The Maggots in the Meathead
The Maggots in the Meathead: In Which Brennan Throws a Crab and Gets Booth a Phone
Word of advice: if the necklace you're pulling on encounters some resistance, there may still be a head attached to it. On the bright side it was kinda nice not to have the old guy freak out, but merely pocket the gold and grin manically; after 109 episodes, the freak outs get a little old.
Now, I know there are some of you out there - even those of you who are as big a proponent of this current storyline as I am - who are feeling that the sexing up of Seeley Booth by, well, anyone who's not Brennan, is also getting old. There is, of course, the “Booth half-naked” way to look at things (which isn't a bad view and IS a screencapper's heaven) and the old “everything happens eventually” mantra. Might I suggest yet another way to interpret things?
All we know about Booth's sex life between Cam and Hannah is that he “did fine” whatever the heck that means and that if he's dated anyone it hasn't been serious as a heart attack or anything else. Catherine certainly wasn't, nor do I think he ever slept with her. But it was clearly established in The Couple in the Cave that Booth and Hannah's sex life started very early on and continued to be hot and heavy despite them being drowned out by bombs.
I want to suggest that this is the kind of relationship he would've had with Brennan had she let him in that cab that fateful night instead of leaving him to a cold shower in the rain. Would it've been amazing sexually? Yes! Would he still have refocused on his work and started reforming his gambling ways? I think so just because he admitted his problem to her for no apparent reason. Heck, he might've even asked her to move in with him and she might have accepted because a little over a year later we find out kicking out a boyfriend whom she'd obviously lived with for a while.
The real question then becomes, would they have gotten to know each other so well and stayed together for so long? I don't think they would've because it would've been a relationship built on lust, and eventually lust wears off and they most likely would've parted ways because there was no underlying foundation of friendship to keep them together. Anyone in a long term monogamous relationship knows the sex ebbs and flows, but if you've got a friendship to fall back on during the rough patches, you can stay the course.
This, I believe, is what Sweets is trying to get at when he confronts Booth. What Booth and Hannah have is highly charged lust that's not rooted in anything solid. Yes, he feels a connection to her and I have no doubt that while he was over there, having no contact whatsoever with Brennan for seven months, he convinced himself that he'd moved on. Hannah, being just as attracted to Booth in fatigues as the next fangirl, probably made him feel like the king of the snipers giving herself over to him so freely, and completely, and without analyzing the situation to death. It's hot. It's heavy. But in the end, it's very shallow and Booth isn't doing them any favors by rushing things just to help him feel like he's moved on.
The real beauty of that scene between Hannah and Brennan at the lab is that it shows how little Hannah knows Booth, and how much Brennan does. Granted, Brennan has known him much longer, but it seems to me that he hasn't even shared enough with Hannah for her to be able to buy him a meaningful housewarming gift. There's no hesitation when Brennan tells her what she should buy him and when Hannah casts her doubts, Brennan gives a fully developed explanation behind the suggestion as well.
I love that Brennan is looking out for Booth's heart now, warning Hannah not to move in with him unless she's truly ready to commit to Booth on that kind of level. This tells me she knows what her actions on the Hoover steps did to Booth, and that she doesn't want him to hurt like that again. Hannah says that she is serious about Booth, and I believe she's sincere. But I also believe that there are so many things she doesn't know - things that can now surface now that they're in DC - and it may very well be those things that lead to the beginning of the end with Hannah.
Okay, breathes a sigh of relief that was the heavy stuff: lets move on and get to the humor. Because for as much pathos as they crammed into this episode, there were some great laugh out loud moments as well!
First, Brennan is utterly adorable when she geeking out. It doesn't matter if it's finding out that the mummy on her table is ancient, or contemplating going on a dig that could reshape history, or looking forward to comparing field experience with the “documentary” series she's been watching; she gets this smile on her face and bounce in her step that makes you wonder if you're getting a glimpse of what she was like as a little girl.
I loved the role reversal in this episode, where she's serving as the translator of the Guido language and customs for Booth and also interacting with them in their language. Brennan using words in the vernacular is nothing short of stellar. Watching her throw that crab? Yeah, I giggled, and fell for her just a little bit more. It's clear that she's passionate about the study of people groups and how they relate to one another and she uses her knowledge to get them information more quickly than Booth would've. Episodes like this that show how both of them play an irreplaceable roll are important in the overall scheme of things because they both need to bring something to the table in order for a long term relationship to work between them.
Second to the Hannah and Brennan scene, I appreciated the Booth vs. Terror showdown. Once Terror crossed the line and shoved Brennan, Booth steps in as Brennan moves back and the tension gets thick enough to cut with a knife. Booth doesn't flinch at the barely veiled threats and the look in his eyes narrows until the real threat is made and he is moved to action. I love that even as Brennan tries to warn Terror about Booth's “very male” tendencies, she calmly collects his jacket and gun that he hands her like they've done the same thing a thousand times and she knows what her role is.
This brings me back to my earlier point that these are two people who, because they have taken the time to let each other in, know one another on a very deep, personal level. I firmly believe that it's not even lose to over for these two; and in fact they might be closer to getting together than they've ever been. That's not saying that when things finally come to a head there won't be a blowout that will make the fight in 100 past pale in comparison (because I truly feel that day is coming given all of the craziness they've put themselves through). But when they come out of it on the other side they'll be stronger for it and nothing will be able to separate them again.
A few final thoughts as we wrap this up: What was Booth thinking when he followed her to his door? Did he want to thank her? Was he wishing it was them moving in together? Are we - the audience with the omniscient viewpoint - reading too much by saying he is still longing for her to beg him to take her back?
Okay, okay, enough with the deep questions. In just a few days, we have David Allen Grier, the Masked Scheduler, Caroline Julian, a rifle-toting Brennan, and Brennan dressed up in a skeleton costume for a kids' show (see Hart Hanson's current twitter background) coming to us. Which are you looking forward to most?
Gum :)