"In case you've forgot that's from your own graduate thesis. 
You were a lot more open minded when you were a youngster."

I remember reading an interview with Chris Carter years ago 
when he wisely mentioned that he would never do an episode 
about time travel, then again he also has said that there would 
be no Mulder/Scully romance and well... ( I know, I know - we'll 
talk about that next week). Anyway, back to this week (though 
it seems the "Small Potatoes" preview may overshadow most 
conversation about "Synchrony", I'm going to now block out 
that red wine drinking, sweater clad picture of St. Scully with 
Mulder or fauxMulder or Darin Mulder or whoever swooping in). 
OK, I think I've done it. Now, where were we? Oh yes, X-Files 
does "Back to the Future" or the Frosty the Freezinator.

New staffer and producer David Greenwalt offers his first script 
in conjunction with Howard Gordon. A script which seemed to 
be big on the stage directions "Scully scowls" and "Scully 
purses her lips" as that was most of what we got from Scully 
this episode. (Someone really needs to warn her when she 
does that all the time that if we learned *anything* this episode
it was that your face *can* freeze that way). Despite the fact 
that X-Files has stayed away from this time travel topic for so 
long, Greenwalt and Gordon appeared ready to tackle it armed 
with Dana Scully's *senior* (not graduate boys, rewatch the 
pilot and learn - I hear it's available on tape) thesis as their 
backing. Supposedly, if Scully once said it was theoretically 
possible (with caveats of course) - even if she doesn't believe 
it now it -it makes the concept more plausible? Heck, now I'm 
confused.

On the whole, while I didn't find this X-Files outing dull or 
stupid, it was, despite a few great moments pretty darn average. 
Just one of those episodes where the dynamic duo don't do 
much besides bumble around firmly grounded in their respective 
roles. In the end a number of people have died, the "monster" 
wasn't scary - just sad, nothing was really solved, the future 
will still no doubt play out in that depressing "world without 
history, a world without hope" scenario, and all we are really 
left with is the knowledge that Mulder has memorized Scully's 
"Einstein's Twin Paradox: A New Interpretation" thesis and 
has been waiting for years to use it against her - much to her 
chagrin. When, in looking for highlights you think things like 
"Gee, Mulder looked pretty cute wearing that pencil" or have 
to consider "And if your sister is your aunt and your mother 
marries your uncle then you'd be your own grandpa" the 
episode's Scullyism it is slim pickings.

I did enjoy greatly, as usual, Mark Snow's score with the 
spiraling woodwind sound. I did think that the "Oh my God, 
he's on fire" only to have it become true literally was quite 
well done (so to speak). And, sports fans - for the record - 
that's just about as much shock as you ever see in Scully's 
face - of course Mulder looks merely fascinated. I did enjoy 
some of the banter (but then again I always do) - especially 
"OK, so this photo that was never taken - when was it never 
taken?". I did enjoy Scully being so taken aback by Mulder's 
theory that she could only repeat an incredulous "What?" I 
did think it was funny to watch how Scully thought it was 
pretty darn low of Mulder to try to use her own theories against 
her. However, all those things do not a great episode make. 
In this case they made an OK episode.

Random Musings
------------------------

-Hiro Kanagawa, who played the doomed Dr. Yonechi, died 
another horrible death in "Firewalker". He's one retread that 
certainly has got to do some pretty intense death scenes.

-Speaking of cast members, perhaps the biggest mystery is 
why in the heck did FOX put out an official press release 
saying Charles Nelson Reilly was in this episode?

-So Lucas in the teaser was definitely not having a "lucky" 
day - he's hit by a bus advertising a lottery because an illegally 
parked car (ticket and all) blocks the driver's view while his 
colleague is desperately warning him. That is destiny.

-I can't help but be a bit disappointed that despite Scully 
calling Mulder several times she never gets to say "Mulder, 
it's me". "Where are you?" just isn't the same without it.

-That computer simulation of the deep freeze agent named it 
"Compound X".

-Bone-headed Moose move of the week: Mulder takes a fire 
extinguisher and breaks a big hole in the glass so he can 
peer through it instead of using that same fire extinguisher 
in his hands to perhaps put out the fire that is burning two 
people to death. Nah, much more interesting just to watch.

-I'm a little confused by the "I was 23 when I wrote that" line, 
as I think it sort of throws off the Scully time frame we've 
had to concoct in order to get her through college, med 
school, residency, FBI training, and working at Quantico 
by the time she joins the X-Files in March of 1992 (from the 
pilot episode) at the age of 28. Plus, she should have gotten 
her undergraduate physics degree at age 21 or 22.

-Surely Mr. Frosty from the future would know that deleting 
files off a computer at a major university wouldn't amount to 
anything. They do have a thing called backups at places 
like MIT.

-So, Mulder, who has a cell phone and knows how to use 
it, tells the guy he just sprung on bail for murder to go tell 
Scully something instead of just calling her? I think 
maybe without Scully around Mulder just wanted to tell 
someone what to do.

-So what are the amazing healing powers of the 
mysterious yellow bath? Personally, my Mom always 
warned me against stuff like that.

-Even though Scully firmly declares "This isn't gonna 
work" she is still the first to glance at the monitor for 
a heartbeat. Anyone else surprised at the second 
defreeze scene given how the first little experiment 
turned out? Did they just decide to blow off melting the 
campus policeman?

-I had to laugh at Scully's comment ("I'm not sure if living 
is a word I'd use on this place") about the hotel room as 
it really didn't look that much worse than some of the 
places they've stayed.

-Evidence of tachions? Someone call the Federation 
it's time to get to work on that Tachion Pulse!

Autumn
"If he lied for you what makes you think he wouldn't lie to you?"