Bones - The Stiff in the Cliff and The Jewel in the Crown - Review

Just one more episode until we conclude the 11th season of Bones! It's been a wild ride.

Well, maybe more like one of those spinning teacup rides. Or that train that goes around the edge of a theme park to make it easier to get around. Whatever.

Apart from a very creepy potential villain (which I think we'll get a glimpse of soon), season 11 has been pretty tame. The hardest hit has been the up-and-down recovery of Hodgins from his spinal injury - although things are looking up lately!

But I'm getting ahead of myself. We've got two episodes to cover: "The Stiff in the Cliff" and "The Jewel in the Crown". So let's recap.

RECAP

"The Stiff in the Cliff" focused on the death of an explorer and archaeologist named Henry Charles, who was killed during an expedition to uncover the remains of a Donner party-style group that met with disaster in a remote, icy landscape (the south pole, I think). Although Henry's death was purported to be an accident, the Jeffersonian team discovered that cause of death was actually homicide, and began the hunt for Henry's killer.

As it turned out, one of the suspects was quite close to home: Dr. Clark Edison, who interned and then briefly took over Brennan's role, and has been a fixture around the lab for 6 years. His role in the fateful expedition, and his silence about it, casts him into deep suspicion, but it turned out he was protecting the true killer from an unrelated crime of accidentally destroying historical evidence.

Meanwhile, Cam and her estranged sister, Felicia, attempted to mend fences by working on Cam's wedding plans together. Only problem: Felicia kept on making assumptions about what Cam wanted out of her wedding: something sleek and no-nonsense, practical and clean. We got to watch Cam privately ogle flouncy, poofy wedding dresses, and finally, admit that the wedding she really wanted would be outside of Felicia's assumptions. To our surprise, Felicia was totally accepting and not at all upset to adjust to Cam's wishes. Aww, family.

"The Jewel in the Crown" explored the murder of a French marquise - the wife of a modern-day royal discovered with a high-quality diamond nestled in her throat. Political intrigue, financial misdeeds, and jewelry theft all added to the cinematic mystery of it all, but it turned out that a spurned lover and part-time partner in crime was responsible for the aristocrat's death.

Booth struggled with some eyesight issues that ended up requiring some very squint-like specs, but of course Brennan kind of liked them (and so did I).

But the really interesting tidbit from this episode came from Hodgins, who seemed to be experiencing some interesting tremors in his immediate area. While he originally theorized tectonic shifting, and Daisy suggested a poltergeist, they eventually realized that the clinking noises and knocked-over trash cans were because of sporadic activity in Hodgins's lower legs; the paralysis may be conquerable after all!

DISCUSSION

Obviously, it's incredibly uplifting to think that Hodgins might be on the mend, but I think we all need to brace ourselves for the season finale; it's titled "The Nightmare in the Nightmare", and that doesn't exactly sound like a jaunt through the park.

I didn't find myself overly delighted by much in these two episodes: not much cheekiness or romanticism. Mostly I'm bracing myself for a big conclusion to the season. But how does everyone feel about this nutty schedule that FOX has been running this season? It's almost August; that's normally when some seasons START, and this one is just wrapping up. As a reviewer, I'm kind of bummed not to have a proper summer off, but as a Bones fan, at least I know that whatever happens at the end of season 11, it won't be too terribly long before they kick off season 12.

How did you feel about these episodes, dear readers? Or the season overall? Leave some comments! It's the squinty thing to do.

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 You're the Worst, Supernatural, Bones, Party Down, Futurama, Orange is the New Black, and Bojack Horseman.