The X-Files - S10:E1 "My Struggle"

[ I Want To Believe <<< Season 10 >>> S10:E2 "Founder's Mutation" ]

To cut straight to the point of this review, I'll say from the outset that my overall impression of the first episode of this new miniseries is...lukewarm. Maybe I got my hopes up a little too high expecting it to be insta-classic X-Files, just add water. But it's only the first episode, and there's still time to improve. Besides, a lot of this episode seems to be setting up, getting us back into the groove. Perhaps we'll have Mulder and Scully shouting each other's names and waving their flashlights around more in the monster-of-the-week episodes. Regardless, I'm eagerly anticipating the episodes by Darin Morgan, Glen Morgan, and James Wong.

Spoiler Warning: The rest of this review is going to contain spoilers, both for this episode, and for much of the mythology of the series, to which this episode begins a new chapter.

So, my first impression as the episode began was that it didn't look or feel like classic X-Files. It's all very modern (and not just because of the hashtag in the corner of the screen). I see heavy usage of digital effects, and I'm not sure how comfortable I am about that. One advantage it may provide (although I've never been prejudiced against men in rubber suits), is that perhaps this series will actually have some aliens in it for the first time in like forever. Despite what I said during my marathon back around the time I reviewed the first movie, the series never really switched over to alien-alien characters. Right up to the end we were still dealing with alien replicants and Super Soldiers that looked, to the viewer's eye, entirely human.

And now we have an alien pilot crawling from the wreckage of a crashed UFO (Roswell, 1947, if I'm not mistaken). But it doesn't look like the crashed UFOs we've seen before. It's less esoteric - less glowing lights and men in hazmat suits, and more a broken saucer sticking out of the ground. In the first of many throwbacks to the series' earlier mythology, we see a presumed government agent executing the alien pilot, in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1013 (as alluded to by Deep Throat in E.B.E., and then addressed more explicitly in Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man).

I think the thing I like best that this episode has done, conceptually speaking, is restructure the entire conspiracy around which the show hinges. Even if that requires considerable retconning (one of the more eye-rolling examples of which is changing the date of the alleged alien apocalypse, as discovered in The Truth, to the date of the start of a countdown). The episode hearkens back to the fifth season's mythology quite a bit, even insofar as ostensibly placing Mulder in a position of doubt (initially). But while there has been alien contact, it is not the aliens that are the threat, but the government alone. Acting in a The Day The Earth Stood Still sort of capacity, the aliens have been drawn by mankind's achievement of nuclear warfare, and ever since 1947, the government has been stealing alien technology and hiding it from the public (creating ARVs - Alien Replica Vehicles, like the UFOs we saw in the episode Deep Throat), in a long-term plan to take over the world.

At least, that's what conservative talk show host Tad O'Malley (Joel McHale) is convinced of. And in true X-Files fashion, it's not altogether clear who one should trust. But Tad wants Mulder and Scully on the case, for obvious reasons, what with their background in fighting the conspiracy. It's not an easy sell, although, much like in I Want To Believe, Mulder seems more readily drawn to the action than Scully, who is again seen working as a doctor at Our Lady of Sorrows. Tad has been in contact with an abductee by the name of Sveta (a radiant Annet Mahendru), who appears to be exhibiting mind-reading abilities similar to those that Gibson Praise has demonstrated. Scully determines that she does indeed possess alien DNA, but then, as an abductee herself, she does, too.

Another thing that I think I like about this episode (in spite of myself) is how convincingly it seems to depict Mulder's obsession in an unhealthy way. I've always defended Mulder, and he'll probably turn out to be right yet again, but it really does start feeling like he's gone off the deep end. It doesn't help that he's getting older, and going gray, yet rambles (frequently only just barely coherently) more and more with the passing years. Tad - young and coiffed though he is - doesn't seem to be helping things, with his ultra-paranoid mentality (almost reaching levels witnessed in the episode Trust No 1; I daresay even The Lone Gunmen would call him crazy - and that's saying something).

No, don't kick it, Mulder!

As the episode opened, it was immediately clear that this series is sticking to its UFO-centered subject matter. But it really hammers on the paranoid conspiracy talk. A lot of it coming out of these characters' mouths sounds as obsessively paranoid as it would coming out of anyone's mouth. Similar to the fact that the best argument against conspiracies is that people are messy and prone to error, the fact that technology exists for perfect surveillance doesn't mean that we have the human resources (or inclination, necessarily) to use it that way. Just as the possibility of being seen when you pass a window doesn't mean that somebody will necessarily be looking at the instant you pass, the fact that there's a security camera on the street corner doesn't necessarily mean that you are or ever will be witnessed walking past by any human eyes. Similarly, Google may save all your emails, but somebody's still got to sit there and read through them all, and who has that kind of time?

Obviously, this isn't an argument against standing up for our privacy, because even if it's not ubiquitous, if the capability exists, there will be cases of people taking (selective) advantage of it. Power corrupts, and all that. Plus, if you throw into the mix the knowledge that computers are getting smarter, there may conceivably come a time when a machine could be up to the task of spending the necessary man hours (which would be considerably fewer computer hours), as well as an AI sophisticated enough to parse meaningful information. I guess, then, the important thing is a proactive defense of our privacy, laying the framework now, before it's too late (and the machines - or those that control them - take over)!

Which, I guess, is what's at the heart of the mythology in this episode. (And if it can engender this much discussion, maybe the themes are more on point than I realized). Questions still remain - as is ever the case when Chris Carter puts pen to paper. Who is in charge of this conspiracy? Besides the Cigarette Smoking Man, I mean - although his appearance raises even more questions. Like, how did he survive being incinerated to his very skeleton? He looks better now than he's looked since his surgery in Amor Fati, although he's never been as cool since he's had to smoke his cigarettes through a stoma. But if everything we thought we knew about the conspiracy - the Syndicate's plans, the aliens' agenda - is wrong, then there are a lot of contradictions that are going to need to be ironed out, unless we're being asked to ignore an awful lot of what this series has already laid out. Which I wouldn't be unwilling to do, but it would be helpful to know whether or not that's the case here. (And a brief reference to William would indicate that we're not completely jettisoning canon yet).

Anyway, I think the success of this episode will depend largely on how the rest of the miniseries plays out. And there's really not any other way that could be. The episode ends with the X-Files being re-opened (Skinner appears in a minor role that as yet may not do justice to the main credit he's nonetheless rightfully earned - otherwise, the opening credits sequence has been returned to the classic one, much to my relief), but in spite of the long passage of years, it doesn't feel as exciting (or as natural) as it did when it happened in Ascension, or at the end of Fight The Future. Anyway, it was a foregone conclusion, regardless, and as I mentioned above, I'm looking forward to seeing how this new series handles the monster-of-the-week episodes. (Me, looking forward to a Darin Morgan episode more than a mythology episode? My, how times have changed!).

Memorable quotes:

Mulder: We must ask ourselves: are they really a hoax? Are we truly alone, or are we being lied to?

(Great setup for the alien business, even if it doesn't feel as convincing as it did in the '90s - I'm not sure if it was the times, or just my youthful naiveté. Either way, the rest of this episode unfortunately undermines the pull of this opener by suggesting that the threat hanging over us is not in fact alien, but entirely human).

