X-Files--"Travelers"

David fFredricks bears an uncanny resemblance to J. Edgar Hoover, no? He probably could have done a decent Edward G. Robinson, too.

“Travelers” is an unusual flashback to 1952 by way of retired FBI Special Agent Arthur Dale recounting to a young Mulder about his father’s involvement in one of the first x-Files. The episode was necessitated by the return of David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson to Los Angeles for re-shoots on X-Files: Fight the Future.The minimal appearances of Mulder and the total absence of Scully are surprisingly not a big detriment. I am a history buff, so your mileage may vary, but the recreation of 1952’ Red Scare atmosphere, along with famous people like Hoover and Rosenbergs’ prosecutor Roy S. Cohn, was spendidly done.

Mulder seeks out dales in 1990 after he discovers his father was originally involved in the disappearance of suspected communist Edward Skur in 1952 after Skur was discovered to have been living in seclusion until his death a few days prior. Another corpse was discovered by his body, onne that had been drained of all organs, but with the skin intact.

Dales recognizes the name Skur and the method of murder. He recounts for mulder how he was sent to arrest Skur, a State Department official, for being a suspected communist. Skur allegedly hung himself in his cell after being arrested, but dales spots him later. Intrigued by the matter, he is soon urged by Bill Mulder to look into the truth--Skur was not a Communist, but he and three other men had been subjected to government experiments, the effects of which prompted skur’s arrest and subsequent cover up.

Dales discovers the three men had received surgery allegedly for war injuries, but had instead been grafted with material from another creature. No one ever says it is an alien, but we get to see the alien pop out of Skur’s mouth And kill several occasions. The alien appears arachnid. It is something we have not seen before. I do not recall right off hand if we see it again, either.

Dales learns that the truth of Skur’s surgery and the subsequent murders he has (involuntarily) committed is being covered up by the House Un-American Activities hunt for Communist. Dales is threatened with being accused as a Communist himself if he does not go along with that line of thought. The matter becomes personal when his partner is killed, but taken out of his hands when Bill Mulder eventually captures skur himself. Unbeknownst to dales, Mulder lets Skur go free with the hopes the truth of what happened to him may one day be known.

Darrin McGavin makes his first of several appearances as the retired Dales. McGavin starred in Kolchak: the Night Stalker, a direct inspiration for The X-Files. I have seen a few episodes of Kolchak on SyFy over the years. I never got too interested, so I chalk up the fondness for the series as nostalgia I am too young to share.. If the homage does more for you than me, more power to you.

“Travelers” is a difficult one to rate while pleasing aa significant number of viewers. It is not one of the most popular episodes. Some even consider it a cheat. I appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into recreating a past era while still maintaining a recognizable The X-Files feel. “Trvelers” pulls that off. I got into the story, so I am not bother by the lack of Mulder and Scully. All that said, you can skip this one and not miss a thing. Your call, I suppose.

Rating: *** (out of 5)