The X-Files (TV Series) Brand X (2000) User Reviews

E Pluribus uh...

[Muldernscully · 8/10 · 12 July 2007]

So, you see a preview for Brand X and see that it's going to be about cigarettes. The Cigarette Smoking Man will be involved, right? Wrong. It shocked me that good ol' Smokey didn't make an appearance, but it doesn't detract from this episode.

Brand X is a fine episode. I'd forgotten how much Skinner is featured in this episode. He carries the episode once Mulder goes down with a bad case of tobacco beetles.

Kim Manners shoots this episode masterfully. He does a lot of low shots looking up at actors from below, giving it a different look, almost as if it's the tobacco beetles' perspective.

Skinner balks at the idea of killer bugs when Mulder suggests it. He must have forgot about the killer bugs from season three's 'War of the Coprophages. But they turned out not to be killers. Also, it is unfortunate that when Scully mentions an entomologist she knows, it doesn't turn out to be Dr. Bambi Berenbaum. What a shame.

Tobin Bell plays the part of Darryl Weaver, the test subject who is immune to the effects of the engineered tobacco. He does so well, just as if the part were written with him in mind. That can be said of so many X-Files guest stars.

One thing that bothered me is that after Mulder leaves Dr. Voss' house after telling him of Thomas Gastall's death, Voss receives a phone call from someone watching him and Voss tells him that there was another death - downtown. Mulder didn't tell him where the murder occurred. He couldn't of known where, unless he already suspected it was in Weaver's apartment. Also, when Skinner charges into Morley's headquarters with a search warrant, he only brings two agents with him. That seemed like a pretty big building for only two agents to search. And my final gruff with this episode is when Skinner busts into Darryl Weaver's apartment after being tipped off my Dr. Voss. Skinner's been told that the larvae is in the smoke, yet he enters the apartment of the known smoker without even a mask over his face. Very careless and risky.

But each of those are minor inconsistencies and don't detract much from the episode. The acting is great and the story is taut and suspenseful, with Mulder's life hanging in the balance. So, sit back, relax, watch Brand X, and smoke 'em if you got 'em.

One of the better season 7 episodes.

[damienjaymz · 9/10 · 6 June 2007]

Though it could clearly be seen as a propaganda episode for anti-smoking, this was clearly one of the best episodes of season 7. Ifelt as if it really got back more to the moody atmosphere that made the earlier seasons so much better. You also have Tobin Bell, who has been made famous by his character of Jigsaw from the Saw movies. Bell gives one of the best performances that i have seen in any of the episodes. In this episode the agents investigate the global Morley tobacco company. The same company that CSM smokes. The end of the episode closes out similar to the tense unresolved endings of earlier episodes.

"Would it bother you if I lit one up?"

[classicsoncall · 8/10 · 8 August 2017]

Imagine all those packs of Morley Cigarettes that popped up in the story and the Cancer Man is nowhere to be found! I thought that was a pretty clever gimmick, considering how often William B. Davis showed up as a principal character in a lot of episodes. Instead, you have that creepy Darryl Weaver (Tobin Bell) standing in for the C-Man and lighting one up every chance he got. That he turned out to be a self proclaimed 'regular damn, scientific marvel' was rather effectively countered by the end of the story, and I wouldn't have minded if Skinner actually shot him, just on general principles.

I got a big kick out of Mulder sticking it to the tobacco guys during the first visit Skinner and he made to the Morley headquarters. Stating he couldn't reveal the confidentiality of his investigation was just great. On the flip side though, just try to imagine having all those larva worms getting sucked out of your body. This might not have been one of your classic monster of the week episodes, but it was still enough to make one queasy if you thought about it too much.

The kicker for this story turned out to be Scully figuring out the old nicotine fix for Mulder after seeing his yellowed fingers while dealing with his own infection. And then, just as we saw in the 'Amor Fati' episode, Mulder is back in action a short time later like nothing ever happened. Granted, he still had the raspy voice, but the way Scully and Mulder defied the law of averages so often is enough to drive you buggy.

Toodles.....

A great episode, one of the finest from Series 7.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 25 September 2022]

Skinner calls on the hell of Mulder and Scully when a man in his protection, set to testify against a tobacco company, dies in very bizarre circumstances.

I think this was perhaps my second favourite episode from this seventh series. I loved the originality, the horror vibe, and in particular the sheer tangibility of events here.

Two things screamed very loudly, the first seemed to be the very strong anti smoking vibe, the second definitely the anti GMO vibe, both were portrayed as dangerous, I'll leave that up to you.

Those bugs were pretty nasty, and credit to the actors who allowed them to be covered in them.

It was good to see Skinner having a large involvement here, he seems to be getting slightly greater involvement in the field.

Absolutely loved the presence of Tobin Bell, what a charismatic actor, with an endless amount of presence, I thought be was terrific here.

I think they missed a trick by not having smoking Man here, he'd have made for an interesting character here, by his habit alone.

Excellent, 9/10.

How do you feel? Like a dust buster attacked me.

[Sanpaco13 · 7/10 · 19 October 2007]

Brand X is a decent episode if not one of my favorites. It is about a tobacco company who does test to reduce the health risks of smoking. In doing this they create a mutant form of tobacco bug which seems to feed off of its victims by laying eggs in the lungs through breath the cigarette smoke and then eating away the flesh. There is one man who seems to be immune to this however. Darryl Weaver. As the mystery of how and why these bugs are killing people thickens suddenly Mulder turns up sick and the man hunt for Darryl Weaver is intensified as understanding his immunity seems to be the only way to save Mulder and others who might become infected. Ironically once the catch Mr. Weaver and are rushing him into surgery to be tested Scully seeing the nicotine residue on his fingers realizes that this is most likely what has kept him alive and is able to poison the bugs in Mulder's lungs by injecting him with nicotine.

I love Darryl Weaver's character. He is such a jerk. He very nicely pulls off your typical smoker who doesn't care about being considerate of others in satisfying their addiction and instead has to start smoking in public areas instead of designated smoking areas. I deal with these people everyday at work and can assure you that Darryl Weaver is one of them. I love how Mulder is such a jerk to the attorney's at the tobacco company after they are uncooperative with them. The company is so stereotypical in this episode, believing they are above the law. The receptionist asking Skinner and Mulder if they have an appointment even after they show him their badges. "Maybe you missed this the first time around." Too bad that guy showed up cuz there were gonna be some choice words soon from either party. Anyway. Even though this is an enjoyable episode I don't think I can list it really as a favorite. It just doesn't capture my intrigue as much as others. I give it a 7 out of 10.