The X-Files Virgin’s Diary – Putting Scully through the wringer

by Jason Hughes

The X-Files - One Breath

(Season 2, Episodes 5-8)

Thanks for all the tips explaining Scully’s near absence this season after last week’s column. Now that I know she was pregnant, I can’t help but notice all the chest-up angles and seated shots she’s been getting. It was clever of the writers to ultimately work her pregnancy into the story (that pregnant belly looked so real!). I’m assuming they also worked her out of the plot for a bit so she could have the baby. Well done all around on that.

All in all, this was a pretty intense block of episodes. Aside from one vampiric diversion for Mulder, there was a singular focus driving through all four installments, culminating in a bizarre climax that I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about. Oh, and they got to spend an entire episode showcasing how enormous Anderson’s breasts had gotten.

2.5 – “Duane Berry (Part 1 of 2)” [MythArc]
(Original Air Date: October 14, 1994) I couldn’t help myself, looking at the little alien costumes at Duane Berry’s bedside. They didn’t look very impressive, but considering the possibility that the whole thing is a government hoax, that may even be part of it. That said, the aliens presence that abducted Mulder’s sister was far more compelling.

All in all, the episode wasn’t very compelling and seemed more a device to set up the next stage of Scully’s “evolution.” We did get to see Mulder in a hostage situation, and we got to enjoy some quality screen time with the venerable CCH Pounder. And is it just me, or does Pounder look identical now as she did then?

2.6 – “Ascension (Part 2 of 2)” [MythArc]
(Original Air Date: October 21, 1994) A direct continuation, the whole situation in the prior episode with Duane Berry, the crazy abductee, was so that he could kidnap Scully and lead to her own abduction encounter; in place of him. And, of course, to expose Krycek ultimately as a double agent.

I use the term loosely because technically, he and Mulder are working for the same side, as is Cancer Man, but there are obviously warring factions within the government. Who’s on which side is impossible to determine mostly. Except for Krycek.

And in a nice revelation, Skinner is apparently on the side of right, who may be finally starting to see the slippery slope Mulder is on, and more specifically the duplicitous nature of Cancer Man. Even if all he did was reopen the x-files, it’s a significant step in showing faith in Mulder. It will be nice if Mulder and Scully can rely on Skinner as an ally, because I don’t know if I trust X still.

It was a nice touch showing a few moments of Scully’s abduction encounter. Particularly the inflating of her stomach into its true pregnant form. What that means they did to her remains to be seen, I guess.

2.7 – “3”
(Original Air Date: November 4, 1994) This one was a little odd and felt a tad out of place. It’s weird to say that vampires don’t fit in with the supernatural world The X-Files has been exploring since day one, but it didn’t seem to. Maybe their lore is too well established. Maybe I just missed Scully.

It was … interesting seeing Mulder tackle a case solo. He certainly allowed himself to get more entrenched in it, possibly banging one of the chicks involved and even allowing her to shave him. Which is weird. I’ve never let someone shave me, and certainly not as a “hot” kind of thing. Maybe Mulder’s kinky. A hint of the forthcoming Hank Moody or his Red Shoe Diaries past creeping in?

The episode felt kind of inconsequential, even more so than your typical “monster-of-the-week” episodes. The threats were eliminated, nothing really at all was learned about them and Mulder was just kind of floundering around through most of it. He even didn’t believe the first vampire about his condition until it was too late. Bad Mulder!

2.8 – “One Breath” [MythArc]
(Original Air Date: November 11, 1994) Mulder’s floundering came to a head in this episode, when he looked at the probability of Scully dying. In a showing of just how much Scully has come to mean to him, Mulder goes nearly insane trying to track down what happened to her and who was behind it.

He even gets so far as a verbal confrontation with Cancer Man in the latter’s apartment. What great casting in William B. Davis. His face is so expressive when not saying very much. I hope the actor was already a smoker when this series began filming; I’ve already lost count of how many he’s inhaled and we’re just getting started.

We never get any resolution on the mysterious Nurse Owens who kept coaxing Scully into not giving up and fighting for life. I did think throughout the episode that a medical professional was so adamantly espousing these sentiments. I guess I consider them more clinical than that. But what was she?

But the real stars of this episode have to be Scully’s enormous breasts. All through season one, she was modest in the bosom to say the least. I know she was pregnant, but the way they laid her flat on her back with a super support bra made them seem like enormous mountains on her chest. It was more than a little distracting from a few angles.

Previously on The X-Files Virgin’s Diary

Now you can just click the show title under TV Shows over there on the right for all our previous installments. Handy, isn’t it?