This week's 'Bones' episode saw the team at the Jeffersonian go through a particularly tough case involving a young 14-year-old boy named Colin Gibson. The normally detached Brennan (Emily Deschanel) was unable to keep her cool demeanor and broke down like the rest of her murder-solving team.
Monday's episode, entitled "The Ghost in the Machine," gave fans a different perspective by being told in the point of view of Colin's remains. Fans saw as everyone, including Brennan, spoke to Colin's skull in an attempt to figure out what happened to him. Early on in the episode, which was the season's last episode before winter hiatus, Brennan is seen getting visibly upset about Colin and his death.
The team at the Jeffersonian, including Booth (David Boreanaz) and Sweets (John Francis Daley), become very invested in solving the boy's murder, especially after psychic Avalon (guest star Cyndi Lauper) tells them that Colin's spirit is still with his remains.
Through his bug and dirt work, Hodgins (TJ Thyne) was able to discover that Colin's body had been moved from its original resting place, leading to answers on the condition of his skull. The team also discovered that Colin's body sustained many bone fractures right before and leading up to his death.
Of course, Colin is not just a set of bones. The team learns that the 14-year-old was not only a good student but that he excelled at sports-a vital clue to his death. Booth and Brennan also meet Colin's friends when they come by the lab to drop off his skateboard and a mix tape he left for a friend he was crushing on.
After finding a car paint chip among his remains, Hodgins discovers that a car hit Colin in the moments before his death. Booth traces the car-chip back to Colin's father's car and immediately sets off to question him, only to discover he is not Colin's murderer.
New clues lead Booth and Brennan to Colin's first resting place-a pump house about two miles from where he was discovered. The team is then able to piece together Colin's accidental death, which involved a couple of his older male friends. His friends soon admit to the accidental murder as well as to moving his body after his death.
Despite solving his murder, Avalon says that Colin's spirit is still unable to move on. Thankfully, Brennan and Angela (Michaela Conlin) discover a secret video hidden in his mix tape for his friend Miranda, where he confesses his feelings for her. After showing Miranda the video, Colin's spirit is finally liberated.
'Bones' S8E10 "The Doll in the Derby " returns on Monday, January 14 at 8 p.m. EST on FOX.
WATCH THE PROMO FOR "THE DOLL IN THE DERBY"