Bones Season Three: The Totally Decomposed Edition – DVD Review

By June L. Dec 5, 2008, 15:10 GMT

Dr. Temperance Brennan and Special Agent Seeley Booth, along with colleagues Angela Montenegro, Dr. Zack Addy, Dr. Jack Hodgins and Dr. Camille Saroyan, find themselves on the trail of a serial killer who discards his many victims’ remains off freeway overpasses.  Brennan also must deal with the trial of her father for the murder of the Deputy Director of the FBI. ...more

Bones just keeps getting better.  I admit, it is one of those shows that I have to close my eyes or look away when man’s inhumanity to man is displayed in all its horrific gory detail.  I tell myself that it is all “pretend” but it is still awful to see and worse when you realize it really does happen. And well, the bugs and Hodgins’s excitement over the rare and flesh eating, but perhaps this is enough said on that matter. 

In spite of this, Bones is still one of our favorite shows because it consistently delivers a satisfying mystery with science and technology providing the means of disclosure, and has a cast of characters that are human and likeable.

Dr. Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and FBI Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) are the hub of the team at the Jeffersonian Institute.  In an episode in season three, Booth asks Dr. Brennan if they are “okay, solid” meaning that if their relationship as partners and friends is strong, then the rest of the team will follow suit.  It is a touching moment when Booth asks this, because he thinks Dr. Brennan is angry with him for arresting her father, and is avoiding going out on assignment with him. 

There is something going on, but perhaps even Dr. Brennan isn’t completely certain as to what is happening.  The characters in this drama are wonderfully portrayed, and audiences care for them as fellow humans with all the frailties and follies, as well as the humor and intelligence. 

Bones is a favorite show of the resident scientist because it uses correct science and technology to solve the mysteries.  You can hear the satisfaction in his “yes” when Hodgins discovers the bug or pollen to pinpoint the geographic location, or Angela works her magic with measurements to reconstruct a face. 

Season Three has the addition of Dr. Sweets to the group.  Dr. Brennan and Booth have been ordered to undergo therapy as partners, and Dr. Sweets is their therapist.  He looks like he is about fifteen, and Booth just won’t let that go by.  The timing and delivery of lines by Dr. Sweets is wonderful, and the three play off each other in some of the best written scenes of the show this season. 

Also in Season Three are ongoing stories, one concerns a mysterious legendary serial killer from the Medieval times who has apparently resurfaced in 21st Century Washington DC. 

This is quite a chilling tale, with betrayal, cannibalism, secret societies and such.  The season finale will knock you breathless.  Another story is the search for Angela’s missing husband, whose name she can’t remember without hypnosis, and whose signature is needed so that she can divorce him and marry Hodgins. 

Another thread in this tapestry of story is the developing relationship between Dr. Brennan and her father, a con man who deserted the family years ago.  Ryan O’Neal plays her dad, and is charmingly determined in his ideas of justified larceny.

Bones Season Three is presented on four discs with special features ranging from extended cuts for certain episodes, to the original unaired episode of Player Under Pressure.  There is a gag reel that shows some very funny moments, and a series of Director’s Takes on various topics. 

The resident scientist loved the “Angienator” featurette.  In addition to these goodies, a fifth disc is enclosed with the first episodes of Season Four!  If you missed this year’s season opener, it takes place in the UK with typical Booth and Bones interactions, and is most interesting.

Bones Season Three: The Totally Decomposed Edition is now available at Amazon and AmazonUK. Visit the DVD database for more information.