Shapes

Anyway you look at it, Shapes is an episode about a man turning into a werewolf. It's a standard werewolf story, with no real twist to it to make it more interesting. Having it be set among American Indians is the only thing that makes the story unique. As always, I try to find a silver lining even in the not-so-great episodes. Good things to look for in this episode includes some good Mulder and Scully dialog. I especially like when Lyle Parker describes how things around the ranch have been giving him the creeps lately. Scully says, "The creeps?". Lyle responds, "Yeah, the creeps. Don't you ever get the creeps?". It's funny because it makes Scully look like she's out of touch with the common man because she apparently doesn't recognize this common term. She's so used to using these huge vocabulary words, she doesn't recognize common slang words. I also like the special effect of the man transforming into the werewolf. I think it was well done. So, if you're into werewolf stories, Shapes is a passable episode for you.

Werewolves are admittedly not my favorite classic horror monsters, although there have definitely been some great portrayals in movies and TV (I think it's great when there's a fun spin put on it, like in "Dark Shadows", and even the more traditional "The Wolf Man" and "An American Werewolf in London" are terrific films). The problem is that they are SO overused that just about anything involving them, unless written especially well, is going to be so-so, and probably worse than that.

"Shapes" is definitely NOT especially well-written. There's a couple of good lines here and there, and some interesting background on the X-Files and their origin, and it's always nice to see Michael Horse from "Twin Peaks" make an appearance, and it's a nicely-shot David Nutter-directed episode so it never feels as taxing or boring as things like "Space" or "Teso dos Bichos", but it really isn't particularly good.

"Shapes" may put A spin on the traditional werewolf tale, by adding Native American folklore to the mix, but it's not an INTERESTING spin, which is what is needed to make a werewolf tale worthwhile. It's a generally poorly-written episode with some horribly cheesy moments, but not nearly as intolerable as the very worst episodes of the show are.

4/10

Honestly my favorite episode from season 1. The pacing is amazing, the mystery is great. ( even tho extremely predictable ) and i'd say what truly held this in place like a perfect glue was the atmosphere, the build up, the tension... it was all too good.

A different take in the Werewolf as we know, choosing a different name from an older legend, so clever.

Btw i've seen some people confused about Scully in this and all i can tell you is DENIAL. She is in extreme denial, she saw a Poltergheist in the other episode and was still in denial, i can't fathom people not realizing this about the character in season 1.

"Shapes," like fellow early episodes of The X-Files such as "The Jersey Devil," takes a page out of existing folklore and spins it on its head. In this case it is the Algonquian legend of the Manitou that is the topic du jour. The Manitou, traditionally speaking, is viewed as a spiritual being that can take the form of animals or other objects, guiding the world without directly interacting with it. This incarnation of that legend is far less benign, and could either be accused of being an insolent mis-portrayal or a blatant lack of attention to detail, but it's probably best not to factor in the original legend at all and take the episode at face value. This is sci-fi, after all.

Many fans tend to disregard this episode because of its rather thin plot, but in doing so overlook its surprisingly thicker facets. Right from the teaser David Nutter's color-rich direction immediately sucks the viewer into the foggy gloom of "Montana." Nutter directed several of the highly-regarded "classic" episodes from the show's first three seasons, and the same magic touch of those is entirely present in "Shapes." The bleak, mountainous imagery perfectly suits the paranormal overtones of the plot, and the funeral of Joe Goodensnake is just off-kilter enough to leave a memorable impression. Although I can imagine the early Spring climate may not have made filming this episode (or the following week's "Darkness Falls") a bundle of fun, it certainly made for some riveting atmosphere.

That's not to mention the work of a highly-competent guest cast featuring Twin Peaks alumni Michael Horse as Sheriff Tuscany, a figure caught in the social rift between the government and the Trego reservation, and Jimmy Herman, whose presence as the spiritual Ish is very reminiscent of the late, great Floyd Westerman's (who would first appear in the recurring role of Albert Hosteen the following year) and offers some orphic insight into Mulder's character. His monologue is truly a cool moment.

Unfortunately, despite all of this momentum, "Shapes" is still a werewolf episode, and because of that it's disappointingly but expectantly short on surprises. While this isn't the best episode of the first season, it's far from the worst, and it still amazes me how much better this is than later, similar efforts such as "Alpha." So I'll give it a 6 out of 10. Unessential, but not without its moments.

This is one of those episodes that has a historically bad reputation and, while it has its flaws, it's a pretty good episode all told.

The plot moves along at a good pace and it has a nice and tangible atmosphere.

As indicated, there are some flaws in the plot which I won't detail because I would prefer to avoid spoilers, but there are instances where evidence simply isn't looked into in any great detail, and that's frustrating. I'm referring to evidence that could be obtained with plaster casts, photographs, impressions and the like.

I also felt like the episode could have been longer, the ending seemed far too abrupt.

All that aside, I enjoyed it.