4X06 - Sanguinarium

Summary

It wasn't as bad as some have opined, but on the other hand, I can't see anyone being a huge supporter of this one. There have been, however, worse episodes by far. I did like the not-too-subtle commentary on the whole cosmetic surgery industry, but I doubt that even the graphic displays of the most gruesome outcomes possible will stop people from seeking their perfect bodies and faces. Even if they do have to sell their souls or some such thing. Was that the point of this story? This was quite the blood-fest and was a bit disturbing in that sense, but at no point was I seriously feeling like this could ever happen. (And yes, there are certain x-files that I think can happen...) So while it was sorta scary in its presentation, the episode never succeeded in making me feel it. It was just sorta "icky".

There's nothing wrong with your nose!

I was sort of reminded of Terms of Endearment when I re-watched this one. Neither episode struck a chord with me, as I found it difficult to believe what was going on. Essentially, this is yet another story about “the devil” with a little bit of ineffective witchcraft thrown in for bad measure.

The “vanity, vanity, all is vanity” is correct and seemingly, we do all want to be beautiful these days, but this episode did nothing to enlighten my life in any appreciable way. Which is not to say that an episode of TXF should do that, but this one sort of had a preachy vibe to it that made me expect to be enlightened.

Instead I saw repeated scenes of Mulder contemplating his schnoz when he would normally at least pretend to be interested in investigating a case. While he displayed his usual quickness in jumping to a theory (black magic), he left most of the hard work to Scully in this one. (He was playing with the plastic surgery software when Scully was interviewing Ilaqua and later in the ep, he is still looking at himself in the mirror when Scully knocks on his door at 3:40 in the morning, after having been at the hospital with Rebecca Waite.) Lucky he’s so smart as to make the connection between Cox and Franklyn.

Speaking of Franklyn, that shot of him levitating over his bed was a bit much. Couldn’t they have found some other way to reveal him as the villain?

Picayune Peculiarities

I found it odd that something that is “beyond our surgical capabilities” is – for some reason – still possible via the software meant to guide those surgical procedures.

And why – if “we all want to be beautiful” – was Cox arguably better looking than Franklyn? I know that his last “face” looked like the Hollywood standard, but that in-between phase/face seemed like so much wasted effort.

Best or Worst Moment

Poor David... they should quit making funnies about his nose. Still, that was a bit of a precious scene where Mulder is examining himself in the mirror. I can't otherwise point out any memorable scenes from this one that aren't gruesome.

Original Rating: *
Revised Rating: *