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taylorsbrennan · 1 year

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my top 10 bones episodes

I watched Bones for the first time last summer and am currently in my third rewatch. I've noticed so many small details I missed the first two times around (thanks to me finishing the show in a month). Each episode is so amazing and has a lot of great moments. I've had a list in my notes of some of my favorite episodes and decided to narrow it down to my top 10. This was a lot harder than I thought because I love each episode for different reasons. Anyway, here's my personal top 10 and reasons why I love them :) (also spoilers obviously)

10. double trouble in the panhandle (season 4, episode 12)

i know undercover eps have mixed opinions, either you love them or you hate them and i love them. the circus one is my favorite of the undercovers and i don't really have a clear reason. i think it's a really fun episode to watch that's so different from the usual setting we see. the costumes were also amazing and Emily looked gorgeous in her final performance outfit (she always looks gorgeous but still). i think it also showed a new layer of how much faith and trust Brennan has in Booth as well as their love for each other that's obvious to everyone but them. this is also Emily's favorite undercover so it made it that much better.

9. the verdict in the story (season 3, episode 13)

first, i love courtroom and legal episodes so this one not only being that but centered around Brennan and Max instantly had me intrigued. it also has such good individual scenes that make me love the episode even more. first, the scene above where Booth and Brennan are talking and Sweets asks about writing a book on them. the way they talk like he's not even there and Brennan's line, "do you likee us?" kills me every time. it also brought the iconic "that's a lot of heart, Bones." when Brennan decides to implicate herself to save Max from prison. even with their complicated relationship, Brennan loves her dad and doesn't want to lose him again. her going this far, proves this and further adds to the layer of her character. the first time i watched this episode, it almost felt like a movie and i couldn't predict whether Max would be found guilty or not. let's not forget about that final hug scene between Brennan and Booth. with Booth being torn between being happy she has her dad but also upset he got away with it, says so much about their relationship as well. and finally, Brennan hugging her dad knowing he's free and they can work on their relationship always makes me cry.

8. aliens in a spaceship (season 2, episode 9)

i know this is a fan-favorite episode and for good reason. it's one of the first times we see members of the Jeffersonian in real danger (minus two bodies in the lab, more on that later) and they're on a time clock. Booth and Brennan are also more comfortable in their relationship at this point so their dynamic in this situation is amazing to see. Hodgins and Brennan having to rely on each other for survival and use their strengths to figure a way out never fails to amaze me. their friendship is also one of my favorites on the show and it's really rooted in their experience in this episode. Hodgins telling Brennan she has faith in Booth is another clear indicator of the deeper feelings she's struggling with. i love seeing them write letters to loved ones (Brennan later revealed to have written to Booth, shows she did love him back in season 2 but just wasn't fully aware or comfortable enough to admit it out loud, yet uses her potentially last, dying words as a confession to him, sobbed the first time i heard it and when rewatching the season with this info) and them saying goodbye to each other when trying to blow themselves out of the car. they know at this point, that either choice of trying or doing nothing will result in their death so they decided to try, and thankfully Booth was there to see. Booth doing his action-hero run down the hill to pull them both out always makes me cry. if it wasn't for both of them being taken together, likely, Booth wouldn't have gotten there to find Brennan alive. it really highlighted each of their strengths and resourcefulness to extend their air supply and fight to escape. i know the gravedigger became a recurring storyline, but i really wish the aftermath of Brennan and Hodgins' coping and healing would have been explored more in the show as i think it really did have a big impact on Brennan no matter how easily she says she can compartmentalize.

7. the man in the fallout shelter (season 1, episode 9)

ahh, the first Christmas episode of bones, i love holiday episodes of shows but this one is especially good. i'll admit on my first watch this one didn't stand out to me a lot but on my second one, i really fell in love with it. this episode is the first time we see the more personal sides of the Jeffersonian team and how they do spending this much time together. we get to see the families of everyone as well as compare their experience to Brennan who she has no one to visit. this is one of the first times we clearly see how isolated and alone Brennan is. the way she wants to spend Christmas is so drastically different than everyone else's. at this time, work really was her entire life and the Jeffersonian was the closest thing she had to family (we obviously know they become her family but this is still season 1 so we'll give it time). i love seeing Booth high and him annoying Brennan because of her persistence in wanting to work on the case. learning that her parents disappeared around Christmas is a new piece in that puzzle and seeing her open the present she held onto all those years is really sweet. i can't remember if this was acknowledged in the show or if i just saw someone point it out online, but after the season 1 finale, we learn Brennan's mom had been in the Jeffersonian the whole time, unidentified. so technically, Brennan did spend Christmas with her mom just in a very different way. sometimes that makes me sad and other times i think it's kinda sweet.