O'Malley: Do you miss it at all - the X-Files?
Scully: As a scientist, it was probably some of the most intense and challenging work I've ever done. I've never felt so alive.

Sveta: Who can I trust? They would call me a liar when they're the liars!

Mulder: Scully, listen to me. I've been misled - we've been misled. What if everything we've been led to believe in is a lie? What if there is no alien conspiracy?

(So, The X-Files was its own biggest conspiracy all along? I'd be more impressed if this ground hadn't already been tread in Gethsemane).

Mulder: You owe me some answers.
Skinner: Will you just...calm the hell down, Mulder - before we both get pissed off?

(Like old times).

Skinner: Since 9/11, this country's taken a big turn in a very strange direction.
Mulder: They police us, and spy on us, tell us that makes us safer. We've never been in more danger.

Informant: You weren't even close. Warring aliens lighting each other on fire, and other such nonsense.
Mulder: I was being cleverly manipulated.

(We were all being manipulated. Apparently. By Chris Carter).

Informant: Tell me something new.
Mulder: Alien technology being used against us. Not by aliens, not with aliens, but by a venal conspiracy of men against humanity.

Informant: The lies are so great, Mr. Mulder, the truth must be unassailable.

Informant: Roswell - that was a smokescreen.
Mulder: So I've been told.

(Between this and his reluctance to exterminate an alien pilot, I'd swear this guy is Deep Throat all over again. But without the magnetic presence of Jerry Hardin.)

Scully: I have seen this before. You're on fire, believing that you're on to some truth, that you can save the world.
Mulder: This will finally be their undoing.
Scully: It'll be your undoing, Mulder.

(If this wasn't The X-Files... Scully makes perhaps the most convincing argument yet, that Mulder's quest for truth is really just a symptom of madness. Tilting at windmills. As badly as we viewers want to believe in Mulder, all these years have passed and there is still no hard evidence. Even now, everything we thought we were sure of is evaporating into thin air. I'm almost convinced that the best true finale to this series would have Mulder realizing - or not, but the rest of us would - that there are no aliens, or conspiracies. That he's just insane. I know fans probably wouldn't like that, but I've always been fond of mindfuck endings).

Sveta: Why do such a thing and lie about it? Our own government?
Mulder: Your own government lies as a matter of course, as a matter of policy.

Scully: You can't say these things.
O'Malley: I'm gonna say them tomorrow.
Scully: It's fear-mongering, claptrap, isolationist, techno-paranoia so bogus, and dangerous, and stupid, that it borders on treason. Saying these things would be incredibly irresponsible.
Mulder: It's irresponsible not to say it.
Sveta: Especially if it's the truth.

(I'm not a fan of fear-mongering, but I'm a hard-line free-speecher, so my perspective is, crazy conspiracies like this should live or die by the evidence that supports them - or lack thereof. If Scully really wanted to dissuade them - even if she thought they were just paranoid delusions - she should have emphasized the danger over the "irresponsibility").

Mulder: Scully, are you ready for this?
Scully: I don't know there's a choice.

The X-Files - S9:E10 "Providence"

[ S9:E9 "Provenance" <<< Season 9 >>> S9:E11 "Audrey Pauley" ]

Spoiler Warning: This mythology episode picks up from last week's cliffhanger. Beware of spoilers.

The first three words spoken in this episode are "the Bible says" - so that kinda gives you an idea of what you're in for. I'm not super comfortable with all the religious symbolism, but to this episode's credit, it mostly plays toward the "aliens are God" angle that was characteristic of The Sixth Extinction mytharc. And that comes largely in the form of the UFO cult at the center of these two episodes. Now they've affixed a prophecy to William's existence, which states that he'll follow in his father's footsteps by stopping the alien invasion, unless his father is killed. Which is why the cult wants Mulder dead (so now Mulder is officially the father?), but suddenly isn't so sure he's already dead anymore (imagine that). In which case, this child is some miracle savior who will lead the alien race to victory (hang on - why, and since when do the aliens need a human messiah to lead them?). It's worth remembering that anything this cult says they believe in ought to be taken with a grain of salt. (Although, how many times has Chris Carter given us real answers in the form of dubious proclamations)?

So the cult actually wants the child alive - and, as I suspected, the man who tried to kill William in the last episode (the FBI agent who went undercover to infiltrate the cult) wanted to kill the baby to foil the cult's plans. Because, according to prophecy, letting the child live is equivalent to dooming the human race, provided Mulder is dead (is this all convoluted enough for you yet?) - not that Reyes will permit Scully to buy that party line. But even if they want the baby alive, that obviously doesn't mean Scully's just gonna let them take him. We learn a little bit more about the cult leader in this episode, in an opening sequence with some nice desert landscapes. He was a soldier in Iraq who had a vision of "angels from Heaven" (who were, of course, Super Soldiers) - "the true sons of God". This inspired him to start a cult so as to "deliver the message of the God who came before all other Gods". In other words, he's an alien sympathizer.

The episode begins with Doggett in a coma, following his accident in the last episode's cliffhanger, and A.D. Brad Follmer leading the investigation into the kidnapping of William. Scully doesn't trust him - justifiably - believing that there is a conspiracy within the FBI to wipe out everyone involved with the X-Files. There is a point at which it's hinted that Scully may be going too far in withholding evidence from the FBI because she's so invested in finding her baby, and doesn't trust anyone. But ultimately, her fears are well-founded (of course - this is The X-Files after all), although she may have some of the particulars wrong. For one thing, Skinner is inexplicably siding with the FBI this time, as if he spontaneously decided, "I've had enough of filling in Mulder's shoes, I want to be the guy with ambiguous loyalties again". On that note, A.D. Brad is shaping up to be an actual good guy, while Kersh is leaning toward the dark side once again (this is getting real hard to keep track of). The key note to take away is that there is a new threat of clear distinction - a Super Soldier within the FBI.

The whole God angle actually starts to get kinda interesting when Scully uses the artifact (before promptly losing it to her enemies) to cure the undercover FBI agent (who almost killed her son), and he reveals that the UFO cult leader was led to the discovery of the buried spacecraft (like the one in Biogenesis) by the voice of "God" (i.e., aliens), and that he believes the ship is a temple that houses the physical manifestation of God. Yeah, that sounds pretty cool to me. It takes William's proximity to get the spacecraft to activate, though, and when it goes flying up in the air, no one is left alive on the ground. Except William, that is. Which is disappointing, because I was really hoping that he'd be taken away on the ship so we wouldn't have to see him anymore.

Can you imagine if The X-Files had continued on for years after the ninth season, instead of being cancelled? They could have stretched out the back-and-forth possibilities of William's significance for years into the future! It would have been terrible. I wish the coming revival would just ignore the fact that the William thing ever happened, and rewind back to the pre-movie Mulder & Scully days. Alas... To wrap things up, Doggett magically wakes from his coma (after Reyes prays at an altar, and Scully cries over his bedside, with zero of the audience investment this show used to have when main characters spent whole episodes in hospital beds - sigh), claiming that he's hearing voices from God now, too. Fantastic. And he's the skeptic! I'll still say this is the best set of mythology episodes this season, but that's still not saying very much. And lord, am I getting exhausted, but this 200-day nonstop marathon is almost over. The end is in sight.

