X-Files Episode Guide: Essence

Written by Chris Carter

Directed by Kim Manners

Right from the teaser before the episode begins, we know we're in trouble. It's yet another one of those monologues we associate with the mythology episodes, and even though the prose isn't nearly as bad as the worst of the Carter-speak we've had to endure, considering that one of the few real virtues of Season 8 has been that we seem to have put this stuff behind us - its not a good sign. And unfortunately, Essence really only goes downhill from there.

 One could be frustrated with the fact that Scully has been dealing with her pregnancy the same way the X-Files has been all season: not telling the people most important to her, which now apparently include her own mother. Not revealing what the gender is, and still not trying to reveal who the father is. (And at this point in the series, I really think Carter was trying to squeeze the last drop out of the 'will they-won't they' with Mulder and Scully is borderline offensive.) So given that, you would think given what happened just a few episodes ago, she would be a little more careful who she has take over watching her. But she doesn't, and so the fact that Mulder now has to be the one asking questions about the doctors who were responsible for treating her pregnancy is even more irritating.

And if fans weren't already gnashing their teeth about how badly Carter was handling the final days of Scully's pregnancy, they had to be practically tearing their hair out when they saw what the overall plot was. It is bad enough that the mythology has almost never made any sense, but at least with Doggett around, there seemed to be some sense of understanding. Now, Carter does as thorough a job as he possibly can to make sure that the central plot of the series will never make any sense. Bad enough he has to take poor Billy Miles, who has suffered so much during the course of his term on the X-Files, and essentially turn him into the new form of the big monster of the series. But now, he's basically saying that now they seem to be the equivalent of alien replicants, and now they seem to be even more unstoppable than the Mighty-Morphing Bounty Hunter ever was. But at least we can now recognize them due to the bumps under their neck, though again, maybe not, seeing as Doggett seems to have worked with Crane all year, and never noticed. Oh, and by the way, now it appears that Scully's baby is the equivalent of the Christ-child. I really wish I were kidding about this, but now it seems that Carter has taken the idea of the miracle of Scully's baby, and will now drain it of all the mileage he possibly he can. And just to make sure everything's even more incomprehensible, he has the nurse of Scully's baby, Lizzie Gill, spin more of a story about alien cloning and human embryos.

It's bad enough that we have to muck through all this, but then Krycek  turns up like the inevitable bad penny, albeit this time in order to save Mulder and Scully. And then he spins another story so unbelievable it's remarkable that Doggett has to be the one to tell them how full of crap he is. And he doesn't even know Krycek. Mulder, Scully, Skinner, people who should know better given the last time they all dealt with him, listen to him, and take his story as gospel. Now, I know there's a monster on the rampage who's trying to kill Scully, but considering that Krycek was perfectly willing to let Scully's baby die the last time we saw him... It boggles the mind.

All of these things have the worst aspects of the X-Files mythology, combined with elements that just don't make any sense. Given that the series might not have more than one episode left, why on earth is Carter determined to rewrite the bible of the series again?  Especially because it seems to bring out the worst aspects in everybody. Gillian Anderson has been effectively carrying the series far more than she had to in any season before, but this episode brings up a streak of denial in her that is hard to fathom. It was bad enough when she just said 'I'm fine' after repeated assaults on her life; now she's doing it for her child, and the poor kid isn't even born yet! Mitch Pileggi is doing his damnedest to balance what he has seen with what he thinks he knows, but the fact that Skinner doesn't seem willing to ask his favorite agents for the truth about their relationship is not flattering. And Duchovny just must be counting the minutes til he can leave this series for good; Mulder doesn't even try to make realistic connections between the conspiracy he knows and the series as it is now.

There are a few good aspects to this episode.  It is good to see Sheila Larken again (yes technically, we saw her at Mulder's funeral), and finally get the chance demonstrate some of the compassion and understanding she always seemed able to channel as Margaret Scully. And we can see Robert Patrick really making an effort to try and make sense of everything that's happening around him, even though, for the first time, it seems that he's in over his head. But the good moments are far and few between, and make you almost miss the days of the Syndicate.

Essence is a more confused episode than we are used to from the X-Files. For the only time in the series history, Carter chose to wrap it up with a two-parter. (And as we'll eventually find out, he buckled on that, too.) It's clear at this point, he doesn't have a clear idea of any part of the series future, and seems to be trying to tie up loose ends, or prepare for a future. In the first part of this episode, he doesn't do much of either. I'd say it doesn't bode well for the series future, but at this point, it really hasn't got much of one.

My score: 2 stars.