Summary
Was there anything in TXF history that we looked forward to more than this?? I'll be the first to admit that the mythology part of the series has worn thin on me over the years, but that doesn't mean that if I'm promised - what was it? "full disclosure"? - that I won't hang around for a look. This one seemed well on its way to being a great story: Cassandra reappearing miraculously cured, Spender finally being given something significant to deal with (although I almost picked the "CSM slapping Jeffy" scene as my best moment), Fowley being revealed as at least somewhat tainted....
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| Mulder & Scully doing some spying in their old office |
Note to those following along: definition of "Key to Everything" is now Cassandra Spender (overrides previous definition of Gibson Praise).
When this episode originally aired, they had to run a series of clips at the beginning to remind us (inform us) of what had happened in the past with regards to the holy grail search for the perfect human/alien hybrid. Among those clips were two from S1, where we are reminded that Fox Mulder has known for quite some time that a huge part of the "alien conspiracy" is the idea of making an alien/human hybrid. And the corresponding colonization plans? Hasn't he known about those since S2? What does that have to do with anything? To paraphrase Fox Mulder, "I'm getting to that..."
After another "rebel aliens burn people" scene, we see CSM sitting back in his easy chair making like Alistair Cooke on Masterpiece Theatre. He's giving someone the short version of the conspiracy, describing the "right plans" to help aliens who were coming to reclaim the earth (and destroy all human life in the process) by creating a slave race of alien/human hybrids for them. CSM talks about the fact that these plans were kept secret "from men like Fox Mulder".
And here's the part that I was getting to... these plans have been known to Mulder for a long, long time at this point. CSM was being somewhat stupidly dramatic here courtesy of CC/FS. Let me say something: this Conspiracy has been successful at covering up because the work they do is so outrageous that no one believes... it has nothing to do with them keeping good secrets.
Question: If you test Cassandra Spender's blood, will it be red or green? Whatever the answer, you'd think that it would have been tested upon her admission to the hospital.
Question: Is a successful human/alien hybrid one that can't easily be ID'd with a basic blood test? (Have we merely seen "unsuccessful" human/alien hybrids walking around in the past?)
Question: Why do these rebel aliens with the closed up eyes and mouths (and whatever else) have faces that can be clawed off like so much cheap plasticine? I thought they physically morphed into those shapes (as we will see in One Son that they in fact do). Now I'm imagining that they — without eyes to see — are sculpting faces for themselves like they were Mummenschanz performers.
Admission: This time I almost laughed during the scene where Cassandra tells Mulder and Scully about the aliens "taking over the universe". What, earth alone isn't good enough for them? They have to go all universal soldier? And do the aliens themselves actually call their life force "purity"?
And what about that final scene in Mulder's apartment? (Where he and Scully must have been having a grand old time, huh?) Despite their questions, I guess we really don't need to know how Cassandra found out where Mulder lives, how she got away from the hospital, where she got her clothes, and why she couldn't have just stepped in front of a bus if she wanted to die, rather than engage Mulder to kill her...
All while someone is pounding incessantly on Mulder's door.
The only thing that was revealed to us in this big revelation episode was the fact that one of the aliases that CSM goes by is C.G.B. Spender... big hairy deal.
Best or Worst Moment
The best moment for me in this episode was the scene in M&S's "office" (if you can call it that) where Scully catches a glimpse of the images that Mulder is viewing on his monitor. He has been refusing to go along with Spender's request because he thinks it's all a setup but when Scully recognizes her own experience with similarly burned bodies, he instantly softens his stand. I found DD's interpretation of the scene quite interesting in the way he has Mulder look at Scully while nibbling thoughtfully at his thumb. There was a lot of hidden emotion there was they revisited that unhappy memory.
Original Rating: * * *
Revised Rating: * * *
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