6. the woman in white (season 9, episode 6)

i think this one is pretty obvious why it's in my top 10. Booth and Brennan's relationship build-up is the main reason i watched the show and loved it. they did such a good job with this ep and it's everything i could've ever wanted. Brennan's dress was gorgeous, them only caring that the other was happy, Emily's husband's cameo, and of course the vows. Brennan and Booth's vows were honestly what made the whole episode. their wedding scenes were, of course, gorgeous but the vows were not only true to character, but so sweet, had so many callbacks to early seasons, and really made the 9 seasons wait worth it. starting with Booth's, him remembering that the spot they're getting married at is where she chased him during their first (technically second) case and she called herself a duck. then saying "chasing you is the smartest thing i've done in my life and being chased by you has been my greatest joy" what more could you ask for. it's so true to their character's relationships and the early dynamics of the show. if i heard that on my wedding day i think i'd simply melt. and if you thought it couldn't get any better, then there are Brennan's vows. i always hoped what she wrote in that letter would be revealed but i never thought it would be at her wedding and i'm so glad it was. i was already crying at Booth's vows but hearing hers made me sob like a baby. the full weight of Booth knowing that Brennan was reading what could have been her last words and that they were addressed to him? her being able to acknowledge how happy being with and looking at him makes her and that he "makes her life messy and confusing and unfocused and rational and wonderful" 7 years ago, all the way back in season 2. and the knowledge that since Brennan was rescued she knew she had to find a time to admit those feelings to him. this episode just perfectly connects their relationship over the show and seems like it was made with fans in mind. i love every part of it and it always makes me cry happy tears for them.

5. the doctor in the photo (season 6, episode 9)

wow, this episode. Temperance Brennan is my favorite tv character of all time and i think one of the most complex. this episode proves that with it being so Brennan-centric. it reveals so much about her inner thoughts, how her brain works, and what she really came back hoping for after Maluku. she came back willing to take the risk and be with Booth, but he came back with Hannah. she spent the first 8 episodes trying to convince herself she was fine and it didn't matter, but this case brought everything to surface and she was forced to confront the fact that she had to try. she didn't want any regrets and she knew Booth was who she wanted to be with. Brennan opened herself up to him and let down all her walls in a way she never had before, in the hopes he would reciprocate and want to try. Booth being the guy he is keeps his loyalty to Hannah (as much as this hurts Brennan and viewers, this was the best decision at the time. they still had so much to work through, and the later elevator episode made so much more sense for them) and turns her down. Brennan's reaction, in my opinion, is the rawest and most unfiltered emotion we've ever seen from her. because all her walls were down, she couldn't compartmentalize that rejection as quickly or come to terms with the fact that she missed her chance to be with him. i do wish Booth would have done more here to comfort her but i believe he was also struggling with wanting to be with her but also not wanting to be unfair to Hannah. i do think Booth loved Hannah, but he could never in the same way he loves Brennan and he knew that. now Booth is also aware of Brennan's feelings and that if he were to try again, she wouldn't reject him. Brennan then recovering and saying "i can adjust." always hurts me because she deserved so much more. you can see her again retreating to her old self of never letting anyone in and not trusting anyone. this episode was just so well done and Emily played it beautifully. it's such a big episode for Brennan's character growth, as well as setting up for what happens in episode 16, the blackout in the blizzard. i don't think this episode will never not crush me and it reveals so much about who Brennan is and how she handles situations.

