Bones: Boy In The Shroud

Boy, there was a lot going on this episode, besides the crime that Booth and the specialists at the Jeffersonian Institution were trying to solve. There was tension, a touch of romance between two of the specialists, and a continuing theme of children and family that has permeated the second season. So, without preamble, I go forth.

One of the things about Bones is they don't mess around getting to the point of the story. This week was no different as the show opened with Agent Booth and members of the Jeffersonian at the scene of an accident where they find a decomposed body wrapped in a shroud. Back at the Institution, computer specialist Angela Montenegro is able to pull tissue imprints from the shroud to produce a facial image of the young man who died. This week Angela played a more pivotal role, which didn't include a visit to her magical holographic box.

It turns out that the victim was dating a street girl who was part of the foster system. She and her brother (save that information for later) were able to stay together in the same foster home for over a year now, but were about to be separated. The girl had disappeared after her boyfriend's death and hadn't been seen since. So, it was now up to Booth and Bones to find out how the victim died and where the girlfriend was.

In the meantime, tensions were heating up between Bones and her new boss Doctor Cam Saroyan. This became very apparent when Bones wanted her associate Jack Hodgins, to research a rose that was found in the dead boy's hands while Cam wanted him to analyze hundreds of rust samples on the hunch that the boy was killed with a rusty metal pipe. Bones won the skirmish, but not without Cam's ominous warnings about replacing her. Of course, if she left the Institution the show would probably be over and I'd be watching a dark screen for 60 minutes.

While this was stewing, Agent Booth and Bones continued their search for the dead boy's girlfriend. They, well really Bones, thought some of the other street kids would be willing to give up information on her whereabouts. They weren't, but a married couple passing out aspirin and sandwiches to the little urchins did know of her last whereabouts, which was in an abandoned warehouse. One thing was clear at this point in the investigation: the boy plunged out of one of the warehouse windows to his death. The only suspect so far: his girlfriend.

Then again, maybe not. It seems like the 'Sandwich and Aspirin' guy was trading his wares for sex with underage girls. He denied it, but that pretty much flew out the window when he was discovered dead with a bullet to his chest. At first, Bones thought the boy's death and this new one were connected. Nope. Actually, it was the man's wife who shot him. One crime solved, but still no answer to who killed the boy. This, even after the boy's girlfriend confessed to the murder.

Angela to the rescue once again. Through a bit of role-playing Booth and the other members of the investigation team re-enacted events as they thought happened at the warehouse. After some keen deduction they realized that the girlfriend wasn't trying to her boyfriend but to save him after someone else hit him with a rusty metal pipe. That second person . . . the girl's brother, who was pissed at both her and the boyfriend for splitting his family up. With that solved the only other item to clear up was the relationship between Cam and Bones. In the end a mutual agreement was made that allowed Doctor Brennan to defy Cam three times per week.

Okay, frankly I knew it was the brother as soon as I saw him; credit it to watching hours of Law & Order. Yet, it was the way they came to that conclusion that was entertaining. Where last week's episode was extremely heavy in the scientific portion of the investigation, this episode relied more heavily on characterization. There were some very nice touches, especially the interaction between Angela and Hodgins. Remember, I don't watch this show much, so I don't know if this little romantic thing Hodgins has is a carryover. If it is, it's a cute one that's a nice inclusion to the show. Now, I'd like to see a bit more of grad student Zach Addy.