Via Negativa
8x07
"Oh, just show off, Mr. Man-of-the-World!"
I'm trying a new reviewing technique. I brought the TV that I use for making sounds into my bedroom and I'm watching the episode in here. My parents are doing paperwork, so they would be distracting if I were in the living room. Plus, this is just an awesome episode, and I enjoy those best alone.
I know that FBI agents get phone calls at home at odd hours of the day, but for having just been awakened at 3:26 AM, Doggett is just a little too good natured. I'm all "Sure. Fine. Whatever." when I get calls that wake me.
Hee hee. Yes, 'a man was surveying a religious cult in Pittsburgh.' Gee, what is possibly stupid about this sentence? A religious cult...in Pittsburgh. Yeah. Uh huh. Unless they were worshipping the Steelers [or, perhaps, like me, the Penguins...note the color scheme...], I don't think so. This is western Pennsylvania...militias, maybe, but cults, no.
One of the best quotes from this episode -- Doggett: "I don't care how devoted they were. These people wouldn't just lie here and let their leader bash their brains in. I've got to figure atleast one of them would have a problem with that." That was great. Thank you Doggett, ye who bring reason to the show.
'Let's look for Agent Stedman at his condo.' Okay, I want to know two things:
1) There are condos in Pittsburgh?!
2) Who would keep a condo in Pittsburgh? [other than Agent Stedman, of course]
Has anybody else noticed that Kersh's eyes are always like squinting? The guy who plays him must have some serious eye strain by the end of the day.
Tippet calls Andre--the REAL Ratboy--and freaks him out, so he has to go and freak all of the viewers out by taking a razorblade and carving and X in the middle of his forehead...proving that he is certainly a bigger fan of the show than you are. ["X-Philes don't try this at home!"]
I'm please with Doggett's response when Skinner says Scully is taking 'personal time.' "I've got 22 people dead and she's taking personal time. "I've got 22 people dead and she's taking personal time?" Thank you. That makes up for the cheery morning wake-up call.
A very cool sequence--the disgruntled homeless man is sucked into the sidewalk and then gets...axed.
Of course, then Skinner has to ruin all of this by saying "There's no concrete evidence." Atleast he didn't say "splitting headache." Skinner, what have the writers done to you?
Doggett and Skinner visit DOCTOR Andre Bormanis ["I didn't spend eight years in Evil medical school to be called mister, thank you" -Dr. Dave, minus the 'thank you' Don't you forget it, either!]
The scene where Doggett follows bloody [SNATCH!] footprints, realizes their his, and discovers Scully's severed head in his hands [Relax, PETS (People for the Ethical Treatment of Scully), DREAM sequence...] is very cool. Then he wakes up to answer a phone call from Scully! It looks like he wants to apologize for the dream.
This is a very long review.
DOCTOR Andre's demise is just gross. It's straight out of that awful book 1984 [but it was a great year :)] or that awesome book [and movie, with Angelina Jolie, my fave actress!] The Bone Collector.
I just think that the expression on Doggett's face is priceless when he walks into his office to see the Lone Gunmen [I just typed Lone Funmen! ha!].
Tippet tries to do some self-brain surgery with a table saw, which happens to not be the best tool to use.
Okay, when JOHN Doggett [just needed to capitalize something] checks Tippet into the hospital, he sees our little Scullly's name on the list. To make sure that all of us idiots at home see that Scully's name is on the list, Chris Carter and Co. made her name in blue ink and the rest in black ink. And they thought I wouldn't notice!
The entire Doggett dream sequence is probably some of the best television I've seen in years [since The Others was on, atleast!]. It's all neat and surreal.
I love the dream sequences in this episode. I love this episode. Robert Patrick did an awesome job in it. It saddens me that he wasn't nominated for an Emmy, so I'm awarding him a Winston for Best Actor. Everything in this episode is phenomenal, even though I hate that word. Highly recommended!
"The
world of the happy is quite different from that of the
unhappy."
-Ludwig Wittgenstein-