"The X Files" D.P.O. (1995)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Kim Manners

Writers:

Chris Carter (creator)
Howard Gordon (written by)

TV Series:

"The X Files" (1993)

Original Air Date:

6 October 1995 (Season 3, Episode 3)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

A local teen discovers he has gained great electrical powers after surviving being struck by lightning.

Plot Keywords:

Title Spoken By Character | FBI | FBI Agent | Alien | X Files

Cast

David Duchovny	...	Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson	...	Dana Scully
Giovanni Ribisi	...	Darin Peter Oswald
Jack Black	...	Bart 'Zero' Liquori
Ernie Lively	...	Sheriff Teller
Karen Witter	...	Sharon Kiveat
Steve Makaj	...	Frank Kiveat
Peter Anderson	...	Stan Buxton
Kate Robbins	...	Darren's Mom
Mar Andersons	...	Jack Hammond
Brent Chapman	...	The Traffic Cop
Jason Griffith	...	Paramedic #1 (as Jason Anthony Griffith)

Runtime:

Argentina:60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Certification:

Argentina:13

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Trivia:

The "Sonic the Hedgehog" theme is played several times at the arcade hall.

Movie Connections:

Features Virtua Fighter 2 (1994) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Live Fast, Diarrhea

2 future stars shine in entertaining episode

DPO is another episode that I remember seeing way back in the 90s and recently had the chance to watch again.I still enjoyed it a lot and it brought back memories of that particular time in my life. DPO stands for Darin Peter Oswald and as the title suggests the episode is all about him.Hes a small town slacker who works as a mechanic and spends his spare time hanging around the arcades with his friend "Zero",and longing after his schoolteacher,Sharon Kiveat.However he also possesses a special gift,having the ability to apparently channel electricity through his person and focus it on who/whatever is unlucky to get in his way.This is where M&S come in after the number of electricity related deaths in Darin's small town attract their attention.Despite the skepticisms of the local police chief they soon realize Darin had something to do with the deaths.Can they manage to rein him in before his frustration at being rejected in love and his feelings of inadequacy send him spiraling out of control? A Couple of other things to note: The episode featured 2 then relatively unknown actors who would subsequently rise to greater fame:Giovanni Ribisi in the title role and funnyman Jack Black as his friend "Zero".Ribisi is especially good here and he really has the moody teenager persona down to a tee. The opening sequence is tense and exciting and the music(Ring the Bells by James)and action combine very well and peak together in a dramatic climax.The scenes where DPO uses his gift and "strikes" are also handled well and some of these scenes are quite spectacular looking. So to sum up my feelings DPO is a pretty solid X-file.I would put it in the same category as "Pusher",as it features a human character with an extraordinary gift.Its probably not one of my absolute fave eps but its not too far off either.I give it 8.5/10.