"Do me a favour Mulder and let me say it. Reincarnation." – Dana Scully.
Episode 22, 'Born Again', original air date April 29th, 1994. Written by Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa, directed by Jerrold Freedman. Monster of the week episode count, 17. Gordon & Gansa are an interesting writing duo to analyze. Their work over the course of the first season, beginning with the lacklustre mythology entry 'Conduit' and ending with the undoubtedly superior 'Born Again', displays an evident growth in their writing. In regards to screen-writing, their inexperience was very evident in their early work, as episodes like 'Conduit' and 'Ghost in the Machine' sluggishly meander through uninspired plot lines that lack focus and direction. As they become more comfortable with the themes of the series, we see episode like 'Fallen Angel' and 'Lazarus' which show a significant step up in quality. Contrary to popular belief among both fans and X-Files crew regarding 'Born Again', I believe it is their most accomplished work as screenwriters from their season 1 material. Recurring themes are witnessed throughout their work, such as reincarnation or rebirth, 'Lazarus'/'Born Again'/'Miracle Man', and spectral entities or disembodied forces, 'Ghost in the Machine'/'Born Again'. In 'Born Again', the concept of a child receiving messages or being influenced by a supernatural entity is also similar to the young boy in 'Conduit'. Viewing their progression as a whole, one might see their final season 1 entry as a culmination of these themes. Having learned from their mistakes and reflected upon their successes, we could consider 'Born Again' as the amalgamation of these ideas brought together to form their most successful episode. As writers they are treading on familiar ground here but it's worth the revisit as their experience so far helps them to deliver a tightly woven supernatural thriller that plays out like a procedural cop drama, with an X-Files twist.
The story involves a young girl named Michelle Bishop (Andrea Libman), who appears to possess some kind of supernatural ability. Her mother describes her as deeply disturbed and her psychiatrist has diagnosed some type of dissociative identity disorder, the cause of which is unknown. Bishop is linked with the apparent accidental deaths of three separate police officers throughout the episode. An investigation in to their deaths reveals a suspicious murder from the past and we learn that a former police officer may have been murdered to cover up a crime. Mulder is convinced that Charlie Morris, the detective who was murdered 9 years ago, has been reincarnated as Michelle Bishop and is enacting his revenge.
The argument has been made that this episode was too similar to earlier entries, in particular Morgan & Wong's 'Shadows'. However I argue that this is a far more successful attempt at tackling a similar theme and builds upon some of the concepts explored in earlier shows. During the early stages of the episode Gordon & Gansa borrow from both their previous work and earlier episodes to hint at possibly explanations for Bishop's abilities. The opening sequence arouses our interest without spoiling the mystery. Are we dealing with a vengeful ghost like in 'Shadows', or does Bishop possess some type of psychokinetic ability? Unlike 'Miracle Man', the episode is still enjoyable to watch even when we know the ending. This is because the writer's have offered us more than simply the desire to find out the twist. The pacing is handled well, like any well-made procedural detective story, 'Born Again' feeds us just enough information to keep us interested without giving too much away. More than this though, the characters that move the story along display a depth not seen in Gordon & Gansa's earlier work. This is certainly helped by some decent casting in Brian Markinson and Maggie Wheeler. The ending is satisfying and unpredictable without being implausible. Mulder's revelation at the image of the deep sea diver which reveals to him Detective Morris' cause of death is a well-played moment that's justified by his unconventional way of thinking. Mulder requests that they perform hypnosis regression therapy on Bishop to determine her connection to Charlie Morris. This is something that the character often refers to and attempts to utilise throughout the series. No doubt due to his own personal experience of this treatment which allowed him to recall the events surrounding his sister's abduction. Mulder will often testify to the positive effects of hypnosis throughout the series, though he is often alone in this opinion and very rarely does he actually get the results he hopes for.
Mark Snow's score is an integral component in the building of tension throughout this episode. The music is often used to suggest a supernatural element, even if the on screen action doesn't directly indicate this. The tension builds steadily as the deaths pile up and the character's become more desperate to solve the case. While credit is certainly due to the writing, there's no doubt that Snow's score and Freedman's direction play an important role in the transition from page to screen. The overall presentation of this episode displays a maturation of the show's visual style when we compare it to early episodes, with the exception of 'Squeeze' which is a positive anomaly. It's interesting to note that Howard Gordon himself was apparently unhappy with the episode, citing that it was a little to much like a cop show. I think that through the benefit of hindsight and retrospectively viewing the series without the hype or pressure of TV ratings and financial success, episodes like 'Born Again' have a chance to find a second home on DVD.
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