2x08 "One Breath"

[wendelah1]

We're doing finishing season two and three and starting on four this week. Here's the schedule:

September 17: 2x08 One Breath

September 19: 3x02 Paper Clip

September 21: 3x04 Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose

September 22: 4x13 Never Again

So "One Breath." I kind of hated this episode the first time I saw it. Here's why. During the scene where Mulder is holding a gun to the Cigarette Smoking Man's head and threatening to blow his brains out, I found myself chanting, "Kill him. Kill him. KILL HIM!" But Mulder doesn't do it. I held that against Mulder and the writers for a long time. Spender is evil. He deserves to die.

Then a friend explained that the episode is about Mulder turning away from the Darkness, away from his despair and self-blame, away from his loneliness, from the hopelessness of the past few months. At Melissa's urging, Mulder goes back to Scully's bedside. He can't tell Scully how he feels—maybe those feelings are too overwhelming—so he tells her instead that he's there for her.

Sometimes the only thing we can offer in the face of suffering is our presence.



Writer: Glen Morgan, James Wong
Director: R.W. Goodwin
Originally aired: November 11, 1994 (in the US)

Synopsis: Her mother has got the gravestone picked out, when suddenly out of nowhere, Scully mysteriously reappears in the ER of a DC hospital. Comatose, and on a ventilator, with a biological poison in her bloodstream, the doctor attending her says Scully is dying. The Lonegunmen concur. Despite Mulder's objections, her sister and mother agree to follow the terms of Scully's living will, and remove her from the ventilator.

Most Memorable Quote:
MULDER: I feel, Scully... that you believe... you’re not ready to go. And you’ve always had the strength of your beliefs. I don’t know if my being here... will help bring you back. But I’m here.
(He sits back in his chair and stares at her solemnly. The clock reads 8:17. Wendy starts to sob.)

Links:
One Breath transcript
Autumn Tysko's review.
Sarah Stegall's review.
Nina of Den of Geek offers her Top 10 X-Files episodes. Don't you love it that everyone has a list?

Fanfiction:
Cannibals and Chlorine by Gina Rain. Mulder suffers separation anxiety after Scully's abduction and return. Also at Gossamer.
October Skies by Oracle. Post-ep, kinda. Mulder and Scully go to a Halloween party. It's adorable. I rec it every chance I get.

Since this is the only episode, other than "Demons," we are doing that deals with Scully's abduction and its aftermath, i.e. the cancer arc and the creation of Emily, I'm throwing in all the fics here. Well, not all of them, but a couple of major ones, because they should be celebrated, too.

Iolokus by mustangsally78 and rivkat. Summary: Painted across the barren and desolate reaches of Texas, the shadows of the Project put additional pressure on Scully and Mulder's already fragile relationship. After a hostage crisis raises more questions about the Project's breeding program, Scully begins her own investigation, leaving Mulder to choose between saving her and saving himself. Finally, the investigation leads to tragedy and Mulder and Scully find that more questions have been asked than answered. Brilliant and angry, an unforgettable story. All the warnings.

Arizona Highways by fialka. Summary: Visions of Melissa lead Our Heroes on a case confirming the existence of a series of Emilys. But does Melissa really have a message, or is it all in Scully's head? Set post Two Fathers/One Son, so technically a season six fic. But I'm not doing season six, so it goes right here. This is my desert island story, people. I would pay someone to turn this into a podfic. I'm not kidding.

And one more, my favorite cancer arc fic.
Isometry by syntax6. Summary: The story of a man, a woman and their lucky pickle. Season 4 cancer era. Rated NC-17.