Mulder and Scully Revisited IX (AKA Scully, Skinner, Doggett, Reyes...and Mulder!)

The ninth season wasn't very highly revered by critics and fans, but I still think the show did the best they could without the character of Mulder. This season had a few episodes that focused primarily on Doggett and Reyes, and I think they worked better than the ones that didn't. Trust No 1 teased us with Mulder's possible return at a train station, only for him to be yanked away without so much as a smile. A shadowy figure running through the dark was all we got. It could have been a series highlight, but it was clumsy in its execution and we all knew that Duchovny wasn't returning until the finale anyway. Said episode, The Truth, was a tad disappointing too, acting like a bit of a summary of the series, rather than an ending. I quite liked the addition of Cary Elwes in the role of A.D. Folmer, and Lucy Lawless' appearances in the first two episodes are great. I know her pregnancy stopped her from appearing in the rest of the season, but I think she would have been a great recurring character.

The latest X-Files revival has been and gone, and for the most part, I enjoyed it. I know not every X-Phile was happy with them, but I thought it was great to see Mulder and Scully again. Anyway, back to season nine...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

4-D (9ABx05)
The idea that parallel worlds exist is not a new one, but I like the notion that two Doggetts can't be in this dimension. In another realm, Agent Doggett tracks a serial killer and unknowingly crosses over into our world, which rips away our Agent Doggett. Confused? It makes more sense when you watch it. I like how Reyes has to convince the hospitalised and otherworldly Doggett of her theory. The hows and whys of how the killer can travel through dimensions is never really addressed, but it doesn't matter. It just happens, and it's how Reyes and Doggett II deal with it that's important.

JOHN DOE (9ABx07)
One of my favourite episodes of the Doggett era. Waking up somewhere in Mexico, Doggett has now idea where he is, how he got there or who he is. Not an original idea, but the execution is excellent. The episode was also obviously influenced by Steven Soderbergh's 2000 film Traffic, with the Mexican scenes very harshly lit. When Doggett finally remembers who he is towards the end of the episode, he has to relive his son's death all over again. It's a truly heartbreaking scene with horrible timing, as he and Reyes are in the middle of a shoot-out. Robert Patrick's performance is flawless. This is everything that was good in the ninth season, and it was written by Vince Gilligan too! It acts as a great stepping stone to the Breaking Bad series.

AUDREY PAULEY (9ABx13)
After being hit by a drunk driver, Monica Reyes is hospitalised, and soon falls into a coma. She wakes up in a phantom hospital that is suspended in space with two other patients, and they assume that they have passed away. Meanwhile, Scully tells Doggett that the comatose Reyes is braindead, which he refuses to believe. This is easily the best Reyes-centric episode of the series and an engrossing watch to boot.  It also benefits greatly from Tracey Ellis' wonderful performance as the title character (you might remember her as Lucy Householder in the third season episode Oubliette). 

WILLIAM (9ABx17)
The arrival of a mysterious man, who may or may not be Mulder (and has no qualms about laying into Skinner), sets off a chain reaction that ultimately ends with Scully deciding to give up William for adoption. While it does turn out to be Jeffrey Spender, the episode confirms for the audience that the Cigarette Smoking Man is definitely the father of both Mulder and Spender. I like the whole "is he?/isn't he?" conceit of this outing too. Although Mulder only appears briefly on screen, the episode was directed by David Duchovny himself.

RELEASE (9ABx16)
I really enjoyed Robert Patrick's role as John Doggett throughout the last two seasons. I was disappointed to learn that his character wouldn't return to the tenth, but understandably, Patrick says he's not one to look back and revisit old characters. As the season was close to wrapping up, it seemed fitting the resolve the story of Doggett's son. Jared Poe's performance as the detached, but psychic, FBI Cadet Rudolph Hayes also makes this episode a memorable one. I also like seeing Elwes' shaking A.D. Folmer after taking revenge on the man who had extorted him for so long. Patrick's acting in this outing is excellent as well, although he didn't hit as high as he did in John Doe.
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Improbable, Provenance, Sunshine Days and The Truth.

STINKERS: Jump The Shark, Underneath and Trust No 1.

Mulder and Scully Revisited VIII (AKA Here Comes Doggett. And Reyes!)

