On Thursday, November 3, 2011, “Bones” fans got what they had been anticipating for months—the season premiere. And not only was it an exciting season premiere, but an entirely new direction for the show, with lead characters Temperance Brennan and Seeley Booth finally taking their relationship to the next level.
In this Fox television show based on the novels written by Kathy Reichs, Temperance Brennan, a genius forensic anthropologist, and Seeley Booth, an FBI agent with a knack for reading people, investigate homicides together, and often end up learning more than just the answers to the murder mystery at hand. “Bones” has outlived many modern television shows, continuing on for six seasons and now on its seventh, with good reason.
With this season premiere, so many of the tensions that viewers have been living with for the past six seasons were resolved, especially, the romantic joining of Booth and Brennan with their newly expected child. However, what’s interesting is that Bones producers effectively avoided making the show lifeless, in its resolution between Booth and Brennan’s sexual tension, by presenting a new challenge – their child.
“They’re contending with a brand new relationship. ‘How together are they?’ is a question that needs answering. And how are they going to deal with having a child together? As we started banging out this season, it just gave us so many places to go with story,” Executive producer and show creator Hart Hanson said.
“I think to us, it was somewhat organic. We just continued to write Booth and Brennan in the same way, which were two completely disparate characters who agreed on very little on the surface. Only now, they’re dealing with a pregnancy and a relationship. So, it really seemed to be a natural extension of the previous six years of ‘Bones,’” Executive producer Stephen Nathan said.
When it comes to the connection between Booth and Brennan, they are the perfect balance and perfect contrast. She is entirely too literal and non-trusting, while Booth is full of whimsical phrases and smiles and faith. They always teach each other something about each case and about life, and they have the best conversations.
And, personally, I have always liked that balance that they create together. I’d have to say that the moments between them and the other characters get better and better as the seasons go by. I am glad of everything that has happened with their relationship in all the seasons thus far, and I am content with the way the producers have handled it. I am so glad that the producers didn’t just cop out and decide to throw Booth and Brennan into bed in an early season, but they decided to cultivate the relationship, let it grow slowly, and let the viewers see a relationship with deep conversations and deep moments. Also, seeing Brennan open up as a main character has been quite a journey. We have seen her go from a closed-off person who likes to be alone, to a person starting a family and learning how to be a mother.
The season premiere was not only a success in terms of Booth and Brennan, but it also showed the new elements of the other characters’ lives, such as Jack Hodgins and Angela Montenegro with their new child, born at the end of season six. This timing for Angela’s birth was so perfect, because now in this premiere episode, viewers got to see Angela guiding Brennan in her pregnancy, adding something special to their already tight friendship.
Essentially, this season premiere was not only the return of a show that so many have missed, but it was a springboard for the new direction of the show and its characters. Family will continue to be a large theme for the remainder of the season, finally giving viewers what they have desired for six seasons.
“What happens to the relationship between two people who share a child and love each other deeply? That’s our journey this year,” Hanson said.
