REVIEWED BY: Jennifer J. Chen ON: April 10, 1999
ORIGINAL AIR DATE: February 8, 1998
Granted, the allusion to "Chuckie" by Mulder made it a lot better—some self-inflection and humor, recognizing that in our history, there is already a known horror story about a doll that kills. I can hardly ream the lack of originality when the script addresses this on its own. Still, it doesn't help the story at all. There is a lack of development, a lack of any chance for personal investment into any of the victims, and a barely credible X-File. I didn't feel especially bad for Melissa (and what is with the obsession with that name?) when she was trying to brain herself with the hammer—she had been annoying from the start. We knew that she suspected some funny business going on with her daughter's doll, and yet she had no guts to do anything about it. All she tried to do was cater to her bratty daughter's demands. I hardly respect her as a mother. She looked like a frightened rabbit the whole time. She of anyone could have gotten the doll from her daughter the easiest. But she didn't try to prevent any of the murders that she could clearly see coming. Didn't respect her, didn't like her, didn't much care if she finally became victim to her own cowardice and yes, stupidity.
I have to say I enjoyed the actress who played the little girl—she was properly creepy at the right times, and had great emotion on her face when she was watching her mother try to kill herself.
Members of the Gillian Anderson Testosterone Brigade and other human males must have been in hog heaven watching Gillian take a bath. I do have to marvel that even when stumbling upon a case while on vacation, it happens to be an X-File. It couldn't be a regular robbery or something. LOVED watching Scully hang up on Mulder, though I felt bad for him. Still, he deserves a taste of his own medicine. I would have hung up too when he derided, "I thought you were on vacation." Still, I was pretty annoyed with her when she kept asking Polly to give the doll up. Woman, she's half your size and one-fourth your age—just grab the damn thing out of her hands!
I also found the personality switcheroo pretty amusing, even if a little forced—Scully more willing to accept the possibility of an explanation outside the norm while Mulder wants to find a scientific explanation. Don't these two ever agree? But I liked it when Scully had to drive the point home—"I just wanted to get outside my head." And into Mulder's, I guess. They were supposed to be on vacation—and it looks like they both took vacations from the people they are normally.
And now if I ever find myself in a state of boredom with a large supply of newly-sharpened pencils, I know what to do with them.
Please feel free to
Other than seeing Mulder adorably lost without Scully and some good Mulder/Scully interaction, this episode is sadly lacking in almost everything that makes for a good X-Files episode. The fact that the agents weren't together didn't bother me. Unlike some viewers (and Shippers especially), I don't mind seeing them apart, as long as their communication is good and the story line is interesting. And while I have said that I watch The X-Files mainly to be a witness to the Mulder/Scully dynamic, if there's an X-Files case involved, I expect it to be good. This one wasn't.
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1999 by Jennifer J. Chen