"Max"

"When everyday's just another day you're gonna get kidnapped by a bunch of little grey dudes from outer space, what's a few CIA spooks to worry about?"
Originally Aired 3/23/97

Live from the Max Fenig rolling multimedia library and archive

I really enjoyed the first part, "Tempus Fugit", but I don't feel that strongly about "Max." This episode was heavy on dialogue and featured lengthy scenes where people explained events that happened last week. I thought The X-Files always prided itself on "showing, not telling" the audience, so Mulder's narration over what happened to Max last week felt unnecessary to me. I did like the actual flashback though, because it was the best sequence in the entire episode.

This episode also made the two-part story feel overlong; perhaps it would've been best as a special hour and a half episode, rather than the full two hours. I wonder if they did just stretch it to two, so they could have enough of a budget for the use of the plane wreckage, the scene with the plane landing as they drove under it, and the use of a cabin for the abduction scenes. The set piece with the lights shining into the plane was an excellent and eerie sequence and I did like Max floating out of the plane. Passengers blowing around and getting sucked out was equally intense.

Though I wasn't too happy overall, there were other small moments I liked that seemed to be sprinkled throughout. The use of the late Max Felig was neat, how he comes back via videotape, and I like how he's still chipper after all these abductions. Its the complete opposite of another abductee named Duane Barry. Skinner's scene with Scully when he notices her nosebleed and compassionately scolds her is neat and its good they finally brought up her cancer after a few episodes. Another is Mulder at the airport, when he notices he's being followed, then puts the bag though the x-ray scanner. Its those character moments that save the episode, because it was obvious the plane ride at the end was an excuse for Mulder to come up empty-handed, again. It felt very contrived that the aliens know which airplanes contain their missing "energy" parts-piece-things. Usually I overlook stuff like that in these myth episodes but this time it didn't happen.

This is the first time I've ever watched "Tempus Fugit"/"Max", so perhaps time will be kinder when I revisit the episodes. That's happened before with a few episodes, like "Syzygy", "Die Hand Die Verletzt", and "Conduit."

Only 6 episodes to go!