The Blessing Way (The X-Files)
Encyclopedia
"The Blessing Way" is a 1995 episode of The X-Files
television series
. It was the first episode broadcast in the show's third season. The Blessing Way continues from the previous season's finale and surrounds Mulder's apparent death and the conspiracy's pursuit of a digital cassette containing the government's secrets on aliens.
copy of the tape, saying it is in Mulder's possession. Upon return to Washington, Scully is put on mandatory leave and is forced to turn in her badge and gun. Scully complains privately to Skinner. Upon returning to her office in the basement, she finds the digital tape missing.
In New York City, the Cigarette Smoking Man meets with a group of older men (known as the "Syndicate"), including the First Elder and the Well Manicured Man, who question him to ensure that their work hasn't been compromised. Mulder, still alive but severely wounded, is found buried under some rocks near the box car. Albert begins the Blessing Way chant in order to heal Mulder.
Frohike arrives at Scully's apartment and shows her a newspaper article reporting the death of Kenneth Soona. Mulder has visions of both Deep Throat and his father. Scully returns to FBI headquarters and the metal detector oddly goes off as she enters. She shows Skinner the newspaper article, thinking that the data from Soona's death can clear Mulder in his father's murder, but Skinner refuses to do any follow-up on it. Leaving the building, Scully has a hunch upon seeing the metal detector again that leads to locating metal in the back of her neck. Scully sees a doctor, who removes a small metal implant.
Scully sees her sister Melissa about the implant, and she urges her to see a regression hypnotherapist to recover her lost memories. Scully heads there, but becomes scared and stops the session. Returning home, she finds Skinner leaving her apartment and driving off. Mulder, recovered from the Blessing Way chant, is told by Albert that he can't bathe or change clothes for four days. Scully calls Skinner, who denies showing up at her apartment.
Scully heads to Boston for Mulder's father's funeral and introduces herself to his mother. Afterwards the Well Manicured Man introduces himself to Scully and warns her that she is about to be killed, either by someone she knows, or by two men who will kill her at her home. Mulder returns to his mother's home in Connecticut and questions her about a photo of his father from 1972.
Melissa calls Scully and tells her she is coming over. After receiving a call from someone who immediately hangs up, Scully leaves her apartment and tells Melissa that she'll head to her home instead. As she leaves, Skinner pulls up in his car, telling her they need to speak in private. They head for Mulder's apartment. Melissa shows up soon afterwards and is mistakenly shot by Luis Cardinal, who is hiding there with Alex Krycek. Realizing they shot the wrong person, the two flee. At Mulder's apartment, Scully holds Skinner at gunpoint, thinking he's going to kill her. Skinner tells Scully that he is in possession of the digital tape. Just then, someone steps outside the door. This distracts Scully enough for Skinner to pull out his gun on her.
said of the episode "The expectations were very high coming after a summer's worth of anticipation to see how Mulder got out of the boxcar. We knew we had to answer that question and still leave an intriguing enough dilemma at the end of the show to bring viewers back for the third and final part. I also thought it was a big gamble to do all that Indian mysticism stuff. I thought a lot of people would not necessarily respond to that. So I was nervous about that, but very excited about the Scully storyline and the way all of that played out with Mulder and Skinner." Series creator Chris Carter
attended Navajo chants and rituals in order to ensure the accuracy of the events in this episode, after being alerted to inaccuracies in the previous episode by Navajo scholars. A sand painter was brought in to create the two sand paintings for the Blessing Way sequence, which took an entire day to create.
Visual effects producer Mat Beck considered the sequence where Fox Mulder
has a vision of Deep Throat and his father the most difficult of the season. The end of the episode reads "In Memoriam, Larry Wells, 1946 - 1995." Wells was a costume designer on the show. Mark Snow
slightly changed the piano melody from the opening theme music (and the corresponding shortened theme in the credits) from the first two seasons in this episode. The music would remain unchanged for several years. The title of the episode refers to Navajo
ceremony of the Blessing Way. This is the first episode where Mitch Pileggi
is credited under Also Starring at the opening credits.
was somewhat disappointed with the episode, hoping he'd have had a chance to do more in an episode that was primarily a symbolic journey for him rather than a real one. The actor said "I like the psychology, and I like the thinking that went into the episode as a viewer. As an actor, I felt like an opportunity passed me by. If I had to do any episode over again, it would be that one." The actor called the episode in 1995 the greatest missed opportunity they had. Chris Carter
disagreed, stating that it was Fox Mulder
's proper role in the episode was the right way to do it and that the dramatic weight for the episode had to be shifted from Mulder to Dana Scully
.
This episode earned a Nielsen rating of 12.3, with a 22 share. It was viewed by 19.94 million people, making it the most viewed episode of season 3.
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...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
. It was the first episode broadcast in the show's third season. The Blessing Way continues from the previous season's finale and surrounds Mulder's apparent death and the conspiracy's pursuit of a digital cassette containing the government's secrets on aliens.
