S12.E12: The End In The End

[WendyCR72]

Now it's time to say goodbye to all our company!

M-I-C (See ya real soon!)...oh, right. wrong show. Sorry, Mickey!

'Tis the end of the line, and here's the last synopsis:

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With Kovac still at large, the team searches for evidence to track him down. After Brennan experiences a setback, the rest of the team must figure out how to find Kovac without her, putting everything she has ever taught them to the test. When all signs point to Kovac having outside help, as well as a hideout, Booth and Brennan go searching for him.

[mojoween]

"You're the Roxy to my Tony, the Wanda to my Buck."

If you ever have someone you love say (something like) this to you, you are living your life right.

Bye Bones.  I'll miss you.  You are my carburetor.

[Frost]

I haven't watched this last season.  Frankly I kind of forgot it was still on.  But I made to sure to watch this episode.  I enjoyed it.  I thought it was actually kind of low key for a series finale - even with the bomb aftermath.  It was nice that the end is that everyone is staying, rather than scattering to the four winds.  Bye Bones!  I'm sure I'll catch you in reruns!

Edited March 29, 2017 by Frost

[BooksRule]

I liked it too.  Everyone (except the bad guys) got a happy ending.  Brennan and Booth seemed to really care for each other, although bringing her to the site where they were likely going to have to shoot it out with Kovac was kind of dumb.  I did like the parts where the past was acknowledged, such as the picture of Nigel-Murray, the Christmas photo of Zach and Hodgins, Sweets' book and the drawing that Parker had made for Brennan so many years before.  

I just wish that Aubrey had taken the job in California so he could show up on 'Major Crimes' when the FBI gets involved with their cases.  That would have been fun if possible (I know, different production companies, networks, etc.). 

[ddawn23]

Well that was lovely! There was the perfect amount of time spent acknowledging the dead. We checked in with basically everybody, and the whole thing had an onwards and upwards feel to it. Nicely done. 

And I am very happy to have been wrong about Angela dying. 

[shapeshifter]

The finale was surprisingly good. It was the first episode I've really enjoyed since the wedding.

When brain-damaged Bones insisted on tagging along with Booth in a SWAT-style midnight raid (and he, of course, acquiesced *groan*) I had to tell myself: Remember. It's only TV show. It's only TV show. It's only TV show..    But then when her brain damage was magically healed (or would she prefer "miraculously?" not sure) and she fixed Booth's hand, I figured it was all good, 'cause it's just a TV plot, and it's just Bones. I mean, it's not Breaking Bad or anything.

I'm glad it ended with Hodgins poppin' wheelies and crowing about being King of the Lab. 

And I'm really glad we won't have to see the drama of Cam and Aristoo dealing with their three more foster kids. Sorry if that makes me a killjoy, but I did like the way it ended.

[Lovecat]

It got a little dusty in my house when Cam revealed her and Arastoo's secret...and again when Hodgins found the picture of him and Zach, which is from my most favorite Bones episode EVER.  I crowed along with Hodgins--KING OF THE LAB!!!  I was quite pleased with how they wrapped everything up. This show has gotten increasingly absurd in recent seasons, but the characters are like old nerdly friends, and I will miss them.

one question, though--why was Daisy still wearing a white intern lab coat, and an intern ID badge? I thought she got her doctorate, and therefore should have been in blue with the rest of the Ph.D.'s?

[VinceW]

A family member got me interested enough in the final season to watch the show again after being away since the death of Lance Sweets. I give Emily Deschanel a lot of credit coming back after two babies to finish the series. It was great to see all of them that final time going thru namesakes while clearing the lab. The music (Almost Home) playing in the background during that last segment said it all for the moment.

Edited March 29, 2017 by VinceW

[UncleChuck]

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one question, though--why was Daisy still wearing a white intern lab coat, and an intern ID badge? I thought she got her doctorate, and therefore should have been in blue with the rest of the Ph.D.'s?

I suspect it was because the blue lab coats are worn by Ph.D.s employed full-time by the Jeffersonian.  When Daisy became Dr. Daisy, she took a job as director of another lab.  She just showed up with the other ex-interns to help out in the crisis and wore her old coat and badge temporarily.

This was a very satisfying finale.  All bases were covered, all loose ends wrapped up, no silly time jumps, no funerals, no sadness.  Even Aubry's loss of his "red-headed anthropologist" was a minor setback, as it took him about 5 seconds to rebound with Profiler Karen Delfs.  Actually, Aubry did better than almost everyone in this wrapup--he got his promotion, did not have to move to L.A., and he apparently found a new girlfriend and they bonded over food. 

