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Darkness Falls (The X-Files)
Encyclopedia
"Darkness Falls" is the twentieth episode of the first season
of the American science fiction
television series The X-Files
. It premiered on the Fox network
on April 15, 1994. "Darkness Falls" was written by series creator Chris Carter
, and directed by Joe Napolitano
. It featured guest appearances by Jason Beghe
and Titus Welliver
. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology
. "Darkness Falls" earned a Nielsen household rating of 8.0, being watched by 7.5 million people in its initial broadcast; and received positive reviews, earning an Environmental Media Award for its treatment of illegal logging.
FBI
special agents Dana Scully
(Gillian Anderson
) and Fox Mulder
(David Duchovny
), who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-File
s, are called in to investigate when a team of loggers disappear without a trace. Initially suspecting eco-terrorism, the agents find themselves trapped by a seemingly ancient menace lurking in the woods.
in Washington State, a group of loggers flee through the woods, trying to escape from an unseen force. They are eventually killed by a large swarm of small glowing green insects.
Later, in his office, Agent Mulder
shows partner Agent Scully
a photo of the missing loggers, telling her that another group of loggers also disappeared in 1934. The two agents head to the forest, where they meet Park Ranger
Larry Moore and Steve Humphreys, head of security for the logging company. While driving through the forest, their truck hits caltrop
s left in the ground by eco-terrorists
, forcing them to walk the rest of the way. Upon arriving at the camp site, Mulder and Scully find the cabins abandoned and the communication equipment destroyed. Searching the forest, they find a corpse encased in a large cocoon hanging from a tree.
Humphreys works on fixing the heat generator at one of the cabins and catches an eco-terrorist, Doug Spinney, who tells the group that there's a deadly swarm of insects in the forest and that they must avoid darkness to stay alive. The next morning, they find an old-growth tree cut down, with an unexplained band of green contained within its growth rings. Spinney suspects that an organism that was dormant in the tree for centuries was disturbed when the tree was cut down. Humphreys hikes down to the ranger's truck, but is killed by the swarm at nightfall. In the cabin, everyone else is kept safe by the light. The next morning, Spinney convinces Mulder to let him hike to his colleagues with gasoline
so he can return with a Jeep to pick them up. Scully and Moore become upset with Mulder, since he will leave them with little fuel for the generator.
The night passes with only a single light bulb lighting the cabin, going out just as morning arrives. Spinney returns with the Jeep, telling the others his colleagues all died. They leave the camp site. The Jeep hits another spike left in the ground, and Spinney is killed when he leaves the Jeep after dark. Moore and the agents are engulfed by the insects, who enter the vehicle through the air conditioning
. They are found soon after and brought to a quarantined facility, where one of the scientists tells Mulder that the forest is being bombarded with pesticides and controlled fire in the hopes of eradicating the insects.
; a subject that involves analyzing annual growth rings found in non-tropical tree species; as he believed that trees that were "thousands of years old" might end up acting as "time capsules" which would shed light on past events or species. Carter also credits the episode's ominous ending with his experience growing up in the era following the Watergate scandal
, having spent his life coming to mistrust the government profoundly. The green insects in this episode were primarily computer-generated and added in during the post-production process. The close up shots of the bugs were done using microscopic photography of mites.
The episode was intended to be a bottle episode
, meaning that it would be an episode that would be based in a single location and help save money, but bad weather plagued production and it was one of the toughest episodes for the crew of the season. The episode was shot on location in Lynn Valley
, British Columbia
, in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve—known as the Seymour Demonstration Forest. The atmosphere amongst many of the crew had grown quite tense towards the end of the shooting schedule, which culminated in a heated argument between director Joe Napolitano
and first assistant director Vladimir Steffof, after which Napolitano would not appear on location again. "Darkness Falls" would be the last episode of the series Napolitano would direct. The weather delayed production at the site so much that pick-up shots and inserts had to be filmed at a later date to finish the episode. Delays were also caused by the inaccessibility of the location, as only generators, camera equipment and first aid crew were able to stay on-site, and time was wasted commuting staff in each day. Jason Beghe, who played Ranger Larry Moore, was a childhood friend of David Duchovny and helped convince him to pursue an acting career. The camaraderie between the two actors is said to have helped lighten the mood during the episode's difficult production.
on April 15, 1994, and was first broadcast in the United Kingdom
on BBC Two
on February 9, 1995. This episode earned a Nielsen rating of 8.0, with a 14 share, meaning that roughly 8 percent of all television-equipped households, and 14 percent of households watching television, were tuned in to the episode. It was viewed by 7.5 million households.
