Folie a Deux

Mulder's fingers are still taped after the New Spartan goon's torture in The Pine Bluff Variant. I love how Vince Gilligan works these little continuity call backs into his episodes.

Mulder, when trying to explain to Scully what kind of monster could be M Pincus, cites mantis. I find that, indeed, M. Pincus shares some similarities with this fascinating insect !! Creepy gaze for both ! (No offence to the actor!)

Remembering that Mulder was frightened by a praying mantis when a child (see War of the Coprophages), I find it noticeable. Moreover, I'm likewise Mulder, obsessed by them: these insects creeped me out when I was a kid ! (Nowadays it seems that I no longer see them in the countryside... Pollution ?).

In this scene Mulder is strapped to a bed, helpless, and confronted with yet another evil he can do nothing to stop. It's a terrifying moment for him and a powerful metaphor for his quest. As horrifying truths are unfolded before him he realizes the enormity of the conspiracy and the power of the forces against him. All he can do is scream.

The confrontation between Pincus and Mulder, in the presence of Skinner, is very tense, ending with Mulder sinking into madness, or rather resignation (nobody can see what he sees), and strapped in a bed hospital... Chilling !

As the hostage situation unfolds Scully has to remain level headed to help end it as safely as possible. In this brief moment when she finally sees Mulder, calm in the face of such danger, she's taken aback and gasps

Attracted by metaphors, I can't help myself to see one in this line/scene.

Aren't Mulder and Scully sharing a madness during the whole series ? Experiencing and seeing things that others won't ? Can't we define their unique complex relationship by the beautiful (french) term "Folie à Deux" ?

Moreover, the scene occurs in an elevator, enclosing them in a tiny space, where they would share their Folie... Which leads me to a french song I like very much, Calogero, "En Apesenteur":

Mulder, strapped to a bed in a mental ward, quips "Five years together Scully, you MUST have seen this coming." Mulder's ability to wise-crack in such desperate and sad circumstances is something we depend on in the show, and David Duchovny is a master at making us laugh so we don't have to cry.

There aren't a lot of fun moments in this episode ! Yet, it starts in a lighthearted tone, with a pissed off Mulder.

Just after his tough adventures in The Pine Bluff Variant (see his wounded fingers !), he should have been grateful to have an assumed quiet case. He's unfair towards Skinner. Moreover, Mulder, don't be selfish: don't forget Scully !!

Mulder is truly alone here, the only one who sees the truth. Skinner doesn't see what Mulder sees and doesn't even try. Instead, he knocks Mulder to the ground and disarms him. None of the elements of this scene are surprising when you think about them: we've seen them before. But the scene itself is a surprise as it unfolds. That's a tribute to Kim Manners's directing I think.

Whereas I perfectly know the episode, I'm always surprised that at half of it, the hostage situation ends abruptly. And at the same time, a weird phenomena occurs for Mulder, leaving him -and us- very disturbed.

David Duchovny is really amazing in this scene -in fact in the whole episode- going through so much different emotions.

Telemarketers in a call center, told to dial and smile, relentless in their attempts to sell people things they don't want and really don't need. The American way. ...

Wow, that's pretty cynical, which perhaps is the point of placing the monster in the call center. Anyway, this is why I don't answer my phone unless I recognize the number.

Call centers, Telemarketing... I think it's very american, at least in the concept and the means.

Well, of course we have this sort of companies, nowadays in France. But in the 90s, it was rare and we weren't bothered daily by phonecalls at home, as we are now. I'm so pissed off by these calls, and when I answer I'm not always as polite as the man in the episode... But I'm so in pity for the people who work in it ! I wouldn't want to have to do that job !

So, I find that it's a great idea that the MOTW is a call center's boss, and that his employees, the "mindless drones", become zombies. It suits perfectly the thematic ! Even the deserted call center office is creepy.

"Scully, you have to believe me. Nobody else on this whole damn planet does or ever will. You're my one in five billion." This is one of the most poignant things Mulder ever says to Scully. She's it for him. If she gives up on him now there's nothing left. He's desperate, but he's also acknowledging that she's the only one who has always been on his side and he counts on her. It's right up there with "You've kept me honest, you've made me a whole person, I owe you everything Scully and you owe me nothing" and "You were my constant, my touchstone."

Unavoidably, my shipper heart completely melts hearing Mulder's words "Nobody else on this whole damn planet does or ever will. You're my one in five billion", while Scully holds his hand.

(Well, 7.7 billion, nowadays....)

I love seeing Mulder using his profiling skills, trying to connect with Gary to end the hostage situation, even to the point of placing himself between the gun and Pincus. And kudos to Vince Gilligan for working "I want to believe" into the dialogue!

It's how I like my Sherlock-Mulder ! Doing his detective homework at his best.

Bored at first by the case, then puzzled by the words "hides in the light", remembering old X Files cases (photographic memory ?), analyzing the tape and taking notes on a yellow paper (have you seen the word "zombies" ?), tracing red lines on a map with the help of a file...

Rolled shirt sleeves, coffee mug, messy desk, mmhhh... do I have a smart coworker like him ? I have to figure out.

Scully had been more than skeptical in this case; she genuinely believed Mulder was suffering a delusion. But she trusted him enough to investigate further. Here, in this moment, she's open enough to finally see what Mulder sees, and nothing will prevent her from saving him.

I like that Scully is eventually ready to see and believe Mulder. She has gathered very confusing evidences, she is not sure of what really happened in the hospital, she doesn't want to admit what she saw, but she has saved Mulder. That is the more important fact !

At the end of this episode Scully verbalizes what we've come to know throughout the series. Mulder and Scully are in this together, even when nobody else sees what they see. In Field Trip, one season later, their madness shared by two takes the form of a hallucination shared by two. They come to realize not only are they in it together, but nothing makes sense when they try to go it alone.

Folie à Deux is almost as creepy as Roadrunners (both from Vince Gilligan), and we can match a lot of scenes between these two episodes (see the gif above). Our heroes tied on a bed, a scary monster which change your body and control minds, the FBI partner who arrives just in time.

Of course, no Mulder in Roadrunners but a wonderful relationship between Scully and Doggett.

There is so much I like about this episode. I love how Gilligan writes Mulder. He's self-centered and obsessive, but also self-deprecating and willing to admit he needs Scully.

I love how the monster is a benign-looking boss whose seeming good nature is a ruse for turning his workers into mindless drones, robbing them of their humanity. A horror most of us can see ourselves encountering.

This episode is in my Top XF List ! (But don't ask me if it's the top 5, 10, 15... I can't do that, there are so many I love very much !)

I love the creepy story, the characters, the ambiguous/machiavelic MOTW, the plot with his twists. I love Mulder's journey, leading him on the verge of madness or delusion, and Scully's separate path, finally rejoigning Mulder's one.

And my gif emphasizes the great performances of all actors !!

I don't like that Scully cuts corners when examining the body. She doesn't usually disregard Mulder so completely, and I think it's possibly out of character (although I hate to use that term, because I think character is defined by what we see in the show). But it makes her turn from skeptic to believer more dramatic, so I see the benefit of it as well.

I'm not sure about the monster effects. In some respect I like that you can't really tell what the monster looks like. That makes the monster a more terrifying metaphor. But...it also looks a little cheesy.

I would have preferred that the episode has stopped just after the elevator scene. No needs to know that M. Pincus is elsewhere and that another telemarketer has seen him. We already know it... or we already imagine it...