Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

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ThyneAlone
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Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by ThyneAlone »

I'm starting my re-watches of S1 fairly randomly, with one of my all-time favourites. For me, 'Superhero' is a microcosm of the elements that make Bones stand out from similar procedurals. It is a forensic (pun unintentional, I've just spotted it) examination of a certain type of person which the squints are all perceived by outsiders to be - nerds, geeks, obsessives at a lonely distance from reality. The redemption of Warren Granger's character and his elevation to true superhero status in the context of reality, rather than divorced from it, is simultaneously the recognition of the team's relevance to society and caring for one another.

As with many of the S1 eps, I like the intro. It doesn't actually commence with Bones and Booth already at the scene of the crime, but with a news report which sets the death in context. Warren has been cast out onto a rubbish heap in the manner that society disposes of and alienates those who do not conform with its dictates. It's interesting that the initial examination has a warmer quality than in some of the later seasons; these people definitely care about the victim as a human being. Even the jokes over the remains are gentler, softer ("don't use your charm smile on me" - intriguing observation from someone who theoretically has trouble perceiving subtext, humour and the ways people have of relating to one another). Brennan is really quite different. She is more communicative and understanding; neither her face nor her speech has the robotic quality which becomes irritating in later episodes. Sure, she doesn't comprehend pop culture references, but she doesn't dismiss them as irrelevant. Neither does Zack. The fact that this victim was seemingly completely immersed in the comic book world simply piques their intellectual curiosity and their immediate reaction is to find out more about it. Look at Zack's enthusiasm to broaden his knowledge with research. He sits down and reads dozens of comic books to help him understand the victim's mindset. He even finds philosophical/anthropological ways of interpreting his reading matter. The 'Darwinian struggle between avians and mammals' is a fantastic twist on Wile E. Coyote in my humble opinion. These people have the pure scientist's excitement about something new.

Our insights into Warren's personality deepen as we move further into the episode. Initially we see the view of the outside world. His stepdad describes him as an individual who is always alone. He is said to have no friends and no enemies. This is society's traditional perception of the nerd (notice the separation of the idea of 'geeks' and 'nerds' in this episode, by the way). Warren has no personal elements in his room except for his comic books. His sole interest seems to have been writing his own graphic novels. The team begins to think that perhaps he was consumed by his own fantasy and had no grounding in real life at all. Maybe he was Citizen 14, not Warren, maybe that character had taken over completely. Booth's comment that Brennan is very like Warren can be translated into mild insult at this stage.

Moving further towards an understanding of Warren, we now meet the caricaturish Doomsday group at the comic store - that is, after seeing what adults think of him, we now see him through his peers' eyes. These adolescents, apparently like Warren, are literally playing at being someone different (though one of them objects, saying " 'Play' is not the right word"!) Abigail of the blue hair is the only one who, through her connection with Warren, has realised that they are mere posers; he, on the other hand, was someone who believed in doing good and being remembered for his contribution to society. He "believed in truth and right" she says. Leaving the group, Brennan claims she doesn't like to judge an entire subculture, BUT.. and the conversation turns to 'dark' nerds, 'Columbine' nerds - those who clearly have lost their grip on reality.

When we return to the lab, there are two very significant scenes. In the first, amusing, vignette, Goodman is reading the comic books and holding forth about the fact that the writer is in pain. Writers, he asserts, often reveal more than they wish about themselves in their oeuvre. When Brennan indignantly denies that her fiction displays anything about her real-life attitudes, the others calmly point out that she has more or less stated that archaeologists are good administrators because they enjoy tedium; that artists are doomed to a life of loneliness because they can't get past instant gratification; that FBI agents are hot and that Angela wants to sleep with Booth! Cue embarrassed and disconsolate Brennan!

