Bones Episode Titles Served More Of A Practical Purpose Than A Creative One
"Bones" is arguably one of the most successful network TV shows of the 2000s. In terms of sheer numbers, it's hard to argue against. It ran for a truly impressive 12 seasons on Fox, churning out a whopping 246 episodes. That's downright unthinkable in the streaming world we now live in, unless we're talking about reality TV. Each one of those episodes has a catchy title, such as the season 2 episode "Aliens in a Spaceship," which remains a fan-favorite. But the titles weren't crafted solely to be catchy or suggestive of the plot. It turns out, they were meant to help keep things straight for the writers.
In "Bones: The Official Companion," executive producers Hart Hanson and Stephen Nathan discussed the episode titles, with "Spaceman in a Crater" cited as an example. The book explains that, first and foremost, each "Bones" episode title refers to both the victim and the state in which the body was found. Hanson and Nathan also explained that the literal title choices helped keep the episodes straight for them throughout each season. As Hanson explained...
"Stephen has a huge, huge brain as you can see from his giant head. But, 'The Bodies in the Book'? I understand that. That's the one that had the bodies...in the book."
To Hanson's point, "Bones" averaged more than 20 episodes per season for more than a decade. That presented many challenges, including having to axe more than half of a season to accommodate Emily Deschanel's pregnancy. It's a lot to manage, and having to remember what happens in each episode off-hand would be tricky. The evocative titles made that far less tricky.
Bones went the Hardy Boys route with its titles
"Spaceman in a Crater," as the given example, sees Brennan and Booth investigating a scene where (you guessed it!) a dead man was found in a crater. The flattened body appears to have fallen from a high altitude with no parachute, and analysis suggests the body was in outer space. They ultimately discover he was an astronaut whose fall was no accident, with a complicated murder mystery unfolding. Coincidentally, this episode also provided Emily Deschanel with her biggest gross-out moment in "Bones" history.
Speaking about the episode titles in the book, Nathan added, "It's a little Hardy Boys, but it's mostly a remedial tool for us two guys who are still trying to figure out where to have lunch." For those who may not be familiar with the reference, "The Hardy Boys" was a series of novels based on characters created by American writer Edward Stratemeyer that centered on young amateur sleuths solving mysteries. The novels had titles like "The House on the Cliff" or "The Secret of the Caves." Hulu adapted "The Hardy Boys" into a TV show that lasted three seasons beginning in 2020.
In any event, it's easy to see how that naming convention would serve a show like "Bones" well from a narrative standpoint. It feels like a throwback and suits the procedural nature of the series. It also, rather conveniently, had a pragmatic purpose as well.
"Bones" is streaming now on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.