The remains of an ex-marine noted for living "off-grid" are found in a tree inside a nationally protected wooded preserve, leading the team with little answers until they decide to investigate an ultra-elite private school backed by wealthy families. Max reappears and tries to help the team much to Brennan's dismay.
Tropes
- Argument of Contradictions: Sweets and Brennan engage in one of these when he claims her real reason for not wanting Max around the Jeffersonian is her abandonment issues.
- Enfant Terrible: Alexa King. Being protected from consequences her whole life results in her shooting her body guard-nanny to keep him from telling her school she paid someone else to do her project.
- I Want You to Meet an Old Friend of Mine: Gina Torres (Dr. Ezralow) played Jasmine on the fourth season of Angel with Boreanaz.
- It's What I Would Do: Angela figures out an address from a reflection in a photo based on where she would be if she were a house number.
- Plot Parallel: Booth anguishes about whether to send his son to an expensive private school, and Bones is no help. The murder victim turns out to have been killed by an upper-class child in private school, and in the end Booth decides that middle class is good enough.
