BODY OF PROOF: Home Invasion (of Privacy)

Megan Hunt (Dana Delany) preps for an autopsy

This Body of Proof episode features a TV classic: the perfect family that isn’t so perfect after all. Sixteen-year-old Greg Lux, at the movies, wants to call and see if he can stay out later on his awesome date, but is apprehensive about waking his parents. Some people might see this as foreshadowing for what happens later (controlling dad), but as a kid who always mostly respected curfew, this didn’t strike me as strange. What did strike me as strange is that Greg’s friend Travis encourages him to use that new app that will let him hack into the security cameras at the house and see if his parents are still awake. Now, I don’t know about you, but as much as I’d like to pretend the stork dropped me off, even the sad broken Pixar stork, I’m pretty sure my parents have sex. I have made it a goal in my life to know as little as I possibly can about this development. This app strikes me as being VERY detrimental to this goal.

Anyway, Greg Lux does not share my fears. He uses the app, which I shall now refer to as OMG PASS THE BRAIN BLEACH, to check out the security cameras…and has the misfortune of seeing his father Mike wearing a red smile.

Enter Team Megan! Curtis has a new job as Chief, and good grief is he high and mighty. He even shows up at the crime scene wearing his slick new duds and proceeds to try and boss everybody around—messing up the crime scene by touching things without gloves (thank you, Megan and Peter and Bud for yelling at him because geez! I hate it when people on TV do this!). He has his first talk with Greg and the two of them figure out that Robin, Greg’s mother, is in the house. Like her husband, she is trussed to a chair, and just like him, she is dead, though not thanks to throat slitting.

Curtis (Wendell Middlebrooks) deals with his new responsibility

So the suspect lineup: there’s Owen Kreger, Mike’s business partner for their jewelry store, who was in the process of buying Mike out. The minute he comes on screen and starts talking about Robin, my sister and I immediately call dibs on “he’s in love with her!” It’ll come down to a grudge match to see who said it first. Another lead is a plumber that’s worked in all of the houses. That’s also a dead end, but there’s a curious lead in Aaron Lux, who’s been so far cut out of their lives that there aren’t even any pictures of him around the house, which is why the cops take awhile to find out about him.

Greg tells Peter and Curtis about Aaron, who was cast out at sixteen. He’s been up in Alaska for awhile. It should be noted that Greg is staying with his friend Travis, who is restoring an old car. Got that? Good, let’s move on.

Dr. Kate Murphy (Jeri Ryan) and Dr. Ethan Gross (Geoffrey Arend) examine a mysterious rash

Kate joins Team Megan as another M.E. officially this episode, and welcome, Kate! Stay, won’t you? You were born to wear these scrubs. Anyway, Kate takes lead on examining Robin, Megan examines Mike, and they determine that the killer was much gentler in restraining Robin than Mike. Also, Robin’s cause of death was suffocation; rashes on her face point to an allergic reaction to a substance commonly used to polish jewelry. That leads them back to Owen, who obviously didn’t do it because this is too early in the episode to reveal the killer.

Sam (Sonja Sohn), Megan, and Bud (John Caroll Lynch) with Owen Kreger (Tom Gallop)

Aaron, on the other hand, is picked up pawning some of the missing jewelry of his mother’s, so he looks like a good suspect. Aaron, however, paints a very bleak picture of growing up with his abusive dad, who was so controlling that his mother could only give Aaron jewelry to pawn to help him out.

Greg comes back to plead with Curtis not to let child services take him, and they discover bruising all over Greg’s torso, corroborating Aaron’s story. In examining the bruising, though, Megan notices a rash exactly like those found on Robin’s face. The substance is commonly used in jewelry polishing, but it can also be found in some fluid or other that works on car dents.

The killer: Greg’s friend Travis! He was just looking out for Greg and he never meant to hurt Robin, but the upshot of all of this is that Aaron and Greg are reunited and can be a family again.

A sadly broken and reunited family: Aaron and Greg Lux

In the B-plot, heavy is the head that wears the throne. Curtis tries to middle-manage and money-pinch the department, but finds that he has his work cut out for him when a prankster fills his office with blown-up medical gloves, completely undermining his authority. Ethan doesn’t make things any easier by hilariously leading a “Viva La M.E. Office Underdogs” revolution, but the real prankster, it turns out, is Kate.

I adore Kate.

The C-plot is split between Lacey and Megan. Megan is afraid to seal the deal with Aidan, who I still find a little overbearing but am warming up to. He brushes what I feel are realistic concerns (she is a working mother with loads of baggage) aside, but by the end, they work things out. Lacey’s story is the sad tale of first love: she’s gaga over a guitarist (and a much older boy, much to Megan’s chagrin)…who has a girlfriend. Of course it leads to heartbreak, but it also ends the episode with a touching Megan/Lacey scene. I adore Dr. Megan Hunt, too, guys.

Lacey (Mary Mouser) and Megan bond with an old stuffed elephant

Body of Proof airs on ABC at 10/9c on Tuesdays.