Let’s take a look at latest episode of The X-Files, titled Babylon. This episode introduces Agent Miller and Einstein, who are working on a case, and look to Mulder and Scully for help. Check out Josh’s recap, followed by both of our thoughts!
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Episode Recap of The X-Files, Season 10 Episode 5: Babylon
This was a strange episode of The X-Files. The episode opens with an Arabic man praying. He then goes and makes a sandwich, gets in his car, and meets up with another man. They then head to an art gallery. Then we see what I dreadfully expected—the building explodes, killing and maiming all inside—they appear to be suicide bombers.
Moving over to Mulder and Scully, they are debating the causes of a case they are examining (which involved people hearing heralding trumpets…?) when they get a visit—from Agent Miller and Einstein—seemingly supposed to be the Mulder and Scully of yester-year—with Miller matching Mulder and Einstein matching Scully in looks and personality. These two agents are working on the bombing case from the beginning of the episode. One of the bombers survived the explosion, but is in a coma. Apparently Agent Miller wanted to meet with Mulder, thinking Mulder might have some magical way of communicating with this bomber in order to figure out the larger terrorist cell he might be a part of. Unfortunately, Mulder has no answers, so the agents go on their way.
So the younger agents head to the airport, and per the norm of Mulder and Scully, Miller thinks Mulder’s job is amazing while Einstein thinks it is about the worst thing ever. Then, Miller gets a phone call—and surprisingly it is Scully. She thinks she might have a solution to speak with bomber, and decides to fly to Texas to assist. Meanwhile, Einstein gets a call from Mulder, who also has some ideas, and asks to meet with Einstein. Einstein is not too keen on the idea, but eventually agrees to meet reluctantly.
When Mulder and Einstein meet, Mulder tries to appeal to her scientific mind, but it doesn’t really go over well. After the long explanation, he is upfront with her—he needs “Shrooms” in order to get to a mental state, where he can likely communicate with the bomber. He then explains that he needs Einstein to administer the drug, since she is a medical a doctor, so that everything is on the up-and-up. She asks Mulder why he didn’t ask Scully for this help, and he tells her about Scully’s recent loss, and he doesn’t want to bug her about it. Einstein refuses to help though, and even mildly threatens to tell IA about the idea. Mulder takes this as a “Maybe”.
As for Scully, she has met up with Miller at the hospital, and she explains her method of communication—by telling a story of another comatose patient that showed mental responses through MRIs to “yes/no” questions from a doctor. But before they are able to get started, two supposed Homeland Security agents come in the room, and demand that they leave. Miller and Scully refuse, and the two agents begin speaking in Arabic to each other. Miller decides to take some photos of these “agents” and they end up leaving the room. Oddly, we never really see the agents again after this meeting. I was curious to know what this was all about.
But as this meeting with Homeland is wrapping up, Agent Einstein shows up. She sees Miller and Scully in the room, and seems to get a bit jealous of this situation. She calls up Mulder and opts to give his plan a go.
Meanwhile, Miller and Scully have been informed of a potential terrorist threat on the hospital, and that the hospital is being evacuated. Miller and Scully opt to stay despite this warning from an Agent (who is not very polite when discussing Muslim affairs).
Scully and Miller leave the room briefly though, and a nurse comes in. She decides to shut off life support on the bomber, and he flat lines. Mulder and Einstein show up though, and she quickly flips the switch back on. She also gets a little testy about immigrants and them stealing jobs. (I’m sensing a theme here). Mulder, meanwhile, is preparing his mushroom medication, so Einstein has to play distraction, and takes the nurse’s rant outside the room.
Mulder, meanwhile, ends up going deep into the “rabbit hole”, having a psychedelic trip, where he eventually ends up at a cowboy line dancing party, and “gets his groove on”. He sees all sorts of acquaintances there—Skinner, the Smoking Gun guys, and has a grand ole time. Then he ends up on a strange, glowing table, and Agent Einstein is whipping him, and wearing a dominatrix outfit. Eventually he moves on to a strange boat, where a woman in white is cradling the bomber. We also see the Cigarette Smoking Man, who whips Mulder a few times, and tells him this is where the truth will be found. Walking up to the comatose bomber, the man is saying something, but it is not understandable.
Finally waking up, he is surprised to see Skinner, who is no longer wearing his cowboy hat, and seems a bit more aggravated than he did in his “dream”. Then Einstein tells Mulder that she didn’t actually give him Shrooms, it was a placebo, to which Mulder can’t believe, and thinks she must be trying to cover up her involvement as best she can. But this is all interrupted by something going on outside—a woman shows up, and she turns out to be the mother of the bomber.