Well, the ninth season is done and dusted now, which means we've watched the entire series of The X-Files. All 201 episodes in less than that many days. We were ready and eager for Season 10 when it began airing on January 24th! It was a lot of fun watching them all in such a confined space. So, I will now take this opportunity to look back on my favourite episodes from season eight. Here we go...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

WITHIN (8ABx01)
With Mulder's abduction (and Duchovny's semi-departure) comes the need for a new character. Enter Special Agent John Doggett, played by the excellent Robert Patrick, who is charged with leading the search for Mulder. His first scene with Scully is an excellent introduction to his character, and one of my favourite moments in the eighth season. Initially, I think you're meant to resent him, but as the series wears on, you discover he's fiercely determined and quite a good egg. His refusal to accept anything remotely supernatural almost turns Scully from the skeptic into the believer. It's quite exciting when Duchovny is on screen in this episode, although he doesn't do much. He's either being tortured by aliens in Scully's visions/dreams or being a guise of the Alien Bounty Hunter. I like the reappearance of Gibson Praise in this episode too, as the search for him becomes pivotal in possibly locating Mulder.

WITHOUT (8ABx02)
Yes, for once, the first two continuous episodes of a season are both excellent. The tension ramps up as the ABH infiltrates the FBI search party to find Gibson Praise. Watching "Scully" attack and nearly kill an agent makes for some pretty riveting TV, especially when the real Scully realises what's going on and attempts to apprehend the ABH. Ultimately, the two-part offerings end with Mulder still missing, but the hope of possibly locating him and the introduction of Doggett make for a promising start to the season.

REDRUM (8ABx03)
This is a great twist on the man-lost-in-time premise that has popped up all too often in various mediums. What sets this one apart is that the central character is living each day in reverse order. When he wakes up it's yesterday, and he has no knowledge of the day of his wife's murder. This X-Files episode is quite unique in that this man, prosecutor Martin Wells, is in the spotlight with Doggett and Scully becoming supporting players. Joe Morton's performance as Wells is exemplary as he pieces the puzzle together. The sudden ending - complete with inner monologue - is a bit of a letdown, but up until that point, this is one of the best! 

ESSENCE (8ABx20)
There are some great moments throughout the eighth season, but none of the episodes tend to really soar. For instance, the dream sequence in Via Negativa where Doggett tries to fight from chopping into Scully's head with an axe is wonderfully David Lynch-esque. Right down to the strobe effect. But it's not an easy episode to watch. Doggett and Mulder (finally) working together to solve the murders on an oil rig in Vienen is a great conceit, but it doesn't quite land. The first appearance of Special Agent Monica Reyes in This Is Not Happening (confidently portrayed by Annabeth Gish) is excellent too, as is Mulder's 'resurrection'. I could go on, but I'm supposed to be talking about the season's penultimate episode. This is basically a big chase sequence, but it's quite well done, and the tension is dialed up to 11. We get an unemployed Mulder firing up Doggett to look into what is happening with Scully's unborn baby while being pursued by the new 'Super-Soldier'd Billy Miles. Oh, and Krycek's back as his usual smarmy "do we/don't we trust him" self. One of the more exciting conclusions of a cliffhanger too. What's not to like?

EXISTENCE (8ABx21)
The season finale continues straight after the previous episode and reveals that the alien Super Soldiers cannot be killed. Billy Miles' crushed remains include a metal vertebrae which seems to regenerate a whole new Billy. Pretty cool, huh? There are also more reveals that other minor characters are also Super Soldiers, so the challenge is to find a safe place for Scully to have her baby, which may or may not be the first organic Super Soldier. The scenes with Reyes and Scully in Doggett's old hometown are quite interesting. Reyes has no trouble complimenting Scully on her beauty while she goes through these turns of events, and can transform an old abandoned building into a calm sanctuary with ease. There are two big pay-offs in this episode: the first is Skinner firing a bullet into Krycek's head. The second is Mulder and Scully sharing a tender kiss while embracing their child. As Duchovny was not going to be in the ninth season, this scene is a little bittersweet, but a fine way to see him off.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: The Gift, Invocation, Via Negativa and Vienen.

STINKERS: Salvage, Badlaa and Surekill.

