X-Files Review – “Scary Monsters”

A classic X-Files aired last night. More below.

Cast

Gillian
Anderson
as Dana Scully
Robert
Patrick

as John Doggett
Annabeth
Gish
as
Agent Reyes
Jolie
Jenkins
as Agent Leyla Harrison

Crew

Written by Thomas
Schnauz

Directed by Dwight
Little

Original Airdate


Scary Monsters
originally aired on
Sunday,
April 14,
2002.

Synopsis

Leyla Harrison, now back to the accounting
division, drags Doggett and
Reyes out to a cabin in hopes of protecting a
friend’s grandson. The
three are soon trapped at that home, where they
start to realize that
they are in mortal danger. The boy has a twisted
mind and an active
imagination that seems to come to life.

High Point

The introduction of “Spanky.”

Low Point

After all this time, Gish still hasn’t sorted out
her character.

The Review

This episode scores high for
originality. This is unlike any
previous episodes. In fact, the only other TV
entry that this reminds
me of is the short lived Jeffrey Jones sitcom
called The People
Next Door
. This used the same concept in a
very different way,
though. I give it 5 out of 6.

The effects this week were decent, but
there was no question
about what was and wasn’t CGI. I give it 4 out
of 6.

The story was very well laid out. The
true identity and
nature of the beast was unexpected. Agent
Harrison was used very
well, once again representing the fans. (She was
named after a
prominent fan who died a premature death.) I
admit that I was
interested, and unsure about the exact nature of
the demon until the
final act. It also finally felt like the torch
had truly been
passed. 5 out of 6.

The acting this week was great from all
but Gish. The guest
cast was wonderful, as was Robert Patrick. I
give it 4 out of 6,
dragged down by Gish.

The emotional response this inspired in
me was pretty high.
I laughed when I was supposed to laugh, and I was
definitely glued to
the screen. Very well done. I give it 5 out of
6.

The production was excellent. Great
direction, excellent
lighting, a Mark Snow score with some truly fresh
moments, and some
excellent editing and pacing really kept the
episode moving. 6 out of 6.

Overall, a great addition to the series,
and one of the high
points of the season. Too bad the series is
already canceled. I
give it 5 out of 6.

In total, Scary Monsters received 34 out
of 42.

The Coming Weeks

On April 21, we get Jump The Shark,
which finally resolves
the cliffhanger from the final episode of The
Lone Gunmen
.
On April 28, we get the David Duchovny directed
William,
which deals with an interesting possibility about
the whereabouts of
Agent Mulder. On May 5, we get Release,
which looks to bring
up some old demons regarding John Doggett’s son.
On May 12, we get
Sunshine Days, about a guy who is
obsessed with The Brady
Bunch
. On May 19, the broadcast starts an
hour earlier than
normal for the two hour series finale, The
Truth
.

8 replies on “X-Files Review – “Scary Monsters””

  1. What’s wrong with Gish?
    Can you explain to me what was wrong with her performance this week? I thought it was alright for the episode.

    • Re: What’s wrong with Gish?

      Can you explain to me what was wrong with her
      performance this week? I thought it was alright for
      the episode.

      It wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t great. (It took me
      a long time to find a Low Point this week. It was a
      pretty good episode.) Part of this is that she just
      seems to me like she’s standing there reading lines
      without actually believing in the world they’ve
      placed her in. The lack of emotion in most cases is a
      script problem, but she still comes across as pretty
      bland in my opinion.

  2. Not original
    Oh sure, maybe it was original within the X-files series, but come on, this was a complete rip off of an old Twilight Zone episode. An episode that the Twilight Zone itself repeated in the Twilight Zone movie. All they did here was make the kid unnecessarily evil (and far too self aware – what was with that “Because I’m scared” line towards the end?). No, I was very disappointed by this one. I hope they do better with the remaining few.

    • Re: Not original
      Welllll ….I liked it!
      Thought it was indeed in the classic spirit of the old episodes and best of all the great joke on the audience at he end where they find a way to quell the kids powers. It was a great line and IMHO a very enjoyable show.

      Can’t wait to learn “The Truth”

    • Re: Not original

      Oh sure, maybe it was original within the X-files
      series, but come on, this was a complete rip
      off of an old Twilight Zone episode.

      I’ve only seen three episodes of
      The Twilight Zone, and they were from the new
      series. I haven’t seen the movie. I expect that,
      with enough digging, every episode of the series
      would be based on a concept done elsewhere. As long
      as it’s not overdone, I’ll let it slide.

      • Re: Not original
        Yeah, I agree, this was a straight rip-off of the Twilight Zone Episode “It’s A Good Life” staring “Danger, Will Robinson” himself, Billy Mummy. Here’s the synopsis:

        IT’S A GOOD LIFE: Billy Mummy plays “the monster” in this wild sketch about a young boy with the power to control the way people think, feel and act. This “Sociopathic syndrome” parallel to real life, portrays Mummy as a child with the power to wish people away into the cornfield if they don’t think “good thoughts” about him. And for you REAL trivia buffs, Billy Mummy also had a guest shot in the Twilight Zone movie remake – he was the grocery store bagger (I think I’m remembering this right) at the very beginning.

        But hey, folks, let’s face it, the TZ versions were FORTY – count em, FORTY – years ago for the TV version and over 20 years ago for the movie version. If you can remember that stuff (like I do, I saw the original Billy Mummy / cornfield episode as a kid, and I was EVEN MORE terrified by the “LITTLE GIRL LOST” episode – yikes!) then you are OLD. Repeat, OLD. So let’s let these young whippersnappers in their 20s putting out this fine Bureau42 website give out 5 of 6 for originality if the wanna. They probably still think sex is fun, too. Remember, the torch is passed to a new generation…and I don’t mean ST:TNG. I was sitting in Miss Gee’s class, right after lunch, when this guy with a transistor radio burst in and said Kennedy had been shot…

        • Nostalgia…
          People think of the 60s now as Vietnam and drugs and riots. But before all of that there was JFK and Camelot, a backdrop that made what came later true and dark tragedy, not just historical events. We should never forget – THIS is the spirit that put men on the moon and has shaped our world for the better since – and in a very real way, is the origin of the spirit generally personified in the 90s by Mulder in the X-Files and oh, so achingly specifically by Chris Carter with Byer’s dream sequence at the beginning of one of the X-Files Lone Gunmen eps…

  3. Missed it
    The review sounded great, but those of us in Utah were with out power for 3 days (50 mph wind and snow in April who’d a thought). Any body tape it and rip it? I have a fast connection and a ftp server email me if you can help

    [email protected]

    Thanks

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