The other scene is more serious, but also telling. Zack actually opens up to Brennan. The graphic novels he has been reading are retellings of great myths, and he would love to have some of these superpowers. Why? asks Brennan directly. Because, says Zack, "I'm weird. I make people feel stupid and they resent me for it." Upon which Brennan shows genuine understanding for his yearning and tells him that he does have real-life superpowers that make a difference to the world around him. Zack is showing an awareness and she is showing a compassion which are far beyond what the world considers a nerd capable of. Warren, too was capable of this. Slowly dying of leukaemia, he had hidden his deteriorating physical state and his knowledge of imminent death from his parents in order to save them pain. And chosen to try to be remembered for his actions - 'make a difference to the world before he died'.

Later we learn that Citizen 14's desire to save the Opalescence from the Twisted is a kind of allegory of Warren's desire to rescue someone he loved and looked up to from her abusive husband. Notice how furious Brennan is after the first contact with the man, when she picks up from very minor clues that he is beating his wife. Again she is reading emotions and body language unusually well, almost as well as Booth, who has to calm her down. He, rather than she, is the one with the reminder that they need solid evidence. It is major feelgood gold at the end when she throws McGruder to the ground.

And when the case has been solved, that is not the end of it. The squints respectfully attend Warren's funeral. Angela inks out a tender, valedictory panel expressing Citizen 14's victory and the Opalescence's thanks as a gift to his parents. They have all worked together and they are all there at the closure.

Teamwork, an analysis of what it means to be a 'nerd', with a dismissal of the stereotype, a more rounded Brennan (she looks better, too); I love all these elements. I like the humour sprinkled throughout to leaven the heavy subject matter. The only pill in the jam is the lack of proper Hodgins interaction. Though I don't think they did exploit his abilities as much as they should have in S1 anyway. And my only question would be, why are all these interviews conducted in situ? Why don't we see that FBI interrogation room (not that I'm complaining, it's a dismal place)?
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Re: Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by skftex »

This one is not one of my favorite episodes, it is okay but there are things that annoy me.

Cullen is out in the field! That is a lot of maggots walking all over that body. Booth thinks his clothes are some kind of sexual bondage suit? LOL Brennan doesn’t have time to do this case I guess, so Booth uses charm on her.

Hodgins says that it is a Graphic Novel, and then tells Brennan it is a comic book when she doesn’t know what that is, but lots of people who read them would explain that they are not. That is one of the things that bug me about this episode, I feel like these people, who should know better, are very judgmental of the whole cosplay/comics/graphic novel thing without really understanding. I guess at least they sort of understand later but still lots of kind of mean things said about a pretty much perfectly innocent type of entertainment. Anyway, then Hodgins assumes Zack would be a comic book guy because he likes Science Fiction stuff and again that is a bit judgmental.

Then the parents, at least the step dad seems so close minded. Maybe if he’d taken a little interest in the things that the Warren was interested in, he wouldn’t have seemed so closed off. Instead it sounds like he was always telling him that he needed to be “normal” and stop doing the things that interested him. At least Booth says that it is quite normal for an American male to read comic books. Actually it is quite normal for an American (or any nationality) female to read them too. Nothing wrong with it at all. I do get that maybe this kid was a bit too focused on these things. It is strange to me that he had a computer and had nothing personal on it, though how Brennan could tell that from just looking at the desktop screen I don’t know. Just because it doesn’t have an icon or doesn’t show up in the START menu doesn’t mean it isn’t there! LOL She can tell in two seconds he has nothing on his computer. Maybe he did that because his parents also look at the computer that way. ;)

I think it is really rude of Booth to say “Guys, this is a real live woman” to the Doomsday group, there is a female sitting right there. These guys are a bit of a gloomy group though. Brennan is actually talking about someone having social awkwardness. Then Brennan judges an entire subculture and so does Booth. Okay say they are odd, but don’t just lump them people that do bad things because they like to dress up. Those kids showed absolutely no indication they were like the Columbine kids. They were very invested into their play but that doesn’t mean they are going to kill people or did kill someone. They were a bit distrustful of authority but a lot of teenagers are, so he shouldn’t be surprised about that.