Mulder and Scully Revisited VII

It's getting to the pointy end of 201 Days of The X-Files now! We're right near the end of the ninth season in our viewing now. Mulder and Scully have given way to Doggett and Reyes, but Scully is still around, as is Skinner. No Mulder until the last episode. But, let's look back two seasons ago, like I've been doing. The seventh series is lauded by some as the series' pinnacle. This could be due to how different the show became after Mulder's disappearance (catalysed by Duchovny's desire to leave). Anyway, here's my five favourites from season seven...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

CLOSURE (7ABx11)
A strong contender for my favourite X-Files episode ever, as Samantha's fate is finally unveiled. I'm sure there were many who felt disappointed in this revelation, as it had nothing at all to do with an alien abduction. The episode before this, Sein und Zeit, was another great offering, and the way the plot shifted from a typical "monster-of-the-week" story into a Samantha one was just brilliant. I also quite liked Anthony Heald's performance as Harold Piller, the psychic that offers his help to Mulder. Piller's refusal to acknowledge his own son's fate is just as heartbreaking as Mulder's acceptance. The use of Moby's song My Weakness is eerily exceptional; it's so haunting. When I heard that music again during the episode it brought back all the feelings from the last time I viewed it. The whys and hows of what happened to Samantha aren't as important as Mulder finally knowing. The final words of the episode are Mulder's response to Scully when she asks how he is: "I'm fine. I'm free." As the title says, he gets closure and can now move on. 

X-COPS (7ABx12)
The merging of The X-Files with reality TV show Cops was a stroke of genius, and who better to write the script than Vince Gilligan? I'm a big fan of how the cameras follow the action, and it's like we're not just viewers, we're participants. Watching Mulder and Scully look into the cameras is hilarious too. I love how Scully initially wants nothing to do with it, and then mugs for the camera as the episode continues: "Because the FBI has nothing to hide." Mulder seems to be a lot more comfortable with the situation and plays up to cameras beautifully, even giving the show's staple monologues a crack. What starts out as a hunt for some kind of monster gives way to an even scarier premise. Great episode!

HOLLYWOOD A.D. (7ABx18)
David Duchovny's second go at writing and directing an episode is a great romp that manages to lampoon movie studios, pop culture and religious relics. The appearances of Garry Shandling and Téa Leoni are fantastic too, as they play Mulder and Scully in the film version of the episode's events. It's a very funny outing with some great scenes and wonderful dialogue. My favourite moment is the three-way split screen of Mulder, Scully and Skinner in a bubble bath (separate ones). Put simply, I just find the episode a lot of fun to watch.

JE SOUHAITE (7ABx21)This episode was the directing debut of Vince Gilligan who also wrote the script. I remembered this entry as being fairly good, but I forgot just how funny it was. I laughed harder than any other episode in the seventh season. The sheer stupidity of Anson Stokes and his brother as they struggle to come up with decent wishes from a rug-living jinn, or genie, is truly hilarious.  It's dismissed by some as a bit of fluff, but I think it's hugely entertaining.

REQUIEM (7ABx22)
The season finale does a great job of bookending the series to that point. Harking back to elements and characters from the pilot episode, this outing quite rightly draws a circle around the entire show. We get to see Krycek, Cigarette Smoking Man and Marita Covarrubias again as well. From this point on, everything about the show changes, as Mulder's abduction signals Duchovny's departure. He would star in twelves episodes of the eighth season (roughly) and only the two-part final of season nine. The cliffhanger ending is all the more poignant for Mulder ultimately gets proof of alien life, but at the cost of abduction.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: The Goldberg Variation, Sein und Zeit, En Ami and The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati.

STINKERS: all things (sorry, Gillian!), Chimera and Fight Club. 

Mulder and Scully Revisited VI

Into the mostly Mulder-less eight season we go! I know things get a little hairy for some viewers from here on, but I don't mind the Doggett seasons so much. Anyway, let's take a look at the sixth season...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

DREAMLAND (6ABx04)
The Dreamland episodes polarised fans and critics alike, but I really enjoy them. I think that Michael McKean does a great job portraying Morris Fletcher and I really like seeing how Mulder and Fletcher deal with their predicaments. The scene where Duchovny and McKean mirror each other's movements while dressed in singlets and boxer shorts is hilarious! I know it's an homage to the Marx Brothers, but who cares? It's clever and took lots of rehearsal. I think there's a bit of a tip of the hat to Quantum Leap too, especially when Mulder struggles to learn the names of Fletcher's family. I think the concluding episode, Dreamland II, is a little rushed and ends everything too neatly, but the opening gambit is great and both are enjoyable. 

