Theatre of the Mind ~ XF Season 5
The Season 5 entries of Theatre of the Mind have come to an end, it's time to unwind.
To summarize the season that was quite a nice mix, and prepare to move on to the next season - six.
All the way from a hoax to a big conflagration, it leaves just two people as our planet's salvation.
So without too much fanfare, without further adieu, I'll proceed with the customary season review.
1. In "Redux," Fox Mulder has faked his demise, and now finds himself searching not for truth, but for lies. Michael Kritzgau has told him the whole thing's a hoax, except the cure for his Scully's not one of the jokes. Meanwhile, Scully is covering Mulder's tail with a tale, while trying to keep Mulder's ass out of jail. The "cure" Mulder's found is another dead end; and now he's not sure he can save his best friend. Scully wants to name Skinner, his days might be through; but she faints dead way - continued in part two.
2. "Redux II" finds Mulder back, but he faces rebuke, for shooting the face off that government spook. Things are not good for Scully - she's dying of cancer; but for a price, CSM says he'll provide the right answer. Scully questions her faith and gets strength from her mother, while CSM brings Samantha for a talk with her brother. There doesn't seem to be any way out of this mess, till Mulder proves the master at the really good guess. Through faith, science, or implant Scully's cure is achieved, CSM seems to be dead, and Mulder no longer believes.
3. It's 1989 and the X-Files is not what it seems, as we meet our friend Byers who meets the girl of his dreams. "Unusual Suspects" gets a little bit sticky, as we find out how Byers met Langley and 'Hickey. We learn how the guys form a shaky alliance, which leads to their future of extreme noncompliance. They meet the young Mulder and explain the whole thing; the only thing that they *don't* explain is the ring. A friendship is formed to help Fox with his quest, and in case you forgot, their kung fu is the best.
4. They thought it would be a nice trip to the forest, but "Detour" just proves they should have stayed in the Taurus. A trip to a seminar takes a u-turn as Mulder thinks the partners have no more to learn. "Communication-unspoken" is one of their finest features; he'd rather miss the par-tay and chase the wood creatures. Of course Mulder's injured, by the creature gets hurled, which gives Scully a chance to sing Joy to the World. By working together they prove they have the power, but they never get to finish building that tower.
5. "The Post Modern Prometheus," filmed in black and white, is the tale of two monsters who cause quite a fright. One's a mad scientist who creates "'cause he can," and one's his creation who wasn't part of the plan. No one is safe; you should really beware if you see lots of smoke and hear singing by Cher. Mulder & Scully figure out where it began, and find not a monster but a sad, lonely man. They contact the writer and set the stage for romance, as Mulder & Scully finally share a sweet dance.
6. In "Christmas Carol" it's not a time of good cheer, cause Scully's not up to celebrating this year. To see Bill and Tara, and the baby they're awaiting, just reminds her that she'll never be infanticipating. But she suddenly gets a call out of the blue, saying someone needs her help and telling her what to do. She believes it's Melissa whose voice that she hears, and that her sister had a baby during a time she disappeared. Scully tries to adopt; but from the results that they've brought her, she gets quite the surprise - Emily is Scully's daughter.
7. Upon finding her link to "Emily," Scully uses her discretion, and of course, calls on Mulder, who does his Mr. Potato Head impression. He finally tells her what she cannot believe, he's known for some time why she cannot conceive. Another strange phone call prompts an Emily-check, and they find a green cyst on the back of her neck. Mulder looks for the answers, he'll give it a whirl. Cause he'll do anything for Scully and for that little girl. In the end, Scully "saves" her, but there's no evidence left to see. Because Emily was a miracle that was never meant to be.
8. Now it's the return of Robert Patrick Modell, to make the lives of our agents a living hell. It was doubtful that Pusher would ever survive, but surprise! Now he's back! As he says, "It's alive!" But *he's* not the one who is on *this* Fox hunt; in "Kitsunegari" there's another who's pulling the stunt. Mulder's ideas are suspect so they almost missed her - the real estate lady is old Pusher's sister. Mulder wins her game, but at a terrible cost; he almost killed his partner, so he feels like he lost.
9. Teenagers are killing adults is the tease, but it's not the teenagers, it might be the trees. "Schizogeny" certainly tests the ability of Scully to ignore Mulder's boyish agility. The psychologist is helping the kids get empowered, she wants each to stand up and not be a coward. Mulder figures it out (and he looks like a stud), but it might be for naught as he's sucked in the mud. It could have ended badly with one G-man dead, but unfortunately for Karen, she loses her head.
10. Scully's on vacation and Mulder is bored, and try as Scully might, he just won't be ignored. But while on vacation, Scully meets little Polly, who likes the hokey pokey and her strange little dolly. Scully just wants to rest, but gets sucked into the plot; she'll finally get some rest when the killer is caught. This episode proves something we've always known, Mulder and Scully sure give good phone. In "Chinga," Mulder's feelings are pretty revealing, almost as plain as those pencils stuck in the ceiling.
