Bones 6x05 'The Bones That Weren't'

Could it be? A truly procedural episode of 'Bones'?... Yes!

What's it about?

A ballet dancer is murdered and Booth and Brennan are led to suspect a group of street dancers in the crime. Meanwhile, Booth's girlfriend Hannah is shot, leaving Booth to worry about her health.

Review

On the one hand you could say that this episode is a bit of a generic crime-of-the-week episode of 'Bones' rather than another example of the show at its creative best, particularly after the last episode screened before the month long break, but on the other hand you could say that this is a shining example of how 'Bones' can still rock even when it is playing the part of pure crime procedural.

We all know that what sets 'Bones' apart from the man 'CSI' type shows in the world is the fact that it's characters take precedent over its crimes so that their interpersonal relationship become the crux of the show and the crimes become secondary entertainment.

Well this week those relationships take a bit of a backseat (bar the obvious love triangle) and the crimes becomes the focal point of the episode and quite a crime it is too. We get our usual poor young fool who unwittingly stumbles across a bizarrely buried corpse in the teaser and from there the show experiments with what it would be like to be crime centric.

Instead of becoming bogged down (in a good way) by their own personal troubles each of the characters shine in their separate areas of the investigation and the teams pulls together to show what a crime fighting machine their really are. The prize for most cool moment in the show has to go to Angela and her laser skeleton model making machine, it actually rivals the long dead Angelator which has somehow morphed from cubic projector to awesome transparent monitor.

After over five years of episodes the audience will never forget the relationships which linger in the background here and that is probably the single most important reason as to why this episode works: because we care, we don't care this episode has none of what we expect.

What really matters this week is that these people are experts in their field and it was about time that we focussed on that, even for a moment, and allowed them the chance to do what they do best. All this does make me wonder what is coming up over the next few weeks if we are being lulled in this sense that everything is going well for the team and that they are at the top of their game.

We've all heard the spoilerific rumours that a member of the cast is going to be killed off this season so maybe this level of contentment we are currently experiencing is beginning of the build up to this potentially tragic episode.

The relationship between Brennan, Booth and Hannah is becoming more interesting to watch. The writers would be well aware that the majority of the audience would be rooting for her to be killed off or removed from the show as quickly as possible to allow our two leads to get together but instead of that they're doing the exact opposite and breaking our hearts in the process.

Where you would expect large amounts of screen time dedicated to Booth and Hannah exploring their relationship this week we're spending more time delving in to the relationship between the two most important women in Booth's life and it's proving to be more interesting that way.

As audience members we are starting to become conflicted: on the one hand we want to see Brennan and Booth get together but on the other hand we're witnessing that after years of social awkwardness Brennan can makes friends and be a real person. It's hard to tell sometimes which would be the more compelling to watch. 

Suddenly I find myself not rooting for Hannah to fall prey to one of the various murderers on the show!

Creatively we're seeing some experimentation on the show at the moment and I, for one, am enjoying it. I'd be happy to watch the format of any previous season of this show go on for years but it's a stronger testament to the faith that network have in the show that at this stage they're still allowing the writers to try new things and shake up the cast and characters even if the results are not what the audience are hoping for.

Can this show actually get any better?

Next week...

The past and present collide when human remains from a 150-year-old slave ship, the Amelia Rose, surface. The team is tasked to give the deceased a proper burial but make an unforeseen discovery linked to a recent murder. In the course of the investigation, Booth and Brennan are led to a different kind of ship—a cougar cruise—where they learn their victim was seen moments before his death. Meanwhile, Sweets struggles to maintain a casual relationship with Daisy, and Cam discovers a surprising and emotional connection to the Amelia Rose. 

Overall

Story    4.5

Character   4.0

Crime solving    4.5

Overall    4.5

Fringe 3x05 'Amber 31422'

 Back from a break and 'over there' Olivia is starting to realise all is not what it seems...

What's it about?

