Humbug

not only on "The X Files", but just generally speaking of television. Rarely has such a twisted plot been so expertly handled and doused with some of the funniest humor you'll find just about anywhere.

The guest stars for this episode are phenomenal, especially Michael J. Anderson as Mr. Nutt (you might recognize him as The Man From Another Place on "Twin Peaks"). I don't want to say too much about the plot in case you haven't seen it yet, but it expertly keeps things under wraps until the final 15 minutes or so.

Direction, writing, sets, and acting combine to make this utter television perfection, one of the finest episodes you could hope to get out of The X Files. Unforgettable.

10/10

Humbug the Limerick:

A circus attraction gone wrong

Sticks his head where it doesn't belong

Making its killings

Now the Enigma its filling

And the Fiji Mermaid has moved along.

Humbug is the first comedy episode of the series written by Darin Morgan who would later bring us a few other great episodes including my favorite overall of the series "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose". A humbug is another word for a sideshow attraction which is exactly what the entire episode is about. The idea of having a trailer park where a bunch of circus freaks all live allows for all kinds of great comedic opportunities. I think one of the things I like most about this is how Mulder's humor is allowed to come out in this episode. Probably one of the better characters is the Conundrum "big jigsaw tattooed naked guy". In other words, great writing and great actors = great episode. 10/10.

'Nature abhors normality, maybe some mysteries are never meant to be solved.'

I loved this episode, it was a real change in tone and direction for the series. It was imaginative, it was different, and it was very, very funny.

Sometimes you watch an episode, and yes you're thrilled and entertain, but very rarely do you chuckle, if humour is overused, or is just plain bad it can be a disaster, here it works superbly well.

I loved the guest cast, we had some truly great performances in this episode.

It's very visual, with some great horror moments, I am unable to offer up any criticisms, or find any faults, this has been my favourite of Series two so far. 10/10.

The writing in season 2 is often, surprisingly, weaker than it was in season 1. And yet here with Humbug, we finally see the show find its voice. The X-Files could always do a Men in Black, Alien Mythos episode, Chris Carter always knew what he wanted from those, but everything else was a little bit shaky.

Here is an episode that relies entirely on its writing (admittedly with some pretty good guest actors appearing all the same) to achieve its success. It's funny, it's weird, it's a monster of the week, and it delivers everything you want from The X-Files. Of course it's always easier to note what doesn't work when reviewing a bad episode, than to recognize what does work when reviewing a good episode, but at least I can tell you, it does work.

Unlike the invisible elephant episode, new characters don't pile on pointless sub-plots or miscellaneous information, they're just there to entertain. The mid-episode revelation that the town sheriff was once a popular dog boy merely leads to Mulder and Scully feeling embarrassed about digging up his magical potato. And the real killer reveal is exactly what you were hoping for, ridiculously stupid sure, but so fun and awesome, and in sticking with the episodes theme, that it works perfectly.

Episodes like Beyond the Sea were great by leaning on acting talent, episodes like Young at Heart were good by relying on a police procedural formula competently executed, but this episode is the first episode that really reminded me of the feeling I get when somebody mentions The X-Files.

This is probably my favorite non-mythology episode. This series has more than its share of wacky and creepy characters, but this episode's a real showcase. Working my way through the full set on DVD, I'd forgotten that it came so early in the series. Both creepy and very funny, making good use of both David Duchovny's skilled delivery of Mulder's established quirky sense of humor, and letting Gillian Anderson display a few comedy timing chops of her own. And of course the late Vincent Schiavelli is excellent as always -- the world lost a gifted comedian with his passing. But the top honors go to Darin Morgan, for having the kind of strange mind that would think this stuff up in the first place.