The Feet on the Beach

The Feet on the Beach is the seventeenth episode of the sixth season of Bones
== Synopsis ==
After a flood on the U.S.-Canada border, eight pairs of dismembered feet are discovered, with seven being identified as research corpses from a nearby university body farm. Brennan forms an alliance with Canadian forensic podiatrist Dr. Douglas Filmore when he takes the remains to Canada. Meanwhile, Cam continues to make college plans for her daughter which she may not like.
== Summary ==
Two cops walk along the U.S. - Canadian border. One of the guards trips, seemingly over his own two feet. "Those aren't my feet!" he yells. Sure enough, a decomposed pair of severed feet rest on the ground below. Cut to the Jeffersonian, where Hodgins has accidentally opened an acceptance letter from Columbia meant for Michelle but addressed to Camille. Angela quickly puts two and two together: Camille got Michelle into Columbia behind the teen's back. She doesn't want her adopted daughter going to some small school in Maine where Michelle's BF happens to attend.
Back at the murder site, Bones lifts the pair of decomposed feet ... and then finds another. There are apparently multiple people missing their appendages. Dr. Douglas Filmore, who calls himself a "forensic podiatrist," appears on the scene. He knows Bones, who points out no such technical position exists. In other words, Filmore is a regular podiatrist who occasionally helps out the police. Filmore sarcastically thanks Bones for making the distinction. Bones, of course, has no clue she has insulted the man. Filmore then explains his life's work was savagely refuted by Bones in one of her recent articles. As a result, his right arm no longer works. Seriously.
Cut to the diner, where Sweets and Booth tell Bones she should apologize for being so cruel to Filmore in the article. Again, Bones doesn't think she was mean at all -- just logical. In the meantime, Camille and Angela have determined eight pairs of feet were found. Hodgins enters with news: the same substance was found on all the feet. So the victims were murdered in the same place before they were dumped in the river. Just then, Filmore wanders into the lab. Because many of the feet were found on the Canadian side of the border, he has obtained permission to work with the team. "I wasn't sure you were actually going to join us because of ..." says Camille before trailing off. Filmore nods. Apparently, everyone is aware of how badly Bones embarrassed Filmore.
Sweets, meanwhile, interviews a mental patient who swapped shoes at the dump site just eight days ago (the poor guy just removed the feet before taking the shoes -- and threw up in the process). Angela uses that information to test rainfall and wind patterns eight days ago -- and determines the feet came from a university down river in New York. Bones' eyes light up. The same university is one of only a few to have a body farm. "So anthropologists can study decomposition," she explains. Booth clarifies: "So you're saying they have a field of dead people." Exactly. Turns out the field flooded in the rainfall and seven bodies washed away. Alas, the team found eight pairs of feet.
Cut to Filmore, who has pinpointed the unidentified pair of feet and determined they were separated from the remainder of the victim's body about two months ago. Hodgins then arrives with the shoes the mental patient took from the crime scene. Filmore does some fancy "foot" work using Angela's computer to match a digital recreation of the feet with the indentations in the shoes. "These are definitely our victim's shoes," Filmore concludes. Angela is impressed. Camille, meanwhile, comforts Michelle, who cries uncontrollably while explaining she recently broke up with her BF. "I can't go to the same college that Derek goes to," Michelle cries. She is despondent as schools are no longer accepting applications. Of course, Camille is secretly overjoyed.
B&B then visit the body farm. It's absolutely disgusting -- especially when a body ruptures from distention, sending guts everywhere -- but Bones loves it. She is in her element. Bones explains to Dr. Simpkins and his young assistant Norman the evidence suggests the lone murder victim originated at their body farm. Angela calls: the shoes, which cost $2,000 and thus had traceable serial numbers, belonged to graduate student Dylan McEllroy. B&B then head to campus to visit Dylan's roommate Kent, who is busy auctioning off shoes to his classmates. Booth flashes his badge and interrupts. "It looks like you're trying to sell out your dead roommate's shoe collection," he says.
