One Breath

The return of Scully should have been more dramatic than it was portrayed. The entire episode revolved around sentiments of mulder towards Scully and less about finding out the truth. The story also portrayed Mulder as a weak person in the sense that he tendered his resignation and did not pushed hard enough to find out the truth. The scene when he was in the room with the cancer man could have been more intense and when he was presented with the chance of taking revenge he bailed just because of some sentimental carp Scully's sister fed him with. I am sorry but i was expecting more form Mulder than this. After all the X files are all about finding the truth than building emotions.

I wish this had been transmitted before 3, this seems to complete a trio of episodes, concluding the events that started in Duane Barry. Whereas 3 almost ignore Dana, this focuses primarily on her.

I enjoyed this episode very much, and for different reasons, I love X files because of the horror, tension, excitement, this was great for different reasons. This is a hightened emotional episode, and does a lot to drive the characters of Mulder and Skinner primarily.

Mulder learns more about those around him, it's a powerful, revealing episode.

Duchovny is tremendous throughout, that scene where he breaks down was so sad.

Excellent, 9/10.

The real star of this episode? Scully's boobs. I realize that Anderson had just given birth a few days before this episode was filmed but damn... Every time the cameras focused on her body, her bosoms looked like huge mountains (like 'The Breasts of Sheba in the second Librarian movie). It was almost like the writer's were purposely focusing on that aspect! Also, why wasn't Scully ever covered with a blanket when she was in ICU? Seems to me that keeping a patient warm would be a top priority.

Also, CSM escapes retribution again! The fact that he was still alive at the end of this series always pi**ed me off. If anyone deserved to be tortured & experimented on by the 'Aliens", it was CSM!

I love this series, especially the first few seasons.

This is the last part of a trilogy of sorts that started with Duane Barry.

Touted as a character-driven triumph for the show, for my taste this plays like better-than-average soap, but still dull as dishwater. The X-file problem is that there is no multifaceted vision behind the whole, oh there is some noodling with dreams in this episode and the usual conspiracy that goes nowhere and we're supposed to find exciting and 'deep', but what we see in any given portion of this is crushingly pedantic.

You'll see no better example of what I'm talking about than in Scully's deathbed dreams; Scully on the boat is certainly a memorable image, but the whole layering is trite, we know exactly what is the dream's distance from reality, who is dreaming and what it means, all perfectly clear which defeats the point of wanting to know.

Further proof; the episode ends with the usual 'we have no such person working here' twist.

One Breath could be the best myth/arc episode of them all. Mulder's mad scramble to save Scully's life leaves you breathless. With all the scenes of Mulder running around and confronting people, you need some scenes to relax and take a breather. One Breath accomplishes that with the hospital scenes and Scully's other-worldly experience. It makes for an episode that paces itself well, mixing the drama with the action to perfection. The introduction of Melissa, Scully's sister is nice. It's funny to see a sibling so completely opposite of Scully. My favorite scene is with Mulder, X and overcoat man down in the parking garage. The execution of overcoat man using silhouettes instead of a direct camera shot is great cinematography. The confrontation between Mulder and CSM is also awesome. Plus, with the appearance of the Lone Gunmen for some comedy relief, this episode is extremely well-rounded. One Breath is an A+.