In a retrospective of the first season in Entertainment Weekly
, "Darkness Falls" was rated a B, with the episode being called an "eerie outing" set against a "torn-from-today's-headlines backdrop". Zack Handlen, writing for The A.V. Club
, called "Darkness Falls" an "excellent" episode that "hits the right notes". He praised the episode's setting, comparing it to the earlier first season episode "Ice"; and felt that the "on-the-nose" approach to the environmental themes worked well. Matt Haigh, writing for Den of Geek, felt positively about the episode's ambiguous resolution, feeling that its "open-ended treatment" lent the episode "a real mysticism and strength"; and finding that the episode held a sense of "weight, credibility, and intrigue". Writers for IGN
named the episode their fifth-favourite standalone episode of the show, finding that it "boasts several interesting twists", and noting positively the episode's "smart" environmental themes.
Although writer and series creator Chris Carter claims "Darkness Falls" was not written with an environmental message in mind, the episode was honored at the fourth annual Environmental Media Awards
in 1994, winning in the "Television Episodic Drama" category. The plot for "Darkness Falls" was also adapted as a novel for young adults in 1995 by Les Martin
.
The X-Files (season 1)
The first season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 10, 1993 and concluded on the same channel on May 13, 1994 after airing all 24 episodes....
of the American science fiction
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
television series The X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
. It premiered on the Fox network
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
on April 15, 1994. "Darkness Falls" was written by series creator Chris Carter
Chris Carter (screenwriter)
Christopher Carl Carter is an American screenwriter, film director and producer. He is the creator of The X-Files and Millennium.- Ten Thirteen Productions :...
, and directed by Joe Napolitano
Joe Napolitano
Joseph Ralph Napolitano in Udine, Italy) is an American film and television director who has worked in the in the film and televison industries since the mid-1970s directing both TV films and multiple episodic series.-Career:...
. It featured guest appearances by Jason Beghe
Jason Beghe
Jason Beghe is an American film and television actor and critic of Scientology. As a young man he attended the Collegiate School in New York City, where he became best friends with John F. Kennedy, Jr. and David Duchovny. Beghe is married and lives in Los Angeles, California.Beghe starred in the...
and Titus Welliver
Titus Welliver
Titus Welliver is an American actor. He is best known for his recurring roles on the television shows Deadwood, Lost, Sons of Anarchy and The Good Wife...
. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology
Mythology of The X-Files
The mythology of The X-Files, sometimes referred to as its mytharc by the show's staff and fans, follows the quest of FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder , a believer in supernatural phenomena, and Dana Scully , his skeptical partner. Their boss, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner was also often...
. "Darkness Falls" earned a Nielsen household rating of 8.0, being watched by 7.5 million people in its initial broadcast; and received positive reviews, earning an Environmental Media Award for its treatment of illegal logging.
FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
special agents Dana Scully
Dana Scully
FBI Special Agent Dana Katherine Scully, M.D. is a fictional character and protagonist on the Fox television series The X-Files , played by Gillian Anderson. She also appeared in two theatrical films based on the series...
(Gillian Anderson
Gillian Anderson
Gillian Leigh Anderson is an American actress.After beginning her career in theatre, Anderson achieved international recognition for her role as Special Agent Dana Scully on the American television series The X-Files. During the show's nine seasons, Anderson won Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen...
