When the X-Files writing and effects are top-notch simultaneously the show is "spooky" good. That's the case as season two gets a good and proper "monster-of-the-week" jump start. "The Host" is about the melding of man and parasite creating a hybrid through, we're told, radiation exposure at Chernobyl. Though certainly unbelievable, the writing and the realization of the creature is excellent allowing that all important suspension of belief pushing this episode to the top. If you liked "The Thing", especially the cult classic John Carpenter version, this is definitely a must see. Besides Mulder and Scully separately working on the case, a new "Deep Throat" emerges prodding Mulder that his success on this one is imperative to reinstate the X-Files section. Mulder's boss Wayne admits it wasn't his decision to scuttle the X-Files and that it was, indeed, a mistake. So, what we have here is a great episode, albeit a gross-out one, a new inside informant pledging to aid Mulder, and a big "carrot on a stick" that the X-Files division is on the way back.
Review of The Host
