"Field Trip"

A quick trip down hallucination lane

Vince Gilligan once again proves his superior X-Files penmanship in an episode that allowed for caring, sensual moments in the most unlikely of places.  Who would have thought that a shippy moment between Mulder and Scully could happen with digestive fungal slime and mud all over their bodies after being pulled out through a hole in the ground and rescued from almost certain death through digestion and stuck in the back of a dark, sterile health department ambulance?  Well, I don't know why I'm still surprised by these things, but bear with me; I'm a slow one.

Mulder and Scully's hallucinations involved two very different perspectives.  Mulder's vision included his theory being correct: the couple did, in fact, get kidnapped by aliens and it was all a big conspiracy.  I find it interesting that a dream of his would include Scully coming to his apartment (complete with her soft Mulder-voice and the casual touches between them that have long meant so much more) so that he may show her an alien he kidnapped.  He escorts her into his bedroom (something I hope to see again) and shows her something that he's always wanted to: absolute undeniable physical proof.  She is astounded, captivated by the little creature and his telepathic communication with her.  Scully tries to tell him how right he's been all along and how sorry she is for not believing him, when Mulder senses something's not quite right.  Insert I've-been-watching-too-much-"Adventures of Alex Mack" special effects here.

Scully's hallucinations, however, include her worst nightmare rather than an ideal scenario.  At the discovery of a third skeleton, Scully's face grows ashen and it is only a matter of time before her fears are confirmed: Mulder is inexplicably dead.  Always steadfast through every situation, she loses her composure in front of the medical examiner and is reduced to silent, painful tears in Skinner's presence.  In his wake, Scully breaks the calm when the Lone Gunmen refuse to back her theory of something bigger at work.  Loud knocking cuts through Mulder's apartment and, after Scully opens the door to reveal Mulder, very much alive to her relief, the numerous people that were in his apartment seconds earlier have disappeared.

Being the intelligent people they are, Mulder and Scully figure out that they must be hallucinating after Scully experiences the yellow goo melting-effect (Really?  I thought my contact lenses just needed cleaning).  The scene cuts the a shot of the ground at the mountain as Mulder crawls from beneath the earth, then gently pulls an unconscious Scully out as well.  They lie, exhausted on the ground, thinking that they have escaped the danger.

Back in Skinner's office reviewing their report, Mulder again gets the feeling that something isn't quite right.  The slime Scully found on the bodies of the couple was found to be extremely similar in nature to hydrochloric acid, yet they had no evidence of burning on their bodies.  Scully, comfortable in their surroundings, argues that they escaped the carniverous mushroom when they crawled up from under the ground.  "Did we?" Mulder asks her.  To prove his point, which he is now convinced is true and to save them from being digested, Mulder pulls out his weapon and shoots Skinner square in the chest.  Yellow goo oozes from his shirt and Skinner is unaffected.

Mulder was right: they have been under the ground the whole time and have just been discovered by the medical team, complete with Skinner, who dig them up from their underground tomb.  Mulder and Scully are burned and need medical attention.  They are placed on separate stretchers and locked into the back of an ambulance.  Through semi-consciousness Mulder looks over at Scully and reaches for her, a gesture of need, concern and affection in one.  Scully opens her eyes and takes his hand, their fingers entwining as they silently comfort each other in the darkness.

Quote of the Week:

Mulder: As I said, there's been no scientific, credible explanation but there are those of us who believe that these strange, multi-coloured lights are really... Scully: UFO's.  Extra-terrestrial visitors from beyond who apparently have nothing better to do than buzz one mountain over and over again for seven hundred years. Mulder: Sounds like crap when you say it.

LAST WEEK'S POLL RESULT:  The best moment in Three of a Kind was Scully's drugged giggle-fest at 56%.

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