In the alternate universe, the Fringe Department investigates a shocking breach of security when a twin frees his brother (guest stars Shawn and Aaron Ashmore) from an area quarantined in amber. Walternate reveals to Broyls that the people in Amber are in fact alive; trapped in suspended animation and if people learnt the truth it would lead to revolt has they are nessary to keep the amber containment stable. Meenwhile the freed brother is slowly revovering from his ordeal; watched over by his wife and family who plan to protect him from Fringe division who would experiment on him to make the Amber more efficiant if they caught him. Olivia works out the brother they thought was trapped in amber was his twin who took over his brother's life after his attempt to rob a bank with a phase devise led to a dimensional breach and trapped his brother in amber. As the team sets out to crack this sophisticated case, Walternate experiments more with Olivia as she reenters the tank. Meanwhile, visions of Peter continue to haunt Olivia about returning to the prime universe.

Review

'Fringe' is back! After a few weeks away my favourite show is back on the air with one of the highlights of the season so far. Sadly the show continues to drop in the ratings and I fear that despite the outwardly positive attitude of the writers discussion will soon turn to the potential lack of a fourth season.

I hope that it won't come to that as I genuinely believe that the loss of a show like this would leave a huge gap in the genre on mainstream TV. Other shows like 'The Event' do a good job of bolstering the science fiction seen on our screens but this show has such a unique point of view (unless, like me, you're currently watching 'Deep Space Nine' on DVD and notice the similarities to the alternative universe theories used there) of the subject matter that it deserves to be watched by all.

That being said this weeks episode shows how purely sci-fi this show can be. JJ Abrams shows have a flair for great cinematography and certain shots in this episode screen out classic sci-fi. There's jaunty angles, lens flares aplenty and any avid viewer would be happily lapping it up from start to finish.

It's good that after a period of jumping back and fourth between universes with no connection we're starting to build towards something far more grand. It may be that as production on the season began the writers felt that keeping the universes totally separate for a prolonged period of time might dissuade certain viewers from tuning in every week (we'll see how the ratings look once the universes collide) and so decided that instead of slowly introducing Olivia's revelation that she has been brainwashed into thinking she is from 'over there' they just decided to crash land the whole realisation into this one episode. Of course it works, on 'Fringe' it always works.

That wasn't all that was going on this week, there was also the very interesting story of what actually happens to the members of the public who are trapped in amber following one of the events which so regularly take place in this broken universe.

From it's first appearance I've wondered if something more would be made of this very out-of-the-box method of containment and at last it has. It might have been the obvious choice to decide that those trapped inside were still alive but in a form of suspended animation but it was at least played out in an original way.

The story featuring the Ashmore Bros could have easily been a pap story-of-the-week and to a degree it was but with the added injection of conscience which made it all the more interesting to watch. There were a couple of twists which I didn't immediately see coming and the story did a good job of subtly moving Olivia towards the point she needed to be at the end of the episode.

This is a show which doesn't put the special guest stars face on the camera for the pure sake of saying 'look who we've got on our show!' and I like that they were used for their genuine acting technique and not the potential exposure brought by their name.

I do feel this show is underusing the character of Marilyn Dunham (Amy Madigan) quite drastically. Her extremely brief appearance in this episode could be attributed to the fact that our Olivia is currently convinced she that her mother has always been in her life in contrast to the reality that she lost her at a young age but there's a lot less chemistry between the two here than in the season premiere. I would much prefer to see the angst it causes when our Olivia comes in to contact with her knowing that once she returns home she will once again be an orphan.

This season can also be accused of underusing the characters of Nina and Broyles. At least Broyles currently exists in the alternate universe and has a part to play, even if it is a derivative leadership role compared to that which he has in our universe. Nina has barely been seen on screen this season and that is a serious loss to the show.

It has been a point of fan talk online that we have yet to meet the alternate universe version of Nina so I hope that one day we are introduced to her in whatever form she currently takes. When considering her role in charge of the day-to-day running of Massive Dynamic over here there's room for some serious contrast with her over there counterpart.

