Finale Fever: Bones, House and More

• May 20, 2008 03:13 PM ET
• by Matt Roush

As the season rushes to a close, so do the fates of many characters in one wrenching season finale after another. This is the time of year when terrible things tend to happen to terrific characters, and that was certainly the case on Fox's Monday night shows.

Starting with the best: House. Kristi Yamaguchi wasn't the only one clocking a perfect score last night- yes, I played back Dancing With the Stars to come down off my emotional House high. House scored a "10!" (mimic Bruno's fist pump) with this gripping two-part finale, which shockingly and movingly pulled the plug on the character of Amber, whom we will no longer refer to as Cutthroat You-Know-What. She stole Wilson's heart, and ultimately ours, and Anne Dudek was magnificent throughout. When it was made clear that nothing could save her from the multiple traumas triggered by that bus crash that fractured House's memories, painful goodbyes were in order for a truly memorable character. (This tragedy even prompted 13 to finally test herself for Huntington's. The result: positive.)

Robert Sean Leonard, an often overlooked asset in the House ensemble, stepped up with his most powerful work to date: expressing anger and aggression as he argued for extreme methods (protective hypothermia) to preserve Amber's organs so an accurate diagnosis could be made; rage and grief as he reluctantly faced the reality of her impending death; and finally, aching tenderness as he cradled Amber in his arms as he watched her slip away. When he got back home to find a note for him (with an uncharacteristic heart drawn on it) under her pillow well, love means never having to say you're sorry for going on a crying jag.

Hugh Laurie was also in exceptional form, allowing some cracks in House's emotional armor as he realized the implications of this tragedy on his bro-mance with Wilson. (Ironically, a bus accident helped bring Barney and Ted back together on Monday's How I Met Your Mother finale. Geez, there was a lot of good TV on last night.) House even shed a tear before his seizure during the brain probe. And thankfully, he even got to bring the funny momentarily, playing bathroom-stall footsie (very Larry Craig) with 13 to shake her out of her funk. All in all, an exceptional way to end a very uneven transitional season.

I wish I had as positive a reaction to the Bones finale, which got off to a good start with a fun if obvious fake-out surrounding Booth's mock funeral, and Bones' outrage to have been kept out of the loop. Sweets made the call on that one, and for much of the episode, seemed the most likely suspect as Gormogon's in-house apprentice. Alas, that wasn't the case, and that dishonor fell on Zack, the mild-mannered brainiac- delicately and winningly played by Eric Millegan- who apparently could be wooed by logic to service some anonymous cannibalistic serial killer (possibly my least favorite arc on any show this season, and certainly the least satisfyingly resolved).

There was little logic in the telling of this particular story, and the sacrifice of this engaging character (who is being moved to a psych ward, where I suppose he can be enlisted on a guest-star basis in the future- sort of a milquetoast Hannibal Lecter consultant?) seems to me just another cheap sweeps season-ending stunt. Still, kudos to the rest of the cast for keeping it as real as possible as they grieved for their fallen-from-grace comrade. They're why I wouldn't give up on Bones just yet.

This was far from the show's finest hour, but few shows seem able to avoid succumbing to end-of-season sweeps-itis, and it wasn't nearly as laughable as junk like the incoherent CSI: Miami cliffhanger, which ended with a priceless shot of a fallen Horatio framed by his broken sunglasses. Talk about characters I wouldn't shed a tear over.