Milagro

This episode is unique to say the least. It is really scary and weird thats for sure. Probably the weirdest episode of The X-Files ever. It shows the darker side of the human imagination, and a fatal attraction the writer Padgett has for Scully. Padgett develops an obsession with Scully and decides to write about her, which has deadly consequences. I love how the ending is so ambiguous and leaves you with more questions than answers. Was it all just imagined or did it actually happen? This episode is a classic X-File , and one of my favorites for sure. It has to be watched carefully and with full attention. Probably the best in season six.

Mulder's next door neighbour Phillip Padgett falls for Scully, and begins writing a book around her, Mulder is convinced he's linked to a series of murders, in which the victims have their hearts removed.

It's a good episode, it's one I found a little frustrating, it's good, it's actually really good, I just felt that there were the elements here to have turned this into a great episode, personally it doesn't quite reach those levels.

Pacing is a little too slow, it lacks a sense of urgency that I think would have worked quite well, I thought some of it was a little muddled.

On the plus side, The Mulder and Scully scenes were really great, and it featured some quite chilling scenes, the one with the young couple in the car, perhaps the best of them.

The best thing about his episode has to be the measured, creepy, oddly seductive performance by John Hawkes, who managed to make Phillip Padgett pretty sincere, without just making him the creep next door, he was great.

7/10.

Okay, I'm a writer and I find this episode annoying. And vain. What is this supposed to be, a meditation on the power of the imagination? Also, unless he's writing an autobiography or memoir (or a first novel), a writer should avoid injecting himself into the story, because that defeats the purpose of writing fiction. It's dull and self-centered. We write fiction precisely because our imaginations are much more lively than our lives.

That said, there are some nice Mulder-Scully moments in this episode.

Milagro. This is an interesting episode. While Scully is the main focus of the episode we get yet another episode where there is a strange creepy guy that Scully gets woo'ed by. I quite enjoy scenes where they have voice-over of what the author is writing to narrate Scully's emotions and thoughts. Very interesting. I also like the actor that plays Padgett. While this episode is a little slower than I am used to I have to say that overall I still enjoyed the story. It only loses 2 points for slowness. Oh one other thing. Is it just me or does every single Scully-falls-for-a-psycho-killer-man episode end with a furnace? Anyway 8 out of 10.

Addendum: After watching some of the interviews on the X-Files: Revelations compilation which this episode was included on, I have gained a deeper appreciation for this episode. Frank Spotnitz explains a little more about the deep relationship that a writer tends to develop with his character's. He talks about his own experiences with Mulder and Scully and how he viewed them as real people a lot of the time. This episode was an attempt to turn that idea into an X-File episode. In a sense, Padgett's obsession with Scully represents Spotnitz's own feelings.

"Milagro" is fascinating in that it questions the function and capabilities of an author. Reminiscent of philosopher Michel Foucault, it questions whether texts can remain independent of their authors. In fact, in this episode, the character of Phillip Padgett makes all the difference. Not only does he enter his own story, thereby removing the author/text barrier, but by doing so, he brings the text into the real world. His conversation with Mulder regarding the signification of words and the multi-layered aspect of language is further proof that "The X-Files" has some of the very best writing in television. John Hawkes makes an impressive performance as Padgett, bringing to life the solitary nature of writing. I highly recommend "Milagro" for its intellectual value. For those of you interested in this idea of authorship and identity, read "The New York Trilogy" by Paul Auster. You won't be disappointed.