Doggett follows more literally in Mulder's footsteps as he investigates the agent's final case before his disappearance, a case in which Mulder apparently killed a man.

With the return of Mulder (albeit in flashback), so we lose Scully for a week as Doggett examines the agent's final few days at liberty with some help from Skinner. Demonstrating Doggett's fine investigative abilities, we get a story of a strange creature that is plaguing the residents of a tiny town, a creature that Mulder seems to have thought was some kind of threat and killed.

This story works better without having Scully on hand, who would no doubt back up Mulder's every decision without questioning why he did what he did. Doggett's approach is more realistic, and although Skinner keeps pointing out that Mulder wouldn't shoot someone in cold blood, Doggett does to great lengths to get all the facts before drawing his conclusions. In the end, he discovers a creature that eats human beings alive, regurgitating them with whatever ailment they had removed. The creature, in turn, is increasingly ill as a result of taking on this pain.

A true X-File, and a particularly creepy and gruesome one at that, there is an element of having seen it all before from the perspective of past genetic mutants. The twists in this story are firstly that the creature is helping rather than using genetic material to survive, and secondly, Mulder's involvement. After mention of a serious medical condition that Mulder was suffering from was brought up at the start of the season, I thought this was another plot point that was fabrication and putting Doggett off the scent. Despite Cancer Man's efforts to save him, it seems Mulder still has a brain tumour of some kind, which partly explains why he willingly faced his abduction. How this will all play out is anyone's guess, but his desire to seek out the creature in the hope of a cure shows Mulder in a more troubled state than usual and particularly vulnerable.

There are some great and unexpected moments in the episode. Skinner and Doggett's confrontation near the beginning is electric and highly emotional. Doggett's shooting is a total surprise, but it provides an amazing and strangely touching ending. The Gunmen's appearance once again is good fun, especially Langly's trouser problem, and it's good to see them brought more into the show (just as they get their own) with their helping of Doggett and Skinner. My only real problem with the story is the way in which Mulder is used. I still say that, flashback or no flashback, if you have Duchovny back for an episode to fulfil his contract, he really should be used better than this. He's got about three lines of dialogue, lies on the floor looking scared, and shoots his gun three times. Why not actually show everything that happens once Doggett discovers it? What is proved, however, is that Robert Patrick was far and away the best man for the regular job. His presence on screen and the way he's already made Skinner a background character shows how well he's doing.

****

Would you like to go to the The X-Files Season Eight guide, head back to the main TV reviews page, read older reviews in the Reviews Archive or return to the front page?