X-Files S1E16: Dead men don't send haikus

Editors' Note: On the rewatch of The X-Files, Lorrie plays the part of Sestra Amateur and Paige serves as the resident "expert," aka Sestra Professional.
 
Sestra Amateur: 

In 1989, a federal prison inmate accuses one of the doctors of killing fellow convict John Barnett. Dr. Ridley denies it and then the prisoner, Crandall, sees the dead man’s opaque eyes blink. I’m sure it was just an involuntary muscle spasm. Nothing X-Filey about that, so let’s move on to next week’s ep. No? OK, we’ll see this through. “See” what I did there?

Years later, Sculder are called to a jewelry store robbery. Fellow agent Reggie Purdue says the suspect was a lone gunman. No, not one of those Lone Gunmen. Turns out the suspect matches the description of dead man Barnett. The suspect also left a note taunting Mulder, who tells Scully about his first FBI case which involved Barnett. It also turns out Purdue was Mulder’s Assistant Special Agent in Charge on said case. Mulder says he made a mistake when apprehending Barnett and Barnett killed a fellow agent as well as an armored car driver. 

Although they've heard Barnett died in prison, Mulder has the note analyzed and learns the handwriting matches Barnett’s. Purdue shows Scully the surveillance video of Mulder’s “mistake” -- essentially, Mulder did not shoot Barnett because the scum was holding a hostage. Purdue tells Scully he wished Mulder killed Barnett instead of following FBI protocol. The decision still affects Mulder too, although we haven’t heard mention of it until this episode.

Mulder watches the dead agent’s son playing football. Afterward, he finds another taunting note and an envelope of surveillance photos left in his car. Mulder knows someone has been following him and Scully. He definitely starts to lose his cool while a man with opaque eyes watches the scene – sounds like an oxymoron. 

Scully gets Barnett’s medical records from his former prison and learns he supposedly died of cardiac arrest and was cremated. Mulder flashes back to Barnett’s trial and we see a younger Mulder clearly used less product in his hair. It’s very amusing to watch things like court procedures on television when you know they’re not being portrayed accurately. Of course, it’s easy to say things were done differently 20 years ago, but I’m pretty sure defense attorneys always cross-examine the main witness at criminal trials. No wonder his client was convicted. 

Back in their present time, Scully learns Barnett left everything to Crandall, so they go visit the inmate. He tells them he heard Barnett scream and then saw him after Dr. Ridley cut off Barnett’s hand. Crandall also tells them about the tell-tale blinking. Barnett later calls Mulder to taunt him some more. Mulder eventually updates Purdue, but then Reggie is offed and another note left for Mulder. Maybe the frazzled agent should have called Purdue immediately after Barnett’s call instead of waiting until nighttime. Now that's a mistake. 

Scully learns Dr. Ridley lost his medical license because of research malpractice and misuse of a government grant. He performed unauthorized experiments on humans suffering from progeria, a genetic disorder that results in young patients aging prematurely. Mulder thinks Ridley experimented on Barnett and aged him backward. I don’t think this is what Frank Sinatra had in mind. Scully is at home writing up her report when she hears a strange noise. She grabs her gun and investigates. (You should already have a round in the chamber, Scully!) She stops searching her apartment when Ridley knocks on the front door. 

Mulder comes over and Ridley tells them Barnett survived the experiments. Ridley also admits the U.S. Government funded the research which brings us to … Deep Throat. Mulder meets with DT, who says they are trying to buy back Ridley’s stolen research from Barnett. Geez, the government really dropped the ball on that one. 

Scully figures out Barnett was in her apartment after he remotely accesses her phone messages. She gets one of his prints from the answering machine. Since he knows where Scully's going to be, they set a trap for him at her friend’s cello recital. While at the concert hall, I kept thinking about the assassination attempt on the Pope at The Mikado in Foul Play. Now I want to go watch that, but first things first. Barnett is hiding in plain sight, badly tuning the piano next to the cellist. Barnett shoots Scully twice – in the chest/vest, of course – then takes the cellist hostage. Mulder realizes history is repeating itself, but this time he takes the shot and hits Barnett. 