[Mama No Life]

I agree it was satisfying.  I have not made it a secret that I have found this last mini-season to be snooze-worthy but this two-part finale was good enough to preserve the warm feelings I've had about the show since I found it in season 2.  I didn't really get the book thing, but whatever.  Glad Hodgins is KoL, glad to get a Sweets mention and glad to see some affection between B and B.  That's really all I needed.  :)

[ae2]

"And whatsyername, you taught me how to chirp."

Perfectly describes how important and useful her character has been.

I mean, no one died :) Otherwise it was an okay finale. Personally, I'm kind of tired of finales that don't actually commit and change anything. They make US feel good, but there is nothing final about them. 

All the cutesiness and callbacks were done with out being overly cheesy. Even the "interns unite" scene was sort of sensible and relevant. Glad they FINALLY remembered Parker (and that it was Bones that had a Parker moment). They've always paid respect to Sweets since he died, and did so here. 

Did I miss a Vincent Nigel Murray reference? Was really hoping for one. Didn't expect a Dr. Goodman mention but that would have been nice too.

Fare ye well, Bones, Booth, and team. Hopefully all the people from your past that want to kill you are gone now and the rest of your cases go better.

Let's not even discuss how much Hodgins wouldn't want to be the lab administrator.

KING OF THE LAB!!

[mojoween]

No, we did NOT get a Dr. Goodman reference Hart you jerk but Angela was shown brushing off a commemorative plaque of Vincent.

It's funny how while they were showing Cam finding her memories (although why she would have that salt shaker at the lab when I thought she gave it back to Michelle is beyond me) it occurred to me that she had been there for eleven years but I still think of her as the new girl.

Also interesting that again only first gen interns + Jessica were involved and they didn't even mention any of the second tier ones.

[ae2]

Also... maybe when they rebuild the lab they'll actually install some real security. Maybe...

45 minutes ago, mojoween said:

No, we did NOT get a Dr. Goodman reference Hart you jerk but Angela was shown brushing off a commemorative plaque of Vincent.

Ahhh that's what the plaque was! I couldn't read it and I couldn't remember what it was from. Thanks!

[absnow54]

I really liked the dramatically over the top car crash at the end. It had "Hey, we have some money left over! Let's fill a pit with gasoline and blow up a jeep in it" written all over it.

[Willowsmom]

4 hours ago, mojoween said:

y how while they were showing Cam finding her memories (although why she would have that salt shaker at the lab when I thought she gave it back to Michelle is beyond me) it occurred to me that she had been there for eleven years but I still think of her as the new girl.

The shaker was part of a pair. Cam kept one and  Michelle has the other.

TThis was just so what for me.  Nothing is changing really . Cam will be back, Bones will be fine, Aubrey  is staying. Same old same old. It looks like an attempt to move to a new network. At least  they killed Buffy.

[joanne3482]

12 hours ago, Lovecat said:

and again when Hodgins found the picture of him and Zach, which is from my most favorite Bones episode EVER.

I agree. That is my very favorite episode as well. I love careful Lionel. 

I liked the finale. I'm partial to warm endings like this and not ones that are controversial or make me think or just piss me off. 

[Bobbin]

13 hours ago, BooksRule said:

I just wish that Aubrey had taken the job in California so he could show up on 'Major Crimes' when the FBI gets involved with their cases.  That would have been fun if possible (I know, different production companies, networks, etc.). 

Richard Belzer's character police detective "John Munch" has been in 9 series on 5 different networks.

[StillCrazy]

I really enjoyed this finale.  It left me feeling happy.

[AAEBoiler]

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I liked the finale. I'm partial to warm endings like this and not ones that are controversial or make me think or just piss me off. 

Like "How I Met Your Mother"? I still have never watched a repeat in syndication since the finale. #NeverForget

[Inquiry]

52 minutes ago, AAEBoiler said:

Like "How I Met Your Mother"? I still have never watched a repeat in syndication since the finale. #NeverForget

Yeah, unlike the HIMYM finale, this one didn't retroactively ruin the entire series for me. Actually, I thought it was a nice, understated send-off for a show that no one expected to go on as long as it did. I'd put this squarely on the better side of series finales. 

[ae2]

Eh, HIMYM is special. The retroactive storytelling format of the series allowed a single episode to completely alter the purpose and value of every other episode. (Not to argue how good/bad of a finale it was. And let's not pretend we didn't see it coming!)

The only way Bones could have maybe had that same impact... maybe Booth dies and Bones announces that she never actually loved him, and only pretended in order to bear the perfectly gifted child to raise as the ultimate serial killer?

