Tunguska 

A tip from Krycek takes Mulder to a gulag in Tunguska, Russia where prisoners are being used for experiments with the black oil alien virus. Meanwhile, Scully's colleague is infected with the same virus which lay dormant in a meteorite.

Director:

Kim Manners

Writers:

Chris Carter (created by), Frank Spotnitz

Stars:

David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
David Duchovny	...	Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson	...	Dana Scully
Mitch Pileggi	...	Walter Skinner
William B. Davis	...	Cigarette Smoking Man
Nicholas Lea	...	Alex Krycek
Laurie Holden	...	Marita Covarrubias
John Neville	...	Well-Manicured Man
Brendan Beiser	...	Agent Pendrell
Fritz Weaver	...	Senator Albert Sorenson
Malcolm Stewart	...	Dr. Sacks
David Bloom	...	Stress Man
Campbell Lane	...	Senator Romine
Stefan Arngrim	...	Prisoner
Brent Stait	...	Timothy Mayhew

Storyline

Scully and Mulder participate in a raid on a group of right-wing extremists who are obviously planning an attack of some kind. Mulder has been receiving anonymous notes from someone who knows of the plan. When they stop the terrorists, one of the men turns out to be Mulder's old nemesis Alex Krycek, who claims to be the person who was feeding him information. Meanwhile, a diplomatic courier is caught smuggling a mineral-like object into the United States. Mulder contacts Marita Covarrubias of the UN to learn more about its origin. He and Krycek are soon on their way to Russia.

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Plot Keywords:

u.s. senate | senate hearing | horse whipped | russia | siberia | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

24 November 1996 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Stage 2, North Shore Studios, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ten Thirteen Productions, 20th Century Fox Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

45 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

The gulag scenes were inspired by the Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn novel "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich".

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Goofs

At the raid near the beginning, after Krycek gets out of the truck and Mulder hits him, Mulder has his weapon and attached flashlight pointing at Krycek who is on the ground. Mulder then lifts his weapon up. It then cuts back to Krycek who still has the flashlight on his face.

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Quotes

Alex Krycek: You can't bring these men to justice. They're protected. The laws of this country protect these men under the name of National Security. They know no law.

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Connections

Referenced in The X Files: Resist or Serve (2004)

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Soundtracks

The X-Files
Written by Mark Snow
Performed by John Beal

User Reviews

Wars have broken out over far less, Mr. Skinner. Far far less.

Tunguska is the first in one of season 4's two parter mythology series. It is also the first episode I think of in regards to the black oil storyline. The beginning of the episode shows a man harassed but the customs officers in an airport. And yes I say harassed for a reason. I mean when someone tells you to be careful with something because its dangerous the last thing you want to do is drop it on the floor so it can infect you. If that had been say a zombie virus or something then that guy would have caused an even bigger problem than he did. The first episode is exciting and action packed with chases and viruses and Krycek hanging from the balcony of Skinner's apartment and the like. Krycek and Mulder travel together to Russia in hopes of finding some answers about the origin of the black oil virus and are captured by a group who use their prisoners as test subjects by infecting them with the oil. The ending is a cliffhanger with Mulder among those being infected. I enjoy the action and excitement of the episode. I give it a 8 out of 10.