Reyes discovers that a series of murders can be linked using numerology, leading her, Doggett and Scully on the trail of a killer but also throwing them into the life of the mysterious Mr Burt, who somehow seems connected to what is going on.

A couple of season ago, I was one of the few voices who defended Chris Carter when he put together Fight Club. I thought it was fun, quirky and a welcome change of pace. With this episode, however, I'm not entirely sure what on Earth he's supposed to be doing. Is it a comedy? A drama? It's never made clear. And neither is the plot. Mr Burt, while certainly an intriguing creation eventually becomes an annoying creation when we get some suggestions as to who he might be. The final shot of the story suggests that he is God, or at the very least, some kind of powerful entity with control the locals in a small town, which in itself opens up a whole new set of questions. Why is he there? Why is he interested in this serial killer? Why does he merely observe rather than do anything? And why does he hang around with Scully and Reyes?

It's a muddle of a storyline with some nice little humorous touches (something that's been missing all season) but in the end you feel completely bemused by it all. Just as you think something will happen, everyone breaks into a carnival mood and after much dancing, the episode ends. There are some good ideas here, the numerology connection being worth exploring, but you get the feeling that Carter skimped on plotting more than usual and indulged his whims a little more than was really suitable for a story like this.

**

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