Memorable quotes:

Scully: You see a task force in there? I see a whitewash.

Langly: Access denied? Yeah, we'll see about that.

A.D. Brad: I've known you a long time, but this just seems, uh...a little traditional for you.
Reyes: Maybe when you're lost, you knock at the door with the porch light on.

(And that's a trick the church uses to lure vulnerable people in).

Cult Leader: If you wanna see the boy, you'll bring me the head of Fox Mulder.

(Wow, talk about an ultimatum).

The X-Files - S8:E2 "Without"

[ S8:E1 "Within" <<< Season 8 >>> S8:E3 "Patience" ]

Spoiler Warning: This mythology episode continues from last week. Expect spoilers.

For a mythology episode, this one is pretty straightforward for once. It opens on last episode's cliffhanger, with Doggett confronting "Mulder", who does indeed turn out to be the shape-shifting Alien Bounty Hunter. He releases Gibson Praise (who runs off and goes into hiding), and then escapes by stepping off the edge of a cliff, then simply getting up and walking away. Scully briefs Doggett (and Skinner) on the ABH's abilities, but Doggett is understandably skeptical. The rest of the episode is basically spent trying to track down Gibson Praise before the ABH gets to him (and the location is about as desert-y as we've seen this show since Dreamland). Scully knows she can use him to find the UFO where Mulder is probably being kept (we see him in a couple more scenes being subjected to torturous experiments). But this is one mythology episode that's not going to end by returning things to the status quo.

Unless you consider Agent Doggett being assigned to the X-Files in Mulder's place some kind of twisted version of the status quo. There's a decent scene in this episode that helps to gradually push Doggett more towards the sympathetic protagonist position, in which Skinner puts the pieces together for him that he's being played by Kersh, who's set Doggett up for failure, probably to safeguard his own position in the bureau by eliminating competition from any potentially ambitious rising star agents. Kersh expects Doggett to fail in finding Mulder, and what Skinner realizes is that the only way for him to succeed is for him to start buying all the alien mumbo-jumbo, which will ruin his reputation even more thoroughly. To his credit, it would seem that he considers the task of finding Mulder a professional challenge, and one that he intends to surmount.

Although, his skepticism in the face of unexplained phenomena is on the level of Scully's. There's a nice standoff at the end where Doggett's doubt is tested against Scully's outlandish claims as to the ABH's otherworldly abilities, although it concludes somewhat ambiguously. There's also another scene where Scully and Skinner pull their guns on each other. It's not quite as tense as the scene that concluded The Blessing Way, but you never can be too sure when the ABH is involved. It's almost funny (or sad), though, how quick Scully is to distrust Skinner. He's the go-to scapegoat, no matter how many times his loyalty has been proven - even now, when he's becoming more of a center-stage player.

In the episode's conclusion, Scully shoots the ABH in the back of the neck, in what is - I think (considering Mulder's disappointing aim with the retractable ice pick in Herrenvolk) - the first time we see the ABH killed (and by a gunshot, no less). He dies just like the green-blooded hybrids, dissolving into a puddle of green goo. Gibson Praise is taken into protective custody, and we're set up for a string of freak-of-the-week episodes with Doggett in Mulder's place. But I wonder what'll happen next in the mythology. Will the aliens hang around and search for Gibson Praise some more (or find some other reason to hang around), giving Scully and the others more chances to rescue Mulder before he sails to the stars? That seems the obvious choice - although, knowing this show, they'll probably leave the thread dangling and introduce something else entirely to focus on instead...

Memorable quotes:

Doggett: You know, Agent Scully, you're starting to remind me a lot of Agent Mulder yourself.

(It's looking like this "Scully-is-the-new-Mulder" thing is going to stick. But we'll have to wait and see how she acts in the freak-of-the-week episodes first).

Skinner: You're being made a pawn in a rigged game.
Doggett: Alright, you painted me a picture, now put it in a frame.

Scully: For someone who claims he's not following me, you sure have a knack.
Doggett: Hey, you're where the action is.
Scully: What does that tell ya? That I'm crazy, or that I'm right?
Doggett: Wandering around in the desert in the dead of night - you call it.

Kersh: This reads like a piece of pot-boiled science-fiction.
Doggett: You mean it reads like an X-File.

The X-Files - S7:E2 "Amor Fati"

[ S7:E1 "The Sixth Extinction" <<< Season 7 >>> S7:E3 "Hungry" ]

Spoiler Warning: This mythology episode picks up right from last week, so beware of spoilers.

As far as naming conventions go for the two-part premieres of season-spanning three-parters in this series, this episode splits the difference between the model used by the merchandise trilogy, and that used by the hoax trilogy, opting to repeat a title twice (as in Redux/Redux II) and give the second part a unique title (as in The Blessing Way/Paper Clip) - albeit in the form of a subtitle. I'd just as soon call this episode Amor Fati, and be done with it, because why not? (And The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati is rather unwieldy as far as episode titles go). In any case, the title - some obscure Latin phrase that ties into the events of the episode in a symbolic manner (like Terma's E Pur Si Muove) - is emblazoned in the title sequence in place of "The Truth Is Out There", the 13th time in the entire series (if my count is accurate) such a substitution has been made.

The episode begins with Mulder's mother visiting her son in the hospital, in a sequence that plays to the terror of being trapped in a body with your mind fully active, but being utterly unable to communicate. Immediately following is a chilling confrontation between Mulder and the Smoking Man - more stirring than his offer to Mulder in Redux II, and more satisfying than his revelations in One Son. (In the first of many irritating loose ends in this episode, it makes sense that Mulder can read the Smoking Man's mind, but how exactly can the Smoking Man read Mulder's mind)? The confrontation concludes with the Smoking Man pulling a total Darth Vader and telling Mulder, "I am your father". (I don't believe he really believes that for a second - it's gotta be just another ploy). And it only gets progressively weirder, when Ol' Smokey spirits Mulder away (allegedly saving his life by making him "disappear"), and enters him into a sort of witness protection program.

It's a little embarrassing to watch the Smoking Man try to remake Mulder in his image. If this was somebody else - anybody else - it would be endearing. But we the viewers and Mulder both know what kind of a despicable man the Smoking Man is, so you know it can't turn out well. Just look at what the Smoking Man did to the last man he tried to mold into his son, after inevitably being disappointed! Yet, Mulder's in a legitimately vulnerable position, so he almost has to go along with the Smoking Man, which is what makes it so uncomfortable. You kinda wish the Smoking Man would just drop the façade already and embrace reality. But he is a man of lies and deception, after all.

So it's not entirely convincing when he basically drops Mulder into instant suburban life, and apparently expects him to play house with Diana Fowley (and you don't need to light the bedroom in an ominous red glow to know that this is some kind of vision of hell). It's wonderfully surreal, though, when Mulder is visited by Deep Throat, who claims that his death was staged. The Smoking Man also dangles Mulder's sister in front of him again - presumably the same one that was in Redux II. Eventually you come to realize that it's all a dream, culminating in a fiery vision of the alien apocalypse (the best thing in this whole episode) - with talk of Mulder being the "savior", on account of his "switched-on" alien genes, it definitely has the feeling of being a sort of Last Temptation of Christ.

