRENNAN: We've been partners for three years, Booth, and you've broken protocol before – sometimes putting my life in danger. Which makes sense because you clearly don't have any real concern for me.

BOOTH: (standing up) I took a bullet for you!
BRENNAN: Once! That only goes so far (realizing that Booth is standing there, naked) Would you like a towel?
(He sinks back into the tub)
BOOTH: Fine. What is it that I should have done, Bones? Wha- what did you want me to do?
BRENNAN: Well, you could have called me. Did you really think I needed to be vetted by your boss? I mean, don't you trust me?
BOOTH: Of course I do.
BRENNAN: Then why wasn't I told. It must have been something that you said.
BOOTH: No. I don't know why you weren't told.
BRENNAN: But you – you said that I should be. I mean, aren't you curious why I wasn't?
BOOTH: Yes! Do you want me to find out why you weren't told?
BRENNAN: If it's important to you.
BOOTH: Fine. I will. The next time I die, I promise that I will tell you.
BRENNAN: I'll look forward to that.
BOOTH: Me too.

Look at the objections she has to what happened and Booth's ripostes. She claims he has put her life in danger in the past and has no real concern for her; he replies he took a bullet for her and she replies he only did that once. He has shot someone in the past to protect her; he has told her to stay out of the firing line; he has saved Zack from being blown up; she has shot two people to save him. How dare she claim that he puts her in danger? She constantly does that herself by not following protocol. He takes it on the chin and promises to find out why she wasn't told. Again, she turns it back on him by saying 'if it's important to you'. No! He's doing it because it's important to you woman. She is judgmental in the extreme about his cigar, his reading material and his beer. It is his bathroom and his house which she has taken upon herself to enter, using the key in the fake rock at his door. What gives her the right to not even knock on the door? Why is she so angry and blaming Booth? I guess we will have to say she is over compensating, but I have to say it is not played, or explained in that way. She never apologises to Booth, and neither does Sweets. Incidentally, two weeks after bleeding profusely all over Brennan's hands Booth has a sticking plaster on his 'fatal' wound? Pfft.

Yes, let's get back to Sweets. At this stage, my sympathies were completely with Booth. He has never ducked the protocols of the bureau, whether it be refusing her a gun permit because she has been arrested for shooting someone or phoning in the whereabouts of Epps' victims to save him from execution because keeping quiet would be wrong. Booth always follows protocols, even occasionally bends them to get something that Brennan needs. Foolishly he appeals to Sweets for support, an opportunity for a bit of male bonding Booth would think, but again he is put in the wrong.
BOOTH: Bones broke into my house last night, all angry-
BRENNAN: (talking over Booth) There was a key!
BOOTH: because no one told her that I was dead. And I was just following protocol.
SWEETS: Broke into your house?
BRENNAN: There was a key.
BOOTH: And barged into my bathroom.
SWEEETS: (laughs) What were you doing?
BRENNAN: He was drinking beer and reading a comic book.
BOOTH: I was taking a bath.
SWEETS: You read comics and drink beer naked?
BOOTH: Wait a second. Bones bursts into MY bathroom, all right, and I'm weird for being naked?

By this stage he must feel the world is against him, although things are directed elsewhere by Zack blowing himself up. I don't want to spend time on that farrago so move on to Booth's pursuit of what went wrong with his list. He eventually finds out who was to blame and naturally, seeing as she hit him, he would like Brennan to hit the real guilty party. He will be disappointed again. This made me so angry I still have steam coming out of my ears just reading it.

SWEETS: (into phone) Yes. I'm busy. Cancel all my patients. You don't have to tell them anything-
(Booth comes up behind Sweets and starts dragging him towards Brennan's office.)
SWEETS: What are you doing?
BOOTH: A word?
SWEETS: I'm on the phone.
BOOTH: Well, hang up.
SWEETS: (into phone) Okay, I'll talk to you later. (he hangs up and puts the phone in his pocket. Then to Booth.) Ah, tight grip you got there.
BOOTH: And it could get tighter. So go ahead. Tell her.
SWEETS: Tell her what?
BRENNAN: Tell me what?
BOOTH: Tell her now.
SWEETS: What?
BOOTH: Fine. I'll tell her. Okay? I sent my list to the bureau. They sent it to Sweets. You were the one who decided not to tell Dr. Brennan that I was still alive. He's the one that you should have slugged, so do it. Go ahead and do it now.
BRENNAN: What? You chose not to tell me?
SWEETS: Yes, it's true. Technically.
BOOTH: Technically?
SWEETS: Okay, I reviewed the list and decided, knowing Dr. Brennan as I do, that she was in fact able to handle your death.
BOOTH: (to Brennan) Slug 'im.
SWEETS: It was a National Security issue. The fewer people that knew Agent Booth was alive, the safer he would be.
BRENNAN: I think that was a good choice.
SWEETS: Awesome.
BOOTH: You do?!