4. the parts of the sum of the whole (season 5, episode 16)

when i first watched this, i was in shock. the revelation that not only had they worked a full case before the pilot, but they were directly flirty, kissed, and had a huge fight? Sweets was me and i was Sweets hearing all of that. i love flashback episodes and this one was full of them. seeing the way they originally interacted with each other and what ended up happening, makes their attitudes in the pilot make so much more sense. that kiss outside the pool house and the implication that she was what stopped Booth from gambling again always kill me. i loved seeing their initial interactions even their argument, because would it really be b&b without a little intensity? now let's talk about what happened outside on the steps. i do love Booth's speech but he should've known her better than to ambush her like that. when i first watched, i thought this is where they finally get together and she takes the risk. watching back, her saying she can't take the risk because she's a scientist is so in character. Brennan obviously has trust and abandonment issues and swore off the idea of traditional relationships and marriage because she never thought she could trust someone in that way or have someone love her that way. Booth has slowly over the years broken all of the walls down, and although she does love him and wants to try, the idea of doing that and it not working out terrifies her. she'd rather have him always as her partner than risk a romantic relationship then it not working out, and end up losing him completely. Booth knows this about her and knows especially with feelings like that, it's important to take it slow and give her time to process. there were better ways he could have slowly introduced the idea to her that would have allowed her to gather the evidence she needed and consider the idea of actually being together. the hurt on each of their faces always gets me because neither is really happy but Brennan is just so scared of losing him. when she asks if they can still be partners, i've seen some people take this as her being selfish. in my mind, it's again because she was terrified of losing him. she turned him down because of that fear but now she's worried that by doing that she's lost him anyway. no matter how much it hurts him, he could never say no either because on some level he does understand her thoughts and reasoning. again this episode is so well done and perfect for the hundredth. the flashbacks were so cute and the ending leaves the question of where their partnership goes next and how they'll move on. it's also so clear how familiar the writers and actors were with the characters because everything was so true to them even if it hurt us as viewers to watch.

a note about my top 3: these episodes are ones that when I first watched them, I could not stop thinking about after. the day after i first watched these i ended up rewatching all of these episodes because of how much they were stuck in my head. even now, i think about them at least twice a week. they altered my brain chemistry at this point and are my most watched episodes (5 times each)

3. the past in the present/ the future in the past (season 7, episode 13/season 8, episode 1)

okay, i know this is technically 2 episodes, but since they are connected and are direct continuations of each other, i'm counting it as 1. i don't think i've ever been more emotionally distraught or stressed watching an episode of Bones as i was the first time i watched these. Pelant took it too far framing Brennan for murder. i don't think we talk enough about how Brennan basically had to abandon Booth, something she swore she would never do, in order to save herself from jail. she also had to rely heavily on her father to keep her and Christine safe from the cops. because if Brennan had been caught, there's no way they would have been able to prove her innocence. She really had to put a lot of trust in Max, something she's had trouble doing since he reentered her life but I think this situation really cements and reestablishes their relationship. Booth having to watch the love of his life drive away with his kid not knowing where they're going or how to keep them safe is so hard because that's how he views his entire role for them. Brennan also having to leave him behind with the same thoughts on top of the risk of jail is devastating. let me also just say, when i started the season 8 episode, i was expecting a mini time jump of a few weeks. when i saw 3 months later flash on the screen, i had to pause and take a moment because i was sobbing. but that reunion scene was everything i could've wanted and more. her also finally being able to come home and have her name cleared was so sweet. seeing everyone, embrace her being back even before she was cleared and their need to protect her fits their found family so well. i was also so thankful to see her brown hair come back haha. i do wish we could have seen a little more of what her life looked like on the run, however, i believe these episodes and storyline are perfect and really had such an impact on Brennan and Booth. this is the best season finale i've seen and i genuinely didn't know how they were going to wrap it up, and still feel the same anxiety each time i watch. i loved it and the effect it has on Brennans character in season 8.

2. two bodies in the lab (season 1, episode 15)

this is the episode that officially had me hooked on Bones so i have a soft spot for it in my heart. after this, I knew i would be watching every episode after and loving it. there are so many good moments in this episode and the entire thing is 10/10. hot-blooded being b&b's song is introduced in this and them dancing together is always so sweet to watch. we also really see Booth's protectiveness over Brennan come out by not letting her out of his site and breaking out of the hospital to save her. backtracking a little, i love when he's trying to interrogate Brennan's date but she is just not having it and is acting like he's not even there. the explosion scene was so unexpected and i always think about what would've happened if it had been Brennan or if Booth hadn't even been there, to begin with. it's also always so tense seeing each of them slowly figure out that it's Kenton and that Brennan is in danger. it's one of the few times i feel like we see Brennan genuinely scared because her and Booth's partnership was so new, she didn't have the faith and trust in him yet as she does in later seasons, for example, aliens in a spaceship. she also had no reason to believe Kenton was dangerous prior so why would Booth even be worried about her or looking for her, not to mention he was also in the hospital. Booth realizing and convincing Hodgins to break him out of the hospital and ignoring all the serious injuries he has just to save her, really sets the groundwork for their whole partnership. her genuine fear combined with him getting there just in time always makes me emotional. and then him comforting her and the way she just falls into his embrace (first time we see them hug ahhh). then when she realizes he's still hurt, her concern is immediately on him. i think the ending scene was also perfect for the episode with her finding a reason to cancel her date in order to spend more time with him in the hospital. overall, this episode is so good for early b&b and sets the tone for their relationship growth.

