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mulders-too-large-shirt · 2 months ago

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s4 episode 8 thoughts

(gestures vaguely to nothing) so like. what is all this about? anyone wanna give me some answers?

i now take a long drag of a metaphorical cigarette (smoking is bad!) in the manner of sad ben affleck because. can either of these nerds get a goddamn break? this episode once again proves that the answer is “no”

but we must go back to before i watched this episode, to begin with fresh eyes… so let us commence.

i think i’ve heard that people like this episode! so i’m excited to jump in. and while enjoyed our CSM lore last time, i need some agent time right about now.

i can tell from the episode descriptions that this is gonna be a two parter, so i’m prepared on that front, at least. trying to brace myself for having to deal with a cliffhanger. and for the return of my beloathed krycek.

okay, okay. let’s go!!

we begin with scully promising to tell the whole truth! and nothing but the truth! so help her god!

pause. she’s so pretty. that’s all.

prepared statement time! she left a medicine career to punish the guilty and protect the innocent. there’s some of that good old fashioned righteous rage i love about her.

“i still believe in this country, but i believe there are powerful men in the government who do not” (cut to CSM) OOP!

they’re getting mad at her… and she’s getting mad back! “this is not why we are here today” “then why are we here, sir?” <- GET HIM AGAIN FOR ME!

they want to know where mulder is… omg what kind of trouble did he get himself into this time?

she says if she answers, it will endanger his life!!! but they say no, your response is not optional…

oh, get them!! “there is a culture of lawlessness that has prevented me from doing my job” okayyyy!!!

so they’re saying that she has to fess up about mulder’s location or she will be held “in contempt of congress”. hold on i need to look something up. okay, so that is a pretty severe charge.

she’s mulling it over…. but we do not know if she replies!! because we must cut to the intro!!!

now what sort of mischief is afoot on this evening…

THEY CHANGED THE INTRO AGAIN! stop thinking you can sneak this by me!

back to the beginning. ten days earlier. in an airport in hawaii! while the camera focuses on a very blank looking man who says he is coming from japan.

he is not enjoying being asked to open his luggage. he claims he doesn’t have the combination. i sense that he is a liar who is lying, and then we see the suitcase opened, which seems to confirm this.

well, they open his stuff that he claims is biohazardous, and then this dude from the airport DROPS it on the floor. it’s a black muck. way to go.

WAIT!!! is it the oil alien stuff from before??? they look like slugs. OH MY GOD, THEY ARE SLUGS NOW. the same oil stuff from before, but in slug form, because we see them crawl into the airport guy's skin and turn his eyes black. BLECH!

jump to new york city. we are in a lab looking thing?

oh my god, scully has a rifle or something that caught me off guard... and as i paused to note this, it was on this moment where she looked SO incredibly beautiful it’s unbelievable. also, mulder is here! saying they have to be patient.

someone is giving mulder receipts that indicate a huge explosion is going to go on here. from whom do these receipts come from….

scully asks this question, but is conveniently cut off as a truck pulls in, probably carrying the bomb supplies.

both agents are in fancy gear including helmets!!! mulder says to HOLD. there are a lot of dudes with rifles watching this go down. it appears we are in for a skirmish.

the mystery men are firing at the agents, and trackstar mulder shoots a hole in the truck’s tires to keep it from getting away. good shot!

it seems the driver is dead, but mulder is gagged at whoever was in the passenger seat. is it…?

yes it is, the worstie, kyrcek himself. in a dumbass baseball hat. he claims to have sent mulder the receipts. hmm……… i choose not to forgive him even if it is true.

krycek claims these dudes who were trying to blow everything up found him in south dakota, and mulder is intermittently punching him in the stomach as he talks, which is something i see as both unprofessional and understandable.