) and Fox Mulder
Fox Mulder
FBI Special Agent Fox William Mulder is a fictional character and protagonist in the American Fox television shows The X-Files and The Lone Gunmen, two science fiction shows about a government conspiracy to hide or deny the truth of Alien existence. Mulder's peers consider his theories on...
(David Duchovny
David Duchovny
David William Duchovny is an American actor, writer and director. He has won Golden Globe awards for his work as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files and as Hank Moody on Californication.-Early life:...
), who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-File
X-file
On the television series The X-Files, an X-File is a fictional case that has been deemed unsolvable by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The files constitute an unassigned project outside the Bureau mainstream that is more or less concerned with unexplained phenomena. -First X-Files:The very...
s, are called in to investigate when a team of loggers disappear without a trace. Initially suspecting eco-terrorism, the agents find themselves trapped by a seemingly ancient menace lurking in the woods.
Plot
In Olympic National ForestOlympic National Forest
Olympic National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in Washington, USA. With an area of 633,677 acres , it nearly surrounds Olympic National Park and the Olympic Mountain range. Olympic National Forest contains parts of Clallam, Grays Harbor, Jefferson, and Mason counties...
in Washington State, a group of loggers flee through the woods, trying to escape from an unseen force. They are eventually killed by a large swarm of small glowing green insects.
Later, in his office, Agent Mulder
Fox Mulder
FBI Special Agent Fox William Mulder is a fictional character and protagonist in the American Fox television shows The X-Files and The Lone Gunmen, two science fiction shows about a government conspiracy to hide or deny the truth of Alien existence. Mulder's peers consider his theories on...
shows partner Agent Scully
Dana Scully
FBI Special Agent Dana Katherine Scully, M.D. is a fictional character and protagonist on the Fox television series The X-Files , played by Gillian Anderson. She also appeared in two theatrical films based on the series...
a photo of the missing loggers, telling her that another group of loggers also disappeared in 1934. The two agents head to the forest, where they meet Park Ranger
Park ranger
A park ranger or forest ranger is a person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands – national, state, provincial, or local parks. Different countries use different names for the position. Ranger is the favored term in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Within the United...
Larry Moore and Steve Humphreys, head of security for the logging company. While driving through the forest, their truck hits caltrop
Caltrop
A caltrop is an antipersonnel weapon made up of two or more sharp nails or spines arranged in such a manner that one of them always points upward from a stable base...
s left in the ground by eco-terrorists
Eco-terrorism
Eco-terrorism usually refers to acts of violence or sabotage committed in support of ecological, environmental, or animal rights causes against persons or their property....
, forcing them to walk the rest of the way. Upon arriving at the camp site, Mulder and Scully find the cabins abandoned and the communication equipment destroyed. Searching the forest, they find a corpse encased in a large cocoon hanging from a tree.
Humphreys works on fixing the heat generator at one of the cabins and catches an eco-terrorist, Doug Spinney, who tells the group that there's a deadly swarm of insects in the forest and that they must avoid darkness to stay alive. The next morning, they find an old-growth tree cut down, with an unexplained band of green contained within its growth rings. Spinney suspects that an organism that was dormant in the tree for centuries was disturbed when the tree was cut down. Humphreys hikes down to the ranger's truck, but is killed by the swarm at nightfall. In the cabin, everyone else is kept safe by the light. The next morning, Spinney convinces Mulder to let him hike to his colleagues with gasoline
Gasoline
Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
so he can return with a Jeep to pick them up. Scully and Moore become upset with Mulder, since he will leave them with little fuel for the generator.
The night passes with only a single light bulb lighting the cabin, going out just as morning arrives. Spinney returns with the Jeep, telling the others his colleagues all died. They leave the camp site. The Jeep hits another spike left in the ground, and Spinney is killed when he leaves the Jeep after dark. Moore and the agents are engulfed by the insects, who enter the vehicle through the air conditioning
Air conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
. They are found soon after and brought to a quarantined facility, where one of the scientists tells Mulder that the forest is being bombarded with pesticides and controlled fire in the hopes of eradicating the insects.