Not saying I didn't enjoy the series ending, because I did, but there was no sense of closure. No conclusion, and nothing to bookend the series. Really, you could insert this at the end of say, season 9 or 10, and it wouldn't change anything. (Bones has had a couple of great series finale episodes when they didn't know if they were renewed or not.)

Some people like closure, and some people like to know life goes on as usual even when their show is over. I guess I just wanted a tiny bit of conclusion here.

[Clanstarling]

I liked the finale. There were enough sweet moments (and a Sweets moment) to satisfy. I thought Emily killed it when she felt different - her cadence was different, then came back when she started to heal (awfully quickly, but not gonna quibble).

I don't need closure, particularly. Sometimes "they lived happily ever after" is just fine for me. This time it was. I didn't really feel there was much left that needed closure, they were just going on with life. mileage varies, of course.

A couple of the callbacks I didn't remember - the salt (pepper?) shaker didn't mean anything to me, and I forget the others. I didn't realize the Zack/Hodgins picture was from an episode. But that didn't detract.

[BooksRule]

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Did I miss a Vincent Nigel Murray reference? Was really hoping for one.

When they were going through the lab gathering up items to take with them or to pack for storage, Angela picked up a big damaged picture (or maybe a plaque) off of the floor that had a blurry-looking (because of the soot damage) picture and you could just see part of his name.  So I guess it was a 'in memory of'-type picture that had been on a wall. 

[Brynnjk]

I just watched it and loved the finale.  Loved all the callbacks and that they gave us a happy ending that didn't ruin the series for me.   I also will never forgive the HIMYM team and it ruined the series as far as I'm concerned.  I'm happy that somewhere in TVland the Bonesverse can continue to roll along.  Loved the King of the Lab moment!  

[mojoween]

I loved that the last shot was Booth and Bones walking down the path to that little domed building.  There were a lot of times in the first season especially that they would walk up and down that path.

[chaifan]

OK, I'll be the opposing voice here... for a show that has always been about the science, the opening scenes were so horribly unscientific that it ruined the rest of the episode for me.  Multiple bombs go off, everything is charred, smoke pouring out of the top of the building, but... where is the fire?  And how was it extinguished?  No evidence of any fire suppression system going off - nothing was wet.  Rubble everywhere yet Hodgins' wheelchair just happens to have a clear path anywhere he needs to go while they're trying to find a way out.  And a building is falling down around them but yet everyone is allowed back in the building to work among the rubble.  And the electrical still works.  And, going back to the billow of smoke coming out of the top of the building in one scene - there apparently is a fully intact roof (a glass skylight, yeah, sure).  Facial scars healing in a day without any bruising...  The only thing that was spot on in the first 15 minutes was Angela's super secret stash of the data backup. 

All that being said, I thought all the characters wrapped up very nicely.  I liked Cam and Aristoo becoming foster parents, and Hodgins becoming head of the lab (giving him that King title finally).  But that first 15 minutes was just soooo bad...

[Valmarmar]

I enjoyed the finale, especially the scene where Bones is telling those circled around her what she remembers about them. I wanted to join in. 

I'll miss this show - Thank goodness for reruns!!

[WendyCR72]

The show ended, to me, with a happy, "feel good" vibe. Considering some of the other finales I've been witness to over the years [I'm looking at YOU, HIMYM!], I considered this one of the better endings!

[Clanstarling]

11 hours ago, chaifan said:

OK, I'll be the opposing voice here... for a show that has always been about the science, the opening scenes were so horribly unscientific that it ruined the rest of the episode for me.  Multiple bombs go off, everything is charred, smoke pouring out of the top of the building, but... where is the fire?  And how was it extinguished?  No evidence of any fire suppression system going off - nothing was wet.  Rubble everywhere yet Hodgins' wheelchair just happens to have a clear path anywhere he needs to go while they're trying to find a way out.  And a building is falling down around them but yet everyone is allowed back in the building to work among the rubble.  And the electrical still works.  And, going back to the billow of smoke coming out of the top of the building in one scene - there apparently is a fully intact roof (a glass skylight, yeah, sure).  Facial scars healing in a day without any bruising...  The only thing that was spot on in the first 15 minutes was Angela's super secret stash of the data backup. 

All that being said, I thought all the characters wrapped up very nicely.  I liked Cam and Aristoo becoming foster parents, and Hodgins becoming head of the lab (giving him that King title finally).  But that first 15 minutes was just soooo bad...