Plot
Albert Hosteen and his family are beaten up by the Cigarette Smoking Man's subordinates, who are searching for the whereabouts of Mulder. Scully is pursued by a helicopter and soldiers arrive that take all her paper copies of Albert's translations of the digital tape. Scully denies having the DATDigital Audio Tape
Digital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987. In appearance it is similar to a compact audio cassette, using 4 mm magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As...
copy of the tape, saying it is in Mulder's possession. Upon return to Washington, Scully is put on mandatory leave and is forced to turn in her badge and gun. Scully complains privately to Skinner. Upon returning to her office in the basement, she finds the digital tape missing.
In New York City, the Cigarette Smoking Man meets with a group of older men (known as the "Syndicate"), including the First Elder and the Well Manicured Man, who question him to ensure that their work hasn't been compromised. Mulder, still alive but severely wounded, is found buried under some rocks near the box car. Albert begins the Blessing Way chant in order to heal Mulder.
Frohike arrives at Scully's apartment and shows her a newspaper article reporting the death of Kenneth Soona. Mulder has visions of both Deep Throat and his father. Scully returns to FBI headquarters and the metal detector oddly goes off as she enters. She shows Skinner the newspaper article, thinking that the data from Soona's death can clear Mulder in his father's murder, but Skinner refuses to do any follow-up on it. Leaving the building, Scully has a hunch upon seeing the metal detector again that leads to locating metal in the back of her neck. Scully sees a doctor, who removes a small metal implant.
Scully sees her sister Melissa about the implant, and she urges her to see a regression hypnotherapist to recover her lost memories. Scully heads there, but becomes scared and stops the session. Returning home, she finds Skinner leaving her apartment and driving off. Mulder, recovered from the Blessing Way chant, is told by Albert that he can't bathe or change clothes for four days. Scully calls Skinner, who denies showing up at her apartment.
Scully heads to Boston for Mulder's father's funeral and introduces herself to his mother. Afterwards the Well Manicured Man introduces himself to Scully and warns her that she is about to be killed, either by someone she knows, or by two men who will kill her at her home. Mulder returns to his mother's home in Connecticut and questions her about a photo of his father from 1972.
Melissa calls Scully and tells her she is coming over. After receiving a call from someone who immediately hangs up, Scully leaves her apartment and tells Melissa that she'll head to her home instead. As she leaves, Skinner pulls up in his car, telling her they need to speak in private. They head for Mulder's apartment. Melissa shows up soon afterwards and is mistakenly shot by Luis Cardinal, who is hiding there with Alex Krycek. Realizing they shot the wrong person, the two flee. At Mulder's apartment, Scully holds Skinner at gunpoint, thinking he's going to kill her. Skinner tells Scully that he is in possession of the digital tape. Just then, someone steps outside the door. This distracts Scully enough for Skinner to pull out his gun on her.
Production
Frank SpotnitzFrank Spotnitz
Frank Spotnitz is an award-winning American television writer and producer, best known for his work on The X-Files television series.-Biography:...
said of the episode "The expectations were very high coming after a summer's worth of anticipation to see how Mulder got out of the boxcar. We knew we had to answer that question and still leave an intriguing enough dilemma at the end of the show to bring viewers back for the third and final part. I also thought it was a big gamble to do all that Indian mysticism stuff. I thought a lot of people would not necessarily respond to that. So I was nervous about that, but very excited about the Scully storyline and the way all of that played out with Mulder and Skinner." 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 :...
attended Navajo chants and rituals in order to ensure the accuracy of the events in this episode, after being alerted to inaccuracies in the previous episode by Navajo scholars. A sand painter was brought in to create the two sand paintings for the Blessing Way sequence, which took an entire day to create.
Visual effects producer Mat Beck considered the sequence where 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...
has a vision of Deep Throat and his father the most difficult of the season. The end of the episode reads "In Memoriam, Larry Wells, 1946 - 1995." Wells was a costume designer on the show. Mark Snow
Mark Snow
Mark Snow is an American composer for film and television.Born in New York, he grew up in Brooklyn, graduating from the High School of Music and Art and, afterwards, the Juilliard School of Music...
slightly changed the piano melody from the opening theme music (and the corresponding shortened theme in the credits) from the first two seasons in this episode. The music would remain unchanged for several years. The title of the episode refers to Navajo
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
ceremony of the Blessing Way. This is the first episode where Mitch Pileggi
Mitch Pileggi
Mitchell Craig "Mitch" Pileggi is an American actor. Pileggi is known for playing FBI assistant director Walter Skinner on the long-running popular series The X-Files. He also had a recurring role on Stargate Atlantis as Col. Steven Caldwell...
is credited under Also Starring at the opening credits.
Reception
David DuchovnyDavid 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:...
was somewhat disappointed with the episode, hoping he'd have had a chance to do more in an episode that was primarily a symbolic journey for him rather than a real one. The actor said "I like the psychology, and I like the thinking that went into the episode as a viewer. As an actor, I felt like an opportunity passed me by. If I had to do any episode over again, it would be that one." The actor called the episode in 1995 the greatest missed opportunity they had. 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 :...
disagreed, stating that it was 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...
's proper role in the episode was the right way to do it and that the dramatic weight for the episode had to be shifted from Mulder to 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...
.
This episode earned a Nielsen rating of 12.3, with a 22 share. It was viewed by 19.94 million people, making it the most viewed episode of season 3.