There's some room for improvement with the show so far this season but I can't fault the storytelling as it is taking the show in a very interesting direction, I just hope the network is prepared to take us on that journey with less viewers rather than cut the show off before it has a chance to reveal what the real master plan is.

Next week...

In the prime universe, the Fringe Division investigates a bizarre phenomenon when fifteen people suffer retrograde amnesia from listening to their shortwave radios on the same frequency. Much to Walter’s dismay, Peter presses on with piecing together the mass destruction device. Just as alternate Olivia and Peter’s chemistry deepens, the anticipation of Olivia’s return escalates.

Overall

Story   4.0

Character   4.0

Science   3.5

Overall   4.0

Private Practice 4x06 'All In The Family'

It's all getting a bit serious on 'Private Practice'

What's it about?

A comatose, pregnant patient puts a strain on Addison and Sam's relationship when they disagree over treatment. Pete and Charlotte are in an ethical dilemma about whether to reveal an auto accident victim's HIV status. Violet gets caught up in Lucas's first Halloween which puts her at odds with Pete's family.

Review

Wow! Wow wow wow! This was a tough one to watch and not just for the ending. There was a lot going on in this episode and sadly as I was aware of how it ended I was preparing myself for it throughout most of the rest of what was going on.

This was a hiding behind a pillow kind of episode and not in the halloween sense. Between the sexual assault (or not) of a comatose patient, the sexual assault on Charlotte, and the continued break down and build up of the Pete/Violet marriage there was a definite push to take this show in a direction to match it's new darker appearance.

I've commented before that early episodes of this show featured a much brighter tone as well as a much wider colour pallet, not anymore, this season the colours have gotten much darker and the lighting has changed to match the tone and in episodes such as this one it perfectly compliments the story which is on show here.

We've talked before about how Shonda Rhimes is not afraid to shy away from tough subject matter and this episode is chocked full of them. Thankfully I don't feel that I can accuse any of the stories in this episode as being included purely for shock value, each story makes sense in its own way and adds to the moral of the story about keeping things in the family.

There are big bumps in the road ahead for all concerned in this episode but lets not dwell on the ending just yet.

The story surrounding the comatose yet somehow pregnant wife is the earliest shocker in the episode and as much as I saw it coming there was still a gasp of 'urgh!' when it was revealed what was going on. But once you have time to think clearly about the relationship between the husband and wife it's a tough call to make and a very good social commentary of what happens when you don't fully lose a partner. Was he wrong? Or was he justified to continue having relations with his still breathing wife?

We're not here to discuss the semantics of the show, we're here to discuss how good it was. Plain and simple. And it was good.

This story also gave a bit more screen time to Amelia who, despite being new to the show, is proving to be a big contender in the ensemble and definitely worthy of much more meat to her scenes. She provides a good balance to Addison's emotional imbalance much in the way that the character of Naomi would in earlier seasons. Call me crazy but I'm pretty sure she's being setup as a replacement for the eventual full departure of Naomi at some point in the future.

The halloween story for Pete and Violet is both touching and a little tiresome. I understand that they are finding their footing as a couple and doing it in a post wedding environment but if each week there is going to be a stumbling block for them then they are going to become hard to separate from Charlotte and Cooper. This week the story does at least serve a serious purpose: to explain to us much more about the family background of Pete and help us understand a little more of why he is the way he is.

After four seasons it's nice to have his background filled out some more, not that it has ever been seriously lacking but now that it's been mentioned its suddenly obvious that in the past this has almost completely been glossed over.

Violet's need to emulate her mother and provide the perfect halloween for Lucas is sweet to say the least, having the little guy onscreen always lights up the scene and this week is no different. Particularly when he is seen in his little halloween costume.

