Gender Bender
From X-Files Wiki
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| Series: | The X-Files |
| Original Airdate: | January 21, 1994 |
| Production Number: | 1x13 |
| Date(s): | Unknown |
| Written by: | Larry Barber and Paul Barber |
| Directed by: | Rob Bowman |
Mulder and Scully investigate an enclosed community called the Kindred who appear to have the ability to switch gender.
Contents |
[edit] Summary
The episode opens in a dance club with a young man being taken by a young woman for an anonymous sexual encounter. The young man wretches and dies in a post-coital fit. Mulder and Scully are called to the scene and Mulder later explains that it is related to a dose of pheromones so strong that it kills the person involved. There is also ambiguity in similar murders as to the sex of the actual attacker. Evidence from the crime scene leads the duo to an Amish-type community in Massachusetts which Mulder calls The Kindred.
Mulder approaches some of The Kindred as they shop near a local store only to be shunned. Dana has better luck befriending a shy member who is left tending to the family horse, Alice. He tells her they are not meant to talk outside. Whilst shaking hands she experiences an intense feeling of what looks like pleasure.
The pair head up to the remote community and, whilst lost in the woods are surrounded by a group who demand they give up their weapons before they will be allowed to enter the village. Mulder and Scully are invited to a family dinner. Scully is distracted during dinner by the man from the food store who is sat beside her. A sick participant in the dinner is denied medical attention from Scully as it is suggested that they "take care of our own".
In another club a man convinces a reluctant young girl to dance with her by touching her hand in a similar experience to that of Scully earlier, and again a young woman does the same thing.
Mulder notices the lack of children in the community and states that he recognizes some of the same faces from photographs taken in the 1930s and, curious, returns to the village under the cover of night. An chanting drone can be heard across the village as the a lamp lit procession of The Kindred moves to a barn. They seem to be in a trance like state. The sick man from earlier is being carried, naked with a mark on his forehead. Afterward Mulder sneaks into the barn to see what is in the cellar whilst Scully is taken by the man she met earlier who claims to be able to give her information about the murderer, whom he calls "Brother Martin". Scully finds out that Martin found some magazines and was entranced by the trappings of the outside world. In the cellar the group can be seen bathing the body in a fat like jelly substance which also coats the wall of the tunnels. Mulder becomes trapped and hides in a crevice in the labyrinth where he discovers that these people are buried alive. The man then uses his power to seduce Scully who doesn't resist and is eventually rescued by Mulder and the try to leave the township just after Scully is ill.
The seduced man at the club is having relations with the girl in a parked car before a patrol office breaks them up. The young man wretches and the officer is disabled by the woman who is then reveal to look like a man.
The woman is in an apartment talking to a dead body claiming that "...the day is coming and they won't leave without me".
In a dark ally the man Scully befriended from the village accosts the man the FBI are chasing who take him away but not before knocking her out.
A return to the village to find the people involved leads to finding the underground tunnels blocked entirely. The show ends with Mulder and Scully walking around a large crop circle.
[edit] Background Information
- This was the first of The X-Files episodes to be written by a familial writing duo. Having previously co-produced "Eve" and "Beyond the Sea", brothers Larry and Paul Barber also co-produced this episode, ultimately the last of the series that they would work on.
- During the writing process, this episode went through various conceptual changes. Another alteration, one that was more specific, was made due to concerns regarding the content; the teaser sequence originally included a moment where a character's crotch started to rot away, but the sequence was quickly toned down, with co-executive producer R.W. Goodwin commenting, "If I was watching that episode with my kid, I'd turn it off".
- In several aspects, the fictional Kindred are similar to the actually existing Amish; both groups dress alike, shun modern conveniences and separate themselves from mainstream society. According to Chris Carter, however, he was not worried about the similarities, due to the fact that the Amish do not watch television.
- Director Rob Bowman made his debut on the series with this episode, though he would ultimately return to direct many others.
- The Kindred tunnels seen in this episode had to be specially constructed for the production. Rob Bowman found filming in the tunnels particularly cramped. Due to the tight logistics and close quarters involved, an extra day of filming was required.
- In the first scene of Act 1, Mulder and Scully inspect the crime scene with a Detective whose first line of dialogue is "New York businessman calls his wife to say good night, then goes out and picks up some chippy". While filming the scene, Mitch Kosterman - who had been cast as the Detective - knowingly made the ridiculous mistake of saying "chum chippy" instead of "some chippy". Mulder actor David Duchovny joshed him about the line for the rest of their time filming the scene together.
- Music heard in the nightclub in this episode's first scene is an excerpt from Mark Snow's theme music for the 1992 television movie In the Line of Duty: Street War.
- This episode features Nicholas Lea in his first role on The X-Files, but he would later return as recurring character Alex Krycek, starting with the Season 2 episode "Sleepless".
- Kate Twa, who plays the female half of the killer in this episode, would also reappear later in the series; she played Detective Kelly Ryan in the Season 2 episode "Soft Light".
[edit] Cast
[edit] Guest Starring
[edit] Co-Starring
- Peter Stebbings as Marty(Male)
- Kate Twa as Marty (Female)
- Nicholas Lea as Michel
- Mitchell Kosterman as Detective
- Paul Batten as Brother Wilson
- Doug Abrahams as Agent #2
[edit] Featuring
- Aundrea Macdonald as Pretty Woman
- John R. Taylor as Husband
- Grai Carrington as Tall Man
- Tony Morelli as Cop
- Lesley Ewen as Agent #1
- David Thomson as Brother Oakley
[edit] References
SEMICOLON-SEPARATED LIST OF ITEMS/LOCATIONS REFERENCED IN EPISODE (BUT NOT LINKED TO IF ALREADY LINKED IN SUMMARY OR GUEST STARS SECTIONS)
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