Barnett dies at the hospital without revealing the location of the missing research, but we see it may be stashed in a train station locker. Does the number 935 have special XF significance, Sestra Pro? So did Mulder not go by the book because of what happened last time? Or was he more motivated after watching Barnett shoot Scully? I’m going with the former on this one, since the entire episode hits you over the head with the fact that Mulder should have taken the shot years ago. Clearly, this Mulder doesn’t do everything by the book anymore.

Sestra Professional:

A little more than midway through first season and we're using up all our chips on former loves, ex-partners and old cases. Hot off Scully trying to save her paramour from a love-struck robber in the last episode, "Lazarus," now we have Mulder rehashing old times with someone else he used to work with at the bureau. And that's not the first time this particular ep will bring up memories of the 15 that have come before it. 

The script -- credited to Scott Kaufer (who only wrote this one ep) and show creator Chris Carter -- is kind of an intriguing premise, although, like in "Fire," it probably shouldn't be the first we heard of Mulder being haunted by the fact that people died because he followed procedure. (Note to Sestra Am: I haven't heard about 935 being a special number, but I was very interested in the name of the prison -- Tashmoo. That sounds like a writers' room interest in steamboats.)

But an agent died on Mulder's first case because of how he handled the hostage situation and this is the first Scully's heard of it? That seems pretty illogical as all the people who informed her about how "Spooky" Mulder was might have dropped that bit of information as well. It could have been handled a little easier here with a simple "I heard something about that, what happened?"

I'm totally grooving on Barnett getting under Mulder's skin with notes such as "Fox can't guard the chicken coop" and "A hunted Fox eventually dies." It lines up perfectly with the original case in which Mulder testified Barnett was daring them to catch him. 
 

Also kudos for betraying Mulder's cool exterior -- yep, that's a deliberate callback to his breakout line in "Squeeze." Barnett's so under his skin that the smart aleck doesn't have time to quip and he even snaps at Scully once or twice. There should be times when these characters, as driven as they are, snap in the heat of the moment. It can't be every show, but a well-chosen moment -- like the one here -- really serves the character. 

I'll get you, you son of a bitch: Mulder yelling at no one in particular on a suburban street after getting one of those threatening "haikus" in his own car is inspired. He's unsettled and the civilians who have no idea what he's reacting to or why are equally uncomfortable. Personally that works better for me than the show's denouement.

Ah, those experimenting doctors. It doesn't seem too far a reach that Dr. Ridley was trying to reverse the aging process in a similar vein to how the Eves (and theoretically the Adams) were genetically created back in "Eve." With all the possible permutations, Sculder will have stuff to investigate for nine -- maybe 10 -- seasons!

One of the tensest moments in the episode is actually the simplest one -- it's just Scully worried she's not alone in her own house. With mood music by Mark Snow and a perfectly calibrated performance from Gillian Anderson, I think it sort of steals the show from an episode that might have redefined Mulder the way "Beyond the Sea" did Scully.

Once again, it takes a very special appearance from Deep Throat for Mulder (and the audience) to discover the government is actually negotiating with the bad guy. Kinda makes you wonder why the X-Files are still open at all. Back in the computer-runs-the-world ep "Ghost in the Machine," our intrepid informant made another appearance out of left field to tie threads together for Fox. 

Just like old times: Well, not really, Barnett. 'Cause Mulder's worked through his issues and he's ready for you. And it's a nice little scene -- but really completely lacking in suspense, because we know that Mulder's not going to try going through procedure this time. Still, it's one of the highlights of Duchovny's season to date.

And some more kudos to Anderson for her stunt work when the sitting duck Scully gets shot. The meta on the show's casting was that network wanted Duchovny and didn't want Anderson ... halfway through the season, there was still a chance that she would be replaced. But as we're increasingly seeing, Anderson has the chops, and more than stands up to her lanky co-star.

Guest Star of the Week: The Progeria Society reportedly put the show in touch with Courtney Arciaga, the young girl living with the disease that was seen in archival footage of the doctor. Big fans of the show, Courtney and her family were flown from San Diego to Vancouver for filming.