honorable mentions: the harbringers in the fountain, wannabe in the weeds, blackout in the blizzard, man in the morgue, recluse in the recliner, end in the beginning

1. the shot in the dark (season 8, episode 15)

my all-time favorite episode of bones <3. personally, i think this episode is directly connected to Brennan proposing to Booth in the season 8 finale. first, of course, we had to start with some angst and have Booth and Brennan get into an argument. leading Brennan to go to the lab (her old safe space) and end up being shot. Booth decides he has to see her because he misses her, and finds her passed out and bleeding. his panic and worry for her always gets me and the way it lasts until she wakes up. i love all the soft moments between them of him constantly holding her hand or all the forehead kisses (see above). to me, those are small moments that really show the love he holds for her and that he is her home. now onto Brennan's dream or near-death reality where she has conversations with her mom. i absolutely loved this and think it really explains so much about Brennan's character from the beginning of the series until now. i also loved seeing the mother-daughter interaction. it's revealed that the last words Brennan ever heard from her mom before her disappearance was "use your head. be rational. don’t let your heart lead you. use your brain." Brennan of course held onto that like a lifeline because that's all she had. it leads to her hyper-logical and rational persona. it also meant she kept her distance from deeper relationships with others and lead with her brain over her heart, compartmentalizing over feeling emotions. her mom then gives her new advice, again the last thing before Brennan wakes up from her final surgery. she says "it’s time for you to find some of that little girl that you locked away so deep inside yourself. because, it’s not about surviving anymore. it’s about flourishing. it’s about living a full life.” and i believe, this let Brennan let go of that remaining distance, hesitancy, and fear of all the things little Brennan wanted. she now feels safe to open herself up to marriage and relying on other people instead of her hyper independence. this is what i think leads to Brennan proposing to Booth, something she swore she wouldn't do as recently as the same season. having that interaction with Christine healed the still open wounds from her 15-year-old self and enabled her to take that step. overall, this episode adds a lot to Brennan's character development and is an intense but such good episode to watch. i wish i had a specific reason why it's my favorite, but i just love it so much and think that it's a masterpiece and beautifully told and shown.

that's my ranking :) thanks for reading this far, i know it's long. i would love to hear others thought and opinions on favorite episodes! i have so many list and ranking posts i'd love to do too so if you want more let me know <3

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morallygreyvillain · 1 year

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TOTCF FIC (WIP) [Cale × Choi Han]

"Slacker Life. Right?"

———————————

- Chapter 1 [Beta V.] -

×××××(Its a little saucy)×××××

Finally, The white start defeated, the Demon God sealed and everyone is safe and back home. It was finally time to begin that peaceful life Cale had always dreamed of.

Just the final step left... finally address those deep, scorching feelings that have been bubbling below the surface.

Cale has taken advantage of his patience for far too long...

Despite everyone else already being aware, constantly sharing knowing looks and sighs.

Thinking that he was blind to them. Cale doesn't regret waiting and holding back until this moment. Now that all the big obstacles were out of his way.

He's proud that he was able to keep his true feelings a secret (tho perhaps some had figured him out). He could imagine how much more teasing he would've endured had he not been so inscrutable (so he thinks).

He already got enough of it when his friends and family thought he was oblivious to it. Mostly noticeably from the kids who weren't so discreet.

On, being more mature wasnt so blatant about calling him a "foolish human"; but Cale was tired of the way she would stare and him, sigh, and then shake her head as if to say

"Ah, he's so poor/pitiful that he fell in love with this fool who doesn't know anything".

It's not like the other person made their feelings blatantly obvious. But for those close to him, his real feelings were as clear as glass. And once you did, you couldn't unsee it.