Zack analyzing the comics and graphic novels is funny because Brennan is just talking about the bones and he’s just going on and on about superpowers. He wants some of the superpowers, and Brennan tells him why fantasize, he’s smart. And we get the parallel here between Zack, and that group of kids that call themselves the Doomsday group. Zack’s intelligence isolates him, their interest in dressing up and having an identity isolates them. Interesting that Brennan has more sympathy for Zack than she displayed for the Doomsday group.

The scene where they are using the Angelator showing how Warren gets murdered is very disturbing. I guess it should be since it is murder but not all the recreations seem quite so violent.
Zack is doing research reading a comic book. Hodgins says it is Bugs Bunny but when you look at the page facing the camera, it is Sylvester and Tweety! Okay yes, I know my cartoon characters. ;) HAHAHA Zack is confused how Daffy blows up but doesn’t. Then Hodgins notices the bones are degraded! GO HODGINS.

Another thing I don’t understand how is Warren that sick with leukemia and his parents not notice? The step-father saying that Warren wouldn’t let them in, maybe but still someone that sick, how do they not see it? Also, he’s a minor, how were the parents not informed by the doctor?
Finally Booth says something nice about Warren, he was looking how to be a man, all on his own without any help, and he was doing the best he could. It changes motivations for Warren Granger, he went looking for a fight. Brennan says they are allowing the comic book to generate too many hypotheses and Hodgins says he only heard the “Go get the bad guy” hypothesis. :D

Wow that would have to be one deep wound, to get a piece of bone out of it! OUCH!

So the bowling alley guy killed Warren. I like the scene where Angela is drawing the ending for the comic.

Like I said, not one of my very favorites, I think if I were to rank the episodes in season 1 this one wouldn’t be at the bottom but because so many of the other episodes are very strong, this one would get pushed down to the lower half.
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Re: Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by ThyneAlone »

...And that is what this is all about, folks, different ways of seeing the same subject matter! Hopefully this will prompt others to come in on this, I think the seemingly near-opposing slants are intriguing and provocative! I say 'seemingly', Sharon; actually you say loads that I agree with. I just think the ep itself is trying to work its way through some of the erroneous stereotypes displayed throughout and comes out with the positive concept that despite their lack of self-esteem, their uncertainty, their rebellious pose as they try to find some kind of adult identity, the vast majority of adolescents have not only the potential and the idealism to become good and contributing 'citizens', but often tremendous reserves of courage too, especially when standing up for what they consider right and just. I have seen this in hundreds of young people growing up. Believe me, they really can turn into horrendous, deliberately created self-caricatures, comic-book style, at the age of 14 or 15 (girls earlier, in my experience and hubby's), and it's my job to find the decent kid at the bottom of all this nonsense and nurture him/her.
skftex wrote:Hodgins says that it is a Graphic Novel, and then tells Brennan it is a comic book when she doesn’t know what that is, but lots of people who read them would explain that they are not. That is one of the things that bug me about this episode, I feel like these people, who should know better, are very judgmental of the whole cosplay/comics/graphic novel thing without really understanding.
I so agree with this! People certainly like to plunge in head first to judge subjects of which they have little or no understanding or knowledge. Equating comic books with graphic novels (which I find really interesting and creative, but then I like comic books too!) is an appalling simplification. And this from someone who hates the word ‘dirt’! But of course it's not just the cosplay/cult media which is disparaged, but anything in which a group of individuals is totally immersed and with which many very intelligent people, not always young, are fascinated. I'm a naturally obsessive individual - as is the rest of my family (I suspect many of the compassionate and wonderful people on this site are, in fact) - and the amount of sneering we have had to put up with because of our interests over the years is just plain unacceptable. Brennan's definition of nerds as individuals with high intelligence and basic reasoning skills is spot on.
skftex wrote:Then the parents, at least the step dad, seems so close minded. Maybe if he’d taken a little interest in the things that the Warren was interested in, he wouldn’t have seemed so closed off. Instead it sounds like he was always telling him that he needed to be “normal” and stop doing the things that interested him.
Yes, the stepdad is crudely drawn (is he a stepdad to underline the difference between him and Warren - just one further removal?), but on the whole teenagers are trying to attain adulthood and become independent by consciously (or subconsciously) differentiating themselves from their parents. On a very basic level this does mean liking stuff that the adults don't understand! But since parents are the adults, with the experience and hindsight, they need to try to see beyond the rebellion, rather than regard it as a withdrawal from society in general and them in particular. So hard not to take it personally though.
skftex wrote:At least Booth says that it is quite normal for an American male to read comic books. Actually it is quite normal for an American (or any nationality) female to read them too.
Yeah, as you point out, there is a girl involved in all this! Why does Booth imagine it's only males who get deep into things? Obviously never been to a convention. :D
skftex wrote:It is strange to me that he had a computer and had nothing personal on it, though how Brennan could tell that from just looking at the desktop screen I don’t know. Just because it doesn’t have an icon or doesn’t show up in the START menu doesn’t mean it isn’t there!