After a season of wanting so much for her to connect with her child it is brilliant to see Violet being given the chance to spend some on screen time being a proper Mommy to him. Violet has spent so much screen time being maternal towards other characters on the show it was about time we got to see her being maternal towards her own child.

Now for that ending. It was very well constructed, particularly the way in the which the guest character played by 'Buffy' alum Nicholas Brendan is introduced. Instead of building a character from teaser to cliffhanger he is not even seen on screen until very near the climax of the episode and even then at no point is his face seen on the screen.

Firstly this doesn't take away from the episode by having the viewer screaming 'look! It's Xander!!!'  but also it reflects the way that when such a violent crime is committed in real life the attacker is so often faceless. I don't want to make too much of a comment on real life crimes such as this as I have no experience and wouldn't wish to offend but as a viewer I felt this reflected very much how I would expect such an act to feel.

The character of Charlotte has changed so much from season one and in that time she has become possibly my favourite character on the show. To see her growing up and settling down with Cooper is quite heartwarming in a show where relationships aren't often given the chance to succeed so to witness such a horrific act being carried out on her was quite distressing and I hope that over the course of the rest of the season she can move on without being irrevocably damaged.

Those scenes were very moving and judging by the sneak peak of next weeks episode there is much more to come...

Next week...

Pete discovers Charlotte at the hospital after she's brutally attacked but she only tells Addison that she was also sexually assaulted.

Overall

Story    4.5

Character    4.5

Medical content    4.0

Overall    4.5

Private Practice 4x05 'In Or Out'

The calm before a rather nasty storm on 'Private Practice'

What's it about?

Much to her displeasure, Addison is teamed with a new oncologist, Dr. Rodriguez, to treat a newborn baby with a malignant tumor; when Violet and Sheldon visit a prison in order to interview inmates who are up for parole, Pete is highly uncomfortable as Violet tries to help a parolee; and Addison and Violet suggest Sheldon could be the solution for Amelia's needs.

Review

'Private Practice' is rapidly becoming one of the shows that I rush to watch first when I get it, it's only bested by 'Fringe' and 'Bones' on a Friday evening once all shows have appeared on my desktop and there are big things coming up for these characters which will no doubt change the outlook of the show.

In the meantime lets deal with some semi-serious subject matter and take a serious look at where are characters are in their lives. I'm happy to see that Addison is still not truly out of the neurotic woods and still suffering with some inadequacies when it comes to her relationships, as much as I want her to be happy I don't want it to be so easy for her that it feels unnatural to watch.

I want so much for Charlotte and Cooper to be happy but there's a major speed bump to come in the form of a guest starring role from Nicholas Brendan and I'm become wary of the situation with Pete and Violet.I genuinely thought that their marriage was going to signal a happy outlook to the season and although I didn't expect it to be completely plain sailing for the couple I hadn't realised that they would become such a volatile couple, at this stage I'm not entirely convinced that their marriage will last the season.

As I've mentioned previously the character of Naomi has been given a serious backseat on this show of late but for once she's not overly missed this week as Amelia is given a storyline of her very own, albeit a humorous side story, which occupies the screen time which would normally be taken up by Naomi.

There's some backlash from the loss of Betsy in the previous episode, a storyline which creator Shonda Rhimes has received some serious flack for, which is a nice nod to continuity over the week-by-week nature of the show. Watching the previous episode I felt that I understood the decision by all parties involved that it was best for Betsy to have a new family and not be permanently surrounded by reminders of her dead parents. I was most shocked to see that certain viewers felt this to be an oustandingly bad choice on behalf of the writers and that some felt this was the time to jump ship from the show.

Onwards and upwards there is a nice change of pace with the inclusion of an outside medical character who provides an outlook on diagnosis to two new parents which is not normally seen on the show. It's rare that a patient is offered treatment that's not provided by one of our main characters so to branch the show out in to other areas was a nice change and would be welcomed again in the future.

