Bones - The Carpals in the Coy-Wolves - Review

This week's episode of Bones, entitled "The Carpals in the Coy-Wolves", was all about characters. I mean that in multiple senses of the word; characters from Brennan's books, as well as "characters" who bring a different humor and energy to the Jeffersonian ensemble.

One of my favorite things about this show is its ability to give its characters room to be themselves, and this episode definitely delivered. But more on that in a few paragraphs.

RECAP

The victim of the week was a real estate agent and fantasy footballer named Justin Ross. Over the course of the episode, we learn that Ross wasn't a particularly good coworker (courtesy of Buffy alum Tom Lenk), a bit of a horndog (for sleeping with a friend's wife), and an intensely competitive member of a football fantasy league (willing to trade players in exchange for forgiveness). In the end, his fantasy football commissioner got a little fed up with him...and fed him to the wolves.

That may be the quickest plot summary I've ever written, but as I mentioned, the main theme of this episode was characters.

The first character under discussion was Agent Andy, Brennan's fictional version of Booth. In the end of her latest book, Agent Andy was shot directly in the chest, and Booth was troubled by the notion that he might not survive. What would Kathy Reichs do without her trusty Agent Andy? And why would Brennan kill off the character based on her own husband?

Over at the Jeffersonian, two other characters made guest appearances on the show; the curmudgeonly-genius intern Dr. Wells (who we've seen before) and newcomer Dr. Beth Mayer, played by the fabulous Betty White.

Dr. Wells seemed more curmudgeonly than usual in this episode, which he soon admitted to Hodgins was the result of some erectile dysfunction. He took to the woods to try and work through his issues, shot Hodgins with a tranquilizer, and somehow rediscovered his mojo. So maybe his storyline didn't make an abundance of sense, but it did allow for some very funny lines about "no hard feelings" and "Mr. Happy", which had me giggling.

But most of the biggest laughs - and the biggest feels - came from White's character, Dr. Mayer. In addition to intuitively determining Dr. Wells' issues and throwing around the term "Mr. Happy", Mayer was also a source of innovation and expertise that floored both Angela and Brennan. In fact, it was Mayer who helped Brennan work through Booth's reaction to Agent Andy's death, and why Brennan wrote it that way in the first place; Brennan was feeling placid when she wrote the novel, and had subconsciously lashed out to elicit a response.

In the end, Brennan understood why Booth was upset, and Booth admitted he shouldn't have been upset in the first place. Characters, in every sense of the word, brought the episode to a sweet conclusion.

DISCUSSION

Last week, I kvetched a little bit about Booth bottling things up and how much I missed Sweets for his ability to get everyone talking. This week, I'm going to back track a little bit, because in the midst of their investigation in fantasy football, Brennan and Booth had a candid conversation about his gambling addiction. Then they ended the episode by acknowledging each others' perspectives on the death of Agent Andy! Were any of you fellow Boneheads surprised and/or delighted by these moments like I was?

If I had to pick the most delightful and surprising moment of this episode, though, it would definitely be Hodgins's video chat with Angela. Having been accidentally tranquilized by Dr. Wells in a previous scene, Hodgins slurred his way through the conversation with his wife while Woods stood shirtless in the background. The goofiness only increased with lines like, "...his wiener's feeling better..." This might be my favorite Hodgins moment in the whole series, but there are so many to choose from! What other Hodgins moments might rival this one?

As always, I am eager to know what you thought of the episode. Comment below, Boneheads!

About the Author - entropyki

Ki (aka entropyki) is a UX Researcher, roller derby enthusiast, Star Wars nerd, and road tripper. When she's not at a computer, she's driving, singing, watching TV, and generally being a badass, plus-sized twentysomething.

Favorite shows include Supernatural, Bones, Party Down, Futurama, Orange is the New Black, and Bojack Horseman.