11. The next episode starts with a terrible crime, with only one clue - that it is Twilight Time. The clue leads our heroes to computer whiz Esther, who tries Scully's patience and constantly tests her. Mulder runs down the leads - it's not really a ditch; but he could be in trouble if they don't get the "Kill Switch." Mulder experiences some 'sensations' while in virtual reality, some thoughts about Scully and some questions on his morality. Scully gets Mulder out, safely in her embrace; and Esther blasts off into her cyberspace.
12. What really happened? The verdict is split. Was he not a vampire? If he wasn't, oh shi---. In "Bad Blood" it's same story, but two different versions. And both of the renderings are full of aspersions. A good-looking sheriff, a strange pizza boy, untied shoelaces was just a decoy. Scully was thinking that Mulder was daft, especially when he sang her the chorus of "Shaft." Which version is accurate? Skinner just shrugged. Don't forget the buck teeth. And anyway, they were drugged.
13. Marita and Krycek are Natasha and Boris, Mulder is now in the skeptical chorus. And since he's a skeptic, Scully's now a believer, who is worried her implant is a radio receiver. We meet Cassandra Spender who is *the* "Patient X," and her G-man son, Jeffrey, who has a complex. We learn more about the oilien slime, and that the Russians have developed a vaccine that's prime. At the end of part one things are looking quite dire, as the faceless men might set our Scully on fire.
14. Mulder is happy that Scully's all right, but she has no memory of what happened that night. So she undergoes hypnosis, but doesn't get what she planned; tells of abductions and spaceships (and holds Mulder's hand). "The Red and the Black" brings us all to the brink; and Mulder gets kissed (but not by who you might think). The aliens are coming and Mulder tries to intervene; but he loses nine minutes - you know the routine. The roles are restored, the partnership shall survive; and oh, what a shocker, CSM is alive!
15. A guy's getting evicted, and he must come to grips - but he dies in the process, with Mulder's name on his lips. But it's 1990, and Fox is still just a lad; it turns out that the Mulder in question's his dad. We get flashbacks about "Travelers" and the secrets that abound; and we learn how the wonderful X-Files were found. But the main thing we saw, with each sweep of the hand, was the left-hand ring finger and the gold wedding band. Arthur Dales solves the case and gets on with his life; but if Mulder was married, just who was his wife?
16. "Mind's Eye" is the case of the blind Marty Glenn who sees images every now and again. To the eyes of a killer she has some kind of connection; and Mulder wants to help her as she's earned his affection. Scully's not quite convinced and finds a bloody glove, but Mulder thinks she's not guilty and knows why - well, sort of. To escape from her visions, Marty kills the bad guy, who she learns was her father but not the apple of his eye. Mulder offers his assistance to get her out of this hell; but Marty retreats to the darkness of her cell.
17. Scully tells us this story as she makes her confession, she must talk to someone about her current depression. She takes on a case to help Father McCue, and it's had such an impact she doesn't know what to do. The struggle for "All Souls," between good and evil, has left her faith in a state of upheaval. She pries Mulder away from the movies for support, and he tries hard to help her, but the ball's in her court. Scully sees Emily, and believes it was meant, and delivers the last girl to the angel that was sent.
18. Mulder's acting all weird, Scully thinks he's a traitor; but don't worry, Scully, you'll learn everything later. Mulder's deep undercover and he really can't linger, but drop by soon, Scully, you can fix up his finger. Just what kind of trouble is our dear little Fox in? He's with real nasty guys who have a real nasty toxin. In "The Pine Bluff Variant" Mulder finds it's a set-up (but we do get to see him in that Dracula get-up). Going undercover can cause you such strife; and by the skin of his teeth, Mulder escapes with his life.
19. A big bug-like creature is sucking people's humanity, and those that can see it soon question their sanity. Mulder's held hostage and then he sees it too, and Scully asserts that it's "Folie a Deux." Mulder sets out to prove what others can't comprehend, and all those around him think he's gone off the deep end. Mulder's locked up by Skinner, he soon may be a civilian; but he knows he's got Scully, who's his one in five billion. And then in the end it is such a relief; though she can't quite admit it, Scully shares his belief.
20. On the outside he's just a little chess prodigy, but on the inside, to the X-Files, he just may be the key. He's "more human than human," with advanced DNA; he can read people's minds and look past what they say. CSM has come back to control the chess game, and he wants his son Jeffrey to now stake *his* claim. We meet Diana Fowley, who was Mulder's "chickadee," and Scully has a funny feeling because instead of two there's three. The X-Files closed, the office burned - it's too much to comprehend. But we have to ask this question: Could this really be "The End"?
So that wraps up Season 5, which was, for me, episode for episode, the best season. It was also the shortest season, with only 20 original episodes. (Maybe that's why it was the best - the two mandatory clunkers were left out. LOL!) Because of the movie, FOX gave the show a break on the number of episodes required for the year. The season finale seems to imply that it could be "the end" of a lot of things, but we'll all have to go to the movies to find out for sure. So you know what's up next, don't you? That's right. Three words. Fight the Future.
Here's where I hypothesize: that I should now apologize For putting season five in rhyme, I know this is a terrible crime. Cause I've always been an awful poet, and now I guess that you all know it.
So please accept my apology; I did my best -
Your friend, Polly.