“you’re an invertebrate scum-sucker whose moral dipstick’s about two drops short of bone dry”, says mulder. oh! well, that sure is colorful, isn’t it?

but krycek claims to love america, which is why he was… killing a bunch of innocent people, i guess.

and now he claims he wants to find the man who tried to kill him.

ugh, are they gonna have to work together? booooo tomato tomato 🍅🍅

he claims that whoever tried to kill him is behind mr. mulder’s death. and melissa’s. seems awfully convenient for them all to have the same enemy.

scully seems to not believe that he wants this mystery man brought to justice, but krycek says you can’t do that anyway, because these horrible creeps are protected under national security.

he’s talking about exposing “him”, and i think we all know who we’re talking about here. yes, the man who killed JFK. a bad look. the people would cannibalize him.

mulder says the only thing that can stop “him” is the truth, but krycek says there is no truth! an easy thing for a liar to say. or any guy who hasn't dedicated his whole life to the truth.

now why did he say mulder’s name like that... muUUUULLder

LMAO scully is looking at krycek and visibly thinking “wtf is wrong with this freak” and it’s so funnyyyy

despite his proven track record for being a liar, they’re taking krycek to the airport, asking which flight “he” is on. shoutout to mulder’s giant jacket. they look like a weird polycule.

okay. well it appears they are NOT talking about CSM, because krycek nods at some random guy and says “that’s him”. they’re multiplying…. these scary men are a virus.

scully’s going in. she needs to speak with this random guy who krycek claims knows things. and he bolts! she calls mulder for backup… but this leaves the rat bastard unattended!

this mystery guy is sprinting and also shoving people out of his way, which is not helping him look natural.

and he’s running and running and running, but he left behind his pouch!

enter the angry agents returning from their exercise, serving looks. like damn. with pouch in hand. krycek appears to have waited.

all that’s in there is a weird looking rock, which mulder makes a charlie brown joke about. good to know he is caught up with the classics.

okay, now we’re in virginia and WOAH, it’s skinners place and he is very shirtless. they didn’t need to do him like that. LMAO it’s mulder at his door, and when skinner hears his voice he sighs. BAHAHAAAA.

mulder is full on getting to see skinner’s exposed chest as he explains he needs a safe house. then he drags krycek in like a cat by his scruff, claiming he holds information that could save lives. krycek has this weird little smile and i’ll admit that the image is funny on multiple fronts, especially as i paused on half-clothed skinner’s baffled expression. skinner lets him into his own house???

THEN IMMEDIATELY SUCKER PUNCHES KRYCEK LMAOOOOO the noise that was produced from his esophagus was incredible… shoutout to his actor who probably had to do that in post. you’re a real one for that.

okay, apparently skinner has a nice balcony, from which you can dangle people to threaten them as needed. how handy in his line of work!

he handcuffs the rat bastard to the balcony and tells him to think warm thoughts. girl i don’t think you’re gonna freeze to death in virginia… dramatic ass.

our agents are now bringing the rock to a dr. sachs at one of the many maryland universities mulder keeps on call.

scully seems excited to hear this rock might be from mars! the expert thinks it might contain fossilized remains of aliens. and he would pretty please like to take a core sample.

oh nooo, i think, dr. sachs is going to crack open a geode filled with oily slugs!!! i hope i am wrong. he seems like he earnestly wants to learn the ways of the rock.

skinner is heading out now. but who is behind him but the even WORSE worstie, CSM! skinner says he just moved in and also “what do you want from me?” which is the energy he deserves.

the interception of the rock pouch has created a diplomatic issue, he says as he lights up.

skinner’s like, dude idk what the hell you’re going on about with a diplomatic pouch, idgaf if you try to arrest me, this pouch is a mystery to all involved (me). and whether or not he is telling the truth is irrelevant because it’s funny.

CSM says wars have broken out over less. okay. what do you want me to do about that. it's a rock in a pouch.

the weird mystery man who escaped from the airport broke into skinner’s place!! and krycek sees him from the balcony! he’s going through skinner’s stuff, but krycek is hiding over the edge of the balcony, and he… pulls the mystery dude off???

oh….

well, there goes one source of answers.

mulder is on the phone trying to find some rock related-clues, and he learns about the toxic soil sample with the oily slugs we saw earlier.

mulder thinks that krycek has given them something even bigger than the conspiracy to cover aliens up, but scully points out that “what he’s given us, mulder, is a rock”. yet again another case of two things being true at once! but why would krycek give them anything of use?

the girls are fightinggggg!!!!

