VIENEN

AIR DATE: April 29, 2001
Written by Steven Maeda
Directed by Rod Hardy

        Is it me or does anyone else not care if any of these aliens take over the Earth? Or does everyone think as I do that these aliens are the dumbest alien invaders we have ever seen. Okay, let me get this straight, the Black Oil aliens plan on taking over the world via people filling up their cars or any other oil based products. Also, they have been hanging out in the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico for 1000 of years waiting for an oil company to come pump them out. Somewhere along the way they were able to infect the oil rig crew to do their bidding and for some reason they were using the radio to contact some alien ships who were going to fly to the rig for some unknown reason. Maybe they were coming to help coordinate getting the black oil off. Who cares. Too many aliens doing too many different things to try to take over the Earth. As I’ve stated before I’d really like to know why all these aliens want to take over the Earth because there sure seems to be a battle between different alien species who want to take us over.

        The real reason for this episode was to just have the big scene at the end of the episode where Mulder tells Doggett he’s been kicked off the force which at this point in the show seems utterly ridiculous considering all the other things he has done through the years. It is also ridiculous because of all the times he has been kicked off the X-Files. The other thing it shows is how they should have got rid of Mulder at the end of last season instead of the embarrassing non-search for Mulder we got all season then having him "dead" for 3 months and the miracle cure Scully is able figure out to save him. Oh yeah, it was a good way to get Doggett and Mulder to work together and since they had Mulder in jerk overdrive and Doggett in bull headed overdrive we knew how this was going to go with them both clashing over the investigation. In the end the investigation ends the way they all have the past 8 years they came back with nothing except a blown up oil rig. Same old, same old.

        A few comments on "Vienen":

• The Black Oil aliens need to learn how the Mafia takes care of a dead body they don’t want found because they sure did a lousy job getting rid of the body of Simon de la Cruz and the Communication Officer. They control the oil rig workers and they couldn’t just make de la Cruz’s body disappear and not wash up on shore or even mention the Communication Officer’s disappearance. Dumb Aliens.

• I was a little surprised to see Scully back to work considering she was in the hospital in last week’s episode almost losing her baby. You would think her doctors wouldn’t allow her back to work considering how many times she has been in the hospital with this kid. This inconsistency in the show makes it hard to take Scully’s pregnancy seriously since she doesn’t seem to.

• Mulder must have extra money on hand if he is able to arrange to get on the oil rig without F.B.I. authority.

• Why is it the 2^nd Communications officer doesn’t seem to get the radio working until he becomes infected unless it was that ship to shore radio they kept talking about.

• Who didn’t guess Doggett was going to get sucker punched by Diego Garza when Doggett went for another fire extinguisher. Well, we knew he couldn’t have done it to Mulder since this is Doggett’s show now.

• I was so scared when Kersh threatened to Scully and Skinner if they don’t stop doing things behind his back. What is he going to do, shut down the X-Files?

• What, Diego couldn’t have checked before Doggett woke up that he bled red blood. Also, I liked how Doggett kept talking English to Diego though he couldn’t understand it. Makes it easy for us, the viewer.

• The Black Oil aliens decide to blow up everything when the helicopter appeared. Hmm, I’m still trying to figure out how blowing up the oil rig helped them in their plans and how they couldn’t take care of two F.B.I. men. Yup, these are some incompetent aliens. Somehow I feel the world is safe.

• What was really disturbing was seeing the preview for the next new episode of "Boston Public" and seeing John Francis Daley who played the nerdy Sam Weir on
  "Freaks and Geeks" last year playing a teenager who has made up a hit list. I couldn’t help thinking this is Sam Weir 20 years later. Creepy.

        "Vienen" had the typical plot problems we have seen this year. Now we have Mulder kicked off the force something they should have done last season. What’s next, they are going to close down the X-Files? Somehow this seems all old news nowadays. As always though with Mulder in the episode it made it better than it should have been. Never thought I would miss Mulder.

Claudia

E-Mail: Claudia.Cauchon@unh.edu

04/30/01

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