Back with Miller and Scully, they are trying their MRI idea. Miller apparently knows some Arabic, and talks to the patient. Some movement occurs on the machine, and Scully says it could be “false positives”. Before they can continue testing, Mulder and Einstein show up, with the bomber’s mother. Then Noora, the mother, says that her son tells her in her dreams that he is not a murderer. Then suddenly, the bomber goes into cardiac arrest. Mulder believes this means something, and he realizes this is very similar to the scene he saw in his dreams. Mulder then tries to remember the words spoken in the dream by the bomber. He finally gets them out, and Miller translates them to “Babylon Hotel”.
The next scene shows a bunch of FBI Agents storming Babylon Hotel, and a bunch of would-be bombers are stopped.
As the episode wraps up, Einstein and Miller are at the airport, and they insist all of the work was done by their older counterparts.
Mulder and Scully also meet up and Mulder tries to figure to how this placebo worked. But the two have some meaningful conversations about a mother’s love, and seem to be having a moment when Mulder begins hearing trumpets—harkening back to their case from the beginning of the episode. The episode then zooms out, to us watching the Earth from space.
Josh’s Thoughts: The X-Files, Season 10 Episode 5: Babylon
I have to say, I was not the biggest fan of this episode. I didn’t really like the use of suicide bombers, especially because it was within the stereotypical role of Arabic people being the bombers. This storyline could have been told without that, and I am curious to know why the writers decided to go this route. Of course, this could have been the point of the episode—to make us feel for the Muslim community by showing us these stereotypes? I am not sure. Either way, because of that, the episode didn’t sit well with me.
I wasn’t really a fan of the younger “Mulder and Scully” either. It is pretty funny seeing Robbie Amell pop up in so much stuff lately though. I think what the episode was going for was trying to kind of get back to the basics of the relationships between Mulder and Scully—by showing two people that are back in their mindset when the show started some 20 years ago. I guess the big question I have—do these two pick up the reigns for whatever moves forward with The X-Files? Was this 6-episode mini-series event just a clever way to try to reboot the show, by introducing these characters? It looks like these two will be appearing in the season finale as well, so it does make me wonder.
Mulder’s “tripping” scene was pretty funny though I have to admit. Who knew that Mulder was such a fan of country music, and had such great dance moves?
One disappointing thing I have had with this mini-series is the lack of a cohesive story. People who have read my recaps for other shows have seen this complaint a lot. But, based on the set up of the show, I thought with the re-introduction of the Cigarette Smoking Man, and all of the Tad O’Malley stuff, along with Roswell scenes, I thought for sure this was going to be one big storyline. Unfortunately the over-arching story has been much “looser” than I thought it would be.
Hopefully we get some more episodes after this event. I would prefer if Duchovny and Anderson return for their roles, but I would give these two new actors a shot, if that was the direction Fox took the show. Either way, I have been dying to see a show like X-Files make its way on to TV and for the most part, I have been really happy with it.
Violet’s Thoughts on Season 10 Episode 5 of The X-Files: Babylon
I was a bit offended by all the stereotyping this episode. I mean, as a Texan, I’ve never seen so many people just out and about wearing cowboy hats! It’s not like everyone in Texas is a cowboy. Sure, you might randomly see a person wearing a cowboy hat, but it’s rare. I can’t speak for the country bar that Mulder went to, having never actually been to a country bar, so I don’t know if it’s typical for everyone there to wear cowboy hats. And it’s not like everyone in Texas likes country music. Honestly, you could probably find a country bar like the one Mulder went to in every minor to major city in the U.S. Oh, and then there was the Muslim stereotyping. Not all Muslims are suicide bombers, just like not all Texans are cowboys and listen to country music. That is all.
As for the rest of the episode, it was mildly amusing how they made Miller and Einstein pretty much mirror images of Mulder and Scully. I enjoyed the joke. However, I’m really hoping that they weren’t made a part of the storyline just so that these two agents can take the place of Scully and Mulder and continue the show.
So, was it really a placebo that Einstein gave to Mulder, or was she just saying that? If it was just a placebo, how did Mulder have such an experience which actually pointed him in the right direction? Maybe it was a “placebo” but what was the placebo made up of? I suppose this will remain just another one of those unexplained things on the The X-Files.
Scenes from The X-Files, Season 10 Episode 6: My Struggle II
Here are scenes from the next The X-Files episode, titled My Struggle II:
I guess I can start watching now, by the time the last one airs I should be caught up. I hope its comparable.
I find it funny that episode 5 is named babylon…babylon 5