Mmm, hardly realistic. Teenagers broadcast their thoughts and feelings on a broad band, not just on the computer but all over the Internet; blogs, pictures, poems, Twitter and FaceBook, everywhere. And Brennan saying he has nothing personal on the machine from the desktop is mindbogglingly silly.
skftex wrote:I think it is really rude of Booth to say “Guys, this is a real live woman” to the Doomsday group, there is a female sitting right there. These guys are a bit of a gloomy group though. Brennan is actually talking about someone having social awkwardness. Then Brennan judges an entire subculture and so does Booth. Okay say they are odd, but don’t just lump them with people that do bad things because they like to dress up. Those kids showed absolutely no indication they were like the Columbine kids. They were very invested into their play but that doesn’t mean they are going to kill people or did kill someone. They were a bit distrustful of authority but a lot of teenagers are, so he shouldn’t be surprised about that.
Totally agree. The Columbine remark is just insulting. You can’t say that every obsessive individual is unbalanced or mentally ill! I think the writers are attempting to show it’s wrong to judge in this way (and also, incidentally, given the profile of the group they have just met, that young people can be every bit as intolerant and judgmental as adults), but writers, if you want to convey this, don’t do it through the most popular and principal characters in the show, duh. They are the ones people see as role models!
skftex wrote:Zack analyzing the comics and graphic novels is funny because Brennan is just talking about the bones and he’s just going on and on about superpowers….And we get the parallel here between Zack, and that group of kids that call themselves the Doomsday group. Zack’s intelligence isolates him, their interest in dressing up and having an identity isolates them. Interesting that Brennan has more sympathy for Zack than she displayed for the Doomsday group.


These are brilliant points that I wish I’d brought up. Brennan and Zack really are talking AT one another in the way that autism sufferers sometimes do (I do know about this – one of my sons was diagnosed as mildly autistic when he was young, although it turned out to be a wrong diagnosis) – not connecting for a while, before Brennan suddenly catches on. And of course Zack and the Doomsday people do have a lot in common, and we are meant to notice this. Of course, there is one notable difference; Zack is prepared to listen and learn. Brennan probably sympathises more with Zack partly because of this and partly, I would speculate, he is ‘strange’ in a way which is more familiar to her.
skftex wrote:Another thing I don’t understand how is Warren that sick with leukemia and his parents not notice? The step-father saying that Warren wouldn’t let them in, maybe but still someone that sick, how do they not see it? Also, he’s a minor, how were the parents not informed by the doctor?
Good point about being a minor; if it’s been in remission, this is a recurrence which might not be noticed at first, but I can’t believe he doesn’t have frequent check-ups. However, I can believe that it is possible to hide even something very serious in order not to cause family pain. My mother-in-law concealed her cancer so effectively that 2 days before her death, her body completely riddled with it, her doctor prescribed her painkillers and anti-depressants. Impossible to conceive, I know, but it does happen.

