Remember how Temperance “monogamy is stupid” “marriage treats women as property” “heteronormativity is a harmful social construct” “it takes a village” Brennan got a house in the suburbs, had 1.5 kids, got married in a catholic ceremony, and generally got absorbed by Standard Tv Mom-Wife?
Good news, the writers of Bones have reached out and need us to write how this would have actually played out in queer non-standard ways. What actually happened?
They don’t get married because their love is more than a state-recognized business partnership OR it is actually Brennan’s idea very early on, she makes a courthouse date last minute so they can get tax benefits. She does not wear a white dress, thank you very much.
Brennan keeps her apartment. She needs her alone time sometimes, and it’s hard for Booth to not take that personally. He’s the type to insist they sleep in the same bed even if he can’t sleep because she snores too much. It takes time to feel secure enough and recognize she’s not rejecting him when she needs to be alone. It makes times when they’re together that much more special.
Jared, Padme, Rus, Amy and the girls are way more present. It’s less a focus on the B&B household and more on the supportive network of everyone taking care of each other and each others kids. Same goes for Ange, Hodgins, and Michael-Vincent, who are always trading off whose house they’re staying at.
They take in foster kids, which is more important to both of them than needing to have a genetic connection. They both know what it’s like to need some love after being abandoned by their families. Maybe they even take in Jared’s kid, if things with him go south.
Parker’s gay. He comes out to Brennan first because he’s scared his dad is going to freak out, what with the whole Catholic thing. Brennan, who has no filter even on her good days, is confused and immediately outs Booth as being bisexual. Happy family ending where everyone gets a kinder sort of masculinity than the show allows.
When Brennan needs a break, or has moral scruples with how her own evidence is manipulated to incarcerate innocent people, she takes on projects that better suit her moral priorities. She joins efforts working on the American and Canadian boarding schools, the Magdalene Laundries and other similar mass burial sites. Booth is initially uncomfortable but then becomes emphatically supportive. The Church he believes in should never have done these things, so it’s his moral duty as a good Catholic to seek justice for those that the church wronged.
Similarly, Booth and some old buddies start asking some questions, poking and prodding the right people with the right kind of concerns. They end up putting together an effort to investigate American and ally war crimes in Afghanistan. Brennan is the perfect person to lead the research effort, and it’s excellent work for her students. Similar to the Church, I think Booth’s pride in the military can go hand-in-hand with trying to right it’s wrongs and hold it to a higher standard.
As far as the monogamy thing goes, I think it would be complicated to get there, but not impossible. It would take a long time for Booth to feel secure enough in their relationship to even consider it. I think it’s relatively easy for him to accept that Brennan and Angela have A Thing. I think, with some tweaks, there’s a future where, when Hannah comes through town, they all have fun together.
What else?? Please share your thoughts!!
turnnoffyourmind
snowghoul
annaxmalina
izzy806
stormborns
