Mulder's next-door neighbour, a writer becomes the agent's prime suspect in a case in which the victims' hearts are removed without surgery.
The unpleasant side of psychic surgery is an odd topic for The X-Files, and not incredibly well explored by this episode. Although the idea of a writer's ideas coming to life is intriguing, exactly what is happening is not clear enough to explain the motivations of the main character. There are too many unknowns here: the writer's relationship with his hooded creation, Scully's real interest in the man, and any motive for the crimes.
Although Mulder sets up several explanations throughout the episode, none really ring true, and the psychic surgery aspect doesn't really tie in wth the writer. It's all a bit of a mish-mash of ideas which never quite come off. There's the obligatory Mulder loves Scully hint, odd coming from the man who stated the two would never get together and now seems to be pushing for it, and a sex scene for Scully which is pretty hot.
The trouble is that by the end of the episode, you're none the wiser as to what's been happening. Is the hooded man real? Who is doing the murders? How did the writer die? It's all too annoying.
**
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