HOW THE GHOSTS STOLE CHRISTMAS (6ABx08)
Boosted by the stellar performances of guest stars Lily Tomlin and Ed Asner, this is one of my favourite episodes ever. I think the interactions between Mulder and Scully while they explore the 'haunted house' enhance their characters nicely. The Believer and The Skeptic are still steadfast in their roles, but they seem to start crossing over ever so slightly. I love the episode's ending when the two excitedly exchange Christmas gifts. The smallest cast ever; just the four actors!

TITHONUS (6ABx09)
Geoffrey Lewis' turn as Alfred Fellig is one of my favourite performances from the sixth season. The world-weary photographer of death is nearly 150 years old and longs to die. The final act with Scully is also great for her character development. As Fellig finally meets his death by taking hers, Clyde Bruckman's prediction of Scully never dying from the third season, seems to suddenly have weight. 

THREE OF A KIND (6ABx19)
I think this Lone Gunmen outing is far superior to the fifth season's Unusual Suspects. Not only is there lots of humour (bimbo Scully, anyone?), the Las Vegas setting and mind-control theme are very entertaining. It's nice to see Suzanne Modeski meet Byers again too. It's a shame that it's a Mulder-less episode, but it seems to work without him quite well. Particularly when TLG trick Scully into coming by using voice trickery. It's fairly lightweight, but I really enjoyed this one.

BIOGENESIS (6ABx22)
The sixth season finale includes one of my favourite X-Files moments. When biology professor Solomon Merkmallen looks at two metallic artifacts, they fuse together and new piece flies into a nearby copy of The Bible. It's a great scene, and it foreshadows the revelations that are 'revealed' later on. The idea that aliens may be responsible for all of the religions of the Earth is a great conceit, and the reveal of the giant spaceship in the beach on the Ivory Coast is one of the last great iconic X-Files visuals. It's hard watching Mulder descend into psychosis, but Scully steps up and tries her darnedest to come up with answers to help him. Throw in a little menace from Krycek and a powerless Skinner, and you've got yourself a par-tay!


HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Dreamland II, Milagro, Arcadia, One Son and The Unnatural.


STINKERS: Agua Mala, Alpha and The Rain King.

Mulder and Scully Revisited V

Well, we've made some pretty decent headway into the seventh season now, so I thought I'd do my usual look back, two seasons ago. I think the fifth was a pretty strong season, and had some great episodes. Let me expand...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

REDUX II (5x02)
Aside from the reveal of what actually happened in Mulder's apartment that night, the first Redux episode was a bit of a snoozefest, in my mind. So much monologuing! It continually cuts from Mulder to Scully and back again, and each time they deliver a scene with a big long voiceover. The first two episodes of the fifth season should have been siphoned into one kick-ass opener. Thankfully, this episode is fantastic. The race is on to save Scully's life, and Mulder struggles with what he believes in. The way events ramp up to all the revelations in the end are just great too. Assassinations! Truths! And of course, questions and ambiguous deaths!

THE POST-MODERN PROMETHEUS (5x06)
This episode is a favourite of many, and I'm happy to jump on the bandwagon. From its black and white cinematography to its fascination with Cher to its Frankenstein homage, it's a home run on all counts. Managing to feel like an X-File episode, it isn't like one we've ever seen before (and since, might I add). Written and directed by series creator Chris Carter, this could arguably be his best work. 

BAD BLOOD (5x12)
I was worried that I had built this episode up too much, but it totally delivered! The idea of having the same events shown through both Mulder and Scully eyes was a masterstroke, and the humour in this episode is simply terrific. Vince Gilligan's hilarious script tackles obsessive-compulsive vampires, multiple autopsies, freewheelin' RVs and stars the always-charming Luke Wilson. While it can be seen is a riff on Akira Kurasowa's Rashomon, it stands up as its own beast. I tend to lean towards the humourous episodes when I think of my favourites, and this outing just might be the funniest. The way Mulder and Scully see each other after working with each other for five years border on caricature, but never lapse into imitation or mockery. This is still in my Top 5 X-Files episodes ever.

