The Beloved Bones Character That Fans Hated In The End
For fans of any long-running TV series, having a character die or depart the show can be devastating. But how does it compare to a character you once loved becoming someone you can't stand?
Lovers of the Fox crime procedural Bones have dealt with the loss of many characters, but they're especially hurt by the character trajectory of Jack Hodgins (T.J. Thyne), one of the characters who was on the show from episode one until the series finale.
Things began to change for the character after he suffered a life-changing injury. During the season 11 episode "The Doom in the Boom," Hodgins is examining a dead body that was dumped on the street when he finds a strange-looking cell phone in its pocket. That phone turns out to be a bomb, and Hodgins isn't able to get away before he's blown backward by the ensuing detonation. He is injured, but thankfully appears to have made it out without any serious issues.
However, after seemingly making a recovery, Hodgins suddenly loses sensation in his legs and collapses to the ground at the end of the episode. He's rushed to a doctor, who reveals that the damage the blast caused to his spine was exacerbated by the blood-thinning effects of an Aspirin he took in the aftermath. Hodgins is now paralyzed from the waist down.
Making a sudden transition to living with a disability and using a wheelchair is very difficult on Hodgins and causes him to lash out angrily at his loved ones. For some fans on Reddit, Hodgins' behavior turned their love for him into loathing.
Many fans had a difficult time dealing with the way Hodgins treated his friends and family after his accident
Hodgins' injury earned him sympathy from fans, but the way he behaved in the aftermath had some questioning how much slack they should cut him. Although they understood that he was in physical and psychological pain, his rude and dismissive attitude toward those around him, especially his wife Angela (Michaela Conlin), felt inexcusable to plenty of Bones enthusiasts.
Reddit user u/Session_Horse started a thread entitled "My thoughts on a series 11 plotline...am I heartless?" to share their feelings. They wrote, "I'm already so done with the way that [Hodgins is] treating everybody like absolute crap. Of course, it's an awful life changing event but the people around him shouldn't just accept the abuse!"
User u/cuerious stepped in to agree. They first answered the question u/Session_Horse asked in the title of their thread by writing, "Nope, I hate it as well." They then revealed the aspect of Hodgins' personality shift that sat especially poorly with them: "The way he treats Angela in particular. I don't think there's any excuse to treat a loved one like that."
For Redditor u/SquilliamFancySon95, the entire thing was difficult to process: "His whole arc at the end is just unbearable, I felt even more betrayed than when they killed off Sweets."
Nobody was jumping up to excuse Hodgins' behavior, though there were some Reddit fans who saw the situation a bit differently. While they agreed that the way he was treating those around him was difficult to stomach, they understood why he was acting the way he was.
Others had empathy for him and understood his behavior
While many Bones fans had a hard time watching Hodgins' become more hostile and bitter after his paralysis, some pointed out that his personality change may not have been pleasant, but it was accurate. Multiple commenters came forward to give a more empathetic view of the situation.
User u/JabberJaws222 acknowledged, "It is really hard to watch," before going on to say, "However, as someo[n]e who has gone through a similar situation it is accurate. There is a lot of pain and anger that you can't direct at anything so it just comes out at everyone and everything. It is the process of grief."
Another user, u/cabandon, was feeling a similar way. They said, "Unpopular opinion, but i understand him." They conceded that "it's a terrible coping mechanism that I myself have to deal with when something absolutely awful happens in my life," but also made sure to note regarding Hodgins' close friends and family, "He still loves them, just doesn't have any way to bring up enough energy to be kind. It's sad but that's how it is for him."
Ultimately, Hodgins' is able to find ways to process and cope with his new reality. But even though he was able to repair his relationships with his colleagues and wife, he wasn't able to do the same with some Bones fans.