Looking at the rehabilitation of convicts is also new territory for the show and made for some interesting viewing, it's not easy to take a character who has such a dark background and make them vulnerable but it's done here with a serious degree of realism and doesn't jar from the more run-of-the-mill aspects of the show.

Each week I talk about how successful this show is becoming at juggling the ensemble cast so take note, it's still doing so and I'm still impressed.

From here on in it's going to get a bit serious for the next few weeks but hopefully it will be worth it readers!

Next week...

A comatose, pregnant patient puts a strain on Addison and Sam's relationship when they disagree over treatment. Pete and Charlotte are in an ethical dilemma about whether to reveal an auto accident victim's HIV status. Violet gets caught up in Lucas's first Halloween which puts her at odds with Pete's family.

Overall

Story    4.0

Character    4.5

Medical content    3.0

Overall    4.0

Supernatural 6x05 'Live Free or Twihard'

It's time for the inevitable 'Twilight' parody...

What's it about?

During a fight with vampires, Dean is bitten and transformed. To obtain a cure, Samuel tells Dean to get the blood of the vampire that bit him. However, the vampire alpha is part of the pack that Dean must infiltrate.

Review

Where to begin? I've mentioned it before but 'Supernatural' has been one of my favourite shows for the past five years and I've been afraid that going in to an unexpected season six that I would end up regretting the fact that it had continued beyond the original plans of creator Eric Kripkie.

Unfortunately I am drastically close to reaching this conclusion, 'Supernatural' has gone from the show I'm desperate to watch the second I have access to it to the show I watch once I've seen everything else. Previous episode 'A Weekend At Bobby's' did go some way to improving my outlook on the season but the first 25-30 minutes of this episode undid all that work.

Eventually a show like 'Supernatural' has to parody the pop culture equivalents of its time; namely 'The Vampire Diaries' and 'Twilight' both of which I'm told a phenomena but neither of which I care for too much. I've seen the 'Twilight'  movies but never read a book and I quit 'Diaries' after the title card of the pilot.

Fair enough this episode does show the potential dangers of being a superfan of these franchises if we were to live in a world where monsters were real but beyond that this is nothing more than a gimmick episodes and in my opinion there are too many of these floating around at the moment.

When you consider previous vampire episodes of this show they have taken the idea of the bloodsucker and put a new spin on their motivations. In particular the episode guest starring Amber Benson springs to mind. This episode does none of that. At least not until the closing minutes of the show.

We do have the required moment of 'ooooh so Sam is evil?' when he clearly allows his brother to be turned in to a vampire, on a side note do not get me started on the extremely obvious plot device of the vampire 'cure' which never existed before, but aside from this there is nothing original in these plot on show here.

Clearly there are ulterior motives to both Grandpa Campbell and our young Sam but neither of which are going to be outed any time soon so be prepared to sit through many evil glares and long lasting close-up shots. 

I'll bet my entire life savings on the fact that one of them will be the 'alpha' character who is references in this episode, I assume this is the beginning of ramping up the storyline of monsters acting weird.

All moaning aside once Dean gets hold of machete and lets lose on the vampires nest this episode gets interesting. It's good to see some blood splatter for once, I think the violence factor is something that has been sorely missing from recent episodes, and also good to see a villain which actually puts up a good fight.

Save for the violence there's not a lot to save this episode apart from the drug induced trip that Dean undertakes in order to return to human form but even then you could accuse this of being a plot device in order to have him remember that it was Sam who allowed him to be turned and further the distrust between the brothers.

There's not a lot outrightly wrong with this episode but then again there's not a lot right with it either. The writers really need to buck up their ideas of I might have to consider jumping ship before the end.

Next week...

When several people kill themselves under strange circumstances, Sam and Dean discover that they were driven insane by the Goddess of Truth, who forced them to tell the truth against their will. However, when the brothers track down the goddess Veritas, she uses her powers on Dean.

Overall

Story    2.5

Character    3.0

Scares    2.5    

Overall    3.0