As the Smoking Man explains to Fowley (if you can count the cryptic way he likes to talk in riddles as "explaining"), Mulder is some kind of ready-made alien-human hybrid (and thus immune to the coming apocalypse - which still leaves the previous question of what creating hybrids has to do with the aliens' plan for colonization unanswered). The question of why Mulder is the only one who responded in the particular way he did to the UFO fragments in Biogenesis is addressed in a frustrating manner via a nearly throwaway line by Kritschgau (who, apparently, now also believes in aliens), as having something to do with (presumably) Mulder's being infected with the Black Oil (in Tunguska) - although it's not an entirely satisfying explanation. In any case, the Smoking Man apparently steals the alien powers out of Mulder, presumably implanting them in himself (because apparently you can do that).

If I'm saying "presumably" and "apparently" a lot, it's because a lot of things in this episode aren't crystal clear. I'm genuinely caught between wanting to complain about the way Chris Carter unsatisfyingly "answers" questions by throwing out vague and ambiguous information that's easily contradicted, and conceding both the fact that the show doesn't spoon feed its audience is refreshing, and that (for better or worse), the fact that the show entices its dedicated viewers to exert much effort into trying to fit the pieces together themselves, while often frustrating, is also one of the things that makes this series so unique and so much fun to really obsess over. If the answers were all lying on the surface in plain sight, there'd be little reason to dig any deeper. So, pros and cons, I guess.

In any case, the episode wraps up rather abruptly. After a confrontation with Scully, Fowley finally has a crisis of conscience, resulting in her murder (off screen - so don't celebrate just yet). Mulder, sans debilitating alien powers, is then rescued by Scully. Albert Hosteen (who visited Scully psychically in this episode, perhaps similarly to the vanishing man last week - but don't expect an explanation for that) is confirmed dead from cancer. Kritschgau is also killed (I think - it was dark, but I can't imagine who else it would have been) at Krycek's hands. Skinner may also be in jeopardy (the scene wasn't very conclusive), for his part in helping Scully find Mulder.

The episode ends with a scene that totally panders to the MSR (Mulder-Scully Romance). (Note to Chris Carter: whatever you may say about the inevitability of their romance, this show has become the schmaltzy soap opera you tried to avoid when you set out on this journey). Scully's also back to her "I don't know what to believe" mindset - so, status quo, I presume; ready to investigate another season's worth of X-Files. The series has changed a lot in the past seven years - the comparisons this three-parter draws to past three-parters just emphasizes those things that are different. I wouldn't rate this one on the level of either the merchandise or the hoax trilogies (and in particular, the conclusion to this three-parter was a bit unsatisfying - not as thrilling as either Redux II or Paper Clip), but for this late in the series, it's not bad. It has its moments.

Memorable quotes:

Smoking Man: All a mother wants is to shield her boy from pain and danger. Safe in the world, as he was once in the womb. But maybe we think a father demands more than mere survival. Maybe we're afraid a father demands worldly adulation, success, heroism.

Kritschgau: Getting in is easy. It's what you do once you're inside that's key.

Mulder: A man can't just disappear.
Smoking Man: Oh, we've made entire cultures disappear.

Smoking Man: Can I offer a cigarette?
Mulder: I don't smoke.
Smoking Man: Maybe now you do.

Smoking Man: Why leave something behind, until you know what it is you're leaving?

Deep Throat (to Mulder): I'm here to tell you that you're not the hub of the universe, the cause of life and death. We - you and I - are merely puppets in a master plan. No more, no less.

Smoking Man: Extraordinary men are always most tempted by the most ordinary things.

Fowley: Let's cut the crap, shall we?
Scully: Yes. Let's.

Albert Hosteen: There are more worlds than the one you can hold in your hand.

The X-Files - S7:E1 "The Sixth Extinction"

[ S6:E22 "Biogenesis" <<< Season 7 >>> S7:E2 "The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati" ]

Spoiler Warning: This season premiere mythology episode picks up right from the last season's finale, so expect spoilers!

As the seventh season begins, Scully is still over in Africa studying the artifacts, hoping to understand them in time to save Mulder, who is still locked up in the psychiatric ward back home, suffering from debilitating madness. To remove any lingering doubt as to the miraculous powers of the washed up UFO in the minds of anyone in the vicinity, some unusual phenomena begin to occur. First, Scully is repeatedly visited by a vanishing apparition that her colleague refers to in superstitious terms. (Seeing Scully suspiciously stalk the camp while wielding a machete is a sight that is delightful to behold). Then a series of Biblical plagues descends on the beachfront camp, involving a swarm of locusts, boiling oceans, a sea of blood, and uncanny resurrections. The symbols, translated from the exterior etchings of the UFO, contain passages from all kinds of religious texts and traditions - not just the Bible, but also the Quran, with pagan religions, and ancient Sumeria also represented. Scully describes it as "science and mysticism conjoined", and recognizes that the words themselves are "imbued with power".

When Dr. Barnes shows up to help, it raises a number of questions. I held off on commenting on him in my review for the last episode, because I figured we'd learn more about his motivations in this or the next episode. I have a hard time believing he'd resort to murder just to discredit the mysticism involved in this groundbreaking discovery. And yet, he turns up in this episode, a full believer. Granted, he could have been won over by the artifacts' strange properties - he did acquire one of them. But I still feel like he must have some ulterior motive - a hidden agenda. Does he have some connection with Krycek (who killed Dr. Sandoz in the last episode) and/or the Smoking Man? He gets killed by the end of this episode, so I'm not sure there'll be any more resolution to that plot thread...

Meanwhile, Mulder is struggling with his sanity back at the hospital. It's really heartbreaking to see him in this condition - David Duchovny plays it very well. In spite of his being compromised, Skinner tries to help, and Mulder leads him to recruit Kritschgau - further lending these episodes the feeling of being a revolving door for guest stars from some of the series' all-time greatest mythology episodes! We don't exactly get a proper resolution to the contradiction between Kritschgau's claims of government hoaxes and the fact (that we and Mulder have since learned) that there really are aliens out there, but it's still nice to see Kritschgau again. He's a good character. I like him. Anyway, he's seen the condition Mulder's in before - in a CIA study on ESP. He believes it's a form of remote viewing, in which the brain is working harder than the body, and he knows a drug that can slow it down.

I'd just like to take a moment here to remark on my excitement at seeing remote vision become a plot point on The X-Files - as it's long been a pet paranormal phenomenon of mine. I was probably first introduced to it via the John Darnton novel Neanderthal, about some anthropologists who get caught up in a lingering struggle between two warring factions of prehistoric hominids (one species of which possesses natural remote viewing capabilities) that they encounter in a remote jungle. I latched onto the idea as an optimistic solution to most of man's self-bred conflicts (as a practical application of the idiom, "to walk a mile in someone else's shoes"), at least until I disavowed it as illogical after studying Thomas Nagel (who speculates on the answer to the question "what is it like to be a bat?") in college. Still, it's exciting to see the concept in discussion here.