BRENNAN: Yes. You knew that Booth's death was something that I could deal with because I can compartmentalise.
BOOTH: Woah. Wait a minute now. Why are you mad at me then?
BRENNAN: Because you should have told me, personally.
BOOTH: Oh, I should have just ignored National Security concerns, broken the law and told you.
BRENNAN: Yes. You know I'm very trustworthy.

Awesome?!? This idiot makes a decision based on someone being able to deal with death, who then clearly doesn't deal with it; who can compartmentalise because her emotions are always under control and then who is so angry she hits the person she blames and bursts into his house to blame him further. And she agrees with that decision? I'm trying to get my head around it rationally but it just seems so contradictory I can't. If she's so trustworthy why didn't Sweets, who claims to know her well, trust her enough to tell her the truth? I think the problem is the focus changes according to who is presenting the discussion and to whom. Of course the real problem is Sweets has a hidden agenda which Brennan has sussed but Booth hasn't. Why does she not tell Booth if she is so keen on trust and truth and breaking the law? Why does Sweets with his constant references to truth zones and trust exercises not practise what he preaches? Why is Booth, the chief arbiter of right and wrong, too dumb to realise Sweets was wrong? Most of this dialogue is just nonsense. She is angry that Booth didn't break the law and tell her himself but is perfectly OK with Sweets choosing not to tell her because she didn't need to know. Buh?!?
BRENNAN: You think I don't recognize an experiment when I see one? You experimented on us.
SWEETS: Beg your pardon.
BRENNAN: Not telling me Booth was alive? You wanted to quantify our reactions for your own research? You took advantage of us. Booth and I agreed to let you observe us. We did not agree to be used as lab rats, so you better cut it out.
SWEETS: Dr. Brennan, why are you talking so fast?
BRENNAN: Because if Booth hears why you did what you did? He'd beat ya up.
SWEETS: Don't you think that'd be an overly aggressive act?
BRENNAN: Not at all. So you better not do it again.
Anyway, Booth is left to his own devices while Brennan confronts Sweets, but I think if Booth had known what Sweets was up to he would have been saved a great deal of heartache later. It is my belief that everything Sweets does from now on is one giant experiment for him to satisfy his intellectual needs and present his theories in his book. Even after Dr Wyatt tells him he is wrong, even after Booth and Brennan reveal his initial premise was wrong, he persists. People's lives are collateral damage especially the emotional life of Seeley Booth and Temperance Brennan. It all starts here in one of the most flawed of a series of flawed finales. There is a flaw in his logic.


So Booth is left to shoot Gormogon having contributed nothing to the solving of the case. Along the way various members of the team are suggested as culprits, but the flawed logic of Zack's actions results in the ridiculous conclusion. Sweets is revealed as an immature seeker of the spotlight having revelled in his appearances on Larry King and TMZ and so keen on the truth he wants to deny Zack the clemency of an insanity plea until Booth puts him right.

Brennan is worried that everyone gave Zack something except her and Booth is the one to show her that she did.
BOOTH: (reading from the letter) “Dear Mr. Addy. It is my pleasure to offer you the post of my intern in Forensic Anthropology. I chose you from hundreds of applicants because of your knowledge, your desire to learn and because I feel you will find a home here.” (he sets the letter in the envelope) I think you gave him something great, Bones.

 
The cynic in me says she gave him the opportunity to be indulged in his hyper-rationalisation away from the moderating influence of the real world.

That is all there is to say about Booth in Season 3. In many ways, he took a back seat again in this Season. Although there were aome additional pieces of background, many of them were formulaic and we still know very little about his family or Booth in his 20s beyond a military life of indeterminate difficulty.

India are about to finish Australia's interest in defending the World Cup with any luck and I am about to watch thirtysomething when they do. The weather has been properly Springlike this week although it is supposed to cool down for the weekend. Typical.

[identity profile] tempertemper.livejournal.com 2011-03-24 08:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Still not getting some of your notifications?? Poo!

I find it fascinating what is on Booth's walls/desk in his office - and now we get to add his bathroom too!! Fab!

ITA that these episodes were deeply flawed. Sigh. The end of season 3 remains a sore point for me!!

Fab stuff, babe.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-24 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
I think I am watching too many makeover shows. Bwah. LJ has been so slow I couldn't see if this had posted for 4 hours, so an hour or so to see the comments is speedy. Not a notification for over a week now. I am relying on my inbox.