They had a happily ever after ending, so I took it as a fairy tale (though to be fair, I had the same thoughts as you, until the ending and then I was okay with it) Or as the mister and I like to say "eez fantasy show" - which as been true of Bones for a long time.

[mojoween]

Hodgins said that Booth is a munitions expert. Did we always know that?

[Clanstarling]

He said he was trained in munitions (which isn't quite the same thing as expert, I'm trained in a number of things I'm only marginally decent in), but I don't know that we've ever heard that before. On the other hand, there have been bombs before, so maybe it's been said.

[Jellybeans]

I don't know what kind of ending I wanted...but I was disappointed.

[Frost]

Did we ever learn the name on Angela's birth certificate?  I'm assuming it's Zappaesque but I can't remember ever hearing it.

[Trey]

7 minutes ago, Frost said:

Did we ever learn the name on Angela's birth certificate?  I'm assuming it's Zappaesque but I can't remember ever hearing it.

This gives her real name:

Angela's real name

Edited March 31, 2017 by Trey

[ForReal]

I agree with Chaifan, the first moments were such a departure from reality that I couldn't take it seriously, but since this is a tv show, I suspended belief and then I enjoyed it a lot. I was at first perturbed that Bones seemed to be able to use her brain for everything but the one very specific thing needed at that moment, but I did like that she was able (and willing) to recall nice memories about all of her interns. I liked that it brought her to an identity crisis of asking, "Who am I without my intelligence?" and Booth was able to tell her kindly and surely that she is someone who loves and is loved by her family and friends, and really isn't that a more satisfying identity, particularly for Bones?

I liked the comment she made about the clock that stopped at that historically significant time...something about it reminds her that nothing has really ended. I am content to think of them solving crimes into the sunset without me.

[laredhead]

Just read that there is going to be an encore presentation of the last episode tonight on FOX at 8:00 p.m.  Check your local listings.

[LisaM]

I thought it was an interesting idea for Brennan to temporarily lose the ability which made her so unique and special in her field. Really liked the scene where Brennan told each of the interns what she remembered about them. 

Glad that everyone survived. I've always liked Cam and Aristoo as a couple so I'm glad that they are becoming foster parents. 

I skipped a bunch of seasons but came back for this one. Nice to see that Caroline is still a key player. Particularly happy that Hodgins finally got to be the King of the Lab. 

[SueB]

I don't post in this board usually but I wanted to come over and commiserate with those saying goodbye to a beloved show. I've been watching Bones for years. I had a few seasons where I did a binge catch-up rather than real time.  Even these last three episodes were all smushed together for me (which worked out well).  

I'm REALLY glad they talked about Sweets being right about them at the end. I miss him still.  

They took a TON of liberties in this last episode with the science and realism.  But I'm okay with it.  That wasn't what this episode was about. It was about closure. I thought we got a lot of nice closure.  It's over but it's not.  Everything goes on but it will continue to change as it does.

Works for me.  

They should do a book series (if they don't already) to unofficially continue the adventures. I think the would find an audience.

[MelinaBallerina]

I'm sad that it's over and SO happy that they didn't do one of those endings that makes you pissed off that you even watched.  I hate the scorched earth endings, so this one was awesome.  Life goes on.  It's funny, I always said Castle was my favorite series of the two, but I find I watch Bones re-runs all the time, but I don't watch Castle re-runs.

On 3/28/2017 at 9:17 PM, BooksRule said:

I just wish that Aubrey had taken the job in California so he could show up on 'Major Crimes' when the FBI gets involved with their cases.

That would be cool, except I think Aubrey is too low key for Major Crimes.  Other than Fritz - the FBI agents there are pretty much hard-core assholes.

[Destiny007]

I've been rewatching season 1 and in the next to last episode Booth is telling Bones a story about his sniper days.  It is one of where he kills a guy in front of his son.  I didn't realize the story existed way back in season 1 when I was watching the finale.

[VinceW]

On 4/20/2017 at 7:05 AM, MelinaBallerina said:

 .......I hate the scorched earth endings, so this one was awesome.  Life goes on.  It's funny, I always said Castle was my favorite series of the two, but I find I watch Bones re-runs all the time, but I don't watch Castle re-runs.

I feel the same way about Castle. So disappointing the way the last two Castle seasons were handled by the network over the ongoing angst between the co-stars.  I doubt that I will ever invest that much in a TV show again. The Castle show runner (Marlowe) enjoyed poking fun at the Bones series whenever he had the chance, but Bones handled the ending beautifully and the Booth/Brennan relationship made the show a big success. I still listen to 'Almost Home' when I get a chance to keep in touch with the Bones series.

Edited July 19, 2017 by VinceW