Kent explains Dylan was two months late in his rent. The roomie was just trying to get his money back -- and didn't now Dylan was dead. "He used to disappear for weeks on his sneaker trips," Kent explains. And where did Dylan get this money to go on sneaker trips across the globe? Kent hangs his head -- and then admits Dylan sold drugs. Meanwhile, Sweets visits Filmore. The young man suggests he might be able to help Filmore with his right arm -- especially because Sweets knows Bones so well. Filmore is resistant ... for now. Later, Hodgins offers his own advice: "You're in America now. It's OK to get pissed at Dr. B." Filmore appears uncomfortable.
B&B had back to the body farm looking for marijuana. Apparently, Dylan was growing it nearby. Bones makes goo-goo eyes at young Norman while Booth meets groundskeeper Larry, who also looks quiet suspicious. B&B then follow Angela's geolink and discover pot plants. This is where Dylan was killed. "Prof. Simpkins inspects these projects daily," Norman explains. "He must have seen these plants." Cut to Simpkins, who admits he had an "arrangement" with Dylan. The professor ignored the pot plants in exchange for a few samples here and there. He smiles. Booth doesn't smile back.
Back at the Jeffersonian, Filmore examines the bones of the victim's feet and discovers one piece is slightly smaller than it should be. The shaving is artificial -- and not consistent with a different wound found. "Dylan was attacked with two different weapons?" Angela asks. Not only that, but Filmore suggests the wounds indicate that the weapons were power tools. Once again, Angela is super impressed. Later, Filmore examines all the power tools from the body farms. It doesn't take him long to realize the cuts could only be consistent with connected blades -- and grass in the remains indicates a riding lawnmower. Hodgins then enters with news: the many different bugs found on the feet all had eaten a specially produced insect food. It was spread on the body to attract as many bugs as possible -- so that the body would be quickly devoured. "Hastening decomposition and completely obscuring time of death," Camille notes.
B&B then interview Norman, who explains he was traveling in Finland at the time of Dylan's death. It's an awfully convenient alibi for someone who would know how to use the insect food to obscure time of death - and then plan a trip accordingly. Booth produces a receipt for the insect feed signed by Norman. "Dylan contaminated your body with his marijuana field," Bones says. "That was your thesis project." Norman admits the truth: Dylan ruined his projects, so Norman got on the mower to cut all the weed. "I told him to move, but he didn't," Norman cries. Dylan's feet were sliced and he bled to death.
Cut to Camille and Michelle. Cam explains what she did to get her daughter into Columbia. Michelle explains she learned from Camille not to cheat - and tears up the acceptance letter. She will work for a year and reapply. Camille smiles. She is proud.
Filmore, meanwhile, says goodbye to Sweets -- and then turns on Bones and unleashes an angry and very satisfying tirade. "You are brilliant ... but you are also closed-minded and a thoughtless person," Filmore says. Bones says she was remiss for not recognizing Filmore's considerable talents - and was honored to work with him. As she is saying this, Sweets notices Filmore's right hand twitching, and tosses him a small dish, expecting him to catch it instinctively. He doesn't, and it hits him squarely on the forehead. Sweets apologises profusely -- until Filmore rubs the injury with his right hand. "Look at that!" he exclaims.
== Cast ==
=== Main Cast ===
*Temperance Brennan - Emily Deschanel
*Seeley Booth - David Boreanaz
*Jack Hodgins - T.J Thyne
*Angela Montenegro - Michaela Conlin
*Camille Saroyan - Tamara Taylor
*Lance Sweets - John Francis Daley
=== Intern of the Week ===
*Douglas Filmore - Scott Lowell
=== Recurring Cast ===
*Michelle Welton - Tiffany Hines
=== Guest Cast ===
*Norman Hayes - Michael Welch
*Professor Peter Simpkins - Tahmus Rounds
*Kent Durham - Hank Harris
*Bernie Gillespie - Andy Mackenzie
*Larry Wolfram - David Ury
*U.S. Border Agent - Joel McKinnon Miller
*Trainee - Michael Lesly
*Dylan McEllroy - Martin Morse
== Featured Music ==
*”Something to Hold On To” by Allie Moss
== Notes ==
*This episode was likely inspired by the dozen or so dismembered human feet that have washed up on the west coast of Canada and the United States since the summer of 2007.
== Quotes ==
Category:Season 6
Category:Episodes