[identity profile] a2zmom.livejournal.com 2011-03-24 08:15 pm (UTC)(link)
I really disliked those episodes for all the reasons you listed (and a bunch that you didn't -Zach!). Booth's characterization was totally out of left field, I thought. Brennan was thoroughly unreasonable regarding Booth's "death". I understand that she was upset and this was her way of dealing with it, but that excuse only goes so far.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-24 09:25 pm (UTC)(link)
I had not watched either of these episodes since they originally aired and it is largely the Zack factor that is the reason.

When I watched them again I was struck, because I was looking for it, how poorly the other members of the team were characterised in that finale. They were like a bunch of strangers who had only just met.

I agree that Brennan reverting to her default setting, forgetting all that Booth had done for her over the last three years was unforgivable. She takes her friends for granted, and for the most part, they let her.
ext_23139: Susan/G'Kar (Default)

[identity profile] alicamel.livejournal.com 2011-03-25 05:42 pm (UTC)(link)
I guess we will have to say she is over compensating, but I have to say it is not played, or explained in that way.

This is how I interpreted it when I first watched the episodes, though I agree it is badly done. Brennan is so logical and unemotional most of the time, but she does seem to have a pretty sort fuse when she does get emotional.

Most of this dialogue is just nonsense. She is angry that Booth didn't break the law and tell her himself but is perfectly OK with Sweets choosing not to tell her because she didn't need to know. Buh?!?

I don't think Brennan is okay with it - I think she has figured out that Sweets is lying and is just covering to end the conversation so she can confront him about it later. That said, it is pretty out of character for Brennan to first of all pick up on that kind of subtlety (although her saying she recognises an experiment when she sees one sort of half-covers that) and then to not immediately point out that he is lying without realising what the emotional reactions of other people will be if she does. Given that she thinks Booth would be justified in beating Sweets up for it, it really doesn't make sense that she wouldn't tell him.

I can't believe Sweets ever thought what he did was a good idea or at all ethical. It's a shame that, aside from Brennan's hurried conversation, he never gets him comeuppance on that.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-25 07:54 pm (UTC)(link)
I think the episode really suffered from the hurried way Season 3 had to be wrapped up. Plot threads were hurried or left dangling in favour of winding up the Gormogon arc. As a result the B plot of Booth's fake death really got left behind.

I agree, Brennan was OOC in her handling of Sweets in that she has a real dislike of psychology and would be more likely to do more than just verbally warn him. She could easily have hit Sweets herself for her own satisfaction without Booth seeing. I still think it's strange that she wouldn't tell Booth, but she was totally distracted by Zack's situation and that's where the B story ends. Sweets, however, gets a free pass from now on.

They really needed two episodes to do both threads justice but there just wasn't time.

[identity profile] irishfairy913.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 12:14 am (UTC)(link)
I LOVE thirtysomething! Who was your favourite? I loved Melissa, and Gary. Actually, I liked a bit about all of them...but Hope and Michael's perfectness got to me a bit!

Your characterization of Booth is great! I love reading these! :)

--Andie

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 12:35 am (UTC)(link)
I'm a Melissa fan too! Gary was rather a one note character and my least favourite was Ellyn. Like you I thought the perfection of Michael and Hope the Earth mother got rather cloying.

Infuriatingly they are only showing up to Season 2 ep 17 on Sky Atlantic and then going back to the beginning again! Now what do I watch?

[identity profile] irishfairy913.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 01:01 am (UTC)(link)
I used to want to be an English professor, so that's why I liked Gary. (My least favourite was Susannah, Gary's wife in later seasons, but as far as regular characters, I am with you on Ellyn.)

I mean, I liked Hope and Michael as time went on and things got LESS perfect.

The jury is still out on Nancy and Elliot. I liked Nancy as a character as the series developed, but not so much at the beginning.

They have released Season One on DVD. I originally watched the show when I was in high school (a million years ago, it seems!) when it was in reruns...over the summer I found a couple of episodes on YouTube, and it was so weird to hear Melissa lamenting being 31, because I was sixteen when I first watched and that seemed so old, and I am 34 now. But I can relate to her angst, because now I know what it means. :)

That is odd that Sky Atlantic is doing that. But, at least you have a network that plays it...even if only the first two seasons. I'd love to see it again!

[identity profile] limone1.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 02:50 pm (UTC)(link)
There are advantages with being late to the party. You can agree with all the wise comments :)

Like you I lay the blame at Sweets' door. For all his inability to recognize boundary between patients and friends and using other people for his own gain (commenting on TV, to get published), deciding Brennan not be informed Booth wasn't dead was by far the worst. What rankles me is that he never had to answer for it, didn't get his comeuppance as [livejournal.com profile] alicamel says.

