X-Files--"Biogenesis"

“Biogenesis,” which is the sixth season finale, introduces the second mythology after the whole Syndicate/alien conspiracy of creating hybrids for colonization ran its course. Some say ran its course. Other fans say overstayed its welcome. I am of the former mindset. As far as the second mythology, I recall being fairly under whelmed. The gist of it all is that life on earth was established by aliens. The theory plays out more like Chariots of the Gods than the quasi-mormon theology of Battlestar Galactica with a dash of the mapping of the human genome project thrown in for good measure.

The story begins when a biologist in West Africa discovers ancient artifacts with strange writings on them that appear to have a mind of their own. He takes the artifacts to American University in Washington, DC, in order to have them read by a Dr. Sandoz. The African is killed, Sandoz disappears, and the artifacts along with him. Mulder and Scully are assigned to the murder case, but Mulder is far more interested in finding the artifacts than discovering whether Sandoz is the murderer. He still thinks there is alien life out there who know about his sister’s fate.

Mulder begins hearing voices every time the artifact is mentioned around him in any serious manner. His suffering becomes more debilitating as the episode progresses to the point when the agents discover not only is the writing on the artifact Navajo, but Sandoz is an associate of their old ally, Albert Housteen, the former Windtalker, Scully travels to New Mexico to find Housteen without him.

The surviving members of the Syndicate--the Cigarette Smoking Man, Alex Krycek, and Diana Fowley--are doing their best to stymie her investigation behind the scenes. Krycek is using the nanotech in order to blackmail Skinner into helping. Thus begins another of those long stretches in which a usually strong character is degraded badly.

Scully discovers housteen dying of cancer in new Mexico, and intercepts sandoz. He tells her some of the Navajo writing is from the book of Genesis. Others appear to be a sequence of letters he cannot make sense of. With Housteen dying, he is at a loss as to what to do next. Because even though he is surrounded by Navajo, none of them can read Navajo. Or maybe he is too bashful to ask. Whichever answer you think is more plausible.

Scully gets a call from skinner that mulder has been hospitalized due to his worsening condition. When she gets back to Washington, she discovers he is actually locked in a psychiatric ward. The only thing that should surprise you about his predicament is how long it took him to be committed in the first place. Fowley was with him the whole time--at one point rocking his world to find out all he knows about the artifact. If I may be tasteless for a moment, Mimi Rogers has seen her better days. In nude scenes for 1995’s Full Body Massage, her boobs were sagging nearly to her knees. Mulder is obviously not a picky man. Anyway, her presence and skinner’s odd behavior make her suspicious of both.

Fortunately, she gets a call from Sandoz. It suddenly dawned on him, brilliant PhD in biology that he is, the sequence of letters he could not identify before are the human genetic code. So the guy thinks there is only one Navajo in all of new Mexico who can read Navajo writing and does not recognize gene sequences that would jump out at a freshman biology major. I was pretty happy when Krycek killed this guy. He was a real waste of space. Scully travels to West Africa on her own . She finds the area where the artifact was originally discovered. It is part of a large spacecraft half buried in the surf. Too be continued…

“Biogenesis” is awfully weak for a season finale. It would have been better suited as the first part of a two part story in the middle of a season. It is not terrible as an episode--save for Sandoz’s timely ignorance and revaltions just when the story called for it--but it is very verbose and high concept. The cliffhanger ends on the revelation aliens may have seeded life on Earth, but that was well established throughout the episode in general. Why would the discovery of a spacecraft be enough of a surprise to keep the audience on edge from may Mntil November?

There is a sign of the time here, too Mulder is in very little of the episode. His role will continue to diminish until he becomes a recurring character for the final two seasons. Get used to Scully-centric episodes. Fortunately, many of them are better than “Biogenesis.” On the bright side, we have reached the end of a very uneven season. Too bad the next will be even more topsy turvy.

Rating: *** (out of 5)