08x02 "Without"
Atropos
Overall, the fact that Doggett’s apparently being played this whole time might have made me a little more sympathetic toward him, but he’s been acting like too much of an asshole for this. So never mind. It amuses me that Skinner is smarter than he is, though. :3 Skinner gloating as Doggett talks fast to Kersch was pretty great. I know he enjoyed the hell out of that.
However Doggett’s accent does amuse me, because he sounds like exactly none of the Georgians/Atlantans I know.
We learn from this episode that no one actually on the show ever figures out that apparently the alien bounty hunter doesn’t talk (guess his voice doesn’t change with the rest of him?). Doggett doesn’t clue to the fact that “Mulder” is absolutely dead silent; maybe he doesn’t know him as well as he keeps saying. Doggett also doesn’t figure out in advance that “Mulder” is CLEARLY PLANNING TO JUMP. Later we have scenes of Scully, Doggett, and Skinner all being extreeeemely quiet and not answering direct questions. (If someone--like Scully--had shot while “Scully” was choking that dude, it might have prevented some later trouble.) Come to think of it it’s pretty handy that this is all taking place at a school for the deaf.
And so in this situation of doubt and missed conclusions, we have an interesting little Mexican stand-off (is there a PC term for this?) between Skinner and Scully, who could both be fakes trying to draw information out of each other--”I know your secret!” “You tell me!”
I’m fuzzy on the alien blood thing (I’ve been slow enough in watching the series that I lose threads and details between arcs) besides that it’s caustic, but looking at Skinner in the hospital ceiling (...and are we sure that a drop ceiling can support Skinner, because he’s kind of a big guy), it appears that ABH spits acid like a compy. And we know Skinner can’t be dead-dead because he’s supposed to be in the new series unless that’s just David running his mouth again.
Scully didn’t say it, but you can see her thinking it: ”Really? You assholes find him and then this happens?” Mulder not only is dead again, he’s disappeared again at the same time. Skinner: “He can’t be gone!” We’re all a little slow on the uptake. Following the tracks doesn’t seem to be an immediate priority. How fast can a dead guy walk?
“I’ve told you that I’ve seen things.” Scully’s seen shit that’d turn you white!
I’m sad that after “Scully” crushes the guy’s larynx Scully doesn’t take the opportunity to do a field tracheostomy. I once heard an interview in which Harold Ramis said he knew the method for doing one with a pen and was just waiting for his chance.
And continuing the theme of Scully, normally the sensible one in the room, making stunningly bad decisions, she goes running off into the desert alone and with no supplies after the kid on the bike. Entering what’s probably a one-exit bolthole without really confirming who’s inside is just the icing on the cake.
And somewhere in all this Skinner gives Scully a little lecture about Mulder having advised him not to ruin his career over Mulder; he’s trying to urge Scully to do (not do?) the same. This is despite at least guessing that her reasons for this might run deeper. (You’d think the pregnancy bombshell might be a fucking hint, but even if he weren’t assumed to be involved, clearly they’re both *really important to each other*.)
Scully is doing the loneliest search evar… and Mulder knows she’s there. :( :( :( Just a brief stylistic bitch about using that stupid music again rather than just the vast empty quiet of a nighttime desert.
Nasubionna
It seems to me that Skinner becomes significantly more likeable and sympathetic after Mulder’s abduction. Maybe because Doggett and Kirsch are so hateable right now?? But yeah, it was nice to realize Doggett was being played, though it might have been fun for them to drag that out a bit longer.
LOLOLOL!!! The bounty hunter’s voice not changing with his body makes me think of the utterly baffling decision on the part of the Harry Potter movies to not change the voices of Polyjuiced people. Not only is that stupid and not make any sense (wouldn’t be a very complete disguise, would it?), but they’re not even consistent with it (Why doesn’t Mad-Eye-Moody sound like David Tenant the whole time? SO STUPID). I was kinda glad to have Mr. Bounty Hunter back, though. He’s so unique and creepy-looking, and I always like the whole shape-shifter deadly killer looks like someone you love thing. I feel like Skinner and Scully should have come up with a safe-word by now, to prove to one another that they’re not imposters. Again, much like they employed in Harry Potter when coming back to the Burrow after stealing Harry away into the night.
They did the whole emergency-pen-tracheostomy on an episode of M*A*S*H* once, didn’t they? I think Father Mulcahy had to do it?? I can’t quite remember. That’s interesting about Harold, I wonder how he learned that…. too bad (?) he never got the chance to try it out.
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