Here, like in so many other shows, allergies/sneezing is used for comic relief (pity it's not fun...). Would have been time better spent on Booth's gut feeling picking up all the warning signs about Pam. I can't wait to tell my mom you just said that. shows she's already talking to her mom about him, should have set off the warning bells!

These episodes and the whole Zack being Gormogon's helper SL did suffer from the hurried way S3 had to be wrapped up.

Will be interesting to see what you make of S4 Booth.

CWC, hm, must he Cricket World Cup. *feels like a cricket expert* Or maybe not... ;)

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 05:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Will be interesting to see what you make of S4 Booth

I have to say I'm not looking forward to Season 4 Booth, at least at the start. I must try to spot where his brain problems started.

What rankles me is that he never had to answer for it, didn't get his comeuppance

When Booth got the boot for exposing the truth about Gus Harper's death, that was a reprimand; when he was confined to desk duties for discharging his weapon and ordered to have psychological assessment, that was a reprimand. Sweets has no one to reprimand him it would seem. Who is his superior? Who does he report his findings to? Who gave him the right to go against an agent's wishes? Why would he be vetting anyone for National Security purposes anyway? He is a pipsqueak! He's less of a proper doctor than Brennan. I'd like to see him perform an operation in the back of a car or fix someone's back.

[identity profile] limone1.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 06:35 pm (UTC)(link)
Why would he be vetting anyone for National Security purposes anyway? He is a pipsqueak!

Because he has quickly become one of FBI's favorite "unofficial" interrogators? Nevermind the considerably older and more experienced, often ex-military, trained in interrogation techniques people that usually do them. What skills do they have that wonderboy Sweets doesn't?

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 08:57 pm (UTC)(link)
Mm-hmm. Well, at this stage in proceedings, he hadn't actually interrogated anyone. He had attended the outer room of the interrogetion suite and done a profile on Max. There has been no on screen interrogation.

We have only seen him interact with Booth and Brennan, no other patients, and get on Hodgins' nerves. His response when offering his unsolicited help at the beginning (Boy in the Time Capsule) was to hope he was right because it would impress his girlfriend. That immaturity remains all this time later.

[identity profile] limone1.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 09:42 pm (UTC)(link)
I stand corrected. Sweets is such an all pervading presence and Jack of all trades, it's difficult to remember when he wasn't. I need to find some time to re-watch!

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 11:12 pm (UTC)(link)
Think nothing of it! He becomes pervasive in Season 4. He's all over the first two episodes for NO REASON WHATSOEVER. Ahem. I must be calm.

Redirected to the correct comment....
Our clocks change tonight and it makes me jittery; just like Angel on coffee.

[identity profile] huronia.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 03:23 pm (UTC)(link)
I still have to read your previous piece in this series, but thought I'd jump in here anyway. The fourth picture dropped me. Look at that man's hands. Usually when I comment on someone's hands, it's b/c the rest of the package is lacking, but yowza, he really does have it all, physically speaking. Now onto the other stuff.
His other eccentricities include...never wearing a seatbelt - I believe this is not uncommon among law enforcement as they maintain that it allows for a quick exit from the vehicle, never fastening his shirt cuffs My son, who is 12, has thick, not-quite-lost-their-baby-fat wrists, and he frequently leaves his cuffs unbuttoned, proclaiming it to be "the Booth look";)

In the interests of disclosure, I have to say that Wannabe was the first Bones episode I watched, and Pain in the Heart the second. It was in August during summer re-runs. (I caught up on earlier seasons in a mad rush that fall). For this reason, the whole Zack debacle doesn't really affect me as it does others. For this reason, also, I was not so much of a Brennan sympathizer in the early going. Your reactions to her in the bathroom scene, and again in the confrontation scene with Sweets were pretty much what I was thinking. I couldn't understand why she was so pissed at Booth for basically doing what he was told by his superiors.
I didn't have a full understanding of Sweets' role in their lives and consequently of his behaviour, but in the full context of the season, he should have faced disciplinary measures. I'm sure there is some kind of "first do no harm" principle for psychologists.

I had not previously considered Booth's tunnel vision vis-a-vis Pam. His concern was with solving the murder, and he knew Pam wasn't the murderer. Is it uncharacteristic for Booth not to be concerned about his own safety? I'm pretty sure that if Pam had been stalking Brennan, he would have taken her actions more seriously. (sorry skipped back to Wannabe)

And now to Sweets. When I watched the episode, thought he was Gormogon's apprentice. Oh, how I wish he was.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 05:57 pm (UTC)(link)
By heck yes! Sweets for Gormogon's apprentice, except he would have been so excited by the opportunity to study a psycho at close quarters he may have ended up a victim. Either way it would have been a fitting end to Sweets. Zack could have been an unfortunate accident victim and gone back to the loving arms of his parents in Michigan and become a lounge singer. It would have worked.