Fabulous review, Sharon, very thought-provoking and insightful; excellent read.
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Re: Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by Sinkwriter72 »

I really don't have much to say about this episode that Sharon and Steph haven't already covered beautifully. :romance-smileyheart:

It's not one of my favorite Season 1 episodes. I tend to forget its virtues when it's been a while since I've watched it, but it does have good points. In fact, for an episode I tend to rate lower in my list of Season 1 favorites, it still has a strong story.

I think what I struggle most with in watching this episode is Booth's attitude. For all that I loved him in the previous episode (Woman in the Car), I kind of want to smack him for his condescension in this episode.

He repeatedly makes assumptions about the "nerds" of the episode, essentially sneering at them all and comparing them to the disturbed individuals of the Columbine massacre (a mental leap that is wildly unfair, insulting and off base). I think this is a side we see emerge from Booth, from time to time, how he gets snarky and insulting about things he doesn't understand. This is not unlike how defensive he got in the Boy in a Tree episode, where he didn't like anything that reminded him of his more modest upbringing and schooling -- he didn't have the experiences Brennan and Zack and Hodgins did, so he mocked it all mercilessly instead.

I find it a little disappointing to see this side of him, especially after he's spent much of the season getting to know the squints and Brennan on a deeper level. I would have hoped he'd learned that not every stereotype is true or applicable, and that there is more to each individual person, no matter what you initially see or assume. Also, given his gift for assessing people, I'm a little annoyed that he doesn't seem to see any deeper (or care to). He just treats them all with disdain, judgment, condescension and mocking. For example, as Sharon points out, with his "Guys, this is a real, live woman." :doh:

And Brennan should know this about people as well, especially given her profession which involves digging deeper and not relying on supposition or first glances to see the truth of the artifacts and remains that she studies. Plus, given how smart the so-called nerds probably are (for example, they probably have a ton of knowledge about myths from across the ages because those myths feed into the fantasy stories they love), these people would be more "her people" than, say, the rappers in Man in the Wall.

For someone who's being very judgmental, Booth's very good at putting it on other people instead. The way he snaps at Brennan, for example: "You know, could you, please, Bones, maybe just for once try not to PISS EVERYONE OFF around you?" He says that with quite a bit of ire.

Which is sad, because in the end, Brennan points out that the teenaged victim has more in common with Booth than he would initially expect: "He wanted to make a difference in the world before he died... I told you he was more like you than me." The very kid Booth claimed was a weirdo and a freak is actually someone with more in common with him than he thought. Perhaps he shouldn't be so quick to judge and mock.

I do think he learned that a little bit; at least, I hope so. He did show the kid quite a bit of honor by laying his sharpshooter pin on the coffin in the final scene. That was a nice touch.

It's not a bad episode. There's good in it, with the kid trying to help that woman whose husband was abusing her. That's incredibly admirable. But when I think of this episode, I see Hodgins was missing, and Booth and Brennan were judgmental. That's essentially the problem. No wonder I don't consider this a favorite of season 1. LOL.

Some things that I liked:

- "Hero shot" of the city at the very top of the episode (looks cool)

- Cullen out in the field! Yay!

- The selfless victim going after the abusive husband. Brave kid.

- Goodman continuing to do that thing that Hodgins doesn't like :D

- Zack expanding his horizons, checking out graphic novels and talking with Brennan about how he often feels isolated because he's smart

- Brennan teaching Zack (as she should, as his mentor), and also teaching him when he's still a student and not yet skilled enough to handle a tougher case (it's a nice little detail)

- Angela finishing the artwork in order to complete the story for the victim and his friends and family

- Brennan taking a leap while Booth wants more facts! It's like Mulder and Scully switched places!

- Brennan taking Booth down a peg after he keeps acting like an ass all episode. "Reality falls far, far short..." Heh. And OUCH.