THE PINE BLUFF VARIANT (5x18)
Now this one is probably one of the least X-files-like episodes produced, but I love it. I particularly dig the way that we are thrown midway into the story and are almost immediately questioning Mulder's motives. Whose side is he on? Could he be a traitor? It's more like a spy film than anything else. When Mulder is tortured by the people he's trying to prove loyal to, it's a real slap to the face. We've not seen such brutality before, and Mulder's retaliation is equally brutal. There are numerous twists and turns to the plot which deals with an anarchistic milita called The New Spartans, and their development of a lethal biological weapon. Yeah, it's a good one.

THE END (5x20)
I really liked the addition of Gibson Praise, a young boy who can read other people's thoughts. His insights have the clarity of a psychic mixed with the innocence of a child. Is he an alien/human hybrid? How can he read thoughts?The fact that Gibson himself could be the key to everything in the X-Files makes for a great game of cat and mouse. The opening scene features this character playing chess in a large sports stadium, and it's one of my favourite sequences. This episode is also notable for the introduction of Diana Fowley (played by Mimi Rogers), whose job on The X-Files is to either annoy Scully (and us!) while tangling herself around her old flame, Mulder. Mimi does a good job of playing her, but I don't think much of the character. It doesn't stop me from loving this season cliffhanger, which includes the bombshell of Agent Spender learning that the Cigarette Smoking Man is his father. The final scenes of Mulder's office (and the X-Files themselves) on fire is one of the most powerful images from the entire series.


HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Kill Switch, Patient X and Christmas Carol.

STINKERS: Redux, Chinga and Kitsunegari.

Mulder and Scully Revisited IV

We're enthusiastically making our way through the sixth season at the moment, which means I should be blogging about my five favourite episodes of the fourth season! Yes, indeedy! We also watched The X-Files Movie again, which held up pretty damn well, in my mind. But, let's go back a bit, shall we?

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

PAPER HEARTS (4x08)
This episode has so many things going for it; the dream sequences, the possibility of knowing what happened to Samantha, Tom Noonan's amazingly brilliant and underplayed turn as serial killer John Lee Roche, the climatic scene in the bus depot...it's just stunning. Written by Vince Gilligan with Noonan in mind to play Roche, it might be my favourite of the fourth season. The way Mulder's memories are manipulated by Roche, and the constant 'did he?/didn't he?' undercurrent make it stand out from the usual X-Files fare.  I just can't speak highly enough of this one.

MEMENTO MORI (4x15)
Scully's battle with cancer sees her undergo treatment and spend time in hospital while Mulder desperately searches for a cure. He even considers making a deal with the Cigarette Smoking Man, until Skinner strongly advises him against such an action. Watching Scully come to terms with what is happening to her body is one of the most heartbreaking moments in the whole series. Mulder's little covert raid with the Lone Gunmen is another big highlight too. 

TEMPUS FUGIT (4x17)
I love that Max Fenig returned to the show, (albeit only for two episodes, and even then, he's hardly in them) and I dug the whole concept of trying to piece together the final events of Flight 549. Scary Moustache Man (as I call him) makes for a nice mysterious villain too. If only Tom Selleck was available for the role! The concluding episode Max is also good, but the sheer scale of recreating an aerial crash site puts this entry slightly ahead. I love that title translates to 'time flies' as well.

SMALL POTATOES (4x20)
Another cracking episode from Vince Gilligan that is filled with humour as we follow Darin Morgan as Eddie Van Blundht, a man who can assume the shape of any other person. I thought I had remembered this episode as being better than it actually was, but my recent viewing confirmed its status as one the series' best, in my opinion. One of my favourite moments occurs when Mulder and Scully knock on the door of Van Blundht's father's house. Throughout the episode he constantly corrects the spelling of his surname, in that it has a 'D' in it. After the home's door is struck, the 'D' from the lettering bearing the family name on door falls off. It's so subtle, that you might have missed it, but it cracked me up.

