Seeley Booth

Infobox character
colour = orange
name = Seeley Booth


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first = "Pilot"
last =
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gender = Male
age = 35
born =
status = unknown
occupation = FBI Special Agent
callsign =
family = Jared Booth (brother)
spouse(s) =
children = Parker Booth (son)
relatives =
residence =
episode =
portrayer = David Boreanaz
creator = Hart Hanson

Seeley Booth is a fictional character in the American television series, "Bones". He is portrayed by David Boreanaz and is a co-protagonist of the series alongside Dr. Temperance Brennan.

Brief character history

Seeley Booth was a former sniper with the United States Army Rangers, who is currently an agent with the FBI. He frequently consults with Dr. Brennan, whom he nicknamed 'Bones', and her team, acting as a liaison between the FBI and the Jeffersonian Institute. When it comes to solving crime, Seeley has a very different approach from Dr. Brennan and her team, preferring a more human, interpersonal and intuitive set of methods. While he finds the information Dr. Brennan and her team uncover valuable clues, he often finds their means overly convoluted and restrictive, and adds his intuition and knowledge of people on top of it — something that clashes with Dr. Brennan's hard, objective and analytical approach which is mindful of its own limits.

While Seeley tries to keep personal and professional life strictly separate, aspects of his personal life leak through. He is a religious man by nature, having been an Altar boy as a child, (he knows a little Latin,) and is still a practicing Roman Catholic, seeking to atone for the lives he took as a sniper through his work in the FBI. His father flew fighter planes during the Gulf War and his mother composed jingles for tv ads. While in the Army Rangers he was apparently tortured, leaving him with emotional and physical scars (revealed in 1x15 "Two Bodies in the Lab"). He was romantically entangled with a blonde lawyer named Tessa. He also has a four-year old son named Parker with his ex-girlfriend, Rebecca. Originally, the communication between Seeley and Rebecca seemed hostile, and she denied him visitation out of spite; however it was later revealed that is not the case, and relations between them have dramatically improved. He has also mentioned having a brother named Jared. During a conversation with Dr. Wyatt, we learn he is from Pittsburgh. It was also revealed at the end of Season 1 that Seeley is (still) recovering from a gambling addiction.

Seeley rekindled a relationship with Dr. Camille Saroyan when she joined the Jeffersonian team. The relationship ended after an intense case, with Seeley asserting that on-the-job romantic relationships endangered the team in high-pressure situations.

While Seeley and Brennan maintain a professional relationship and friendship, there is also the beginning of a romantic tension within their relationship. [Pastorek, W., " [http://www.ew.com/ew/report/0,6115,1484053_3|110629||0_0_,00.html Bones] ", "Entertainment Weekly". August 30, 2006. April 7, 2007.] Particularly, Seeley is shown to be jealous of Temperance's romantic relationships in "Two Bodies In The Lab" (1x15) and "The Woman In Limbo" (1x22). Also, in "The Santa In The Slush" (3x10,) Russ wants to spend Christmas with his family, so Brennan decides to ask Caroline Julian, though Seeley says that she will want something in return. Caroline does indeed want something; she wants Brennan to kiss Seeley on the lips for 5 steamboats (seconds), and under some mistletoe to boot. The two kiss, and to the shock of Caroline (and themselves,) the kiss lasts for 10, not 5, steamboats. In "The Woman in the Sand" Seeley's mouth drops when he sees Brennan in the dress.

Seeley once arrested Brennan for shooting a murderer who, despite trying to set her on fire, was unarmed at the time. Even though she was not convicted, she was still charged with a felony, which meant that her original application for a concealed weapon was denied. In the second season, she was allowed a permit.

During the episode "The Killer in the Concrete" Seeley is kidnapped, tied up, gagged and tortured by a West Virginia mobster, but is rescued by Temperance and Max.

At the end of the second season, Seeley agreed to be Hodgins' best man in his wedding to Angela after Zack refused. It is unclear whether he knew that he was the second choice, but it became moot when the wedding was called off.

In the Season 3 episode "Wannabe in the Weeds," Seeley is stalked by a suspect in his investigation. She is suspected for the murder because she had stalked the victim. The woman, Pam, began stalking Seeley because she feels a special connection with him, inspired by his reassuring touch as she grieved over the victim's death. At the end of the episode, Pam tries to shoot Temperance, jealous of her close relationship with Booth. Seeley, however, dives in front of Brennan and tries to stop Pam as she pulls the trigger, but he inadvertently takes the bullet. The episode ends with Booth falling unconscious and bleeding.

Though he does not actually die, the FBI fakes his death in order to complete an investigation at the beginning of the Season 3 finale.

In the third season, Seeley uses information found by Brennan and the lab team to track down a serial killer known as Gormogon, which forms the season's "story arc".

In the first and second episode of the fourth season, Yanks In The U.K., Booth was given the title of "Official Junior Knight of the Realm," although the medal was from a toy-store.

Characterization

Seeley does not socially fit in with the collection of "geeks" (whom he and his FBI colleagues refer to as "squints") that make up Dr. Brennan's team. Seeley fills out the stereotype of the "all American boy" — now all grown up — very well. He is world-wise, socially at ease with people, and apparently at ease with women (a contrast to the humorous social bumbling sometimes exhibited by some of Dr. Brennan's team).

Seeley is a fan of Classic rock and Arena rock music. He has expressed great affection for the group Foreigner and poked fun at Bones for her interest in new world, jazz music. He also likes the band Poco and sang their song, "Keep on Trying" with Bones. In the season three finale, it is also shown that he listens to the band "Social Distortion" to help himself relax. (While also reading a Green Lantern comic in the bath.) It is revealed in the season three episode "The Mummy In The Maze" that Seeley suffers from coulrophobia.

Seeley shares a very strong bond with Brennan. During the episode "Santa in the Slush" he is seen to be kissing Brennan, albeit as a result of Caroline Julian's extortion. He also known to be fiercely protective of both Brennan and his partnership with her. When questioned about functioning on his job without her, he instantly replied "I'm with Bones, all the way." When her life was in danger, he went out of his way to be with her and protect her himself. Later, when Bones was kidnapped, Seeley (despite having recently barely survived a deadly blast intended for Bones, and still wounded) took part in the rescue mission to find her (1x15 "Two Bodies in the Lab"). And in perhaps Seeley's most famous example to date, he tracked a gang leader who put a hit out on Bones and threatened the man himself. Seeley stuck a gun in the criminal's mouth and said "If anything happens to her, I will find you and I will kill you. I won't think twice about it" (1x13, "The Woman in the Garden"). When Seeley's stalker, Pam Nunan, aims a gun at Brennan, he jumps in front of her, taking the bullet.

Seeley also seems to get on quite well with Angela and Hodgins, but finds Zack's cold naivety a little disconcerting, to the extent that he leads Zack to believe that the fact that Seeley rarely acknowledges his existence as a sign of male bonding, so that he doesn't have to talk to him.

Booth has stated in The Girl in the Gator that Howard Epps is his fiftieth kill. Although he technically wasn't responsible so as of The Man in the Cell his official kill count is at 49.

References