- Brennan's rage at recognizing that the woman's husband was abusive

I also like this episode as a reminder that even though the showrunners sometimes see geeks and nerds as something to mock, TJ still managed to take their initial stereotype of Hodgins (who if memory serves was supposed to be a fat nerdy guy always wearing bad clothes) and instead turn him into a much more multi-faceted, interesting character, one that became my most favorite of the series.

In short, not one of my favorite episodes. And definitely not enough Hodgins. :romance-smileyheart:
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Re: Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by ThyneAlone »

Sinkwriter72 wrote:I think what I struggle most with in watching this episode is Booth's attitude. For all that I loved him in the previous episode (Woman in the Car), I kind of want to smack him for his condescension in this episode.

He repeatedly makes assumptions about the "nerds" of the episode, essentially sneering at them all and comparing them to the disturbed individuals of the Columbine massacre (a mental leap that is wildly unfair, insulting and off base). I think this is a side we see emerge from Booth, from time to time, how he gets snarky and insulting about things he doesn't understand. This is not unlike how defensive he got in the Boy in a Tree episode, where he didn't like anything that reminded him of his more modest upbringing and schooling -- he didn't have the experiences Brennan and Zack and Hodgins did, so he mocked it all mercilessly instead.

I find it a little disappointing to see this side of him, especially after he's spent much of the season getting to know the squints and Brennan on a deeper level. I would have hoped he'd learned that not every stereotype is true or applicable, and that there is more to each individual person, no matter what you initially see or assume. Also, given his gift for assessing people, I'm a little annoyed that he doesn't seem to see any deeper (or care to). He just treats them all with disdain, judgment, condescension and mocking. For example, as Sharon points out, with his "Guys, this is a real, live woman." :doh:
It infuriates me, actually, Sherry. I've just looked at him dismissing a prostitute as a valid witness in The Girl with the Curl, and last night on TV in the Spark In The Park, with his unbelievable treatment of that poor academic who had lost his gymnast daughter, he proves he has learned nothing in eight seasons!!! Nothing!
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Re: Bones 1.12 The Superhero in the Alley

Post by Sinkwriter72 »

Steph, I wonder if the showrunners write Booth that way because they think he's funny that way. I don't happen to agree -- at all -- but I wonder if it's a case of them trying too hard to "be funny" instead of allowing more naturally funny stuff to occur. Or, maybe they think that's an acceptable trait in Booth that doesn't need to change?

Part of me is disappointed with the path they've taken with Booth over the years. In rewatching Season 1 with Sharon these past weeks, I returned to the love I had for his early relationship with the squints, how there seemed to be a relationship developing, bit by bit. For example, in the first few episodes, Booth barely paid attention to the squints, concentrating most of his energy on Brennan. But by Man with the Bone, we saw Booth actually show some care and concern for Hodgins (before he makes the big dive into the pit), asking the professionals if it's safe enough and saying maybe Hodgins shouldn't risk it and even taking a moment to place his attention on him, both hands on Hodgins' arms, as if to say, "Be careful down there. Focus, okay? I expect you to come back up safely." We also saw his cautious, gentle care with Angela when her boyfriend was murdered -- he came all the way to the desert to help. There were also episodes where he seemed to enjoy engaging with all of the squints, tossing out theories about the case, seemingly energized by their input. This was the kind of relationship I wanted to see developed even further. This was the kind of relationship I expected to develop, because of the time and attention the showrunners had given it over the course of Season 1.

And then they just stopped. They began to write Booth more and more insensitively, and treated it as if it were humorous. I feel like the showrunners fail to remember the Booth they wrote in the beginning, the Booth that was passionate about his job, about the victims, about the people he worked with, all of it. Along with Brennan, Booth is the hero of the story, but I don't think they remember that. Or maybe they think he's funnier this way, like some sort of FBI agent "House MD" personality, being an insensitive jerk. But the problem with that is... that's not who he was in the beginning, so it feels like a disappointing turn for his character to be so vicious and dismissive. That's not the Booth I love.

I don't know... I don't understand it, really, and share your great frustration. :(
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