GETHSEMANE (4x24)
This episode is pretty polarising, as its cliffhanger ending would have us believe that Mulder has become so disillusioned and lost that he has taken his own life. While that's too extreme a notion for some to entertain, surely most viewers would have seen the truth that was revealed in the season five opening episode coming. As if Mulder would die. Remember the Anasazi cliffhanger? I can see how his character could have considered that option. The episode pretty much tears down all the things he was lead to believe over the last four years (or did it?) and the truth he thought he desperately came close to uncovering was in fact the biggest lie of all. In addition to that, his hope to one day learn the truth about his sister's disappearance seemed further from his grasp than ever. Written by Chris Carter himself, I love the way the plot unfolds via Scully's narration at the FBI hearing. For me, the image of the big rectangular table all lit up is synonymous with this episode. Gillian Anderson's role as the narrator and participant of the story is also very well done, and I think her performance while revealing Mulder's 'fate' at the end is quite excellent. The discovery of the alien body and all the other facets of the mythology in this outing are hugely entertaining too. There many religious overtones throughout as well, not least being the title. Another highlight for me is the first appearance of Michael Kritschgau, played by John Finn. I have no problem citing this as one of my five favourites.


HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Home, Unruhe, Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man, Tunguska and Max.

STINKERS: The Field Where I Died (my vote for the worst X-Files episode of all time) and El Mundo Gira.

Mulder and Scully Revisited III

Okay, so it's time to look back on the third season now. We've just finished off the fifth season, which is probably my favourite. That means while be watching The X-Files Movie in our next session! I don't know why I need a two-season buffer, but it seems to serve me well. Let's get down to my five picks...

**Warning: spoilers ahead**

CLYDE BRUCKMAN'S FINAL REPOSE (3x04)
Darin Morgan's second offering for The X-Files is just as entertaining as season two's Humbug, arguably even more so. I think part of this is due to Peter Boyle's effortlessly brilliant performance as the title character. His interactions with the ever-dubious Scully are just wonderful. The dialogue between the police feels like something out of a cartoon at times, which adds to the outlandish atmosphere. Why is it that the best episodes are the ones that veer away from the classic X-Files formulas? Not that this is wildly different, as there is still a paranormal undercurrent within Boyle's psychic Bruckman. With striking images, quotable lines and unforgettable final scene, this would probably be in my top five episodes of the entire series.

731 (3x10)
While I quite enjoyed the preceding Nisei episode, it's after Mulder jumps onto the train (which Duchovny did himself apparently) that the action and suspense starts to build. I love the scenes between Mulder and Stephen McHattie's Red Haired Man. It reminds me of Sean Connery and Robert Shaw in the final act of From Russia With Love. The fact that X pulls his finger out and actually does something to help Mulder is pretty cool too.

PUSHER (3x17)
Written by Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, this episode looks at Robert Patrick Modell, a man who can push his will onto others. Unfortunately for those he comes into contact with, this usually means death by their own hand. As Modell eludes capture, the cat and mouse game he plays with Mulder comes to a head with an emotional round of Russian roulette. You'll never look at cerulean blue the same way again. Suspenseful stuff!


JOSE CHUNG'S "FROM OUTER SPACE" (3x20)

The third script from Darin Morgan is another X-Files classic. It's told through the eyes of the title character as he puts together a book detailing the alleged alien abduction of two teenagers in Klass County. Each person he talks to has a different take on the events that occured, and some re-tellings are quite hilarious. One witness recounts Mulder's visit to a diner wherein he orders piece after piece of sweet potato pie. Another's description of the two agents paints Scully as angry and violent with red hair that is "a little TOO red". Jesse "The Body" Ventura guest stars as one of the mysterious Men In Black, and delivers an excellent monologue on how most people mistake the planet Venus for a UFO. This episode also has some clever editing and is highly entertaining. One of the best!


TALITHA CUMA (3x24)
The season finale introduces to Jeremiah Smith, a man who possess the ability to heal gunshot victims, among others. But is he human? As this essential mythology episode unravels we learn that Mulder's mother and the Cigarette Smoking Man have a history. The discovery of an alien stiletto weapon in the Mulders' old summer home gives us more questions about Mrs Mulder's past. This episode has two great scenes in it. The first being Jeremiah Smith's interrogation by the CSM, in which he morphs into characters from CSM's past, adding weight to his words. The second is the fight between Mulder and X which ends in the two of them drawing their guns on each other. While he has always been nervous and cautious, X's motives seem to be more about self-preservation than assisting Mulder. When X actually tries to help him in the season four opener Herrenvolk, it ends badly, justifying his paranoia. This is one of the best mythology episodes of the series, with a nice taut cliffhanger ending to boot. I really wanted to have Apocrypha in my five, purely for the scene of Krycek 'crying' the black oil out of his body before being locked in the silo, but it didn't quite make the cut.


HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Nisei, Apocrypha, War of The Coprophages and Syzygy.

STINKERS: Teso Dos Bichos, that's it. The only really awful episode of this season; and it's a doozy.

Mulder and Scully Revisited II

Well, seeing as we've hit the fourth season, I might highlight my five favourite episodes of series two. While there were a few blips, I think the show was starting to hit its stride, and the conspiracy plot (or "mythology") started to really take off as well. Before I get started though, I'm just going to ask this: Why is The Host so revered? It's a pretty formulaic episode and the plot feels sluggish. I don't hate it, but I don't regard it as essential. Anyway, let's take a look back...

**Warning, spoilers ahead.**

SLEEPLESS (2x04)
As well as being highly entertaining, this episode contains several firsts. After hearing the voice of X (Steven Williams) in an earlier outing, we finally meet him in a suitably mysterious fashion. Although he's not nearly as enthused to help Mulder as Deep Throat was, something is driving him to act in spite of himself. I like that his character is significantly different from his predecessor and nearly always appears nervous and paranoid. We also meet Alex Krycek, who begins his journey as a partner for a very reluctant Mulder. He comes across as being as somewhat inept and a little wet behind the ears. I think that was a wasted opportunity for his duplicity to be revealed at the episode's end. It would have really added to the tension of the Duane Barry storyline if we discovered that Krycek was working for the Cigarette Smoking Man, say, just before Scully was taken. Getting back to this episode though, I enjoyed the plot more than I did on my first viewing, and Tony Todd's performance as Augustus "Preacher" Cole is excellent. The idea that a unit of soldiers sent to Vietnam were medically denied sleep is terrifying. 

ONE BREATH (2x08)
I really enjoyed the Duane Barry episodes, and it's only because of my limit of five that neither of those two made the cut. Steve Railsback did a wonderful job playing that character, but it's the return of Scully that resonates with me more. The image of her adrift in a tethered boat while visitors in her hospital room appear on a shoreline wonderfully symbolises Scully's coma. This is taken to the next level when her mother makes the decision to turn off Scully's life support, and the rope keeping the boat near the shore snaps. Mulder's struggle to help Scully shows just how much he cares for her, although he is powerless to really do anything. He becomes shockingly aware of how high the stakes have become when he witnesses X execute a man who attempted to steal a sample of Scully's blood. I also really like the scene he has with Skinner, who refuse to accept Mulder's resignation. One of the best episodes of the second season.

END GAME (2x17)
Concluding the cliffhanger episode Colony, this "mythology" installment has some quintessential X-Files moments. The ending of the previous outing  The elevator brawl between Skinner and X, the revelation that Mulder's returned sister Samantha was actually a clone, and Mulder's confrontation with the alien bounty hunter (Brian Thompson) on the USS Allegiance. Perhaps the best scene is Scully saving Mulder's life by insisting the hypothermia the doctors are endeavouring to reverse is the only thing keeping him alive. I like the way the writers/director/producers used that scene to bookend the two episodes. They would repeat this method several times throughout the series.

HUMBUG (2x20)
The first episode penned by Darin Morgan is also the first to feature a lot of humour. This is possible one of my favourite episodes of the entire series too. Although there are a couple of squirmy, blood-soaked moments it's quite a departure from the usual X-Files fare. The underlying theme of difference and tolerating others resonates in many scenes, with the mirror being thrown back at the viewer as well. Having Jim Rose and The Enigma in the cast adds to the realism of the circus sideshow performers. I also enjoyed seeing Michael J. Anderson and Vincent Schiavelli in supporting roles. 

ANASAZI (2x25)
The sense of danger that permeated the One Breath episode is pushed up a notch when Mulder is given a DAT copy of secret files from the Defense Dept. Suddenly anyone associated with the DAT is a possibly target, and the Cigarette Smoking Man becomes possibly vicious in his hunt for the Mulder and the tape. There is a real sense of tragedy when a family member is taken away from him as well. While it didn't play for everybody, but I liked the Navajo references. These are expanded further in the season three opener The Blessing Way, which is another great episode. The cliffhanger ending where Mulder's life hangs in the balance is one of the greatest TV moments of the 20th century.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Duane Barry, Ascension and Colony. 

STINKERS: Little Green Men, Fearful Symmetry and Fresh Bones.

Mulder and Scully Revisited

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