We'll have to wait until next week for the conclusion to this story thread - which as yet remains elusive. Scully comes home to finally visit Mulder in the hospital again, albeit without (yet) a cure to his madness. Skinner and Kritschgau's efforts to help him, by the way, failed largely on account of Fowley's interference, which she follows up with a completely lukewarm confession of love to Mulder (I don't even hate Fowley the way I love to hate Krycek, for example - I just utterly dislike her). It remains to be seen how or in what capacity the Smoking Man is involved with the discovery of the UFO - the "authorities" have remained unusually silent so far (which I could chalk up to the UFO turning up in Africa, as well as the recent disintegration of the Syndicate). There's also the question of the aliens' ultimate agenda, and what they intend to do about this perceivable security breach - the cliffhanger, although not as thrilling as the one in the last episode, apparently reveals the disappearance of the beached UFO (and thus all the evidence, presumably, as well as any hope of understanding Mulder's condition). And the significance of the vanishing man Scully keeps hallucinating? I hope some answers are forthcoming in the next episode.

To be continued...

Memorable quotes:

Scully: In the source of every illness lies its cure.

Dr. Barnes: I know what we've got. This craft that's come ashore. Its extraterrestrial origins.
Scully: You don't even believe in that.
Dr. Barnes: Nor do you. But here we are.

Skinner: What just happened?
Kritschgau: I think he responded to a question that...I didn't ask.

Kritschgau: I don't believe in aliens, Agent Mulder. I think you know that.

Scully: I mean, it's like...it's the most beautiful, intricate work of art.
Dr. Ngebe: It is the Word of God.
Dr. Barnes: You're wrong. There is no God. What's out there on the water...is only what we call God. What we call creation. The spark that ignited the fire that cooked the old primordial soup. Made animate from inanimate. Made us.

Scully: It has power.
Dr. Barnes: It is power. The ultimate power.

Vanishing Man: Some truths are not for you.

(I don't know if this is actually what's going on, but this scene toys with a compelling idea - that Scully's stubborn skepticism in the face of all the evidence paraded before her may in fact be the result of some paranormal force blocking the truth from her mind. Toward what end, I couldn't say, but it's a more satisfying explanation than that Scully is just that block-headed).

Scully: He's not dying.
Skinner: I'm afraid it's true.
Scully: He's not dying. He is more alive than he's ever been. He's more alive than his body can withstand. And what's causing it may be extraterrestrial in origin.

The X-Files - S6:E22 "Biogenesis"

[ S6:E21 "Field Trip" <<< Season 6 >>> S7:E1 "The Sixth Extinction" ]

Spoiler Warning: It's the season finale, so prepare for spoilers!

I don't recall exactly at which point I originally stopped watching the X-Files, but it's worth noting that this is the last significant mythology arc I remember seeing on this show. It's the one where fragments of some kind of UFO wash up on the Ivory Coast of West Africa - extraterrestrial artifacts inscribed with passages from the Bible and the human genome (a sort of ET Rosetta Stone), lending evidence to the "panspermia" theory of terrestrial biogenesis - that life on Earth originated from other planets. Finally, we get some context to Mulder's outrageous claim in last season's finale, The End, when he stated that Gibson Praise was the "key to the X-Files", having something to do with ancient alien astronauts, and a biological link between aliens and all life on Earth. (Had he held out on making his case to the authorities until now, he might have saved himself the trouble of being taken off the X-Files for half a season)...

The events of this episode are fairly straightforward for once, although it definitely has the feel of a classic mythology episode, with wide-sweeping revelations, and an adventurous spirit, unlike Two Fathers/One Son - which, in spite of its critical place in the development of the show's mythology, somehow (and I can't explain how) doesn't manage to be as memorable as it has every right to be. Comparisons to Gethsemane and Anasazi are not entirely out of place - Albert Hosteen even turns up, briefly (although in critical condition and dying of cancer), in order to translate the phonetic Navajo the passages on the alien fragments are coded in. Skinner is also back to being an undetermined quantity, thanks to Krycek's sabotage in S.R. 819. In the past, I'd have trusted Skinner implicitly, believing that even when he did the wrong things, he'd be doing them for the right reasons. But now, he's completely at the mercy of Krycek. The only question is whether Krycek is still working with the Smoking Man, or if he's gone rogue once again, with the folding of the Syndicate. Fowley turns up in this episode as well, and I must say that I hate the sight or sound of her, even when she's not doing anything obviously evil (and I'm not even a shipper!).

The alien fragments exhibit weird behavior - spinning around, fusing together at will. One of them shoots across the room to attack a Bible - although as much as I appreciate the sentiment, it's kind of cheesy. The fragments emit CGR - Cosmic Galactic Radiation, found only outside our Solar System - and cause Mulder to have increasingly debilitating headaches, which also imbue him with a mind-reading ability curiously similar to what Gibson Praise had. But he doesn't handle it well. By the end of the episode, he's finally had that psychotic break that's been coming for all these years, forcing Scully to the forefront of the action. I don't know if this was a complete coincidence or not, but with the hindsight knowledge that Mulder would eventually (and sooner rather than later, now) pass the reins of the show over to Scully, it helps get us used to the shifted focus on Scully (for better or worse), particularly in these big mytharc episodes where Mulder's always been the one taking point. And with Skinner compromised, and Fowley lurking around, there's a real feeling of having no one to turn to.

In the cliffhanger, Scully visits the Ivory Coast herself, to find not just some more of those alien fragments, but a whole freaking UFO. (Perhaps I'm hoping in vain, but maybe this will finally be the thing that turns Scully into a believer). I have to admit, the episode does a great job of maintaining the viewer's interest in the series, even at this late stage, and even after the semi-finality of the mythology in Two Fathers/One Son. I look forward to seeing how this arc is resolved!

To be continued...

Memorable quotes:

Scully: From space, it seems an abstraction - a magician's trick on a darkened stage. And from this distance, one might never imagine that it is alive. It first appeared in the sea almost four billion years ago, in the form of single-celled life. ... But for all our knowledge, what no one can say for certain, is what or who ignited that original spark. Is there a plan, a purpose or a reason to our existence? Will we pass, as those before us, into oblivion - into the sixth extinction that scientists warn is already in progress? Or will the mystery be revealed - through a sign, a symbol, a revelation?

(To be perfectly honest, the monologues in this episode are as bloated as they've ever been on this show. Nevertheless, I still find them intriguing).

Scully: Look, after all you've done, after all you've uncovered - a conspiracy of men doing human experiments, men who are all now dead, you exposed their secrets... I mean, you've won. What more could you possibly hope to do or to find?
Mulder: My sister.

(Yup, that about sums it up. Don't hold your breath on seeing Samantha in this episode, though - but I'm glad the writers are on the same page with us, at least. On the other hand, Scully is still sticking to the human experiments explanation, in spite of what the rest of us open-minded viewers have seen and learned. I guess it's typical, after all, that she considers the matter closed; as far as I know, the aliens are still planning to colonize - even without the Syndicate acting as middle men).

Scully: A passage from the Bible on an artifact that you're saying is extraterrestrial. And, uh...how did the aliens get it?
Dr. Sandoz: They gave it to us. The text came from them.