“what i’m worried about is you, mulder. how far you’ll go, and how far i can follow you” <- ohhh i think i’ve seen this film before (and i didn’t like the ending)

angry glances at each other as he walks out.

back to maryland, where dr. sachs is cutting the rock open. huge day to be a rock guy. ew, something squirted out at him. very gross.

OH NO!! the slugs!!!! they are coming for dr. sachs the rock man…

skinner is angrily calling the agents, because the police found a dead body at his place and now the cops need to talk to everyone in his building, so please turn around and get back to him (angrily hangs up before any real explanation can happen)

(i just now get a sense of how utterly exasperated skinner must be with their nonsense. pour one out for him)

mulder is going to take a cab back to skinner’s place, and scully must find out about that rock. nooo, not them getting separated!!! i hate when that happens.

mulder is walking into skinner's apartment as someone claims to have heard about the dude hanging from skinner’s balcony. he must walk out with krycek, who mulder is yelling at while scolding him for his “stupid-ass haircut” (which is accurate, it’s pretty bad) LMAOOOO

scully went to check on the rock and found dr. sachs… maybe dead? maybe alive? hard to tell. and mulder says can you please get me an address in NY? but you’re gonna need to go through the bureau. thank youuuu!

off to new york!!! mulder is knocking on a mystery door. WAIT! it’s covarrubias, aka deep throat 3.0.

he seems to be sleeping or resting on her loveseat after she lets him in. she finds out where the rock came from, to which he says “that’s just north of tunguska”, okay geography king!!!

“i can help you, agent mulder” “find my cellphone?” LMAOOOO

she says she can help him with visas and stuff because “there are those of us who believe in you” but i feel like it’s a trap

(i don’t trust her, but i feel like i’m supposed to, so that when she backstabs him later it’ll hit harder)

krycek has been handcuffed to the car this whole time. and he gets another good punch from mulder. yowch! that's gotta hurt!

scully’s getting suited up to figure out what happened to dr. sachs. nothing could have gotten through his suit, we are assured!!! alas, somehow, the oily slugs have a way...

so she gets into where he was cutting the rock before he went super still as if he were dead. but then dr. sachs shakes and shakes, and he’s somehow alive! scully thinks he’s in some sort of coma state, and they need to get him out of there.

wait, is that pendrell she’s with? i’ve had enough of this dude…

boys trip to JFK. actually, maybe not, because krycek is gonna get left in the car. EXCEPT!

he can speak RUSSIAN!!! so i think he shall be coming along on the journey. he claims his parents were immigrants... are we buying this, chat?

in an entirely different setting, we are watching a guy watch someone ride a horse. is this well-groomed man??? from the secret UN council of alien purposes? and highjacking of mr. mulder’s funeral fame? it is! CSM emerges from his car to strike up a conversation with him.

NO! the credentials deep throat 3.0 gave mulder must have tipped the alien people off.

“you fool. you stupid fool”, says well-groomed man to CSM, which will always make me laugh. when they remind him how incompetent he is it gets me, because he’s supposed to be this invincible figure but also he's straight up bad at his job, and the dichotomy makes me giggle.

poor girl on the horse is watching all this go down, probably wondering who this creepy man talking to grandpa is…

back to DC. “senator sorenson wants to see us?” “that’s usually what a letter of summons means, scully” <- LMAO skinner has had ENOUGH!!!

skinner’s middle name is sergei, which is revealed by pausing on this letter of summons. also, mulder’s middle name is william, but that wasn’t really a surprise.

skinner is pissed because wtf is he getting dragged into? he asks what is going on and also where is mulder, but we don’t see scully answer.

but we DO see a little siberian boys trip action. hiking in the woods!!! digging under a barbed wire fence! mulder telling a story of a meteor!

i knew i’d heard of tunguska before, from the mystery explosion in the early 1900’s that... could be aliens in this universe?

boys trip: prison camp edition! they watch someone stumble to the ground and get whipped, which is not an auspicious sign. but then someone comes to find them!! on horses, so how can they outrun them?