His devotion, his admiration, his frustration, and his complete trust that Cale has no idea how he's earned. His family and friends must have truly thought him to be an unfathomable idiot to have not noticed. (Not even mentioning how terrible of an actor he is)

But...

he thought it better to be seen as a dullard than as cruel...

And he did feel cruel.

Because despite how palpable those feelings were and how clear it was to each other, more so than anybody else...

no matter how much they were reciprocated...

they couldn't be acknowledged.

At least not in the usual sense...

Locking eyes, understanding each other without needing words, casual touches, praises, admonishments, and countless times depending on one another, protecting each other, sacrificing themselves for the other.

That ineffable feeling was always present, never absent.

Never unseen or unheard in even the most mundane of expressions or words...

Yes, he felt cruel, he felt guilty.

He was the one forcing them to hold back. There were too many risks, his attention was too divided; there wasn't enough time.

There was too much at stake.

Cale was at fault.

Those weren't valid reasons, none of that mattered in the face of each other.

all that was just excuses, external issues that distracted from the real reason inside himself...

Fear.

Cale was simply afraid,

afraid that the world would take from him again.

Constantly making excuses to play oblivious.

"It's simply a whim, a cliche, he's just confusing his sense of duty, it's just because I'm the closest thing to his home, it filial"

"Because he feels independent to me, if not, why would he... I'm trash? He could do so much better, he's the protagonist.

"I don't deserve it..."

But above all that, Cale was greedy and not even his cowardice and pessimism could win over that. His avarice grew and now he not only wanted his peaceful life...he wanted to have him as well...

No, his peaceful life wouldn't be complete without him

So he planned and schemed and stole, blowing up every physical obstacle that was in his way,

their way...

Cale would flip the whole world upside-down if he had to.

And they were always there.

Patiently waiting and never far from his side but never taking that step over their boundary. Just waiting...

Knowing him he probably never expected to stop waiting, never daring to hope for anything more, content with what he had.

What they had.

But it's not enough to satiate the darkness inside him. Cale knew deep down they weren't as pure as originally thought. There was the voracity of a beast somewhere locked away, shackled by his intense devotion.

Holding back his true feelings, his greed, his...

Desire~

An insatiable feeling that made what they held towards each other distinct, unmistakable. The possessiveness, the jealousy...

The lust

It was scorching him

That instinct, that desire was the only thing they pretended not to see,

or feel.

They had to. Once experienced, it couldn't be swayed away by reason or excuses. Cale truly had to acknowledge what this "affection" was at that moment and that it was more than simply...affection.

Ravenous eyes, causal contact that seemed to last just too long because he didn't want to let go. How was Cale supposed to not notice all these things...

Or how they made him feel.

Even before when he was Roksu he had never experienced that type of desire, always far more concerned with surviving. Even being surrounded by several unparalleled beauties after transmigrating he hadn't felt... attracted to them in that way. Even with his beguiling appearance, the attention it got was appreciated but never reciprocated.

At least until now...

His words were always laced with intention and actions designed to distract him. He began to linger in touches of his own. Cale was better at masking it than he was. Those around them always catch his passionate stares, but not Cale's.

Cale was much more subtle with his...

appreciation...

His usual attitude and aloofness made him harder to read in general. But though friends and family had seen through his" uncaring" exterior, they hadn't caught on when he'd admire the curves or took the opportunity to feel his muscles or appreciate his handsome face.

When Cale would tilt his head ever so slightly, shifting his hips or loosen his clothes deliberately because he knew he was being intensely watched.

Sure it made him feel bad, knowing what he was doing to him, and how others would pity and tease him after. Thinking Cale was oblivious to his effect on him.

But it felt so~ much better to watch him squirm~ and bite to keep that beast-ial part of himself at bay...

But now...

All those things that had been in the way, shackling their inclinations, were blown away.

He was far too powerful for any sort of social propriety to affect him (not to say that it ever had).

So finally he would claim the final piece needed for his leisurely life...

"No need to delay this anymore..."

_________________________________________

Ok this is the draft of the first chapter

Link for info post HERE

I haven't finished the first Season yet [I got to the way to the part where Alberu is a Lion (I felt that was the least spoiler detail) > its also been over a year since I binge read the series so I'm a little foggy on certain details so if I've left some characters out or missed some stuff thats why but I'd appreciate it if no one spoiled anything for me!!!!

Anyway since I'm posting them all at once I'll attack the next chapter's draft HERE!

***Chapter 2 Beta link***

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