The Woman in Limbo

Season 1, Episode 22, Aired
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Episode Summary

Brennan receives some bones that she must identify, but is stunned when she finds that the remains are those of her mother. Brennan is hit hard by this discovery, and understandably so, since she never knew what happened to her parents after they disappeared 15 years ago. An investigation is opened by Booth into the case, for the first time ever. Brennan is shocked with evidence that her parents might not be the people she thought they were, and she must come to grips with these new details from her parents' past as well as her own.moreless
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Fan Episode Reviews (47)

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  • Great show just commenting to fix the review below mine.

    8.0
    "Great"
    By JF1181, Nov 04, 2011 Report Abuse
    I just read the review below me and wanted to clear up some things. There was is not a discrepancy, I can see where she made the error. Nothing to be ashamed of cause it can be easily missed. Her reference to the times of 5 and 7 years as if they had just found the body. But the body has been in storage since before Dr. Brennan went to work for the lab. At the beginning her assistant (Zack) makes the comment that she (the mother) has been there longer than her(Dr. Brennen). I believe they use the year 1998 and since this starts in 2006 that adds 8 years to her age. So she would be 30ish.moreless

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    2 1

  • We find Bones's mother

    10
    "Perfect"
    By vicky24c, Jun 22, 2011 Report Abuse
    In this episode of Bones, the following happens. As Bones leaves for a court case, she sees the image of the skull which Angela has come up with and flips out. She then runs and gets the belongings found with the body and opens them on her desk. Inside she finds a belt with a dolphin on it and has a flash back, and when Booth goes to see Angela we realise what has happened.
    We learn from Booth that the image (and also the skull) belongs to Bones's mother. But wouldn't Angela know what her mother looks like; after all they have been friends for longer than Booth has worked with Bones. We soon learn that the bones and many others from the same site have been at the Jeffersonian since 1998, the same year that Bones started working there. After Bones goes home, that same night (at midnight) Booth goes round to see Bones. The next day, when booth digs deeper into their past, we learn that Bones's parents were using fakes names when she and her brother were born and were still using them when they disappeared. From evidence found we learn that her mother was still alive in 1993. Bones gets the shock of her life, when she sees her brother Russ entering the lab with Booth. When Booth digs deeper he learns that their parent's real names were Max and Ruth and that they are on a database for criminals. When Russ admits that he remembers having a different name as he was 7 years old we learn that he was called Kyle and Bones was actually called Joy. She then slaps him, shouts at him some more and then leaves the room. We learn that their parents were involved in bank robberies and during one big heist 2 people were killed. We soon learn that Bones's mother was having an affair and had planned to leave her father, until he found out and attacked her mother and her boyfriend. But Booth doesn't believe it. When they search his farm, they find the weapon that matches the wounds on her mother. He tells her that if she loses the evidence, then he will tell her the truth about what happened to her parents, but she tells him no and walks away.
    As the episode end we see Booth asking Bones f he can read her book before it goes out to the public and she tells him no. Then she drives him so that she can go and see her brother, Russ. They patch things up and hug. As we see all 3 of them heading back to her apartment, Booth find Bones's new book and sees that she has dedicated the book to him. When she hits her answer machines messages, we hear a message from her father begging her to stop looking for him, thus ending this brilliant first season of Bones.moreless

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    4 0

  • Total inconsistency with story line

    8.5
    "Great"
    By mltar, Jun 22, 2011 Report Abuse
    What have I missed? I've just watched an episode where Ryan O'Neil is her father. He's working at the Jeffersonian as a teacher. But, in the ep "The Woman in Limbo" the father is in hiding, was a serious crim and doesn't want her to find him. He seems like a sweet old guy, a bit of a sly old bugger, who's quite likeable...not at all like a guy begging his daughter not to follow him up because he's a crim in hiding. If someone could explain what it is that I've missed I'd be happy - thanks in advance.moreless

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    0 8

  • The bones of Brennan's mother are discovered, leading her to discover what really happened to her parents.