(I know this is supposed to be shocking - aliens wrote the Bible! But, unfortunately, more than anything else, that thought just makes me seriously question their literacy. I thought they were supposed to be a highly advanced species!)

Mulder: Scully, that artifact is extraterrestrial.
Scully: Mulder, it can't be.
Mulder: D'ya know what that would mean?
Scully: No, it would mean nothing, Mulder.
Mulder: No, it would mean that our progenitors were alien. That our genesis was alien. That we're here because of them. That they put us here.
Scully: Mulder, that is science-fiction, it doesn't hold a drop of water!
Mulder: You're wrong, it holds everything. Don't you see - all the mysteries of science, everything we can't understand or won't explain, every human behaviorism, cosmology, psychology, everything in the X-Files - it all owes to them, it's from them!

Scully: It began with an act of supreme violence - a big bang expanding ever outward, cosmos born of matter and gas, matter and gas ten billion years ago. Whose idea was this? Who had the audacity for such invention? And the reason? Were we part of that plan ten billion years ago? Are we born only to die? To be fruitful and multiply and replenish the Earth before giving way to our generations? If there is a beginning, must there be an end? We burn like fires in our time only to be extinguished. To surrender to the elements' eternal reclaim. Matter and gas...will this all end one day? Life no longer passing to life, the Earth left barren like the stars above, like the cosmos. Will the hand that lit the flame let it burn down, let it burn out? Could we, too, become extinct? Or if this fire of life living inside us is meant to go on, who decides? Who tends the flames? Can he reignite the spark even as it grows cold and weak?

The X-Files - S6:E21 "Field Trip"

[ S6:E20 "Three of a Kind" <<< Season 6 >>> S6:E22 "Biogenesis" ]

If The Unnatural kind of pissed on what The X-Files once stood for - by turning its mythology into a running joke - Field Trip starts off as a love letter to the classic monster-of-the-week formula. The opening segment features a gruesome death under strange circumstances (two hikers end up as skeletons embracing in the woods, in connection with some strange goo - later described as "bog sludge"), Mulder introduces Scully to the case via the classic slideshow method, and rambles on about another UFO hotspot - the Brown Mountain Lights of North Carolina (also the subject of a found footage film titled Alien Abduction), and Scully puts in her requisite time performing autopsies and looking through microscopes. But - not content to simply be a throwback episode - it takes a left turn and veers into all-new territory, making it a unique episode in the X-Files canon. It's very surreal - probably the closest this series ever got to what an episode written/directed by David Lynch would be like. I love it.

To say more would spoil much of the mystery and intrigue that this episode thrives on, so I'll limit myself to a few comments, with a warning that if you haven't seen the episode, you should stop reading this review now, as the rest of it will contain spoilers. In one scene, it appears that Mulder has been killed in the line of duty. And while we've been given enough information at this point to conclude that it is almost certainly a hallucination, it does still give the viewer a moment to reflect on how depressing it would be if Mulder really did die on one of these cases, given all the times they've put their lives in danger. How sad would it be, for Scully to have to go on without him? The show has teased this possibility in the past (like in the cliffhangers to Anasazi and Gethsemane, for example), but having something as solid as a skeleton sitting on a table...even if you do know that it's going to end up being a hallucination, it's so solid, and so real (like that gray in that other scene), that as long as it's there, it really makes you consider that possibility.

Another great thing about this episode is its exploration of Mulder and Scully's conflicting viewpoints. It's very self-conscious, but in a straight-faced, rather than humorous (à la Bad Blood) manner. In their corresponding hallucinations, Mulder is led to believe that his wildest theories are true, and Scully is forced to resort to her logical explanation as a conclusion, but neither one is fully committed to their own positions (the "weirdness" of being completely right ultimately being the key that unlocks the chemical deception - a fantasy reality more compelling than the one encountered in Kill Switch), demonstrating the vital importance of the cross-contamination of their perspectives. They each pull a little too hard in their respective directions - Mulder's crazy theories, and Scully's scientific rationalizations - when the truth is often somewhere in the middle, and they rely on each other to ultimately land there. The true explanation is frequently not the first conclusion Mulder jumps to (and it would be boring - Mulder would be too perfect - if it was), yet is often something beyond the explanation of the scientific theories Scully immediately resorts to. But that's why they work so well together.

Memorable quotes:

Mulder: There's been no scientific, credible explanation, but there are those of us who believe that these strange, multicolored lights are really --
Scully: UFOs. Extraterrestrial visitors from beyond, who apparently have nothing better to do than buzz one mountain over and over again for 700 years.

Scully: Mulder, can't you just for once, just...for the novelty of it, come up with the simplest explanation - the most logical one - instead of automatically jumping to UFOs, or Bigfoot, or...
Mulder: Scully, in six years, how often have I been wrong? No, seriously. I mean, every time I bring you a new case, we go through this perfunctory dance - you tell me I'm not being scientifically rigorous, and that I'm off my nut. And then, in the end, who turns out to be right, like 98.9% of the time? I just think I've earned the benefit of the doubt here.

(Mulder has a point, and I love that the series is addressing this issue - hanging a lampshade on it, if you will. Granted, Mulder's not really right that much of the time, but the point still stands - they've encountered enough paranormal phenomena in six years that Mulder's "crazy" theories do deserve at least a modicum of respect. And whereas Mulder is quick to change his theory based on the evidence, Scully is awfully stubborn about her science. I'm not saying she should abandon her rational approach - after all, it's her job to apply science to the cases they investigate, and for good reason - but she's awfully quick to reject Mulder's theories. Rather than disregarding them only after rigorously examining their scientific credibility, she seems to almost lazily reach for the remotest possible scientific explanation that can be used to discredit them. Mulder deserves better than that).

Mulder: Scully, I want you to put aside your scientific bias for a moment, 'cause what I'm about to tell you is gonna change your life forever - your life, my life, the life of everybody on this planet.
Scully: Mulder...
Mulder: It was out there. And I found it.
Scully: What?
Mulder: The truth.

Mulder: Whatever happened to the most logical explanation?
Scully: This is it, Mulder.

The X-Files - S6:E5 "Dreamland II"

[ S6:E4 "Dreamland" <<< Season 6 >>> S6:E6 "How The Ghosts Stole Christmas" ]

Spoiler Warning: As this episode picks up where the last one left off, there may be some minor spoilers ahead.

If there's any doubt about the humorous intention of these episodes (and at this point, there really shouldn't be), this one opens with a monologue - not by Mulder explaining the metaphysical source of his anguish, as in many classic episodes - but by the false Mulder - Morris Fletcher in Mulder's body (although to us he still looks and sounds like Morris Fletcher) - describing what a loser Mulder is over top of a quirky score, and his mischievous intentions now that he's acquired possession of his life. Meanwhile, Mulder avoids the imminent peril we found him in during last week's cliffhanger thanks to the presumed aid of the real leak (not Morris Fletcher). And Scully, now convinced that a body-swap has indeed occurred, is looking for a way to switch Mulder back. But not before some more hijinks occur. Although, honestly, when Morris (as Mulder) invites Scully to a home-cooked dinner (and seduction), you can't help thinking, "haven't we seen this all before?"