Production
Chris Carter was inspired to write this episode based on an interest in dendrochronologyDendrochronology
Dendrochronology or tree-ring dating is the scientific method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree-rings. Dendrochronology can date the time at which tree rings were formed, in many types of wood, to the exact calendar year...
; a subject that involves analyzing annual growth rings found in non-tropical tree species; as he believed that trees that were "thousands of years old" might end up acting as "time capsules" which would shed light on past events or species. Carter also credits the episode's ominous ending with his experience growing up in the era following the Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
, having spent his life coming to mistrust the government profoundly. The green insects in this episode were primarily computer-generated and added in during the post-production process. The close up shots of the bugs were done using microscopic photography of mites.
The episode was intended to be a bottle episode
Bottle episode
The term bottle episode is used in episodic television to refer to episodes which are produced using the least money, and restricted in their scope to use as few, or no, non-regular cast members, effects, and sets as possible...
, meaning that it would be an episode that would be based in a single location and help save money, but bad weather plagued production and it was one of the toughest episodes for the crew of the season. The episode was shot on location in Lynn Valley
Lynn Valley
Lynn Valley is a neighbourhood of North Vancouver, British Columbia. Located at the northern edge of Metro Vancouver, it is nestled between the forested slopes of Mount Fromme and Mount Seymour...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve—known as the Seymour Demonstration Forest. The atmosphere amongst many of the crew had grown quite tense towards the end of the shooting schedule, which culminated in a heated argument between director Joe Napolitano
Joe Napolitano
Joseph Ralph Napolitano in Udine, Italy) is an American film and television director who has worked in the in the film and televison industries since the mid-1970s directing both TV films and multiple episodic series.-Career:...
and first assistant director Vladimir Steffof, after which Napolitano would not appear on location again. "Darkness Falls" would be the last episode of the series Napolitano would direct. The weather delayed production at the site so much that pick-up shots and inserts had to be filmed at a later date to finish the episode. Delays were also caused by the inaccessibility of the location, as only generators, camera equipment and first aid crew were able to stay on-site, and time was wasted commuting staff in each day. Jason Beghe, who played Ranger Larry Moore, was a childhood friend of David Duchovny and helped convince him to pursue an acting career. The camaraderie between the two actors is said to have helped lighten the mood during the episode's difficult production.
Broadcast and reception
"Darkness Falls" premiered on the Fox networkFox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
on April 15, 1994, and was first broadcast in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
on February 9, 1995. This episode earned a Nielsen rating of 8.0, with a 14 share, meaning that roughly 8 percent of all television-equipped households, and 14 percent of households watching television, were tuned in to the episode. It was viewed by 7.5 million households.
In a retrospective of the first season in Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
, "Darkness Falls" was rated a B, with the episode being called an "eerie outing" set against a "torn-from-today's-headlines backdrop". Zack Handlen, writing for The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
, called "Darkness Falls" an "excellent" episode that "hits the right notes". He praised the episode's setting, comparing it to the earlier first season episode "Ice"; and felt that the "on-the-nose" approach to the environmental themes worked well. Matt Haigh, writing for Den of Geek, felt positively about the episode's ambiguous resolution, feeling that its "open-ended treatment" lent the episode "a real mysticism and strength"; and finding that the episode held a sense of "weight, credibility, and intrigue". Writers for IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
named the episode their fifth-favourite standalone episode of the show, finding that it "boasts several interesting twists", and noting positively the episode's "smart" environmental themes.
Although writer and series creator Chris Carter claims "Darkness Falls" was not written with an environmental message in mind, the episode was honored at the fourth annual Environmental Media Awards
Environmental Media Awards
The Environmental Media Awards have been awarded by the Environmental Media Association since 1991 to the best television episode or film with an environmental message....
in 1994, winning in the "Television Episodic Drama" category. The plot for "Darkness Falls" was also adapted as a novel for young adults in 1995 by Les Martin
Les Martin
Les Martin is an American writer, especially of books for young readers. He has written several books in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and The X-Files series.- The X-Files juvenile series :*X Marks the Spot...
.