    5.0
    "Mediocre"
    By motleylil, Jun 22, 2011 Report Abuse
    Am I the only one who noticed nobody can do a damn thing by themselves in this episode? I mean, seriously, every single thing depends on Brennan. I think it's very unprofessional on the writer's part that everything depends on one person. Yes, I admit she's the protagonist and she's better than everyone else, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the others are all completely incompetent. Putting that aside, I still hated her for most of the episode. In the previous ep, she was a complete ass to Booth because he wasn't objective about the case. Now she's nowhere near objective when she deals with her mother's case, but that's all right. Now that it's her, the only person who's worth a damn in this show, that's not objective, that's not a problem anymore.

    The storyline in itself was good, but I just couldn't get over the bad writing. Oh, one more thing. Really bad actor for Brennan's brother. He's just really not good.moreless

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    1 12

  • Fantastic Episode!

    10
    "Perfect"
    By eilien, Jun 05, 2011 Report Abuse
    What a perfect series finale! There was nothing not to like about this episode. It started with Brennan in the office, getting whisked away by Booth (at least he tries to) for a court appointment, but everyone seems to want something from Bones. There is such a great dynamic in that scene and it's particularly funny to watch Booth trying to shield Bones with the file, or impatiently drumming her back. Oh and then there's David, too (her date from 1x16) telling her that he really likes her new novel. You can literally feel Booth's jealousy (both because David sees Bones and he got to read her novel). But all the humour disappears when they find out that they had Christine Brennan's (Bones' mother) remains in storage for a couple of years. Bones is devastated and Booth opens an official FBI investigation. Through the course of the case they find out that her parents (and Bones and her brother Russ too) live under assumed identities and find the murderer of Brennan's mother. There were a lot of really great character scenes,- The squints refusing to leave the lab until the murder is resolved, Booth being constantly concerned and showing up in the middle of the night at Brennan's door with takeout (twice), Bones getting closer to her brother again etc.
    Oh and how cute was it that Bones dedicated her second novel to Booth?moreless

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    3 0
 

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • Brennan finds out about her real past. Brennan's real name is Joy Keenan. The rest of her family's names are as follows: Kyle Keenan aka Russ Brennan Ruth Keenan aka Christine Brennan Max Keenan aka Matthew Brennan Edit
    • Brennan's new book manuscript that Booth sneaks a look at (and sees is dedicated to him) is "Cross Bones." That is also the title of Kathy Reichs' eighth book. Edit
    • In Brennan's apartment, Booth discovers her manuscript and sees that the title "Bone Free," which he didn't like, has been crossed off. He opens to the dedication which reads: "This book is dedicated to my partner and friend, Special Agent Seeley Booth." Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • Booth: I'm FBI. I know who you are. McVicar: Steve Beers, pig farmer. This bit of sarcasm is an in-joke. Steve Beers is one of the show's co-executive producers. Edit
    • Featured Music: "As the Stars Fall Away" by Peter Himmelman (the second time Booth comes to Brennan's apartment after midnight to share Wong Foo's food) "New Girl Now" by Honeymoon Suite (in the background when Booth goes to see Russ at the amusement park) Edit
    • We see Brennan's apartment three times in the season: in "Pilot," in "Two Bodies in the Lab," and in "The Woman in Limbo." However, every time, her apartment looks distinctly different. Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Voice on Answering Machine: Temperance, you have to stop looking, y-you have to stop looking for me right now. This is bigger and worse than you know. Please, stop now. Booth: Who's that? Brennan: (sounding shaken) That was my father. Edit
    • Booth: I need the room, guys. Zack: The whole lab? For what?! Hodgins: It's a cop way of saying, "Get lost!" Edit
    • Brennan: Why are you letting me drive? Booth: It's a reward. Brennan: For what? Booth: For totally pissing off a hitman. (they both laugh) Oh, can I read your book? Brennan: After it's come out. Booth: Not before? Brennan: No. Booth: But, what? I let you drive. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Brennan: I think I just became a vegetarian. In real life Emily Deschanel is a vegan and has been for 12 years. Edit

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