*hands*

[identity profile] tuberose08.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 05:35 pm (UTC)(link)
I completely agree with you regarding Brennan's me, me, me behaviour - I really wanted Booth to turn the shower on, aim it at her and tell her to f... off out of his bathroom, frankly!

None of this two episode arc made any sense to me. Okay, yes, the writers strike had messed things up royally, but for heaven's sake could they not have come up with more plausible story lines? I will never, ever, believe that Zach was capable of getting involved in the Gormogon debacle, nor can I understand Booth's blindness regarding Pam Noonan. Both totally OOC. As for Sweets - he should have been struck-off for his blatant, despicable and totally unprofessional experimentation.

Also agree with you about Booth taking all the blame upon himself. Utterly ridiculous! He was following orders, in total good faith. Given Brennan's hyper-rationality I'd have thought she would've understood and accepted that reasoning, and not indulged in that childish temper tantrum.

BTW - just been watching England get their arses handed to them by Sri Lanka! So that's that then - we're out of the CWC. Only surprised we got as far as we did!

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-26 06:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Yes we really rode our luck against S Africa and the West Indies; it was bound to come and bite us in the a---e eventually.

As for your response to my little vent on these two episodes WORD on all counts!! The fallout from that season went on for a very long time and some fans never recovered. I seriously contemplated giving up every time Sweets turned up uncalled for at the lab even when B and B were out of the country.

While Zack wasn't a favourite of mine, the possibilities of developing his storyline post-Iraq disappeared into the strike and the mishandling of his exit was just amateurish in its execution. Hence how loath they were to try for another season long arc after that. Look at the brain tumour contradictory stories (was Parker a ghost in Hero in the Hold or a product of Booth's brain? They shot themselves in the foot when Brennan saw him) or the Hannah arc misjudgement. They really can misread the fanbase sometimes.

[identity profile] tuberose08.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 12:15 am (UTC)(link)
'They really can misread the fanbase sometimes' - they certainly can! Whilst I wasn't totally opposed to the Hannah storyline (to me it was a means to an end) I did feel that they made her too vague a person and we never really got to see and understand enough of her to form a reasoned opinion. Nor did they give us enough insight into Booth's frame of mind regarding her. Hence, in my opinion, the unrelenting backlash that has endured in the fandom for the better part of this season. I suspect in all probability that the writers and show runners, despite all appearances to the contrary when in the public eye, are feeling decidedly battered and bruised by all the haterade out there. I wonder how much input Fox has had in all this, too.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 11:05 am (UTC)(link)
I think Fox reined them in. I think HH & Co thought another season was a lock and they could play fast and loose with 5 year old characters because nobody notices that sort of thing.

I think the Hannah plot was a means to an end as you say but they thought the fans would love the idea of her so much there wasn't any need to create a rounded character yet (Yes I think they were going to keep her). I think they were shocked that very few fans took to what they saw and, as you say, they forgot that Booth needed to show more depth about why he 'loved' her.

After all, it was Season 4 before they bothered to give Booth any real childhood and Season 5 before we saw the man who raised him and also Season 5 before he actually realised he loved Brennan. To try and convince the viewers that such a build up could be knocked down in 8 episodes was ridiculous and they will be lucky if the show can recover this late in Season 6.

That's what I think.

[identity profile] tuberose08.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 03:58 pm (UTC)(link)
'I think Fox reined them in. I think HH & Co thought another season was a lock and they could play fast and loose with 5 year old characters because nobody notices that sort of thing.' ... well they found out the hard way that the Bones fandom WAS paying a LOT of attention, lol.

I hope they ARE able to recover their lost ground. I feel that there is so much more to say and do with these great characters.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 06:33 pm (UTC)(link)
I completely agree. I feel more optimistic since Hannah left. As long as they keep their eye on the ball the rest of the season should recover most of the lost ground and keep long term fans happy.

And congratulations! Your comment is the first notification I've received in almost 2 weeks. Yee ha!

[identity profile] tuberose08.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 08:10 pm (UTC)(link)
'And congratulations! Your comment is the first notification I've received in almost 2 weeks. Yee ha!' .... Wow, really? Yee ha indeed! Maybe the problem has finally been sorted - fingers crossed.

[identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com 2011-03-27 09:01 pm (UTC)(link)
No it was a blip. *pout*