Bones decided to go alternate reality on us for its season finale. Bones and Booth are cast as a couple who own a nightclub called “the Lab.” Bones and Booth’s nightclub is the site of a murder and the investigators are Booth’s brother Jared and Cam. The show uses the dream episode as a good excuse to drag in every actor who’s played a lab assistant or bit character to come back for more. While last week the crime was secondary and somewhat lame, in the finale the crime is the centerpiece of the story.

The murder in the bathroom of “the Lab” brings all of the employees into the mix as suspects. Sweets is the bartender. Angela is the hostess. Hodgins is a crime novelist. Even Zach reappears as a goofy busboy. The arrows of the investigation seem to repeatedly point toward Bones and Booth. Their ever loyal employees don’t help matters by concealing evidence and generally acting like detectives. Evidence points everywhere but is all inconclusive. From gang ties to possible infidelity between the fantasy-couple, motives are everywhere. In the counter investigation that Booth is conducting Jared his brother and Bones’ father Max come up as prime suspects.

Bones gets a complete head scratcher of a guest star for its season finale. Motley Crue shows up to play “the Lab” as part of Booth’s head trauma-inspired dream. At the same time, Jared and Cam end up in a standoff in the club’s alley. Jared is exposed as the murderer. He killed the victim protecting his brother wife who the victim had come to kill as retribution over disputed protection money. Bones steps into the fray, thanking Jared for his protection and asking that he now give himself up. He does and is taken into custody just in time to have Motley Crue play “Dr Feelgood.”

Booth awakens in a hospital bed with Bones gently writing at his bedside. Teary and relieved Bones rushes to him. She explains that he’s been a coma for several days but that his operation was a success. Booth looks quizzically at Bones and asks her “who are you?” The season ends.

Bones does a pretty good job of playing up its campy side this week. Keeping track of each character’s new role is a little difficult, and that’s to the episode’s detriment.  Generally though, I found it more fun that it sounds on paper. My general problem with this episode is that it just felt drama-less. I figure most of the audience assumed that this was all an intense dream sequence brought on by Booth’s brain surgery. Thus, where is the tension? The only tension the episode is able to serve up in anticipation of next season is Booth’s amnesia. Though that may play itself into a more interesting set of stories next season, in itself it doesn’t carry enough weight. Here’s looking forward to next season’s round of fresh corpses and unrealized sexual tension.