1X01 - Deep Throat [REVISITED]

Summary

Deep Throat's a great character. Nothing like an informant who shows that he actually cares and has a conscience about both sides of whatever it is that he's protecting and exposing. As the show progressed into its final couple of seasons and destroyed/lost track of the mythology, Mulder's had no further need for "information", I guess. That's too bad, because I miss those clandestine meetings. With specific regards to this episode, however, I found it full of "stuff" but none of it really came together for me. I've seen this ep enough times for me to know it well, but for some reason, it remains merely a collage of scenes in my memory.

Deep Throat "debriefing" Mulder

If — as Deep Throat says at the end of this ep — they've been here for a long, long time (and this is Season One), then what the hell have they been waiting for? More significantly, does this episode's revelation — about the government's use of what may or may not have been "UFO" technology — have anything whatsoever to do with what the TXF mythology ultimately became? I mean, I'm sure that at this point, CC had every intention of making this whole "don't let Mulder dig into this case about test pilots being kidnapped" be part of something cohesive, but as I watch it again now, twenty years after the fact, it doesn't necessarily mesh with any of the lingering, frustrating memories that I have of the mythology in later seasons. Mind you, I can buy this particular story more than I can some of the later ones. It seems perfectly understandable that no matter what the source of this technology was (Mulder's view of it being of extraterrestrial origin or Scully's more earthly view), the government may have had plenty of good reasons for keeping it secret... it's just that they did a ludicrously lousy job of keeping it secret. (Thereby necessitating employment of MIBs to threaten, cover up, do mind wipes, and all the rest of that good stuff... you know, the old "close the barn door after the horse is gone" method of security.) After all, these air force bases seem awfully easy to access (there's even helpful signage despite the fact that "government maps" don't show their location ) and everyone who lives around them knows something is going on. They take pictures of stealth aircraft and make good money selling copies. I mean, come on, how secret can that be??

[An aside here: I just heard on the news yesterday that Area 51 has finally been confirmed as a real spot. No kidding? Oh, and guess whose photos accompanied this piece from the Globe and Mail?]

And yes, as Mulder tried to explain to Scully, what's so objectionable about using the term UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT when you've just seen a couple of UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS flying above you? I must say, however, that they appear to be light-hearted in many ways; these two seem to be able to have fun on the job for the most part. And by the way —  in clear identification with the Scully character for once in my life  —  I would have been a lot more ticked off at Mulder than she was, had he pulled that last stunt on me.

Best or Worst Moment

I liked the first scene with M&S in this one — the crowded bar where it was too early in the afternoon for a drink. (And when would be the next time that we see them in similar circumstances? Season four when Mulder celebrates Scully's birthday?) Their interaction was interesting, with that soon to be patented "invasion of personal space" move by Mulder as he almost drapes himself over Scully.

Scully's whisper of "Sucker!" to Mulder showed that she had also mastered the "invasion of personal space" move. Oh, and I found a worst moment in my recent viewing: when the agents are almost sideswiped by the two intercepting cars on the road, you can VERY clearly see that it's not GA and DD in Mulder and Scully's vehicle. Was the budget was so tight that they couldn't even afford to get the right length "Scully wig" for the GA stand-in?

Original Rating: * *
Revised Rating: * *