Release

This episode is just like Putin when you ask him about the Russian doping scandal. He will talk sublimely for three-quarters of an hour, but you won't learn anything about it except that the two main witnesses are already dead.

Agent Doggett gets a lead about the death of his son, a student of Scully's helps out, putting the pieces together.

I have to take issue with some of the fans that told me I'd loathe series nine, there have been some excellent episodes, and this is yet another. A very, very good, action packed episode, fast paced and gritty, it felt as though we get some resolution for Agent Doggett.

Very, very well written, and immaculately produced, it's hard to pick fault here with anything, more along the lines of a thriller this one.

Robert Patrick was fantastic here, what a great actor he is, he's been terrific this series, he gave a wonderful performance in particular in this episode.

Jared Poe was awesome a Hayes I thought, what a fascinating character, a shame we didn't get to see more of him, but having just checked, the show is very close to its original end.

8/10.

-- Release --

One of my all time favourite X-Files episodes.

For all those who are complaining about season 9, I recommend them watching the four last episodes (William, Release, Sunshine Days & The Truth) - they are all some of the episodes I remember best from this brilliant TV series.

This episode is not about aliens and UFOs, it's a kind of mystery/detective episode - where Dogget is trying to find a serial killer. Everything in this episode is so well made, the acting is brilliant and the story is truly fascinating. And then it's the music...

.. simply one of the best classical scores I've heard. I get goosebumps whenever I hear the classical anthem in this episode.. it should probably have been played even more. It get's you into the right mood right from the very beginning to the last emotional scene..

I recommend Release highly, even for those who don't like X-Files as well.... Full score from me. A must see!

After almost finishing season 9 I can say whole heartedly that we were not fair to Robert Patrick, John Doggett or season 9. This episode solidified that for me.

Fantastic characters, especially Cadet Hayes....

I've seen the kid on an episode of Firefly as well. Here, he was born to play this part. I haven't seen him much after 2014, I always wonder what became of actors like this, who basically got their breakthrough parts accidentally.

We were introduced to John Doggett's son in season eight's "Invocation" with the equally brilliant Rodney Eastman ("Sammael" from the Millennium episode "Powers, principalities, thrones and dominions"). All we knew from that episode, was that Doggett had a son who had passed away, sparking Doggett's special interest in children's cases, which was part of his work when he was a cop in New York.

Poe is apparently an FBI cadet "Rudolph Hayes" who has special insight into violent crime, he can piece together a profile from microscopic pieces of evidence garnered from things like bodies and photographs of murder scenes. Even the dirt underneath a corpses fingernails, with this person every detail paints a larger picture, The smaller the detail, the larger the picture.

As we go along we realize that this person is highly obsessive, there is a reason for this.

The lid is also blown off of A. D. Follmer's relationship to a New York City mafia thug who apparently never gets charged with any crime worse than jaywalking even though he is constantly involved in heinous crimes. There is a reason for this as well, and as Monica Reyes was dating Follmer during that time, she starts piecing together things that she has seen, and it paints another ugly picture.

But all things being equal, nothing is as it seems. Not Hayes, not Follmer, and not this case, where a tip sent to Doggett is the very small beginning of a huge avalanche.

This episode is the culmination of a slow burn introduction that over the course of several episodes in season eight and nine, we get told the entire story about Doggett's son and the grisly circumstances and people surrounding his death. This was cleverly seeded in episodes like "Invocation", "Empedocles" and "John Doe". And because the story was told over a length of time and in small pieces, it gives this episode revelatory power, which would have failed if the wrong actor had been selected to play Hayes. Everything about the portrayal was perfect, Poe added a permanent scowl to the character of Hayes which gives an impression of seriousness. And when the doors are blow off of this case, we find out exactly how serious.

Robert Patrick's real life wife Barbara appears as John Doggetts ex-wife, and this little bit of reality adds more believability.