Season's Review - Bones, Season 5

Welcome to the first posting in my Season's Review category. We've seen the season finales of all Fall/Winter season shows, and as we get into our Summer program, I want to take some time to think about the series we've been watching as a whole. Please let me know if you agree on my take, and if you have anything else you want to contribute.

First Season's Review - Bones, Season 5

As the saying goes, Bones has jumped the shark. It did so at the end of Season 3, when the story arc focusing on Gormagon ended. It wasn't because Zack (Eric Millegan) left, it wasn't because of the addition of Sweets (John Francis Daley) or the many interns, and it wasn't because the Gormagon plot line caused an end. It was because since the end of Season 3, there have been no real story arcs tying together the episodes and the seasons.

Since then, the focus has been on the characters. Will Bones (Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanaz) ever get together? What about Hodgins (T.J. Thyne) and Angela (Michaela Conlin)? In fact, the characters have been so much the focus that the individual episodes have suffered because not enough attention has been paid to the case, while too much was placed on some relationship dilemma.

In Season 5, it became clear that Bones had lost most of what made me watch it in the first place. The 100th episode, a gem amid the refuse of the rest of the season, only made the changes more obvious. We saw an analytical Bones, a surly Hodgins; we heard Booth call the team squints, and Zack claim that he didn't understand pop culture references. And the balance between the character development and the case gave those of us interested in solving mysteries enough to be satisfied. None of this remains.

The last episode was said to be a terrible end to a fantastic season. What season were those people watching? Besides, they weren't annoyed with the final episode, but with the time jump taking place during the break. The complaints weren't about how absurd Sweets break up with Daisy (Carla Gallo) was or about how strange it is that almost the entire team working at the Jeffersonian was able to take a full year off, just about the passage of time which we weren't going to get to see. Frankly, I think that aspect was the best choice made in the episode.

What could Bones do to get back on track? Give us another serial killer. Make the cases count. I don't want to watch a show about a couple who can't seem to realize they ought to be together - I've given up on Soap Operas. I watched Bones because I loved how, through forensics and evidence paired with the understanding of the human psyche, Bones and Booth worked together to solve cases. It's like a cake, where the icing was the character development. How many people really enjoy that much icing with almost no cake?

Despite the wonderful 100th episode, this season was mostly a waste of time. I give it a D.

If the Season 6 premiere isn't bloody brilliant AND doesn't promise a story arc for the season, I'm not watching anymore.