Conduit

Conduit is a vital link in the story of The X Files, it is here that we learn why Mulder is the way he is, and why The X Files, essentially exists. We get a tonne of detail here, it's key for the future of the show.

The episode itself is very good, it's not a favourite from this outstanding first series, but the quality is very much there.

You begin to see how the dynamic between Mulder and Scully is really beginning to change, she's still sceptical, but is beginning to open her eyes.

Duchovny is tremendous here, he's so good.

Very good, 7/10.

This episode Conduit brings a part of Mulder's childhood to the fore.We learn his sister Samantha was abducted when he was young and he was unfortunate enough to witness the event.Also Mulder's determination to succeed in his field of work stems from this event.He clearly would go to any lengths to find out the truth about his sister's disapperance.Though Scully admires his intense determination and drive she feels sometimes Mulder's judgement is clouded sometimes.This is a reoccurring theme on the x-files and for that reason alone helped to sustain the interest of many viewers who watched the show.Conduit is a starting part of a long quest for the truth

Conduit is one of the essential episodes of the first season of The X-Files, perhaps even of the entire series, as it marks the debut of the mythology storyline's most important and affecting subplot: Mulder's search for his sister.

The case begins with the disappearance of a young girl whose mother claims to have been abducted by aliens in the past. While Mulder and Scully set out to find the girl, it is revealed that Mulder's sister Samantha was abducted when he was twelve, and that incident is what eventually led to his belief in the paranormal and his work on the X-Files. Scully fears her partner might be taking the whole thing too personal, but has to admit they're probably onto something when the US government takes an interest in the missing girl's younger brother, who receives compromising information through a television set.

Apart from Mulder's usual spot-on remarks ("How can an eight-year old boy who can barely multiply be a threat to national security? And they call me paranoid!") and the postmodern use of the TV medium within the show (something that will occur several more times), the heart of Conduit is its digging into the hidden core of the show's male protagonist: childhood trauma is often used - or rather misused - as a dramatic device to explain a character's choices, but the careful writing and Duchovny's heartfelt performance give the back-story more substance than it would have in another program. This episode really establishes Mulder as a flesh-and-blood individual instead of a caricature of a conspiracy theorist, and it's very easy to share his hope when he utters a line that, much like "The truth is out there", came to define the series: "I want to believe...".

Conduit introduces us to Samantha Mulder, Fox Mulder's little sister. She was abducted in front of Fox when they were kids. This episode essentially jump starts a large quantity of myth/arc episodes dealing with Mulder's search for Samantha. In this episode, however, it is just a side plot. The story of Mulder's sister is used as a reason for Scully to question Mulder's real reasons for investigating this case, and whether or not it is clouding his judgment. I think that it's the issue of Mulder's sister that makes this a good episode. The disappearance of Ruby is just a plot device to assist the more important storyline of Mulder's mission of finding his sister. Mulder's search for Samantha is a big reason for my interest in the show. It was fascinating to see the lengths he would go to to uncover the truth about what happened to his sister. And for the viewer, this is where it all begins.

"Conduit" does what "Pilot" and "Deep Throat" did... but better. At least in my opinion, since the rating for this is lower than them. But I stand by my rating. This episode doesn't make the mistake of showing too much, hence the lack of cheesy and corny effects. It also has more substance with Mulder's character arc playing an important part with the main plot.

I should've written these reviews right after watching the episodes... now I can't write in-depth.