AIR DATE:  February 9, 1996
Written by Frank Spotnitz & Chris Carter
Directed by Rob Bowman

	"Piper Maru" didn't give me the excitment as "Nisei" did when it
ended with Mulder jumping on a speeding train.  It did pick up where the
"Nisei/731" two parter ended with a ship coming back from the same area as
the ship in "Nisei".  In "Piper Maru" everything is touched upon from
Scully's sister's death to Ratboy making a reappearance.  Now we all know
this isn't going be wrapped up at the end of "Apocrypha" because where
would be the fun if we get everything answered, but it is going to be
interesting to see how things are wrapped up.  So what we are given is
that it appears Ratboy has been selling information from the MJ files, the
ones involved in Melissa Scully's death want the to case to disappear
(they're lucky it didn't take place in Baltimore because there is no way
Homicide's Frank Pembleton would stop investigating), Scully's still
trying to deal with her sister's death and can't confide in her partner
about it, and Mulder once again gets in over his head.

	So what do we get with all this, well, a mishmash of stuff, and
how it will add up we will have to wait until next week.  So until then
I'm going to make a few general comments:

- Scully not able to talk to Mulder about Skinner telling her they have
been told to make the investigation into her sister's death inactive then
she laughs when Mulder goes off on one of his alien/govt./conspicary
speeches. It was a very nice moment since it says a lot about where their
relationship is going.  You would figure Scully would be able to tell
Mulder about what Skinner told her because you would figure he would care
if the investigation was being stopped, but as we have seen over the past
few months their relationship hasn't exactly been a smooth one so it isn't
any wonder she can't tell him something as important as this. Remember how
cold he was to her when she told him she bumped into some women who
claimed to remember her from her abduction so why should we expect
anything else from him if she told him this.  She ends up releasing the
tension by laughing at Mulder's drive to find the truth at any cost, by
commenting to him that if he was put in the middle of the desert and told
the truth is out there he would still want a shovel to start digging. 
Meaning he'll never be satisfied even if the truth was staring him
straight in the face.  Says a lot about what she was feeling and thinking
especially after the look she gave when he handed her the ticket to San
Diego, it was a look of here we go off again on another one of his wild
goose chases. 

- Scully returning back to one of the places she lived as a kid was a nice
touch to have us see how much she still misses her sister, and how she
must feel somewhat responsible for her death.  The music and the
expression on Anderson's face when she drove by her old house remembering
playing a game with her sister was magnificent in conveying on what was
going through her mind. 

- I have a question, was Mulder going to go off to Hong Kong without
telling Scully since he only told her after she called him.  Gee, it's not
like he was going to Oakland or something, but a whole another country.
You would figure he would have found the time to call her to tell her
where he was going if he cared.  Even when he told her he cut her off
before she could get him to explain why he was heading off to Hong Kong. 

- I always like how Mulder assumes it was Ratboy who killed his father
since it was only the viewers who saw Ratboy in the mirror, and not Mulder
so he is making a giant leap in believing it was Ratboy.

- Worst plot device:  Mulder letting Ratboy go to the bathroom alone. 
Come on are we really suppose to believe Mulder would let Ratboy go by
himself.  Of all the people you could least trust it would be Ratboy.  The
only reason it happened was so Ratboy could be taken over by that thing
and put Mulder into "danger'.

- Best plot device:  Having Scully's father's old friend still living at
the naval base.  It allowed for the previous mentioned scene with Scully
at the naval base and for the Colonel to give a logical explanation of
what was down in the ocean, and I doubt he is lying to Scully since he is
telling her what he believes to be the truth.  Oh yeah, I really like how
the houses on the base did look like military housing.

- Skinner getting shot.  I doubt very much he is going to die because if
they wanted him dead the shooter would have shot him a second time instead
of spitting on him.  I have to admit I thought adding the spit was funny. 
Whether this changes his attitude towards Mulder and Scully's work I doubt
very much, but then again you never know with this show.

	Well, that's all I can think to say about "Piper Maru".  Another
fine beginning of a two part episode and it will be interesting to see how
they attempt to wrap up all the loose ends. 

Claudia
E-Mail:  Claudia.Cauchon@unh.edu

P.S. My cat Muff (nickname Evil Muff) has a weird look in her eye as she
stares at me by the computer terminal, ahh. 

2/11/96

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