As with part one, I have a hard time getting very excited about this episode, but I do have a few notes. For one thing, that house that's claimed to be Fletcher's sure as hell ain't in Rachel, Nevada, like it's described. I've been to Rachel, Nevada (it's the tumbleweed town that's closest to Area 51), and it ain't a fraction as green as the place depicted in this episode. It's not some oasis in the desert, it is the desert. Just a couple of ramshackle trailers set up on a dry, flat plain. I don't doubt that the people who really do work in Area 51 live down in Las Vegas or even fly in from some other much fancier location (maybe in California, or any of the other nearby states), or if they do live in Rachel, it's not in nice, green, suburban houses like this one. I did, however, appreciate the rendezvous at the Little A'Le'Inn, even if it wasn't really the Little A'Le'Inn, and even if the crowd was a little too bustling for the truly small town that Rachel is, and even if the Little A'Le'Inn would be a ridiculous choice of a place for an Area 51 officer to go to find anonymity.

When Mulder (as Morris) ultimately confronts the informant he intended to meet at the beginning of this adventure, there's a bit of a surprising twist in store, where the high-ranking Area 51 officer knows less about the truth regarding aliens than he assumes Mulder does, based on his work with the X-Files. It's kind of a disappointing - if clever - development, but it fits in with the whole idea of Area 51 being more image than substance. The episode wraps up in far too trite a manner, however, when things just naturally - conveniently - end up fixing themselves, just like that. After Mulder and Scully go on in this one scene about how the process relies too much on coincidence, and can't be reversed. Are we really supposed to believe that Michael McKean is going to be taking over David Duchovny's job on this show? No. The scene is utterly devoid of pathos, in spite of how seriously the actors play it. The emotion therefore comes off feeling forced, because the audience isn't where the characters are, and they can't really get into it. And I guess, for me, that about sums up this lackluster two-parter.

Memorable quotes:

Scully: You did the right thing, Mulder.
Morris (as Mulder): I did?
Scully: I've been telling you for years you should play more by the book, haven't I?

Morris (as Mulder): This guy hasn't been laid in ten years.

Scully: I didn't even know you had a bedroom.

Morris (as Mulder): You're The Lone Gunmen, aren't you? You guys are my heroes. I mean, look at this crap you print.
Byers: We uncover the truth.
Morris (as Mulder): The truth? Well, see - that's what's so great about you monkeys. Not only do you believe this horse pucky that we create, you broadcast it as well.

Mulder: What is the truth?
General Wegman: You mean, you don't know?
Mulder: Don't know what?
General Wegman: The truth. What is going on here at Area 51? What are these black budget projects? We just fly these birds. They don't tell us what makes 'em go - they engineer 'em all up in Utah.
Mulder: Well, if you don't know, why'd you call me?
General Wegman: I've seen your file. You've chased flying saucers for years. Do aliens really exist, Agent Mulder?

Scully: I'd kiss you if you weren't so damn ugly.

(What, so now they're actually romantic partners, and the only thing stopping them from expressing it on the show is (in)convenient circumstances? I know they were pretty close to a kiss in the movie, but I thought that was just a tease).

Mulder: If I shoot him, is that murder or suicide?

The X-Files - S6:E4 "Dreamland"

[ S6:E3 "Triangle" <<< Season 6 >>> S6:E5 "Dreamland II" ]

If ever there was an advantage to moving production to the southwestern U.S., it was having a chance to do a proper story about Area 51. Although I kind of liked the Smoking Man's dismissive reference to it back in Apocrypha. By the time the movie Independence Day had come out in 1996, Area 51 was part of the pop culture lexicon, and so, obviously not a good place to store the military's top secrets (especially ones involving extraterrestrial technology). And, unfortunately, this episode has less in common with the suspenseful infiltration of top secret government installations à la Deep Throat, E.B.E., The Erlenmeyer Flask, Memento Mori, Redux (etc.), than it has with the comedy-infused flavor of Small Potatoes, which also involved David Duchovny in a body-swapping role. That this is not just the angle they take for an Area 51 episode, but that they extend it into a two-parter without even synching it with the show's mythology in any substantial way, really says it all about the direction this show is heading in. Also, that the show is now examining viewer-friendly Area 51 in lieu of any number of unnamed military installations with more genuine secrets to hide, is further proof of its evolution toward a less serious tone, and its pandering embrace of mainstream popular culture.

I'm excited that the show has extended past five seasons, but in these latest episodes, I'm getting the feeling that the stars and the creator(s) both are getting tired with the format. The characters are growing exceedingly into caricatures, and Chris Carter seems more bent on mucking with the formula - giving the actors episodes like Syzygy, The Post-Modern Prometheus, and Triangle, in which they can let loose and have fun at the show's expense - than finishing the gritty alien conspiracy story that he originally set out to tell. It's like Darin Morgan has cast a twisted legacy on the show's remaining writers - the humor and deconstruction becoming the show's central pillar, instead of an occasional respite from its usual, darker tone. The fact that David Duchovny sounds like he's getting bored of playing Fox Mulder (according to interviews I've read from around this time), and the knowledge that he will eventually (though not just yet) leave the show before its end, just contributes to this feeling that the show has lost its focus. Maybe the show should have ended in its fifth season, and continued intermittently from there as a film franchise (as may have been discussed at some point in time).

Anyhow, the basic thrust of the episode is that Mulder drags Scully out to the ET Highway in Nevada (to the expected frustration of A.D. Kersh) to meet up with an informant that has contacted him who works at Area 51. They are stopped, however, by a convoy, prior to witnessing a military UFO (probably not unlike the ones the military had in the episode Deep Throat) that passes over them, inexplicably subjecting them to some kind of spacetime warping anomaly that causes Mulder to switch bodies with an Area 51 employee named Morris Fletcher (Michael McKean). But unlike Small Potatoes, in which David Duchovny got to act out a stranger inhabiting Mulder's body, the two actors follow their characters, so that we see who they really are, and not who the other characters see them as. (It's a little confusing, but makes enough sense in the context of the episode).

So, Morris - ostensibly a government grunt bored with his life and in the midst of a mid-life crisis - gets to hang out with Scully and try on the bachelor life, while Mulder gets a taste of the [dysfunctional] married life (wasn't Scully the one pining for a normal life just prior to the swap?), and an opportunity to "infiltrate" Area 51, provided he doesn't blow his cover. The risk to his life is even greater when the other employees find out there's a leak, and begin to suspect Morris (whose body is currently inhabited by Mulder). Although, Mulder seems more intent on righting the situation, and providing Scully with scientific proof that he is who he says he is (that she doesn't initially take Mulder (as Morris) at his word is a wonder, after spending a day being exasperated by Morris (as Mulder)'s frustratingly (humorously, to the audience) out-of-character behavior), than discovering much of anything that is going on inside Area 51.

To be continued... (Because one episode of this ridiculousness apparently wasn't enough).

Memorable quotes (there are a number of lines in this episode that are funny mainly due to situational cues based on the body-swapping premise, that lose a lot of their impact taken out of context):

Morris Fletcher: I got a top secret for you: there's no such thing as flying saucers.