krycek falls, but mulder is really going for it. but noooo, they are whipping him!!! they have caught him.

okay, so now mulder’s in a prison cell with a very bloody face. someone here speaks english!!

mystery english speaking man is telling him he was brought here to die. a lovely welcoming message.

he has been brought to a gulag. and krycek is added to his cell. he claims he was being questioned as a spy, and when mulder gets violent once again, he points out that he’s gonna need him. which is very true. language barrier and all that.

back in the states, scully and skinner are chatting with the senator. what was the dude who died doing on skinner’s balcony? also where is mulder. she does not answer.

back to the gulag. krycek is being questioned and speaking in rapid fire russian. did his actor know the language already or did he learn it for this part? is it GOOD russian he's using? need to hear from an expert.

NO! the dude next door says that mulder was being tricked by krycek, that he was speaking to the guards as if he was an equal. another lie from the liar... we are all shocked.

then some strangers come in to get mulder and they are STICKING SOMETHING IN HIS NECK??????

he wakes up under some wire surrounded by a TON of other men under wire??? while being watched?? and everyone else is screaming???

and then some muck is splashed upon him… and it’s the SLUGS???? they’re crawling INTO HIM???? AND TURNING HIS EYES BLACK???

what the hell. we end there.

GIRL????

krycek you PISS ME OFF.

how are they going to get mulder out of there……

also, who is this dude that krycek killed?? what sort of weird long game is he playing??? UGH.

CSM you can COUNT your DAYS!!!!!

i once again need a fluff fic to make up for this, because what is a girl even to do in these trying times? they gave him the alien slug beast!! who knows what that does to a person?? what if it fucks him up long term?? what if his children come out part alien? and this is on top of all the other times he has nearly died, including that time he got turned into a cocoon, that time they got really old, the many times he got knocked out for minutes at a time, etc! someone has to be keeping watch!

and why was krycek seeming to know what was going on? he still has the alien in him, right? how did he even get out of that missile silo where he was trapped?

can skinner get a raise for dealing with this? because i know he is SO sick of their antics…

i don’t trust deep throat 3.0; i feel like she’s setting them up for failure, especially because the info she gave mulder tipped off CSM and the alien squad

how are they gonna get his ass out of the gulag…

THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD ALWAYS STUDY A LANGUAGE, KIDS! you never know what sort of situations you will find yourself in. although, i don’t think the meager amount of french i know could have helped me out in his shoes, either….

but then again, i am not of the “let’s fuck off to siberia to learn more about a mystery rock” sentiment like he is

and scully,,, what are they going to make her endure for protecting the bestie??? will she have to lose her job AGAIN to cover his tracks? when will they realize that going to any lengths for each other is gonna be a continuous problem and that they should have a contingency plan for all of this…

so much is happening.

what do i think? hmm.

well, i really thought that krycek was actually going to have to be useful, so shame on me for thinking that. insert a sad clown emoji here. what a fool i was!

that being said, skinner’s reaction to seeing him again was priceless. and that strange dynamic mulder and krycek have is kind of interesting, even if i hate the guy.

but what is he doing back in the plot? how does this contribute to the overall story? is he tricking them? is there even a tiny tiny part of him that is being genuine? why is he bringing them the rock and other such info?

hmm... i just don't know. i have no answers.

i thought this episode was pretty good- there was a nice mix of moments that made me laugh, moments that made me gasp, and moments that advanced the overall plot. i could have certainly used more agent time, given that they were separated around the halfway point.

i feel like they've had this fight about the lengths they're willing to go like four times already, so i kinda wish they would fight about something new. but i guess if it keeps being a problem and they keep not talking about it directly this is going to keep happening.

overall, a good episode, but not added to my list of top 15 (that i just recently posted because i couldn't bear to only pick 10! i think if you read that list, you will see the specific things i tend to love in an episode and from there you'll be able to judge which episodes i will and won't like lmao)

but yeah... fluff fic recs... i politely request them 🙏 apple picking date... halloween party...

#beach episode when?#krycek can count his days #stop subjecting them to horrific medical experiments... it has to have long term effects #juni's x files liveblog #the x files #txf

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