Posted on January 26th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
“Sleepless” is an enjoyable, if somewhat unremarkable installment of the X-Files series. The central mystery is decent enough, though it hardly matches the best of what the series has to offer. In fact, its most interesting and compelling elements are those that occur on the periphery of the main story — the further hints and revelations of the Conspiracy. In that sense, there is some importance to the episode itself. Unfortunately, these elements aren’t enough to truly elevate the episode and make it a true classic.
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Posted on January 19th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
“Blood” is an episode that manages to weave a thoroughly confounding mystery. Unfortunately, the reason why the mystery is so difficult to penetrate is the simple fact that it simply makes no sense whatsoever — no matter what kind of spin you try to put on the events. The result is less-than-average: a genuinely suspenseful ride that ends with absolutely no satisfaction.
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Posted on January 16th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
“The Host” is an episode which manages to improve over the course of its forty-minute runtime. The central mystery to the episode — essentially a monster-of-the-week installment — is skillfully enough presented. But it is the developing conspiracy-within-a-conspiracy element to the series which manages to elevate the episode beyond an average installment, even if it isn’t quite a classic. And really, with the X-Files division still on ice, I imagine there was little else to go with the series.
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Posted on January 10th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
It all boils down to a crisis of faith. “Little Green Men” represents some of the most explicit characterization from The X-Files thus far. Aside from the slight melodrama of having the X-Files division shut down, the episode manages to be almost entirely successful, drawing on plot, character and thematic elements established in the first season of the series. That it also proves to be a story about finding strength in one’s own convictions, no matter how mundane or distasteful reality may be, is an evolution in writing for the series. Put simply, the episode tells a story that is as much about the human condition as it is about the “little green men” Mulder is chasing.
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Posted on January 7th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
“The Erlenmeyer Flask” is a crucial episode of the X-Files. Structurally, it’s little more than a surface mystery designed to develop the already shadowy “mythology” that the series has been slowly introducing throughout its first season. And, as a season finale, it certainly contains more than enough revelations and questions to keep viewers intrigued by what could happen in future seasons. But as an episode, it doesn’t do very much to rise above its own material and present a truly exceptional installment. Without question, this it’s a classic … but it isn’t exemplary.
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Posted on January 4th, 2010 by Samuel Walters
“Roland” is a fascinating, if ultimately empty episode of The X-Files. Certainly, it isn’t a terrible installment. And yet, it doesn’t manage to accomplish a whole lot beyond a moderately entertaining mystery. In fact, not even the cinematography and mood of the episode manage to conform the usual standards established in the first season of the series. Add in the fact that the mystery itself isn’t quite unusual enough to generate its own interest and you end up with an episode that is, surprisingly, pedestrian.
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Posted on December 31st, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Born Again” is an example of how the X-Files can weave a compelling mystery story out of, almost, thin air. This is entirely a “freak of the weak” kind of episode, but it manages to find cohesion thanks to a thoroughly captivating and engrossing mystery. That’s not to say that this is an outright classic, merely that this installment proves that even the most pedestrian of X-Files episodes contain a story that is told with skill and craft.
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Posted on December 28th, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Tooms” is a return to the character and story first introduced in the episode, “Squeeze.” The explicit continuity is a nice development for the series. But the episode has a couple of other important elements going for it as well. First, there’s the appearance of the Smoking Man and Skinner, and their threats against the X-Files division. More importantly, there’s a nice thematic element involving the natural tension between a going “by the book” and working on little more than a hunch. The result is a solid, classic, if somewhat imperfect episode.
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Posted on December 24th, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Darkness Falls” is a silly-yet-entertaining episode of the X-Files. It does a decent job of creating and establishing a foreboding mood, and capturing a palpable sense of danger — even if we know everything will turn out alright for our heroes, Mulder and Scully, the circumstances make the means for their rescue enough of question mark to allow the episode to maintain a sense of tension right up until the very end. The result is an above-average, if not quite classic, installment of the series.
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Posted on December 21st, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Shapes” is an example of why the X-Files is such a classic series. Even when the plot of an episode isn’t especially innovative or unpredictable, there’s a palpable sense of mystery and spookiness that makes even the most pedestrian of concepts engaging. And this particular episode goes to great lengths to convey an atmosphere that allows for an “anything is possible” vibe to flourish. This unabashed openness to the bizarre makes this installment all the more intriguing. The events *could* be explained by a reasonable and rational argument. But it’s just as likely that something very dangerous, very lethal, very creepy is stalking the night in the middle of Montana’s most remote lands.
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Posted on December 3rd, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Miracle Man” is a kind of aimless, middling episode whose central twist manages to be thoroughly unconvincing and altogether too conventional to really drive home the central conflict of the story: namely, is “faith healing” legitimate? This is a case where the attempt by the X-Files to walk the line between mysticism and skepticism leads to a watered-down, shallow tale which never piques any real interest, drama, or mystery.
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Posted on November 28th, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“E.B.E.” is an effective and arresting tale about extra-terrestrials visiting Earth and, more importantly, about the government conspiracies in place to keep such information from reaching the general populace. The episode trots out some fairly familiar and common “close-encounter” tropes such as radios going haywire, blinding lights, and UFOs. But what sets the episode apart, aside from the quality of the familiar sequences, is how it uses them to explore the depths to which the truth is often couched in misinformation. As Scully says, “The truth is out there. But so are the lies.”
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Posted on October 7th, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Young At Heart” is an inconsistent episode. At times it can be thoroughly riveting and, at others, a complete and utter bore. It’s the classic case of high-risk, high-reward –in terms of both character and plot – and, fortunately for the episode, the rewards outweigh the pitfalls. What that means, though, is that viewers need to be able to overlook the episode’s flaws to truly enjoy it. Still, there’s little doubt that this is a classic installment.
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Posted on October 5th, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Lazarus” is the kind of status quo episode which does little to advance the series or its characters and, in fact, manages to be far too derivative to be enjoyable, even as a mindless distraction. To be fair, it does present an interesting paranormal concept – that of changing personalities during a near-death experience. But everything around the idea is carelessly woven into place, leaving too many loose threads and holes to make the entire canvas worth viewing.
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Posted on August 23rd, 2009 by Samuel Walters
“Gender Bender” is certainly an … interesting episode. The whole notion that an Amish-like town in Massachusetts is harboring some dark, mysterious power is certainly a fascinating angle. And the episode does a solid job in establishing the almost surreal eeriness to the whole town. Coupled with the bizarre murders that trigger the investigation from Scully and Mulder, there are plenty of elements to provide a captivating installment. And yet, the episode becomes bogged down in procedure, making it drag, substantially, through its middle paces. The result is that by the time we get to the big twist of the episode’s final shot, it’s quite possible to have nearly lost interest.
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