Morris (as Mulder): Are you out of your pretty little mind?
Scully: Am I out of my mind? Mulder, you are out of your mind!

Howard Grodin: Antigravity systems utilize bends in space and time for propulsion. A sudden shift in a craft's trajectory could create the kind of distortion we're witnessing right here - a lizard and a rock existing in the same time and space.

The X-Files S1:E17 "E.B.E."

[ S1:E16 "Young at Heart" <<< Season 1 >>> S1:E18 "Miracle Man" ]

The most tantalizing aspect of the infamous Roswell crash in 1947 wasn't the implication that an alien spacecraft crash-landed in New Mexico, and that the government scooped up the wreckage and then denied that it ever happened. The most tantalizing aspect was the rumor that one or more alien pilots were recovered from the crash, and sent to a top secret government facility (now famous Area 51). Alien technology is one thing - and it would be an exciting discovery on its own - but the thought that the government actually holds presumably intelligent extraterrestrial biological entities (E.B.E.s) - whether dead or alive - somewhere here on this Earth, is tantalizing, and a little bit chilling.

The events of this episode - which I recall as being one of the standout episodes of the first season - are initiated when an Iraqi pilot shoots down a UFO, and its contents are recovered by the U.S. military. With copious help from his informant (Deep Throat probably appears as much in this episode as he has in the whole season so far), Mulder tracks the shipment as it makes its way to its final, top secret destination. This episode features a number of firsts - the first time Mulder shines a light in his window to communicate with his informant, the first explicit acknowledgement by Scully of Deep Throat's existence and questionable reliability, and the first appearance of fan favorite recurring characters The Lone Gunmen (Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, and Tom Braidwood)!

But the true excitement of this episode stems from the sense of danger that accompanies the investigation of something that your higher ups don't want you investigating (when you're an FBI agent, and you're the one that's being bugged, you know something's up), as well as the anticipation of what it is that's being covered up, and how close you'll be able to get to it. There is also the paranoia and confusion that stems from not knowing who to trust, or even what to believe; in the climax, we learn about Deep Throat's motivation for helping Mulder - that is, assuming he's telling the truth. This is a great example of the show's penchant for answering questions with more questions, and ostensibly giving us information, while undermining it with enough doubt to keep us (and Mulder) guessing - whether we've really learned anything at all.

(And, amazingly, the events and themes of this episode mesh perfectly with the disillusioned revelation that will come at the end of the fourth season - which itself will not be the final say).

Memorable quotes:

Mulder: These guys are like an extreme government watchdog group; they publish a magazine called 'The Lone Gunman'. Some of their information is first rate - covert actions, classified weapons - some of their ideas...are downright spooky.

Scully: Those were the most paranoid people I have ever met. I don't know how you could think that what they say is even remotely plausible.
Mulder: I think it's remotely plausible that someone might think you're hot.

Mulder: What am I onto?
Deep Throat: A dangerous path.

Scully: Mulder, you're the only one I trust.
Mulder: Then you're gonna have to trust me.

Scully: I have never met anyone so passionate and dedicated to a belief as you. It's so intense that sometimes it's blinding. But there are others who are watching you, who know what I know, and...whereas I can respect and admire your passion they will use it against you. Mulder, the truth is out there, but so are lies.

Deep Throat: You and Scully are excellent investigators, and your motives are just. However, there still exist some secrets which should remain secret; truths that people are just not ready to know.
Mulder: Who are you to decide that for me?
Deep Throat: The world's reaction to such knowledge would be far too dangerous.

Deep Throat: A lie, Mr. Mulder, is most convincingly hidden between two truths.

Deep Throat: You're awfully quiet, Mr. Mulder.
Mulder: I'm wondering which lie to believe.

The X-Files - S1:E10 "Fallen Angel"

[ S1:E9 "Space" <<< Season 1 >>> S1:E11 "Eve" ]

Mulder receives a tip from Deep Throat when a UFO crash lands in Wisconsin, and has an unprecedented opportunity to investigate before the military finishes cleaning it up. He also bumps into a UFO chaser and conspiracy theorist by the name of Max Fenig (Scott Bellis) - a minor and short-lived supporting character that I've always liked. This episode begins to hint at a wider world of conspiracy nuts who might be on Mulder's side, and lays a lot of groundwork for one of the show's major subplots - serial abductees. It also places The X-Files project in serious jeopardy for the first but not the last time, and casts some doubt on Deep Throat's loyalties. We're only ten episodes into the series, but this may be the best one yet.

Memorable quotes:

Max Fenig: Say no more, you're a cautious man. Trust no one. Very wise. After what happened to JFK, I understand completely.

Max Fenig: I'm telling you, it's like the Roswell coverup all over again.
Mulder: What makes you so sure there's something out there?
Max Fenig: Same thing that makes you so sure?

Mulder: You really believe that story?
Scully: That story happens to be highly classified.
Mulder: A highly classified lie.

Max Fenig: You really didn't think that would fool us, did you?
Mulder: I didn't think anybody was paying attention.
Max Fenig: Somebody is always paying attention, Mr. Mulder.

Mulder: Then what can I say? How can I disprove lies that are stamped with an official seal?
Section Chief McGrath: That will be all, Mr. Mulder.
Mulder: You can deny all the things I've seen, all the things I've discovered, but not for much longer. Because too many others know what's happening out there, and no one, no government agency has jurisdiction over the truth.

Deep Throat: Always keep your friends close, Mr. McGrath. But keep your enemies closer.

The X-Files - S1:E2 "Deep Throat"

[ S1:E1 "Pilot" <<< Season 1 >>> S1:E3 "Squeeze" ]

The opening credits sequence makes its debut here (I once threw a "dance party" to extended length remixes of the show's main theme), closing on the iconic phrase "The Truth Is Out There". The music, composed by Mark Snow, is worth mentioning, as it perfectly complements the eerie atmosphere of the show. It made such an impression on me that I bought a CD of background tracks from the show in an era that predated my later obsession with music.

In the second episode of the series, Mulder drags Scully out to a UFO hotspot - an air force base rumored to have received some of the wreckage from the infamous Roswell crash - and risks his life to catch a glimpse of an alleged "military UFO". While the pilot episode tipped the balance toward the paranormal, this episode brings the government conspiracy angle to the forefront, introducing Mulder's first informant - Deep Throat (Jerry Hardin) - who contrasts the Smoking Man's tight-lipped detachment with a protective interest in Mulder's search for the truth. Also look for a young Seth Green in a bit part as a stoner!

Memorable quotes:

Scully: Just because I can't explain it, doesn't mean I'm gonna believe they were UFOs.
Mulder: 'Unidentified Flying Objects' - I think that fits the description pretty well. Tell me I'm crazy.
Scully: Mulder, you're crazy.

Deep Throat: Mr. Mulder, why are those like yourself who believe in the existence of extraterrestrial life on this earth not dissuaded by all the evidence to the contrary?
Mulder: Because, all the evidence to the contrary is not entirely dissuasive.
Deep Throat: Precisely.
Mulder: They're here, aren't they?
Deep Throat: Mr. Mulder, they've been here for a long, long time.